Psalm 33:7
He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses.
One of the things that we really missed, as a family, during
lockdown, was the sea. Usually in the Spring we'd have at least a couple of day trips to the coast, to sit on the beach and look out at the sea. Huge and wide, stretching away as far as the horizon. Perhaps because we don't have enormous mountains in this part of the world, the sea gives us a rare glimpse of perspective.
It is vast and we are very small. Our girls have been taught from an early age that, even though it is beautiful, the sea is a potential danger, a powerful force to be treated carefully. 'Respect
the water' as the RNLI slogan says. We only need to think of the destruction caused by a tsunami to realise that the sea is powerful beyond anything that we could ever hope to control.
The Bible talks about the sea in that way, too. Often, the sea is a picture of chaotic forces, filled with enormous and potentially
destructive creatures. That's why Revelation tells us that in the new creation there is no longer any sea. It's not that God is depriving us of the joy of a day on the beach. Rather, it's an
expression of safety - the dangerous forces of uncontrolled waters will no longer be a threat to us, as they are now.
If we read verse 7 imagining a calm tide, gently lapping at
our feet then it will sound quite poetic, but also a bit pointless. But as we read it, consider the sea as it really is - vaster than we can properly imagine, full of energy with the potential to overwhelm the land, destroying everything in its path. Now we're glad that there is an Almighty God who put the waters in their appointed places back in Gen 1, and who keeps them there.
Let's praise him for his power over all created forces, today. And thank him for sending Jesus - who could still a raging sea with a word - so that we will one day enjoy complete and permanent safety with him forever.
