“One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord. The Lord is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid?”
The words of this psalm were the first words I heard in my first official duty as a vicar - streaming the funeral of a member of the church, Gene. Gene had passed away before I arrived, so I never got to meet him. Yet after the day was done, I felt as if I knew him better than I knew most of my close friends.
As I listened to Pastor preach his sermon, I thought the choice of text was odd. I’ve always enjoyed Psalm 27, but I never thought of it as a text for a funeral. More often we think of the Good Shepherd psalm, Psalm 23. But if you are so bold as to consider what you want for a sermon text, I am equally as bold to suggest you consider Psalm 27.
King David wrote over seventy psalms, and likely more that were not included in Scripture. As we might expect, many parts of the psalm function as prayers regarding his situation. We might think of David as a shepherd boy who became a great king, with a few mishaps along the way; but David’s life was so much more tumultuous than that. He was envied by his predecessor Saul, who sought to kill him. David had to hide in the wilderness and wander from place to place for many years. He was powerless to prevent his best friend, Jonathan, from dying in battle.
Yet through it all, David’s focus remained on his Lord. While he was eager for a life of peace and for the defeat of his enemies, his main concern lies with God. David knows who God is and what God promises to do for his people. All that moves David to pursue God and his teachings with faith, a faith that is confident in what was not yet so: “I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living!”
It wasn’t easy for David. It certainly isn’t easy for us either. Faith can be hard when relying on our senses is so much easier…more certain. It’s easy to lose ourselves in the various enemies we struggle with, whether it’s greed or anger, or even actual enemies that pursue and attack us. But like David, we know that we have the certain promises of the Lord God, who promised a Savior who would take away our sins and bring everlasting life to all who believe in him. David didn’t get to see how that promise would be fulfilled, but we do, in the Son of David and the Son of God.
Death can be scary and saddening. It certainly was at Gene’s funeral that day. But Psalm 27 reminds all of us that our desire to dwell in the house of the Lord will one day become a reality, thanks to Jesus. Gene is there now - and one day, we will be too.
Prayer: Dear Lord, instill in us a fearlessness no enemy can shake. Lead us to your house to meditate on your saving deeds and gaze on the beauty of your Son, our Savior. When we suffer, make us patient. Teach us perseverance to long for your final salvation and rest secure in your house forever; through Christ our Lord. Amen.