Theme: Teach us O Lord
Text: Psalm 90
‘The Lord is good and his love endures forever’ I greet you all in the name of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. God willing, we will be meditating on the theme “restoration” throughout this month of June 2020.
The book of Psalms is divided into five parts at par with Pentateuch. This Psalm falls into the fourth book of the Psalms, which has Psalms numbering from 90 to 106. These psalms serve as Hymns for our spiritual pilgrimage.
This Psalm 90 is the beginning of this fourth book. This Psalm compares God’s eternity with human transitoriness; the eternal God and Mortal man; ever-existing God and short-lived man. The Jewish Bible gives the title for this Psalm as 'Prayer of Moshe the man of Elohim, the Prophet.' Moses offered several prayers but only this prayer is recorded in the Bible. It’s a prayer for the restoration of Israel.
Today, I would like to share with you all three teachings from this Psalm of Moses:
1. Teach us to number our days(vv. 1-12)
2. Teach us to trust in you (v. 13)
3. Teach us to pray (VV. 14-17)
i. Psalm 90:12 Teach us to Number our Days.
Though Moses lived for 120 years we don’t know why he said the span of life of a man only Seventy years, and if his strength cooperates he may live up to Eighty years(Psalm 90:10). This sentence ‘teach us to number our days’ is found in verse 12, it is translated with the following meanings:
“Help us to understand how many days we have or the days left for us”.
“Oh! Teach us to live well! Teach us to live wisely and well!”
“Help us to remember that our days are numbered, and help us to interpret our lives correctly.”
So that we will cultivate, develop and bring to you a heart of wisdom. Counting days and years make one wise, lead to wise living (Psalm 90:12).
This Psalm 90 is full of the concept of time. The verses 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 9, 10, 12, 14, 15, 16 are referring to Time and Life of a man, compared with God, animals, plants and planets. God was angry with Moses in Deuteronomy 3:26 and barred him from entering into the Land of Canaan. So Moses felt that he was running out of time. God’s denial for Moses for entering into the land of Canaan, made him realise that he lost the blessings of God which made him pray this prayer. So, Moses offered a prayer about time comparing human life which is too fragile and short.
We calculate the day from 12 AM to 12 AM. Whereas the counting of day for a Jew is from Sunrise to Sunset or Sunset to Sunrise (Genesis 1:5). So remembering and redeeming or using times is very important as mentioned in Ecclesiastes 12:1, Ephesians 5:15-16, Colossians 4:5. Does it mean the numbering days is merely counting the number of days and years? I think more than that.
Teach us to count our days means to teach us to remember the events of the days, teach us to thank for the blessings of the days, teach us to look back and forward the grace of God.
Counting calls us to count our health conditions and uncertainties of dawn and dusk in our day to day life. Remembering our friends and others whom we were acquainted with and now forgotten them. counting our weaknesses and sickness, counting our defeats and disturbances, Looking back the hindrances and hidden treasons we faced in our faith as well as in normal life journey. Being aware of the traitors and tricksters in our close circles.
Counting our actions and reactions to various circumstances and life struggles. Numbering means realising our roles and responsibilities entrusted to us by God on this universe. Evaluating our contribution in the given roles. Thinking how far we were a blessing to others. Counting also calls to understand why we exist today with this particular status, at a particular place and in a particular position.
Bible gives us some of the best examples of men and women who understood their blessings and numbering of their days; for ex., Queen Esther (Esther 4:13-14) and Prince Joseph (Genesis 50:20), Cupbearer Nehemiah turn to be a builder of the Walls of Jerusalem (Nehemiah 1:4).
Evangelist Philip was brought to the wilderness to explain the Word of God to an Ethiopian Eunuch, he heard the Gospel, he was saved and he was baptised (Acts 8:26-39).
If we sit and realise the events our days at the feet of God, those things will make us recognize that nothing has come accidentally to us, there was a person behind everything in our life. He is GOD. Where we are today in our life is absolute, without confusion and doubts, all because of God’s plan and purpose. As Romans 8:28- ‘we know that all things work together for good for those who love God, who called according to His Purpose’. So the Psalmist prays ‘Pity us, change your plans about us, repent o Lord about our end.’
Appreciating your growth and stability helps you to be closer to God. Counting the contributions of leaders, known and unknown persons in your life adds flavour and sweet taste to the foregone days and years in your life. Remembering your parents, siblings and their valuable sacrifice in your life will help you to love them beyond count.
Just take a moment and thank God, for all those who have come across in your life journey; from birth to school; school to college; college to employment; vocation to retirement; retirement to till date. Where ever you stand today in your life. Counting all these are praiseworthy.
When David enthroned he counted Jonathan and helped his son Mephibosheth to be with him till the end (2 Samuel 9:1,7-9,12-13). Paul remembered everyone in his life and listed them one by one, name by name, contribution wise and area wise. He never took anyone or anything for granted (Romans 16:1-21, 1 Corinthians 16:12-18, Ephesians 6:20, Philippians 2:19, 25, 4:2, 21; Colossians 3;7,10,14-15; he mentions the harm of Alexander the smith in 2 Timothy 4:14, and others in 2 Timothy 4:19-21, Titus 3;12-14, Philemon 23-24).
Now say with me, “THE LORD IS GOOD AND HIS LOVE ENDURES FOREVER.” Right after this sermon, please kneel wherever you are, and say “Thank you, Lord, I count everything and everybody in my life when I number my days.”
ii. Psalm 90:13 Teach us to trust you
How long, will it be?
All of us one time or the other wandering and struggling with this question, How Long? How long will my disappointments last? How long will I have this financial debt? How long will I have to suffer from diabetes, how long will I have to be without hope, job and scope? How long will I meddle with people of misunderstanding and mistrust? A million-dollar question to all of us today is How long will Corona be with us? The whole world wants to know an answer to this.
When I was searching through the concordance for this particular question, I found several interesting prayer questions raised by sundry Saints with diverse views. I would like to share a few of them to ponder over and conclude with a divine counsel.
David in Psalm 6:3 How long O Lord? I am worn out, please turn and save me. Psalm 10:1-2 Why Lord, do you stand far off, you hide in times of trouble? (Psalm 89:46). Psalm 13:1-2 How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Psalm 35:17 How long Lord? will you look on or thinking to save me from Lions?
Asaph in Psalm 74:10-11 How long will you hold back your right hand? Psalm 79:5 How long Lord, will you be angry forever? The unknown author of Psalm 94:3 How long will the wicked be jubilant? Jeremiah in Lamentations 5:20 why do you always forget us and forsake us so long? Habakkuk 1:2: How long, O LORD, must I call for help? Because destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. Therefore, the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.
Sons of Korah in Psalm 44:23-24 Awake O Lord! Why do you sleep? Rouse yourself! Do not reject forever. Why you hide your face and forget our misery and oppression?
Another interesting book is Job. It has several questions to prove God’s justice and acts of righteousness. Job and his three friends kept shooting the arrows of questions on one another to offend and defend Job and God. The job was finally met with God who threw many questions to him. Job 38:2-3 “Who are you to question my wisdom with your ignorant, empty words? Now stand up straight and answer the questions I ask you”.
His answer was found in Job 42:1-6. For all our questions we have only one answer. The answer is to Shut our mouth and repent with fasting and prayer. “I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes” as Job said and did.
MacLaren Expositions: ‘The thought that everything is passing away so swiftly and inevitably, as the earlier part of the psalm suggests, might lead a man to say, ‘What is the use of my doing anything? It may be the ally of profligate and cynical sensuality quite as easy as it may be the preacher of asceticism. It may make men inactive, from their sense of the insignificant and fleeting nature of all human works, or it may stimulate to the intensest effort.’
Mathew Poole comments, that means, ‘cease to do evil’ but establish good which has the favour of God. Geneva Bible puts ‘unless the Lord guides with his Spirit in our endeavours we will not succeed’. Mathew Henry: ‘Instead of wasting our precious, fleeting days in pursuing fancies, which leave the possessors for ever poor, let us seek the forgiveness of sins and an inheritance in heaven’.
iii. Psalm 90:14-17 Teach us to pray
Fill us or Satisfy us with thy Mercy at the Fill us with your love, compassion, lovingkindness at the daybreak, Surprise us with love at daybreak as a mother does with her child. “Let the sunrise of your love end our night, pour abundantly your faithful love before we grow Older.”
The discoveries of Christ and the love of God expressed in him, his pardoning grace and mercy are found on the day of our salvation (Psalm 63:3). This grace and mercy satisfy and fills us in an unexpected time, early, seasonably, as soon as could be "in the morning." Some scholars would like to refer the morning as the beginning of the day, and so lay a foundation for joy the whole day following. But few interpreters refer the morning to the “Morning of the resurrection day” (Psalms 49:14; 17:15).
Make us glad for equal days and years of affliction and trouble, humbled years, years of adversity. Replace our years of troubles with decades of delight. Make up for the bad times with some good times; we’ve seen enough evil to last a lifetime. Give us as much happiness as we had sadness in the years of misery. “This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it”(Psalm 118:24). Bible lists a few ways for being joyful and glad.
Yes, it’s possible for anyone who is in Christ. He moves forward with daily morning prayer life(Psalm 5:3), meditation of the word (Psalm 104:34, 119:16 - delights in decrees; Psalm 119:77, 174 - delights in Law; Psalm 143 – delights in commands), with fasting and sharing the blessings with others (Nehemiah 8:10). God makes such a man being joyful and glad in every situation.
Establish the work of our hands: Moses already warned the Israelites about their complacent attitude in Deuteronomy 8:17-18. He told them the Lord is the source of all wealth, health, blessings. He gave you the strength to produce, to procure and preserve whatever you own today. God blessed you with house, gold, silver, job, children and everything. Often man forgets to look back the way he travelled, down the road experiences.
The Bible tells us that we are all born with distinct talents and gifts that set us apart from each other. When we discover the talents that God has given us are used to glorify Him, we will experience a full life. Our loving Lord wants us to feel whole and complete, and it is through talents that we can find our unique calling in life.
Exodus 35:30-35: Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, and he has filled them with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship.
Nebuchadnezzar was punished for not acknowledging and glorifying God (Daniel 4:28-32). Please observe the words “I have built, by my mighty power and for the glory of my majesty”. He was punished until he understood the times, victories, thrones belong to God the Almighty. That’s why Solomon said: ‘unless the Lord builds unless the Lord guards everything is vain. Rising early, toiling the whole day for food in vain. He grants sleep, children and all blessings’ (Psalm 127:1-3).
Moses often used the phrase, "the work of our hands." In Deuteronomy, he instructed Israel about God's laws and explained, "that the LORD your God may bless you in all the work of your hands that you do" (Deuteronomy 14:29; 16:15; 24:19; 28:12; 30:9). So anything we do without the help of the Lord and his blessings amounts to nothing. Hence Moses prayed to the Lord to reveal His work, demonstrate His power, grant His favour, and make Israel's labour successful.
