Taste & See: Psalms

Long Live the King - Psalm 72

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Date:  12/17/17
Speaker:  Matt McCullough
Title:  Long Live the King
Scripture:  Psalm 72

Description: A righteous king--an authority over us who always does what is right--is to our lives what rain or rich soil is to the grass. We were made to depend on such a king for our lives to flourish. This psalm shows us what a righteous king looks like, and how we can serve him.

He Rules the World - Psalm 2

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Date:  12/10/17
Speaker:  Matt McCullough
Title:  He Rules the World
Scripture:  Psalm 2

Description: When the powerful use their power to do whatever they want no matter who gets hurt, it makes sense to ask the question underlying this psalm: Who rules the world? And when you've felt the weight of that question, you're prepared to celebrate the good news in this psalm's answer.

Luther's Psalm - Psalm 118

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Date:  10/29/17
Speaker:  Matt McCullough
Title:  Luther's Psalm
Scripture:  Psalm 118

Description: To commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, we decided to work through Psalm 118, the favorite psalm of Martin Luther. And it isn't difficult to see why he loved this psalm so much. It captures the heart of the gospel Luther helped to clarify: everything depends on God's steadfast love, which is freely available to all who believe.

My Portion Forever - Psalm 73

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Date:  09/17/17
Speaker:  Matt McCullough
Title:  My Portion Forever
Scripture:  Psalm 73

Description: Everyone experiences envy. No one enjoys what that feels like. But how do we overcome our tendency to envy the good things other people enjoy? This psalm helps us see that envy always comes from overvaluing what other people have, and from undervaluing what it is to have God's presence in your life.

Rejoicing in Vengeance? - Psalm 58

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Date:  09/03/17
Speaker:  Matt McCullough
Title:  Rejoicing in Vengeance?
Scripture:  Psalm 58

Description: This psalm is one of many that pray for the destruction of Israel's enemies. If you don't live with enemies close at hand, psalms like these can be hard to connect with. And given the brutal language, psalms like these can seem totally out of step with Jesus's call to love your enemies and pray for your persecutors. How should we respond to prayers like these? Should we rejoice in vengeance?