Psalms 126

1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.4 Restore our fortunes] Lord, like streams in the Negev.5 Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.6 Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.

After discovering joy as we reflect on the past we now look forward in verses 4-6 to the anticipated joy of the future. One reason for our rejoicing is that His redemptive work is still being revealed and realized in us. In verse 4 they ask God to “restore” the nation’s “fortunes”, some restoration has occurred, but a fuller measure is still to be seen. An analogy is made as the singer asks that the nation be restored “like streams in the Negev.” The Negev is a desert land, and its name means “dry” referring to desert waterways, called wadis, which are bone-dry most of the year, but in the rainy season this barren land is transformed. As the wadis fill with rain they become streams of life giving water which wash over the dry parched land transforming the barren into bloom.  What was formerly arid and uniformly tan and grey becomes a carpet of color. This transformation of barren to bloom is what the singers of this psalm are looking forward to. A completion of God’s redemption in the future, which results in a lush, luxuriant landscape of life. Growing up in the Middle East I got to witness this wonderful desert transformation, as new tender green shoots emerge from the dead dry dust. What was formerly dead becomes alive and dynamic like a dream come true.  Just as the rain restores the Negev, so God will restore us, bringing rain to our drought-stricken lives.  Just as the singers of Psalm 126 looked forward to a second coming of God’s redemption, like a dead desert exploding into a dynamic blossom, so too can Christians at this season of advent also forward to the second coming when Jesus will make all things new. In Isaiah 65:17-19 17 we read “Look! I am creating new heavens and a new earth, and no one will even think about the old ones anymore. 18 Be glad; rejoice forever in my creation! And look! I will create Jerusalem as a place of happiness. Her people will be a source of joy. 19 I will rejoice over Jerusalem and delight in my people. And the sound of weeping and crying will be heard in it no more “This is not the only prophecy of the new heavens and earth in Scripture but it is one of the most familiar. It is here that we learn about the lamb and wolf dwelling together and the lion eating grass like an ox. Things that we would say feel more like a dream than reality. Some teach that these images are simply metaphors of  peace and tranquility. Yet I disagree, no more than John’s visions of the New Jerusalem are fanciful. Streets paved in gold? Gold that is as transparent as glass? A city in the form of a cube 1500 miles on each side?  Amazing, astounding, breath-taking dream like images, yet why do we suppose that the God who has made all that we see cannot do as he says? What is more real or more likely, what God does at the beginning, or what he has reserved for the end? Now these singers share some difficult truths as they remind us of the reality of living between the rescue and the redemption between the first and the second coming. When the gift of God first came into the world as a man, and the one where that man, Jesus Christ, will return back to the earth to complete his work of redemption. It is here that Psalm 126 concludes with advice for those of us living in the middle. This middle time is marked by two features, sorrow and sowing, weeping and reaping. This in-between time of sowing seed is a sorrowful and costly one. We are reminded that it will be a painful path and not the picture of pleasure that the preachers of the prosperity gospel paint. To conclude that Christians should be happy in the here and now means to carefully cut out a large bulk of the bible. It means to tear out the teachings on testing’s and trials, and carefully sweep the sorrows and sufferings under the carpet. To ignore the labors, persecutions, difficulties, dangers and discouragements. To forget about the pain that is painted all over the epistles, and hung throughout the history of the Church. Paul was absolutely correct when he wrote in 2 Timothy 3:12 these words “Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.” Today we seem to forget or forgo talking about the tears but tears in the Bible are apparently in order with some of God’s greatest people. Joseph wept, Hannah, David, Hezekiah, Ezra, Nehemiah, Jeremiah, Peter, Jesus, Mary, Paul, and John wept. The people in psalm 126 still had a lot of problems even after their return from exile. God’s mighty deliverance was followed by depression and disappointment as described in Haggai 1:5-11 and the local opposition in Ezra. Those that had come out of captivity were still in distress even in their own land, Nehemiah 1:3. They had to have faith in their Father that He would continue to be with them and bring them through the trials. You see all these sorrowful things are like seed sown in the ground and those who sow such things will come back with rejoicing, bringing their sheaves with them. It was Jesus who showed us how redemptive and productive suffering is to the spiritual life. Enduring the opposition, persecution, and finally crucifixion by sinners was not pleasant but painful. Because of the joy awaiting Him, He endured the cross, disregarding its shame and now He is seated in the place of honor beside God’s throne. We see it in the painful and sorrowful labors that attend the work of the gospel, and the joy of final redemption when Jesus returns. Paul wrote in 1 Thessalonians 5:14-15, “Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly, comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. 15 See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all.” Most of the time living the life that Paul preached about is not fun, you invest yourself, your words, actions, money, and materials in the lives of others. It’s like taking precious seed and burying it in the dirt. Yet, Paul, like Psalm 126, sounds the other note as well. “16 Rejoice always, 17 pray without ceasing, 18 in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. And, may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. 24 He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.” As you contemplate Christmas and prepare your heart to celebrate God’s first coming, respond to His invitation to indulge yourself in the joy of Immanuel, the God-with-us that is so wonderful it’s like a dream come true. As we live between the dream come true and the dream for which we are waiting to come true, let us serve Him by sowing the good seed with sorrow. Knowing that the One who kept His promise, coming to the cradle, will come again on the clouds. Joy is essential to our lives; it is the experience of knowing that we are loved, and that nothing in this world can take that love away. One of the rarely spoken truths is that we often discover joy in the midst of sorrow. It is as a pilgrim on these painful paths that we become most aware of a spiritual reality bigger than ourselves that helps us to hope. We may undergo hardship, but God has the last word of hope. This means we can rejoice even when our dreams are not realized, because Joy is not an escape from sorrow. How many foolishly put their hope in the thought that they can achieve joy by eliminating the things in life that hurt. We have become experts in constructing foolish and futile strategies for achieving joy. But its only when we come to the end of our resources that we realize that joy is what God gives, not what we work up. True joy reminds us that we can face reality, because we do so with the assurance that God is working in our lives, even in the things that cause us pain, to bring about His perfect will. So if your Christmas isn’t all it’s cracked up to be don’t worry, you still have Jesus and that means you have joy.

Psalms 126

1 When the Lord restored the fortunes of Zion, we were like those who dreamed.2 Our mouths were filled with laughter, our tongues with songs of joy. Then it was said among the nations, “The Lord has done great things for them.” 3 The Lord has done great things for us, and we are filled with joy.4 Restore our fortunes] Lord, like streams in the Negev.5 Those who sow with tears will reap with songs of joy.6 Those who go out weeping, carrying seed to sow, will return with songs of joy, carrying sheaves with them.

Psalm 126 is one of 15 psalms known as the psalms of ascents, meaning “to go up” and refers to the going up to Jerusalem. Because as you approached Jerusalem from the lower countryside you have to ascend in order to get to Jerusalem. According to the Law of Moses, all the men of Israel were to go up to Jerusalem three times a year to celebrate the feasts of Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles.  It was these psalms of ascent that the pilgrims sang as they traveled toward Jerusalem. In this Psalm of praise we see that the joy is past, present, and future: “We were filled with laughter” and “songs of joy”, vs 2; “we are filled with joy”, vs 3; and we “will return with songs of joy” vs 6. It involves a reflection of their past, the reality of their present and an anticipation of the future. Today just like those traveling on a pilgrimage of praise, we must reflect on God’s past provision, His present presence and His future promise. As we approach the Christmas season we find ourselves looking back at His past redemption and forward to His promised return. You see the Christian life is lived looking back at His redemption, not our regrets, and focusing on His future return not our failures. Living in this time between the provision and the promise means both pain and pleasure. It means living in the twin realities of tears and triumph, weeping, and worship. The first three verses of psalm 126 reveal a sigh of relief, as they remember their release from captivity in Babylon. They describe God’s deliverance as a dream come true because His promises were just about all the people had left of their religious heritage as they were held in slavery in Babylon. There was no temple for worship, and during those 70 years, those who remembered Jerusalem told their children about a land their children had never seen. Jerusalem was no more real to the children of the exile than a fable, or a story of the past. The only thing left to them was God’s promise to redeem his people out of slavery. All they had was the dream of deliverance, they knew about the promises but when the actual moment of provision came, it overtook and overwhelmed them with praise.  God’s joy was lavished on Israel, giving the nation a reputation of being blessed, vs 2: “Then it was said among the nations, ‘the Lord has done great things for them’.” The rest of the world witnessed God’s special work of sanctification, the setting a part of what had been separated, the bringing back into love that which was lost. All of creation could clearly see that they had a God who communicated His care and compassion not just in words but also in mighty works. As He reached to rescued, so great was His act of restoration that the rest of the nation’s heard about it, even without the invention of radio, TV, or internet. You see when God intercedes it’s not just impressive its immense; even the ungodly admitted that He accomplished “great things”. What great things has God done? The record of our great God and His redemption is revealed on nearly every page of Scripture. Every divine act is a mighty and miraculous intervention. Eugene Peterson says that “Joy has a history, Joy is the verified, repeated experience of those involved in what God is doing. Our Joy is nurtured by looking at and living in this history, by building on this foundation of blessing. You see just like psalm 126 where the Lord restored the fortunes of His people the New Testament opens with the announcing of advent. God’s great work of redemption, the sending of His One and only Son Jesus Christ to save us from our sins. For centuries, the prophets had preached the message of the coming Messiah and now the Angels were announcing His arrival. Yet at first only a few dared to dreamed, in fact for a while only one person in the whole world, the virgin Mary, knew and understood the peace that God had planned. Over time others were invited to dream, Joseph, Elizabeth and Zacharias, the shepherds, the Wise Men. The opening words of Psalm 126 have become for Christians one of the most fitting exclamations of their understanding of what God did in sending his Son into the world to die for sinners. And, what began solely in the song of Mary is now sung by millions upon millions of the redeemed around the world this time of year . We join the voices of those who sang Psalm 126 for centuries before Christ was born, when God brought back the captivity of Zion, when God entered the world to redeem it from sin and death, we were like those who dreamed. The Lord has done great things for us and we can proclaim His praise.This Christmas season we have the same opportunity to praise as God’s people did in the past. As we celebrate the coming of Christ, the King who came to conquer the chaos. The question is, are we going to look to the past, to see His provision of peace and participate with praise in the present? Are we going to get caught up in celebrating Christ or are we going to cry over our current circumstances? Christ came to deliver us from the chaos, to replace our weeping with reaping, yet today instead of Christmas being a celebration of His coming for many it’s a crazy circus. Instead of Christmas being a celebration of being delivered from chaos we have created a season catered to the chaos. Our Christmas circus is more of a juggling act than joy in Jesus, instead of the Messiah we have mission impossible where we hope to jump through the flaming hoops of hype without getting burned. It’s become a credit card melting circus, where instead of the focus being on the everlasting One it’s on economics. What should be the most wonderful time of the year has become the most worn out time of the year. Where when it’s over instead of being filled with the presence of His peace we want to fill a prescription for Prozac. Christmas is about the Almighty not high wire aerial acrobatics, it’s about worship not a worry workout.  What if this Christmas we took time to reflect on our redemption? What if just like the pilgrims who journeyed to Jerusalem in the Joy of worship we also made it really was a day dedicated to celebrate Christ. You see just as their release was a dream realized, so is ours. What may seem like a dream, something too good to be true is really reality, we don’t have to dream we can wake up and worship. This is redemption realized, the released from the bondage and penalty of sin. Other world religions offer rules, but our Redeemer offers redemption, which is more than just release from sin it’s a relationship with the Savior.  Joy is the outcome of the Christian life; we don’t generate it God does. Today many are trying to gain joy through temporary pleasure; our enormous entertainment industry stands as a sign of what we are really seeking. We are attracted and addicted to artificial joy. I’m not saying that it’s wrong to be entertained, but it’s foolish to think we will find joy from our entertainment endeavors. Joy is not a commodity, it comes from Christ, it can’t be purchased, it’s a product of our pursuit of Jesus. We don’t need a distraction from our stressful lives, we need a cure, and the only cure comes from a living relationship with Jesus. Our need and desire for joy is legitimate, but how we get that need met often isn’t. So this season stop and savor your salvation, soak in God’s One and only Son.