I’m studying the Psalms this year and I’ve just come across a beautiful little statement made by David. Listen…
Because Thy lovingkindness is better than life, my lips shall praise thee.
(Psalm 63:3)
If you were a non-believer and asked why the poet praises his God, and why he was so enamored with this “YHWH,” he would answer simply: “Because God’s lovingkindness is better than life.” That’s an answer that would baffle non-believers. People who stake their claim on this life, who only concern themselves with living the best life they can here on earth will find it unfathomable for someone to devote themselves to a cause (or to a Being) that is not of this world.
David, however, appreciates things beyond this earth. He knows there is more to life than this. He knows there is a Spiritual Creator of all things, and that Creator is full of “loving devotion” (lovingkindness). The most a person in this world can offer is the most this world has to offer. Right? Think about it: What can a person of the world give you? The most he can give you is the world itself.
God, however, is not of the world. God is a Spirit. What are the limits of His gifts? They are limitless. God’s love is better than life itself. Isn’t that something? Nothing you can give me can compare to it, and nothing you can deny me is worth worrying over, because you can’t take His love away from me. God’s love is greater than all. It is worth more to me than life itself.
~ Matthew