Clergy/Leaders’ Mail-list No. 2-161 Sunday 18 Aug 2002

Reading: Psalm 121 – CONFIDENCE AND STRENGTH

‘(Help) will come from the Lord, who created the heavens and the earth.'(Ps 121:2, CEV)

This straightforward psalm of confident faith acts as a counterbalance to last week’s cry of confused pain. It is the classic psalm of ascent. The pilgrim, nearing Jerusalem, looks to the city set on a hill and this sets him thinking. His hope is not, however, in the city or even in the Temple. His help comes from God. Help is complete – safety, security, protection, in any and every circumstance come from this God who has power for every eventuality and is fully aware of all that comes our way.

This is indeed cause for comfort, praise and thanksgiving. And we know the truth of this. If you are facing some difficulty, read the psalm again and let God reassure you. Notice the breadth of what he offers. Dwell on the character and power of the God who acts for his people.

The sense is abundantly clear. Further comment is superfluous – or would be were it not for the awkward juxtaposition with Psalm 120. One is a cry of agony and unanswered longing, the other an expression of total confidence; we see here the two poles of human experience of God. Our inclination is to resolve the tension. Both cannot be true, so we find an easier way, a convenient theological solution which lets God off the hook.

But Scripture does not do that, suggesting that God does not seem particularly anxious to be let off the hook. He seems content to let us live with the tension, knowing, perhaps, that in doing so we shall develop a stronger faith. To resolve the tension is to deny the reality of life and to minimise the mysterious character of God.

Pray for anyone you know who is struggling with this dilemma, that he or she may know the all-encompassing presence of God.

– John Grayston

Copyright Scripture Union, 2002

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