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Psalm 27:1
“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?”
Fullness to the point of overflowing is one way that we can describe all of God’s attributes. Since the Lord is infinite (Ps. 145:3), none of His qualities can actually be measured. He is all His attributes to an infinite degree such that He can give of Himself to His creatures and lose nothing. We see this especially in divine omnibenevolence. God is all-good, and He is all-good to such a degree that He shows forth His goodness in a multitude of ways.
All creation experiences the goodness of God to a certain degree, for even the unjust receive the rain that they need to grow food and feed their friends and families (Matt. 5:44–45). God’s people, however, know the goodness of the Lord in a special way, allowing them to experience His goodness in all its aspects. Unlike those who do not fear God, we know the goodness of God’s salvation, and because of that we see divine omnibenevolence in ways that the impenitent cannot.
Today’s passage reminds us of the goodness of God by referring to the Lord as our “salvation” (Ps. 27:1). Essentially, to provide salvation is to provide rescue and safety. Matthew Henry comments that David, the author of Psalm 27, means for us to confess that “[God] is my salvation, in whom I am safe and by whom I shall be saved.”
In Scripture, the concept of salvation is spoken of in a variety of ways. Sometimes salvation describes the Lord’s rescue of His servants from their earthly enemies. This is the case in Psalm 27, where David looks to God to rescue him from his “adversaries and foes” (v. 2). Salvation can also be deliverance from Satan and the present evil age in which he is exercising great power (Gal. 1:4). The Lord may save people from storms or other natural calamities (Matt. 8:23–27). Perhaps the most well-known salvation that God provides is salvation from our sins and His holy wrath (Matt. 1:21; 1 Thess. 1:10).
In looking at the various ways that the Lord provides salvation, we dare not overlook the fact that ultimately God not only gives us redemption but is Himself salvation. He is the embodiment of salvation, particularly in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Moreover, the Lord is the final goal of salvation, for our redemption consists not merely in rescue from hell—though it includes that—but also in fellowship with God whereby we become “partakers of the divine nature” in a manner appropriate to creatures (2 Peter 1:4). We never become God, but we become like Him in holiness and love.
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
As we think on the Lord’s salvation, we should always remember that God Himself is the ultimate goal of salvation. We are saved by God not merely to escape sin and eternal punishment, as important as that is. Instead, we are saved so that we may enjoy full fellowship and communion with Him and transformation into His likeness. That is what we should be most longing for in our experience of salvation.
For further study
- Exodus 15:2
- 2 Samuel 22:47
- Psalm 38:22
- 1 Thessalonians 5:9
The bible in a year
- 2 Samuel 6–7
- Luke 18:18–43