Walk Of Life – Day 06, December 2022 – Thoughts From The Book Of Psalms
Psalm 103
This is one of the psalms that is known by heart by most of the Sunday School kids. Altogether 22 verses are there in this chapter and on every single verse volumes can be written.
One of the greatest obstacles to experiencing intimacy with God is our knowledge of God’s knowledge of us. That may sound strange, so I suggest you read it again.
Let me explain by asking a question. Why do you hesitate to draw near to God? Why do you and I strive to keep God at arm’s length, especially after we’ve sinned? There are, to be sure, many reasons and thus a variety of ways of answering the question. But let me suggest one that I have found to be most prevalent among Christians, one that has certainly been true, at times, of my own experience.
I think we run from God rather than to him because we know our own hearts all too well and his barely at all. Here’s what I mean by that. Each of us is painfully aware of the depth of our sin and depravity. We are daily in agonizing touch with our weakness and how prone we are to repeat those sins for which we have just repented and sought forgiveness. The presence of ingratitude and presumption in our relationship with God is all too real and convicting.
In other words, the inescapable and undeniable knowledge that we have of ourselves is a persistent roadblock to the pursuit of intimacy with God. The contempt and disdain in which we hold ourselves makes it ever so difficult to seek out an infinitely holy and righteous God. Here’s my point. If we react that way to people whose knowledge of us is limited, imagine how we react to God whose knowledge of us is infinite! Biblical texts such as Psalm 139:1-4 and Hebrews 4:12-14 are frightening, rather than affirming, to many people. God’s omniscience, according to the way they think, ends all hope for intimacy. “How could God stand to be in my presence, knowing me as he does? He is holy and I’m unholy. He is righteous and I am a sinner. He is faithful and I am fickle.” End of story. End of hope.
We might be able to fool some people some of the time, but we can never fool God at any time. His knowledge of us is perfect and penetrating and pervasive. He sees every motive, he knows every impulse, he is privy to every thought before it enters our heads. People then draw this conclusion: If I am disgusting to myself, how much more must I be disgusting to God.
I don’t want to be misunderstood. I’m not suggesting for a moment that God isn’t displeased with our sin. King David couldn’t have been more clear when he said of God, “For Thou art not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness; no evil dwells with Thee. The boastful shall not stand before Thine eyes; Thou dost hate all who do iniquity” (Psalm 4:4-5; NASB). This being the case, is all hope shattered of comfort and joy in God’s presence? How can I draw near to a God whose purity would seem to drive me away?
