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Finding

Hallel Day 9 Finding Him Faithful: Digging Deeper

April 9, 2020 by Rachel Jones 1 Comment

Digging Deeper Days

Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!

Yesterday’s Journey Study connects with today’s!
Check out Finding Him Faithful!

The Questions

1) What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life?

2) How do I seek God’s face?

3) How can I be certain I will see the goodness of the Lord?

Psalm 27:1-14

The Lord is my light and my salvation—
whom should I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life—
whom should I dread?
2 When evildoers came against me to devour my flesh,
my foes and my enemies stumbled and fell.
3 Though an army deploys against me,
my heart will not be afraid;
though a war breaks out against me,
I will still be confident.

4 I have asked one thing from the Lord;
it is what I desire:
to dwell in the house of the Lord
all the days of my life,
gazing on the beauty of the Lord
and seeking him in his temple.
5 For he will conceal me in his shelter
in the day of adversity;
he will hide me under the cover of his tent;
he will set me high on a rock.
6 Then my head will be high
above my enemies around me;
I will offer sacrifices in his tent with shouts of joy.
I will sing and make music to the Lord.

7 Lord, hear my voice when I call;
be gracious to me and answer me.
8 My heart says this about you:
“Seek His face.”
Lord, I will seek your face.
9 Do not hide your face from me;
do not turn your servant away in anger.
You have been my helper;
do not leave me or abandon me,
God of my salvation.
10 Even if my father and mother abandon me,
the Lord cares for me.

11 Because of my adversaries,
show me your way, Lord,
and lead me on a level path.
12 Do not give me over to the will of my foes,
for false witnesses rise up against me,
breathing violence.

13 I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong, and let your heart be courageous.
Wait for the Lord.

Original Intent

1) What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life?
In Psalm 27:4, King David declares, “I have asked one thing from the Lord; it is what I desire: to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, gazing on the beauty of the Lord and seeking Him in His temple.” The Hebrew word for dwell is “yashab”, which means “to sit down (specifically in quiet); by implication, to dwell, to remain; causatively, to settle, to marry.” (Biblehub.com.) Author Skip Moen asserts that David does not want to take up residence in God’s temple because in reality, “The Temple didn’t exist when David lived. His dream might be to spend his days in the Temple yet to be constructed, but God made it plain that David was not the one to build it. With that in mind, why does David desire to be in the “house of the Lord”? David desires to be in the presence of God, to experience life enclosed by the Divine.”  Author Jon Bloom concurs, declaring that “David’s deepest desire — his one thing — is not for safety, military dominance, or prosperity. David wants God — to be near God, to see and be satisfied with God’s glory, and to live by God’s wisdom and guidance.”  We want to make David’s one desire ours as well, to spend time in the presence of our beautiful and wondrous God.  We don’t need to live at our local church to do this.  We can praise Him (Psalm 22:3) and seek His presence (Matthew 7:7) to find Him and dwell with Him.

2) How do I seek God’s face?
In Psalm 27:8, David writes, “My heart says this about you: ‘Seek his face.’ Lord, I will seek your face.“  Chaim Bentorah tells us “Jewish literature and ancient Jewish scholars often render the word Pani, which we translate as face, as “the presence of God.”  He goes on to explain that “the word in Hebrew for “seek” is “bakash” which means to seek, search, beg, demand, inquire or investigate.”  So, David is vowing to follow his heart’s prompting to seek the presence of God.  Author  A. Maclaren describes David’s seeking as “the turning of the direction of our desires to Him, the recognition of the fact that His face is more than all else to men.” We seek God’s face by desiring to be in His presence above all else.  Author Albert Barnes notes that David “immediately complied with that command, as it was a principle of his life – one of the steady promptings of his heart – that he would do this. The heart asked no excuse; pleaded for no delay; desired no reason for not complying with the command, but at once assented to the propriety of the law, and resolved to obey.”  May we all immediately answer God’s call to seek His presence by turning our hearts and minds to Him (Psalm 119:10).

3) How can I be certain I will see the goodness of the Lord?
The exact circumstances of the writing of Psalm 27 are not definitively known.  According to Matthew Henry, “Some think David penned this psalm before his coming to the throne, when he was in the midst of his troubles, and perhaps upon the death of his parents; but the Jews think he penned it when he was old.” Whenever it was written, it shows that David had hope in the Lord and His goodness, no matter his troubles or distress.  He writes in Psalm 27:13, “I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.”  Author David Guzik writes that “David’s seeking after God, and his knowledge of the Lord, led him to this triumphant statement.” David declared God to be the stronghold of his life (Psalm 27:1) and he believed God would conceal him, hide him, and set him safely high upon a rock when troubles came. (Psalm 27:5) Matthew Henry explains that “Those that walk by faith in the goodness of the Lord shall in due time walk in the sight of that goodness.” David could hope to see the goodness of the Lord, even when there was cause to despair, because He knew God is good and faithful and could be trusted.

Everyday Application

1) What does it mean to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life?
When I read Psalm 27:4, where David states he only wants to dwell in God’s house and gaze on His beauty, I wonder what a typical day must have been like for David. He was a warrior, a King, a writer, a husband, and a father, so he probably did not have a lot of free time on his hands, not to mention that everything from transportation to meals took much longer in his day than in ours. Even with all that on his plate, his number one wish was to be in the presence of the Lord. David must have known that joy, renewal, and strength come from spending time with God (Psalm 16:11), gazing on His beauty, and soaking in His presence.  It makes my excuses for not spending time with the Lord seem pretty pitiful.  I let my errands and to-do lists and binge watching get in the way of my time with the Lord, while King David longed for time in God’s presence, even while he was waging wars, writing songs, and running a kingdom. My prayer is to seek the Lord fervently and diligently like David did.  In Psalm 42:1, the psalmist cries out, “As a deer longs for flowing streams, so I long for you, God.”  I want to dwell with God, and spend my time in His presence, for all my days!

2) How do I seek God’s face?
I was at the end of my college career before e-mail was a thing, so I had to call people on the phone, write them a note or see them in person to communicate with them.  As an introverted person, I daily celebrate the invention of the electronic message allowing me to avoid in-person or voice-to-voice contact! But there are some people in my life with whom e-mail contact alone is not enough.  I long to see their faces!  I want to look in their eyes, see their smile, and hear the inflection in their voice.  For them, only face to face communication will do.  In Psalm 27:8,, David expresses something like this when he tells the Lord, “My heart says this about you: ‘Seek his face.’ Lord, I will seek your face.“ David just wants to be with the Lord. He wants to be in His presence.  One way David sought the Lord’s face was by worshipping Him. In Psalm 27:7, just before declaring he will seek God’s face, David professes, “I will offer sacrifices in his tent with shouts of joy.  I will sing and make music to the Lord.  Lord, hear my voice when I call.” In Psalm 95:2, David says, “Let us enter his presence with thanksgiving.” According to Psalm 119:10, David sought the Lord “with his whole heart.” We can seek God’s presence by praising Him and focusing on Him, putting Him above all the other things that clamor for our attention.

3) How can I be certain I will see the goodness of the Lord?
I have always loved the poem “Hope is the Thing with Feathers” by Emily Dickinson.  In the first stanza she declares: “Hope” is the thing with feathers – That perches in the soul – And sings the tune without the words – And never stops – at all.  This stanza makes me think of the psalmist, David, pouring out his heart in song, often declaring the hope he has in God. Even when things were dire for him, he never stopped hoping in the Lord.  He declared that “I am certain that I will see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.” (Psalm 27:13) He was so certain God would come through for him that he urged patience by writing in Psalm 27:14, “Wait for the Lord; be strong, and let your heart be courageous. Wait for the Lord.” He said it twice, wait for the Lord.  I don’t do “wait” very well, especially when I am in distress.  But David had seen God’s deliverance from physical harm like wild animals attacking his sheep (1 Samuel 17:37), enemies seeking to kill him (I Samuel 19:1), and the violence of battle in war time (2 Samuel 8). God also rescued him from anxiety and despair. (Psalm 13) David had frequent need of immediate deliverance, and yet he could pen the words “wait for the Lord.”  His hope in God was so strong and his belief in His deliverance so certain, he knew he could trust in God’s timing.  That is the prayer of my heart; that I believe in God’s goodness and trust in His perfect plan, no matter what my circumstance are telling me.  I can be certain I will see the goodness of the Lord because the truth is He is good.  I want to cry out with David, “Taste and see that the Lord is good.  How happy is the person who takes refuge in him.” (Psalm 34:8)

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Digging Deeper is for Everyone!

1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
several times
3) Write down your questions
as you think of them.
4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
other related verses!). (www.esvbible.org)
5) Check your applications with other trusted Christians that you are in community with and embrace the fullness of God
in your everyday!

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Why Dig Deeper?

Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.

In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!

Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.

Study Tools

We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.

Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!

Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))

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Posted in: Beauty, Dwell, Faithfulness, God, Good, Praise, Prayer, Seeking Tagged: faithful, Finding, Goodness of God, Him, House of the Lord, seek, wonder

Hallel Day 8 Finding Him Faithful

April 8, 2020 by Sara Cissell 2 Comments

Read His Words Before Ours!

Psalm 116:1-11
Matthew 26:1-29
Isaiah 53:1-12
Psalm 127:1-14

Hallel, Day 8

“Go into the city to a certain man,” He said, “and tell him,
‘The Teacher says: My time is near; I am celebrating the Passover
at your place with my disciples
.’”
(Matthew 26:18)

The disciples took this message and sought out the man.
As they walked, they pondered Jesus’ statement.

“What do you think He meant by ‘My time is near?’”

“Peter, He confirmed to you He is the Son of God.
What does He mean?”

“Guys, a few days ago He said the Son of Man will be handed over to be crucified after the Passover. Can that really happen to Jesus?”

The men fell into a contemplative silence as they walked and only the sounds of their sandals on the path filled the air. The questions recently voiced still echoed in their minds and they sorted through what they knew of God to try to answer them.

How could Jesus, the Son of God, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob be crucified?
The Lord had already proven His faithfulness to His people over and over again.
How could He abandon His very son?

The Lord heard Abraham’s cry for an heir in his old age. (Genesis 15:1-6)
He heard Sarah’s laughter and filled her womb. (Genesis 18:9-15)
He changed Israel’s name and made him a mighty nation. (Genesis 32:28)
He brought that nation out of captivity and fed them in the wilderness. (Exodus 16:1-16)

How could the God who demonstrated such compassion to an obstinate group of people allow His own son to be killed? 

Their questions unanswered, the disciples gained access to the upper room and prepared the Passover meal. Jesus soon reclined among them and confirmed their fears when He announced one of them would betray Him.
Death now rose to the forefront of their minds.
Jesus continued, saying what was written about Him would soon come to pass.

Tonight was Passover, every detail rooted in reminding its participants of the faithfulness of God. Every traditional food item had carefully been chosen, filled with symbolism of slavery and freedom found only because of Yahweh, the faithful God who had rescued them long ago.

The bread, the cup, the lamb, the hymns.
Every part was sacred.

“The ropes of death were wrapped around me,
and the torments of Sheol overcame me;
I encountered trouble and sorrow.
Then I called on the name of the Lord:
‘Lord, save me!’”
(Hallel Psalm 116:3-4)

How could the Israelites cry out to God to be rescued from the cords of Sheol while Jesus would face those very bindings Himself?

The Son of God, destined to be bound by the cords of death? Unto what purpose?
Could the words of Isaiah 53 be true? By His bloody stripes, would His people be set free?

Could death truly be defeated?

As Jesus broke the bread and gave His disciples the wine, He said,
“For this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:26-27)

A new covenant?
“Behold, I am making all things new”…
Isaiah 43:19

Each disciple held the cup in his hands for a moment and stared into the red depths.
“Poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins,” Jesus said (Matthew 26:28).
For their sins.
Each and every one of their sins,
for the Lord knows the thoughts and intentions of each heart.
A few hands became unsteady as they passed the cup to the next man.

“The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is compassionate.”
Hallel Psalm 116:5

Blood poured out for them.
The Lord’s rescue from death for them.
Their humanity and helplessness washed over them.
Struck with the sudden awareness Jesus knew all of their sins, they grappled with the perfect Son of God’s promise to pour out His blood to cover those sins.

“I was helpless, and he saved me.
Return to your rest, my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
For you, Lord, rescued me from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling.”
Hallel Psalm 116:6-8

Men may say truly living is to experience everything they possibly can under the sun, but in the solemnness of that moment with Christ, the disciples understood so much more existed. No physical entertainment could make them feel as known or valued.

They were staring into the eyes of the Way, the Truth, and the Life (John 14:6).
Because of this man, human flesh enveloping the full deity of God, the faithfulness of the divine Yahweh would be seen
and known
and experienced
by everyone willing to welcome Him.

“I will walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.”
Hallel Psalm 116:9

A low hum began as one of the disciples began singing the traditional Hallel hymns. Eventually all the men were singing, and a sweet, yet heavy presence, filled the space. They were encountering the Faithful One in a way they never had before as He prepared to give them the fullness of life through His own death.

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

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Here’s a link to all past studies in Hallel!

Posted in: Christ, Freedom, God, Good, Hallel, Jesus, Life, Rescue, Sing, Truth, Worship Tagged: Easter, faithful, Finding, Passover, questions, Yahweh

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And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14