Advent: December 1, 2020

Psalms 121 (ESV) lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
2 My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.
3 He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
4 Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.
5 The LORD is your keeper;
the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
6 The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.
7 The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.
8 The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.

This Psalm was my Psalm for today’s Psalm reading, and it hit me that since every day is a day to celebrate Advent, and since all Scripture points us to Good News truths, then why not take the Scripture passage(s) that are my assigned reading for the day and glean some Good News Advent, darkness smacking down, Jesus exalting goodness from those passages?

So, here goes:

Back in the days that the Lord was inspiring Scripture, it was believed among other religious beliefs that the “gods” came down on mountains or they dwelled up high on mountains, therefore, adherents to that faith system would put their shrines on high hills as a place of worship.

This Psalm is not advocating for that practice or belief, but God does condescend to man’s concepts and through a broken frame of reference, preaches his Good News to his people.

When his people, even out of a broken framework, look to YHWH, he comes to help them!

Even better? Who is YHWH? He is Jesus.

Jesus is the Latin version of the Greek version of Yeshua…Joshua…YHWH saves.

Jesus ascended the hill alive bearing the penalty of my sin and yours, died in my place for my sin. Was carried down the hill and laid in a tomb, and he rose victorious over sin and the curse and death, and he ascended to the right hand of God to make atonement for sin for all who would turn to him in faith.

I look to the hill of the cross for my help, and where does it come from? It comes from Jesus, the LORD, who made heave and earth and redeemed heaven and earth.

There is much more we could do with that Psalm, but that’s enough for now.

Think on that this December 1 and enjoy the goodness of the Lord.