Today's Readings: Jeremiah 23:5–8; Psalm 112; Matthew 1:18–25
Sometimes when I read the Bible, I mistakenly read it with my experience as the filter and inevitably start to argue with God. “That’s not really how it works.” Or “Really? People won’t agree with that.”
I did that with Psalm 112 the first couple of times I read it in preparing for this devotional. It sounded a little too good to be true; I got this “prosperity” feel, like it was promising I would have things like power, wealth, and victory in all I do if I trusted God. However, that was me focusing on me and evaluating scripture based on my experience. I don’t recommend reading God’s Word that way.
Then, I noticed the context of the Psalm: verse 1. Just like those magic eye pictures that jump off the page as soon as you see it, I realized my error and gained a better perspective. The first verse is the filter of the rest of the Psalm. “Hallelujah! Happy is the person who fears the LORD, taking great delight in his commands.” Similar to Proverbs, this Psalm points us to the goodness of God to those who fear him (think humility before him) and delight in his ways. And here’s the kicker, it is God who both defines and provides what will happen in and through me as I look to him.
By focusing on the goodness of God, I also saw how this Psalm gives us a great perspective during this Advent season. It is God who defines and provides our “light shining in the darkness” (vs. 4), us never being shaken (vs. 6), not fearing bad news by being confident in the LORD (vs. 7), and being assured without fear (vs. 8).
Advent is about looking to the promises of God, Jesus Christ. “For every one of God’s promises is ‘Yes’ in him. Therefore, through him, we also say ‘Amen’ to the glory of God” (2 Corinthians 1:20). Advent is this time when we look forward, in joy, to the coming of Jesus, despite our own experiences, hardships, or darkness we’re facing. It’s about humbling ourselves before God, focusing on his promises, and delighting in his ways.
2020 has been and continues to be like no other year I have experienced. It has been easy to focus on me and lose sight of God’s goodness. As I focus on the coming of Jesus, I needed the reminder of Psalm 112: God is good as he defines and provides what will happen to me as I humble myself before him and delight in his ways. Because of Jesus, we can let our light shine in the darkness; we need not fear bad news but instead be confident in God, and we can have the assurance that we have victory in him.
