Tag Archives: Savior

God’s Firstborn

18 Friday Dec 2020

Posted by in Psalm 89, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 89
(Verses 19-29)
Once you spoke in a vision,
to your faithful people you said:
“I have bestowed strength on a warrior;
I have raised up a young man from among the people.
I have found David my servant; with my sacred oil I have anointed him.
My hand will sustain him; surely my arm will strengthen him.
The enemy will not get the better of him;
the wicked will not oppress him.
I will crush his foes before him and strike down his adversaries.
My faithful love will be with him,
and through my name his horn will be exalted.
I will set his hand over the sea, his right hand over the rivers.
He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father,
my God, the Rock my Savior.’
And I will appoint him to be my firstborn,
the most exalted of the kings of the earth.
I will maintain my love to him forever,
and my covenant with him will never fail.
I will establish his line forever,
his throne as long as the heavens endure (NIV).*

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December sunset — photo by David Kitz

Reflection
Who is the principal figure in the Old Testament canon? Some would argue for Moses, the liberator of a nation of slaves. Others would go farther back yet to Abraham, the ancestral father of the nation of Israel. Here in Psalm 89, Ethan the Ezrahite and author of this psalm casts his vote in favor of David.

David’s name appears more frequently in the Bible than any name including the name of Jesus. Here in Psalm 89, Ethan draws a direct prophetic link to Jesus, the Son of God. He writes this about David: He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father, my God, the Rock my Savior.’ And I will appoint him to be my firstborn, the most exalted of the kings of the earth.

No other man in the Holy Scriptures can claim to be appointed as God’s firstborn. This is an honor that is reserved for David alone. But David prefigures or foreshadows Jesus, the true Son of God. Jesus was not appointed to the role of God’s son. He was conceived and born into this world as the divine Son of the Most High. Through the miracle of incarnation the son of Mary was also the Son of God and the Savior of the world. And this Mary was of royal lineage. She was a direct descendant of King David.

In Jesus Christ these words find their fulfillment: I will maintain my love to him [David] forever, and my covenant with him will never fail. I will establish his [David’s] line forever, his throne as long as the heavens endure.

Response: LORD God, I am thankful for Jesus. I am thankful that in the dark long ago, you devised a plan to send a Savior to this world. You sent a better son than David. You sent Jesus. Amen.

Your Turn: Are you thankful for God’s Son? Why?

* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica

The first volume of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer by award-winning author David Kitz is now available. For a closer look at this 265-page daily devotional book visit Amazon and enter David Kitz into the search bar.

An Undivided Heart

08 Tuesday Dec 2020

Posted by in Psalm 86, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 86
(Verses 8-13)
Among the gods there is none like you, Lord;
no deeds can compare with yours.
All the nations you have made
will come and worship before you, Lord;
they will bring glory to your name.
For you are great and do marvelous deeds;
you alone are God.
Teach me your way, LORD,
that I may rely on your faithfulness;
give me an undivided heart,
that I may fear your name.
I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart;
I will glorify your name forever.
For great is your love toward me;
you have delivered me from the depths,
from the realm of the dead (NIV).*

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Early morning calm — photo by David Kitz

Reflection
Today’s reading from Psalm 86 begins with this prophetic declaration. All the nations you have made will come and worship before you, Lord; they will bring glory to your name.

Psalm 86 is a prayer of David, but within this prayer David makes this prophetic statement about all nations worshipping the Lord. By the Spirit of God, David saw and declared what is to come. In the pantheistic world of his time, David saw that the God he served was not a local or national god. He saw that Yahweh, the LORD was, is and will be the Lord over all. How could David know that the God of Israel would come to be worshipped in every nation on the earth?

David grasped the big picture. Or a better explanation might be that the God of the big picture grasped David and revealed this truth to him. Through David’s line would come a Savior—a Savior named Jesus—a Jewish Savior for the whole world.

Why was David able to receive such a profound revelation? We are given a clue in the words of his prayer. Teach me your way, LORD, that I may rely on your faithfulness; give me an undivided heart, that I may fear your name.

The answer may lie in David’s heart. He had an undivided heart. In other words he was wholehearted in his love for the Lord. He had a single-minded focus on God. He says just that in the next line of his prayer. I will praise you, Lord my God, with all my heart; I will glorify your name forever.

Are you wholehearted in your love and praise for the Lord?

Response: LORD God, unite my heart to praise your name. I don’t want to be distracted by the pursuits of this world. I set my affection on you. Thank you for loving me as your child. Amen.

Your Turn: What are some of the things that distract you from loving and fearing God?

* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica

Some good news: The first volume of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer by award-winning author David Kitz is now available. For a closer look at the book click here.

Who Can Turn This Around

23 Monday Nov 2020

Posted by in Psalm 80, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 80
(Verses 8-19)
You transplanted a vine from Egypt;
you drove out the nations and planted it.
You cleared the ground for it, and it took root and filled the land.
The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches.
Its branches reached as far as the Sea, its shoots as far as the River.
Why have you broken down its walls
so that all who pass by pick its grapes?
Boars from the forest ravage it,
and insects from the fields feed on it.
Return to us, God Almighty! Look down from heaven and see!
Watch over this vine, the root your right hand has planted,
the son you have raised up for yourself.
Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire;
at your rebuke your people perish.
Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand,
the son of man you have raised up for yourself.
Then we will not turn away from you;
revive us, and we will call on your name.
Restore us, LORD God Almighty;
make your face shine on us, that we may be saved (NIV).*

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Ottawa River sunset — photo by David Kitz

Reflection
Who can turn around this situation? Who can bring this nation back to God? Essentially that was the question of the psalmist, Asaph, here in Psalm 80. Israel had been ravaged by foreign invaders. The beautiful land had been laid desolate, so Asaph pleads with the LORD. Your vine is cut down, it is burned with fire; at your rebuke your people perish. But one hope remains. Let your hand rest on the man at your right hand, the son of man you have raised up for yourself. Then we will not turn away from you; revive us, and we will call on your name.

Who is this son of man—this great hope of the people of God? Clearly a man—a champion like David is needed. David defeated Israel’s enemies on all sides. He turned the nation into a great military and economic power. He laid the foundation for the prosperity that followed under the wise rule of Solomon his son. Asaph is writing several generations later when all that wealth has been squandered and there is a dearth of godly leadership.

Who can save us now? The answer lies in the son of man. Jesus continually referred to himself as the Son of Man. He used that phrase thirty times in the Gospel of Matthew. All too often we are busy looking for a political savior. But what we need more than anything is the one and only true Savior. His name is Jesus Christ. He saves us body, soul and spirit from the corruption that is in the world.

Response: LORD God, on so many levels our nation is in a mess. We need a Savior to emerge. Jesus, you are the great Son of Man. I turn my heart to you. Govern my thoughts and my actions every day. Amen.

Your Turn: Who is governing you—governing your heart and mind?

* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica

Some good news: The first volume of Psalms 365: Develop a Life of Worship and Prayer by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in November, 2020, by Elk Lake Publishing. Two additional volumes will follow in 2021 to complete the three volume set of devotions from the Psalms.

My Burden

01 Thursday Oct 2020

Posted by in Psalm 68, Psalms

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Reading: Psalm 68
(Verses 15-23)
Mount Bashan, majestic mountain,
Mount Bashan, rugged mountain,
why gaze in envy, you rugged mountain,
at the mountain where God chooses to reign,
where the LORD himself will dwell forever?
The chariots of God are tens of thousands
and thousands of thousands;
the Lord has come from Sinai into his sanctuary.
When you ascended on high, you took many captives;
you received gifts from people, even from the rebellious—
that you, LORD God, might dwell there.
Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior,
who daily bears our burdens.
Our God is a God who saves;
from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death.
Surely God will crush the heads of his enemies,
the hairy crowns of those who go on in their sins.
The Lord says, “I will bring them from Bashan;
I will bring them from the depths of the sea,
that your feet may wade in the blood of your foes,
while the tongues of your dogs have their share” (NIV).*

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Early morning island stroll — photo by David Kitz

Reflection
There is one thought from today’s psalm reading that jumps out at me and here it is: Praise be to the Lord, to God our Savior, who daily bears our burdens.

Why would or should God our Savior bear our burdens? He sits enthroned in heaven above the fray. Why should He entangle Himself in the affairs of humanity? But apparently He does. Jesus our Savior gives us this invitation, “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light” (Matthew 11:28-30).

Jesus is inviting us to step into the harness with him. Then he assures us that he will do the heavy lifting and pulling. I’m not sure that was a wise offer for Jesus to make. Did he really know the extent of my burden? Did he know all that burden bearing would lead him directly to the cross? He must have known, but he did it anyway. What a foolish man! What a foolish God!

Some Saviors will do anything to show their love.

Response: LORD God, thank you for being foolish enough to love me. Thank you, Jesus for bearing my burdens to the cross and beyond. My hope rests in you. Our God is a God who saves; from the Sovereign LORD comes escape from death. Amen.

Your Turn: Has the Lord lifted some of your burdens recently? Have you stepped into the harness with Him? Are you letting Him carry His portion?

* New International Version, Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica

Some good news: The first volume of 365 Days through the Psalms by award-winning author David Kitz will be published in November, 2020, by Elk Lake Publishing. Two additional volumes will follow in 2021 to complete the three volume set of devotions from the Psalms.