Pastor Hana’s Weekly Reflection
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Psalm 35
1 O Lord, oppose those who oppose me. Fight those who fight against me.
2 Put on your armor, and take up your shield. Prepare for battle, and come to my aid.
3 Lift up your spear and javelin against those who pursue me. Let me hear you say, “I will give you victory!”
4 Bring shame and disgrace on those trying to kill me; turn them back and humiliate those who want to harm me.
5 Blow them away like chaff in the wind—a wind sent by the angel of the Lord.
6 Make their path dark and slippery, with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.
7 I did them no wrong, but they laid a trap for me. I did them no wrong, but they dug a pit to catch me.
8 So let sudden ruin come upon them! Let them be caught in the trap they set for me! Let them be destroyed in the pit they dug for me.
9 Then I will rejoice in the Lord. I will be glad because he rescues me.
10 With every bone in my body I will praise him: “Lord, who can compare with you? Who else rescues the helpless from the strong? Who else protects the helpless and poor from those who rob them?”
11 Malicious witnesses testify against me. They accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.
12 They repay me evil for good. I am sick with despair.
13 Yet when they were ill, I grieved for them. I denied myself by fasting for them, but my prayers returned unanswered.
14 I was sad, as though they were my friends or family, as if I were grieving for my own mother.
15 But they are glad now that I am in trouble; they gleefully join together against me. I am attacked by people I don’t even know; they slander me constantly.
16 They mock me and call me names; they snarl at me.
17 How long, O Lord, will you look on and do nothing? Rescue me from their fierce attacks. Protect my life from these lions!
18 Then I will thank you in front of the great assembly. I will praise you before all the people.
19 Don’t let my treacherous enemies rejoice over my defeat. Don’t let those who hate me without cause gloat over my sorrow.
20 They don’t talk of peace; they plot against innocent people who mind their own business.
21 They shout, “Aha! Aha! With our own eyes we saw him do it!”
22 O Lord, you know all about this. Do not stay silent. Do not abandon me now, O Lord.
23 Wake up! Rise to my defense! Take up my case, my God and my Lord.
24 Declare me not guilty, O Lord my God, for you give justice. Don’t let my enemies laugh about me in my troubles.
25 Don’t let them say, “Look, we got what we wanted! Now we will eat him alive!”
26 May those who rejoice at my troubles be humiliated and disgraced. May those who triumph over me be covered with shame and dishonor.
27 But give great joy to those who came to my defense. Let them continually say, “Great is the Lord, who delights in blessing his servant with peace!”
28 Then I will proclaim your justice, and I will praise you all day long.
Psalm 36
1 Sin whispers to the wicked, deep within their hearts. They have no fear of God at all.
2 In their blind conceit, they cannot see how wicked they really are.
3 Everything they say is crooked and deceitful. They refuse to act wisely or do good.
4 They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots. Their actions are never good. They make no attempt to turn from evil.
5 Your unfailing love, O Lord, is as vast as the heavens; your faithfulness reaches beyond the clouds.
6 Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, your justice like the ocean depths. You care for people and animals alike, O Lord.
7 How precious is your unfailing love, O God! All humanity finds shelter in the shadow of your wings.
8 You feed them from the abundance of your own house, letting them drink from your river of delights.
9 For you are the fountain of life, the light by which we see.
10 Pour out your unfailing love on those who love you; give justice to those with honest hearts.
11 Don’t let the proud trample me or the wicked push me around.
12 Look! Those who do evil have fallen! They are thrown down, never to rise again.
You don’t have to earn God’s love. Jesus already paid the price!
If we're honest, sometimes we start to treat our relationship with God like it's something we have to pay into or earn. We think if I read my Bible enough, if I serve a church, if I give a little more, then maybe I've done enough to feel close to God or worthy of His love. But Psalm 47 hits us with a reality check.
No one can redeem the life of another or give to God a ransom for them. The ransom for a life is costly. No payment is ever enough, and that's big! It means that nothing we can offer is enough to redeem our own life or someone else's. We can't hustle our way into heaven. We can't perform, pay, or pretend our way into right standing with God.
Why? Because redemption is priceless. And here's the good news. Jesus already paid the price in full! It means we can stop trying to earn God's love and start receiving it. It means we serve, give worship and grow. Not to pay God back, but because we're free. So next time you're tempted to think, I need to do more for God to accept me, remember this…
You can't tip your way into grace. The bill's been paid, and now you get to live in that freedom.