In God's Hands, Part 2

In God’s Hands, Part 2

Psalm 31[1]

In our culture, it seems that religion is something that has more to do with dying than with living. For many people, Christian faith is all about making sure they’ll “go to heaven when they die.” Even at its best, this perspective is one that views faith as preparation to “meet our maker,” a way to approach death with confidence rather than fear. While there is truth in those sentiments, I think those who make Christian faith about dying have got it somewhat backwards. Christian faith is about living!

When we read our Psalm for today, we naturally think of Jesus’ cry on the cross, “Into your hand I commit my spirit” (Lk. 23:46), as a dying prayer. But if we view it in the light of the Psalm from which it was taken, we have to take it rather as a life motto. The Psalmist recounted all the hardships of life—enemies who seek to undo him, anxiety and sorrow from opposition, fear and even shame. At the end of it all, the Psalmist could say, “I am as forgotten as a dead man” (cf. Ps. 31:12, TEV).

And yet, in spite of all the afflictions he endured he could pray, “Into your hand I commit my spirit; you have redeemed me, O Lord, faithful God” (Ps. 31:5). One of the details of this verse is that the Hebrew word translated “spirit” can also be translated “life.” In a very real sense, the Psalmist was entrusting his whole life to God. Despite any hardships, he could say, “it is up to you, God, what becomes of me, and I am willing to have it so.”[2] Later in the Psalm he said it this way,  “my times are in your hand” (Ps. 31:15).

The whole Psalm is a prayer of trust, of confidence in the “faithful God” (Ps. 31:5), literally in Hebrew “the God of truth” (el-emeth). The Psalmist trusted in “the God who can be relied on and believed in because [God] is true to himself.”[3] And so the end of his prayer is “Be strong and let your heart take courage, all you that wait for the Lord” (Ps. 31:24).

That’s a prayer for life, not a cry of death!  From that perspective the prayer “Into your hand I commit my spirit” is more of a motto for living than a prayer for dying. That sense of trust defined Jesus’ entire life, not just his final days. Time and time again Jesus told his disciples that his life and his purpose were entirely directed by God. Jesus is the perfect example of a life lived by entrusting oneself into God’s hands. He humbled himself and sought God’s direction for his life. He trusted God’s goodness, unfailing love and faithfulness. He was willing to take the risk of following God’s will for his life and living God’s ways of justice and mercy and love. His whole life, indeed his very being, was motivated by the prayer, “Into your hand I commit my spirit.”

We’re used to thinking that if we live that way, life will turn out the way we want it. After all, those who obey God are rewarded, both in this life and in the next. Or so we presume. But when you take the prayer “into your hands I commend my life” as seriously as Jesus did, it’s likely to lead to a cross. Actually seeking to make God’s ways and God’s purpose our way of living in our day-to-day reality usually goes against the grain of our culture. We will very likely find ourselves swimming against the stream. And in some cases, as Jesus said, we will have to give up what we cherish most in this life.

There are times in our lives when the circumstances in which we find ourselves are more than we can bear. Like the Psalmist, we may feel like we are surrounded by enemies with no way out. The challenge of Scripture to us is to find a way to entrust our lives—all of life—into God’s hands. That’s not an easy thing to do, especially when the situation feels overwhelming. In those times, we may cry out in fear, even as the Psalmist admits he did. I don’t think we need to feel ashamed of that; fear doesn’t mean we don’t have faith, it means we’re human. We can feel afraid and still have the courage to entrust our lives into God’s hands. And when we do, we find—in God’s hands—grace and unfailing love, strength and reassurance to see us through whatever we may have to endure.

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[1] ©2020 Alan Brehm. A sermon delivered by Rev. Dr. Alan Brehm on 5/10/2020 at Hickman Presbyterian Church, Hickman, NE.

[2] Cf. James L. Mays, Psalms, 144.  Cf. also Jürgen Moltmann, “Good Friday: Birth of Hope from the Cross of Christ,” in The Power of the Powerless, 120, where he calls this “believing with one’s whole life.”

[3] Mays, Psalms, 143; cf. also Kraus, Psalms 1-59, 363, who renders it “the faithful, dependable God.”