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How would you
describe God’s care?
Would it be physical
(food, shelter) or
spiritual?
Forever just doesn’t seem to be in my vocabulary. Forever is a long time. Forever
is unimaginable…maybe even untenable as an option. Patience, yes. Perseverance
even, yes. But, unfailing? Foreverness?
Describe how
and when God has
rescued you. In what
way did you give
thanks?
Rarely do we really want things to go on forever. There’s something satisfying
about the final measure, the last scene, the closing minute, the ultimate out.
Completion is good…unless you’re talking forgiveness, mercy, love. We never
want to see the love of a spouse end…the mercy of a parent run out…the respect
and admiration of a child reach a conclusion.
l
Care
Part of the issue is it’s just too hard to imagine. We need something to which we
can draw a connection. The arch is not just 630 feet tall—it’s 60 stories—it’s 3
football fields on end. How do you imagine limitless mercy? How do you fathom
unending grace?
l When have
you experienced
God’s “No” about
something you
thought you should
be doing?
10.19.2013
RESPOND:
Saturday
l What do you do to
make submission to
Him easier?
l How are you
responding to the
direction God has
taken Madison Park?
PRAY: Keep asking God for His direction. Pray for God to provide what we need
to continue the relentless pursuit of His heart, His will and His people. Ask God to
work among us in ever increasing ways.
You don’t…you don’t imagine it…you don’t explain it…you don’t understand it. You
experience it…you receive it…you rejoice in it…you give thanks for it…you revel in
it. Because, that’s all you can do. God’s unfailing love…His steadfast mercy…His
incredible love just keeps going and going and going.
For that, we say, “Thanks be to God!”
No
This text catches the reader by surprise. Paul is
doing everything he can to expand the kingdom. He’s
going everywhere he can to preach the gospel. He is
traveling the known world, going to people who can
understand him and whom he understands. He’s not
slothful nor does he lack direction. He knows where
and why he’s going.
l And God says, “No.” It seems strange, unexpected.
It wouldn’t seem so back in chapter 3 or 5 or 7. The
church was stationed in Jerusalem, and it looked as if
they would never fulfill the command of God to leave
Jerusalem for Samaria and the ends of the earth. But,
by chapter 16, Paul is traveling everywhere with Jesus
on his lips. Yet, God says, “No.”
l It’s God’s prerogative. He gets to say “No.” It’s His
will we follow in this relentless pursuit of people.
He has other plans. In essence, He says, “Here, not
here.” “These people, not those.” “Now, not then.”
Learning to accept God’s answers can be hard. It can
be challenging to let Him have that kind of sway in
our thinking. But, it’s essential to the life of a Jesus
follower.
l
Forever—Are you
kidding me?
l
PRAY: Spend time thanking God for His goodness, His unfailing love, His
redemption, His care.
READ: Acts 16:6-10
REFLECT:
t
through
Does your day
begin and end in
thanksgiving? When
does God hear your
thanks?
l
Friday
The final lines of the Psalm emphasize God’s care
for His people. In words reminiscent of Exodus 2, the
Psalmist reminds the reader that God remembered His
people. God never forgets us, even if we are in a “low
estate.” There was little lower in their culture than having
fallen to slavery. That’s where Israel was in Egypt. Yet,
God heard and saw and knew and remembered.
l But, it wasn’t a passive knowledge. It wasn’t just that
He knew—He acted. Israel needed to be rescued, and
God did just that. He brought Israel out of Egypt and,
later, out of exile and, ultimately, out of sin through Jesus.
That’s what God does. He cares for the most fundamental
of our concerns. He knows our deepest needs.
l He provides for all our needs—including food, which
is the reminder that redemption is more than “saving
our soul.” It’s saving our whole life. And, for that, we give
thanks. The Psalm actually ends the way it begins. The
Psalmist extols the goodness of God and gives thanks to
God. And why not? God’s unfailing love endures forever.
His unfailing love gives us a perfect earth, an eternal
redemption, a promise of care and concern, and an
incredible hope.
l
RESPOND:
10.18.2013
READ: Psalm 136:23-26
REFLECT:
l When was the last
time you experienced
an antiphonal reading
of Scripture? What did
you think?
10.16.2013
l God’s love is hard to capture in a single word or pair of
words. The very word used in this text ( ‫ – דֶס ֫ ֶח‬hesed)
is the word used to describe loyalty. It’s often used in
the context of God’s faithfulness to His covenant with
Israel. Israel may be unfaithful, but God never is. His love
is steadfast, immoveable, faithful, loyal. No one should
ever feel any anxiety about God choosing to stop loving
them. It can’t happen.
Wednesday
l Reflect on a time
when you experienced
someone’s love failing.
How did you feel?
What did you think
about?
10.17.2013
Thursday
Tuesday
Do you usually
ponder God’s character
or God’s activity?
l
In what ways has
God been faithful in
your life recently?
l
PRAY: Praise God for His goodness and His faithfulness. Thank Him for being
God. Pray that we will be fully aware of who He is as well as what He does. God
The opening of Psalm 136 establishes the center of the
Psalm—this is all about God. The remainder of the Psalm
focuses on God’s activity. The beginning of the Psalm
focuses on God. He is God above all gods; Lord above
all lords; He is good. Our response—three commands to
“Give thanks.” What else could we do? He is good, He is
God, He is Lord, and He loves us without fail.
l
Redemption
l Verse one uses God’s personal name. Verse two uses
the name the Bible begins with—Elohim. It’s a more
common name for Supreme Being. It’s the name used
in Genesis 1 to speak of the One who created the earth
and humanity. Verse three uses the name that Israel
substituted for God’s personal name. They referred to
Him as LORD (in all caps in most English translations).
favorite way of
referring to God?
Why?
10.15.2013
One who is a capital G—God. We all know who that is.
Of all the so-called “little l—lords,” there is One who is
capital L—Lord. His name (the one He Himself revealed)
is given in v1—YHWH. It’s the name no one pronounced.
It’s the name He used relationally with His people.
REFLECT:
This entire strophe (stanza) reflects God’s goodness
in creation. Highlighting the variety of actions involved
in creation (wonders, making heavens, spreading out
earth, making great lights) reminds the reader of
the immense power of God. The typical rationale for
those reminders is to establish or re-establish God’s
sovereignty over all the earth.
l
Yet, in the midst of that powerful reminder of
God’s power, there is the on-going recitation of
God’s faithfulness in loving His people. This sovereign
God who rules the universe is a loving, faithful God
who cares deeply for His people. But, in addition to
this mindfulness concerning creation, we see the
underlying message—God can handle anything—He
created the universe.
RESPOND:
In what ways does
creation (the world
around us) remind you
of God’s faithfulness?
l
How does knowing
God created the
universe impact your
confidence in His day
by day leadership?
l
How do you help
others accept God’s
leadership? What do
you tell them to give
them confidence?
l
l If God can make a world, He can care for His people.
He will never get lost. He will always know His way. He
cannot be thwarted, stopped, stymied or detoured.
This God—the One responsible for all of creation—is
happy to be responsible for us, too. We can trust Him
to get us where we need to go.
PRAY: Thank God that He can be trusted. Acknowledge His power and unfailing
love. Pray for His leadership in the life of the congregation.
PRAY: Honor God for His unfailing love. Praise Him for being God. Ask Him to
help you be always cognizant of His loyalty toward His people.
READ: Psalm 136:1-3
REFLECT:
RESPOND:
l Of all those claiming to be “little g—gods,” there is l What’s your
READ: Psalm 136
l
Creation
l The “truth” in this Psalm—“His steadfast love endures
forever.” Or, as other translations say, “His love endures
forever”; or, “His lovingkindness is everlasting.” Of those,
I prefer, “His love endures forever.” After every phrase,
the worshipers respond with a chorus highlighting God’s
unending love.
Antiphony
Describe your heart
response to God’s
unfailing love. How
does it make you feel
to know that God’s
love is based on His
faithfulness?
l
Monday
RESPOND:
Call and Response. First one voice…then another.
Almost echo-like in quality, antiphony repeats a phrase
that captures the essence of truth and applies it over and
over again. Once the song (in our case, Psalm) is finished,
the message isn’t. The audience (often the ones to
provide the echo) is thoroughly inundated with a simple
truth.
l
10.14.2013
READ: Psalm 136
REFLECT:
READ: Psalm 136:10-22
REFLECT:
RESPOND:
l The Psalmist follows the Biblical story line. From l In a similar fashion
Creation (Genesis), he moves to redemption from
slavery in Egypt (Exodus). The story is clearly portrayed
in seven simple lines. God caused a plague, brought
Israel through the sea, and took His people to and
through the wilderness. In the next seven statements,
the story of kings and conquering the Promised Land
is rehearsed.
l Redemption is a dominant theme in Scripture (as
we would expect) and the most common type is the
Exodus escape from Egypt. From there, God took
Israel through her wilderness wanderings to occupy
the land God had promised to Abraham, Isaac and
Jacob. Connecting God’s unfailing love to redemption
may be a bit easier than the connection to creation.
l Israel’s up and down faithlessness stands in stark
contrast to God’s unfailing faithfulness to His covenant.
His love genuinely does endure forever. If He can put
up with Israel’s history of failure, He certainly can deal
with ours. In fact, Israel’s story is a powerful statement
about God that should find a safe place in our heart so
we are always assured of what God is willing to endure
for His people.
PRAY:
to the Psalm, tell your
own redemption
story? How did it
occur? What did you
see God doing?
l Does your
recitation of your
story emphasize the
unfailing nature of
God’s love like the
Psalmist’s?
l Practice explaining
God’s plan of
redemption for
broken humanity.
Thank God for continuing to call you until you answered. Pray for
redemption to be a powerful motivator in your life. Ask God to bring you into the
lives of the broken.