Saturday 13 April 2024

Psalm 43

Background

Today Saint Paul is reflecting on those who have believed in God before us. He points the Christians in Rome, to whom he is writing, to the example of a great hero of faith, Abraham. If you want to make a good point, point to someone good!! So, Paul chooses the best – Abraham. When Abraham believed God he went in the right direction, found the right practices to follow and led the people in the way they should go… “and it was reckoned to him as righteousness” (v. 3).

This is all about faith – a living and active faith in a God who has our best interests at heart. Where there is love, there is God.

Someone once described faith is this way: Forsaking All I Trust Him.

When we dare to trust God’s way rather than our instincts or preferences, we often – not always – see amazing things happen. We see lives touched and transformed when we put kindness first; difficulties eased when we put love at the top of the agenda; worries and cares put into the context of a bigger picture of care when God is allowed in through prayer.

Paul puts it this way: “…to one who without works trusts him who justifies [see yesterday’s reflection] the ungodly, such faith is reckoned as righteousness.” (v. 5)

So, we do well to let go of our own instincts and preferences in order to live out the love and care we find through Jesus whom the writer of the letter to the Hebrews speaks of as the “pioneer and perfecter of our faith.” (Hebrews 12:2)

To Ponder:

• How can I trust God more?
• Who are good examples of Christian faith for me?
• In what ways do I need to let go of my own preferences in order to better live as a follower of Jesus?
• Listen to ‘When I Survey the Wondrous Cross’.

Prayer

We turn to you, O Crucified Redeemer, converted through your cross, conquering in its sign, transformed by its grace and at peace within its shadow. Amen.

William of Saint-Thierry (1085–1148) (From Day 13, Methodist Prayer Handbook 2023-24)

Bible notes author: The Revd Andy Fyall
Andy Fyall is Chair of the Nottingham & Derby District with oversight of New Places for New People. He is married to Helen, also a Methodist minister, and is dad to Hannah and Matthew. He served in the Cardiff and Nottingham (South) and Stamford Circuits, before returning to Nottingham in 2022. In his spare time Andy enjoys spending time with his family as well as walking, cycling, cooking and choral singing.