Books speak to each other. That’s a sentiment often expressed by the host of a podcast to which I listen semi-regularly, and although it sounds a little weird at first, I’ve seen it over and over again. There are relationships between books; the ideas and themes in one can assist in understanding more fully those of another. The same is true of Scripture. We can most fully understand what Jesus taught about prayer, for example, not by myopically zooming in on a single verse, but by looking more broadly at what all of Scripture teaches and seeing the connections and nuances in the varied passages. One of the themes to which I’ve found myself returning frequently over the last several days is that of foundations, and similarly to books speaking to each other, I’ve been seeing connections to that theme all week in a number of passages.
It started with the mid-week Bible study of which I’m part, and Luke 6:46-49, wherein we read the contrast between a house built upon rock and a house built upon sand. Perhaps if you grew up in the church you have a kids’ song stuck in your head now, and that familiarity can influence you to gloss over this concept. (That’s a frequent occurrence for me, anyway.) If you’re not familiar with either the song or the parable though, the house built on a foundation of rock is, unsurprisingly, sturdier than the house with a foundation of sand.
That came to mind again a few days later when I read Psalm 62. Long have I found comfort in these words in the midst of distress and trials: “For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.” That last phrase – “I shall not be greatly shaken” – speaks to the foundation on which my hope of salvation and refuge rests, and its reliability.
Similarly, foundations again came to mind a further few days in as I read Psalm 125, which begins, “Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved, but abides forever. As the mountains surround Jerusalem, so the Lord surrounds his people, from this forth and forevermore.” Few things seem more permanent and steadfast than mountains – earthquakes and volcanoes notwithstanding – and the word picture there is rich and deep.
These are far from the only passages that relate to foundations, I’m sure; it would likely be the work of only a few minutes to identify a myriad more. That can be the work of another day, though; for now, I’m just pondering the beauty and fullness of the Lord as a foundation, thankful for the connections that I’ve seen.