May 12, 2023 — Psalm 29

“Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory of his name; worship the Lord in holy splendor. The voice of the Lord is over the waters; the God of glory thunders, the Lord, over mighty waters. The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon. He makes Lebanon skip like a calf, and Sirion like a young wild ox. The voice of the Lord flashes forth flames of fire. The voice of the Lord shakes the wilderness; the Lord shakes the wilderness of Kadesh. The voice of the Lord causes the oaks to whirl, and strips the forest bare; and in his temple all say, “Glory!”  The Lord sits enthroned over the flood; the Lord sits enthroned as king forever. May the Lord give strength to his people! May the Lord bless his people with peace!” Psalm 29

“The 29th psalm is a prophecy of the Gospel, that it shall resound with power throughout the world and overthrow the wisdom and renown of all kings, princes, lords, and peoples, and Christ alone shall be the only King. He shall be served and glorified with true wisdom and holiness. Therefore, He established the flood, Baptism, in which the old Adam is drowned and the new man arises. He gives the name of deserts, forests, and deer to the lands of the earth that were under Jew or Gentile and that have been opened and converted to the Gospel.” (Martin Luther, Reading the Psalms with Luther)

Ascribe to the Lord! In other words, let us attribute to or give to the Lord what is due. And what does the Psalmist say is due? Glory! Strength! Honor! Majesty! These are all things we know define our Lord — for the Lord is to be glorified — is our strength — deserves our honor — and continues to thunder in our lives. But do we always ascribe to the Lord the things that we should ascribe? Probably not. Too often we see how evil seems to win the day in our world, and in our lives — or too often the Devil gets his due, but the Lord is left behind. We are so quick to assign tribute to evil, but less willing to say that we have had a G-d moment or two throughout our day. I guess it all depends on how powerful we believe our G-d really is. The Psalmist says: “The voice of the Lord is powerful; the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. The voice of the Lord breaks the cedars; the Lord breaks the cedars of Lebanon.” That my friends is a powerful G-d.

So, many ascribe power to the Lord, but too many others believe that evil is more powerful than G-d. How do we change their minds? The Psalmist gives us the answer: “May the Lord give strength to his people!” We, the people of G-d, those who trust in the Lord, are given power and strength to face evil and fight the presence of the devil in our world. We are the people of G-d — and we should live as if the Lord is our strength.

Prayer: Thanks and praise be unto You, our God and Lord, for sending us the Gospel of Your Son, Jesus Christ, in which You teach us the way of salvation and comfort us with the hope of everlasting life. Make Your Word in us a power of salvation, and the anchor of our souls in life and death. Cause also the voice of Your Word to be sounded abroad, that the nations that do not know You may come to Your light. Amen.

Pastor Dave

May 11, 2023 — Psalm 28

“To you, O Lord, I call; my rock, do not refuse to hear me,

for if you are silent to me, I shall be like those who go down to the Pit. Hear the voice of my supplication, as I cry to you for help, as I lift up my hands toward your most holy sanctuary. Do not drag me away with the wicked, with those who are workers of evil, who speak peace with their neighbors, while mischief is in their hearts. Repay them according to their work, and according to the evil of their deeds; repay them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward. Because they do not regard the works of the Lord, or the work of his hands, he will break them down and build them up no more. Blessed be the Lord, for he has heard the sound of my pleadings. The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts; so I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. The Lord is the strength of his people; he is the saving refuge of his anointed. O save your people, and bless your heritage; be their shepherd, and carry them forever.” Psalm 28

“The 28th psalm is a psalm of prayer that David prayed against Saul and similar enemies. He prayed especially against this evil: that they spoke well to him and acted friendly at times, yet attempted to kill him—so David was concerned lest God hold him accountable for this, and therefore he prayed that he might not be carried off with the godless. We can pray this psalm against the tyrants and against the rebellious spirits. For the tyrants portray themselves as friendly, yet in daily machinations they seek ways to kill and destroy. The rebellious spirits praise God’s glory, Word, and worship in highest measure; they want to help all the world and are extraordinarily humble. Yet for all of that, they seek the corruption of souls and are, under sheep’s clothing, ravening wolves.” (Martin Luther, Reading the Psalms with Luther)

“The Lord is the strength of his people”, says the Psalmist. It is true — we are a strong people when we are a people united in our faith and our trust in G-d. And, this does not need to be just Lutherans, or Episcopalians, or Presbyterians or other Christians, like Catholics, and Methodists. When we call ourselves people of G-d, then we include our Jewish and our Islamic brothers and sisters as well — for we are all people of G-d.

And when we are confronted with disease, destruction, or death, then we need the strength of the Lord — if, as people of G-d, we will see our way through such difficult times. This is the time to work together — not to separate ourselves into different factions of believers – but to be the people of G-d. “Blessed be the Lord, for he has heard the sound of my pleadings.” It is now that we all need to come together in prayer. We pray for ourselves, our families, our neighbors of faith, and our neighbors throughout the community, the country and the world.

Prayer: God of all grace, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who knows the enemies of Your Church and are able to thwart all their designs; designs; protect us against all tyrants, heretics, and hypocrites. Hear our prayer and grant us to love Your Word, to promote Your honor upon earth, and to continue in Your service always even to the end.Amen.

Pastor Dave