Psalm 48
Scripture: Psalm 48:9 Within your temple, O God, we meditate on your unfailing love.
Observation-What does it say? The author of this Psalm is not known, nor is there an exact date or event to attribute it to. However, according to Charles Spurgeon, it might be attributed to the overthrow of Moab, Edom, and Ammon, during the reign of Jehoshaphat (see 2 Chronicles 20). This Psalm can be divided into three parts: Verses 1-3, a general praise of the Lord and His city; verses 4-8, a record of the confusion of Israel’s enemies attributed to God; verses 9-11, an invitation for God to reign over Israel forever.
Spurgeon continues on in his commentary, addressing some of the intricacies of verse nine, pointing out the importance of mediating on God’s goodness. If we allow ourselves, we could easily fall into the mundane routine of everyday life: wake up, go to work, eat dinner, go to sleep and repeat. But when we take time to remember the good things God has provided for us, we find strength in times of trials. Furthermore, when we meet together as a group of fellow believers, we act as a living temple. And we, as living stones, have the ability to strengthen each other through sharing God’s goodness when we are together.
Understanding-What does it mean? The other night I was scrolling through the pictures on my phone, trying to erase anything that was unnecessary because I refuse to pay for extra space in “the cloud.” This is a process that always takes a little longer than I expect. Inevitably, I end up showing my wife old pictures of our boys, her grandmother, family parties, vacations. Reminiscing about the good times, often makes the struggles we have gone through seem much smaller.
The holidays are going to be here before we know it and the same thing will happen. We will get together with our families for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas, catch up on life, remember the past and celebrate the things to come. It’s through these times of fellowship that our family bond grows stronger.
In the family of God, we are called to do something similar. Hebrews 10:23-25 reads, “23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.” We can take the opportunity to gather together, remember the hard times that God has brought us through, the goodness that he continually bestows upon us, and the future glory we will see through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.
Life Application: Jesus, remind me to be grateful, to gather and to worship. I cannot share your goodness, unless I am willing to share my life and open my home. Bless our home, and help us to be a place of safety and fellowship for others.
-Tyler Galloway