Psalms 53, 77, 89
Proper Attire
Back in Jeremiah 13 God told Jeremiah that Judah was robed in pride illustrated by the linen belt Jeremiah was to purchase and bury in Babylon. In this illustration God was saying Judah’s pride would be broken and destroyed during the seventy years they would spend in Babylon in exile.
This is the second of four days of Psalms inserted in our study of the prophesy of Jeremiah. These Psalms are meant to help us understand and “feel” what the exile will be like and what the people would be feeling and praying during that time. God is warning the people that their pride is going to be broken. The Psalms we are reading illustrate that breaking old habits and behavior patterns is a long process.
So, what can the Church learn from this? Well, first, we must realize that we are no different and are just as susceptible to the same things Israel and Judah were. Next, we need to realize that Christians have entered into a covenant relationship with our Lord; God takes that very seriously. We also learn that, like Israel and Judah, Christians need to be properly attired for our Lord because we represent Him to the world. (He doesn’t need the Church to represent the world to Him.)
Isaiah 11:5 tells us that God’s waist band is righteousness about His loins and faithfulness about His waist. Paul draws from this verse when he tells us to put on the belt (waist band) of truth in Ephesians 6:14. The Church is also to put on the breastplate of righteousness and the helmet of salvation spoken of in Isaiah 59:17. Paul also draws from Isaiah 52:7, that the shoes we are to wear are the gospel of peace.
In Luke 6:40, Jesus said we are to be like Him. The Church is to be properly attired for the Lord. In future studies we will see what caused Judah to abandon their attire for the unhealthy pride of the world. The prophesies we are reading are like a mirror that is showing Judah how they look, and so do these Psalms.
The wise Christian will look into the mirror of the Word of God to see how they look before going out to represent God to the world.
So, how do we look?
The last thing we want to hear from God is, “you’re not going out like that!” “You need to spend some time in exile.”
Pastor Dave