common grace

Praiseworthy

/ kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

1 Praise the LORD!
For it is good to sing praises to our God;
    for it is pleasant, and a song of praise is fitting.
2 The LORD builds up Jerusalem;
    he gathers the outcasts of Israel.
3 He heals the brokenhearted
    and binds up their wounds.
4 He determines the number of the stars;
    he gives to all of them their names.
5 Great is our LORD, and abundant in power;
    his understanding is beyond measure.
6 The LORD lifts up the humble;
    he casts the wicked to the ground.

7 Sing to the LORD with thanksgiving;
    make melody to our God on the lyre!
8 He covers the heavens with clouds;
    he prepares rain for the earth;
    he makes grass grow on the hills.
9 He gives to the beasts their food,
    and to the young ravens that cry.
10 His delight is not in the strength of the horse,
    nor his pleasure in the legs of a man,
11 but the LORD takes pleasure in those who fear him,
    in those who hope in his steadfast love.

12 Praise the LORD, O Jerusalem!
    Praise your God, O Zion!
13 For he strengthens the bars of your gates;
    he blesses your children within you.
14 He makes peace in your borders;
    he fills you with the finest of the wheat.
15 He sends out his command to the earth;
    his word runs swiftly.
16 He gives snow like wool;
    he scatters frost like ashes.
17 He hurls down his crystals of ice like crumbs;
    who can stand before his cold?
18 He sends out his word, and melts them;
    he makes his wind blow and the waters flow.
19 He declares his word to Jacob,
    his statutes and rules to Israel.
20 He has not dealt thus with any other nation;
    they do not know his rules.
Praise the LORD! – Psalm 147:1-20 ESV

In this psalm, the author provides a litany of reasons to praise Yahweh that emphasize His power and provision for His chosen people. In verse 20, the psalmist stresses that Yahweh’s care and concern for the Israelites was unique to them.

He has not done this for any other nation;
they do not know his regulations. – Psalm 147:20 NLT

All people on earth enjoy Yahweh’s common grace, His unmerited blessings that come in the form of life, sustenance, and a patient restraint from delivering the judgment they deserve for their rebellion against Him.

The LORD is good to everyone.
He showers compassion on all his creation. – Psalm 145:9 NLT

He does not punish us for all our sins;
he does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve.– Psalm 103:10 NLT

Jesus declared that His Father “gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike” (Matthew 5:45 NLT). This common grace is available to all, but only the Israelites experienced Yahweh’s special grace in the form of His sovereign selection of them as His treasured possession.

“Now if you will obey me and keep my covenant, you will be my own special treasure from among all the peoples on earth; for all the earth belongs to me. And you will be my kingdom of priests, my holy nation.’ This is the message you must give to the people of Israel.” – Exodus 19:5-6 NLT

Moses reminded the people of Israel that they had been chosen by God, not because there was anything special about them, but simply because God had ordained them to be the recipients of His divine favor.

For you are a holy people, who belong to the LORD your God. Of all the people on earth, the LORD your God has chosen you to be his own special treasure.

“The LORD did not set his heart on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other nations, for you were the smallest of all nations! Rather, it was simply that the LORD loves you, and he was keeping the oath he had sworn to your ancestors.– Deuteronomy 7:6-8 NLT

This psalm was addressed to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and was intended to remind them of their unmeritorious status as Yahweh’s chosen people. Some scholars believe this psalm was sung at the dedication of the newly constructed walls of Jerusalem, an event recorded in the Book of Nehemiah. After the Israelites spent 70 years in exile after the Babylonian invasion of Judah and the destruction of Jerusalem, Yahweh allowed a remnant of them to return so they could rebuild and repopulate the city. When the walls of Jerusalem were completed, Nehemiah organized a special dedication ceremony to commemorate the day.

For the dedication of the new wall of Jerusalem, the Levites throughout the land were asked to come to Jerusalem to assist in the ceremonies. They were to take part in the joyous occasion with their songs of thanksgiving and with the music of cymbals, harps, and lyres. The singers were brought together from the region around Jerusalem and from the villages of the Netophathites. They also came from Beth-gilgal and the rural areas near Geba and Azmaveth, for the singers had built their own settlements around Jerusalem. The priests and Levites first purified themselves; then they purified the people, the gates, and the wall. – Nehemiah 12:27-30 NLT

Nehemiah formed two large choirs accompanied by musicians and sent them to the top of the recently completed walls. One choir headed south and the other north, singing praises to Yahweh as they made their way along the wall.

The two choirs that were giving thanks then proceeded to the Temple of God, where they took their places. So did I, together with the group of leaders who were with me.…They played and sang loudly under the direction of Jezrahiah the choir director. – Nehemiah 12:40, 42 NLT

They likely sang the words recorded in Psalm 147.

The LORD is rebuilding Jerusalem
    and bringing the exiles back to Israel. – Psalm 147:2 NLT

Yahweh had been gracious to His rebellious people, allowing them to return to the land of Judah to rebuild their destroyed city and restore the broken relationship with Him. They had done nothing to deserve this second chance opportunity to begin again with Yahweh. It was all a result of His unmerited favor and grace. The same God who “counts the stars and calls them all by name” (Psalm 147:4 NLT), also “heals the brokenhearted and bandages their wounds” (Psalm 147:3 NLT). 

The God who created the universe was willing to stoop down and shower His unrepentant people with compassion. None of it made sense to the psalmist. This marvelous outpouring of Yahweh’s mercy and grace was too much for him to understand.

How great is our LORD! His power is absolute!
    His understanding is beyond comprehension! – Psalm 147:5 NLT

The psalmist could not comprehend the magnitude of Yahweh’s love for His chosen people. Despite all they had done to offend Him, Yahweh had responded with lovingkindness and unfailing love. Long before the people returned from their exile in Babylon, the prophet Micah had declared its future fulfillment.

Where is another God like you,
    who pardons the guilt of the remnant,
    overlooking the sins of his special people?
You will not stay angry with your people forever,
    because you delight in showing unfailing love.
Once again you will have compassion on us.
    You will trample our sins under your feet
    and throw them into the depths of the ocean!
You will show us your faithfulness and unfailing love
    as you promised to our ancestors Abraham and Jacob long ago. – Micah 7:18-20 NLT

The psalmist was standing on the other end of this prophecy’s fulfillment and was able to witness the goodness and grace of God as he surveyed the recently completed walls of Jerusalem. That is why he could write, “Sing out your thanks to the LORD; sing praises to our God with a harp” (Psalm 147:7 NLT). His praise was not speculative or based on a probable outcome; it was founded on reality. Yahweh had done what He promised to do. He had warned them of their pending judgment, but He had also assured them of their inevitable return. 

This is what the Lord says: “You will be in Babylon for seventy years. But then I will come and do for you all the good things I have promised, and I will bring you home again. For I know the plans I have for you,” says the Lord. “They are plans for good and not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope. In those days when you pray, I will listen. If you look for me wholeheartedly, you will find me. I will be found by you,” says the Lord. “I will end your captivity and restore your fortunes. I will gather you out of the nations where I sent you and will bring you home again to your own land.” – Jeremiah 29:10-14 NLT

Yahweh had kept His word, and He had done so, not based on human merit but based on His grace and mercy. Their return to Judah had not been the result of conquest or military might. The Israelites had not fought their way out of Babylon; they had been redeemed by God’s grace.

He takes no pleasure in the strength of a horse
    or in human might.
No, the LORD’s delight is in those who fear him,
    those who put their hope in his unfailing love. – Psalm 147:10-11 NLT

Now that they were back in the land of promise, the psalmist encouraged them to live up to their status as God’s chosen people.

Glorify the LORD, O Jerusalem!
    Praise your God, O Zion!
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates
    and blessed your children within your walls. – Psalm 147:12-13 NLT

They had nothing to brag about because they had done nothing to bring about the reversal of their fortunes; it had all been Yahweh’s doing. The least they could do was praise Him.

The psalmist emphasizes Yahweh’s power as expressed in His verbal command over the universe. He speaks, and things happen. At the word of His mouth, the universe came into being. All Yahweh has to do is open His mouth, and the weather changes.

He sends his orders to the world—
    how swiftly his word flies! – Psalm 147:15 NLT

Yahweh spoke to King Cyrus of Persia and orchestrated the release of His captive people.

In the first year of Cyrus king of Persia, that the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah might be fulfilled, the LORD stirred up the spirit of Cyrus king of Persia, so that he made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing. – Ezra 1:1 ESV

Cyrus, moved by the Spirit of God, decreed that the Israelites were free to return to the land of Judah. Years later, when King Artaxerxes ruled, he gave Ezra permission to return to Jerusalem so he could teach the people of Israel God’s law.

…the king gave him everything he asked for, because the gracious hand of the LORD his God was on him. – Ezra 7:6 NLT

The psalmist saw God’s sovereign hand at work in all of this and called on his people to respond in praise and thanksgiving. This was not the result of blind fate, luck, karma, kismet, or good fortune; it was the providential work of Yahweh. The Israelites had been the undeserving beneficiaries of Yahweh’s grace and mercy. They had experienced something no other people group on the planet could claim.

He has revealed his words to Jacob,
    his decrees and regulations to Israel.
He has not done this for any other nation;
    they do not know his regulations.

Praise the Lord! – Psalm 147:19-20 NLT

God had been good to them. He had been gracious, merciful, kind, patient, and loving. He had redeemed and restored them. He had protected and provided for them. And He had never turned His back on them. All ample reasons for why they should praise Him.

Father, I don’t have to manufacture reasons to praise You. I don’t have to conjure up excuses to thank You for Your goodness and grace because they are all around me; from the air I breathe to the food I eat. You have blessed me with life but, more importantly, You have given me the promise of eternal life. I deserve nothing, yet You have showered me with everything I have. Yet, I tend not to praise You. I take Your grace and mercy for granted. At times, I even take credit for my own success and mistakenly think I somehow deserve the many blessings You pour out on me. But nothing could be further from the truth. I want to live with an attitude of praise and thanksgiving because You are worthy. Give me eyes to see and appreciate all that You have done and are doing my life, so that praise will become as natural to me as breathing. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Common Grace. Communal Praise.

/ kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

1 Praise the LORD, all nations!
    Extol him, all peoples!
2 For great is his steadfast love toward us,
    and the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
Praise the LORD! – Psalm 117:1-2 ESV

This extremely short psalm is addressed to “the nations.” The author uses the Hebrew word gôyim, which typically referred to non-Israelites. But in this case, he seems to have in mind all nations, including Israel. The second Hebrew word he uses is ‘ummâ, which refers to a “people, tribe, or nation.”

The psalmist calls people of every tribe, nation, or tongue to praise the LORD. Regardless of their ethnicity or religious proclivity, they should extol the greatness of Yahweh because they have enjoyed the benefits of His common grace. As Jesus said in His Sermon on the Mount, God “gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike” (Matthew 5:45 NLT). He also stated that God “is kind to those who are unthankful and wicked” (Luke 6:35 NLT). This addresses one of three points of God’s common grace as outlined by the Christian Reformed Church (CRC) and adopted as the doctrine of common grace at the Synod of Kalamazoo (Michigan) in 1924.

Yahweh shows undeserved favor to all those He has made. David highlighted this amazing reality in one of his psalms.

The LORD is merciful and compassionate,
    slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love.
The LORD is good to everyone.
    He showers compassion on all his creation. – Psalm 145:8-9 NLT

When Paul and Barnabas arrived in Iconium on one of their missionary journeys, they attempted to persuade the pagan Gentile crowd of God’s love for them by highlighting this feature of His common grace.

“In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” – Acts 14:16-17 NLT

The second point of common grace is God’s sovereign restraint of sin among humanity. Since God has a plan of redemption and that plan has a timeline, He intervenes on behalf of fallen humanity and prohibits the extent of their sin so that His plan can unfold according to His divine schedule. You see this point played out in the promise He made to Abraham. In Genesis 15, God told Abraham, “You can be sure that your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land, where they will be oppressed as slaves for 400 years. But I will punish the nation that enslaves them, and in the end they will come away with great wealth” (Genesis 15:13-14 NLT). God was informing Abraham of the 400 years his descendants would spend in captivity in Egypt. But God clarified that the story would have a positive ending.

“After four generations your descendants will return here to this land, for the sins of the Amorites do not yet warrant their destruction.” – Genesis 15:16 NLT). 

God had everything under control. He was orchestrating all the details concerning the creation of the Hebrew nation, which included their four-century-long captivity in Egypt and the restraint of sin among the Amorites. When the time came for the Israelites to conquer the land of Canaan, the guilt of the Amorites and the other inhabitants of the land would have earned their elimination. In fact, prior to Israel beginning their conquest of the land of Canaan, God provided Moses with a lengthy list of prohibitions against sexual sins and abominations. Then He added, “Do not defile yourselves in any of these ways, for the people I am driving out before you have defiled themselves in all these ways. Because the entire land has become defiled, I am punishing the people who live there. I will cause the land to vomit them out” (Leviticus 18:24-25 NLT). 

Through His common grace, God restrained the behavior of the Canaanites long enough for the Israelites to become a great nation, experience deliverance from Egypt, and arrive at the border of the promised land.

In Genesis 20, Moses records a less-than-flattering moment from Abraham’s life, when the father of the Hebrew nation sought sanctuary in the land of Gerar. In an ill-advised plan to protect himself from harm, Abraham told his wife Sarah to introduce herself as his sister. His fear was based on the fact that she was beautiful, and one of the inhabitants of Gerar might be tempted to kill him to have Sarah as his wife. Abimelech, the king of Gerar, was taken by Sarah’s beauty and decided to make her a part of his harem. But God intervened and protected Sarah from being sexually violated by Abimelech. In a dream, God warned Abimelech of the danger he was in.

“You are a dead man, for that woman you have taken is already married!” – Genesis 20:3 NLT

Having not consummated the relationship, Abimelech pleaded with God.

“Lord, will you destroy an innocent nation? Didn’t Abraham tell me, ‘She is my sister’? And she herself said, ‘Yes, he is my brother.’ I acted in complete innocence! My hands are clean.” – Genesis 20:4-5 NLT

In the dream, God responded, “Yes, I know you are innocent. That’s why I kept you from sinning against me, and why I did not let you touch her” (Genesis 20:6 NLT). God graciously intervened and prevented Abimelech from committing adultery.

The third point of common grace involves the ability of the wicked to do acts of righteousness. God’s grace makes this capacity of the unrighteous to do good deeds possible. Even with unregenerate hearts, they can show kindness, extend mercy, express love, and do good deeds to others.

Speaking to a group of pagan unbelievers, Paul said, “Even Gentiles, who do not have God’s written law, show that they know his law when they instinctively obey it, even without having heard it” (Romans 2:14 NLT). Their actions demonstrate God’s common grace, allowing them to do good even when their hearts remain unrepentant and unregenerate. 

So, for the psalmist, his message of praise is directed at all nations and includes every people group on the face of the earth. Every Jew, Gentile, pious Hebrew, and pagan heathen was obligated to praise Yahweh for His steadfast love and faithfulness. All men benefit from God’s goodness and grace. They breathe the same air, enjoy the bounty of God’s creation, experience the joy of human relationships, and are allowed to exist on this earth despite their sinfulness and open rebellion to their Creator.

While the psalmist had no concept of Jesus as Messiah when he wrote this abbreviated psalm, he foreshadowed the very words of Jesus when He gave His farewell address to His disciples.

“I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” – Matthew 28:18-20 NLT

God’s grace was to be available to all mankind, regardless of their ethnicity. Jesus’ death and resurrection opened a way of salvation to anyone who would receive God’s gift of grace. Paul described this message of God’s grace as “good news” to all who would believe it.

For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” – Romans 1:16-17 NLT

In the Book of Revelation, the apostle John describes a vision he received of the heavenly throne room. In it, a heavenly host was singing the praises of “a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders” (Revelation 5:6 NLT). The song they sang highlighted the sacrificial death of Jesus and its gracious impact on the nations of the earth.

“You are worthy to take the scroll
    and break its seals and open it.
For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God
    from every tribe and language and people and nation.
And you have caused them to become
    a Kingdom of priests for our God.
    And they will reign on the earth.” – Revelation 5:9-10 NLT

John was given a second vision of the heavenly throne room, in which he saw “a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language” (Revelation 7:9 NLT). They were standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes and holding palm branches in their hands. And the song they sang echoed their common experience with God’s undeserved grace.

“Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne
    and from the Lamb!” – Revelation 7:9-10 NLT

This is the message of this short but powerful psalm, and the day is coming when all the gôyim and ‘ummâ will praise God for who He is and all He has done for them. People from every tongue will proclaim their gratitude for His steadfast love and faithfulness with one voice, and they will do so for eternity.

Father, You are a good and gracious God. Your love never fails and Your mercies are new every morning. There is not a day that goes by in which we fail to experience Your common grace. You bless all mankind with life and breath. You shower us with rain. You give us light in the form of the sun. You provide us with food. You bless us with children. And You provided us with the gift of Your Son, as the sole means by which we can be restored to a right relationship with You. Every human being owes You a debt of thanks. But all who have found salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone own you their never-ending praise and adoration for eternal life. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

As If Forgiveness Was Not Enough

/ kdmiller55 / Leave a comment

To the choirmaster. A Psalm of David. A Song.

1 Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion,
    and to you shall vows be performed.
2 O you who hear prayer,
    to you shall all flesh come.
3 When iniquities prevail against me,
    you atone for our transgressions.
4 Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,
    to dwell in your courts!
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
    the holiness of your temple!

5 By awesome deeds you answer us with righteousness,
    O God of our salvation,
the hope of all the ends of the earth
    and of the farthest seas;
6 the one who by his strength established the mountains,
    being girded with might;
7 who stills the roaring of the seas,
    the roaring of their waves,
    the tumult of the peoples,
8 so that those who dwell at the ends of the earth are in awe at your signs.
You make the going out of the morning and the evening to shout for joy.

9 You visit the earth and water it;
    you greatly enrich it;
the river of God is full of water;
    you provide their grain,
    for so you have prepared it.
10 You water its furrows abundantly,
    settling its ridges,
softening it with showers,
    and blessing its growth.
11 You crown the year with your bounty;
    your wagon tracks overflow with abundance.
12 The pastures of the wilderness overflow,
    the hills gird themselves with joy,
13 the meadows clothe themselves with flocks,
    the valleys deck themselves with grain,
    they shout and sing together for joy. – Psalm 65:1-13 ESV

In this corporate confession, David expresses the gratitude of God’s people for his faithfulness, fruitfulness, and forgiveness. This psalm is a powerful reminder that “every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change” (James 1:17 ESV). But David’s eloquent statement of gratitude for God’s goodness begins with a reminder of His undeserved forgiveness.

Though we are overwhelmed by our sins,
    you forgive them all. – Psalm 65:3 NLT

Sinfulness is the one characteristic all human beings share, and forgiveness for our sins is the one thing we all must receive from God to live in harmony with Him. David knew from firsthand experience that sin was a roadblock to a right relationship with God, and restoring that broken relationship required God’s gracious and undeserved act of forgiveness. But in forgiving sin, God does not turn a blind eye to man’s willful disobedience to His commands. Forgiveness does not come without a price. The entire sacrificial system was based on the fact that sin required a payment. The author of Hebrews puts it in sobering terms.

…under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. – Hebrews 9:22 ESV

David had regularly participated in the sacrificial process, offering unblemished lambs and rams for his own personal transgressions. Each year, on the Day of Atonement, he witnessed the High Priest sacrifice “two male goats for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering” (Leviticus 16:5 NLT). This elaborate ceremony had been ordained by God and was to take place on the same day every year. After offering an unblemished bull to atone for his own sins, the High Priest was to “take the two male goats and present them to the Lord at the entrance of the Tabernacle” (Leviticus 16:7 NLT). The instructions given by God were specific and non-negotiable. For forgiveness to be received, every detail of God’s command must be followed to the letter.     

He is to cast sacred lots to determine which goat will be reserved as an offering to the Lord and which will carry the sins of the people to the wilderness of Azazel. Aaron will then present as a sin offering the goat chosen by lot for the Lord. The other goat, the scapegoat chosen by lot to be sent away, will be kept alive, standing before the Lord. When it is sent away to Azazel in the wilderness, the people will be purified and made right with the Lord. – Leviticus 16:8-10 NLT

David was amazed at God’s gracious provision of the sacrificial system and the atonement for sin it provided. He knew that no one deserved God’s forgiveness, including himself. He understand the gravity of the gift that God provided and refused to take it for granted. He was blown away by the fact that a holy God had provided a means by which sinful people could come into His presence and received forgiveness for sins they had committed against Him.

What joy for those you choose to bring near,
    those who live in your holy courts.
What festivities await us
    inside your holy Temple. – Psalm 65:4 NLT

But his amazement didn’t stop there. This loving, compassionate, and forgiving God also poured out His grace in other ways. He describes God as “the hope of everyone on earth” (Psalm 65:5 NLT). Whether they realized it or not, every human being enjoyed the grace and favor of Yahweh, the God of the Israelites. Jesus stated that His Heavenly Father “gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and the unjust alike” (Matthew 5:45 NLT). 

David viewed Yahweh as the Creator-God who formed the heavens and the earth as a hospitable habitat for humanity.

You formed the mountains by your power
    and armed yourself with mighty strength.
You quieted the raging oceans
    with their pounding waves
    and silenced the shouting of the nations.
Those who live at the ends of the earth
    stand in awe of your wonders.
From where the sun rises to where it sets,
    you inspire shouts of joy. – Psalm 65:6-8 NLT

Every individual was the byproduct of God’s grace and mercy, having been formed by His hand, filled with the breath of life, and placed on this planet to enjoy His manifold blessings – whether they honored Him as God or not. They enjoy the benefits of living on a rich and fertile planet that has abundant resources to meet all their needs, and David gives Yahweh all the credit.

The river of God has plenty of water;
    it provides a bountiful harvest of grain,
    for you have ordered it so.
You drench the plowed ground with rain,
    melting the clods and leveling the ridges.
You soften the earth with showers
    and bless its abundant crops. – Psalm 65:9-10 NLT

Everyone, from the godless pagan to the God-fearing Israelite, enjoys His common grace. David described this divine attribute in another psalm.

The Lord is good to everyone.
    He showers compassion on all his creation. – Psalm 145:9 NLT

Jesus described God as “kind to those who are unthankful and wicked” (Luke 6:35 NLT). Paul echoed those words when he spoke to an audience of pagan idolators in Lystra.

“We have come to bring you the Good News that you should turn from these worthless things and turn to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them. In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways, but he never left them without evidence of himself and his goodness. For instance, he sends you rain and good crops and gives you food and joyful hearts.” – Acts 14:15-17 NLT

David’s psalm was intended to be a song celebrating the goodness and graciousness of God. The Hebrews, like every other people group on the planet, enjoyed God’s common grace but also benefited from His special grace. Yahweh had given the children of Israel the sacrificial system so they might enjoy forgiveness of sins. David understood that all of God’s blessings were of no value if man’s sin problem was not solved. Long before Paul wrote the words, David understood the truth they contain.

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard. Yet God, in his grace, freely makes us right in his sight. – Romans 3:23-24 NLT

David also understood that “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23 NLT). That is why he put such high value on the sacrificial system. He had witnessed the sacrifices of countless unblemished lambs, bulls, and goats. He understood the concept of substitutionary atonement, the innocent serving as a stand-in or surrogate for the guilty. But David had no way of knowing that the sacrificial system he valued was a foreshadowing of something greater to come. The author of Hebrews points out that the forgiveness David received through the sacrificial was never intended to remove the penalty of sin. In a sense, it was a bandaid, a temporary fix to a much more deadly problem.

…those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year. For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins. That is why, when Christ came into the world, he said to God,

“You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings.
    But you have given me a body to offer.
You were not pleased with burnt offerings
    or other offerings for sin.
Then I said, ‘Look, I have come to do your will, O God—
    as is written about me in the Scriptures.’” – Hebrews 10:3-7 NLT

David and his fellow Hebrews had to return to the Tabernacle year after year to offer sacrifices for their sins. It was a perpetual, non-stop requirement because their sin problem never went away. Again, the author of Hebrews explains the limited power of the sacrificial system to eradicate sin.

Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins. But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. – Hebrews 10:11-12 NLT

Peter reminds us that Jesus’ sacrifice was sufficient. He laid down His unblemished life as the payment for mankind’s sin debt – once for all. No other sacrifices were necessary. No further atonement must be made.

Christ suffered for our sins once for all time. He never sinned, but he died for sinners to bring you safely home to God. He suffered physical death, but he was raised to life in the Spirit. – 1 Peter 3:18 NLT

In Christ, the penalty for our sin paid in full. God took care of it by sending His Son to die in our place on the cross. Because of Jesus’ substitutionary death on the cross for us, our sin payment was paid in full. Not only the sins of the past, but the sins yet to be committed. That is why we can bring any sin to Him and receive forgiveness. Like David, we can feel overwhelmed by our sins and still receive forgiveness from God. All we need to do is humbly acknowledge them to Him, and, amazingly, the forgiveness is ours.

But as amazing as forgiveness of sin is, we can sometimes forget that God’s mercy shows up in our lives in so many other ways that we take for granted. David reminds us that God not only forgives our sins, He answers our prayers. “You faithfully answer our prayers with awesome deeds” (Psalm 65:5 NLT). We pray and God answers, and He does so according to His power. God does great and mighty things when we pray and place ourselves at His mercy.

But that’s not all. God has surrounded with signs of His power. The mountains and the oceans, the rising and setting sun, the rain and the rivers. The way He can turn a dry valley into a lush pasture, providing food for a flock of grazing sheep. His faithfulness in causing crops to grow and the earth to provide much-needed resources for life to continue on this planet. When David saw all that God did on a daily basis for mankind, he said, “you inspire shouts of joy!” (Psalm 65:8 NLT). You would think forgiveness of sin and the gift of salvation would be enough. But God continues to pour out His blessings on men in so many ways. Everything we enjoy on this earth is a gift from Him. Everything that exists was created by Him. The wonders of this world remind us constantly of Him. He is a great, good, faithful and forgiving God who inspires shouts of joy!

Father, while I am eternally grateful for Your forgiveness of my sins, I don’t ever want to take for granted all the other wonders You work in and around my life each and every day. You are a merciful, loving God who has given mankind so much. You provided us with life and then You surrounded us with the awe of Your creation. Even with the affects of the fall, this world is still a pretty amazing place in which to live. We get to see Your power and experience Your provision each and every day. So not only do I get to enjoy Your forgiveness, I get to live in the midst of Your creation. Amen

English Standard Version (ESV) The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Permanent Text Edition® (2016). Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.

New Living Translation (NLT) Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.