Mr. Rogers and Psalm 90
by Kyle Newcomer
The other night Lindsay and I watched the Tom Hanks biopic about Mr. Rogers, and there was a line in the movie that grabbed my attention. In the story, Fred Rogers goes to visit a dying man and his family. The scene has everyone gathered around the dying man's bed, when someone makes an allusion to his coming death. The room goes awkwardly silent. Mr. Rogers senses the discomfort and says, "You know, death is something many of us are uncomfortable speaking about, but to die is to be human. And anything human is mentionable, and anything mentionable is manageable. Anything mentionable is manageable". (From a bit of Googling, it appears this is not exactly what the real life Mr. Rogers said.)
There is a sense in which Mr. Rogers agrees with Moses in Psalm 90. That Psalm is all about the brevity of human life, and in verse 12, Moses writes, "Teach us to number our days, that we may get a heart of wisdom." It's foolish to ignore death. We can't euphemize it away. It is wise to number our days. Movie Mr. Rogers is right to recognize that death is part of the human experience. We shouldn't be afraid to talk about it.
But the second part of the quote is where things go wrong. "Anything mentionable is manageable." No matter how frankly we discuss death, we can't finally manage it. And Moses helps us see the reason why death is unmanageable. Look at this section in the middle of the Psalm:
For we are brought to an end by your anger; by your wrath we are dismayed.
You have set our iniquities before you our secret sins in the light of your presence.
For all our days pass away under your wrath; we bring our years to an end like a sigh.
The years of our life are seventy, or even by reason of strength eighty;
yet their span is but toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
Who considers the power of your anger, and your wrath according to the fear of you?
(Psalm 90:7–11(ESV))
Moses ties our death and the brevity of life to the reality of sin and the reality of God's righteous anger against sin. The path of wisdom isn't to mention death or manage death. The path of wisdom requires us to see why death exists. Death is ultimately the result of sin and God's wrath. We can't manage death because we are powerless against sin. Wisdom in the face of death isn't a death management strategy. When we see the brevity of this life and the reality of our sin against God, wisdom leads us to repentance. This is the "heart of wisdom"And wisdom also leads us to look to God as our hope in the face of death. Moses begins this Psalm by praising God as our refuge and dwelling place. He ends it by praying for God's pity, for God's steadfast love.
Return, O Lord! How long? Have pity on your servants!
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be shown to your servants, and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favor of the Lord our God be upon us, and establish the work of our hands upon us;
yes, establish the work of our hands!
(Psalm 90:13–17(ESV))
God doesn't help us manage our death. In the death and resurrection of Christ, God has overcome sin and death. Moses is able to ask God to "Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, and for as many years as we have seen evil." Somehow, however dimly, even in the face of death, he can see a reversal. In the face of this vanishing life, Moses believes God can establish the work of our hands. He believes there is a sure foundation for hope in the grace of God.
We face circumstances today that we can't manage. Only the Lord knows the scope of the epidemic and economic disruption we are enduring right now. It may very well be that this epidemic brings death closer to us and our neighbors than we have grown used to. But Christians can see in Psalm 90 a reason for hope. That hope is not that we can somehow "manage" death. It is completely beyond management. But God in his mercy has made a way for us to have hope in the face of sin and death because Christ has conquered it on the cross.
Prayer
Father, use the trial our world is going through to help us number our days. Help us see that you are righteous God and that our sin is offensive in your sight. This life will soon fly away and we will come before your judgment seat. In the name of Christ, we pray for your grace and pity. Our hope in the face of death is that he paid for our sin on the cross, and rose again from the dead. Show us mercy, and thereby make us glad. We pray that we will live in these troubled days as those who are satisfied in your steadfast love. Establish the work of our hands as we serve and worship you. In the name Jesus, who conquered death, we pray. Amen.
Hymn
The Hymn "Our God Our Help in Ages Past" is based on Psalm 90. Sing it with your family today.