Psalm Sunday – Three Minute Bible

February 23, 2020May 21, 2021

Psalm Sunday – Heart Exam

The Lord is in his holy temple;
the Lord is on his heavenly throne.
He observes everyone on earth;
his eyes examine them.

— Psalm 11: 4

I like this verse from Psalm 11 because it reminds us that God is watching. More than that, more than being just a casual observer of the human race, God examines us.

In Luke 12:7 Jesus tells us that God has numbered the “very hairs of your head.” (I realize that for some of us, that may not seem like much of a challenge.) Think about the detail that represents. Then think about the fact that God operates at the molecular level. Psalm 139:13 tells us that God knits us together in our mother’s womb.

What else does God see?

February 16, 2020May 24, 2021

Psalm Sunday – Coin Toss

For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

— Psalm 1: 6

This sounds like an Affirmation Monday verse, but it also happens to be a verse from Psalms. So today’s verse a twofer! 🙂

The two key points in this verse center around definitions. What does it mean to be “righteous” and what does it mean to be “wicked?”

Righteousness means “doing what is right.” That is all there is to it. Oh… I know … most dictionaries throw in a qualifier about doing what is “morally right,” but honestly who in the secular world is going to decide what is moral? Only God can do that.

February 9, 2020May 26, 2021

Psalm Sunday – Context

But let all who take refuge in you be glad;
let them ever sing for joy.
Spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may rejoice in you.

— Psalm 5: 11

People who study the Bible often talk about the importance of context. Taking a verse out of context can entirely change its meaning. Except sometimes it doesn’t.

Psalm 5 starts as a lament of King David. He mourns the sinfulness of wicked people. He complains about their arrogance and their lies. They offend God and because they offend God, David is offended, too.

February 2, 2020February 2, 2020

Psalm Sunday – Movies

For you are not a God who is pleased with wickedness;
    with you, evil people are not welcome.

But I, by your great love,
    can come into your house;
in reverence I bow down
    toward your holy temple.

— Psalm 5: 4, 7

Have you ever noticed how many stories are based on the Bible? The Bible story is based on Jesus coming into our world. He offers us a special relationship. He is wonderful. But something bad has happened. The people Jesus loves have been taken captive by his arch-enemy, Satan. In the battle to free his people, Jesus is killed. Then, amazingly, he comes back to life.

In the movies, the hero often follows a similar story arc. A great sacrifice is needed. Sometimes the hero or heroine even dies. Once in a while, the hero comes back to life. (If you have ever seen the movie, Princess Bride, you know what I mean.)

January 26, 2020January 26, 2020

Psalm Sunday – A Prayer Medley

Hear my cry for help,
    my King and my God,
    for to you I pray.

In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice;
    in the morning I lay my requests before you
    and wait expectantly.

— Psalm 5: 2-3

David, the psalm writer, knows about needing help. Invited into King Saul’s service as a boy, it isn’t long before the king becomes jealous of David. God and David already have a close relationship. David has a simple, child-like faith. God looks on that faith and honors it by blessing what David does. David the child defending the army of Israel with a sling was an example of that relationship.

Because David relies on God, God blesses David. Because God blesses David, the people of Israel honor David. Because Saul has lost God’s blessing (see 1 Samuel 13) Saul is jealous of David. Jealously leads to strife and strife leads to Saul trying repeatedly to kill David. During all this time David remains faithful to Saul and respects God’s anointing.

January 19, 2020January 20, 2020

Psalm Sunday – Sweet Sleep

I lie down and sleep;
I wake again, because the Lord sustains me.

— Psalm 3: 5

In peace I will lie down and sleep,
for you alone, Lord,
make me dwell in safety.

— Psalm 4: 8

David, the psalmist, lived an amazing life. As a boy he was a shepherd, living with the flocks he watched over. Fighting off predators, finding the lost, helping the lame. In a very real sense, he foreshadows the work of our Savior, Jesus. But David was not Jesus. He was not perfect.

January 12, 2020January 12, 2020

Psalm Sunday – Psalm 2: 11-12

Serve the Lord with fear
    and celebrate his rule with trembling.
Kiss his son, or he will be angry
    and your way will lead to your destruction,
for his wrath can flare up in a moment.
    Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

Picture Perfect

Imagine if you will a placid beautiful lake. The lake is surrounded by rolling hills, fruit orchards, and lush fields. Animals play in the fields and birds fill the air. You and others are in boats of some kind; canoes, sailboats, paddle-boards, all enjoying the water and the sunshine.

At the far end of the lake stands a large figure. In our imaginary world, this is God, the Lord. He rules the land and the people on the lake. At his feet there is a cleft in the rock and the lake flows into a narrow ravine. The Lord guards the way and has commanded all the people to stay away from this place, to enjoy the lake and the surrounding hills, but to avoid the river.

December 29, 2019December 30, 2019

Psalm Sunday – Psalm 1: 4-6

Not so the wicked!
They are like chaff
that the wind blows away.

Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment,
nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.

For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous,
but the way of the wicked leads to destruction.

The Big Picture

As I read this passage, the Pharisees of Jesus’ day come to mind. They seemed to think of themselves as righteous. They certainly acted like they thought they were God’s gift to humanity. Yet, what they did in conspiring against Jesus was very wicked.

Among all the righteous men who have ever lived, Jesus is by far the most righteous of all. Being without sin, he defines what it means to be righteous. It might be unfair to compare these people to this verse, but it might also open the door to understanding something about God’s perspective.

December 22, 2019December 23, 2019

Psalm Sunday – Psalm 1: 3

That person [the one who delights in the law of the Lord] is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.

Good Soil

There is something you may have heard about called the “prosperity gospel.*” I acknowledge this because it is a hot topic for many Bible-believing Christians. In the study of James that we just started James dives right in by talking about “trials of many kinds.” Paul, in his letter to the Romans (Chapter 5) starts with a discussion of sufferings and how believers are to “glory in our sufferings” (vs 3). So there is a potential for confusion. Some verses, like today’s, offer the hope of prospering while others talk about the reality of suffering. Yet I firmly believe that “all scripture is God-breathed” (2 Timothy 3:16).

So what do we make of this?

December 15, 2019December 18, 2019

Psalm Sunday – Psalm 1: 1-2

Blessed is the one
    who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
    or sit in the company of mockers,
but whose delight is in the law of the Lord,
    and who meditates on his law day and night.

Today’s meditation begins another new feature at Three Minute Bible, Psalm Sunday. Each Sunday we will look into the Psalms for inspiration. I don’t know if we will jump around the book of Psalms or go straight through. Either way, there is a lot of material here so I’m not worried about running out of things to talk about.

Two Paths

In today’s verse, King David points to two different paths. One path is described as the place where the wicked are. Sinners are there as are mockers. Is this information helpful? How do we discern what is sin or what the wicked do? Mocking is easy to recognize, but is the mocker bad?