Psalms - Jesus’ songbook

Kindergarten graduation for Joshua, Jessica, and Brandon Hochstetler.

I don’t remember much when I was five, but one thing I do remember was my kindergarten graduation. I remember putting on my extremely large white graduation robe, the nervousness of speaking in front of my family and friends, and how much fun it was to play with the tassel on my cap. In preparation for the graduation, I had to do a lot of memorizing. There were a few songs that I vaguely remember memorizing and I remember memorizing the poem “What Can I Give Him”. There is one thing that stood out from this graduation that has stuck with me ever since, and that was memorizing Psalm 23. As a five year old, I was extremely nervous about reciting the Psalm, but I had gone over it so many times. I remember putting the Psalm to music and rehearsing it over and over again. So, with an extremely high and "chipmunk like” voice, I quoted all of Psalms 23 in front of all those people and didn’t even mess up!

Twenty years later, I have never forgotten that Psalm. It has often been a source of encouragement to me when going through difficult times. For me, and I can assume that for many of you, the Psalms hold a special place in your heart. The reason for this is that the Psalms were not written just for theological instruction; "they were written to be prayed, recited, and sung- to be done, not merely read.” There is a certain poetic nature to the Psalms that penetrates deeper than mere theological facts. The Psalms help us see God in a rich and real life way. They lead us to commitment and not just understanding about God, but having a relationship with Him. When read in the context of the entire Bible, the Psalms point us to Jesus. The Psalms were, in a way, Jesus’ songbook. Even more significantly, Jesus not only sang and recited the Psalms, they were about Him.

With the understanding of why the Psalms were written, we should be challenged to included the Psalms in our daily life as Christians. We have examples going back to the Israelites of how they were used. The Psalms were the hymnbook for the public worship of God in ancient Israel (I Chronicles 16:8-36). The early Christians sang and prayed the Psalms (Colossians 3:16; I Corinthians 14:26). Theologians and and church leaders have always advocated that Psalms should be used and reused in the Christian’s daily life.

I have been challenged this week to make the Psalms a daily part of my life. I don’t want to just read the Psalms. I want to mediate on them, sing through them, memorize them, pray them, and commit to acting out on the truths they convey. I have included a few resources that I have used in helping to do this. I believe it is Biblical and important to do this. As Timothy Keller says, “Psalms, then, are not just a matchless primer of teaching but a medicine chest for the heart and the best possible guide for practical living.”

Resources: “The Songs of Jesus”: A year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms by Timothy Keller with Kathy Keller.

Psalm Songs, Vol. 1 by The Corner Room. https://open.spotify.com/album/4yYPJ5dAnpHHpSuuM4BwEC

In Christ,
Brandon H.