“I have set the Lord continually before me; Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” Psalm 16:8
David offers a song of praise recognizing a life of companionship with God. This is an intimate and endearing expression of the deepest experience of trusting in God.
“I have set the Lord before me.”
A literal understanding of this great act of trust expresses a continual ongoing practice of placing one’s thoughts upon the Lord. This, of course, represents more than mere cerebral activity. David’s thoughts were faith driven, with the confidence that God was with Him in the most literal and personal way. The Hebrew language translates, “I have equally (shavah) set the Lord before me in all circumstances.” This, for David, was not just a sabbath practice, nor a temple ritual. This was not some rote principle thoughtlessly offered in a display of worship. This was the expression of a life that truly yearned for and desperately depended upon the greatness of God in a personal way. This line of praise represented David’s heart rhythm – his discipline of the soul. He placed His thoughts endearingly upon Jehovah by way of devotion and personal consecration. Sometimes, particularly in Old Testament accounts, the presence of the Lord evoked fear (either awe or dread). Sometimes, the presence of the Lord was recognized and honored in the sacredness of ceremonies, or in the keeping of the Law. But none of these meanings are demonstrated here. David actually declared that God was before Him as the regular focus (a spiritual discipline of constantly looking to God) for hope. This was a genuine expression of David’s faith in the Lord.
A reference to Jesus becomes the ultimate fulfillment of David’s words. (Most scholarship labels this psalm as “Messianic” because of how the words later proclaimed Jesus to the world.) Peter preached at Pentecost (Acts 2:23-25) and made reference to Psalm 16 as he explained that Jesus had set God before Himself through His earthly ministry, and in His passion week (His arrest and crucifixion). This very verse, Psalm 16:8, revealed to many at Pentecost that Jesus rose again because God was ever before Him in all things pertaining to the cross and the resurrection. The Father was the focus that Christ set before Himself through His whole earthly ministry. And Jesus focused upon the glory of God even as all things became fulfilled on the cross. “Therefore, God raised Him up, putting an end to the agony of death” (Acts 2:24).
Our pattern for living emerges from this Psalm. The very message of the Gospel reminds us that we must set God before our lives in all things, for in doing so we truly follow Jesus. Therefore, looking to Christ as Head of the body, the church, Psalm 16:8 should be applied to all Christians, empowered in our lives by the Spirit of Christ. Every follower of Jesus must remember that it is our wisdom and duty to set the Lord always before us. And if our eyes are constantly toward God, our souls, our activity, our worship, our plans, our purposes, and even our morning prayers will focus intently upon Jesus Christ.
And, as I have learned again and again, when we set our Lord before us every day, the following are resolved:
(1) We Seek God’s will in all things, and not our own preferences.
(2) We make scripture reading, prayer, meditation, and personal worship a daily discipline because of our desire to draw closer to our Lord.
(3) We genuinely surrender our soul to the Lordship of Christ each day afresh and anew through repentance, a desire for holiness, and a fervor to commit all things to Him.
David’s blessed pronouncement, I have set the Lord before me, was followed by an amazing reality not absent from our own lives when we do the same: God is at my right hand and I will not be shaken! Oh, the joy of God at our right hand (experiencing His divine counsel and strength afforded to us daily). And, oh the awesome experience of “not being shaken” by the events of a fallen and broken world (indicating that nothing will move the child of God from trust and confidence in the Lord). Psalm 1:3 rings out the joyous truth that under God’s counsel and direction we can become like a tree planted by the waters (translated, not able to be moved).
This morning, consider how necessary it becomes for you to set God before your life continually (to look unto Him as your only focus of faith and hope). David proclaimed it, Jesus perfectly exemplified it, and Peter preached it as the church began to develop. Now, we simply need to do it.
Let’s set our God before our lives, and even in trying times we will not be shaken. He is our God, our Savior, our counsel, the strength at our right hand. Indeed, we will not be shaken.
Blessings.
Ken
