July 2, 2020<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For the next 15 days we will be reading through the Psalms of Ascent together as a church! The Psalms of Ascent are a collection of 15 psalms (Psalms 120-134) that pilgrims would sing on their way up to Jerusalem to worship. These songs are meant to instruct and prepare the hearts of the traveler to worship the Lord! As sojourners and aliens in this world, we too need to have our hearts prepared for and instructed in the worship of our God. Let\u2019s meditate on these psalms and allow the Spirit of the Lord to move us to true worship as we seek Him together!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Psalm 123 is a psalm of waiting on the Lord, waiting on His mercy and deliverance. This song envisions a scenario in which the pilgrim worshippers are enduring the scorn and contempt of the proud, those who are at ease. Whether these references are meant towards the unfaithful in Israel itself or the unbelieving Gentiles is unclear, but throughout history God\u2019s people have, more often than not, been objects of ridicule and scorn from those in power. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
This psalm is simultaneously a plea for God\u2019s mercy to be demonstrated towards His people and a confident declaration of faith that it will. The psalmist writes in verse 2 \u201cso our eyes look to the LORD our God,\u00a0till<\/strong> he has mercy on us\u201d (emphasis mine). There is no question as to whether or not God is going to show mercy on His people; it is only a matter of time!<\/p>\n\n\n\n This is a great comfort and joy to all God\u2019s people who feel the weight of injustice, oppression, ridicule and scorn against them. We can and should cry out to God for His mercy and vindication to be poured out on us as we face the opposition of the world, but as we do so we must do it with absolute confidence that He will indeed do it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n We may not be able to see the mercy of our Lord coming, and our circumstances may tempt us to believe that it won\u2019t ever come, but the nature of faith is to believe that God will come through\u00a0in spite of<\/em> the supposed evidence to the contrary which surrounds us. We can have hope that God\u2019s mercy will come, that in the end He will vindicate His people and deliver them from oppression and scorn forever!<\/p>\n\n\n\n Until that day, we wait with confident faith. <\/p>\n\n\n\n