|
|
| |
David's Songs of Ascents
 |
Three times a year, the people of Israel went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts of the Lord. Since Jerusalem is set, geographically, in mountains, the people had to “go up” to Jerusalem. As they did, they sang the Songs of Ascents, Psalm 120-134. We can learn much about our daily walk with the Lord from David's Songs of Ascents.
Psalm 120 A Song of Ascents
We can all identify with David, the psalmist, as he found himself at the very bottom of the mountain of the Lord, feeling distressed, pursued by the enemy, and wearied from the battle.
"In my distress, I cried to the Lord, and He answered me." Psalm 120:1
Distress comes in many forms to people. It may come in the form of depression, worry, sickness,or financial problems. Distress over children, aging parents, or a broken relationship can bring feelings of hopelessness, helplessness, anxiety, and despondency. Having these feelings is common to all at one point or another in anyone's life.
David wisely chose to call upon the Lord in his distress. He was at the lowest point in his life when he penned these words, and, thus, he began his ascent up to the mountain of the Lord, into God's presence, where every enemy must flee from the oppressed soul. We can take comfort in the fact that the low points in our lives will always lead us to the presence of the Lord, if we will press through our distress into His fullness.
When David cried to the Lord, the Lord answered him. The Lord is listening for our faintest cry to Him. He is standing ready to help us, as we call upon Him. It delights His heart that we believe in Him enough to utter a cry to Him.
When Peter began to sink as he saw the boisterous wind and waves, he cried, "Lord, save me!," and Jesus immediately stretched out His hand and took hold of him. Luke 14:28-31 In times of distress, when the right verse of scripture evades our minds, or we can't remember exactly what the minister said last Sunday in his sermon, the best thing to do is what David and Peter did. Call out to the Lord. "Lord, help me." He is waiting expectantly for the sound of our voices.
Once we've called on the Lord in our distress, He will always come to help us. His arrival can be swift, or it may be delayed, but He is never late. As we cry out to Him, we begin the journey to the mountain of the Lord, leaving our distresses behind.
Betty Seiley
Psalm 121 A Song of Ascents
“I will lift up my eyes to the hills, from whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord who made heaven and earth.” Psalm 121:1
After David cried out to the Lord for His help in his distress, and the Lord answered him, (Psalm 120:1), David began his journey from a very low place in his life, purposing in his heart to go up to the hills of the Lord, where he knew he could experience the Presence of God again. He was keenly aware that he needed to take a step toward the Lord and that the Lord would meet him, as he began to “climb out of his pit of distress.”
The hills to which David lifts his eyes are the hills of Zion and Jerusalem. Three times a year, the people of Israel went up to Jerusalem to celebrate the feasts of the Lord. Since Jerusalem is set, geographically, in mountains, the people had to “go up” to Jerusalem. As they did, they sang the Songs of Ascents, Psalm 120-134. Within these fifteen psalms, there are some outstanding spiritual applications for us today.
We climb higher with David. “He will not allow your foot to be moved; He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.” Our faith in God’s faithfulness rises with David’s, as he remembers that God is our keeper by day and by night. “The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand.” David recalls that the Lord keeps us twenty-four hours a day. “The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.”
The story is told of a Christian lady who lived in London during World War II. She went to bed every night and slept like a baby, even while the bombs were falling on the city. Someone asked her, “Aren’t you concerned that your house will be hit? Why don’t you go to the bomb shelter?” She replied, “He who keeps Israel neither slumbers nor sleeps. There is no reason for us both to stay awake.” This lady knew the keeping power of God, wouldn’t you agree?
The Lord preserves us from all evil. Salvation, in its fullest sense, “sozo,” in the Greek, actually means salvation from sin, protection, deliverance from evil, and healing. “The Lord shall preserve you from all evil; He shall preserve your soul. The Lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth, and even forevermore.” Psalm 121:7-8
God is the God of now and the future. He saves us now and keeps us forever.
As He keeps you in His loving care,
Carl and Betty Seiley
Redeemer Revival Ministries
The Beautiful City of God
For almost two weeks, I have heard the Holy Spirit saying to me, "a song of ascents." The songs of ascents are found in Psalm 120-134. They were sung by the people of God as they walked upward toward Jerusalem, where Mt. Zion is, to celebrate the feasts of the Lord. The songs of ascents have much spiritual application for Christians today, as we "go up to the Presence of the Lord" in our daily lives.
Psalm 122 - A Song of Ascents, of David.
Today, we continue on our journey with David, the psalmist, up to Mount Zion, in Jerusalem, the City of God, to worship the Lord. "I was glad when they said to me, "Let us go to the house (or presence) of the LORD. Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, that is built as a city that is compact together;" Psalm 122:1-2
Going up to the house of the Lord makes the heart glad, as it did David's heart when he brought the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem as king of Israel. The Ark represented the presence and glory of God abiding with His people, Israel, therefore, it was highly honored and loved by Israel. David was so filled with joy and gladness when the Ark came into Jerusalem, that he worshipped the Lord mightily before all of Israel, even though he was king, and some thought he should act more dignified. Of course, those who looked down on David for worshipping the Lord with all his might, did not receive the blessing David did. We say with David, "I was glad when they said unto me, "Let us go to the house or presence of the Lord."
In the presence and glory of the Lord, we are cleansed, healed, filled with His peace, renewed, soothed, revived…We can go up to Zion in a gathering of believers, in our homes, anywhere we are, because the presence of the Lord abides in us by the Holy Spirit as we receive Jesus. "For the kingdom of God is in you," Jesus said. The kingdom of God is not meat or drink, but righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit. Romans 14:17
Through the eye of faith, David could see himself and all of Israel standing within the gates of Jerusalem, as a body joined together in unity. Long before the worshippers reached Jerusalem, he said, "Our feet are standing within your gates, O Jerusalem…as a city that is compact together." David was seeing all of the people inside Jerusalem's gates, standing together in blessed unity. It is the way of the Lord for His people to see with the eye of faith. The Lord's eyes are eyes of faith. "For without faith, it is impossible to please God." Hebrews 11:6 Faith is simply believing in the heart that what God says is true.
"To which the tribes go up, even the tribes of the LORD---an ordinance for Israel--to give thanks to the name of the LORD." Psalm 122:4 David is stating the purpose of the ascent to Mount Zion, to give thanks to the name of the Lord. For the same reason, we go. "Enter His gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise." Psalm 100:4
A hymn which was sung often in times gone by is titled, "Let's Go Up to Zion."
"Come ye that love the Lord and let your joys be known
Join in a song with sweet accord, join in a song with sweet accord
And thus surround the throne, and thus surround the throne.
We're marching to Zion, beautiful, beautiful Zion
We're marching upward to Zion, the beautiful city of God."
This will be the culmination of the ascent to Zion. The redeemed of the Lord from all ages, kindreds, and languages, will stand in complete sweet accord before the Throne of God in the Heavenly Jerusalem, worshipping Him with everything within us. "For You were slain, and have redeemed us to God by Your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and have made us kings and priests unto our God." Revelation 5:9-10 Our Father's heart and ours will beat with unimagined joy!
"Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: 'May they prosper who love you. May peace be within your walls, and prosperity within your palaces.'" Psalm 122:6-7 In this passage, "pray" is the word sha'al in Hebrew, which means "to ask, inquire, request, and wish for." It carries the thought of "inquiring about" for the sake of God's people and for the sake of the Lord's house or kingdom. We are instructed to seek Jerusalem's good, to inquire earnestly about its welfare, and to pray for its peace. As Christians, we are to have genuine concern, love, and prayer for Jerusalem. We love you, Jerusalem, the city of the great King!
"I have set watchmen on your walls, O Jerusalem; they shall never hold their peace day or night. You who make mention of the Lord, do not keep silent, and give Him no rest till He establishes and till He makes Jerusalem a praise in the earth." Isaiah 62:6-7 (NKJV)
Let's go up to Zion!
________________________
Jesus, Our Master, Friend, and Bridegroom
“ I lift my eyes to You,
the One enthroned in heaven.
Like a servant's eyes on His master's hand,
like a servant girl's eyes on her mistress's hand,
so our eyes are on the LORD our God
until He shows us favor.
Show us favor, LORD, show us favor..." Psalm 123:1-3
As we go up to Zion with David, we come to Psalm 123. The Songs of Ascents, Psalms 120-134, were sung by the people of Israel as they went up to Jerusalem three times a year to celebrate the three main feasts of the Lord.
These verses remind us that we were gladly the Lord's servants, and still are, before we were His friends and Bride. There is a progression in God.
In Psalm 123, we hear David singing, “I lift my eyes to You, the One enthroned in heaven. Like a servant’s eyes on His master’s hand, and like a servant girl’s eyes on her mistress’s hand, so our eyes are on the Lord our God until He shows us favor.” The Lord is our Master, and we are His bondservants, joyfully serving Him, with no desire to serve another or ourselves.
As His bondservants, we look to our Master for everything. Paul identifies himself as the bondservant of the Lord, as do Peter and James. We receive from Him life, strength, health, anointing, well-being, provision, everything. When we need mercy or favor, we look to Him. “For it is You who blesses the righteous man, O LORD, You surround him with favor as with a shield.” Psalm 5:12
“Favor” is also known as "mercy," and several translations use the word, “mercy,” in this psalm. When we need mercy for ourselves, He gives us mercy, as we come to Him with repentant hearts. When others need mercy, the Lord will show mercy to those for whom we intercede. Our nation needs mercy for her sins, so that the Lord will come and revive us. His Name is vindicated and glorified, as His people return to Him. That is the necessary thing, that the Lord's Name be vindicated and glorified. "I will show the holiness of My great Name, which has been profaned among the nations, the Name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the Lord, declares the Sovereign Lord, when I show myself holy through you before their eyes." Ezekiel 36:23
The Lord hears our prayers for mercy for other nations and cities. He brought Israel out of captivity in Babylon because of the intercession of Daniel, Ezekiel, and Jeremiah. Show mercy and favor, O Lord, to all peoples throughout the earth who do not know You.
The spiritual house, Mount Zion, is being built by the Father in the hearts of all who are redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. We offer up worship and sacrifices to the Lord from our hearts, just as David did in the earthly Mount Zion.
_____________________________
Remembering the Lord's Goodness
A Song of Ascents, Psalm 124
David’s quickness to remember the Lord’s goodness to him and to Israel is seen in many of the psalms, and we encounter that wonderful facet of his character in Psalm 124, the next song of ascents. We learn much from David as we hear him recount the many times the Lord’s deliverance saved him from his enemies. Psalm 124 is a an account, written in song, and it recounts the Lord’s saving mercies to David and Israel.
“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side," let Israel now say, “if it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us, then they would have swallowed us up alive, when their wrath was kindled against us.” Psalm 124:1-3 How true these words still are today, because they are the living Word of God. When the wrath of Israel’s enemies kindles against her, the protective hand of the Lord rises in opposition to them, because the Lord is on Israel’s side, and He changes not. “And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Genesis 12:3 Those who rise up against Israel will always find themselves on the wrong side.
As a young shepherd boy, David protected his father’s sheep when wild beasts pursued them. When the Philistines came against Israel, and the battle was between David and Goliath, David said to Saul, “…when a lion or a bear came and took a lamb out of the flock, ‘I went out after it and struck it, and delivered the lamb from its mouth; and when it arose against me, I caught it by its beard, and struck and killed it.’” 1 Samuel 17:34-35 Recounting and remembering the victories God gave him as a shepherd boy gave David strength to kill Goliath, the enemy of Israel.
Again, in Psalm 124, David sings of the Lord’s deliverance from the streams of swollen waters. “Then the swollen waters would have gone over our soul,” if the Lord had not been on our side. He goes on to remember, metaphorically, that the souls of God’s people have escaped from the snare of the fowlers, persons who catch birds in a snare. David remembers the goodness of God in delivering Israel from both man and beast.
Recounting the victories given to us by the Lord always helps us to believe that God will give us the victory again. One of the devil’s tactics against believers is trying to convince us that God will not fulfill His promises to us. But, since the devil cannot tell the truth, we are never to believe his lies. The Lord has delivered us before, and He will do it again. The Lord is on the side of His covenant people.
Many blessings to you,
Betty Seiley
Redeemer Revival Ministries
_________________________
As the Mountains Surround Jerusalem
Psalm 125, A Song of Ascents
“They that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth forever. As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about His people from henceforth, even forever.” Psalm 125:1-2
On our journey “up to” Jerusalem, and the place of highest worship in Israel at that time, with David and his companions, we find ourselves in Psalm 125, a psalm greatly loved by many. David begins with “they that trust in the Lord shall be as Mount Zion, which cannot be removed, but abideth forever.” Our relationship with the Lord always begins with trust in Him. To trust means to believe that what one says is true, without question or doubt. As we trust in the Lord, we are agreeing with Him that He and His Word are absolutely true, infallible, and completely trustworthy. If we find ourselves questioning the Lord or doubting His Word, the best thing to do is to say, “Lord, help my unbelief”, and resist the devil and he will flee from you with his questions and lies.
God and His Word are inseparable. “In the beginning, was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…The Word was made flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1, 14 Jesus is the Living Word, who was made flesh and dwelt among us. He pitched His tent beside us, and in doing so, He willingly acted with unfathomable selflessness, coming to a fallen world so that He might redeem us to Himself.
As we place our trust in the Lord, in His redemptive work on the Cross, in His Word, and in His all-encompassing love, we become as immovable as Mount Zion. God created the hills and mountains immovable, unless, of course, He decides to move them Himself. As believers become rooted and grounded in the love and grace of God, there is no person or devil that can talk us out of our trust in God and His Word. “I shall not be, I shall not be moved.”
“As the mountains are round about Jerusalem, so the Lord is round about His people forever.” David is expressing the truth that the Lord is near His people forever, never left alone without His help. The mountains and hills that surround Jerusalem encompass her, making the city fortress-like and nearly impenetrable by enemy armies. We can take much comfort in knowing that the Lord and His hosts surround us day and night.
David reminds us that the righteous shall enjoy the goodness of the Lord, but the wicked shall be allowed to go on in their iniquity if they refuse to receive the mercy of the Lord. Consequences await the wicked if they will not have God.
David ends Psalm 125 with, “Peace be upon Israel!” To that blessing, we say, “Yes, and amen,” a thousand times!
Wonderful blessings,
Carl and Betty Seiley
http://glassysea.net
|
|
|
|
|
