Psalm 85
Today's Passage: Psalm 85
As you consider the Lord’s work in your past, how has he shown himself faithful?
We deserve God’s faithfulness just as much as Israel did in this Psalm, which is not at all.
God’s love has never been based on merit (Deut 7:7, Ro 5:8). Instead, just as we see in our
Psalm, God also did for us personally—he acted in our helplessness.
As we look back, celebrate, and trust in what God has done in the past, are we expectant for what God can do now? Do we believe that God is actively concerned in our current temptations and trials? Do we believe God can bring salvation to the lost or redeem those who seem so far from him?
It’s especially easy in an election year to fall in an us versus them mentality. With so much
antagonism in the world, how are you seeing the Lord move now? How are you praying that the Lord would move?
One of the striking things about the Psalms in general and this psalm in particular is the raw
emotion presented. We read some prayers that seem sourced in anger, frustration, and hurt. Is that how we’re praying—with raw emotion?
As we look back on what God has done, as we eagerly and expectantly wait for God to move presently, we must also cry out and trust him to move in the future. God’s “steadfast love” is his special, covenantal, enduring, irrevocable love. In Christ, we receive this love and will continue enjoying it into eternity. It’s this love that should shape our days, that should comfort us in weariness, that should be a salve to our hurts, that should be a motivation to share with those who don’t have it.
Notice the psalmist’s vivid portrayal— “Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness
and peace kiss each other.” Consider the intermingling of these attributes that we receive from the Lord and the intimacy they share. When Paul says in Romans that Jesus is the righteousness of God, and that through him we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, consider this verse. We all crave peace, but do we crave righteousness? We desire God’s steadfast love, but is our response faithfulness?
Celebrate what God has done in your past in salvation, in bringing you through to this point
in life. Also, eagerly and prayerfully expect that God can and will move in the world today in and through the ups and downs of life. We must live in light of eternity—not only in your own obedience, but in what you’re sharing with others.
Written By: Tyler Short
As you consider the Lord’s work in your past, how has he shown himself faithful?
- “You were favorable”
- “You restored”
- “You forgave”
- “You covered”
- “You withdrew”
- “You turned”
We deserve God’s faithfulness just as much as Israel did in this Psalm, which is not at all.
God’s love has never been based on merit (Deut 7:7, Ro 5:8). Instead, just as we see in our
Psalm, God also did for us personally—he acted in our helplessness.
As we look back, celebrate, and trust in what God has done in the past, are we expectant for what God can do now? Do we believe that God is actively concerned in our current temptations and trials? Do we believe God can bring salvation to the lost or redeem those who seem so far from him?
It’s especially easy in an election year to fall in an us versus them mentality. With so much
antagonism in the world, how are you seeing the Lord move now? How are you praying that the Lord would move?
One of the striking things about the Psalms in general and this psalm in particular is the raw
emotion presented. We read some prayers that seem sourced in anger, frustration, and hurt. Is that how we’re praying—with raw emotion?
As we look back on what God has done, as we eagerly and expectantly wait for God to move presently, we must also cry out and trust him to move in the future. God’s “steadfast love” is his special, covenantal, enduring, irrevocable love. In Christ, we receive this love and will continue enjoying it into eternity. It’s this love that should shape our days, that should comfort us in weariness, that should be a salve to our hurts, that should be a motivation to share with those who don’t have it.
Notice the psalmist’s vivid portrayal— “Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness
and peace kiss each other.” Consider the intermingling of these attributes that we receive from the Lord and the intimacy they share. When Paul says in Romans that Jesus is the righteousness of God, and that through him we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, consider this verse. We all crave peace, but do we crave righteousness? We desire God’s steadfast love, but is our response faithfulness?
Celebrate what God has done in your past in salvation, in bringing you through to this point
in life. Also, eagerly and prayerfully expect that God can and will move in the world today in and through the ups and downs of life. We must live in light of eternity—not only in your own obedience, but in what you’re sharing with others.
Written By: Tyler Short
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