Psalm 133 is a psalm of ascent.. It is a psalm that was used
as pilgrims came to the temple in Jerusalem for worship, specifically for one
of the big three festivals… Passover, Pentecost and tabernacles As such it is a
journey psalm about travelling from afar and coming to worship. A journey not just of distance but of
preparing oneself to encounter God. A journey of spiritual growth and renewal.
Psalm 133 is the second to last Psalm of ascent.
It’s about arriving at the temple to worship. It’s a blessing on the pilgrims,
who have come together as God’s People to worship.
Psalm 133 is a Psalm of relationship, community
and unity. As the Pilgrims journeyed to the temple it is not just
reconnecting to a place and growing in their relationship with God, it has been
an identifying with God’s people. They belonging to one another, and in their
unity God blesses them.
I’ve been meditating on the psalms of ascent this year and
using them as a basis for services I’ve taken at Edmund Hillary retirement
village. There is a progression in each of them, where the pilgrim identifies
his own experiences with that of all God’s people, it develops a sense of
commonality: common discontent, common awareness of God’s help in times of
trouble, God as the source of life and blessing, a common trust in and
dependence on God. We can see spiritual disciplines and devotional life as
solitary and individual, but the spiritual discipline of community is at the
heart of the Christian faith…
“The real meaning of life,” says Leonard
Sweet, “is not a journey question or an arrival question. It’s a relationship
question. Your journey and your destination are important, but neither is
possible without an answer to this prior Question: who are you taking with you
on the journey toward your destination?”
So come join me as we
explore Psalm 133 and see what it has to say to us in our season of prayer.
The Psalm is a benediction on God’s people gathered for
worship. It’s a proverb about family unity that has been turned into a blessing
for all God’s people. The proverb is in verse 1 and the blessing is the last
line in verse 3 and in between are two
examples that are used at metaphors to illustrate that blessing.
As well as being a Psalm of ascent it is acknowledged as
being of David. In the time of King David the tribes of Israel
were bought together, there is a sense of a national unity that enabled them to
grow strong and become an empire. For Israel they looked back at that time as
their golden age. But also from David’s reign when his own sons were divided we
see the damage disunity and personal self-interest had on the whole kingdom.
Many modern translations translate the second line “When God’s
people” which reflects the intent of the psalm, and is inclusive but hides its
roots as a proverb about family life. The Hebrew is ‘when brothers’ live
together in unity. In Israel’s agricultural background, sons would normally stay
with their father and work the land they had together, even after they were
married, land was distributed after the father had died. So family dynamics were an important part of
the prosperity of that family. If it was
good then they would be able to work together as a unit, if it was bad it could
have disastrous consequences. In the book of Genesis we see this in the clash
between Jacob and Esau. We see both the negative and positive it in the joseph
narrative: Where jealousy and favouritism lead to Joseph being left in a dry
well to die and as a compromise sold into slavery. Then with forgiveness and
reconciliation between Joseph and his brothers God provides for the whole
family in a time of dire famine.
That proverb for family life is then taken to apply to all
God’s people together. It is not simply a family relationship but a covenant
relationship. AS God’s people they belong to each other, and equally that unity
and living together is the basis of blessing.
That is how we find ourselves as pilgrims standing in this
Psalm. We are God’s people because through Jesus Christ we have been bought
into a relationship with God. We are
Brothers and sisters in Christ. In our new Testament reading from Hebrews this
morning, the author of Hebrews uses the image of coming to the temple to
worship God to talk of through Christ, that we as brothers and sisters can
gather into the very presence of God. Not simply stopping at the outer courts
of the temple, or the holy place where only the priest could go, but having the
confidence because of Christ’s priestly sacrifice, to come into the very
presence of God, the holy of Holy’s beyond the veil, that was torn in two, as
Christ died.
The pastor down at Mt wellington Community Church and I
are often asked if we are brothers, we look alike… I think it has a lot to do with being men of a certain age with receding hairlines and gotees who wear glasees... I’ve always find it hard to
answer that question, and I’m so grateful for that most Kiwi of answers “yeah
Nah!” or rather “Nah, Yeah!” because nah
we are not biologically connected but Yeah we are brothers in Christ, we have
that covenant relationship in Christ. When we work together with other
Christian leaders and our congregations work together, the community is
blessed.
When we think of oil being poured out on clothes, we
probably wonder how will we get the stain out right. But the picture here of
Aaron being anointed for ministry, with a fragrant oil, frankincense. It was a
symbol of being set aside for God service, to be the one who would mediate the
people’s relationship with God. Lead them in worship, through sacrifices help
them get their sins forgiven and proclaim them right with God. It’s reformation Sunday today and its special
today as it marks the 500th anniversary of Martin Luther nailing his
ninety-five thesis to the door of the Wittenberg cathedral. The reformation
reemphasised the fact that through grace and faith in Christ that we are put
right with God. We are a priesthood of all believers. We are all called and set
aside to serve God. The oil poured out is a foreshadowing God anointing us all
with the Holy Spirit. We often emphasise the individual aspect of that
relationship. But its a unity and community thing. The scriptures of the Old
Testament is the story of God’s people and the scriptures of the New Testament
are written to communities of faith, to communities working out what it meant
for them to be followers of Jesus together.
The dew on Mt Hermon falling on Mt Zion, is a picture of
God’s provision of plenty for his people. Zion was a mountain in a dry part of
the country, barren and rocky, Hebron was well watered by dew and snow. God's blessing here is shown in the land spring forth with life that comes from a reliable water source. You may
remember the imagery of Psalm 65 we looked at last month, where God’s blessing
on Jerusalem was seen in the whole land being fertile and abounding with life. There
is an ethical element here. The sense that that abundant life and plenty is for
all God’s people, for all the people God loves and cares for. When God’s people
dwell in unity, there is no poverty or want. Those who do not have do not miss
out because they are blessed by those who have more than enough who share with
them. Part of the spiritual practises of community for the Jewish people was
alms giving. Giving money and a percentage of their crop for the sake of those
who do not have. Community storehouses were set up. In Acts 2 the fledgling
church in Jerusalem had a vibrant prayer life and worship life and teaching
life, but they also gave hospitality to each other and didn’t hold onto what
they had as their own but were willing to sell and give to those in need. So it was said there were no needs. They were
willing to look together at injustice and inequality, when the Judean Widows
were getting more that those from a Hellenistic background. Prayer devotion and
action go hand in hand.
In that unity God bestows his blessing on his people. It is
as we are together that God ministers to us and through us to each other. The
picture is of Abundant life but eternal life as well. This passage looks
forward to God’s blessing being fulfilled in Jesus Christ in his death and
resurrection and the abundant and eternal life he brings. Life we share
together here on earth and will share forever with Christ. In fact the whole of psalm 133 Jesus is the high priest who has offered the ultimate sacrifice in giving up his life for his people. Jesus is the source of the Holy Spirit poured out on all who believe. Jesus is the source of life giving water which changes the land from barren and lifeless to abundance that can be shared with all people. Jesus is the source of eternal life.
I want to finish off this reflection in our season of prayer by tying it all down to
some basic spiritual practises for our lives together.
Firstly, the psalm of ascent is in the context of coming
together for public worship, it was used as pilgrims came to the temple for
festivals and as people simply came to the temple for regular worship as well.
Regular public worship is a spiritual disciple. It is part of the sacredness of
time and using that time for worship and acknowledging God and Identifying with
God’s people. We live in a world with real demands on time and it easy to put
coming to church low on the priority list. Likewise we can see the festivals of
Church calendar as times to get away rather than times to come together. If we view attending worship as part a
spiritual discipline it will mean some sacrifice. Like all disciplines it means
setting priorities.
In his Book the Good and beautiful community James Bryan
Smith talks of some simple steps to help make worship a spiritual
discipline. I was wondering if I should mention his first one as He says
‘come early’ like with any spiritual discipline it’s important to prepare
yourself, like simply slowing your breathing before you pray or read scripture
so you are relaxed. He says come expectant, that you will encounter God, “
Matthew 18:20 “when one or two are gathered in my name, Low I am with them” is
usually used as a way of chasing away despondency when there is a poor turn
out, but it is not it is the encouragement that when we gather together which
includes for public worship Christ is present. In our reformed tradition, the
flow of a worship service is that the focus is on the reading and preaching of
the Word, what goes before it is designed to make us ready to hear the word and
what we do after that is how we respond to the word of God. There is the
expectation that we will meet God and he will speak to us through his word. Be
expectant. Remember the focus on God… It’s easy to get distracted or to find
ourselves struggling with style and form, but we need to remind ourselves the
focus is on God. Lastly Come expecting to give… Now this is not in a prosperity
we are after your money kind of thing OK… but rather as it says in our reading
from Hebrews that we should encourage one another, we are to spur one another
on towards love and good deeds. It’s easy to have a consumer mentality, we come
for what’s in it for us… But God’s spirit dwells in each of you and you all
have been called to witness to the hope you have in Christ and to minister to
one another.
secondly, its about relationships, 'the church says Larry Crabb is a community of people on a journey to God. we need to develop a balanced set of relationships as a spiritual discipline for the journey and to enable us to arrive at our ultimate designation. Leonard Sweet, who I quoted at the start of this message
maintains that for our Christian lives to grow and develop we need to cultivate
a range of relationships in our lives. While he specifically mentions eleven, in his book eleven (and then adds a twelfth which is the Holy Spirit)... it is easy to break it down into people who are able to build into our lives
and people who we invest into, and those who walk alongside us as friends and it’s
a bit of both. Sweet says we need to find a mentor and encourager, but also
people who we are open to being our editors and butt kickers as well, trusted
prophets who speak the truth in love. We need to find a timothy or a protégée
someone we can encourage and build up in the faith, a Zacchaeus, that outside
who needs our love and our care. A close friend who is with us all the way. In New Zealand
society, men find it hardest to form that kind of bond. We used to having a
mate, someone we work or hang out with, but really when you see the depth of
care and concern that the likes of David and Jonathan had in the scriptures we
kind of don’t really cultivate that sort of closeness. It is a dangerous
romantic myth that we can have all our relational needs meet in a marriage. Spiritual
discipline cultivating this range of relationships because there is a balance
of people who fill our tank,… fuel our lives… that give to us and encourage and
inspire us and those who drain our tank, that we give to, and inspire and
encourage or carry and hold.
A healthy system is where there is a balance of
these two things. Very often these relationships can’t be built up in a large
group and one of the ways that Churches help in developing these is through
forming small groups or cells. It is one of the goals in our five-year
strategic plan is to develops small groups here at St Peters. Ralph neighbours
says that for a church to really soar in the spirit it needs to develop two
wings, a big gatherings wing, like
public worship and feeling part of something bigger than ourselves and a small
groups wing, where people can develop the depth of relationships they need for
real spiritual growth.
Developing that balance of healthy and heal giving
relationships is a matter of developing other spiritual disciplines: hospitality,
opening your homes and your lives. Listening, showing kindness, forgiveness, caring,
making time. In the end they are a source of God’s blessing for you, they can
minister to you and enable us as a church to be a blessing as we practise the
spiritual discipline of community.
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