post by Lisa Buffum, December 8, 2022
Begin by reading Psalm 16 on Biblegateway.com or in your own Bible.
I love the depth of the Psalms. I particularly love when Jesus is revealed in a psalm. The thought that David wrote a psalm that reflected his own personal experience of life and of God, which is also a prophetic word about Jesus, amazes me. David believed God’s promise that his heir would sit on the throne of a kingdom that has no end. But, did he also know the details?
We see Jesus revealed in Psalm 16:9-11 –
“Therefore my heart is glad and my tongue rejoices;
my body also will rest secure,
because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead,
nor will you let your faithful [holy] one see decay.
You make known to me the path of life;
you will fill me with joy in your presence,
with eternal pleasures at your right hand.”
Due to the Resurrection, Jesus is the holy one whose body was not abandoned to the realm of the dead so that it did not see decay. Jesus is the one who now enjoys eternal pleasures at the right hand of God. Not David. Jesus!
So, that’s seems like an obscure reference. It might appear as if I am reaching to make this section fit Jesus. However, this is not my original idea. Peter said it first in a recorded sermon in Acts 2; Peter quotes Psalm 16, then adds:
“Fellow Israelites, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and his tomb is here to this day. But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that he would place one of his descendants on his throne. Seeing what was to come, he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, that he was not abandoned to the realm of the dead, nor did his body see decay. God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of it. Exalted to the right hand of God, he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured out what you now see and hear.” [v. 29-33]
Pretty cool, huh? Did David know all of this when he wrote this psalm? I am not sure. However, God knew. God knew His plan for salvation would include a Messiah and a Resurrection even if David at the time did not.
We watch for signs of the coming Messiah in the psalms while also waiting for Him during Advent. To be a disciple of Jesus, we should look for evidence of Him everywhere – in life and in Scripture. Christians experience life while reading all of Scripture through Jesus-tinted glasses.
With you in the Advent waiting,
Photo by Sabri Tuzcu on Unsplash
PS – Have you ever written Bible-based plays? Or wanted to? I think this course beginning January 9 , 2023, sounds like fun: Writing Bible-Based Plays, Step by Step
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Lisa is the Director of Online Education for the Institute for Discipleship, overseeing the ministries of BeADisciple.com. Lisa completed a Master’s degree in Christian Ministry from Friends University in Wichita, Kansas, in May of 2006.
She is the mother of three children, and currently, “Mimi” to four grandbabies. Lisa teaches the instructor training course, Lay Servants as Christian Transformational Leaders, and other courses as needed, and provides technical assistance for instructors and learners for every IFD course.
