Psalm 89:26-27 He will call out to me, ‘You are my Father,
my God, the Rock my Savior.’
I will also appoint him my firstborn,
the most exalted of the kings of the earth.

This Psalm is taken as Messianic by many, but it is primarily talking about David, who was the physical ancestor of Jesus. This particular passage is used as “proof text” by those who claim Jesus wasn’t fully divine, but was simply the ideal human being who was appointed the Son of God. By itself you could take it that way, but there are too many other passages speaking of His divinity to leave it like that. The eternal scope of His line, mentioned in verse 29, isn’t because of an unending succession of descendants, as it would be for a merely human king, but because He is eternal in and of Himself. Going past that verse, the Psalmist talks about David’s physical descendants in ways that clearly could not apply to Jesus, who obeyed the Father perfectly. This sort of thing is why we need the Holy Spirit as our guide in reading the Bible, since after all, He is the Author! (2 Timothy 3:16) It is also why we need to read the whole Bible, since the Old Testament provides the foundation for the New, and the New Testament is the best commentary on the Old. Numbers of heresies have arisen from people getting an idea and then “proof texting” it, instead of humbly asking God to show them what is true.

I can’t say that my theology has never been unbalanced, but I have had a Japanese pastor accuse me of being too balanced! His reasoning was that something perfectly balanced isn’t going to move forward, so I needed some imbalance to “get me rolling,” so to speak. I can’t say that I’ve moved as strongly or as fast as I should have, perhaps, but I wouldn’t blame balance for that. I am very grateful to have been raised on the whole Bible, and the vast majority of my messages include passages from both the Old and New Testaments. That doesn’t make me immune to deception, however. I always need to remember James’ admonition: “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says.” (James 1:22) As my Systematic Theology professor, Dr. John Kewiet, used to say, theology is meaningless if it isn’t applied. Even if I had perfect knowledge of the Bible, if I didn’t live it out it would do me no good. After all, that applies to the devil, who uses “proof texting” to snare many sincere people. I need to let the Holy Spirit show me not only the truth of the Word but how to apply it, so that it will have its full work in and through me. (Isaiah 55:10-11)

Father, thank You for Your Word. Help me receive, digest, and apply it as You intend, so that I may be Your agent in all that I am, do, and say, for Your glory. Thank You. Praise God!