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The Steadfast Love of the Lord
33 Shout for joy in the LORD, O you righteous!
Praise befits the upright.
Give thanks to the LORD with the lyre;
make melody to him with the harp of ten strings!
Sing to him a new song;
play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
For the word of the LORD is upright,
and all his work is done in faithfulness.
He loves righteousness and justice;
the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.
By the word of the LORD the heavens were made,
and by the breath of his mouth all their host.
He gathers the waters of the sea as a heap;
he puts the deeps in storehouses.
Let all the earth fear the LORD;
let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of him!
For he spoke, and it came to be;
he commanded, and it stood firm.
The LORD brings the counsel of the nations to nothing;
he frustrates the plans of the peoples.
The counsel of the LORD stands forever,
the plans of his heart to all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD,
the people whom he has chosen as his heritage!
The LORD looks down from heaven;
he sees all the children of man;
from where he sits enthroned he looks out
on all the inhabitants of the earth,
he who fashions the hearts of them all
and observes all their deeds.
The king is not saved by his great army;
a warrior is not delivered by his great strength.
The war horse is a false hope for salvation,
and by its great might it cannot rescue.
Behold, the eye of the LORD is on those who fear him,
on those who hope in his steadfast love,
that he may deliver their soul from death
and keep them alive in famine.
Our soul waits for the LORD;
he is our help and our shield.
For our heart is glad in him,
because we trust in his holy name.
Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us,
even as we hope in you.
(ESV)
Psalm 33 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Our soul waits for the LORD; He is our help and our shield. 21 For our heart rejoices in Him, Because we trust in His holy name. 22 Let Your lovingkindness, O LORD, be upon us, According as we have hoped in You.
Psalms 33:20-22 NASB
Waiting on the Lord includes several diverse aspects. Though waiting can be difficult, it has been a constant theme among the people of God dating back to the OT. Many of God’s promises required an act of obedient perseverance as His people would wait and live with anticipation. What should we do while we wait?
Worship. Our heart rejoices in Him because we trust Him. Without this trust, we struggle to worship because we don’t really believe He will deliver on what He has promised. Our praise and worship is an act that communicates trust and obedience. We praise Him while we wait knowing that if He has said it, then it will happen exactly as He intended. This is a foreign concept for us. In what other parts of our life do we act like this? There is nothing we can trust like the Lord. He is absolute in nature and always faithful to His Word.
Desire. Let your loving-kindness be upon us. This is the conviction to be more like Jesus. Deep down in our soul, we have an organic appetite to be holy and righteous. While we wait, we focus on feeding this desire with food that nourishes our soul. Many times, God has more growth to accomplish in us during our waiting on His timing. When we hyper-focus on the end result, we tend to miss what He is doing in the present. While we wait, we must abide in His presence and let His holy character straighten our mindset and attitude. It is often beneficial to pray toward this attitude by asking ourselves, “Father, how are You shaping my desires while I wait?”
Hope. We are never without hope with Jesus. Let that sink in for a moment. No matter what problem is currently in front of you, you can trust in the God of miracles. We have a future and a seat at God’s table because of what Jesus has done. He has given us the ultimate hope in this life. We will not fear sin and death because it has been cleansed by the blood of Christ. We will not fear our problems and issues because He is over all things. There is nothing which can separate us from His love and nothing we can do to earn it. The hope of Christ is indescribable!
Assurance. Being assured of something means that you will live as it has already happened. The Bible encourages us to live with an active faith. This means that while we wait, we continue to move forward. Traditionally, we understand waiting as stopping. This is not the case with Jesus. Pulling from Paul’s analogy of running a race, we know that as we run, we will encounter checkpoints where our needs will be met. Sometimes the pace is grueling. Thoughts of doubt flood our mind as we don’t know if we will make it. We may even slow down to a jog or a walk. However, we continue pacing ourselves forward with assurance that everything we need will be provided along the way. This is the most healthy way to view our relationship with Christ in this life. We don’t know when the finish line will appear, but we do know that we are called to keep running. We are assured that He will be with us every step of the way.
As you wait, are you practicing these principles? Where do you need to be reminded that this journey with Jesus produces worship, desire, hope, and assurance.