Today’s passage: Psalm 117

Helpful thoughts:

• This psalm is a short praise chorus.  This psalm is the shortest chapter in the Bible.  It is also the middle chapter of the Bible.
• This little psalm reminds us of three big things:
  • All the nations are called to worship the Lord.
  • God’s covenanted/steadfast love is great.
  • God’s faithfulness is eternal.

Questions to consider:

1. If this psalm is intended to gather the nations in worship, then who would the “us” include in verse 2?  Was God’s steadfast love ever intended to only be extended to Israel?  What was Israel’s worship to attract or result in?
2. How does this perspective differ from the last psalm?  How does our worship impact and encourage the people of God?  How does our worship impact and encourage the world?
3. In a psalm that tells the world to worship, whose greatness is described and who deserves to be praised?  When we as a church “promote going to church” to others, what should the big draw?

Today’s passage: Psalm 116

Helpful thoughts:

• This psalm is a thanksgiving for the Lord’s deliverance.  God answers prayer!
  • This psalm is a personal testimony of deliverance that can be sung by a congregation of people.
• The way the psalmist gives back to the Lord is to ask the Lord for more grace (Verses 12-13).
  • This glorifies the Lord by acknowledging that all we have and do is the result of God’s gracious work in our lives.  There is no way we could pay Him back, and acknowledging this is right worship.
• Public worship (Serving God openly) gives testimony to God’s gracious work in our lives.  It is a testimony of thanksgiving in action to the greatness of God.

Questions to consider:

1. Why would verse 15 be true?  What happens when God’s saints pass away that would give Him joy (2 Corinthians 5:8, Philippians 1:21-23)?  How does this perspective give us a reason for thanksgiving whether a Christian is released from the “snares of death” (Verse 3) or whether they are released from this burdensome “tent” (2 Corinthians 5:4)?
2. How does this psalm encourage us to worship and serve together with the church?  How does our worship and service glorify God and encourage others?
3. If we were to think that we could repay God for what He has given us, what would we not be understanding about the curse of sin, our natural state, and the grace of God?  How does Ephesians 2:8-10 explain this well?  How much of the glory does God deserve for our salvation and good works?

Today’s passage: Psalm 115

Helpful thoughts:

• In the same way that Psalms 111 and 112 showed that those who worship God grow to become more like Him, Psalm 115 argues that those who worship false idols become more like them, spiritually deaf, blind, etc.
• Fake gods made of wood and stone could never compare to the one true God.
• God does all that He pleases.  Man-made idols do nothing.
  • It’s encouraging to remember that everything God pleases to do is good and righteous because God is good and righteous.

Questions to consider:

1. The comparison of man-made gods to the Lord is ridiculous when it is considered in this way.  Yet, man is prone to make gods and worship anything instead of the Lord, why is that?  How might verse 17 along with Ephesians 2:1-3 help us answer that question?
2. What are the idols we are prone to worship today?  How does this “worship” cause us to become more like the idols we serve?
3. Compare and contrast how we “serve” our idols today with what causes us to grow in Christ as stated in 2 Corinthians 3:18.

Today’s passage: Psalm 114

Helpful thoughts:

• This psalm reminds Israel of God’s powerful displays during the exodus period.
• God’s power causes the earth to “tremble.”  God has all power over His creation.
• And yet, He has chosen a people with whom to dwell.  God’s people are to read/sing this psalm and be in awe that the God of the universe has chosen to have a relationship with them.  What a privilege and honor!

Questions to consider:

1. Under the New Covenant, who is the sanctuary (Or the “Temple”) of God (1 Corinthians 3:16-17, 6:19-20)?  How should this truth affect our thinking, giving us reason to “tremble” and rejoice?
2. To whom is verse 7 addressed?  Are people who do not believe in God exempt from answering to Him?  Even if they look powerful and influential in the world today, what is the true status of those who reject the Lord?
3. How can the final answer to question 2 give us reason for confidence and also compassion and a desire to minister the Gospel to the lost?

Today’s passage: Psalm 113

Helpful thoughts:

• God’s is worthy of our praise in every moment and in all moments for eternity (Verse 2 and 3).
• Our God is holy, there is no one and nothing like Him.  No other thing or person could come close to His glory.  No other thing or person deserves to be worshiped.
• This immensely amazing God cares for and lifts up those who cannot help themselves (Verses 7-9).

Questions to consider:

1. Why is God’s ministry to those who are considered “lowly” so striking to our understanding?  How do we expect successful powerful people to treat the poor?  The rich?  What does our God do and how does He see people differently?
2. How does God’s holiness and His choice to save us free us up from worrying about what the rich or the poor think about us?  Why don’t we have to clamor for the approval of people?
3. When we fail to see God this way and try to garner the approval of man, what is it that we think we will get?  What are we hoping for?  What has God given to us through Christ that man could never match?

Today’s passage: Psalm 112

Helpful thoughts:

• When a person lives righteously and sees the joy that results, it is right to begin that observation with the words, “Praise the Lord!”
  • This Psalm follows the same acrostic pattern as the previous psalm, 111.
• When we think of “wealth and riches” we might think of billionaires who own professional sports teams.  But the original readers and singers of this psalm would have been praising God for an ability and diligence to work in such a way to feed and clothe their family and have an inheritance to pass down.  These were “wealth and riches.”
• The man who fears the Lord and delights is his commandments will have said of him similar things to what would be said of God.  The man who fears the Lord and delights in his commandments will be a godly person.

Questions to consider:

1. In what way is Psalm 112 such a great follow-up to Psalm 111?  How does it remind us of the concepts of being made in the image of God and Christians being conformed to the image of Christ?
2. Compare and contrast Psalm 111:10 and 112:10.  What is the difference between the thinking, delighting, fearing of the righteous man and the wicked man?  What has shaped the conscience of the wicked man that he would be so angry to see the righteous man do right and be rewarded for it?  How can this encourage us to remain faithful in the midst of unbiblical opposition?
3. Why are Christians able to not be afraid of bad news and have steady hearts (Minds, the inner man)?  What promises do we have from the Lord and what scriptures come to mind that encourage us to trust in him, not be anxious, and live for God with eternity in view?

Today’s passage: Psalm 111

Helpful thoughts:

• The Hebrew for “Praise the LORD!” is, “Hallelujah!”
  • After this beginning, every line of this psalm begins with the next letter in the Hebrew alphabet.
• This psalm is a psalm of praise which is to be sung with the congregation.
  • It is good to recount the goodness of the Lord…and it is good to praise Him together with the people of God!
• All who delight in the works of God give further attention to them (Verse 2).
  • All who fear the Lord gain wisdom, which results in right practice (Verse 10).

Questions to consider:

1. What reasons does the psalmist give to praise the Lord?  What are the good works that are mentioned?
2. How can the praise in verse 9 point our attention to Christ and our salvation in Him?
3. How do both delighting in God and fearing (Reverencing) God cause us to focus our attention on Him?  Why is that a good thing?  What does it result in?

Today’s passage: Psalm 110

Helpful thoughts:

• Jesus quoted this Messianic Psalm in order to ask the Pharisees a few questions concerning their unbelief in His deity (Matthew 22:41-46).
• Jesus is King and also the “priest forever after the order of Melchizedek” (Hebrews 5:1-10).
• The Word of God promises here a king who will rule over the nations who is both David’s descendent and his Lord, and then who is also a priest forever.
  • Jesus’ priesthood is superior because He does not require a sacrifice for His own sin.  Christ was suitable (Being without sin) to be our sacrifice!

Questions to consider:

1. How does Jesus fulfill all of the promises from this Psalm?
2. Once our eyes are opened to the truth of God’s Word concerning Jesus, how seemingly obvious does it become that these prophecies point to Him?  In what way might Jesus have been appealing to this by quoting this Psalm to the unbelieving Pharisees?
3. How does knowing the sure victory of Christ is coming help us to think biblically about all that we see happening around us today?  How permanent is any of the world’s leadership until Christ returns?

Today’s passage: Psalm 109

Helpful thoughts:

• This imprecatory psalm and lament is referenced by the Apostles in relation to Judas Iscariot in Acts 1:20.
  • The request that another “take his office” (Verse 8) lets us know this person who had sinned against David was a leader in Israel.  This was not a foreign king, but an Israelite who had become unfaithful to the covenant and sinful toward God and David.
  • The specific sin(s) appear to be about false accusations (Verses 25, 29).
• In order to pray this to God, asking Him to bring about all of these consequences for the offender, the assumption must be that the offender will not repent.
• We tend to think about blessings in a very individualized manner.  But the blessing of family was seen as a far greater (Or at least as good of a) blessing than any blessing of self.  For a man to know that his family line was ending would bring much grief.

Questions to consider:

1. David is asking for justice in the midst of this suffering as a result of others’ sin.  God is always perfectly just.  How does God remain just while showing us mercy for our own sin? (Romans 3:21-26)
2. How do we rightly balance our own desires to see God’s justice against sin with a humility towards others, remembering that we too are sinners (1 Timothy 1:12-15)?
3. What does David expect to see come to pass?  What does He know about God and why does that give him hope? (Verses 30-31)  Why can these truths give us hope even when we don’t see God responding in the exact way we might want Him to?

Today’s passage: Psalm 108

Helpful thoughts:

• This psalm was taken from two other psalms.
  • Verses 1-5 match Psalm 57:7-11.
  • Verses 6-13 match Psalm 60:5-12.
• Our hearts can remain steadfast when they are fixed upon our steadfast God.
• Events and occurrences around us can change, but God never changes and His promises never change.

Questions to consider:

1. Why does keeping our hearts fixed on God help us during the ups and downs of life?  If God is using all of the “ups and downs” for our good, how does that change our perspective?
2. When we begin to seek “the salvation of man” what changes in our thinking and our emotions?  What happens to any steadiness or steadfastness we might have enjoyed?  Why?
3. What “salvations” do we often desire?  What salvation has God already gifted us that surpasses any other “salvation” we could want?