Summer Reading, part nine

Today we’ll look through Psalms 49 to 52. We’re about one-third through the book of Psalms. It’s amazing how fast it goes when we take a little at a time.

Psalm 49 is a warning to those who admire the wealthy wicked. Psalm 49:17 gives it to us with all due directness, “for they will take nothing with them when they die, their splendor will not descend with them.” Death makes some rich people poor and some poor people rich. It’s not based on your bank account, but your relationship with God. We should pay more attention to whether our hearts are bankrupt. That is our eternal account.

When I read Psalm 50, I think of what might go through  the minds of church members during offering time. It isn’t a time to give money to God because he needs our money. God doesn’t need your money. Psalm 50:12 explains, “If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.” The offering is about our desire to honor God with what he has given us. Verses 16 through 22 let the wicked know that their hearts have already condemned them. Their hearts are what God wants, not their money.

After reading Psalm 50, we need Psalm 51, which is a plea for God’s mercy. We’ve all sinned. We all need to run back to God with a broken heart. Psalm 51: 10 is a good step in the right direction. “Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” Instead of trusting in a financial sacrifice, we need to go to God with the kind of sacrifice he’s looking for. Verse 17 is a reminder, “My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart you, God, will not despise.”

Don’t forget to read Psalm 52 also. Next time, we’ll read Psalm 53 through Psalm 56. Happy reading!