January 25: Psalm 11

Psalm 11 is short and sweet. Perfect for my birthday passage. :)

There is no place on earth that the psalmist believes is safe. When faced with the danger of the wicked, he is told by others (who are no doubt just trying to help), "Head for the hills! Run away! The wicked are coming!" (11:1-3). But he has no confidence in the safety of earthly strongholds; he puts no stock in fallout shelters or savings accounts to deliver him from his troubles. He boldly begins his psalm: "In the LORD I take refuge" (11:1). 

Why does he take refuge (safety, comfort, shelter) in the Lord? Because he is "in his holy temple" (11:4), enthroned on the cherubim (Psalm 80:1), seated in his place of royalty to survey all that goes on in his domain. Nothing escapes his view; "his eyelids test the children of man." 

The psalmist hears the message of this world—that he'd better save himself, that he'd better watch his back since no one else will—and responds with faith-filled confidence in who God is. It may look as if the righteous are at the mercy of the wicked (11:3), but really the Lord "hates the wicked and the one who loves violence" (11:5), and he will judge them according to their deeds (11:6).

"For the LORD is righteous; he loves righteous deeds; the upright shall behold his face" (11:7). Does the psalmist turn from worldly wisdom to confidence in his own righteousness, trusting that God will bless him on account of his own obedience? No. No sinful man or woman could ever pray this final prayer about themselves. This verse points to Christ. The Lord is righteous and loves righteous deeds, but none of us could measure up to the word "upright." We are not upright on our own, but are no better off than the wicked. No, the upright are those who take refuge in the Lord (11:1), those who confidently trust that God is gracious and will be gracious toward them on account of the saving work of his Son, Jesus. 

Jesus Christ is the only person in all history of whom it could be said, "the upright shall behold his face." He could have kept that uprightness to himself, but he graciously, miraculously, humbly, gloriously poured out his own upright blood at that cross for our sakes. There is nothing upright in you or I, but in Christ we shall behold the face of the Lord. I need to put my trust in the Lord today, placing my confidence in his love for me in Christ. There is nothing and no one else in all the world to trust.