Week Five 

("Book reading - Journeying Out - Ann Morisey   Song reflection - The Perfect Love of Jesus  -   Psalms read - 22, 58, 94, 109) 

Throughout the Gospels Jesus frequently withdrew from people, ministry, daily life activities to spend time with God. Reflecting on Jesus' pattern for ministry of servant, sacrifice and solitude he knew the importance of being.

The priority of Jesus’ solitude and silence is everywhere in the Gospels. It’s how he began his ministry. It’s how he made important decisions. It’s how he dealt with troubling emotions like grief. It’s how he dealt with the constant demands of his ministry and cared for his soul. It’s how he taught his disciples. It’s how he prepared for important ministry events. It’s how he prepared for his death on the cross.

A Ministers sabbatical invites us to join Jesus in his solitude so we can know God as "Abba" too and share his love with others.  My place is the garden - it is my bliss - keeps me grounded and in communion with nature. Plants from Cornerstone Plant Sale certainly help with this - well done.

When John Wesley taught that there is no such thing as a solitary Christian he was emphasizing his belief in a particular kind of realized ecclesiology — that the church is the church when it is gathered as a “Society.” Far be it from me to deny the social aspect of the church, of the Body of Christ composed of many members, and of the need Christians have for each other - enforced solitude though is difficult (I am missing the amount of people I normally link with). There is a difference between personal and spiritual practices of solitude and lone times to recharge the batteries and working in isolation as a Christian. Called to be in communion with God and each other we journey together - pilgrims on a divine journey of grace and love. 

Psalms - Did you know that 22 of the Psalms do not appear in the Lectionary cycle - these are 3, 7, 21, 28, 38, 55, 58, 59, 61, 76, 83, 87, 94, 101,102, 109, 110, 115, 117, 134, 140 and 149

Psalm 22 - was most likely written during the reign of David as king of Israel (1010 – 970 B.C.). Before the time of Jesus, the Psalm was often read as a desperate prayer to God in a time of trouble. The Psalm captures the pain and agony of extreme suffering, while also highlighting the glory of God. There is a deep longing, lament in this Psalm and Jesus quotes a portion of the whilst on the cross.  “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?…” (psalm 22:1); “and about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?’ that is, ‘my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?’” (Matt 27:46).

Did the writer of the Psalm or its listeners see this a prophetic telling of the coming Messiah or a deep lament similar to Job or Jeremiah? It is considered the one of the Davidic-Messianic (the earliest being Psalm 2)

This is the Psalm we read also at the end of our Maundy Thursday service depicting the torment and horror of the suffering servant. Lament - to mourn deeply, express hear sorrow over a loss of death. We find these often in the Psalms, CS Lewis on the death of his beloved wife Joy. If you haven't see the film Shadowlands - it is worth watching
Meanwhile, where is God? This is one of the most disquieting symptoms.

When you are happy, so happy that you have no sense of needing Him, so happy that you are tempted to feel His claims upon you as an interruption, if you remember yourself and turn to Him with gratitude and praise, you will be—or so it feels—welcomed with open arms.

But go to Him when your need is desperate, when all other help is vain, and what do you find? A door slammed in your face, and a sound of bolting and double bolting on the inside. After that, silence. You may as well turn away. The longer you wait, the more emphatic the silence will become.

There are no lights in the windows. It might be an empty house. Was it ever inhabited? It seemed so once. And that seeming was as strong as this. What can this mean? Why is He so present a commander in our time of prosperity and so very absent a help in our time of trouble? (CS Lewis A Grief Observed [New York: Bantam, 1961], 4-5) 

David in writing the psalm journeys from self to "But You" - look at the problem and the pattern in the Psalm. 
In the first couple of verses 

David groans to God . . . but there seems to be no salvation and none of God’s presence.
David cries to God . . . but there seems to be no answer and no rest.

And yet David moves from suffering to hope. Is this a pattern for us to follow. 

Psalm 58  - Yet another Psalm of lament but more - the writer - David calls down judgement on wicked leaders, rulers - this is called a Imprecatory Psalm.  A prayer for diving justice on wicked leaders.
It is only 11 verses but knowing the history of the Psalm is important. 

It suggested that this Psalm reflects in 1 Samuel 26 where Abner was giving King Saul evil counsel. Evil counsel to pursue David, to chase him down, to kill him, to rid the earth of David's presence.

And in 1 Samuel 26, we read about how God caused a very deep sleep to fall upon Saul and all of his camp. And while everyone was asleep, including Abner, who was Saul’s right hand man, David and one of his right hand men sneak into the camp right up to where Saul is sleeping on the ground, and they take Saul’s spear and they take his water jug, probably a leather water bottle, and they take these and they go out.

Then when the sun comes up, there’s David up on a hill looking down over the camp and he yells out for Saul. And he chews out Abner says, you weren’t protecting your king. Look, I’ve got the Saul spear and his water bottle and his king Saul looked down. Sure enough, they’re gone.

And he says, I could have killed you if I’d wanted to, but I’m not going to kill you. You’re my king. And Saul immediately repented and turned and left. He regretted what he had been doing.

But Abner was the one who kept egging Saul on to do this wickedness of trying to pursue and kill David. So anyways, that is the suggested background for Psalm 58.

The opening of the Psalm offers the following "For the director of music. To the tune of “Do Not Destroy.” Of David. A miktam".  Miktam is considered a musical term though otehr transaptions use the term Michtam which means engraved into metal. 

"God, knock the teeth out of their mouths" (Psalm 58:6). While this may seem aggressive, it symbolizes God's power to silence the wicked and protect His people from their harmful words and actions. 

I remember illustrating the power of words one day - knocking nails into wood and removing the nails still leaves the holes, the scars. 

In a week of local elections we need to pray even more for our elected leaders - where they are our chosen ones or not. Pray for wisdom and integrity.

David is writing this psalm basically to ask questions, what makes evil people tick? Why are they deaf? Why are they venomous? And he doesn’t even really give us an answer. He simply states, this is the case.
  
Psalm 94 - the most painful wounds hurt. This is a Psalm written for a suffering community - God’s people were assaulted by the wicked, and then watching their assailants seem to get away with it. 
The author is not listed - liked to David or Moses it could be a later writer. And sung on a Wednesday. 23 verses it continues the patter of Psalm 58 in praying against corrupt and unjust leaders and shared themes with Psalm 10. 23 verses long as you read it the longing connects with us and our world issues.  It is the faithful appeal to God to do something. 


O Lord, how long shall the wicked,
     how long shall the wicked exult?
They pour out their arrogant words;
     all the evildoers boast.
They crush your people, O Lord,
     and afflict your heritage.
They kill the widow and the sojourner,
     and murder the fatherless. (Psalm 94:3–6)

The psalmist offers hope and comfort remind the followers of God to remain righteous inspite. It is a trajectory of the human history - a counter narrative to the world and its order. What counter narrative can we offer the world? When question by the world about whose side are we on - our answer must always be God's. When we are questioned for getting involved with world issues and politics we are speaking the words of truth and grace.

Ponder verse 19: When anxiety was great within me, your consolation brought me joy. 

Ponder verse 22 But the Lord has become my fortress, and my God the rock in whom I take refuge.
 
Psalm 109 - David pens another Psalm considered as the strongest imprecatory psalms, David’s songs that call down curses upon his enemies. It is important to remember that these are prayers, committing vengeance unto God. With the greater revelation of grace and truth that came by Jesus Christ, we are to pray for the good of our enemies, and not for their ruin.

David left it to God - he pours out his heart and seeks the balm of God. Comfort, strength and grace.  Its historical context centered around 2 possible key moments - (though to be fair most of David's life events are key) -  legal-style crisis where David faced slander, fitting the context of 2 Samuel 15–17 (rebellion) or his earlier flight from Saul. 

It is also cited as the Judas or Iscariot Psalm due to to v8 - May his days be few; may another take his office!" - The phrase let another take his office was, quoted by Peter to determine that the apostles should replace Judas in their apostolic number (Acts 1:20). 

The psalm opens with a plea - Lord do not be silent. This implies a lack of action - is God every inactive? David Says - "don't ignore me, hear me and respond to my request."  As the wicked surrender David seeks the Lord to defend him. What a reminder to us that we don't always have to defend ourselves. We serve a God who is for us, working in ways we cannot see.  Oh how we need to remember that.  We strive to be faithful, demonstrate love - David is rewarded - good with evil, love with hatred and he prays.

We see the shadow of the cross her - Jesus without cause - blameless, good, pure - life marked with evil surrounding him, falsely accused and lies spoken against him.  Jesus prays.

Let our commitment be to prayer.