Psalm 130 is a cry for the LORD’s forgiveness. Remember, these songs of ascent were offered to the LORD as the Israelites walked to the Temple to worship. Each of us needs the LORD’s forgiveness to be restored to relationship with Him. His forgiveness is the center of our lives. As we receive it we receive the new life He gives. As we give it to others, we show the world what redemption does and how it feels.
Psalm 131 is quite brief, and yet powerful. It reminds us of the humility required to be in relationship with the LORD. As we rely completely on Him, we have peace and contentment, and our lives bring Him honor.
Psalm 132 offers a cry for the LORD to remain King David’s commitment to Him, and then to honor His commitment to place one of David’s descendants on the throne of Judah forever. This is another psalm where the details are precise, and the psalmist seems to be “reminding” the LORD of His promises, but as we have seen in past psalms, it is rather a reminder to the psalmist and his readers of the LORD’s faithfulness.
The theme of Psalm 133 is unity. The psalmist reminds us how good and pleasant it is when the LORD’s people dwell together in unity. As we live in an increasingly fragmented society and world, it is more vital than ever to live in the unity of the Holy Spirit with all who call on the LORD.
The final song of ascents, Psalm 134 is a brief song of praise to the Lord, and a call for Him to bless those who praise Him.
Psalm 135 could be a song of ascents except for its length. It starts with a powerful offering of praise to the LORD. It recalls the LORD’s faithfulness in the past, and it also reminds us of the futility of serving idols. They have all the parts of a human body, but they do not function. Only the LORD is worthy of praise.
As we turn again to Luke 7, let’s focus again on John the Baptist. He had been imprisoned by Herod for renouncing Herod for taking his brother’s wife as his husband. As he served his time, he wondered where Jesus was, what was He doing? After all, John expected Jesus to be a conquering Messiah, who would conquer Rome and right the wrongs in Israel. Certainly, one of those wrongs would be eliminating Herod as king. He sent some disciples to ask Jesus the pointed question, “Are you the one who was to come, or should we look for another?” Jesus’ answer was straight from the prophet Isaiah. He quoted to John a passage that listed the deeds the Messiah would perform, and then entreated John not to fall away, because He wasn’t everything John expected. We need to hear that entreaty. After all, Jesus doesn’t always seem to be or do everything we expect. As we wait for Jesus’ return, all is not well in the world nor in our lives. The key is to wait, to let Jesus be who He is, and to remember when He comes again, He will be a conquering king. He will right all wrongs, and establish that just reign forever.