Day 111.
In the pride of his face the wicked does not seek him;
all his thoughts are, “There is no God.”..
The helpless are crushed, sink down,
and fall by his might…
He says in his heart, “God has forgotten,
he has hidden his face, he will never see it.”..
Why does the wicked renounce God
and say in his heart, “You will not call to account”?
But you do see, for you note mischief and vexation,
that you may take it into your hands;
to you the helpless commits himself;
you have been the helper of the fatherless. (Psalm 10:4, 10, 11, 13, 14 ESV)
The psalmist observes the actions of those who seek their own gain even when it comes at the expense of others and contemplates his, perhaps unrecognized, faith positions. To act in such way is accompanied by a faith position of disbelieving there is a God in heaven who will hold us all accountable for our actions. Imagine a their going into a store to rob it and noticing a video camera surveillance system. Most often if he knows of such a camera he will avoid robbing that place or he will take some measure of disabling it or keeping out of its sight. Why? He doesn’t want to be called to account for his actions. In essence, God is like that surveillance system only he cannot be thwarted. He sees through our disguises and self-justifications all the way to the heart. And He will call us all to account. Why do we overlook God so easily when we wouldn’t overlook a surveillance camera? The psalmist attributes to his pride. Somehow his pride blinds him as it leads him to believe he is doing well enough on his own. He doesn’t need God, thus God remains out of sight and out of mind.
From a practical perspective, pride keeps us ignoring our own need to be consistent in worship and with our accountability group, which keeps God, his blessings, his wonders, and his mission for us from drifting out of sight and out of mind. It starts subtly. We don’t intend on it. But it happens.
Praying the psalms keep God and ourselves in perspective. Praise the Lord for this great prayer book!
Chronological Reading Plan plus Psalms: Ps 6, 8, 9, 10, 14, 16, 19, 21
