I’m not a gambler . . . not pro-gambling . . . probably shouldn’t use a gambling as an illustration . . . but as I come to the end of Psalm 17 this morning I can’t help but conclude that at some point you need to place your bets. At some point you need to choose between the red square or the black square . . . you either take more cards or you hold with the hand you have . . . you pick a number and then let it ride. The most important matters of life are not a gamble . . . not up to luck . . . but they are a matter of choice . . . a matter of intentional determination . . . of picking a way and committing to it. And it’s not a jackpot that’s at stake . . . it’s eternity.

Arise, O LORD! Confront him, subdue him! Deliver my soul from the wicked by Your sword, from men by your hand, O LORD, from men of the world whose portion is in this life . . . As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with Your likeness.   (Psalm 17:13-15 ESV)

Psalm 17 is “A Prayer of David” . . . it is a cry and a plea of someone whose taking it in the teeth — probably unfairly and undeservedly. It is a lament from a seeker of the kingdom of heaven about the attacks he is enduring from the enemies of the world around him. David appeals to the God who tries the heart and tests the way (17:3) . . . calls out to heaven knowing that God will “incline His ear” and hear David’s words (17:6). And in this petition to a Savior there is the understanding, that when all is said and done, men and women ultimately place their bets on what they believe to be the prize . . . “this life” . . . or the life that awaits “when I awake.”

In verse 14, David is led by the Spirit of God to describe his enemies as “men of the world whose portion is in this life.” They are those who look to this life for their reward . . . those who count success in terms of the bank account or the number of toys the bank account can finance . . . “making it” is measured in the span of a mortal’s lifetime. David says that they take the abundance God’s provide and they live for what they can produce with it . . . but eventually, they “leave their abundance” to others. Their success, ultimately, is dictated by the amount of inheritance they leave behind. That’s where they place their bets for a fulfilling life.

However, if David is a good role model (he is), then the people of God are focused less on the inheritance they leave behind and are consumed more by the inheritance that awaits them. They are unlike those who Peterson characterizes as “flat-earth people who can’t think beyond today” (17:14 MSG) . . . instead, they are those who have set their minds on things of the future and things beyond the earth . . . those who “seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God” (Col. 3:1-2) . . . those who have placed their bets on laying up treasures in heaven . . . anticipating the glory that awaits them.

And it’s not the glory of their legacy . . . not the glory of their pious acts . . . but the glory of beholding the face of the Redeemer. It is the glory of standing, or falling to our faces as the case may be, before the One who has robed us in His righteousness. It is the joyous anticipation of taking whatever rewards He has determined for us by His grace, and casting them before the feet of Him who alone is worthy of glory and honor . . . our satisfaction not found in heavenly rewards but solely in being found in His heavenly presence . . .

Beholding His face . . . clothed in His righteousness . . . satisfied with nothing more than His likeness.

That’s where I’m placing my bets. Not gambling on the future. Instead, seeking first the kingdom of God . . . rather than striving for a “portion in this life.”

By His grace . . . for His glory . . .