August 15 Daily Devotional

Monthly Theme:

These meditations are on the psalms. All those songs about Zion, the temple, and the Son of David really make sense when they are sung In the New Testament church.

Bible Reading:

Psalm 74:1–11

Bible Text:

We are given no miraculous signs; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be (Ps. 74:9).

Devotional:

Jerusalem lies in ruins, the temple is devastated, and the survivors have been taken to Babylon. From this scene of physical and spiritual destruction a voice cries: Why, O God? How long? And the poet reminds God that the humiliation of Israel is also an attack on the honor of God's own name.

But God is silent. "We are given no miraculous signs; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be."

The silence of God can be heartrending. It shakes our faith. And when our faith is shaken, we yearn for a sign, a new word, the appearance of someone who knows the answers to our questions.

In the New Testament age, the Word and Spirit are always with us. Yet people still yearn for tangible evidence that God's promises are real. This popular yearning produces prophets and miracle workers who claim to act and speak in the name of the LORD. Some of them may have true gifts from the true God. But many deceive the masses because people see and hear what they want to see and hear. When God seems silent, the most important thing to desire is a steady faith, well-focused on the work of Christ.

I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies,

no sudden rending of the veil of clay,

no angel visitant, no opening skies;

but take the dimness of my soul away.