The Nearness of God

 

“But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord Yahweh by refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.” Psalm 73:28. 

O how I love Psalm 73. Verse 25 has been with me as long as I can remember:

“Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.” (NASB)

My earliest readings were from men and women who quoted Psalm 73:25 as a way of life, and hence this verse, this passion, was planted in me at an early age as I was coming to know Jesus Christ, much as Galatians 2:20 and Mark 8:34ff were also sown in my young soul. 

All the learning, all the education, all the advancement among men and in the church, mean nothing without the cry of, “Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth.” Can we hear the Father emphatically say, “This is My Beloved Son, with whom I am well-pleased, hear Him!” (Matthew 17:5)?

After all these years, I am still captured and captivated by Psalm 73:25, I am still exploring its depths, its claim on my soul, my heart and mind – my entire being. 

As I read Psalm 73, I am also drawn back into the early hours of a day in Baltimore, MD in the early 1970s. My job required me to be at the office around 5:00 AM, and my custom was to read the Bible upon arriving at work. This particular morning I read Psalm 73 and I was transported not only back to the Psalmist and his experience, but into the heavens where I saw the psalm as never before. The joy that filled my soul was intense, and as I recall I called a friend around 6:00 A.M. to share my excitement.

A couple of days ago, on the 13th, Psalm 73 was on my reading list. Verse 28 struck me, “But as for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord Yahweh my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.” 

“The nearness of God is my good…” 

This reminds me of Philippians 4:4 – 5: “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! Let your gentleness be known to all men. The Lord is near.” 

How sweet, what reassurance, “The nearness of God is my good…the Lord is near.”

To abide in the Vine, to walk with Christ every day in every way, to live in His Presence, to know that He is always with us in a deeply personal and intimate fashion…this is for our good…and so we make Him, we know Him, as our refuge, our place of abiding, our shelter, our Friend, our kind and gentle Shepherd…and then knowing all of this, we tell others of His works, His love, His character, His ways. 

We say to others, “Come to Jesus and experience His nearness, His friendship, for His yoke is easy and His burden is light." And the joy? The joy is inexpressible and full of glory.” (Matthew 11:28 – 30; 1 Peter 1:6 – 9). 

Yes, dear friend, the nearness of God is our good.