When God's Face Shines

 Psalm 67

We can often tell a person’s mood by looking at their face and the expression that they wear.  It’s helpful to know if our spouse is happy or sad, or if our boss is pleased with us, and their face will often show that.  Depending on the face they are showing, we know whether it is the best time to approach for a favor, or instead, to steer clear of them for a while.   Phrases such as wearing a stormy face or that one’s face shined came to indicate what disposition or spirit the person was in.  When drawing pictures that have the sun in the sky, little children often put a smiley face on the sun.  A smiling face shining down upon the world.  In our psalm for today the psalmist is looking for God’s shining face.  Let’s look at this psalm together.

Nobody wants others to be angry with them, and we especially shouldn’t want the Lord angry with us and our behavior.  We read throughout Scripture that when God’s people went astray and into a pattern of sin over and over again, God’s anger and wrath came down upon them.  The psalmist would have known of many occasions throughout his people’s history when this was the case, and he prays that instead, God’s face would shine down upon them (vs. 1).  This is reminiscent of the Aaronic blessing that was prayed over the people found in Numbers 6:24-26.  The people prayed for God’s love and mercy to come upon them, not His anger.  They wanted His shining face, not a wrathful, stormy one.   Since we all have the tendency and inclination to sin, we need God’s mercy.  It is only because of His love and mercy that He will shine His face upon us.  When we think of the face of Jesus, what do we picture?  It is a face of love, one that is shining down upon us.

The psalmist continues on in this psalm, praying that God’s ways, His truth, and His Word will go forth and be known all around the world (vs. 2-4).  These verses ultimately found their fulfillment with the Great Commission that Jesus gave in Matthew 28:18-20.  At that time Jesus commanded His disciples and followers to spread the Gospel message to all nations around the world.  God always wanted and intended that the Gentiles hear of Him, and that they come to salvation.

When we first heard the message of Jesus, believed it as truth, and accepted Him as our Savior, how did we feel?  Many people felt great gladness and joy (vs. 4).  When people have the message of Jesus brought to them, there will be gladness and joy.  Joy comes from spreading the news about God and salvation through His Son around the world.

As our psalmist continues, he praises God for the physical blessings that He bestows on the people, particularly with the abundance of crops and food from the earth (vs. 6).  Every good thing we have comes from the Lord God.  Sometimes we might wonder where our blessings from God are.  When we plant a seed in our gardens, the plant does not start sprouting within the hour, or even within the first day.  It takes several days, sometimes a week or more before a small plant begins to appear.  Just as plants take time to develop and grow from a seed to a mature plant, so often God’s blessings sometimes take time to develop in our life.  We need to wait patiently, knowing God is working on our behalf and the behalf of those who wait for Him.

As our psalm closes, the author reminds us of God’s blessings upon us, and of all the nations of the world coming to fear the Lord Jesus, to give due honor and reverence to Him (vs. 7).   As the twice repeated verse in this short psalm says, we need to give God all praise.