People have always struggled to understand why things happen the way they do. Why does tragedy strike sometimes, while at other times things go well? What must people do to get a good return from planting fields or investing in a business?  And if they do prosper, how do they protect themselves from enemies who want to take what they have?

Who’s in charge of life anyway?

Beginning several thousand years before Christ, people developed stories about pantheons of gods and goddesses to explain life’s mysteries. The gods were much like people, except they were supernaturally powerful and they were immortal. People were only of passing interest to them. They were much more involved in their own dramas, jealousies, and passions. Their actions often had dire consequences, leading to tragedy or prosperity, safety or death, for people on earth.

People made sacrifices, called upon them, and pleaded for their mercy, but there were no guarantees that the gods cared about them at all.

Psalm 98 – Faithful, Loving God

Contrast the capriciousness of the gods and goddesses of the ancient world with the God of Psalm 98, who reaches out to save and help people.

“. . . he has done marvelous things; his right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him. The LORD has made his salvation known and revealed his righteousness to the nations. He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.” Psalm 98:1-3

The writer of this Psalm is so excited about praising his good, loving God that he calls upon everything God created to praise him. The earth bursts into jubilant song, the sea shouts, the rivers clap their hands, and the mountains sing for joy. Why? Because the God of the Bible is not capricious or changeable, he is unfailingly kind and loving and the earth rejoices in the unchanging nature of God who made it.

God knows that people are weak, sinful and lost, but he reaches out to them with his right hand and holy arm and saves them. He is completely fair to them, knowing they are worthy of judgment, but offering salvation instead of punishment for those who choose it. “Let them sing before the LORD, for he comes to judge the earth. He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity,” Psalm 98:8-9

God has told the people of the earth what they may expect from him and he will never change. He is good, loving, faithful, and kind. We may depend upon him.

Psalm 99 – God Talks to People

One of the tragedies in depending upon the ancient gods was that they didn’t talk to people. People could search for signs in nature, or oracles might claim to speak for the gods, but it was never clear that the gods heard people’s prayers or answered them.

The God of the Bible didn’t operate that way.

“Moses and Aaron were among his priests, Samuel was among those who called on his name; they called on the Lord and he answered them. He spoke to them from the pillar of cloud; they kept his statutes and the decrees he gave them. LORD our God, you answered them.” Psalm 99:6,8

If you have been reading along with us since January, you have read the stories of Moses, Aaron, and Samuel, and you know God answered them when they called upon him. In fact, God started the conversation by calling to each of them first.

Not only did God talk to people, he made his intentions very clear. People knew the terms of their relationships with God and what to expect from him.

“ . . . you were to Israel a forgiving God though you punished their misdeeds. Exalt the LORD our God and worship at his holy mountain, for the LORD our God is holy.” Psalm 99:8-9

Psalms 100 & 102 – God Cares About How We Feel

People are changeable, emotional beings. Sometimes we are like the Psalmist in Psalm 100, full of gratitude and praise. We feel like fat, fluffy lambs in God’s pasture, knowing we are cherished and well-cared for, and we sing with glad hearts about God’s goodness and love.

Other times we sink like a stone into a pit of despair. And on those days, we cry to the Lord . . . “Hear my prayer, LORD . . . Do not hide your face from me . . . Turn your ear to me; when I call, answer me quickly.” Psalm 102:1-2

Ancient people probably also prayed this way in times of distress, but they had no way of knowing if their gods heard them.

The God of the Bible always hears. The writer of Psalm 102 is so sure of this that he expects that people who come after him will also experience God hearing their prayers. No matter what condition their hearts are in when they pray, God will hear them because God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

“Let this be written for a future generation, that a people not yet created may praise the Lord . . . But you remain the same, and your years will never end. The children of your servants will live in your presence; their descendants will be established before you.” Psalm 102:18, 27-28

Psalm 104 – Creation Revisited

The ancient peoples didn’t know exactly how the world came into being, but they believed it was born out of chaos and conflict among the gods. The earth, with its people and other creatures, became a stage upon which the immortals played out their conflicts and dramas.

The God of the Bible, however, is the benevolent Creator who cares for the earth and all of its inhabitants. In Psalm 104 we find a blissful meditation on God who created the world and has never ceased to care for it since it came into being.

The Psalm begins with a brilliant description of God wrapped in light, stretching out the universe like a tent, gathering storm clouds to form his chariot, and riding on the wind. His angels surround him like flames of fire. This is the magnificent God who created the earth.

“He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved.” Psalm 104:5

Far from selfishly using and abusing the earth, its animals, and people after he made them, God cares for all he has made. He cultivates the earth and waters it so that its plants and animals can thrive. He makes grass grow for cattle and blesses fields and crops so that people can have “wine that gladdens human hearts, oil to make their faces shine, and bread to sustain their hearts.” Psalm 104:15

The Psalmist sees the goodness of God everywhere he looks. The skies, the sea, and all that is in them – and it’s by his power and grace that it all goes on existing. How wonderful to contemplate our glorious Lord!

“May my meditation be pleasing to him, as I rejoice in the LORD. . .

Praise the LORD, my soul. Praise the LORD!” 

Psalm 104:34-35