The God We Worship
For since the beginning of the world, Men have not heard nor perceived by the ear, Nor has the eye seen any God besides You. . .
Isaiah 64:4
At the very beginning of Psalm 18, the Psalmist David makes two great and profound declarations. He bears his heart and tells us what he has determined to do. First, he declares his love for the Lord. Second, he declares his absolute dependence upon the Lord. He seems to be indicating that he will live his life with these two great themes ever before him. He is telling us that he finds his greatest delight in the Lord!
In v 1 he says, I Will Love The Lord - The word translated “love” here is a word that means, “to love deeply.” It is not the normal word translated love. The normal word speaks of “covenant love”. This word speaks of “tender intimacy”. It has the idea of a mother’s love for an infant child. It has the idea of loving one so much; you just want to hug them tightly! If it does not sound too irreverent, the Psalmist is telling us that he is so filled with love for the Lord that he just wants to “slide up close to the Lord and hug Him tight forever”.
We have all felt this way about someone we love. How many have felt their heart fill up with love for a child, a friend, or some other loved one, and you want to reach out and hug them and hold them? This is the emotion felt by Mary Magdalene when she encountered the risen Christ (John 20:17), and by the Disciples when they saw Him also (Matt. 28:9). Considering all that the Lord has done for us and how He loves us and has made a way for us to be saved, our hearts should also be filled with that same kind of love for Him.
Then in v 2 David writes, O Lord, my Strength- He calls God “My Strength” - Nine times in the first two verses, David uses the personal possessive pronoun “my”. Did you know that “my” is the first pronoun learned by most children? They say things like “my toys”, “my house”, “my room”, etc. This is just their childish way of stating that they know what is theirs.
What David is doing is expressing simple, childlike faith in his relationship with the Lord. He is telling us that he is totally dependent upon the Lord for everything v 2: The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. David’s plan is to live for the Lord, love the Lord and to lean on the Lord for everything he needs, does and is in life. I think that is a worthy goal for every believer! He deserves nothing less.
Read
Psalm 18:1-3.
Prayer
Great Lord God, I am so very thankful Father, that You provide for all my needs. But most wonderful of all, is that by Your Son, You have provided for my salvation. Thank You, in Jesus precious name. Amen.
Amen