OUR ACTIVE GOD
Psalm 40
“Many, Lord my God, are the wonders you have done, the things you planned for us. None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare.”
When you contemplate the God of David, you will see a God who is active in his life: “I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to me and heard my cry. He lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; he set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand.”
David’s God has done wondrous things but he is also continuing to do wondrous things in the life of David and the nation in “the things you planned for us”. So not only is David’s God active in the past, active in rescuing him from dangerous situations, active in taking care of the universe, he is also actively involved in the life of David and the nation. And so when David stands to testify of God’s greatness, there is always much to tell. “None can compare with you; were I to speak and tell of your deeds, they would be too many to declare.” David is not merely repeating the same stories over and over again. There are fresh experiences, fresh exploits, fresh encounters and fresh insights into his God.
David’s God is alive and actively involved in his life, in his nation, and in his world.
It is possible to think that David has a lot to say about his God because he is the king and surely there is much need to depend on God’s protection and care. It may also be true that God is uninvolved in our lives because we are not really walking in his righteousness and love; in the life we are living we do not need him and the things we seek from him are not the things he wants us to have.
“I proclaim your saving acts in the great assembly; I do not seal my lips, Lord, as you know. I do not hide your righteousness in my heart; I speak of your faithfulness and your saving help. I do not conceal your love and your faithfulness from the great assembly.”