"Messianic Psalms"

The Word for today: Psalm 45

mark this: 45:6-7--
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.

The psalms are brimful of "messianic" pictures--pictures of the Messiah to come.

"Messiah" means "Anointed One." "Messiah" is the Old Testament form of the word, from the Hebrew language. "Christ" is the New Testament form of the word, from the Greek language.

"Messiah" / "Christ" is not a name but it is Jesus' official title.

Jesus was anointed--identified, marked out; saturated and overflowing with the power of the Holy Spirit.

Sometimes we hear Jesus referred to as "Christ Jesus." That is actually in keeping with the way we use titles. (We call David "King David"--not "David King.")

The Old Testament is made up of pictures of Jesus so people would recognize Him when, one day, He'd be coming down the road.

So look for Messianic passages in the Psalms. That's Jesus, coming down the road!

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The Psalms are to be done--activated--more than they are to be studied.

So do the Psalms. Pray them out loud to God. Attach melody and sing them--or rhythm and rap them.

Write a psalm. Live the psalms. Pour out your soul.

The Psalms are all-consuming passion and lavish love.

Many authors wrote the Psalms. But far more were written by King David than by any other. You can feel, hear, see, taste, and smell his extravagant love for God in his Psalms.

Develop, like David did, an inordinate love for God. David's love for God was so intense that it embarrassed the people around him.

Don't measure love. Don't make sense of love. Do love.

(Franklyn is in the middle of a lake in the middle of nowhere, far beyond the reach of the internet, until August 23rd, when the fully updated daily posts will resume. He is hoping that the fish won't bite, because all he wants to do is listen for the loons, calling deep unto deep. In the meantime, he hopes that you do a Psalm or two--pray them, sing them, write them, feel them, dance them, cry them. Love Jesus foolishly and recklessly. That's how He loves you: the cross of Jesus Christ is a reckless, desperate love.)