You’re Full of Sap!
You’re “full of sap!” And on top of that, you’re “green!” No, that’s not a typo; and believe it or not, those are not insults either. They are actually words of promise and blessing. Context is everything. These are words taken from Psalm 92 which has as its title “A Psalm. A Song for the Sabbath.” How does being full of sap and green have anything to do with the Sabbath? The psalm begins with these words:
“It is good to give thanks to the LORD,
to sing praises to your name, O Most High;
to declare your steadfast love in the morning,
and your faithfulness by night,
to the music of the lute and the harp,
to the melody of the lyre.
For you, O LORD have made me glad by your work; at the works of your hands I sing for joy.” (vss.1-4)
It is good to worship our Lord, who loves us in ways we don’t deserve. He is gracious and He is faithful, that means His love will never run out for you, and He will always make good on His promises to you. He is still at work in your life and mine, young and old together.
This is the beauty of worship on Sundays. We come together to give thanks, to sing praises, to hear again of our faithful God who poured out His gracious love upon you and me in His son, Jesus Christ. This is how God continues His work in you and me; He strengthens us and renews us in faith through this gift of worship. We once again enter into our daily lives reinvigorated in faith and love to serve others through the work of our hands.
Here’s the kicker. The Psalm ends these words:
“The righteous flourish like the palm tree
and grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
They are planted in the house of the Lord;
They flourish in the courts of our God.
They still bear fruit in old age;
They are ever full of sap and green.”(vss. 12-14)
As we gather in the courts of our God and root ourselves in His house around His Word and gracious gifts, we flourish, we grow, we are strengthened and fed to bear fruit, regardless of our age. You are full of sap and green. I’m thankful that Prince of Peace is a place where we do gather to give thanks and praise our God, and we hear His Word and receive His gifts of forgiveness and eternal life! I need them, and so do you. Having received all of this, Sunday after Sunday, we can say with the psalmist as he ends his song of praise, “The LORD is upright, he is my rock there is no unrighteousness in Him.” My friends, it is good to be planted in His house where you and I, young and old, flourish and are “ever full of sap and green;” that’s a promise and a blessing.
- Pastor Darrin Sheek
