Hello, my friend. I have a very dear friend, who generally closes his letters by saying, “Keep shining.” This seems, perhaps, to be a bit ‘corny’, even flippant, but if you ponder our PSALM 67, you find this is very Biblical. I’m sure you’ve known people whose lives seem to shine, whose faces shine, whose very expressions of affection shine with their deep interest in you and in your life. There is something about this shining that is so attractive and as you have already read in today’s Psalm, vs. 1, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us.” And I am sure you were drawn, in your thoughts, to that great blessing from Aaron and his sons to the people of Israel, as found in Numbers 6:24-26, “The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make his face shine upon you and be gracious to you; the Lord turn his face toward you and give you peace.” There is such joy and blessing in these thoughts, all relating to God’s wonderful love and caring affection for us, His children.
Shining requires some inner source and it is fascinating to look at a few other verses in Scripture which refer to this. Daniel 12:3, “Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens and those who lead many to righteousness like the stars for ever and ever.” People who share their faith, who are wise in their love for the Lord, will shine like the stars in heaven. And Matthew 5:16 refers to the same thing, “Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.” So our shining is not only leading people to Christ, but it is in living Christ day by day, at home, at work, at play, at the fellowship of believing people in worship, the inevitable outward expression of a living, loving faith in God. And then 2 Corinthians 4:6 is so great, “For God, who said, “Let light shine out of the darkness (referring to Genesis 1:3) made his light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ.”
So God has given us this light about which David is speaking here in Psalm 67:1.
And our thoughts turn inevitably to 2 Corinthians 3:18, which reads, “We who with unveiled faces (or transparently sincere lives) all reflect the Lord’s glory and we are being transformed into His likeness with ever-increasingly glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” What a blessed assurance these verses give us. And what rich teaching does the rest of Psalm 67 give us, the results of God’s face shining on us, bringing his salvation to the ends of the earth, enabling people everywhere to praise Him, and allowing God to bless us so the ends of the earth will fear Him. I hope I haven’t quoted too much Scripture, but I love this great Psalm and am excited how it is reflected in so frequently elsewhere in the Book.
“Thank you, Lord, for the wonder of this intimate relationship with you, being used as lights in a dark world to shine into the most remote corners of need. May we be wicks to burn out, knowing oil is supplied. Bless my friend who is alongside, with prayer and encouragement.”
Thank you, Friend, for being along. I thank God for you. Cheerio!
These meditations on the Psalms were written by Village Schools of the Bible Founder, Monty Sholund and first published in book form as Monty’s Musings on the Psalms in 2000. Copies are available for $10 and can be ordered here.
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