The Humble Upward Look

Psalm 123:1,2

    One of the most precious powers God implanted in the human body is the gift of sight. How rich does not the gift of sight make life! How much would we not miss, if it were taken from us? But spiritual sight is far more precious and important than seeing with the fleshly eye. What the psalmist lifts his eyes to see, and of what he speaks in Psalm 123:1,2 is of utmost importance. He writes, "Unto Thee lift I up mine eyes, O Thou that dwellest in the heavens. Behold, as the eyes of the servants look onto the hand of their masters, and as the eyes of a maid unto the hand of her mistress; so our eyes wait upon the Lord our God, until that He have mercy upon us."

    It makes a world of difference, however, as to how we look unto God. The servants and the maids look to their masters and mistresses as their superiors. They look up to them, realizing that the hands of their masters and mistresses give them what they need. Our versification has it thus (PRC Psalter):

    To Thee, O Lord, I lift my eyes,
    O Thou enthroned above the skies;
    As servants watch their master's hand,
    Or maidens by their mistress stand,
    So to the Lord our eyes we raise,
    Until His mercy He displays.

    The question is whether in our prayers we look to God as the exalted, almighty, sovereign God. If He is not above all creatures, what good is it for us to pray to Him? If we approach Him as though He is our servant rather than our master, we get no blessing, but only add to the reason why we ought to receive more punishment. In fact, then we are not praying to God but to an idol, a mental image we manufactured in our minds.

    Our prayers must always be humble requests. We must look up to Him and not down upon Him. Surely then this means that we look to Him through Christ Who is at His right hand and has the universe in His hand. In profound and sincere humility we must bow before Him.  We must look up to Him as one enthroned above the skies. Prayer requires a humble upward look.

Read: Psalm 121, 123 
Psalter versification: #351:1

Meditations on the Heidelberg Catechism

Song for Meditation: Psalter #403
Why not sing along??

Through the Bible in One Year
Read today:
Nehemiah 5:14-19 ; Nehemiah 6-7 
1 Corinthians 8:1-13 
Psalm 33:1-11 
Proverbs 21:8-10 
****
Quote for Reflection:

"The object of your study and growth as a child of God is not man and it is not how you feel. The object of your spiritual life is not your feelings... But the number-one priority of the spiritual life is to know God truly, to know God thoroughly, to know God in faith, to know Him reverently, to know Him with unreserved trust, with obedience and love. "Jehovah is my light and my salvation"... Faith is personal. It is the work of God in our hearts. It is the work of the Lord within us, uniting us to Him and giving us personally to stand in attachment, knowledge, and dependence upon Him. You see, faith is not theoretical. It is not merely emotional. It is not merely a system of corollaries, postulates, and principles. It is a knowledge of these things, of the truth of God’s Word. But it is a living knowledge. It is a heart-dwelling knowledge. It is the personal knowledge of faith.... That is why you are on earth right now, child of God. You are on earth to learn about God, to learn of God, to walk with God, to know Him in such a way that you repose in Him, you commit all your way to Him, you obey Him, you submit to Him, and you desire to glorify Him in obedience. Then you may be fearless. That is not recklessness. It is not a vain boast. It is truth. It is the confidence of faith." -C. Haak

"He has not given you children and the means to support them, only that you may do with them as you please; or train them for worldly glory. You have been earnestly commanded to raise them for God’s service, or be completely rooted out, with your children and everything else; then everything that you have spent on them will be lost." --Martin Luther