April 27, 2023 — Psalm 16

“Protect me, O God, for in you I take refuge. I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you.” As for the holy ones in the land, they are the noble, in whom is all my delight. Those who choose another god multiply their sorrows; their drink offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names upon my lips. The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup; you hold my lot. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places; I have a goodly heritage. I bless the Lord who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I keep the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my soul rejoices; my body also rests secure. For you do not give me up to Sheol, or let your faithful one see the Pit. You show me the path of life. In your presence there is fullness of joy; in your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” Psalm 16

“My goodness is nothing apart from You: David knew that his very best – all of his goodness – was nothing apart from God.

· It was nothing when it came to making David righteous before God; he needed God to bring His righteousness to David.

· It was nothing because David’s goodness was itself a gift of God; therefore apart from Him, it was nothing.

· It was nothing because David’s goodness, as precious as it was, was of small value without his relationship with God.”

 (enduringword.com, psalm 16 commentary, Greenham, cited in Spurgeon)

The psalmist’s words “I say to the Lord, “You are my Lord; I have no good apart from you” are words of pure trust and faith. They are words that show a true commitment to G-d. Any relationship that does not have real trust is a weak and shaky relationship. This is why we must be constantly be working and working on all relationships, because a relationship without trust is surly built on sand.

The Psalmist says: “I keep the Lord always before me; because (the Lord) is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” We have all heard the saying “He or she is my right-hand man (woman).” Perhaps this Psalm is the origin of this idiom. When we keep the Lord as our “Right Hand companion”, as our wing man, then perhaps we will understand how much more we should rejoice and be glad. We must approach every season of our lives with a sense of humility and gratification. All that we have is evidence of G-d’s goodness. Instead of entitlement, we should live every day rejoicing and praising G-d for all the blessings we have.

Prayer: Thanks be unto You, Lord Jesus, for Your bitter sufferings, Your shameful death, and Your joyous resurrection. Enlighten our eyes to see in You the way unto life. Uphold us by Your truth, so we may not fall into idolatry and false worship, and preserve us in the true faith unto eternal life. Amen.

Pastor Dave