The Shining Face Of God.

THE SHINING FACE OF GOD.

Psalm 80:1-4; Psalm 80:18-19.

Asaph begins his prayer with an appeal that God will hear (PSALM 80:1). Sometimes our Shepherd seems distant, and deaf to our cries. We might need, like the Psalmist, to remind ourselves just who He is - “the one who dwells between the cherubim” - and what He has done on behalf of His church in the past (cf. 1 Samuel 7:12).

It is customary to think of our salvation as a single event, ‘when I got saved’. In one sense this is true, but it is also an ongoing event in our lives. The changes and so-called chances of life may present us with new problems as we grow from one level in our Christianity to another, so we need to call on God anew to continue His saving work within us (PSALM 80:2).

There is a refrain throughout the Psalm, growing in intensity and boldness. The appeal for our restoration is first addressed to “God” (PSALM 80:3), then to 'God of hosts' (cf. Psalm 80:7), and finally to the “LORD God of hosts” (PSALM 80:19). The prayer that God’s face would shine upon us reminds us of the Aaronic blessing (cf. Numbers 6:24-26), and of the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ transfiguration.

There is a picture in the Hebrew language of the LORD “fuming” against the prayers of His people (PSALM 80:4): “How long You fume?” This may not be anger on God’s part, but rather an expression of the Psalmist’s frustration that his prayers seem unable to penetrate the cloud of God’s glory. Sometimes our prayers might seem to reach no higher than the ceiling: nevertheless we must still pray, and tell Him all about it!

Whatever our woes, the solution is the same: we must look to Him to shine upon us, “turn us” and save us (PSALM 80:3; Psalm 80:7; PSALM 80:19).

We still await our final great rescue, the culmination of our salvation when the Son of man comes in the clouds with great power and glory (cf. Mark 13:26). Meantime we profess with the Psalmist, “we will not go back” (PSALM 80:18): no matter what the world throws at us, we will persevere in Him. We look to Him for quickening, for He is our life, and we call upon God in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Once more the refrain rings out, by now reaching a crescendo. You turn us, O LORD, you shine on us. Without you there is no salvation (PSALM 80:19)!