The most important words in both the Lord’s prayer and Psalm 23 are the first few, four in the Lord’s prayer and three in Psalm 23.
“Our father who art…” In other words, “Our father who is…”
The Twenty-third Psalm begins with basically the same grand truth: “The Lord is…”
God is. That is the greatest, most awesome, terrifying, healing, shocking, wonderful, thrilling truth ever encountered by humanity. God is. David emphasized this not once, but twice, stating categorically that “the fool hath said in his heart, There is no God” (Psalm 14:1; 53:1).
Once on the same day, in the same mail delivery, I received two anonymous deliveries, the senders of which obviously trusted in opposite views of what it means that God is. One was a letter, unsigned, of course, which was so vicious, so vituperative and bitter, that poison dripped from every word. The second was a beautiful new sport coat that was actually the right size and a color I particularly liked. It was also unsigned. Try as I might, I could not discover who sent it. I even called the store, whose manager told me he had been assured that particular customer would never buy from him again if he revealed the donor’s identity.
In the box with the coat was a simple note, typed so I could not identify the handwriting: “You are doing a wonderful job. Your ministry has blessed me and my entire family. Receive this and be blessed.”
The writer of the acidic attack note believed he was truly anonymous. The giver of the jacket knew that he wasn’t. He knew that God is sees and knows all we are, think, say, and do. If that is not sobering to you, you have lived a better life than I. Which of us is not discomfited by the reality that whatever anonymity in which we might drape ourselves outwardly, nothing is hidden from Him? He is. He is and He sees. Everything.
On the other hand, it is liberating, albeit painfully liberating, at the point of honesty and confession. Because there is no hope of hiding anything from Him, there is no need to even try. There is no depravity, no dark corner of my soul that I can shield from Him, so I do well just to say it, to simply lay it right out there in front of His holy eyes, because all I am doing is acknowledging the sin I cannot hide from Him anyway.
He is. Just that. He is. Despite all the absurd denials of all the poor, sad atheists, regardless of humanity’s ignorance, sin, and inhumanity, the greatest truth of all is that He is.
David’s first three words in Psalm 23, as magnificent as they are, lack one great truth that Jesus of Nazareth adds with one great word. That word is Father, and it changes everything.
Jesus: “Our Father who art …”
Yes, the Lord is. Yes, God is. Yes, God exists and sees all and knows all and is not fooled by all our puny efforts at anonymity. Yes. Then Jesus makes it wonderful. Our Father…
God is and He is our Father. Nothing else in either prayer, or in any prayer or in all of life affords us much hope without that great word.
“Our Father…”
Roll it around in your mind. The God who is and who sees is not the cosmic cop waiting for you to step out of line. He is not the great hockey referee in the sky looking for an excuse to throw you in the penalty box, or worse, disqualify you eternally. The God who is, is our Father. If both the Lord’s prayer and Psalm 23 ended right there, this would actually be sufficient truth to heal us all.
Dr. Mark Rutland joins James and Betty this Monday on LIFE TODAY. This is an excerpt from :21 Seconds to Change Your World by Dr. Mark Rutland. Copyright ©2016 by Mark Rutland. Published by Bethany House Publishers, a division of Baker Publishing Group. Used by permission.
