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THE GREAT EXCHANGE
"Come, bless the Lord, all you servants of the Lord…lift up your hands to the holy place and
bless the Lord! May the Lord bless you from Zion, he who made heaven and earth!" (Psalm 134:1-3, ESV)
People figure that since I am a golfer, I love to talk golf. And they are right.
Usually I do.
What has made it easier for those who know only a few things about golf to break the ice with me is
this little folk hero named Tiger Woods. With win after win and his resulting transcendence across sports boundaries, Tiger has made a way for even non-golfers to "talk golf." And what they
have to say is pretty much the same: can you believe this guy?
Yes, people are pretty effusive in their praise of Tiger—at least in their praise of his skill and
success on the golf course.
But I can guarantee you this: Tiger is not quick in his praise of all these fans. How could he be? He
doesn't even know them. And while Woods' foundation touches the lives of some needy folks, especially youngsters, even with his soaring wealth, Tiger can't pass out dollars to everyone. Many miss out on
this blessing.
In the kingdom of God, however, we can take pleasure in the fact that when it comes to blessings, the
road goes two ways. We bless God. God blesses us. It is, you might say, the great exchange.
With a series of exclamations, the psalmist laid out this exchange in the 134th Psalm.
He first called on God's people to bless the Lord.
We must worship the Lord, praising and thanking Him for the things He has done. We can do this in
terms of His historical work, His universal work, and His personal work. That is, praise Him for the things He has done throughout time—a common practice of the psalmists and their singers. Praise Him
too for His work in the world, in the lives of men and women in every place where we hear and read of His loving acts. And praise Him for His work in the lives of those we know and love, as well as in
our own lives. Among all of these praises, thank Him most for His salvation—that He has poured out His mercy and grace on rebellious people like us.
The psalmist then blessed the people by telling them, "May the Lord bless you," a statement
made from the assurance that God gives such blessings. How do we know? By our study of God at work in history, the universe, and in our lives! God provides for us in ways that grow us in Him. He enacted
our salvation; now He enables our sanctification. He is our great God, and He blesses us richly!
There is no false motive in blessing God in order to receive blessing from Him. When we know that God
knows our hearts, we cannot come to Him with praise and thanksgiving unless we mean it. And we can come to Him, seeking what He has provided before, honoring Him by telling Him that we know such
blessings come only from Him. We have nowhere else to go, so we take the road to His house of blessing.
--
Jeff Hopper
March 31, 2008
Copyright 2008 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.
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