Read: Psalm 4:1–8
Bible in a Year: 1 Kings 8–9; Luke 21:1–19
Know that the Lord has set apart his faithful servant for himself. Psalm 4:3
It’s almost impossible for us to get through a day without being
snubbed, ignored, or put down in some way. Sometimes we even do it to
ourselves.
David’s enemies were talking smack—bullying, threatening,
pummeling him with insults. His sense of self-worth and well-being had
plummeted (Ps. 4:1–2). He asked for relief “from my distress.”
Then David remembered, “Know that the Lord
has set apart his faithful servant for himself” (v. 3). Various English
versions try to capture the full essence of David’s bold statement by
translating “faithful servant” as “godly.” The Hebrew word here, hesed, literally refers to God’s covenant love and might well be rendered “those whom God will love forever and ever and ever.”
Here’s what we too must remember: We are loved forever, set apart in a special way, as dear to God as His own Son. He has called us to be His children for all eternity.
Instead of despairing, we can remind ourselves of the love we freely
receive from our Father. We are His dearly beloved children. The end is
not despair but peace and joy (vv. 7–8). He never gives up on us, and He
never ever stops loving us.
Father in heaven, the words of others can wound us deeply. Your words to us heal and comfort, and You assure us that we are loved forever.
The true measure of God’s love is that He loves without measure. Bernard of Clairvaux
© 2017 Our Daily Bread Ministries
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