Facce Radiose

Psalm 34.5 They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces will never be ashamed.

In preparing the sermon for Sunday March 31, 2019 I came across a sentence in a commentary written by Peter C. Craigie. He wrote, “The psalm if fully grasped, dispels the naivete of that faith which does not contain within it the strength to stand against the onslaught of evil.” pg. 282

“If fully grasped…” The implication is that there is more there than meets the eye. Of course I know that is true and you should too. But to read it in print was shocking. And more than a bit intriguing. Not in an intellectual exercise kind of way but rather in an exploratory way.

it is now the Monday morning after Easter 2019 and we had a full and wondrous morning at church yesterday. But we were also confronted with an onslaught of evil in this world. On Easter Sunday (and now again this morning) in Sri Lanka multiple bombs exploded at churches and high end hotels. Hundreds of people were killed. On the very day Christians gathered to worship and praise God; on the highest day of the Christian calendar; many were issued into eternity by an onslaught of evil. As we begin to read the text of Psalm 34 David states, “I will praise the LORD at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Is it hard for you to put those two ideas together? People were violently killed and transitioned into eternity and David, without apology or reservation says that he will praise God at all times. Let’s explore…just a bit.

The LORD = YHWH. That is His name which He revealed to Moses. God is personal towards His people and our brothers and sisters in Christ that died yesterday are now experiencing Our Father which art in heaven in a way that we still anticipate. There is no doubt that the manner in which they obtained that experience is evil. Evil actions perpetrated by evil people. Nonetheless, they are in heaven with the LORD. What a glory for them and that is something to praise God concerning.

We are looking to Him in the midst of evil…with radiant faces? When we are able to praise Him at all times then yes our faces are radiant. We are looking at Him in the midst of evil…without shame? When we are able to praise Him at all times then yes there is no shame. The evil one will cause confusion and doubt. How could a good God allow evil of this magnitude? How could a powerful God not use that power to prevent this evil? How could a God of love allow such hate to exist? These sound like troublesome questions. And they can be answered but not in this post.

For now we do well to remember who we are and who God is. As Paul reminds us in Romans, “Who are you, oh man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, “Why did you make me like this,” will it?”

I will praise the LORD at all times, His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” Feel free to explore further. Peace.