El Emet: "the Faithful God of Truth"
Scripture Reading — Psalm 31:1-5
Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, LORD, my faithful God.
—Psalm 31:5
Everyone needs to depend on and trust other people. Many people in our lives are trustworthy, but we’ve all been let down at one time or another. Maybe you trusted someone or some product with your health, only to be disappointed. Or maybe you trusted a financial advisor or broker with your money, and you lost everything. Sometimes even close friends or family members let us down in harsh and inconsiderate ways. People and things eventually let us down.
The name of God in today’s reading—El Emet—contrasts sharply with the unreliability of people and things. Emet, the Hebrew word for “trueness” and “faithfulness” calls to mind God’s trustworthiness and dependability. The psalmist con-veys God’s steadfastness using rock-hard imagery: “You are my rock and my fortress.”
Amid all of life’s uncertainties and disappointments, and espe-cially when people let you down, are you still able to confess that God is your rock and fortress? If you can do that, you can also take the next step with the psalmist and say, “Into your hands I commit my spirit; deliver me, LORD, my faithful God.”
We cannot always be faithful and true to God, but El Emet, “the Faithful God of Truth,” will always be faithful and true to us.
O Faithful God of Truth, help us to proclaim you as our rock and our fortress. Help us to take refuge in you and lean on your everlasting arms. We ask this in Jesus’ name. Amen.
About the author — Kurt Selles
Kurt Selles is the director of ReFrame Ministries and serves as the Executive Editor of Today. He is a graduate of Calvin College and Seminary, and received his PhD from Vanderbilt University. Before coming to ReFrame, he served 19 years in Taiwan and China with CRC World Missions. Kurt later taught missions at Beeson Divinity School, where he also acted as the director of the school’s Global Center. Kurt and his wife, Vicki, reside in Grand Rapids and have three adult children.
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