and make his face shine upon us,
that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.
The first verse of this couplet is often used in our services, words of blessing, even greetings cards. It has a lovely ring to it:
May God be gracious to us and bless us, and make his face shine upon us.
There is no question that it is a great blessing, with a warmth to it. But, if we cut it off there, it is incomplete.
Why does the Psalmist ask for Gods’ grace and blessing? Is the request made so that the Psalmist and God’s people can enjoy life having made the most of their divine contacts? No. The blessing of God is sought after, so that God’s ways may be known on earth and God’s salvation to everybody.
I do want to be a bit careful here. I believe that we have a generous God, who loves to give us good things because we are loved. I don’t believe that God blesses us to make God look good. God blesses us because God loves us, and we are encouraged to bring all our needs to God and trust God with them.
Having said that, I also believe that we seek the giver, not the gift. We seek the giver, not the gift. We see beyond the gift to the giver. Having experienced the love of the Giver, expressed in the value of the gift, we want others to appreciate the Giver’s generosity and to receive the gift as well.
Continued here...
No comments:
Post a Comment