Read Psalm 144:9-15. 9I will sing a new song to you, O God; upon a ten-stringed harp I will play to you, 10who gives victory to kings, who rescues David his servant from the cruel sword. 11Rescue me and deliver me from the hand of foreigners, whose mouths speak lies and whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood. 12May our sons in their youth be like plants full grown, our daughters like corner pillars cut for the structure of a palace; 13may our granaries be full, providing all kinds of produce; may our sheep bring forth thousands and ten thousands in our fields; 14may our cattle be heavy with young, suffering no mishap or failure in bearing; may there be no cry of distress in our streets! 15Blessed are the people to whom such blessings fall! Blessed are the people whose God is the Lord!
In the first half of Psalm 144 man was a vaporous breath. A shadow. Unworthy of God’s thoughts, much less his affections. Despite this reality, another reality exists beyond the futility. A reality of a world to come. And so David prays for his family. For his sons to be full grown plants, and his daughters to be pillars in a palace, none merely surviving, but thriving amongst full granaries, abundant cattle, and safe streets.
This is the flourishing that God has always envisioned for his people. What Eden would have, could have and should have been. A prosperous and just society. David’s rescue from enemies in the present proved the future kingdom he would one day rule. If God would rescue him, won’t he also establish him?
For us these two realities also co-exist. Our present rescue from our enemies, Satan, sin, and death, proves the future kingdom of prosperity and justice that we will one day co-rule with Christ our brother, captain, and king. And like with King David, may the future reality of this kingdom of full granaries, pregnant cattle, and safe streets become our present vision for the community around us. Our domain in Christ.
To live is Christ is to live in gratitude for our rescue, but gratitude without complacency. The work is both finished and ongoing in Christ. Joy is real, but so is sorrow. The indwelling Jesus wants to bless us and then use that blessing to bless others.
Prayer. Jesus, you have delivered me from the Liar. Now use me to deliver others from their own distress. Amen.
To Live is Christ 