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It Is Written

Sabbath School 1st Quarter 2024: Psalms

Eric Flickinger

Dragoslava Santrac

01 How to Read the Psalms

Welcome to Sabbath School brought to you by It Is Written.

We're delighted that you could join us today.

We are beginning a brand new journey, a 13-week journey, delving deep into the book of Psalms, 1 of the most beloved and well-quoted books in the Bible.

Father, we want to thank you for giving us an opportunity to delve into the book of Psalms.

We ask now that as we begin this journey, you would help us to understand the Psalms better and more deeply than we ever have before.

And in doing that, may we also understand Jesus and the plan of salvation.

Well this quarter we are delighted to have the author of this quarter's Sabbath School Bible study with us, Dr.

She is the managing editor of the Encyclopedia of Seventh-Day Adventists.

Thank you very much for inviting me and I'm delighted to be here.

So this is an exciting quarter and you've been studying the Psalms, you've been writing about the Psalms, you've been sharing some of the blessings of the Psalms for quite some time.

Why are the Psalms so, why are you so passionate about them?

Yes, well, as you mentioned, the Psalms are 1 of the most quoted books of the Old Testament, maybe even of the Bible, and the most beloved book of the Bible for many people.

I grew up with the image of Jesus as the Good Shepherd in my room.

And I believe Psalm 23 was the first biblical text I memorized as a child.

So the Psalms have always been very close to my heart.

And as I was growing up, my interest in the book grew, and I did my doctoral dissertation on the book of Psalms.

I studied the correlation between the piety of the psalmist and the sanctuary, how the sanctuary and worship and prayer builds and shapes our piety.

I always wanted to go to something else, but the Psalms just keep drawing me back and back.

So this has really been a lifelong journey for you through the Psalms, and now you have an opportunity to share those experiences with millions around the world.

How did this quarter's Adult Bible Study Guide, how did it come into being?

Yes, well prior to writing, prior to being invited to contribute to this adult Bible study guide, I was invited to contribute to the Seventh-day Adventist Bible commentary, the new series, and was asked to write the commentary for Psalm 76 to 150.

And I believe in that process, somebody must have liked what I wrote and heard about my passion.

And I received a call to contribute to this Sabbath school guide.

It was in late 2018 and it took me about 2 years, a little bit under 2 years, to pray and study and put together this study guide.

And so here we are now, something that started in 2018, we're now in 2020, well it'll be 2024 that we're looking at this.

And it's going to be an incredible journey.

So give us a little overview of some of the things that we can expect to find as we're going through this quarter's lesson.

Yes, so this quarter's study attempts to introduce the world of the Psalms to the modern readers.

Many people perhaps think, do we really need to study the Psalms?

We know that there are prayers and songs.

Do we really need to study and devote 13 weeks?

The Book of Psalms is not like, for example, the Book of Daniel.

However, the Book of Psalms, like the rest of the Bible, was written in its specific historical, theological, and literary context.

And as such, we need to study in order to properly understand its words, its images, its messages.

And also, let us not forget that Even though the Psalms are widely known as people's prayers to God, the Psalms are the Word of God, which means that they are God's revelation to humanity.

And by studying the Psalms, we want to learn and discover with the Holy Spirit everything that God did, does, and will do in Jesus Christ.

So that gives us an idea of where we're going.

As we think of some of the main objectives for this quarter, Would you add anything to what you've already shared?

You've already touched on some of that, but any other big things that we want to try to accomplish during this quarter's time?

So very early in our quarterly, we will study about the prayer usages of the Psalms.

That aspect of the Psalms seems to have been neglected over the time, and many believers don't appreciate and don't even know maybe about the value Psalms have as prayers.

But beyond that, we will be exploring the world of the psalmists, how they viewed God, how God revealed Himself to them?

How did the psalmist and the people they represent react to God's presence in their life with praise, thanksgiving?

But also, what did they do when hard times hit, when God seemed to be absent?

So how is this relationship between God and His people evolving and developing in good and bad times in the Psalms?

And I think This is something that we can relate to very much because, of course, the entire Bible is like that, but especially the Psalms, they have that emphasis on a living relationship with God.

You cannot read the Psalms and not want to really meet the God to whom you cry, my God, my God.

How do we read these words and not desire to meet him and to love him and please him?

Slava, you mentioned the worldview of the psalmist.

Compared to our worldview, how would you say those 2 worldviews are different, and how do the psalms kind of bridge those 2 different worldviews to give us some hope today?

I know we're going to delve into that more deeply coming up, but just briefly, what does that look like?

Yes, this is actually a very good question.

Today, the question of a worldview is something that philosophers, social scientists, scientists of religions, anthropologists are trying to understand from cultural point of view.

But when we look at the Psalms, the worldview is theocentric.

It means that everything in life revolves around the questions involving God.

There is no aspect of life in the psalmist world that's not brought to God and is not under the scrutiny of God and his attention.

Unlike in modern times, where we kind of tend to separate religious or spiritual life and put it in 1 box, and then I have my professional life, I have maybe my family life, my friends.

So spirituality, religion is 1 aspect of.

There is 1 day of the week when perhaps We go to church, our viewers, I hope so.

And there is a time during the day when some people will set aside time to pray and read the Bible.

But these are more like different compartments.

The psalmist's worldview is that all that breathe, every breath that I take, is rooted in the knowledge of God, in the awareness of God in the life.

And not just individuals, but the community as well.

Everything revolve around worship and around God.

So this book is different from other books in the Bible.

Certainly there are parallels, there are likenesses, but this book is different.

What are some ways that it separates itself from other books in the Bible?

Well, some people say, and I read that, unlike the rest of the Bible where God speaks to us, in the Psalms God speaks with us.

Meaning, the Psalms give us words to speak to God, but it also shares the words that God speaks to us.

And that's why I believe many people can truly enjoy and find peace and rest and consolation in the Psalms.

Because while you are reading the Psalms, you can feel that your words are coming right there.

But at the same time as you read, as if the words are bouncing back to you and you hear God answering your pleas, answering your prayer.

So God is speaking with us in the Psalms, kind of drawing us into a conversation, a relationship, something very much shared.

And we're going to be experiencing that over the course of the next 13 weeks as we look at that.

Now, Slava, in addition to the Adult Sabbath School Bible Study Guide that we're going through week by week and day by day, there is also a companion book that goes along with this quarter's lesson.

Share with me a little bit about that companion book.

Why would somebody want to get that companion book in addition to this?

What benefits are there in the Companion Book?

Companion Book is a wonderful addition to the Sabbath school quarterly or Sabbath school guide.

Martin Klingbeil, an expert in the Old Testament.

And as far as I've heard, a wonderful teacher of Old Testament.

And it's a wonderful book because it provides a more in-depth study of what we are studying in the Sabbath school quarterly.

02 Teach us to Pray

We're back once again as we continue our study in the book of Psalms.

And this is week number 2, Teach Us to Pray, an exciting study we have today.

Father, we want to thank you for bringing us together again this week as we continue our journey through the book of Psalms.

And this week we're going to be looking at the importance of prayer and what the book of Psalms can teach us about that very subject.

We ask that you'll guide us through our time together today, and we thank you in Jesus' name, amen.

Well, we're delighted once again this week to welcome back the author of this quarter's Sabbath school lesson, Dr.

She is the managing editor of the Encyclopedia of Seventh-day Adventists.

So this week we're looking at prayer, the importance of prayer.

Well, I mean, the title of this week's lesson may make some people feel a little uncomfortable.

And what about, what are some of the benefits of, or drawbacks of spontaneous prayer versus prayer that we might learn from the book of Psalms?

Well, I will start with maybe sharing a short story that I read.

This particular author shared the anecdote from his friend's life.

1 evangelist was visiting them, and as they sat to share a meal together, the father of the house began with prayer, and he recited a few lines from Psalm 145, and he began the prayer saying, O Lord, the eyes of all look expectantly to you, and you give them their food in due season.

And as he was in the middle of his prayer, the evangelist interrupted him saying, Lord, we thank you that we don't need to burn our lamps with borrowed oil.

See, with this critique, this man disregarded the invaluable, irreplaceable value of Psalms as prayers.

And it doesn't take much just to remember Jesus' disciples in the Gospels who said, Lord, teach us to pray.

Who knows if they didn't ask that questions, would the Lord's prayer be in the Bible?

We don't know, but we are very grateful to the disciples for asking that, and Jesus did not say, why are you asking me that?

But he taught them because Jesus understood that prayer, yes, it comes from heart, but prayer needs to have content and understanding of to whom we pray, why we pray, and all of that we learn through the Scripture and of course with the Holy Spirit.

So we're looking at the book of Psalms and we want to know how to pray.

How can we incorporate the Psalms into our own prayer life?

Are there easy ways that we might do that?

If we think of the Psalms as biblical prayers par excellence, We would love and want to have them every day in our life.

It's like when we talk about healthy diet, how to be physically strong and healthy.

We recommend a change of lifestyle, isn't it?

1 healthy meal is beneficial, but if it's taken only sporadically, it won't produce the effects and benefits that a healthy diet is meant for.

If we just sporadically, from time to time, read a Psalm and then forget about it, yes, we will be blessed, but not as much as if we make the book of Psalms, reading of the Psalms, praying with the Psalms, our daily, daily habit.

So you've been studying the Psalms, letting the Psalms work on you for many, many years.

What kind of experiences have you had as you interact or interconnect your own prayer life with the Psalms?

How has it been a blessing to you and how might it be a blessing to someone else who's thinking, well how could I do this?

How could I have my prayer life enlivened?

Sometimes we can, if we're not careful, get into a rut when we pray, and we pray the same things over and over again without even thinking about it.

How might incorporating the prayer, the psalms, into a prayer life make a difference?

Yes, well I mentioned earlier that I grew up with the Bible and the biblical stories and the Psalms and all these images.

But I have to admit, it wasn't until in my later life that I embraced the Psalms fully in my life.

And it took 1 unfortunate event in my life to help me, or should I say, open my eyes to fully appreciate, and I'm still growing in the appreciation of the Psalms.

When my husband and I lost our first child due to some complications at the delivery, that Friday evening I was alone in my hospital room.

And I was left without any spiritual oil in my lamp, to use a metaphor from the illustration.

And almost just by habit, I took the Bible.

I was exhausted, physically, yes, but spiritually even more.

But I took the Bible nevertheless, as it was my custom, and I opened the Bible where the bookmarker stood, and I was like, yeah, I'll just read, and that's going to be that.

And For that day, the marker was on Isaiah chapter 49, and that's the Song of Zion.

It is Zion celebrating the goodness and love of God.

And As I was reading, each word, it looks as if it was meant to pierce my heart even more.

For the Lord has comforted his people and will have mercy on the afflicted.

But then I read, verse 14, but Zion said, the Lord has forsaken me and my Lord has forgotten me." When I read this verse, these words became my words.

The words that I lost, the words I didn't have to pray that evening, I found them right there in this and I kept repeating this verse over and over again and then I finally after really pouring out all my soul into that verse I read the next 1 which says can a woman forget her nursing child and not have compassion on the son of her womb?

Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you.

And since that time, Eric, I can tell you, I realized what a treasure, prayer treasure, not just theological, doctrinal, which is also crucial, but what a prayer treasure do we have in the Bible.

And since then, the Psalms especially, they help me articulate my words.

They help me articulate my feelings, what I want to tell the Lord, and they lead me in prayer.

They help me create and maintain a regular prayer life.

So this is, it's not just something theoretical or theological.

It's a very real help in challenging times and people face real challenges today.

In the book of Psalms, it helps us to understand the perplexity of human life, the perplexity of prayer.

When you have somebody who's on a pilgrimage of faith, they may be at different points in their journey.

How can the Psalms help someone who is trying to find their way through a complex life, through a difficult pilgrimage to get where they want to go.

You see, when difficulty struck us, when something bad happens to us, especially as believers, because we have this faith that God is good, God is in control, He protects, and then we get bitterly surprised when sickness hits or worse.

And some people have a tendency to stop praying, to turn away from God, because it is too heavy to understand.

And the Psalms, they don't run away from these challenging questions.

But you see, they also promote 1 crucial idea that no matter what, the communication with God must go on.

So when the psalmists cry out, Oh God, how long?

You see, they express this longing, this maybe disappointment, and even challenging language sometimes.

But what's crucial here is that they continue talking to God, Why?

Because they know that prayer is directed to a living God who may for a time seem to have hidden his face, but it is a merciful, long-suffering God who hears and answers prayer.

So my encouragement here to everyone is no matter to what you are going through right now, don't stop talking to God because God hears you.

The Psalms will give you words, but also they will lead you to hope that you don't feel now.

So many people around the world are looking for hope.

The Book of Psalms contains a lot of that hope or points us to the 1 who can give us that hope.

Maybe that's a more appropriate way of saying it.

If somebody wants to dig more deeply into the Book of Psalms, there is a companion book for the Book of Psalms.

Share with us a little bit about that companion book.

Yes, the companion book accompanies the quarterly and it follows the week by week segments and provides additional information, provides illustrations and explanation, and it's a wonderful resource.

And the person who wrote it, tell us a little bit about him.

03 The Lord Reigns

We are on a journey this quarter through the book of Psalms and this week is lesson number 3, The Lord Reigns.

We're going to look at something very fascinating this week, but before we do, as usual, let's begin with prayer.

Father, we thank you for being with us again this week as we continue our journey through the book of Psalms.

Help us to gain a better picture, a greater understanding of who you are and your impact on the Psalms and ultimately your impact in our lives.

We ask that you'll bless our time together and we thank you in Jesus name, amen.

Well, my guest today, as in the last couple of weeks and through the remainder of the quarter is Dr.

She is, well, she's passionate about the Psalms.

So we've already looked at 2 lessons, and this week we're looking at the Lord reigns.

As we look at this, what are some of the fundamental beliefs upon which the world of the Psalms is built.

What are we understanding or assuming, maybe assuming is an appropriate word, as we enter into the book of Psalms with respect to God?

If there was just a few words to describe this fundamental belief, the foundation on which the entire building of the Psalms stand, it would be the Lord reigns.

And from that, every other theme finds its meaning in that every other appeal and activity in the Psalms has its context.

It's the sovereign reign of the Lord as the sovereign ruler and king of everything that exists.

Okay, so if we don't understand that, Psalms really don't mean too much.

But if that is the case, if the Lord does reign, if he is who he is, then all of a sudden the Psalms have a much deeper meaning, a much more solid foundation, an immovable foundation, if he is who he is.

What kind of words would describe the faith of the Psalms in a nutshell?

Yes, I would definitely again repeat the Lord reigns.

That's at the core of the Psalmist belief.

And as we will study even more in the following lessons, even when that reign is challenged, the Psalms never abandon the faith in this basic proclamation, the Lord reigns.

And because the Lord reigns, the earth is called to rejoice.

Because God will do all things in its right time.

That's the basic, the foundation of everything.

So if that's the foundation and everything else kind of springs from that, how do we experience that?

What does that mean to the life of a Christian?

We know it's foundational, we know it's important, but bring that out.

So how do we experience God's rule in our personal lives?

That's an excellent question and the first we find that the Lord is creator.

That's the basic relationship that we have, that he's our heavenly father, the 1 who created us.

Then he is also the judge, meaning that God created us, but he also gave us certain guidelines or his righteous principles and laws to guide us in his creation.

Then also We experience God as the Savior, the 1 who forgives, the 1 who redeems, and of course we experience God as the 1 who comes, the 1 to whom we expect.

So he plays a great many roles in our life as the sovereign.

And it's not something fluffy, it's not something intellectual, but these are very real roles that he plays in our lives.

You asked some interesting questions during the course of this week's lesson.

1 of the questions that you ask is regarding Psalm 97.

It says, what characterizes the Lord's reign and the domain of His reign?

Can we take a look at that over in Psalm 97?

I'd like to to kind of dwell on that just a little bit.

Series

Sabbath School 1st Quarter 2024: Psalms

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