Word of Encouragement (1/1/2021)
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands” (Ps. 90:17).
Good morning and Happy New Year!
As we begin a new year, what are the desires and prayers of your heart? I’m sure all of us would like to regain the “normalcy” before COVID 19 so we can spend time with our families and friends without worrying about social distancing and wearing masks, go back to worshipping God and fellowshipping together side by side, go back to school and work as we used to, etc. Let us all pray that that time will come soon!
But our reflection so far on this Psalm pushes us to think further, doesn’t it? We have been reminded of the brevity of our life in this world (vv. 4-6). And this all-too-brief life is full of toil and trouble (v. 10). We live in a fallen world and, as sinners, we have to deal with a holy God (vv. 7-9). What can we do except ask God to have pity on us (v. 13) and show us His favor (vv. 14-15). God must show His work on us by His glorious power (v. 16). We cannot do better than to ask God for His favor (v. 17).
Even so, we cannot forget how Moses started this Psalm: “Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations” (v. 1). Whatever favor we may ask from the Lord, we cannot lose sight of this most fundamental truth. The favors we seek from God cannot be an end in and of themselves; they must serve to increase our understanding and appreciation of God as our eternal dwelling place. In fact, the Hebrew word translated as “favor” can be translated as “pleasantness” or “beauty.” What Moses prayed for was the beauty of the Lord, not just something from the Lord. This shouldn’t surprise us when we consider Moses’ ultimate petition to God: “Please show me your glory” (Ex. 33:18)!
Moses concludes this Psalm with the following petition, repeated twice: “...establish the work of our hands upon us; yes, establish the work of our hands.” Here is an antidote to the brevity of life on this earth: it is to work and to have the work of our hands not to go to waste. Moses is not simply asking God to bless whatever we’d like to accomplish. Twice Moses referred to us as God’s servants (vv. 13, 16). As you can see, he referred to us as God’s servants (v. 16) right before this final verse (v. 17). The work Moses had in mind was our work as God’s servants. We should not set our own schedule and agenda for the day and simply ask God to rubberstamp it and bless it; we should make sure our schedule reflects God’s agenda for us. (Of course, this doesn’t mean that God is going to upload our schedule on our computer or phone each morning; it means we should have God’s glory in mind as the chief goal of our life and schedule our day accordingly. Practically, this is done when we strive to be faithful to the various callings God has given to us and carrying them out with God’s glory in mind.)
But can our work be established if death is the end of our life? But we need not worry. God has answered this earnest and fervent prayer of Moses in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Because Jesus rose again from the dead, death will not be the end of our life and the work of our hands. We have the assurance that God will remember even the most insignificant work of our hands and reward us richly on the Final Day. Our work will be used by God for the advancement of His kingdom and bestowed with eternal significance! So, Paul concludes his famous chapter on the resurrection with these words: “Therefore, my beloved brothers, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labor is not in vain.” May the Lord use these words to encourage and motivate us to be diligent in His work in the coming new year! Have a blessed New Year, everyone!