Read Psalm 103The book of Psalms has always been one of my favorite books of the Bible. It is the first place I go when I am discouraged or weary. The words of these Psalms have uplifted me and brought healing and restoration to my heart on countless occasions. Are you discouraged today? Do you feel distant from God or dry spiritually? Psalm 103 would be a great chapter for you to meditate on. In this Psalm, David lists the insurmountable blessings of God for those who fear Him. It's impossible to remain downcast after reading these precious words of truth.
The Psalm begins with David blessing the holy name of the Lord. He begins to list some of the incredible blessings enjoyed by the children of God, calling them not to forget God's benefits. Is this not the first thing we do when we're distressed? We tend to forget about the power and blessings of God and focus on the daunting problem in front of us. Rather, we should gaze on the majesty and sovereignty of God, and our problems will seem really small in comparison to His greatness!
David reminds us that our Lord pardons all of our sins, heals all of our diseases, redeems our life from the pit, crowns us with loving kindness and compassion, satisfies our years with good things, and renews us (v. 3-5). What an amazing picture of our Father. He takes us from our former state, where we were wallowing in our iniquities, diseased with sin, and struggling in the pit of destruction. He takes us from this lowly place and redeems, renews, heals, and pardons us. He brings us satisfaction in Him that we have never experienced anywhere else on earth, and He lavishes His lovingkindness and compassion on us.
David continues to call us to remember the righteous deeds God has performed and how He lead and spoke to Moses and the sons of Israel (v.6-7). Because God is faithful and unchanging, He continues to do these righteous acts now and will continue to perform them in the eternity to come.
The next few verses are some of my favorite, because they deal with God's gracious forgiveness and mercy. God is described in verse 8 as compassionate, gracious, slow to anger and abounding in lovingkindness! This may not be the picture of God that you have in your mind, but it is the biblical picture of Him. Yes, God is also a God of wrath and judgment, but we see in verse 9 that He won't keep His anger forever. When we repent from our sins, He readily forgives us. God doesn't hold grudges against us or tally up all of the wrongs we've committed in the past. Instead, He graciously removes our sin from us and makes us clean. His wrath was satisfied on the cross when Jesus took the punishment that we deserved. We see in the following verse that God doesn't treat us as our sins deserve. This is amazing news! We deserve hell, but God has graciously given those who believe in His son eternal life in heaven. We deserve condemnation, but He has forgiven us and clothed us in righteousness. The punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed (Isaiah 53:3). Thanks be to God who hasn't treated us as we rightfully deserve to be treated--as sinners separated from Him forever.
David says in verse 11 that God's lovingkindness is as high as the heavens are above the earth; it is more than we can fathom or grasp as humans. We also see in verse 12 that our sins are removed as far as the east is from the west. What a comfort to know that our sins have been removed from us and that we don't have to live in guilt or condemnation anymore. After we repent, our sins are nowhere to be found! Have you ever measured how far the east is from the west? It's an inconceivable and immeasurable distance, and that's the point!
God has compassion on us like a Father does for His little children (v. 13). Perhaps you have never known the compassion of a father before, but God has demonstrated this fatherly love to us in countless ways. He paid the ultimate price for our redemption...the precious blood of His only Son. We see in verse 14 that God is fully aware of our frailty as humans, and His response to this is compassion. He knows that we are finite and that our lives are fragile and short (15). However, His lovingkindess to those who fear Him never ends (17).
In the final section of this chapter we are reminded that God sovereignly rules over all (19). His power and authority are established and supreme over the heavens and the earth. David ends by calling all of heaven and earth to praise His mighty name (20-22). Will you bless His name today? Perhaps you should take a break today from merely praying for God to do things for you, and instead spend your prayer time reflecting on His goodness and thanking Him for His redemption and lovingkindness. Feel free to use the phrases listed in this Psalm in your prayer to Him. Give Him the honor and praise He deserves!
