Foundations

The prophets were men from many different backgrounds who were called to speak for God. Most of the prophets warned of judgment to come. In all of their warnings, during the darkest days of God's people, there is a message of God's grace and hope. Hope in the coming Messiah. God is calling every Christian to model His grace and truth to a dying world, just like He asked the prophets to do a couple thousand years ago.

The Song of Solomon is the last of the poetry books and is a love song that records the romance of two lovers and is a beautiful allegory of what the relationship is between Christ and His Church. The Song contains important truths. One is God considers the sexual relationship in marriage to be a very good part of His creation. Another important truth is it teaches us much about our intimate relationship with the risen, living Christ.

Ecclesiastes speaks to the hearts God's people when they are searching for answers to the perplexing dilemmas of life. Solomon urges the younger generation to learn from his experience as he searched for the meaning and purpose of life. The only worthwhile purpose he found in life was to fear God and keep His commandments. He told young people to remember God and live their lives well, because everyone will face Him and eternal judgment in the end.

The book of Proverbs is the most practical book in the Bible, so "that God's people might know how to live." Solomon was considered the wisest man in the world. Much of Solomon's wisdom was learned from his failures. He wanted to teach young men not to do as he did. His purpose was for the wise to become wise leaders, the simple-minded to become wise, and for all people to discern how to live right.

Hopelessness is a huge problem in our world, but God's desire is for the hope He has planted within us to lead us to faith and a personal relationship with Him. God invites us to "taste and see" that He is good, to follow Him in obedience and trust His Word. Those who trust in God will be blessed as they grow strong in hope and faith as they experience God's faithfulness to provide, protect, and deliver them.

David described the only appropriate way to enter into God's presence is with thanksgiving and praise, and one of the best ways to express those attitudes is through music. In God's presence, we can experience how good He is, we learn of His desire to be worshiped by all people in all nations, and we learn to joyfully serve Him. Worship leads us to greater depth in our relationship with Him and results in greater growth and fruitfulness for Him.

In Psalms 32 and 51, among others, David speaks of emotions we can all relate to: the feelings associated with guilt. Psalms of confession and forgiveness show us the relief and joy found in God's forgiveness of our sin and the blessings of God's grace and restoration. Psalm 139 describes the God to whom we pray. God knows and understands everything about us, so He is the perfect counselor in times of difficulty.

Psalms with an emotional theme are often prayer psalms, where the psalmist is talking to God about human beings, usually himself. They teach us that when we bring our feelings of anxiety, fear, anger, discouragement, despair, or anything else to God, He helps us through those feelings and leads us into gratitude and worship. When we are experiencing emotional distress, we can always turn to Psalms and find rest, trust, and peace to overcome our stress.

Many believe God should bless everyone regardless of the choices and the convictions they have made and held. But the Bible is very clear that many of the blessings from God are conditional. The blessed man is blessed because of his faith and his choices. The psalms promise blessings to those who love and fear the Lord and walk in His ways. Psalm 127 teaches how the family is one of the great building opportunities we are given by God.

The Psalms are God's hymnbook of praise! Psalm 1, like many "blessed man" psalms, presents both positive and negative truths. We learn what blessed people do not do, and then what they do. Our convictions and our choices in life have a lot to do with how God blesses us. We learn how the godly are blessed and the ungodly are not. As we read the Psalms it is important to ask ourselves: Which one am I?