By: Dale Weckbacher
Psalm 116:1
I love
the Lord, because he has heard
my voice and my pleas for mercy.
my voice and my pleas for mercy.
(ESV)
Unfortunately, the English
language only has one word for love.
This is unfortunate because modern culture, dominated by the pursuit of
sexual pleasure, has relegated the meaning of the word love to the seeking of
sexual pleasure. Sexual pleasure is
something God intends people to enjoy but He intends for it to occur in the
boundaries of marriage so there is commitment and a stable home environment for
raising children. The elicit pursuit of
sexual pleasure is also behind the acceptance of abortion as it provides a
means to destroy the consequences of unwanted pregnancy, justifying it as a
woman’s right to choose. Unfortunately,
this perverted worldly view of love tarnishes our biblical view of the love of
God for humanity and how we should express love back to God.
The words of 1
Thessalonians 5:16-18 have application during this global pandemic and even
though they had not been written during the time of the writing of Psalm
116, they are present in the context of the psalm. 1
Thessalonians 5:16-18 reminds us to,
1) Rejoice
(1 Thessalonians 5:16) – Rejoicing is easy when things are going good in our
lives but can be difficult when facing a crisis. Psalm
116 begins with the psalmist expressing his love for the Lord because he hears
his cries for mercy (Psalm
116:1). In Psalm
116:3 the psalmist lets us know that this time in his life is not a time
free from struggle but a time when he faces death and suffers distress and
anguish. The key to rejoicing during
times of crisis is in remembering we are not rejoicing for the crisis but
instead rejoice because we serve a God, bigger than any crisis (Luke
1:37; 18:27). We also can rejoice in
knowing we serve a God who loves us and has good plans for us that do not
include our destruction (Jeremiah
29:11). Let us, therefore, rejoice
in God who is bigger than any crisis, including a global pandemic.
2) Pray
without ceasing (1
Thessalonians 5:17) – Prayer is perhaps the greatest privilege of a child
of God. This is because prayer is the
privilege to talk to God, the creator of the universe, even though each of us
has sinned (Romans
3:23) and lives under a penalty of death (Romans
6:23). Therefore this privilege is
not something we should take lightly for if not for the love, mercy, and grace of
God demonstrated by providing His Son as the sacrificial lamb for our sins, we
would live in an eternity separated from God.
The psalmist states his intention to call upon the Lord in prayer as
long as he lives out of love because the Lord hears him (Psalm
116:2). The Lord also wants to hear
from us for our prayers are like sweet incense to Him (Revelation
5:8). However, prayer without
ceasing does not mean one walks around mumbling to themselves but instead
indicates having an attitude of prayer throughout the day, taking things to God
with an attitude of rejoicing for what God has done and thanksgiving for answering
our prayer.
3) Giving
thanks in all circumstances (1
Thessalonians 5:18) – The psalmist refers to this as the sacrifice of
thanksgiving indicating it is the offering of thanksgiving when in anguish and
distress (Psalm
116:17). Like rejoicing, this is not
giving thanks for any suffering or crisis we are experiencing but thanking God in
advance of receiving an answer for hearing and answering our prayer. It is an act of faith expressed to God
indicating we believe He hears us and has our best interest in mind (Jeremiah
29:11). This must be the underlying
attitude of a believer in Christ for without faith, we cannot please God (Hebrews
11:6). For the psalmist, this
expression of thanksgiving involved lifting up the cup of salvation or a belief
in the future lamb of God that would take away his sins and paying his vows of
service to the Lord in the presence of God’s people.
The attitude of those expressing
a belief in Jesus Christ as Savior must be rejoicing in what Jesus has done,
Prayer without ceasing with prayer being our first reaction when in crisis, and
thanksgiving. This does not mean
Christians must rejoice or give thanks for a crisis but that they know God is
bigger than any crisis and can rejoice and be thankful in faith knowing God has
the crisis under control. However, to
enjoy this level of rejoicing and thanksgiving, one must establish a
relationship with God by accepting God’s Son Jesus as their savior. If you have not already done so, I invite you
to pray with me now,
Dear Lord Jesus, I know I have sinned (Romans
3:23) and know that the penalty for my sin is death (Romans
6:23). I ask you to forgive me of my
sin and cleanse me as you promise in your Word (1
John 1:9). I believe you died, spent
three days in the grave, and resurrected from the dead and now declare you Lord
of my life.
The psalmist in Psalm
116 continued to love the Lord and continually call upon Him even when in
distress and anguish, offering up the sacrifice of thanksgiving to the
Lord. The Apostle Paul instructed the Thessalonians
to rejoice in what the Lord has done, pray without ceasing, and to give thanks
to God in, and not for, all circumstances (1
Thessalonians 5:16-18). By following
the example of the psalmist and the instructions of the Apostle Paul, we can
maintain our mental and spiritual health as we go through the coronavirus
crisis. May God bless everyone reading
this post and may everyone stay safe, healthy, and strong knowing God is with
us and will deliver us through this crisis.
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