Psalm Meditation 780
Trinity Sunday
May 31, 2015

Psalm 34
1 I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
2 My soul makes its boast in the LORD; let the humble hear and be glad.
3 O magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together.
4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me, and delivered me from all my fears.
5 Look to him, and be radiant; so your faces shall never be ashamed.
6 This poor soul cried, and was heard by the LORD, and was saved from every trouble.
7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them.
8 O taste and see that the LORD is good; happy are those who take refuge in him.
9 O fear the LORD, you his holy ones, for those who fear him have no want.
10 The young lions suffer want and hunger, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.
11 Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.
12 Which of you desires life, and covets many days to enjoy good?
13 Keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit.
14 Depart from evil, and do good; seek peace, and pursue it.
15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, and his ears are open to their cry.
16 The face of the LORD is against evildoers, to cut off the remembrance of them from the earth.
17 When the righteous cry for help, the LORD hears, and rescues them from all their troubles.
18 The LORD is near to the brokenhearted, and saves the crushed in spirit.
19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the LORD rescues them from them all.
20 He keeps all their bones; not one of them will be broken.
21 Evil brings death to the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
22 The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.
(NRSV)

There are folks who appoint themselves as guardians of groups for a number of reasons, two of them rise to importance for this psalm. Some folks are the guardians of the group in order to enforce the rules. They watch over us to make sure we do all the right things and none of the wrong things. They are watching over us as judges, waiting for us to screw up so that they can pass judgment on us. Their prime function is to protect the rules from any infraction we may cause. Rules are more important than people in the minds of those who go to the farthest extreme of this position.

The other group of guardians are there to protect the members of the group out of love for us. They want us to succeed, they want us to do well, they want us to be the best we can possibly be. A lot of parents fit into this category, though we see them as being in the first one for many years of our lives. These folks know that the rules are there to keep folks safe and can be a way of letting folks know they are loved. These folks claim the task of providing a safe place for exploration and experimentation to take place. Most rules are seen as guidelines to keep us from being hurt or causing hurt.

According to the psalmist, God is in the second group. God is present to hear, rescue and save those whose intent is to be righteous. It is entirely possible that God will hear, save and rescue folks with whom we disagree. It can be annoying to see God at work in the lives of those on the other side of our in house squabbles. As tempting as it may be to demonize all of ‘those’ people, there is some righteousness in seeing God at work in places we do not feel comfortable. It serves as a reminder that people are more important than rules. “The LORD redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.”

May 25, 2015
LCM