All Authority

DEVOTION

PSALMS

ALL AUTHORITY

Ps 65

65:1 For the director of music. A psalm of David. A song.

Praise awaits you, O God, in Zion; to you our vows will be fulfilled. 2 O you who hear prayer, to you all men will come. 3 When we were overwhelmed by sins, you forgave our transgressions. 4 Blessed are those you choose and bring near to live in your courts! We are filled with the good things of your house, of your holy temple.

5 You answer us with awesome deeds of righteousness, O God our Savior, the hope of all the ends of the earth and of the farthest seas, 6 who formed the mountains by your power, having armed yourself with strength, 7 who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations. 8 Those living far away fear your wonders; where morning dawns and evening fades you call forth songs of joy.

9 You care for the land and water it; you enrich it abundantly. The streams of God are filled with water to provide the people with grain, for so you have ordained it.   10 You drench its furrows and level its ridges; you soften it with showers and bless its crops. 11 You crown the year with your bounty, and your carts overflow with abundance. 12 The grasslands of the desert overflow; the hills are clothed with gladness. 13 The meadows are covered with flocks and the valleys are mantled with grain; they shout for joy and sing.

NIV

If we ever needed proof that all scripture is God-breathed, we could have it in this psalm. Everything David penned here speaks of Jesus. David had no clue Jesus would be in his line, or for that matter Jesus would be the Messiah. He know all about God, He knew God has told the Israelites that they would be his people, his chosen people and that he would be their God. This truth is also stated for us here. But the idea about being overwhelmed with sin and God forgave our transgressions is surely all about the redemptive work of Jesus upon the cross. Surely Israel was and is blessed because they are God’s chosen people. However within the context of all of scripture, the whole of truth; all who come to Jesus have been added into the family of Israel. In fact, Paul reminds us that true Israel is made up of those who have circumcised their heart. But the bulk of this psalm speaks about the power and authority of God over all his creation. Again, Jesus said the all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him. This psalm gives us the picture that God, Jesus has control over all the earth. That means man does not have any authority over the earth. Man cannot destroy that which God created. If man could, then he would be greater than God. Did God give us any rule over it? From the creation account in Genesis where God tells Adam to rule of over all the animals and the earth, the Hebrew word translated rule means to subjugate, or have dominion over, make everything do what we want it to do. That seems easy to understand about the animals, but when it comes to the earth, we have to consider what God was saying. Make the earth, I created for you to live on, do what you need it to do to provide what you require to live. Make it grow corn, wheat, barley, rice, and all the other plants we eat. Make it provide energy, get coal from it, use the water, use the wind, use the gas, all that is in and one the earth for your needs. Make it do what you want it to do. That does not mean we have all power over it, for that alone belongs to God. This song makes that clear. When we read it and reread it again and again, we see God is in charge of everything, including us. All those questions David asks about who formed the mountains, and even the rain, the streams that water to ground to provide grain. All this is about the absolute authority over all the earth belongs to God. But he blesses us with all of it, every aspect of the land and the water is God’s blessing for his people, his creation. The earth shouts for joy to God. It bursts forth with his blessings. How can we not stand in awe of his mighty power? How can we not stand amazed at his creation, all that is in the earth and that comes from it for our use, and it comes abundantly. God does not do anything half way, he does not say I will provide within the earth everything you need, but only for so many years, then you are on your own. That is hogwash, the earth will provide us with everything until God determines the day of the new creation, the new heaven and the new earth. Some think that is metaphorically speaking and the new heaven and earth are spiritual and when we accept Jesus we enter into the new creation. If that is so, then this is also the new earth which is eternal and it will continue to provide all our needs forever, never running out of provisions or it would never be able to be ruined in any way by man. God is in control, period. The earth and all that it comprises of is here because of God. The ground, the water, icecaps, mountains, the atmosphere, gravity, the sun, moon, stars, everything was established by the breath of God, including our being. He breathed his breath into man, whom he formed from the ground of the earth. He spoke all else into existence, but we were formed by his hands from the ground and he breathed into us his very breath. How wonderfully and awesome are we made. God has all authority over all he has made. We have none, for we are also want he has made.