I've been reading through the book of Psalms of late.
So much has poured over my soul in the first few Psalms, but one motif that runs through them all, that has struck me most powerfully, is the freedom God gives. As I read and reflect, it is an uncontainable truth, and almost too much for me to bear. You have to remember, although we claim we want freedom, it's a bit like Olaf wanting the summer and the sun: we don't know what we are talking about! But in and through the Psalms (and the whole message of the Bible), God reports to us about true freedom, and offers it to us by his spirit. Jesus said to the people, and to us, 'My words are spirit and they are life.' (John 6:63) Jesus also cautioned the pedantic Nicodemus that to know the truth is like being caught up by the wind (John 8:3), that it would blow us, and through us, in an untraceable way. Jesus also cautioned - but thrilled us - with the promise that to know him, to 'believe in him', would tap a source of 'living water' that would not only flow over us, but 'from within us.' (John 7:37-38) Jesus said that to know him was, in essence, 'eternal life'. (John 17:3) He said to believe in him was to defy death now and forevermore. (John 11:25- 26) So against this backdrop of Christ, and his life that embodied the Word of God (John 1:14), reading through the Psalms I see this powerful, spirit word and truth, as paradoxical as the Trinity. Jesus cried out on the cross, asking God to defend him (Psalm 31:5b), and as his spirit trickled away, in a picture of death, we see that God did ultimately defend him (Psalm 31:8), and with him, us. 'Jesus said, 'I am the door. He who enters through me will be saved.' (John 10:9)
0 Comments
Your comment will be posted after it is approved.
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorPeter Walker. I hope you enjoy these reflections. Please feel free to comment!:) Archives
February 2024
Categories |