Psalm 90:5-6

Psalm 90:5-6 5 You carry them away like a flood; They are like a sleep. In the morning they are like grass which grows up: 6 In the morning it flourishes and grows up; In the evening it is cut down and withers.

In our last post we discussed the futility of man’s plans when compared to that of God. We are linear creatures, existing in the tick of the clock. All of our plans, hopes and dreams require the passage of a period of time. If too much time passes we do not see them come to fruition, we go to our graves with much yet to do.

Not so with God. In today’s post Moses reminds us that the years of man are as meaningless to Him as driftwood in a floodplain. All of man’s plotting and planning is vanity. Look at what the Psalmist says in Psalm 2:

1Why do the nations rage, and the people plot a vain thing? 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord and against His Anointed, saying, 3 “Let us break Their bonds in pieces and cast away Their cords from us.” 4 He who sits in the heavens shall laugh; The Lord shall hold them in derision.

When will the world learn that God is in charge? His plans always come to pass at exactly His perfect time. I can understand the flood imagery that is brought to mind here partly because I grew up in an area that floods every year. The one lesson you learn is that when the water is coming – get out of its way. The only thing you can do when the water is rising is pile up sandbags and hope they hold. You cannot stand against the Mississippi when she is out of her banks and you cannot stand against God when He decides to move.

“They are like a sleep”, Moses continues. Just as a dream has no substance the years of man cannot alter or change the course of God. Man is referred to as a “vapor” three times in the Psalms (Psalm 39:5, Psalm 39:11 & Psalm 62:9) and we have no more substance than a wisp of smoke compared to that of the Almighty.

Verses 5 and 6 bring to mind the cycle of a man’s life. He describes the life of man like that of a field of grass. Young, vibrant and full of hope at the beginning of the morning and fit only for the fire or for the barn at the end. I hope the “harvest” imagery brought to mind isn’t lost to us here. Look at what Jesus says in Matthew 13:

24 Another parable He put forth to them, saying: “The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; 25 “but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. 26 “But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. 27 “So the servants of the owner came and said to him, ‘Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares?’ 28 “He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ The servants said to him, ‘Do you want us then to go and gather them up?’ 29 “But he said, ‘No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. 30 ‘Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, “First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”

I hope you caught that part about the end of the harvest. All are “cut down” – it’s what happens after the “cutting” that matters.

That’s the thought I want to leave you with today. We’ve spent a couple of posts talking about the frailty of man and the brevity of his life. What are we spending our time on? Are we focusing on the Kingdom or on the things of the world?

Let us seek the kingdom first. Let us not waste our time trading the things of this world for our souls.

Grace and peace to you all.