Purpose-Driven? (2)

Will You perform wonders for the dead? Or will the departed spirits rise and praise You? Selah  Psalm 88:10  NASB

Rise and praise – The Purpose Driven Life.  Remember that?  Rick Warren captured the spiritual need for meaning in a book that swept Christianity.  We all have a purpose—but it’s not about us.  It’s not about your good, your prosperity, yourhappiness.  No, it’s about God.  So, get on board and get connected to a divine, eternal purpose.  The books sailed off the shelves.  Why?  Because a life of self-absorbed, pointless opulence is basically not meaningful, and in the end, what we really want is to matter—now!

The psalmist takes a different approach.  Rick’s view is ultimately egotistical.  The Purpose Driven Life might be about connecting with God, but it’s still oriented to what I get out of it, namely, personal meaning.  The psalmist knows better.  He goes for what God gets out of the bargain.  He appeals to God’s ego.

“If You let us die, what good is that to You,” he says.  “The dead don’t praise You.  They don’t rise up and proclaim Your greatness.  That’s the job of the living.  So, don’t You want all that praise?  Of course, You do.  In fact, You even command it.  How, then, can you expect me to fulfill Your command (and stroke Your ego) if You don’t rescue me and keep me alive?”

It’s bold, but it’s not unusual.  Moses played the same card.  So did Abraham.  God’s reputation matters to God.  Therefore, His reputation is on the line when His advocates are in trouble.  Especially when that trouble seems to come from the very One Who wants their praise.  Being dead is of no value to God at all (and, obviously, not to me either).

“I will praise the Lord while I live;
I will sing praises to my God as long as I live” (Psalm 146:2).

But, of course, not afterward [sorry, in the psalmist’s view, there is no heaven for our immortal souls where we eternally sing praises to God].  If God wants glory, it will have to be found “in the land of the living.”

You might try this argument next time you find yourself in the dark pit.  Abraham was successful.  So was Moses.  God’s name matters to God.  He seems amenable to being reminded about that.  Rise and praise.  Qûmu and yôdu.  If God wants that from you, then He’d better do something about it, right?

Addition: Does this sound like you’re forcing God to take steps on your behalf?  Yes, it does.  Does that make you uncomfortable?  Perhaps.  After all, who are you that you can force God to do anything?  But wait!  Other men have played this card.  It just depends on the circumstances—and those circumstances seem to be when they were up against the wall, when there were no other acceptable alternatives left.  The rabbis tell us that a man’s prayers are answered only when he stakes his life on them.  If that’s where you are, demand results—because God’s name will be glorified.

Topical Index:  Qûmu, yôdu, rise, praise, reputation, the dead, Psalm 88:10