Psalm 103:4: Who crowns you with lovingkindness and tender mercies.
Experiencing Jesus in the Psalms
Our Lord does nothing by halves; he will not stay his hand till he has gone to the uttermost with his people. Cleansing, healing, redemption are not enough; he must make them kings and crown them. The princes of God’s family do not earn the crown, for it is mercy, not of merit; they feel their own unworthiness of it, therefore he deals with tenderness; but he is resolved to bless them, and, therefore, he is always surrounding their brows with coronets of mercy and compassion. Our sin deprived us of all our honors, but he who removed the sentence of death by redeeming us from destruction restores to us more than all our former honors by crowning us anew. 1
Living the Transformed Life
Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers, not by compulsion but willingly, not for dishonest gain but eagerly; nor as being lords over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock; when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that does not fade away. 1 Peter 5:2–4
- He will crown you today…with His lovingkindness, because that’s what God does.
- He will crown you tomorrow morning…with His and tender new mercies, because that is what God does.
- He will crown you in heaven…with a crown of glory, for your faithfulness on earth.
All the crowns He bestows upon us are reverently laid at His feet in humble adoration.
Praise and Prayer
Thank You, Father, for honoring and blessing your children with loving crowns. Dear Jesus, thank You for the privilege of getting to serve You with my life.
1. PACKER, J. I. (1993). Introduction. In Psalms (p. 72). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Books.
