Psalm 89 p. 2

This post is continuation from yesterday.

This passage reminds me of Isaiah 53:

Who has believed our message

    and to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

He grew up before him like a tender shoot,

    and like a root out of dry ground.

He had no beauty or majesty to attract us to him,

    nothing in his appearance that we should desire him.

He was despised and rejected by mankind,

    a man of suffering, and familiar with pain.

Like one from whom people hide their faces

    he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.

Surely he took up our pain

    and bore our suffering,

yet we considered him punished by God,

    stricken by him, and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our transgressions,

    he was crushed for our iniquities;

the punishment that brought us peace was on him,

    and by his wounds we are healed.

We all, like sheep, have gone astray,

    each of us has turned to our own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

    the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and afflicted,

    yet he did not open his mouth;

he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,

    and as a sheep before its shearers is silent,

    so he did not open his mouth.

By oppression and judgment he was taken away.

    Yet who of his generation protested?

For he was cut off from the land of the living;

    for the transgression of my people he was punished.

He was assigned a grave with the wicked,

    and with the rich in his death,

though he had done no violence,

    nor was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush him and cause him to suffer,

    and though the Lord makes his life an offering for sin,

he will see his offspring and prolong his days,

    and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand.

After he has suffered,

    he will see the light of life and be satisfied;

by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many,

    and he will bear their iniquities.

Therefore I will give him a portion among the great,

    and he will divide the spoils with the strong,

because he poured out his life unto death,

    and was numbered with the transgressors.

For he bore the sin of many,

    and made intercession for the transgressors.

The beginning of Psalm 89 talks about the many ways He has rescued us. It talks about His faithfulness. It talks about His pursuit of us. 

But Psalm 89 soon shifts to concern over the descendants of David. His people feel spurned. They feel lost and alone.

I think many believers in these present times can relate to the sentiments expressed in this Psalm. In one moment we can pour out our hearts in praise, only to be broken and grief stricken the next.

I think Isaiah 53 is an important passage to remember because it illustrates that even in the low moments, He still bore our sins. He still made good on His promise to David. He still came to this earth and died a horrific death. He is the anointed one. By His wounds we are healed.

This messy world looked on its Savior with malice and scorn, but He still died for every single one of us. The promises outlined throughout the Old Testament He brought to fruition through that moment on the Cross. His promise to David and his descendants were fulfilled when He came to this earth as our Servant; as our Savior.

As a humble servant, He came to this world and calmed the mighty seas. Surely, no matter what lies ahead for us, He will continue to calm the waters and lead us.

He has already fulfilled His promises to us on the Cross. Let us take heart because He will not forsake us. He will not ignore us.  He will continue to lead us forward in all His abundant promises. He will continue to still the waters that threaten to engulf us. Always.

Psalm 89 demonstrates the complexities found in a relationship with Christ: moments of profound praise to moments of terrible sorrow. But Isaiah 53 is a beautiful reminder of all Christ has sacrificed for us. Even in moments of pain, even when everything seems lost - we can stand firm in the knowledge of our Savior. We can worship Him as He leads us on the path of salvation. We can rest in His redemption. We can find peace as He calms the storms surrounding us. 

On that day, when evening had come, he said to them, “Let us go across to the other side.” And leaving the crowd, they took him with them in the boat, just as he was. And other boats were with him. And a great windstorm arose, and the waves were breaking into the boat, so that the boat was already filling. But he was in the stern, asleep on the cushion. And they woke him and said to him, “Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?” And he awoke and rebuked the wind and said to the sea, “Peace! Be still!” And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. Mark 4:35-39

No matter the wreckage, we can keep the faith in our powerful Lord and Savior. Surely He will lead us through every storm in this life.

Praise be to the Lord forever.
Amen and Amen.