THE CONTRAST
Psalms 36: 3, 7-9 NKJV
3 The words of his mouth are wickedness and deceit;
He has ceased to be wise and to do good.
7 How precious is Your lovingkindness, O God!
Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of Your wings.
8 They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of Your house,
And You give them drink from the river of Your pleasures.
9 For with You is the fountain of life;
In Your light we see light.
This is a psalm of David that contrasts the way of the wicked and the goodness of God. To get a good sense of this psalm, read verses 1-4 as David describes the wicked. They have no fear of God. They flatter themselves in their own eyes. They speak wickedness and lies. They have stopped being wise and doing good. They don’t hate evil; they embrace evil. David had a personal perspective of how evil men could be. He had experienced man’s evil firsthand. David had much more confidence in God’s goodness.
David’s view of God’s goodness was a major factor in his life. He believed God’s loving kindness was significant enough to create the primary reason people could put their trust in God. Our verses for today exalt God’s goodness and provision. He uses the words abundantly satisfied with the fullness of God’s house. It’s easy to skip over that phrase, but it’s worth exploring. How many times have we thanked God for being abundantly satisfied from the fullness of His house? And David speaks of God giving us a drink from the rivers of His pleasures. I am not quite sure what the river of God’s pleasures consists of, but it sure sounds good to me.
David declared that with God was the fountain of life. And we can understand that from both a natural and spiritual aspect. God is both the source of our physical life as our Creator. And He is the source of our spiritual life, being the Father of Spirits. We can take that thought further with our knowledge of Jesus offering eternal life to all of those who look to Him as their personal Savior. Life is a big word in Scripture. Jesus calls Himself the way, the truth, and the life. The law of the spirit of life has made us free from the law of sin and death. The life of God in our spirit, that new life as a new creation, is what causes change in those who have been born anew. It’s a really big deal.
And in God’s light, we see light. A minister friend shared that walking in the light we have causes more light to come. So, he suggests not declaring that we do not understand the Bible. Rather, we can give God thanks for the light we have and be confident that as we walk with Him, we’ll see more and more.
The contrast between a gracious, loving God and selfish, wicked people is huge. The best thing we can do is continue to profess God’s goodness, and His goodness to us. He is far better than anyone we know.
PRAYER
Dear Father, I believe in You, and I believe in Your goodness. Thank You for Your abundance and provision to me. Thank You for the gift of eternal life. Thank You for the light that I have, with more light to come. When it comes to people, You are far more kind and gracious and loving. Thank You for that!