Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - The Whole Truth | The Writings | Psalm 78

Episode Date: July 2, 2024

Do you have selective memory? Do you prefer to remember the good times but forget the ways you failed? How would that affect your relationship with God? In today's episode, Tanya shares how Psalm 78��reminds us to remember the whole truth, including our failures, because it reminds us of our need for Jesus. Read the Bible with us in 2024! This year, we’re tackling a group of Old Testament books traditionally known as “The Writings”— Psalms, Chronicles, Proverbs, Daniel, Ruth and more! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Psalm 78

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmeth. Episode 973. So question for you today, is the whole truth attainable? Or in other words, can you know the whole truth all the time? Tell the whole truth all the time. Remember the whole truth all the time?

This is a hard question. For example, there's much debate about whether it's actually possible for a journalist to attain the whole truth. Journalists can't read the minds of their sources, and people are good at saying what they want to say and withholding what they want. So is it still a journalist's responsibility to tell the whole truth? People are actually so good at filtering the truth that it can affect memory. We're more likely to remember events the way we tell them than the way they actually happened. Now, Greek tradition had a solution for what we call selective memory. It was an oral tradition.

The pre-Socratic Greeks believed truth was encompassing all. that we remember, Alethea. And they believed humans could actually single out memories to keep them from flowing into the river of forgetfulness. So it would be like you having something special that happened to you today, writing it down in your journal and then saying it out loud every day, so it never falls into the river of forgetfulness. This oral tradition required that the memories be memorized, repeated. They were often set to songs, so they would not be forgotten. And I traces of this in Psalm 78. This is a historic Psalm. It's about telling the things that God has done for the people, writing them down and then putting them to songs so they will never be forgotten.

Its purpose is directly stated by the writer. They say they're going to pin the Psalms so that God's people can remember everything. And that includes the things they might want to forget, like their rebellion and failure, disobedience. But they're going to remember and they're going to sing it, they're going to memorize it, and pass it down to their children so that they too will, from verse 7, set their hope in God, not forget the works of God, but keep his commandments, not be stubborn and hard-hearted, but remain steadfast. Now, we may not immediately link the problems with our hope and steadfastness and obedience to God with memory, but this Psalm is actually saying that if we will remember who God is and what He's done, it's going to

help us when we're facing those times where we feel rejected, when we feel shame, when we feel confused, when we have doubts. This is the way that we work through those things in faithfulness to God. It's his power, helping us remember who he is and keep our eyes on the bigger picture. So our problems, I think, we're actually going to find in the Psalm are not that new. They sound very similar to the problems these people were facing. See if you can relate to any of these. The first problem that's mentioned is a problem with follow-through. The people turned back on the day of battle. They didn't follow through because they were afraid. So instead, they reverted back to what was comfortable instead of what was required to move forward. And while the people were in this place of rebellion,

they were discontent, they were thirsty, they were tired. And the Psalm says, remember what God did? He actually used a rock and made water come out of it so that you could have a drink of water. He gave them living water, but they still had another problem. After that, they tested God. They said, what have you done for me lately, God? Like, hey, thanks for that water, but what about food? Can you spread a table in the wilderness? I have to be honest, this sounds like my children sometimes. Like, hey, thanks for Chick-fil-A for lunch. What are we having for dinner? Well, we're still at Chick-fil-A. But this kind of rebellion, of course, made the people more discontent. And while they were yet grumbling. God reined down on them manna to eat. He gave them what the Bible calls

grain of heaven. He nourished them and did it abundantly. He gave it to them every day. Thank goodness he's a gracious God. However, this led right to their next problem. They were bored. Even though that God gave them what they needed, he gave them food and water, they were bored. They craved something different. They craved something more exciting. They were complaining while the food was still on their lip. They wanted their lives to be different. They wanted God to give them something different to satisfy their cravings. And yet, while their hearts were not steadfast toward him, God was compassionate. It says God remembered they were but flesh. And instead of destroying them, he held back his anger and he made atonement for them. And he led them out of Egypt and through the sea.

It says, like sheep, he guided them through the wilderness like a flock. Isn't that a gentle and beautiful picture so much kinder than the way I treat my children when I think they're being discontent and ungrateful. Well, the last problem we're going to talk about is repetition. So take all those things that they were doing and then just press repeat over and over again. Turning back, forgetting, grumbling, being bored, discontent, ungrateful. They continue to do the same things. It's like what Paul says in Roman 7. I do that, which I do not want to do. But they kept forgetting. And while they were living for themselves and rejecting God, God's solution was great. He gave him a temple and a king.

He chose David, his servant, to be their king. And this was just a shadow of the greater king to come, King Jesus. You guys, we get all of this from Psalm 78. So God's solution to everything we don't want to remember about ourselves and our failures is himself, his son, his blood, his sacrifice that makes us worthy of his presence. Hebrews 3-1 tells us to fix our thoughts on Jesus. And that's more than just a command. It's actually an encouragement.

Because who better understands our temptations? Hebrews 218 says, For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he's able to help those who are being tempted. Fixing our thoughts on Jesus is a way to get through our temptations. Aside from the intense comfort of knowing we're not alone, we also have his power. He is present with us.

When I was in church growing up, little country church, we used to sing a song called Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus. And you may be want to YouTube it when we finish, but hear the lyrics free to take with you for the rest of the day. O soul, are you weary and troubled? No light in the darkness you see. There's light for a look at the Savior and life more abundant and free. Turn your eyes upon Jesus.

Look full in his wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of His glory and grace. His words shall not fail you, he promised. Believe him and all will be well. Then go to a world that is dying, his perfect salvation to tell. Turn your eyes upon Jesus. Look full in his wonderful face. And the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.