Eyes Forward

“I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved. Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope. For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.” (Ps 16:8-10 AV)

What is so precious about the verses above is the context of them.  This passage is a prophetical one regarding the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ.  I know there is a great dispute over exactly what happened in those three days, but it misses the point.  Because of our sin, the Son of God suffered the wrath of God.  He suffered temporary separation from His Father and co-equal God.  It was an experience none of us will ever experience.  That is, if we trust Christ as our Savior.  If not, we will suffer an eternity separated from God and our Creator.  What enabled Jesus Christ to endure the horrible experience of the crucifixion and salvation of mankind was the two verses preceding his experience in what the Psalmist calls hell.  He knows that even if He suffers the punishment meant for all mankind, God His Father is still in control.

These verses of hope are spoken in the midst of the darkest hour a person can ever experience.  Perhaps David is writing this psalm as he flees from Absalom, or upon learning of Absalom’s death.  That had to be the darkest time of his life.  It is in these times when we cannot forget that God is always there and that He will not leave us in this condition.  As long was we set the LORD always before us.  Which means something significant.

In the midst of our deepest troubles, we can get so overwhelmed with the circumstances of them that our eyes drift upon those circumstances and off from the LORD.  If we are not careful, these circumstances can overwhelm us and we will sink in them.  Years ago, my father-in-law thought it was a good idea to fish the Empire State Lake Ontario trout derby.  The problem was, he has a little sixteen-foot open bow boat and we were in 12-foot waves.  There was a small craft lake advisory out and we shouldn’t have been on the water.  It was terrifying.  When we went down below the swell, all we saw was water on all sides.  When we were above, we saw other craft and the land.  I thought we were going to die!  Praise the LORD my father-in-law came to his senses and we went back in.  But that experience taught me a great lesson.  As long as one keeps his eyes in the right place, what happens around him will not affect him so much.