Psalm 39:4-7 "LORD, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is; that I may know how frail I am. (5) Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth; and mine age is as nothing before thee: verily every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Selah. (6) Surely every man walketh in a vain shew: surely they are disquieted in vain: he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. (7) And now, Lord, what wait I for? my hope is in thee."
Sometimes we live as though our life on earth will never end. We make
decisions and plans as though we will never leave this earth. It is
necessary to lay up in store for things such as retirement or in case of a
major illness, but these plans should always include this thought: "If the
Lord wills." James stated it in this manner: "Whereas ye know
not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour,
that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. (15) For
that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or
that." (James 4:14-15)
In today's text, David was not asking the Lord to tell him how long he would
live; rather, he was needing to be reminded that he was not going to live
forever. I'm not certain what was happening at the time David wrote this, but
he seemed to be making some determinations as to what he would or would not do.
The Apostle Paul wrote concerning this same thing in Romans chapter 7. Paul
said, "The very thing that I said I would not do is what I did. And the
thing that I said I was going to do is what was left undone." (My
paraphrase) Have you ever had that experience? Have you ever woken
up and said, "Lord, today I'm going to do better than yesterday. I won't
make that same mistake again." And then find yourself doing just the
opposite?
David summed up the strength and goodness of man in verse 5, "Every man at
his best state is altogether vanity." At our very best, we are
nothing. Isaiah spoke of mankind as being a worm. My very best, through my own
efforts, is as filthy rags. That is not a popular statement in today's society.
We hear much about self-worth and to a degree, we should understand our worth.
But in my thoughts, our worth is not found in ourselves; rather in the manner
in which our Lord sees us. Our worth is found in the fact that God loves
us so much that He sent His only begotten Son into the world to die for a worm
such as I.
If my best effort is nothing? If my strength is no more than a worm? If
my worth is nothing? What hope do I have? David stated it best, "My hope
is in thee, (O Lord)" He is my help and my guide!
The Solid Rock
by Edward Mote
My hope is built on nothing less
Than Jesus Christ, my righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame,
But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand;
All other ground is sinking sand,
All other ground is sinking sand.