“The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love.” (Psalm 103:8)
Read Psalm 103:8–13.
I come back to it time and time again because of how beautifully it expresses God’s love and mercy. One author goes so far as to proclaim, “It is perhaps the most perfect song of pure praise to be found in the Bible.” I see why. To me, these are the kind of words you could sing over and over and never get tired of because they contain such beautiful truths about God.
In wonderfully poetic imagery, we’re reminded of a God who is both great and mighty, but also personal and loving. A God whose love is bigger than anything we can imagine: “As high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is His love for those who fear Him” (verse 11).
In this same Psalm, we are also reminded of God’s intimate, close love — it is like that of a Father who knows all of our weaknesses personally. And in return, we get to know Him, too.
As we desire this peace, compassion, and love described in this Psalm, we are commanded to gift this to others, so that the world too, may know Him. What better way to encapsulate both the greatness and goodness of God in just a few verses?
The key theme running through this psalm is God’s great compassion and mercy, which ties in well with the other passages this week, in which we are called to consider the ways we should respond to sin and injustice in our community. We’re now given a chance to reflect on how God acts towards us.
Where we humans struggle to let go of grudges and forgive those who wrong us, our God, who has every right to hold even the “small” things against us, simply says in His endless mercy and grace: “It is finished. You are forgiven. Receive all that I offer you in love.”
Prayer
Heavenly Father, may this psalm be the song of my heart today. May I sing it from the car window and whisper it in my bed. May the truths it proclaims go with me into whatever the next week holds. Amen.
Pray, praise, give thanks, and stay encouraged!
Pastor Mike
