Rich Jones – 2024-03-24 John 19:16-30

Quail with Manna Bread
Psalm 78:1-22
March 2-3, 2025

This Psalm was written by Asaph. Now, many Bible scholars believe that there were two authors of the Psalms by the name of Asaph. Now, the first one we met last week, he was one of maybe David’s greatest worship leader, and choir director. He would take the Psalms that David would write and he would give them to Asaph. He would write them into the orchestra, in the choir, and teach them, “Oh, worship and praise” filled the city of Jerusalem.

The second Asaph, no doubt, was named after him as mothers would commonly do, naming their children after great figures of history. Likely, that’s what happened here. He’s named Asaph. He lived much later in the history of Israel. Likely during the time that Israel was defeated by the Babylonians. The nation of Israel at that time had endured one tragedy after another because of their unfaithfulness the result of which brought about the tragedy of that nation, the weak, defeated of that nation.

He wrote this Psalm as a word of instruction, but also, as an inspiration of their faith. Israel needed a revival. They were in great need of revival. They had turned their back on God and the result was disaster, so they needed a revival and He meant to stir up their faith during revival by writing this Psalm. I tell you, it is a Psalm for today because we need revival today. It is a messed up world, and we need revival.

He’s reminding them in this Psalm of the faithfulness of God over the history of Israel. O, the steadfast faithfulness of God. He reminded them that God intended to give to them that land of Israel. He intended to be that land for them to be a place of blessing and abundant favor, land flowing with milk and honey. God wanted that place to be that place where they would thrive in their faith, in their relationship to God. It tells us that God gave them that beautiful heritage.

If only they would walk steadfastly in the ways of God that He said before them. He gave them a testimony that they would teach their children and then generation after generation, they would be reminded of the wonderful works that God had done for Israel, so that the intended point was that then generation after generation, they would learn to put their confidence in God. That is what revival is. When faith arises to trust God, to believe in the Almighty, and that know that His glory abounds with them.

He says, “Along with that reminder of the promises of God and the wonder of his glory, He gave them a warning but do not be like that stubborn, rebellious generation that came out of Egypt.” That was the foundation of the attitude of rebelliousness and stubbornness before God. It says, “That generation did not keep their soul right before God and whose spirit was unfaithful.” Now, that warning that He gives to Israel in that Psalm is a word for us today. In fact, interestingly, Paul writing in 1 Corinthians 10, said a very similar word really applied to us.

Speaking of that very same generation, he said, “I do not want you to be unaware brethren, that our Fathers, again, that generation, our Fathers were all under the cloud and passed through the sea. They were all baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea. They all ate the same spiritual food. They all drink the same spiritual drink for they were drinking from a spiritual rock, which followed them, and that rock was Christ.” That is an amazing declaration right there. It was a spiritual understanding.

God was doing a spiritual thing. It says, “Nevertheless, with most of them, God was not well pleased. For they were laid low in the wilderness.” Now, these things happen to them as an example and they were written for our instruction upon whom all the ends of the ages have come.” Asaph in the Psalm reminded them of that time, “Do not be like that generation that people who became,” it says, “Like those who complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord. Don’t be like that,” he says. Adversity has tested the faith of many people.

Adversity has shipwrecked the faith of many people. Well, what did God expect from Israel? Well, God expected them to walk through the wilderness, the desert, the time of adversity with endurance, with faith, believing and trusting that God was with them and to look back and be thankful that they had been set free from the oppression and slavery in Egypt. To be thankful that God had provided miraculously for them in bringing water to quench their thirst, and managed to sustain them on the way.

I. We Must Learn to Master Adversity

God wanted them to be victorious in the adversity of the wilderness and God wants us to endure adversity as well. This is a trouble-filled world with a trouble-filled life, filled with adversity and don’t allow your faith to be shipwrecked, but strengthen your faith in the storm and know that God will use these things in your life. God was taking Israel through a wilderness to get to the land of promise that there is a destination. Right there, I will bring you to that land where there is a future and the hope. He’s bringing them through the adversity to a destination.

If they would just stand firm and be faithful and remember all the wonderful things that God had done and not to complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord, God would bring them to that place, come through the wilderness where there’s a destination in it. It really applies to our lives as well. We’re going through a troubled adversity-filled world, but there’s a destination. God Has a place, there is a hope. God Has meaning and purpose for the journey and He is with us all along the way.

All right, Psalm 78. It’s a very long Psalm, but we’re only going to read one section from it and then we’ll look at the other verses, of course, around that at the Wednesday verse-by-verse, chapter by chapter service Psalm 78:1, “Listen all my people to my instruction, incline your ears to the words of my mouth, for I will open my mouth in a parable. I will utter dark sayings of old, which we have heard and known and our Fathers have told us.

We will not conceal them from our children, but we will tell to the generation to come the praises of the Lord and His strength and His wondrous works that He has done for He established a testimony in Jacob. He appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our Fathers, that they should teach them to their children. That the generation to come might know even the children yet to be born, that they might arise and tell them to their children so that they should put their confidence in God.”

That is what revival is, that is the very point of that. To arise in your faith, to trust, to put your confidence in God and not forget the works of God, but to keep his commandments. Move down to verse 8, “And do not be like their Fathers. That was a stubborn and rebellious generation. A generation that did not prepare their heart or set their hearts right and whose spirit was not faithful to God.” Moved to verse 11. “And they forgot His works and His miracles.

Literally, wonderful works that He had shown them for He wonders before their Fathers in the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan, that’s the capital of Egypt There. He divided the sea and caused them to pass through. He made the water stand up like a heap. Then He led them with the cloud by day, and all the night with the light of fire. He split the rocks in the wilderness. He gave them abundant drink like ocean depths. He brought forth streams also from the rock, and he caused waters to run down like rivers. Yet they still continued to sin against Him, to rebel against the most high there in the desert. In their heart,” verse 18, “And in their heart, they put God to the test.” Now you put God to the test when you say, “God, prove it. You say you do wonders, prove it.” He says, “They put God to the test by asking food according to their desires,” their greedy desires literally, “Then they spoke against God.

They said, ‘Can God prepare a table in the wilderness?” “Behold, yes, He struck the rock so that waters gushed out and streams were overflowing, yes, but can He get bread and will He provide meat for his people? We want meat.” Therefore, the Lord heard that and was full of wrath, and a fire was kindled against Jacob, and anger mounted against Israel because they did not believe in God and did not trust in his salvation.”

All right. These are the verses that we want to look at really much for us to apply to our lives today starting with this, we must learn to master adversity. Verse 11, “They forgot the deeds there, the miracles that He had shown them.” Verse 12, “For He did wonders there before their fathers in the land of Egypt. He divided the sea, caused them to pass through, led them with cloud by day, fire by night.” Now, it’s not that God expected them to somehow defeat the desert to somehow reduce the heat.

That’s not what He means, to somehow make the desert green. No, He expected them to walk through that adversity. The desert’s always going to be a desert. To walk through that wilderness victoriously by remembering, never forgetting. Remembering all the wonderful things that God Has done. God Has proven Himself. Over and over and over He proved Himself. Remember that so that you would be victorious, so that you will learn to master the wilderness, or the wilderness will master you.

Learn to endure victoriously, to learn to suffer through adversity well. Pastor, I was thinking of it as the illustration. Pastor Sean and I some years ago, we were in Africa teaching pastors conferences, and both of us were struck by what we saw there. The people are going through adversity. You want to talk about difficulty of life, right, but the joy of the Lord, oh my. You go to a church service there, and I’m telling you, those people know how to worship. The joy of the Lord fills that house.

They hang on to every word that is taught to them by the Word of God and they are celebrating and joy. They have the joy of the Lord, and they’re going through troubles. If you and I went through that, we wouldn’t know what to do. They’re walking in the joy of the Lord. They have learned to go through adversity well with strong faith. Now, Israel had God, and God promised that His presence would be with them through that wilderness. He would be with them on the journey and that His glory and His presence would be enough.

Now, the desert heat, yes, it’s always going to be a desert. It’s always going to be hot. It’s dry. It’s difficult. I don’t know if you’ve ever had to work outside in the summertime. That unrelenting heat, the sun doesn’t stop beating down and you get so irritated. It’s irritating in the flesh. It stands ready to complain when you’re going through such a difficult time. It tells us, “No, you must learn to master adversity.” You must learn to master the wilderness or it will master you. Now, they would not be ready, in other words, for the land of milk and honey, the land of abundant blessing, until they had learned faith. Until they had learned to master the wilderness.

You know what’s interesting is that their attitude in adversity made their journey much longer than it needed to be. It was their attitude in the adversity that made their journey way longer. They didn’t need to be in the desert for 40 years. Literally, when they left Egypt, they could have been there in a matter of months. 40 years? No, it was their attitude in the adversity that made the adversity way longer. There’s a great lesson right there in life. The attitude.

God wants us to be victorious. See, it’s only when you learn that God is with you in it, in that wilderness, in the adversity, that you are ready for the blessing that will come to your life after. To God’s presence, His glory is the key to enduring well, the adversities of life. To suffering well, the adversities of life. His presence is the key to being content of soul, whether it be adversity or abundance. Now, I’ll give you an illustration. Many of you know my story, much trouble in my life early, but I had friends.

I had friends growing up that had every advantage of life. At least that is the way it appeared to me. They had wealthy parents. They had a nice home. There was peace in their house. There was that dysfunctioning chaos in their house. No, they were nurtured and encouraged all along the way. That is a great advantage in life, no doubt. Somewhere, somehow they’re going to have to learn to endure adversity. Somewhere, somehow they’re going to have to learn how to suffer well notoriously in God.

Now, others like me lived in poverty, had an abusive alcoholic father. Now, later, of course, he came to the Lord. Those days were days of dysfunction and chaos and difficulty. Here’s my point, suffering itself does not teach one to suffer well. Just because you are going through a time of adversity does not teach you how to go through it well. No. Such hardships have shipwrecked many lives.

No, here’s the key. It’s only when you come to discover that God has proven Himself to you. It’s only when you discover that God’s presence is enough, that He is with you in the adversity. That He’s with you on the way in the journey. That is when the joy of the Lord becomes your strength and that is when you’ll learn to endure adversity with the victorious spirit of the Lord. Amen? Can we give the Lord praise and glory? Amen. That’s what He writes to Psalm to stir them up.

A. Discontent is dangerous

Do not be like that generation that did not know that. No. They became like those who complained of adversity in the hearing of the Lord. See, the root of complaining is discontent and discontent is dangerous. I submit that not only is discontent dangerous, but discontent is also contagious. See, here’s what I mean. It tells us that people that came out of Egypt, that they were a mixed multitude, that there was rabble among them. It says the rabble among them had greedy desires and they are the one who influenced the others.

Notice King James says in Exodus 12:38, “A mixed multitude also went up with them along with flocks and herds in a very large number of livestock.” These are people. What is the mixed multitude? These are people who came out of Egypt with the children of Israel, but they were not Jews. Maybe they were slaves of other countries and saw an opportunity. Maybe they were Egyptians who saw an opportunity, but they didn’t have the same relationship to God that Israel did, and they were led by greedy desires.

Now, the problem is that the mixed multitude, or the rabble among them, influenced everyone else. It’s never good when those with a bad attitude become the influencers of the group. It’s never good when the influencers are the ones with the bad attitudes. By the way, that word influencer is an interesting word. I never even heard that word I don’t think until our modern internet day of social media. Now, influencer is a thing in our days of modern social media. I looked up the definition of influencer on my artificial intelligence search engine, which probably influenced by results. It told me that influencers are those who have a massive following on social media. Thus they influence them because of their mass following. Their attitude is on display for everyone to see. Mega millions influencing the generation.

When I submit to you that God gave a testimony, God gave the Word of God and the Spirit of God and the influence of the glory of God upon their soul. In other words, the glory of God is the greatest influencer that the world has ever known. Amen. Can we give a little praise for that? The glory of God. That’s what he meant when he wrote the Psalm. He reminded them one generation after the other should influence the next generation by reminding them of the wonderful things that God had done.

B. Remembering is the key to faith

Influence them so that they will never forget because, here’s the point, remembering is the key to faith. Remembering is the key to faith. God wanted one generation to teach the next, to influence them because of the glory of God that they would put their confidence, oh, we want the next generation to arise in their faith, to put their confidence in God and never forget. It says in verse seven, but Israel complained there. Interesting. When they were there complaining, “We want needs.”

Well, what happened was, instead of remembering all the wonders that God had done, they started remembering their time in Egypt quite creatively. “Oh, don’t you remember the good old days when we were in Egypt?” Numbers 11:6. “Oh, we remember, oh, the fish. Oh, we used to eat free. Oh, fried fish. Oh, it was so glorious. Don’t you remember the good old days when we were slaves in Egypt? Don’t you remember? You remember, right? Oh, fish, free in Egypt, cucumbers. Oh melons, onions, garlic. Oh, don’t you remember the good old days?”

Man, they made it sound like there was a regular home of faith there in Egypt and everything was roses and light. That wasn’t the way it was. Did they forget the tears, the bitterness of slavery? Did they forget the impression and the hardship? Did they forget that they were the ones crying out to God, “Send a deliver, and help us, God?” Did they forget? Interestingly, every year at Passover, when they are to partake of the Passover meal, now part of the Passover meal is bitter herbs, which they are to eat, but first they must dip them in the salt water, the bitter herbs.

A reminder every year, never forget the bitterness that you endured. Then the salt water, the tears that you cried out. Did you forget? No, He wants them to remember. Now, some people do that today. Some people do the same thing when they creatively remember their time back when they were in the world. Oh, don’t you remember the good old days when we were in the world? Oh, the parties. Oh, we had such parties. Oh man, it was just amazing, right? Oh, we had so much fun. Oh, man, we were silly, but oh, we had such great times in the world.

Really? Did you forget the lostness, the loneliness, the emptiness, the stupidity of those days? Show of hands, how many look back on their time when they were in the world and say, “Man, I did some dumb things when I was in the world. Oh, I’m glad I’m not alone. Oh, we did some dumb things.” Creative remembering is dangerous to your faith. Oh, look back. Look back and all that God has done. Oh God, I’m so thankful that you took me out of that mess.

I’m so glad that you brought me out. My soul was sick. I was so unhappy and discouraged and despair. God, I’m so thankful that you took me out of that, that you forgave my sin. That you set my life on a rock, that you rebuilt my life in glory, that you brought me into a relationship to God, the Almighty. Oh God, I’m so thankful. Remember what God has done. Never forget. When you remember that God has proven himself and all that he has done, your faith is strengthened. Notice when he goes next into Psalm, no, they tested God.

C. Testing God is never good

Testing God is never good. Testing God is never a good idea. Verse 18 says, “They rebelled against the most high there in the desert, and in their heart, they put God to the test by asking God for food according to their desire.” Now, as I say people test God when they demand that God prove Himself by doing thus and so. People do it today, people will say, “God, you say you love me, well then prove it.” Then they’ll tell God what He has to do to prove it. If you don’t do what I demand that you do to prove it, then I don’t know that you love me.

Really? “Yes, prove it. You say you love me and then do this and that for me because if you don’t do that, then you didn’t prove it.” Well, they said, “God, you say you do wonders. Sure. You split the sea that we would walk through it. Yes, but can you bring meat? Prove it. Prove that you can do wonders. We want meat. We want meat.” Says Numbers 11:6, “Now our appetite is gone and there’s nothing at all to look at but this manna.”

Now, you might remember manna was a miracle, a provision every morning they would come out in the morning and manna would settle outside the camp like dew would settle upon the ground and they could go and get manna. They would make various things from it. Manna pancakes and banana bread. They would have all these different things they could eat with it. Did they forget that manna was a miracle every day? A miracle every day. How do you feed two million people in a desert wasteland for 40 years?

No, it was a miracle every day. It was amazing and it was good. Scripture tells us it tasted good. It was sweet. Tasted like coriander seed with honey. I like to say it’s like a Krispy Kreme doughnut, but healthy, and you can have it every day. It was good. More than that, it was a miracle. It was a miraculous provision. It was what God provided that they would be sustained for 40 years. If they weren’t satisfied with the manna, and since it was God’s provision, then they weren’t satisfied with God either.

God gave them what they wanted. “Me want meat. I want meat. Prove it. Me want meat.” God gave them what they wanted. You want meat? I’ll give you meat. Now, I submit to you that it’s a bad day when God gives you what your flesh wants, it’s never going to end well. Oh, you really want that? You insist. You must have it, then have it, and it’s not going to end well for you. It’s never a good day because up to that point, you see, God was resisting by His Holy Spirit. He was trying to hold you back.

He was trying to hold you back, hold you back, hold you back. Finally, He comes to the point, “Okay, you really want it? You really got to have it. Then have it.” The rest is bad. Notice Romans 1:24-25. Paul writes a similar word. “Therefore, God gave them over to the lusts of their hearts, to that impurity.” That you really wanted, and give them over to it. “So that their bodies would be dishonored among them for they exchange the truth of God for a lie. God gave them what they wanted. “Me want meat.” He gave them quail. Now for 1 day, not 2 days, not 5 days, not 10 days, not 20 days, 30 days. They weren’t satisfied with the quail either. They went after it was such greed, they ate so much of it that it came out their noses. Now, how do you get quail to come out your nose? I’m glad you asked. They ate so much of it. They ate it so greedily, they engorged themself by eating it so greedily that they got sick of it and threw it up, and therefore it came out their noses.

That’s how you get quail at your nose. I know you’re going to have lunch soon, so think of that when you have lunch. Reminds me of the story I read in Farm & Ranch magazine, a great magazine you got to read it. About this farmer who had a dog with a bad habit. The dog ate and killed chickens. He took one of the dead chickens tied it around his neck until it rotted, and that dog never ate chickens again. That’s the idea, right? You’re going to get sick, you’re going to get so much of it, you’re going to get sick of it.

You really want this thing, you’re going to have so much of it that you’re going to get sick from it. See, that’s the point. God gave them their request, but it came in a great price and the price was on the soul. It made the soul sick. The soul is the most important aspect of who we are. Made the soul sick. Notice in Psalm 106:13-15 where he speaks of the same thing. He said, “They soon forgot his works. They did not wait for his counsel, but lusted exceedingly there in the wilderness and tested God in the desert.”

He gave them their request but sent leanness of soul. They called that place Kibroth Hattaavah which means literally the graves of greed. See, here’s the problem. You can’t have both. You cannot have both either the flesh will be the master or the soul, and the spirit within won’t be there, but you can’t have both. See, there comes a time in life to decide where is the bearing of life to be found? Where is the bearing of life to be found? Where will you find life?

You can’t have both. For if the flesh becomes the master, the soul will become sick. Oh, if you’ve ever had a soul within you that is just sick, the soul is just yucky, you’re just disturbed. You can’t hardly sleep because that thing within you just won’t go away and it’s sick. Anybody ever been in the world enough to know what I’m talking about? Oh, it’s a terrible day when your soul is sick within you.

When the soul is made alive, when the soul is strong in the Lord, when you have spiritual strength for victory, and when the glory of God is poured out and God is doing that which is beautiful, the peace and the joy, and the overflowing love of God and balance in the soul, all then every blessing of God will flow through it. I’ll tell you what though if God is pointing out His glory and there’s an overflowing joy of the Lord and the peace of God, the overflowing love of God, because you’ve been dwelling in the nearness of God, that itself is a blessing.

II. Keep Your Soul Satisfied in God

Just to have your soul alive is a blessing for if your soul is alive, you are truly alive. Amen. See, that’s the point. Jesus said this in John 6:27 “Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you.” There is the point it has to do with the soul. Keep your soul satisfied in God. That’s what He’s stirring up in them. Notice verse 14, “He led them by cloud and by fire. He split the rocks and He gave them abundant drink like the ocean depths.”

What a beautiful picture is that He gave them there in the desert abundant drink-like ocean depths. See, it reminds us of what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10, right? That rock was Christ. It’s a spiritual truth, a spiritual drink. God was doing a spiritual work. See, I love it the way David wrote in Psalm 36:8-9. These are becoming some of my favorite verses because it’s so beautiful. They drink their fill of the abundance of your house, Lord, and you give them to drink of the river of your delights.

For with you is the fountain of life.” We come to a place where we decide where is the bearing of life to be found? Where will you find from what well will you drink that you’ll find life? Oh, I love that right there. Oh, you give them the drink of the river of your delights. Notice the word delight. Ah, there are so many places where it describes great men and women of God. Oh, they delight in the Almighty. Their souls delight in God. You drink their fill.

See, interestingly, about the same time Moses was feeling weighted down and burdened by that troublesome and difficult children of Israel. God gave Moses 70 elders, men of Israel to help shoulder the burden. Here’s my point, when he gathered these 70 elders together he pointed out upon them the Spirit of God, and there it says, something amazing happened. The Spirit of God was poured out on this group of 70 and they begin to prophesy, begin to speak out of the glory that God was pouring out upon them and glory came out, prophecy came out, praises and glory.

That’s what it means. What an amazing contrast, right? God moves by His Holy Spirit and men are filled with power and with strength and with glory. When they’re driven by their fleshly desires and they complain of adversity in the hearing of the Lord, they’re weak and they’re defeated. Oh, what a contrast is that. See, He’s bringing them to the place of revival. Never forget the wonders being reminded again of the wonders of God.

A. Never forget who you are in Christ

The same is true, there’s a modern application for us because our relationship to God is made possible through His Son Jesus Christ. Therefore, never forget who you are in Christ. Never forget what God did for you through His Son Jesus Christ. Oh, there’s so much to say. Israel forgot all the wonders that God had done for them. They forgot that God saved them from slavery, from oppression, that part of the sea that they might be rescued from the Egyptian army, that he turned to bitter water sweet.

That He brought water out of rock, that He gave them manna every day. They forgot the wonders of God. See, the problem was they had manna every day and it wasn’t exciting enough. We need some onions and leeks and some meat and some spices. The rabble amongst them said I was thinking of a modern illustration. There are churches today that try to appeal to the mixed multitude and come up with every imaginable spiritual fad in order to try to stay exciting. We got to make it more exciting.

In other words, they feed people spiritual quail with worldly spice. I say what we need here is the Word of God. Because God will send forth his word in power and He will send forth his word by the Holy Spirit and He will pour out his glory on the church. What we need is manna every morning, manna every evening, and manna at every service. Amen.

The Word of God. Jesus said it this way in John 6:32-35, Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it is not Moses who has given you the bread out of heaven but it is my Father who gives the true brand out of heaven for the bread of God is that when she comes down out of heaven and gives life to the soul,” God, to decide where is the bearing of life? Jesus said, “My Father gives that brand that brings life to the soul.” They said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread.” He said, “I am that bread. I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will not hunger, and who believes in me will never thirst.” Oh, spiritual food, the man of heaven, the life of the living God that satisfies the soul, the living water, drinking from the river of God’s delight, that makes the soul filled with glory. God sent His Son to be that bread, that living water that you would never be discontented and long for the leaks in the galaxy of the world.

Always remember all that God has done for you through Christ, and God wants to do. Oh, there is so much more that God wants to do in your life. What does the Scripture say? No, I have seen, no ear has heard. No mind has conceived that which God has in store for those who love Him. In other words, you have no idea. Oh, God has so much more that God wants to do in your life, He’s just getting started. There is greater places of glory, deeper places to walk, beautiful glory to understand.

Notice this, the way Peter writes it in 2nd Peter 1:3-9. His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness. “He has granted to us His precious and magnificent promises, so that by them, you may become partakers of the divine nature.” What does that mean? It does not mean at all that you will become little gods. No. What it means is that God will pour out the very presence of the living God upon your soul, that you would partake because His glory is filling and abounding, that you have the peace that passes understanding, the joy of the Lord, the very love of the living God abounding in glory.

B. The joy of the Lord is your strength

That is God pouring out the nature of God upon you he says. Notice, having escaped the corruption that is in the world by loss. We escaped Egypt, you might say. For this very reason, applying all diligence in your faith, supply moral excellence. When God pours His glory, and that peace surpasses understanding, and the joy of the Lord, the ever-flowing love of God, it will transform your moral burying of life. The excellence of God’s character will be seen more and more and more as you drink from the river of his delight.

There you will find that He has transformed you. God will do it. God will do it. You drink from the river, God will do it. That’s why and just to summarize, to conclude, the joy of the Lord is our strength. There’s where victory comes from. See, the answer to a discontent soul is to be wholly satisfied in God, to be filled with the Spirit of the Living God, to be held, God’s glory abounding in the soul. Notice Galatians 5:60, “But I say to you, you walk in the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”

No, you will have victory. The spirit is power and life. See, there comes a time to decide. From where will you find life? Because you cannot have both. It does not work. You cannot have both. See, the flesh is not satisfied with the spiritual diet. The Spirit does not like a spiritual diet, but I say to you, but the Spirit will most certainly not be satisfied with the fleshly diet either. Oh no, the spirit needs more. The soul that has been filled with God’s glory wants more than that.

Once you have tasted and seen how good God is, once you have drunk a drink from the river of God’s delight, and seen the delight of the Lord, the joy of the Lord, then the fleshly diet won’t do it anymore. That doesn’t do it. That doesn’t satisfy what my soul needs. My soul has tasted how good God’s glory is. I want that. I want that. I want that glory. I want that joy. I want that victory. That’s what my soul wants. Because I have found where life comes from. I know where life comes from.

It comes from the bread of life. It comes from the living water. It comes from the soul that delights in the Almighty. I want that glory. Let’s pray. Father, thank you so much. Oh, we are so blessed because you’ve shown us how beautiful you are, and the wonderful things that you’ve done. Oh, we remember how you took our lives out of a mess, set our feet on a rock, brought us into a relationship to the Almighty, forgave our sins, gave us hope, eternal life, and then poured out your glory to fill the soul.

Oh, we remember. God, we say to you that nothing will satisfy, but the bread of life that comes down out of heaven. Nothing will satisfy, but the living water the river of God’s delight. God, that is what our soul desires. That is my hunger, that is my thirst. Church, how many would declare that to the Lord? Would you just raise your hand as a way of declaring that God this is my hunger, this is what I thirst. I know God that there is nothing else that will satisfy what my soul needs.

I hunger and thirst for more of God. Thank you, Lord, for pointing out your life upon us, for meeting us here in this place, for showing us your glory. We give you praise and glory and honor for it in Jesus’s name. Everyone says, Amen. Can we give the Lord praise? He’s worthy. Amen.

When God is the Strength of Your Heart
Psalm 73:1-28

February 24-25, 2024

You might call it Book III out of the Psalms written by Asaph. Now, Asaph was one of David’s great worship leaders. I mean, you might remember that David had a full-time, gloriously great choir, instruments, orchestra. You might say, “Oh, worship filled the city,” and Asaph was one of the great ones, the great leaders. This psalm, written by Asaph, touches on some of the deepest issues of life. He wrote this psalm out of his own personal struggle with his faith.

He writes, “My feet came close to stumbling, my steps almost slipped.” In other words, his faith almost shipwrecked. Spoiler alert, his faith is not shipwrecked, rather, he comes through the dark valley of doubt into much stronger faith. His faith is tested and tried, but in the end, his faith is stronger for it. As that saying that we quote in many times, faith that cannot be tested is faith that cannot be trusted. It’s a psalm written for those going through the same valley of doubt. It’s encouraging for those who have struggled with doubt to know that they are not alone, that others have wrestled with their faith and have come through stronger for it.

The reason his faith is shaken has everything to do with his perspective. How he sees what is before his eyes. How he sees, and therefore, how he interprets, in particular, what bothers him is the prosperity of the wicked. That really bothers him. The word prosperity here is the word shalom, meaning more than wealth. No, it’s at ease. Oh, they’re good. Their life is good. Why do the wicked prosper? Why is their life– It looks to him, from his view, they got it good. Perspective is everything. How do you perceive? How do you interpret the things that you see with your eyes?

Asaph saw the prosperity of the wicked, and it troubled him. I mean, it embittered him. “Why do they have it good, why do the wicked prosper?” He questioned. In other words, why do good things happen to bad people? Then he looked at his own life, and from the way he saw it, “I’m stricken all day long and I’m chastened every morning.” Then he thought, “Well, I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence for what? For nothing? I mean, here I am keeping my heart pure and washing my hands in innocence and then I’m the one stricken all day long and chastened every morning? That’s not right, God. The arrogant and the wicked, they are the ones living in prosperity. It’s not right.”

That’s what he means when he says that his feet came close to stumbling and his steps almost slipped. Yes, these were troublesome thoughts that almost shipwrecked his faith. He was knocked down hard, you might say. These thoughts battered his mind, they pierced his soul, and just when you think that he’s down for the count, just when you think that it’s over, just when you think that his faith is shipwrecked and defeated, he begins to rise.

He lifts his head, he goes into the sanctuary of the living God, he goes to the rock of habitation, he dwelt in the nearness of God, and he abide into the glory, and then everything changed. It’s a glorious song because he comes out of this into such victory. There in the presence of the glory of God, he could see what he could not see before. Now he can see much farther, now he can see much clearer. The light of the glory of God has changed everything for him. He could see in the light of glory. He begins the psalm, notice, by saying, “Surely, God is good.”

See, what he’s saying is, “I want you to know that I know that God is good and God is good to Israel, and that God is good to those who are pure in heart. I want you to know that I know this. I know it because where I’m going to take you, I’m going to take you into this valley of trouble and doubt that I struggled with, but I want you to know going into it, that I know that God is good and that God is good to Israel and that God is good to those who are pure in heart.” Let’s lay this down before we go into this valley. I want you to know that I know it. God is good, and I’m going to bring you through this valley, but I’m going to bring us into a glorious place before this psalm is done.

Let’s read it. Psalm 73:1. Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling. My steps had almost slipped, but I was envious. He’s just admitting it. I was jealous, I was envious of the arrogant. I saw the prosperity of the wicked. There are no pains in their death, at least this is the way he sees it, they have no pains in their death. Their body is fat. Now, see, he’s jealous because in those days, the luxurian wealthy could afford to have enough food to be able to have extra weight. He’s like, “Why can’t I be like that?” He’s envious. They’ve got the wealth in order to even be able to do this, “I want this.” He says, “No, look, they’re not troubled like other men. No, they’re not plagued like mankind.”

No. Therefore, he says, “Pride is their necklace. Oh, they wear pride like a necklace around them and the garment of violence is what they wear. Their eyes even bulge from fatness and the imaginations on their heart, they run riot. They mock, they wickedly speak of oppression. They speak from on high as if they’re high and all that. Then they have set their mouth against the heavens, they mock God, their tongue parades all that throughout the earth.” Verse 10. Therefore, his people return to this place and waters of abundance are drunk by them. Oh, and then they say, “Oh, how does God know? Is there knowledge with the Most High? God doesn’t know.” He said, “Now, behold, these are the wicked. Always at ease. They have increased in their wealth.”

Then he turns the thought of the Psalm to himself. Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence for I have been stricken all day long and chastened every morning. Then you come to verse 15. Verse 15 is the turning point. It is the hinge, the whole thing now pivots on verse 15 where he says, “If I had said that I will speak thus, behold, I would have betrayed the generation of your children.” What he’s saying is, “Oh, God, thank you that I did not say, I did not speak of these troubles, I did not reveal to anyone what I was going through as if it was the real thing. I’m so thankful because if I had said that, I would’ve betrayed the generation of your children, God.”

Then verse 16 and 17, it continues. When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome to me in my sight. See, how he sees it, it was troublesome in my sight until I came into the sanctuary of my God. When he came into the sanctuary of God, everything changed. He said, “Then I perceived therein, I could see now what I could not see before. Surely you set them on slippery places.” My feet almost slip, no, I see God, you set their feet on slippery places and you cast them down to destruction. Oh, how they are destroyed in a moment. They are utterly swept away by sudden terrors like a dream when one awakes, oh, Lord, when aroused, you will even despise their form.

Then verse 21 is interesting. He’s like, “Mea Culpa.” He’s apologizing. I’m sorry. Verse 21, when my heart was embittered, when I was pierced within, I was senseless and ignorant. I was senseless. I am so sorry. God, I was like a animal. I was like a beast before you. I am so sorry. Nevertheless, I am contingently with You, for You have taken hold of my right hand, and with your counsel, You will guide me, and then, I’ll love this, and then afterward You’ll receive me to glory. See, now he can see with eternity in view. Now there I can see, oh, there is so much more than what we see here in this earthly life. Oh, no, there is a view to eternity, but I know that there will be a day that You’ll receive me and You’ll receive me into glory.

I love the word glory. It is the fullness of the presence of the Almighty and glory is beautiful. Oh, I know it now. I see it now. There is eternity in view. There’s so much more than this earthy life. One day You’ll receive me in glory. Oh, he’s just building up now. Oh, the crescendo. He’s bringing us into the grand finale of the Psalm. Then he says in verse 25, “Whom have I in heaven but Thee? Now I see, I’ve been in the glory. Now I’m dwelling in the shadow of the Almighty. Now I see that You, God, are the glory of heaven. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? And besides you, I desire nothing on this earth.” There is nothing on this earth that compares with Thee.

I. Comparison is the Root of Bitterness

My flesh and my heart may fail. I was speaking out of the weakness of the condition of man, but God is the strength of my heart. I have been abiding in the glory now, and you have strengthened my heart, and you are my portion, and you are my portion forever. Behold, those who are far from You will perish, and You have destroyed all those who are unfaithful to You, but as for me, the nearness of God is my good. Oh, I have made the Lord God my refuge, my abiding place, my rock of habitation that I may tell of all of Your works. That is a glorious Psalm right there. There’s much for us to take hold of and to apply to our life. Starting with this, that comparison is the root of bitterness.

His feet came close to stumbling, his steps had almost slipped because his eyes were fixed on the prosperity of the wicked. That’s what he was fixated on, you might say. That’s what he was– he couldn’t stop looking at it, and it bothered him. He kept looking at it, and the more he looked at it, the more it bothered him. Look at this. You see, he’s envious. This is the problem, he’s comparing his life to theirs or their life to his. They’re living the good life. Why? Why do they have it so good? They’re living the good life.

Now, see, comparison is the root of unhappiness. It is the very root of bitterness. People do it all the time. I call it the Facebook dilemma. See, you look at everyone else’s Facebook posts and their Instagram pictures and you see their beautiful, happy family. It seems like they’re always doing fun things and they’re always smiling, and their kids are always happy, and the kids are always doing fun things. Then you look at your dreary old life. See, you’re comparing your dreary old life to their highlights. That’s the problem. Comparison is the root of bitterness because you’re comparing their highlights to your dreary life.

You’ve heard the expression, no doubt, the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. You’ve heard this. Well, it’s true. It’s actually true. The grass is greener on the other side of the fence, and I can prove it scientifically. You ready? Well, when you’re looking at the grass on the other side of the fence, you’re looking at an angle. All of the blades of grass blend together. When you look at that grass, at that angle, it makes it look like the fairway of a par five at the Reserve Golf course.

Then you look down. When you’re looking at your grass, you’re looking straight down at it and you can see the dirt. When you look at their grass, apparently they don’t have dirt, because their grass looks great from that angle, but when you looking down at your grass, you got gopher hills, you got mole hills, you got dandelions, you got weeds, and they got a par five. Comparison. See, God knew that this would be a trouble, and that’s why He wrote in the 10 Commandments, He spoke to it in the 10 Commandments where He said in Exodus 20:17, “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife or his male servant, or his female servant, or his ox or his donkey,” or his BMW or his boat or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.

A. Why do good things happen to bad people?

By the way, that is the rich expanded version of the Bible right there. The root of Asaph’s troubles, oh, no, they’re much deeper than this. You see, he saw the arrogance. He saw the wickedness, and he could not understand why they had it so good. At least that’s the way it appeared. That’s the way he saw it. He was making a wrong conclusion, and many do the same. It’s like the question, why do good things happen to bad people? Verse 4 and 5, there are no pains in their death. Their body is fat. Why? They’re not in trouble, at least that’s the way it looks.

They’re not in trouble like other men. They’re not plagued like mankind. He could not understand why. Why do the arrogant and the wicked prosper? It doesn’t seem right. Asaph wanted the wicked to suffer for their unrighteousness, because– of course we know that there is a Biblical principle that we do see in the Scriptures that if a person abides in iniquity, if transgression is the bearing of their life, you might say, well, they should expect that their troubles will be great. That the sowing of the seed of iniquity will bear the fruit of that iniquity. It is a Biblical truth.

For example, when Job was suffering, one of his friends said that which everyone assumed to be so, and it is true when you look forwardly. See, it’s a truth, principally, looking forward. Job 4:8-9, “According to what I have seen, those who plow iniquity and those who sow trouble will harvest it. By the breath of God, they perish, and by the blast of his anger, they will come to an end.” It’s like Hosea 8:7, “If they will sow to the wind, they will reap the whirlwind.” It’ll even be greater.

The besetting storm that they’re going to unleash is going to be greater than they’ve ever calculated. Galatians 6:7-8 speaks to this principle. We call it the principle of the harvest. We quote it because it is a solid Biblical truth. “Do not be deceived. God is not mocked. For that which a man sows, that he will also reap. The one who sows to his flesh, will from the flesh reap corruption.” The problem is that Asaph is not seeing from God’s perspective. He is comparing the prosperity of the wicked to himself.

That comparison is the root of his bitterness. There is much that Asaph could not see. He was blinded by his envy, and he could not see. Perhaps there was a greater purpose that was hidden from his eyes. Perhaps it is an aspect of God’s patience toward the wicked, which we see in several places, but there is a powerful one in Romans 9:22-23 where Paul writes it this way, “What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction?” He did so in order that He might make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which he prepared beforehand for glory.

B. Why do bad things happen to good people?

There’s much that Asaph could not see, but then he made it personal. He brought it personally when he essentially said, “Then why do bad things happen to good people?” Verses 13-14. “Surely in vain I have kept my heart pure and washed my hands in innocence. I’m the one stricken all day long and chastened every morning. What is the point of keeping my heart pure and washing my hands in innocence? I should be the one enjoying prosperity. I should be the one having no troubles. I should have a life not plagued like other men,” so Asaph thought. In other words, bad things shouldn’t happen to good people. Bad things should happen to bad people, and good things should happen to good people. The logic concludes.

Based on what? Based on the conclusion that if a person does good things, that it should protect them from bad things. Not only that, but those who do good things should receive good things. If you wash your hands in innocence and keep your heart pure, then only good things should come to you. You should never have troubles. If you ever do experience good things, it is surely an indication that you deserved it. An illustration. Remember in the movie Sound of Music when Maria sang these lyrics when she discovers that Captain von Trapp was in love with her? I’m going to sing this for you now. No, I’m not.

The lyrics are these. Perhaps I had a wicked childhood. Perhaps I had a miserable youth, but somewhere in my wicked miserable past, there must have been a moment of truth. For here you are standing there loving me. That’s all you get right there. Whether or not you should, somewhere in my youth in childhood, I must have done something good. Nothing comes from nothing. Nothing ever could. Somewhere in my youth, in childhood, I must have done something good. Many people believe, therefore, that if you’ve kept your heart pure, if you’ve washed your hands in innocence, you’ve been living that which was worthy and honorable, that it should protect you from bad things happening.

In other words, that only good, you should only have good things in your life and never anything bad should happen to you. Shortly after our daughter was killed, many of you know our story, we did not speak to the reporters for 10 days, just being a family. Finally, we realized that we have to. They were camped out there. We have to speak to them. I went out and one of the first questions they asked, “You’re a pastor. How do you reconcile this with your faith?” You see, the assumption behind that question is that because I’m a pastor, because I’m a minister of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, because I serve God, that only good things should come into my life. I should only have good things. Nothing bad.

See, no need for an umbrella for me. When I walk in the rain, I never get wet. See, bugs never splatter in my windshield. I can lay out in the sun and never get burned because only good things come to me. Really? No, I’ve been through many very difficult things. Why then was I raised in extreme poverty? Why then did I have an alcoholic father who abused my mother? Why was my daughter killed by someone who simply wanted to know what it felt like? Oh, I have been through many troubles, but this I know, God has let me see. I know by faith that God will settle all accounts. Amen. I know by faith that God will settle all accounts. I know that I can trust God with my eternal life so I can trust Him right here with my life here on Earth. Amen?

C. Some things ought not be spoken

Now, let’s give Him a praise. Amen. Amen. Then I want you to notice verse 15, because there is a great truth for us to take hold of out of this verse, and that is this, that some things ought not be spoken. Some things ought not be spoken. Notice in verse 15 where he said, “If I had said that I will speak thus, if I had spoken what I felt then, I would’ve betrayed the generation of your children.” What is he saying? I am so thankful, God, that I didn’t speak thus, because if he did, he would’ve been wrong and he would’ve betrayed the generation of God’s children.

In other words, sometimes it’s best just to be quiet. Some things ought not be spoken. In our modern day of social media, it’s easy for people to say whatever ugly thing that they think or whatever ugly thing they feel today. I tell you what, we’re living in a day, I have never seen so much ugliness coming out of man like I’m seeing today because of social media. Anybody want to agree with me? It is ugly. It’s always been there, but social media gave a voice to it. There are many ugly things ought not be spoken. See, when you’re going through something difficult and you’re wrestling with it in your heart, and you’re struggling with your thoughts and your faith has not yet processed to get through it to the victory of it, then some things ought not be spoken. It’s best to be quiet.

If you’re angry and confused, then some things ought not be spoken. It’s best to be quiet until you have prayed that through with God, and God has brought you through that valley into the other side. In other words, you are not ready to give your testimony until you’ve come to the other side of it like Asaph did. You’re not ready to give your testimony until you have come into the sanctuary of God, until you have dwelt in the glory, until God has opened your eyes to see what you did not see before. Oh, he’s bringing us now into a glorious grand finale of this psalm, and it is summarized, come into the sanctuary of God. You’ve got to come into the glory.

II. Come into the Sanctuary of God

See, when I pondered– verse 16, “When I pondered to understand this, it was troublesome for me until I came into the sanctuary of my God. Until I worshiped with the saints, until I dwelt in the shadow of the Almighty, until the word of God washed over my soul, until the glory of God abided upon me. Then I was changed.” See, the light of the glory changed his view, his perspective. He could see what he could not see before. Now he can see much farther than he could ever see. He could see now that there is so much more beyond this earthly life. His circumstances did not change, but he changed. He could see in the light of God’s glory.

A. Whom have I in heaven but You?

First, he could see that God settles all accounts with the wicked. That’s what he saw first. He was so troubled by the wicked and then he sees because of the light of the glory of God, oh, every person who lives and abides in wickedness is going to have to give an accounting of his life to God. Every single person is going to have to stand before the Almighty and give an accounting of his life. He says, “Surely, you set them on slippery places and cast them down to destruction.” See, but then he takes his eyes off of the wicked. He will entrust their end to the hand of God. Then what follows next are some of the most glorious verses found in the Bible, “Whom have I in heaven but Thee?”

Now he sees that there is so much more than this earthly life. He sees the glory. Besides you, I desire nothing on this earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and God is my portion forever. The beautiful result of Asaph coming into the sanctuary of God, and dwelling in the glory of God’s presence. Before, he was envious. Why? He was envious because he had fixed his eyes on the prosperity of the wicked, but now, coming into the sanctuary of God, he has fixed his eyes on the glory. Now he sees what he did not see before, and that put everything into perspective. He has fixed his eyes on something far grander.

It reminds me of Hebrews 12:1 and 2. Let us run with endurance this race that is set before us by fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him, endured the cross. He endured great suffering, great agony of soul. Why? Because of the joy set before Him. Despising the shame, He sat down at the right hand of God. See, then he writes, “There is nothing on this earth that I desire that compares with Thee. God is the strength of my heart.” Now God has strengthened thus soul within him. God is my portion forever. See, when God is your portion, God is your inheritance.

There is nothing on this earth that compares to the glory that we receive from the Almighty. There is nothing on this earth that can satisfy what the soul desires. Don’t get me wrong. There are many wonderful things on the earth, but they’re not enough to satisfy what the soul desires. See, without God, the things of the earth are empty. They’re empty. I was thinking of an illustration. Recently we were in South Florida. We were there for some meetings, but we had some extra time off, and so we were just driving around. We like just driving around looking at other people’s houses.

They got that intercoastal waterway and they got lots and lots of canals. Of course, people love to build great houses next to water. We were driving up and down these canal roads and, oh my, the houses were palatial. These must have been, I don’t know, 8,000, 9,000, 10,000 square foot homes, seven, eight, nine bedrooms, and then a lot of them had docks out there with 150-foot mega million yacht. Apparently, that’s the guest house, I don’t know. Some of them had glass garages. You know why? They want to make sure that you can see into their garage so you can see their convertible Bentleys and their Lamborghinis. They want you to be envious.

Oh, look at these palatial homes. Where would you even live in a house like that? There, there, there, there, or there? It’s such a massive house. Where do you even live? You have to call your wife. “Where are you? Oh, you’re there. I’ll be there in 10 minutes.” Would you want to live like this? Well, first of all, who would be your friends? Here’s what I know. It’s not enough. That’s not enough for me. That’s not enough for you, Pastor? What do you need? I need glory. That’s what I need. Because that is empty. It’s void of meaning. There’s no meaning in it. The writer of Ecclesiastes calls it vanity. Vanity of vanities. It’s empty. It’s meaningless.

I need more than that. I need glory. That’s what I need. I need glory. I need the presence of the Living God. I need to dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. My soul needs to be alive. I need meaning. I need presence. I need glory. That’s what I need. Amen? Amen. That’s why he brings us to this glorious grand conclusion. The finale of the Psalm, you can imagine the choirs and the orchestra building up now to a grand finale where he says, “And the nearness of God is my good.” It’s the nearness of God. That’s the grand finale, the glorious conclusion. I have made the Lord God my refuge, my dwelling place, my rock of habitation. There is where the glory dwells.

B. The nearness of God is my good

The nearness of God is my good. The nearness of God is good because God’s glory is beautiful on the soul. God’s glory is beautiful. God’s presence is glory, is light, is life, is peace, is joy. The overflowing abundance is the life of the glory that makes the soul beautiful. I need glory. That’s what he says. Paul writes it in 2 Corinthians 3:18, where he says, “But we all with unveiled face–” What does that mean? Before, he said there was a veil that lay over their hearts. A veil. They’re blinded.

They could not see, but we, we who abide in the shadow of the Almighty, we who abide in the nearness of God, we who abide in the Lord Jesus Christ, we with unveiled face, he says, beholding as in a mirror, the glory. The glory of the Lord. In the Old Testament we would say the glory of the Almighty. We are being transformed into that same image of that glory. Notice. From glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the spirit. That’s what God is doing and that’s where we abide. It is the nearness of God that is my good. See, the glory of God is a transforming power. When you draw near to the glory of God, you cannot help but be transformed, because His glory is beautiful on the soul.

The spirit of the Living God is what brings the joy, the peace, the love. The bearing of God’s glory is beautiful. I need glory. That’s the grand conclusion. Fix your eyes, open your heart, let the veil be removed, and see the glory. Father, we are so thankful for You, how You have revealed Your glory. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? Besides You, I desire nothing on this earth. There is nothing on this earth that compares with You. There is nothing on this earth that will fill the desire of what I need. My soul longs for more of God’s glory. Church, how many would make a declaration to the Lord today?

My soul, it needs glory. I long to dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. God, Thank you for opening my eyes. There is nothing on this earth that compares with You. Whom have I in heaven but You? There is so much more than this earthly life. You are my glory. You are that which has made my soul alive. I want to just declare it. I want to just say it to You, God, I have no one in heaven but You, and there is nothing on this earth that compares with You. I want more glory. Church, would you just raise your hand if that is your declaration, if that is what you would just say to the Almighty. I just want to say it. I want to just declare it. God, You have made my soul alive. Thank you.

I want to abide in the sanctuary of God. I want to abide in the glory. Thank you, God. We give you glory and honor and praise in Jesus’ name, and everyone said, amen. Let’s give Him praise. He is worthy of our praise. Amen.

The Value of Wisdom
1 Kings 3:1-15
February 10-11, 2024

Last week, as we were studying through the Psalms, David was in his older years crying out to God for help in his great distresses. One of the things that we really appreciate about watching the course of David’s life is that he knew where help comes from. He knew that he needed the help of God to accomplish all of the great feats that we associate with David and David’s great name.

Here in the early chapters of 1 Kings, David is in that same place. He’s advanced in years and declares that his son, Solomon, will be the new king of Israel. David, in is again, latter years. After that, he breathes his last, and then Solomon is established as King of Israel. Now, the backstory of Solomon is very important. Solomon was David’s son through Bathsheba.

This is the, of course, Bathsheba with whom David faltered so greatly, that adulterous relationship and then later married. By the way, this speaks amazingly of the grace of God, not only in forgiving David, but also in allowing a son from that relationship to be on the throne of Israel. In fact, to rule over what might be considered the glory days of Israel. Now the name Solomon means, and you can see the Hebrew word shalom in it, meaning peace. His name means peaceable. This was the name that David gave to Solomon.

Interestingly, God also gave him a name. God says, “I give him the name Jedidiah,” which I think is a beautiful name. It means loved of God. Isn’t that beautiful? If you ever have a son, you should name him Jedidiah. It’s such a beautiful, strong name with a deep Hebrew meaning, loved of God. That also I think is a declaration of the grace of God, that He would call this one born from David and Bathsheba loved of God.

Now, Solomon is famous, really for two main things. One, for building the temple there in Jerusalem. This was the temple that David desired and wanted to build, but God had said to him, “No, David, you are a man of war. It will be built by a man in peace,” the Solomon. He’s famous for building– It was one of the wonders of the world. It was glorious in every aspect. He’s famous for that, but he’s also famous for his wisdom.

If you were to sign one word to describe Solomon, no doubt it would be the word wisdom. The wisdom of Solomon is of course famous, which is an interesting thought. If someone could describe you with one word, what would that one word be? Could someone capture one word that would describe your greatest character, your quality of great– the highest quality? If you were to be known by one word, what would that one word be?

That is a very interesting thought, although it reminds me of something funny. Have you ever been in one of these job interviews where the interviewer says to you, “What is the one character quality that you have that you’re most proud of?” Have you ever been in an interview like that? They always like to ask you conundrum questions. What is the one quality that you have that you’re most proud of? I’ve always wanted them to ask me that question so I can say, “Oh, the one quality that I’m most proud of is my humility. I am probably the most humble person you know, as a matter of fact.” No, scratch that. Actually, it’s my humor. No, scratch that. Let’s go back to the message.

It is an interesting question. What one word describes your character? Wouldn’t it be awesome if that one word was a character quality of God in your life? Like, “Oh, the one word that describes you would be grace.” Or the one word that would describe you would be kindness. These are all wonderful qualities of God. I love Proverbs 22:1, “A good name is better, more to be desired than great wealth.”

How did Solomon get wisdom? How did he get this wisdom? Well, it’s a very important question, and the answer is he got it from God. That is where the greatest wisdom comes from. The story, of course, is that shortly after Solomon is anointed king of Israel, God appears to him in his dream and says to him, “Ask whatever you wish. What is it that you want for me to give to you?” Solomon did not ask for a long life or great riches or for victory over his enemies. Above all else he wanted wisdom to be able to judge or to lead this great people of Israel, and to be able to discern good and evil. This is a right thing. God was pleased that he desired wisdom. It’s a right thing to desire for us as well.

In fact, many people in their daily devotions will add a proverb of the day. Maybe they will read in John or wherever they’re reading through in their devotions, but then will add a proverb every day. Now, somewhat it’s convenient because there’s 31 proverbs, and that works out for the number of days in the month, but also people do it because they want to increase in their wisdom, and they know that Proverb is famous for giving wisdom to them. It’s a right desire.

I. We Need the Wisdom that Comes from God

Show of hands, how many people would say, “I want more wisdom. In fact, I want great wisdom in my life. I need more wisdom.” There are great principles of God’s word to help us to see it. Let’s read it. 1 Kings Chapter 3. We begin in verse one, “And then Solomon–” Again, very early on now in his rule, Solomon formed a marriage alliance with Pharaoh, King of Egypt.

He took Pharaoh’s daughter and brought her to the city of David until he had finished building his own house and the house of the Lord, that’s the temple, and the wall around Jerusalem. Now, Solomon loved the Lord. That’s a key to the beginning of Solomon’s rule as king. He loved the Lord. The word Lord there is in all caps. It represents the name Jehovah, YAHAVAH. He loved the Lord, walking in statutes of his father, David, except that he sacrificed and burnt incense on the high places, which was actually common in those days.

The king then went to Gibeon to sacrifice there for there was a great high place there. Solomon offered a thousand burnt offerings on that altar to God. Now, in Gibeon, the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream and God said, “Ask what you wish. I want to give you a gift to as you’re anointed as king. I want to give you something. What is it you want?” Verse 6, Solomon said, “Well, you have shown great loving kindness to your servant David, my father, according as he walked before you in truth and righteousness and a brightness of heart toward you. You have reserved for him this great loving kindness that you have given him a son to sit on his throne as it is to this day. Now, oh, Lord, my God, you have made your servant, me, king in place of my father David.

Yet, I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in.” Now that’s an expression, which means I don’t know how to do it. I don’t know how to lead this great people. I do not know how to be a king. He’s insufficient and he knows he needs from God something. He says, verse 9, “Give your servant an understanding heart to be able to judge or to lead your people to discern between good and evil. For your servant,” verse 8, “is in the midst of your people, which you have chosen a great people, which cannot be numbered or candid for multitude.”

In other words, this is a great wondrous nation that you have chosen for yourself. It is a great responsibility and I am insufficient. I do not know what I am doing. I don’t know how to do it. “Give your servant an understanding heart,” he prayed, “to discern good and evil for who is able to judge this great people of yours.” Verse 10. Now, this was pleasing in the sight of the Lord that Solomon had asked for this thing. God said to him, “Because you have asked for this thing and have not asked for yourself a long life, or you’ve not asked for riches for yourself, nor have you asked for the life of your enemies, victories. No. You have asked for yourself discernment to understand justice.

Behold, I have done according to your words. Behold, I have given you a wise and discerning heart so that there has been no one like you before you, nor shall one like you arise after you. I have also given you what you have not asked. I have given you both riches and honor so that there will not be any among the kings of Israel like you all your days, and if,” and this is a big if here, “If you would walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and commandments as your father David walked, then I will prolong your days.”

Solomon awoke and behold, it was a dream. He came to Jerusalem and then he went right to the Ark of the Covenant, which is key, and he stood there before the Lord and offered burn offerings and made peace offerings and made a great feast for all of his servants. What a great story. Many things for us to take hold of and apply and starting with this, we need that wisdom, that wisdom that comes from God, we need that wisdom. Notice verse 1 where it says, “Solomon formed a marriage alliance with Pharaoh, King of Egypt, took Pharaoh’s daughter to become his wife.”

A. The wisdom of the world is foolishness to God

Now, that is an example of the world’s wisdom, men’s wisdom. Here’s what I mean. This was commonly done in that day by Kings of Nations. It was considered a wise thing to do. It was considered prudent. It was politically savvy, because it built alliances, and political alliances bring peace. It was politically a prudent thing to do. Now, it may have been politically savvy, but it was spiritually disaster. There we gain a great insight in life.

There are many things that the world says are prudent or wise or even politically correct, and God says, “No, they’re not wise.” By the way, interestingly, side point, David did not need any such alliances. David did not care about political expediency. David relied on the help of God. There is a vast difference between the wisdom of the world, so-called, and the wisdom that comes from God. In fact, God makes that comparison very, very clear, where He declares that the wisdom of the world is foolishness to God.

Solomon was doing, again, what many kings did in that day was considered wise because it built alliances. In other words, that’s good. You can see his thinking. How could this be not good? This is good. Building alliances makes for peace. This is good. It’s good. What could be wrong with that? It’s good. I’m making peace, but God says, “No, it’s not good.” The reason it’s not good is because these women from these foreign nations will draw the king’s heart away from God, and that is the beginning of destruction. It’s not good.

Now, what we know of Solomon’s life, that this marriage with Pharaoh’s daughter was actually just the beginning. Solomon took many wives for himself from the nations around them, and ultimately it led to great troubles. Notice 1 Kings 11:1-2. Now, “King Solomon loved many foreign women, along with the daughter of Pharaoh, Moabite, Ammonite, Edomite, Sidonian, Hittite women.” In other words, he had a thing for foreign women. Some people collect foreign cars, he collect foreign women. It was his thing. He just had a thing for foreign women.

From those nations, by the way, concerning which the Lord has said to the sons of Israel, “You will not associate with them and they will not associate with you, for they will surely turn your heart away after their gods.” It says, “Solomon held fast to these in love.” The influence of a wife is very, very strong, and they will draw you away. See, God’s wisdom proven right. There is a way that seems right. That seems right. It seems like the right thing to do. It seems right, but God’s ways are better because God’s ways lead to life, but the wisdom of the world leads to death.

Notice Proverbs 14:12, where it says the very thing very clearly. “There is a way which seems right to a man, but it’s end–” You must see and perceive the end. “The end is the way of death.” Now, there are many things that God says that are wise that apply to the many different areas of our life. Since we’re speaking of marriage, God has much to say, wisdom about marriage.

For example, in 2 Corinthians 6:14, He talks about alliances of marriage. He says, “Do not be bound together with unbelievers. For what partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship does light have with darkness?” How about Ephesians 5:25? Again, wisdom. “Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up.” For wisdom. If you would take hold of wisdom from God, it would bear forth great fruit and results in your life. That’s just one example.

The wisdom of the world and following one zone, wisdom, that’s what gets people into so much trouble. Following one’s own wisdom, following man’s wisdom, world’s wisdom. That’s what gets people into trouble. No, God’s wisdom is greater, and God’s wisdom will lead to blessing, and God’s wisdom will lead to God’s favor and they’re very, very different. Notice, 1 Corinthians 3:19-20, where God makes that so clear, “For the wisdom of this world is foolishness to God, for it is written He is the one who catches the wise in their craftiness.” Again, the Lord knows the reasonings of the wise, that they are useless.

B. What you desire is what you pursue

Then notice this out of the chapter, “What you desire is what you pursue,” or, “What you pursue is what you desire. You are pursuing that which you desire.” Notice verse 5, when Solomon went to Gibeon to offer these sacrifices, the Lord appeared to him in the dream. “Ask what you wish. What is it you desire? What is it you long for?” That’s a great question. What is it you seek? What do you want? What do you desire? I want to fulfill your desire. What is it?

Now, that’s a great question. I think that is worth us to answer. What is it that you would say to that question? What is it you want? What is the highest ask? The greatest thing that you could possibly ask for, the one that’s higher than all other things. What would you want? Now that might seem like a philosophical conundrum, but no, no, it’s a very important question because it has everything to do with who you will become.

See, I think a lot of people, especially people out there in the world, their desires are too small. They’re too small. As an example, to quote from the famous American philosopher from the ’60s, Janis Joplin. Does anybody remember Janis Joplin from the ’60s? You’re officially old. I know a lot about Janis Joplin in the ’60s. I read about this in the history books and I– but to quote from Janis Joplin, “Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz? My friends all drive Porsches. I must make amends. Worked hard on my life, no help from my friends. Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz?” Yes. That’s just about as good as it’s sounding when she’s singing too.

Here’s my point. That’s too small. That’s your ask? That’s not enough. There are deeper things. There are greater things. That’s not enough. I need more than that. The soul that longs for God wants more than that. That’s not enough. Even the finest things of the world are not enough. I want more. There are deeper things. There are greater things. I want more. I want more of God. I want His glory. I want what He is doing in my soul. I want that. There are deeper things. There are greater things.

See, I submit that we right now are pursuing what we truly desire, what we truly want, because what we desire, what we seek has everything to do with what the soul will become. What you will become has everything to do with what you are pursuing. Psalm 37:4-5, great verse. “Delight yourself in the Lord, and He will give you the desires of your heart.” He’ll do it. He will give it to you. He will give you your desires, and that is the first phrase. “When you delight yourself in the Lord.” Now, that is a great phrase. I love that phrase. Delight yourself.

II. In Wisdom, Ask God for Much

It’s a great word to delight yourself in the Lord is one of the deepest understandings in the word of God. David mentioned it many times. “I delight in the Almighty,” he said. Job mentioned, “I delight in the Almighty.” Moses said, “The one thing I seek is the glory of God in my life.” You can go on and on to see the great men and women of the Bible, and the greatest desire that they had was glory. More of God. I delight in the Almighty. Then He will give you what you desire, the desires of your heart. He says, “Commit your way to the Lord. Trust also in Him, and He’ll do it.” Great word.

See, I’m convinced that you will look back at your life and you’ll see that that which you seek itself has been transformed when you delight in the Almighty. Look back on your life I think you’ll see it. That the things that you long for now, when you delight in the Lord, when you seek for more of God’s glory, the things that you delight in, the things that you seek for now are very different than what you long for and sought after when you are in the world. They have changed. Like the things I long for, the things I pursued, the things that I dreamed about, [laughs] they have changed.

Those things are nothing in compared to what I have discovered in the name of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. He is transformed what I long for. Then notice, then when you ask, see, in wisdom ask for much. Long for much. In great measure and overflowing abundance, that’s what Jesus said. When Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you’ll find. Knock and the door will be open.” He’s referring there, when He says that, He’s referring to the presence of the Living God, the Holy Spirit. Ask, seek, knock. That is what God wants you to seek and ask and knock. You’ll find that God will delight to give it to you an overflowing abundance.

When God asked Solomon, “What is it you wish for me to give to you?” Him recognized his insufficiency. I cannot do this thing. I don’t know how to do this thing. I am so insufficient. He knew he was inadequate for what God had called him to be. He asked for an understanding heart, that he would be able to have wisdom, to be able to lead and judge his people of Israel to discern good in evil. In other words, there was a good and Godly purpose to what he asked. Good and godly purpose for what he asked.

See, this is a very important thing. There’s something in us that needs to have purpose. What is that good and Godly purpose for which you ask, “God, I am insufficient for this, I need you. I need you to pour it out. I have this great purpose and desire, I long for something glorious, but I need you to do it.” That is a great word. Desire something so great that you need God’s help to do it. Dream, seek after, pursue some glorious thing that you need God’s help to do it.

A. God’s wisdom is a great treasure

I’ll tell you, this is a very personal thing for me. I have so many things, so many desires to fulfill dreams and visions of glorious things all that are so far, I need God’s help to do it, but it’s exciting to think what God might do. Amen. See, there’s good and godly purpose to all of our lives. Seek for God’s wisdom to do it, long for something higher, something greater. I need God’s wisdom to do it. For, we see this, God’s wisdom is a great treasure. How precious is wisdom? How valuable is wisdom?

Well, God’s word says that it is more precious– God’s wisdom is more precious than great wealth. Notice Proverbs 16:16, “How much better it is to get wisdom than gold, and to get understanding is to be chosen above silver.” Now, I was thinking of an illustration. Imagine if you have a fellow here, let’s say, and this fellow has an abundance of wealth. He’s very wealthy, and he has an abundance of wisdom. He’s very, very wise. Then you say to this person, “Now you must give up one or the other. Which one would you give up? If you had to give up great wealth or great wisdom, which would you give up if you had to give up one?”

I can absolutely guarantee you what that fellow would say, because he’s wise. He has an abundance of wisdom. He would say, “If I had to give up one, I give up my wealth. I got to have my wisdom. I got to have my wisdom. I can’t give that up. Wealth you can rebuild. I can rebuild that from scratch, but I got to have my wisdom. I’ve got to have my wisdom. It’s too precious to me.” Sometimes an older person is asked the question, “If you could go back and do it all again, if you could go back and live your life over, if you could go back and do it all again, would you do it?”

Sometimes I’m asked that philosophical question, I get asked that sometimes. Would you do it if you could go back and live your life over? My answer is always the same. If I can bring my wisdom back with me, but if I don’t have my wisdom, no way. My wisdom is too precious. I do not want to give that up. No, I made too many mistakes. I learned the hard way too many times. I don’t want to repeat those things ever again. I value what God has given to me and I never want to let go of it. Amen.

Here’s a great one. Proverbs 23:23. “Buy truth and don’t sell it.” [laughs] Great. That is great investment advice. Buy and hold. Buy wisdom, don’t sell it. No. Get wisdom, get instruction, gain understanding. Go get, receive more, more, more. Proverbs 4:7. “The beginning of wisdom is acquire wisdom.” Number one principle of wisdom. Number one principle, get more wisdom, get more, and then with all you’re acquiring, get understanding.

Solomon knew that he needed wisdom. I have to have this in order to fulfill my calling. Same is true for you and me. You cannot do whatever God has called you to do without wisdom from God. For without wisdom, you may start well, but you will not end well. See, the wisdom of God and the word of God are of great value because of what it brings, what it produces, the results.

For example, Psalm 19: 7-11, “The law of the Lord is perfect.” Why? Because it restores the soul. The testimony of the Lord is sure. Why? Because it makes wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord all right, because it rejoices the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure and it enlightens the eyes. It brings about a great result. Then he adds, the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever. The judgments of the Lord are true, they are righteous altogether.

They are more desirable than gold. Yes, than much fine gold, and then notice, and they are sweeter also than honey, and the drippings of the honeycomb. In keeping them there is great reward. The results of it are a great reward. Would you notice that phrase? I love that where he says, “And not only is it more to be desired than gold, yes, but it is sweet.”

It’s sweeter than honey.

Now, that is a beautiful picture. It’s sweet to the soul. It’s a delight to the soul. Something beautiful. See, when God pours out His glory, it’s sweet. It’s joy itself. It’s overflowing abundant peace. It’s the presence of love itself. God is love, and His glory fills and overflows in the soul with something so beautiful. It’s sweeter than honey. It’s beautiful. What a delight it is.

B. Learn to discern – by applying God’s Word

Then we see the applying of it. Learn to discern. He said, “I need to be able to discern.” Well, you’ll learn to discern by applying God’s word, which is that wisdom that comes from God. He’s asking for an understanding heart to discern. Wisdom is taking the word of God and then applying it correctly to the matters of life. That’s discernment. How does that happen? Well, first, by gaining, by growing in the knowledge of God’s word. Secondly, then by having the heart of God, that is found in the word.

See, this is very, very important. One of the most important things to understand when it comes to studying the word of God. It’s not just a matter of study, not just a matter of being informed. It has everything to do with knowing the one who sent it. To know the heart of God is the key to living in it, because the heart of God is what will transform the soul. The word of God is use of the Spirit of God to stir up life, because the word of God is the heart of God. We need to know the heart of God.

As a pastor, one of the great delights of my life, I love teaching the word of God. I love teaching. It is a delight to me, but one of the things I’ve come to understand is, I don’t want people just to know the word, I want people to know the one who gave the word. I want you to know Him. I want you to understand how much He loves you. I want you to have your soul made beautiful in the glory. That is the transforming power of God. We need both.

Knowledge by itself is not enough. Knowledge by itself will puff one up, become arrogant in his knowledge, but love builds up. You need knowledge, yes, but so that you will know the heart that builds and edifies. Oh, let the church be edified, be built, be falling more and more and love, meaning more the glory of God. You can gain wisdom by many different ways. You can gain some wisdom just from the experiences of life. Touch a hot burner, you get burned, lesson learned.

You can get some wisdom just by watching other people and how they live their lives and the mistakes they make. Hopefully you can learn from that. I remember an example is watching my own father. Many of you know, of course, my story that my father was an alcoholic, angry, cantankerous, and difficult, so I gained a lot of wisdom because I watched him waste his life. I watched as he destroyed relationships with alcohol and anger in a cantankerous difficult manner. I watched and I decided I want something better than that.

There are better ways to live than that. I want something better. You can learn from watching other people. By the way, in case you don’t know the end of my father’s story is quite glorious. When he was 75 years old, he came to church. I never thought I would ever see his shadow across the threshold of a church, but he came to church when he was 75 years old because he realized I’m near the end and I’ve wasted my life. He came, his eyes opened, I need more. “Can I come to church?” “Oh, I would delight, yes.” Maybe the second or third time he came, I gave an invitation to receive Christ, and I looked back and there he was, he stood up on his feet like this. I got to baptize him with my own hands. Glorious.

It’s not too late, it’s never too late to understand that God will transform your life. There’s wisdom also then, of course. We need mostly the wisdom that comes from the Lord. James 1:5, “If any of you lacks wisdom, well, let him ask of God who gives to all generously and without reproach.” He’ll never reproach you for asking for wisdom. It will be given, He will do it. You ask for wisdom, He’ll do it. If you ever get to a place in your life, when you say, “God, I don’t know what to do. I don’t know what to do. I’m out of options. I don’t know what to do.” That’s when you pray.

“You said, God, that I could ask for wisdom. I need your wisdom now.” Then you wait for it. He promised He’ll give it. You wait, don’t move. Don’t move until God will reveal to you by the impressing of the spirit of wisdom upon you the way to navigate through this thing. You wait, God will do what He says. We need to grow in the knowledge of God’s word. Because God’s word is not only the wisdom of God, it is the heart of God.

2 Timothy 2:15, “Be diligent to prove yourselves or present yourselves approved of God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, but rightly dividing the word of truth.” If you rightly divide the word of truth, you will meet the Lord. That leads us to a deeper thought, a deeper understanding. It leads us to having our senses trained to discern good and evil. That’s what He asked for.

Notice this, it’s one of the deepest understandings, to have your senses trained to discern good and evil means that you with the wisdom that comes from God’s word and the wisdom that comes from the heart of the Lord, can see deeply into the matters of life. That you can perceive and see into the matters of life with greater wisdom. Notice Hebrews 5:13-14. This is such a deep understanding. Literally, books could be written on this, because it’s such an important understanding.

He writes it this way. “Everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of God. He’s just an infant.” Now, he’s talking here about, again, the principles contained in the word of God. He just said a few verses back here. He says, “Some need to be reminded again and again of the elementary things,” the ABCs of the word of God. He says, “Everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the deeper things. No, he’s just an infant, but solid food is for the mature who because of practice, they have trained their senses to discern good and evil.”

C. Don’t just have wisdom; live by it

Notice what it says. They are partaking of the word, they’re partaking of the deeper word, and then because of practice, they take the word and they put it into practice, and there by that, they gain a deeper insight into the matters of life. Increasing layer by layer, you might say, brick by brick, block by block, rock by rock on the word of God, they are training their senses to discern good and evil. They are looking more deeply into the matters of life. In other words, don’t just have wisdom, live by it. That’s the key to the understanding. Don’t just have wisdom, live by it. See, having wisdom and living by it are two different things. You can have wisdom and not live by it.

See, firstly, start with, okay, well choose then choose which wisdom that you’ll live by. Choose which wisdom you’ll follow, man’s wisdom, world’s wisdom, or God’s wisdom, because each will bring very different results. Here’s what I mean. If you were to submit a question to both worldly wisdom and God’s wisdom, you’ll get very different answers. Same question, you submit the same question to worldly wisdom and to God’s wisdom, you’ll get very different answers.

Then once you decide that I would rather have the wisdom that comes from God, then you must choose then to live by that wisdom, for having wisdom and living by wisdom are not the same thing. For example, knowing the right thing to do and doing that thing that’s right are not the same things. In the same way, for example, intelligence. A person may have intelligence, doesn’t mean they always live by that intelligence.

I was thinking of an illustration of people who have intelligence but don’t always use intelligence. Let’s use for the sake of a human illustration, lawyers. These are real questions that lawyers ask witnesses on the witness stand as recorded by court reporters. Ready? First one. Attorney, “How was your first marriage terminated?” Witness, “By death.” Attorney, “By whose death was it terminated?” Witness, “I’ll let you take a guess.”

Here’s another one. Attorney, “Now, doctor, isn’t it true that when a person dies in a sleep that he doesn’t know about it until the next morning?” Witness, “Did you actually pass the bar exam?” Okay, last one. Attorney, “Can you describe the individual?” Witness, “Well, he was about medium height and had a beard.” Attorney, “Was this person a male or female?” Witness, “Well, unless the circus was in town, I’m going with male.” Although in today’s modern world, all bets are off on that one. Okay, don’t send me any emails. That was just an illustration.

Here’s my point. Solomon received great wisdom, but he didn’t always use it. Case in point, he has 700 wives and 300 concubines. Need I say more? There are a lot of jokes just sitting there waiting for me, but wisdom says, don’t do it. No, this is what the Lord Jesus said. Matthew 7:24. Jesus said this, “Therefore, everyone who hears these words of mine and then acts on them,” see, this is the key. “Everyone who hears these words and then acts on them, lives by them, he can be compared to a wise man who built his house on a rock,” that is the greatest truth of all.

The one who hears the words of Christ, takes the words of Christ to heart, let them become the treasure that is written upon the soul. He is the one who will take the word and then press it into his life. He is the one who’s wise. Desire great things, deeper things, glorious things, wisdom from God, seek desire, but live it. Put it into the life. That is wisdom itself. For what it brings about in your life is glory, beauty, the transformed beautiful soul.

Let’s pray. Lord, what can we say? You have revealed to us the deeper things. We long for, we seek after the deeper things to delight in the Almighty, to seek for glory, transform life and soul. Church, how many will say that to the Lord today? I delight in the Almighty, but I want to know what it means to fully delight in the Almighty. I long, I pursue, I’m asking for more, more of your glory, more of your presence, more of the heart of God upon my soul. It is a great treasure to me. It’s a great treasure. I’m asking, I seek for more. I delight in the Almighty, but I want more. Is that you?

Would you declare that by just raising your hand unto the Lord today? I delight in the Almighty but I want more, more, for I know what it brings, I know what it does. I know the results. It’s beautiful on my soul. I delight in you, I want more. Father, thank you for everyone who has lifted their hand to you in a declaration of longing for more. We give you thanks and glory and honor in Jesus name, and everyone said? Amen. Let’s give Him praise for all He’s done.

Wisdom of the Ages
Psalm 71:1-24

February 2-3, 2024

Psalm 71. Now, the introduction of the Psalm oftentimes tells us who wrote it, but not this time. We don’t really know, but I submit that David’s fingerprints are all over it, because the words and the phrases, they sound like David. The attitude of faith that we read, it sounds like David. The beautiful heart after God, sounds like David. In other words, I’m pretty sure it was written by David. Pretty sure. David is an old man when he wrote this Psalm. Now, we know that because he says so.

It’s right there in the Psalm. Interestingly, even in David’s old age, he is pressured by many, many troubles that you would think, I suppose, David would get a break. He’s been going through years and years and years of troubles. There is still an unrelenting pressure of trouble, and so the Psalm is David crying out to God, asking God for help and deliverance. Now, while David is crying out to God for help, at the same time, we read then some of the greatest spiritual lessons of life.

We would do well to listen to the words of life, the wisdom of the ages that is found in this Psalm. Someone who has walked with faithfulness throughout a very difficult journey. He’s got something to say. Someone who has learned to rely on the help of God through all of the circumstance of adversity, he’s got something to say. When he has come through every battle with a testimony of God’s help, he’s got something to say that we need to take hold of for ourselves.

Now, what we have again is someone in this Psalm who gives us the testimony of the wisdom of the ages. He’s pleading with God for strength to finish well. In his older age, he cannot afford any missteps. I think older people would recognize when you get a little older, you cannot afford missteps. He has learned to rely on God’s help, and he is crying out to God here again. He’s older, he needs God’s help. The problem with being young is that you can’t see very well.

Now, right away, I can already hear somebody saying, well, wait, I think you’re confused, pastor. You see, it’s the young people who’ve got better eyesight and it’s the older people that need glasses. It’s the older people who can’t see very well. Well, in a physical sense, that’s true. By the way, do you know what they call the condition when somebody has– they need glasses in their older years? Is called Presbyterianopia. Actually, that’s not true. It’s called presbyopia.

It comes through the Greek word presbuteros which means elder. That’s why they call it the Presbyterian Church because it’s run by elders. This is true. I’m not making this up. When you get older and have an elder eye, they call it presbyopia. Here’s my point. You’re probably wondering where are you going with this? Here’s my point. When you’re older, your physical eyes may be dimmer, but your spiritual eyes are stronger because you can see farther. What I mean by that is, you can look back and see farther.

You have all of these years to see back and all of the wisdom, and all of the lessons, and all that you’ve gained from all of those years so that now you can look with eyes that can see. Now you can see in a deeper spiritual sense what people who don’t have that wisdom and that experience, and that revival have a very difficult time seeing. See, when you’ve been through the battles and you have seen God revive you and help you and be that help in time of need, and you believe and know that God will do it again, you can see better than you’ve ever seen in your life.

That’s the point. You’ve been through so many tough roads, you can see now there are things that you can only gain by wisdom. You can see the consequences of choices that can bring spiritual disaster. You can see the consequences that will bring spiritual blessings in your life. You know where blessing comes from, you can see. That is the wisdom of the ages. This is difficult for those who are young because they have physical strength, but there are things you can only gain by the wisdom of living in the battle and the trenches of life.

There are things you can only learn by being in the fight, by being in the battle. When you’ve been through enough of those battles. When you’ve walked with the help of God through so many hard roads and you’ve seen God’s help over and over and you’ve seen God walking with you, you have learned a great lesson. You have learned to rely on the help of God more and more. This Psalm is one of those Psalms filled with the wisdom of the ages. You might even call it the wisdom of the aged. As we hear these words of wisdom, take them to heart.

I. God will Meet You in Your Insufficiency

When you take these words to heart, I tell you, you will have gained the ability to see just a little bit farther. Let’s read it. Psalm 71:1, “To thee, O Lord, I have taken refuge. Let me never be ashamed and in your righteousness, deliver me, rescue me, incline your ear to me, and save me. Be thou to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come.” Write that down. I mean, underline that. That’s a great phrase. “Be thou to me, a rock of habitation to which I may continually come. For you have given commandment to save me, for you are my rock and you are my fortress. Rescue me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the grasp of the wrong door, out of the grasp of the ruthless man, for you are my hope. O Lord God.”

Here’s another one of those great phrases. Underline, highlight, dogear, memorize this right here. “For you are my hope, and O Lord God, you are my confidence since my youth, for by you, I have been sustained from my birth. You are He who took me from my mother’s womb. My praise is continually of thee. I have become a marvel to many.” This is a great phrase. “I have become a marvel to many because you are my strong refuge and my mouth is filled with your praise, and my mouth is filled with your glory all day long.

Do not cast me off in the time of old age. Do not forsake me when my strength fails, for my enemies have spoken against me and those who watch for my life.” David is still, even in his older time, he’s still the threat of his very life. He says, “Those who have consulted together, and they say, “Look, God has forsaken him. Now is our opportunity. Pursue him, seize him. There is no one to deliver him. Now is our chance,” but God, do not be far from me. O my God, hasten to my help. Let those who are my adversaries of my soul, let them be ashamed and consumed. Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor those who seek to injure me, but as for me, I will hope continually and I will praise you yet more and more, and my mouth shall tell of your righteousness and of your salvation all day long for I do not know the sum of them. In other words, I have not yet seen the end of them. For I will come with the mighty deeds of the Lord God, and I will make mention of your righteousness. Yours alone. O God, you have taught me from my youth, and I still declare your righteousness.

I still declare your wonderful deeds. Even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me, until I declare your strength to this generation or the next generation. Until I declare your power to all who are to come. For you, your righteousness, O God, it reaches to the heavens. You who have done great things, O God, who is like you? You who Has shown me many troubles and many distresses, I know you will revive me again and you will bring me up again from the depths of the earth.

Oh, may you increase my greatness and turn and comfort me. I will praise you with the harp, even your truth, O my God, to you, I will sing praises with the lyre, O thou holy one of Israel. My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to you, and all my soul will sing praises that which you have redeemed. My tongue will utter righteousness all day long for they aren’t ashamed and they are humiliated who seek my heart.” Oh, what a great Psalm is this. Don’t you just love the Psalms?

I mean, they’re just filled with such richness of glory and great words of life, wisdom of the ages, so much for us to take hold of and to apply and to gain the insight for our lives. Starting with this, great life lesson, wisdom of the ages that God will meet you in your insufficiency. This is one of the great truths of life. I tell you what I have come to really trust in this great truth that God will meet you in your insufficiency. See, David’s crying out to God because he needs God’s help. The problems and stresses are very great.

In fact, I submit that this was written when he is in the darkest hour, the deepest trouble he’s ever faced in his life. One of the greatest lessons of David’s life is that God would meet him in that insufficiency. In other words, without God, David is insufficient. That’s what it means. That David could do none of those great things attributed to David unless God were with him. Now, it’s God’s help that makes me great. You can see all of the amazing feats and attributes and things accomplished, and battle and war and leadership.

All of this, David says, “Only because God helped.” He believed that God would meet him in his insufficiency. God is a refuge. God is a strength, the very present help in times of trouble. Notice Verse 1, “In you, O Lord, I have taken refuge. In your righteousness deliver me, be thou to me, a rock of habitation to which I may continually come.” I love that. That is a beautiful picture. God is a habitation, and David comes continually to dwell in that place. What does that mean?

Be thou to me a rock of habitation means David loves to be there. David loves to stay in the nearness of the Almighty’s beautiful. It’s a life lesson. You come to the rock of habitation and God will meet you in your insufficiency. God will meet you in your time of need. When you are in trouble, God will meet you there when you come to the rock. Psalm 91:1-2 gives us the same idea. “He who dwells in the shelter of the most high.” See, you’re dwelling in the rock of habitation in the nearness of God.

He is the one who will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. Oh, I love that phrase. “I will say to the Lord, my refuge, my fortress, my God in whom I trust.” When Moses was an old man, he gave the speech that we know as the book of Deuteronomy. That’s Moses’ old man wisdom of the ages speech. In that book of Deuteronomy, he at one point says, “The eternal God is a dwelling place.” That is a beautiful deep spiritual truth. The eternal God is a dwelling place, and underneath are the everlasting arms. Beautiful.

You may be pressed down, weighted down, burden down, but there’s a dwelling place, and there you will find the everlasting arms. Jude 1:24, “Now unto Him, who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before His glorious presence, without fault, and with great joy.” David has learned that God is that rock of habitation. David has made a habit in his life of just dwelling in the nearness of God. For when you come to the rock of habitation, something amazing happens on the soul.

Something glorious is poured out upon you when you come to the rock of habitation. That’s where David’s strength comes from. That’s where David’s faith comes from because he’s learned to dwell on the rock of habitation. He has learned to dwell in the nearness of God. That reminded of the time when David wanted to build the temple in Jerusalem to honor God, and the Lord responded with a very firm, “No, David, you are a man of war. You will not build the temple. The temple will be built by a man in peace.

However, David, it was good that you had that on your heart. It pleases me that you wanted to do something for me, so grand. Now, I want to do something for you.” He says, “I will build you a house.” This is glorious. “I will build you a house and everlasting kingdom, and the great Messiah who comes at the end of the age will be known as the Son of David. I will do something for you.” David is so amazed at this blessing. I love what David does in response.

When he hears this word of God of just, “David, you did well that you desire to do such a glorious thing. I will do something for you. I will build your name a house, even to the point that the great Messiah who comes to rule and reign the nations of the world at the end of the age will be called the Son of David.” David is so amazed at this that he goes to the Tabernacle and he just sits there. I love that scene. David just wants to dwell. You’re amazing. This is amazing.

2 Samuel 7, “Who am I, Lord? Who am I, O Lord God, that you have brought me this far? You are great. O Lord God, there is none like you and there is no God besides you according to all that we’ve heard with our ears.” David just wanted to dwell and to give God his heart, because then we see in Psalm 71, where David is going next with this. He understood that God would meet him in his insufficiency, so much so that he said, “You are my confidence.” O Lord God, this is a great truth.

A. God must become your confidence

God must become your confidence, the bearing of confidence in your life. Verse 5, this is a very difficult lesson to learn. See, when you’re young, your security and your confidence can be in your youth itself. You’re strong, you’re young, you got your whole future ahead of you. You got time on your side. You’ve got strength on your side, you got vitality on your side, you got youth. You may not have much, but you got your youth. I remember when Jordy and I first started our relationship, I literally had nothing and I drove an old junker of a car. I know. Let me tell you how bad of a car it was. How bad was it? It was so bad that to take her home from Hillsboro to Beaverton, where she lived, burned a quart of oil. Then to get home from Beaverton to Hillsboro, burned a quart of oil. I had a case of oil in my trunk. I was young and I was virile and I was strong. You know what I’m talking about, guys. I’m young, right?

It doesn’t matter whether you’re young or whether you’re old, it’s a mistake to trust in yourself. It’s a mistake. Let’s give the Lord praise. Absolutely right. It is a misstep. It’s a mistake. Those who trust in the Lord, those who wait for the Lord, they will renew their strength. God will make you walk on high places. Let God be your confidence. I was thinking of an illustration. 1872, church leaders in England were planning a revival meeting. At the revival meeting, one of the leaders said to the group, we need D.L. Moody.

Now, D.L. Moody we might remember as one of the famous American pastors that was really bringing great revival. We need D.L. Moody here. They started to debate, and finally, somebody said, “Why do we need D.L. Moody? What is it? What? Does D.L. Moody have a monopoly on God?” One of the young pastors says, “No, but God has a monopoly on him,” That changes everything. God is the strength. See, God is a rock of habitation. It’s a theme of the Scriptures. This is a life lesson.

It is a theme of Scriptures that God does not want you to be self-confident. God doesn’t want me self-confident? What does He want? Does He want me insecure? What does He want? Should I be filled with anxiety and insecurity? To which I say, are those your only two options? Is that all you got for options? Is it either self-confidence or anxiety? Is that all you got? Is that all the options we got here, self-confidence or fear and insecurity? No, I submit to you there’s another option.

It’s called God confidence. God confidence. Because by definition, self-confidence is confidence in self. If you are confident in self, then you don’t need God. If you don’t need God, you will only go so far as your strength, and it’s not much. If you don’t have God, you will only go as far as your insufficiency. If you have God, God will meet you at that point of insufficiency. Then from there, it’s all God. It’s all God, it’s all God’s help. Amen? Absolutely right. Psalm 20:7, “Some boast in chariots, some boast in horses.

In other words, strength. No, we will boast in the name of the Lord, our God.” You want to boast about something, boast about the name. Psalm 27, David gives us this insight. “The Lord is my light, the Lord is my salvation. You tell me, whom should I fear?” This is not confidence in self. No, God is my light. “The Lord is the defense of my life. You tell me, whom should I dread?” It’s not self-confidence. God is my defense. Then he says, “Though a host arise against me, that’s a large army. If I’m outnumbered, my heart will not fear.”

B. God’s strength is made perfect in my weakness

“Though war arise against me, in spite of this, I shall be confident.” I am confident, but it’s confidence in my God. That is what faith is because it’s the great principle. God’s strength is made perfect in my weakness. God’s strength is made perfect in my weakness. It’s a principle. It’s in the Bible as a principle to take hold of. David believed that God would meet him in that weakness, in that insufficiency. He believed that God’s strength was made perfect in that weakness.

Notice verses 7-8, “I have become a marvel to many.” They looked at David’s life and they’re like, “That’s amazing. He’s a marvel. Would you look at that?” It’s like David. What is it with David? I mean, David gets in the deepest troubles and then somehow, some way, he comes out victorious. What is it with this David?” What is it? People get, “This is amazing. This is a marvel.” I’m a marvel to many. You are my strong refuge and my mouth will be filled with your praise.

“I give you praise and my mouth is filled with your glory all day long. Don’t cast me off in the time of my old age. Don’t forsake me now when my strength fails.” In other words, David has seen God rescue him over and over and over. Now that he’s come to his weakest point, his darkest hour.

I tell you when it was, it was when his own virile son, his own virile son, Absalom, betrayed him and brought about a great conspiracy. Even went over the men of the army to Absalom’s side.

Young virile, good-looking Absalom, he was, you can read it. It says he was one of the best-looking young men in Israel. If you’re going to do a conspiracy, I suppose it helps if you’re good-looking. He had it all. He had the height, the look, and he had wonderful, beautiful hair. That helps a lot too, just hair. The men were like, “Oh, there’s a man, look at the man.” The women go,” Uh, he is something.” That’s what David is up against. The virile young Absalom, David’s old. “Don’t forsake me now, O Lord.”

People were wagging their tongues at this point. They’re wagging their tongues. There is no help for him in God. Notice, look, verse 11, “God has forsaken him.” That’s what they said. Because David had to flee Jerusalem to save his life, to save the city, he had to flee. David the king is running, fleeing Jerusalem. They, “Aha. See, see, see, there’s no help for him. God has forsaken him. Now is our opportunity. Seize him, pursue him.” Psalm 3, he speaks of it there. “Many are saying of my soul, there is no deliverance for him.

There’s no help for him now. He’s beyond it. God has forsaken him.” He says there in Psalm 3, “But you, Lord, you are a shield. I know, my God.” Here he is. He’s in his old age. He’s not the virile young man he once was, but now he declares it, but I know, my God, that I know. I have better eyes today than ever before in my life. I can tell you that God is a shield about me. He is my glory and He is the lifter of my head.

See, now that David is old, his strength is waning. Yes, and he now has need of God to meet him in that efficiency more than ever before. Anyone over 50 knows that you get weaker as you get older. David did. In fact, there was this one scene that’s described when David is older. Interestingly, even though he’s older, he was in the battle, in the thick of the battle. It was a battle against the Philistines and David was right there in the thick of it with his solder wailing about and says that he began to grow weary because he’s getting older now, but he’s right there he’s still doing it. You start to get weary. Now, it tells us that there was one of the sons of Goliath in that battle and when that son of Goliath saw that David was there, he decided to make his way right toward David. When one of the generals, one of the commanders, saw him coming barreling right at David, he came in to help David and put down the son of Goliath.

Then after the battle, they said, “David, no more. You’re not going out to battle ever again.” It happens to all of us, everyone gets older, but those who are wise will know that God will meet you in your insufficiency. I’m here to tell you that your life will be far greater if you will learn this lesson when you are young. David says, “You are my confidence and You have been my confidence since my youth.” God was David’s confidence when he went out to face that giant the first time.

God was David’s confidence when he was victorious in battle, after battle, after battle. Great feats of victory, God was his confidence. When he was young and now that he’s old, it’s still his confidence. My point being is that this is something that if you would learn it when you are young, it will completely transform your life. Amen? Let’s give the Lord praise. It’s a great humbling truth.

It’s a great humbling truth that we were born in the weakness and sin of man and you will continue in that sin the rest of your life until you have learned what it means to find the help of God. Amen? Let’s give the Lord praise. Exactly right. God’s strength is made perfect in our weakness. Do you believe it? I have seen it over and over and over in my life. It’s a life lesson for me. I know we’re short in time, but I want to tell you something, my own struggle. I’m getting older, you all saw that. Yes, I know.

Many of you know also that I have been struggling in the last two years with my voice and I’ve been seeing doctors and specialists and the ENTs and neurologists and they’ve done genetic testing and all manner of testing. They’ve decided that I have a myopathy, which is an inherited muscle weakness of my throat and my speaking muscles and that is genetic inherited, and that it will progress slowly and get worse and worse. In other words, it’ll never get better.

Of all the things and I thought, “I’m a pastor, I speak, and that’s what I do. I speak five times a week.” It was very hard to hear, honestly. At first, when they were trying to figure out what it was, for two months they thought it was ALS which would’ve meant I wouldn’t have had long to live, but praise God it was not that. Yes, praise God. I’ve come to see that now, God will need to meet me in my insufficiency. Moses, you might remember, had difficulty with speech. Did you know that? Moses had difficulty with speech.

Paul had difficulty with speech. Did you know that? He did. I thought, “Well, if Moses had trouble with speech and Paul had trouble with speech, at least I’m in good company.” Then I realized if God does anything with me, even with my weakness of trouble in speaking, then you know it’s God who did it and it wasn’t me. Amen? Amen. 2 Corinthians 12:8-9 where Paul spoke of his weakness, he said, “I implored the Lord three times that this thorn in my flesh,” whatever it was.

II. Declare God’s Strength to this Generation

“I implored the Lord three times that this thing, this thorn in my flesh, might leave me, but the Lord said to me, my grace is sufficient for you. For power is perfected in weakness. Most gladly, therefore, I would rather boast about my weakness so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.” Now, that is a life lesson.

Then notice when David goes next in the song because it’s quite beautiful to declare God’s strength to this generation, verses 17-18, “O God, you have taught me from my youth and I still declare your wondrous deeds and even when I am old and gray, O God, do not forsake me until I declare your strength to this generation until I declare your power to all who are to come.” David is saying, I’m not done yet. I’m not done yet. I’m not done until I declare your strength to this generation, the young generation.

I want the next generation to know what I have come to know. I want them to know the wisdom of the ages. I want them to be men and women of strength, a victory of faith. You have taught me from my youth, I am still declaring your wonderful deeds. See, youth need the wisdom that comes from the experience of trusting God through the hard battles of life, but they don’t have that experience but those who are older do.

A. God has done great things

When you’re old, you want to tell the younger people what great things that God can do so that they don’t repeat the mistakes that you made. Anybody who’s old enough want to give your testimony? I don’t want them to repeat my mistakes, I want them to stand taller and higher. This is what David wants them to know, that God has done great things. Notice verses 18-19, “I will declare your strength to this generation. I will declare your power to all who are to come.

For your righteousness, O God, it reaches to the heavens. You who have done great things, O God, who is like you.” Then there’s this, we read it when we were in Psalm 37:25-26, “Once I was young, now I am old, yet I have never seen the righteous forsaken, I’ve never seen it. I have never ever seen the righteous forsaken, and I have never seen his descendants begging bread. All day long, He is gracious and lends, and His descendants are a blessing.”

Notice, deep truths in those verses. I have never seen the righteous forsaken. I’m an old man, I’ve never seen the righteous forsaken and I’ve never seen His descendants begging bread. Notice, His descendants. All day long, He’s gracious, He lends and His descendants are a blessing. See the influence from one generation to another? See the blessing that flows from my faithful generation to the next generation? I was hearing the story of two men giving their testimony at a revival meeting.

The first man got up to give us testimony and he said, “Once I was an alcoholic, a drunk, worldly in every way. I chased women, booze, parties. I went to the bottom of everything the world had and there in the bottom, in the pit, God got a hold on my life. God saved me and God strengthened me. God gave me forgiveness, God gave me hope, God gave me life, and I am thankful to God for His grace.” Amen. Then the second man stood up. Now, the first gentleman who spoke gave a powerful testimony of how God can save out of the the brokenness and worldliness of life, but that is not my testimony. I’ve never been drunk. I’ve never slept around. I have not gone the way of the world. I was raised in a Christian home. My parents prayed for me every day. All I’ve ever known is church. All my life, we went to church every week. My testimony is that not only does God have the power to save you from the world, but He also has the power to keep you from the world. Amen.

He said, “My testimony is that I thank God for His glory in my life and for keeping me from falling, so that I can declare his faithfulness today.” I was at a wedding earlier today, young man, young woman who’ve been in the church for several years. I looked at them as I sat in the watching this wedding. What a fine, fine young man? What a wonderful character of a young woman? Godly families. Both of them. Both of them, Godly families. They came from Godly families.

I thought this is the result of those parents praying for those children, pouring their lives into those children so that those children could stand that day. I started to think of their children one day when that fine young man and that fine young woman, they’re getting married today, one day when they have kids, oh, those kids will be raised with the advantage of having parents who will pour into them and pour into them and pour into them. Right? David is saying the same thing.

“Sustain me, Lord, until I can speak to the next generation. I want to build something in the next generation. I want to do something for the next generation.” If you are old, you got something to say. Your view is a lot better, you can see better than people can see when they’re young. They’ve invested. I can add my own testimony. Though I was raised with every disadvantage. Many of you know my story, my father being an alcoholic, and angry and all that, that my mother made a point of making sure that somehow, some way we got to church so that I could hear a better word.

Her steadfast faithfulness was she invested in my life. She spoke of issues of character in life many years ago. I remember a funny story many years ago when the church was very young. We used to have recordings of the messages available on cassette tape. If you don’t know what a cassette tape is, turn to somebody who’s got gray hair and they will tell you what a cassette tape is. People could order tapes. They would’ve to fill out a piece of paper and then we would make the cassette tape, and then send it to them.

One day, I’m walking by the desk and I saw an order for a tape. I’m just a young pastor, I’m excited that anybody wants one of my tapes. Then I said, “Oh, somebody ordered a tape.” I said, “Who was it? Who was it?” She said, “Your mother.” Actually, she used to listen to Bible teachers on the radio. That was what she did. She would spend her evenings listening to the radio and she would take notes in these notebooks. Then when she passed, we were going through her things and we found stacks and stacks and stacks of notebooks. Isn’t that amazing?

What a blessing it was for me at her funeral. My mom didn’t have anything to speak of in her life. She was poor all her life. Didn’t have anything. Never owned a home, never owned a car, never learned to drive, worked hard all her life, but she was faithful and she endured and she got to see her son become a pastor. When she passed, what an honor it was, this old woman who didn’t have a thing in her life, the church was filled with those who wanted to give honor to a faithful old saint. Amen? Amen.

David wants to be that influence. Sustain me, Lord, until I’ve said I want to speak of your greatness. Older people have something to say to those who are young. You know the story of the prodigal son is filled with this very lesson. It’s the story of the younger of two sons who comes to his father and he says, “Father, give me my share of the estate that falls to me.” He divided his wealth between them. Not many days later, the younger son gathered everything and went on a journey into a distant country.

There, he squandered all that money. He squandered all of it, all of his estate on the world, on the parties, the women, the alcohol. You can imagine his thought, “Give me my share of the estate. I need some money. I got some living to do. I need some money. Give me the portion of the estate.” There was a lot of money there. Give me the portion of the estate. I need some money because I got some living to do and I need some money to do that living with. I got some parties to do. I got some alcohol to buy.

I got some women to pay for. I need that money because I got me some living to do. There’s a lot of older people who would like to say to the young man, “You call that living? You think that’s life?” We need some older people who can speak the truth to the younger people. That’s not living. I’ve been there, I’ve done that. I’ve tasted it. That’s not living. You think that’s life, but it’s not. I’ve been there. I can see farther than you can see. That’s not living. I’ve lived long enough that I can tell you where life is found.

That kind of life, it brings death and trouble and sorrow and grief. Let me tell you what I know the older generation would say to a young– Let me tell you what I know. God is the fountain of life and He wants you to drink deeply from the river of His delights that my friend is living. Amen? Amen. David has something to say about God who Has done such great things in his life. He wants the next generation to believe that God will do great things for them.

By the way, that story of David’s darkest hour, David’s fleeing Jerusalem, it was amazing because God met him in his insufficiency. God met him in that darkest hour. Through the amazing hand of God, moving amongst the circumstances of that whole situation meant that one day after Absalom was defeated, that David came marching back into Jerusalem to rule and to reign as the king over to Israel yet again. They all said, “That is amazing. God did it again. That was amazing.”

B. May God increase your greatness

Then David says, “They say to me, they say, God has forsaken him, but God, here’s my prayer. Increase my greatness. Increase my greatness.” May God do that. Verses 19-21, “God has done great things. Who is like you or God? You, who have shown me many troubles many distresses, I know you will revive me again. Because you have done it over and over and over and over again, and I know you’ll do it. May you increase my greatness.” Now, he’s not saying I want to be greater than others. No, he’s saying, increase the greatness of my soul. Increase the capacity of my soul. I got something, David has got something to say. This life is filled with troubles far greater than you can ever imagine. David would say to a young man or a young woman, but God will see you through it. God will revive you, for there is none like you, O God. May you increase my soul. You may grow physically weaker, but you can grow spiritually stronger.

The greatest lessons you have learned in your life have everything to do with your soul. You have come to discover that God can make your soul sing. Sing the glory, sing the praises of the one who has revived your soul. Oh, may God increase His glory and His beauty as he pours more and more upon your soul. Dwell on that rock of habitation and God will meet you in your insufficiency.

Let’s pray. Lord, we love you and honor you and thank you for what a glorious great truth is discovered in these words. Lord, we pray that you would just meet us tonight in this place and we would say to you, be thou to me a rock of habitation, that I may continually come. I know you’ll meet me in my weakness. You meet me in my insufficiency. You pour out your glory and life, your strength, meet me. Church, how many would say to the Lord tonight I want you to be my rock of habitation, that I may continually come?

I want to dwell there on that rock and receive the glory and the strength and the power and the increase that comes because you will meet me in my insufficiency. You will pour strength into my weakness. Be thou to me that rock of habitation. Church, how many would say that to the Lord by just raising your hand? Just raise your hand to the Lord just as a prayer. Be thou to me that rock of habitation because I will continually come.

I will dwell in the shadow of the Almighty. God, we give you thanks, and glory, and honor for meeting us here in this place in Jesus’ name. Everyone said, can we give the Lord praise? Amen. Amen.

 

The Beautiful Thirsting Soul
Psalm 63:1-11

January 20-21, 2024

Psalm 63 is on the list of many people’s favorites when it comes to the Psalms. I don’t know if you have a favorite. Mine is Psalm 27, but I’ve got to tell you, Psalm 63 is way up there. It is so amazing. The introduction tells us that it was a Psalm of David written when he was in the wilderness of Judah. There are two possible times when David was in the wilderness of Judah and in difficulties of trouble.

One was before he was king and Saul was the king, and David was on the run from the anger and jealousy and rage of King Saul, who was very threatened by David. The other was much later when David was the king, and his own son, Solomon, had connived a conspiracy that was so deep that Absalom was bringing an army to bear onto Jerusalem, and David had to flee Jerusalem into the Judean wilderness. I believe that that was the circumstance in which David was in when he wrote Psalm 63. I think one of the reasons for that is because of what he wrote in verse 11 where he said, the king will rejoice in God. I doubt very sincerely if he was referring to King Saul there because Saul was definitely not rejoicing in God. He was reveling in rage and anger.

David was king enduring perhaps the greatest difficulty of his life. Although when you’ve been through as many difficulties as David, he was through one trouble after another. He spent years on the run from Saul where he said he was one step away from death. When you’ve been through as many adversities and difficulties as David, can one difficulty be greater than another? Again, when we read Psalm 63, one of the great lessons that we gain from this Psalm is the attitude of faith needed to navigate through the adversities, troubles, and difficulties of life. If anyone understood how to navigate through a bearing and attitude of faith, it would be David.

I mentioned that the title of our message is The Beautiful Thirsting Soul. There are two parts to that that I think are very, very important. One is the beautiful soul. I believe that it is one of the greatest themes. I submit maybe it is the greatest theme that runs through the entire Bible, and that is that God wants to do a beautiful work on your soul. That the transforming power of the glory of God, the presence of God in your life will bring that which is beautiful upon the soul, the beautiful soul, but also the thirsting.

The thirsting soul means a soul that seeks for more. More of God’s glory, more of God’s presence, more of that which is beautiful. It’s not a thirst driven by emptiness. No, it’s a thirst that comes from being fully satisfied. There’s a big difference between the two, and it’s important that we recognize how important that is. It’s not a thirst driven by emptiness. It’s driven by a desire for more, because you’ve tasted and seen how good God is, and the glory of God does that which is so beautiful upon the soul, you are more. That’s what we read. That’s what we see in Psalm 63.

Let’s read it.

I. The Beautiful Soul Seeks After God

We begin in Psalm 63:1 where he begins, “O God, you are my God.” It’s actually a very beautiful, powerful way to begin the Psalm. “O, Elohim, you are my God, and I shall seek you earnestly. My soul, it thirsts for you. My flesh yearns for you in a dry, in weary land where there is no water. For thus, I have beheld you in the sanctuary to see your power and your glory, and because your lovingkindness is better than life, my lips will praise you. I will bless you as long as I’ll live, and I will lift up my hands to your name. For my soul is satisfied as with moral and fatness, and my mouth offers praises with joyful lips.”

You might say, wait, I thought David was in trouble. I thought David had all this adversity and was under threat of life. Yes, he is. You say, then why is it so beautiful? It just seems like a beautiful song to me. No. David is giving us the bearing of faith to navigate through. He’s giving us the foundation and bearing of that attitude of faith. Notice what he says next, “For, I remember you on my bed. I meditate on you in the night watches for you have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings, I sing for joy. My soul, it clings to you for your right hand.” That’s the power of God.

“The right hand upholds me, but those who seek my life to destroy it,” yes, you see, David is in trouble, “they are sinking my life to destroy it. O Lord, let them go down to the depth of the earth. Do it, Lord. They will be delivered over to the power of the sword. They will be like, pray for foxes. Do it, Lord. But as for me, the king will rejoice in God, and everyone who swears by Him.” What does that mean? It means everyone who pledges the allegiance of their soul unto God. That’s what he means. Everyone who swears allegiance of their soul to God will glory. That is such a great word. They will glory, but the mouths of those who speak lies, they will be stopped.

What a great psalm is this. Again, David is giving us an insight and the attitude, the bearing of faith as the foundation to navigate through the adversities and the difficulties of life, but you notice the insight that David gives us, that the beautiful soul seeks after God. Verse 1. “Oh, Elohim, you are my God, and I seek you earnestly.”

A. The soul thirsts for God

Some of your Bible versions, I think say, “I shall seek you early,” but really they are aspects of the same great truth. In other words, seeking God was David’s highest priority. He sought God earnestly. He sought God early. If it’s important, you make it a priority. How important was that to David? Oh, it was important. When you’ve been through as many troubles as David, he needed, he depended, he trusted. It was everything to David. How important is it to you or to me? That’s the question that we must put ourselves into the story. If it’s important, you pursue it. It’s a priority. I seek God earnestly. Interestingly, seeking God is also one of the great themes that run through the entire Bible. It’s that theme that God wants you to never stop pursuing, never stop seeking for more. More of God, more of His glory, more of His presence. Never stop pursuing and seeking for more.

There are two aspects of searching and seeking God that we need to consider. The first is the searching and longing of the soul in the one who does not know God, and does not have a relationship to God, but there is a searching and there’s a longing. The human soul was born with a soul separate from God, empty, longing, searching. You can see it in so many people out there in the world. There’s something desperately missing, and they’re looking and they’re longing. What is it? They don’t know? What is it? What is missing? There is something wrong. What is it? That thing, and the soul is searching and longing. That’s why David gives this perspective, I love there in Verse 1, where he says, “My soul thirsts for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

The soul is searching for meaning, for a purpose, for a significance, for love.

There’s a desperate need for relationship, for love. Many people think that they can satisfy this longing, this desire by things of the world, or maybe some, “If I could just have the right relationship.” So many times when people are young, they think, “Oh, one day if I could just be married, it would solve all of my problems.” Oh, and they think, “If I just had the right relationship, it would just solve all my troubles.” There’s no such thing as Mr. Perfect. Anybody want to say amen to that? The women are like, “Yes, let’s say amen.” There’s no such thing as Mrs. Perfect either. There is no relationship that it’s going to fulfill the thirst for the soul.

I thirst for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water. It’s a little hard to relate to that when you live in Oregon and there’s water, now that we had water today. You go to Israel and you’ll see it is dry. David is in the wilderness, that’s the desert, the Judean desert. He writes, a thirst in a dry and weary land. If you’ve ever been through a time of wilderness of your life, it’s weary. You’re away from God, the soul’s not right. There’s something deeply unsettled. It’s not right. It’s wearying, it’s tiresome, it’s heavy, it’s dry, because the soul was made to thirst for God. It was made to thirst for God. There’s a searching and a longing in the one who does not know, who does not have a relationship to God. The soul is thirsting and longing because God is the only one who can satisfy that. Maybe that’s you. Maybe you’re here today and God is just speaking that truth to you. There’s something missing. Something’s deeply unsettled here.

Your soul is searching, you’re seeking, what is it? There’s a worship song that we sing that touches the soul deeply. I want to just quote some of the lyrics, “Are you hurting and broken within, overwhelmed by the weight of your sin? Jesus is calling. Have you come to the end of yourself? Do you thirst for a drink from the well? Jesus is calling, oh, come to the author. The Father’s arms are open wide. I love that picture. Bring your sorrows, trade them for joy. From the ashes, a new life is born.” Jesus is calling, “Come to the Altar, the Father’s arms are open wide.”

If you’ve been in the wilderness, and you’ve been looking and longing and searching, you finally come to the point where you’re at the end of yourself, when the pursuit of the world has left you empty and void of meaning in life. From that point of despair, from that point of emptiness, and longing, from there, seek God. You’ll find Him when you search for Him with all your hearts, with all your soul. Notice what God said to Israel in Deuteronomy 4:29. He’s speaking to Israel, “When you wonder, when you find the result of turning away, and you’re in that desert place and that empty forlorn place,” He said, “from there, you will seek the Lord your God, and you’ll find Him if you search for Him with all your heart and with all your soul. When you find Him, you will discover that He was pursuing you all along.”

I love Luke 19:10, where the Lord Jesus here tells us the heart of the Father. He said, “The Son of man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” Jesus is telling us here the heart of the Father. God sent his Son to go and seek out sinners. Go find sinners and save them, bring them home, reconcile them to the Father. Jesus is telling us, this is the Father’s heart. This is so important because so many people have it wrong when it comes to this. This is so commonly wrong. People think because God is so offended of sin, that God is rejecting them. They’re convinced God is offended of sin, so He rejects people. No, that’s not what Jesus said. I was sent, God sent me to go and find sinners and bring them home.

Jesus gave so many parables to describe the heart of God to seek and to save the lost, the hurting, the broken. Once He found them, to reconcile them, to give them a relationship, and Jesus’s parables express that God rejoices. When even one sinner repents, God rejoices, the angels of heaven rejoice the attitude of God. Notice, for example, where we read it in Luke 15. Luke 15 is amazing, it’s got to be one of the most amazing chapters in the book of Luke. Notice how it begins where he says it this way, “All of the tax-gatherers and sinners, they were coming near to Him to listen to Him.” You’ve got to see this in its right context. Tax gatherers were despised. They were Jews who essentially were working for Rome gathering taxes, and you can just imagine the attitude of Jews toward a tax-gatherer, who was a Jew, but gathering taxes for Rome.

You can imagine the attitude of the Jews when they would see a tax-gatherer, “You ought to be ashamed of yourself. You are despicable to me. How dare you do such? You gathering to you? You ought to be ashamed.” You can just imagine. They were despised, looked down upon. Then it says, “And these were coming, tax-gatherers and sinners.” You’ve got to know what kind of sinners we’re talking about. There are sinners, and then there are sinners. We’re talking about sinners. These are like sinners. They were coming near and listening. When the Pharisees and the Scribes, yes, these are the Jewish leaders who thought they were better, they were more righteous than others, and when they saw this, they began to grumble. Essentially they were saying, “Would you look at this? This man receive sinners, and he even eats with them. Can you believe it? He calls Himself a man of God. A man of God receiving sinners?”

Jesus heard that, and He gave parables. He said, “If someone had 100 sheep and lost one, would he not leave the 99 in the open field and go and search? He would search until he found it, and then when he finds it, would he not then lay it upon his shoulders and rejoice? And then when he comes home, would he not call together his friends and his neighbors and say, ‘Rejoice with me, I have found the sheep which was lost.’ Or, what woman, if she has 10 coins and then loses one, would she not sweep the house and search carefully until she found that? Then when she found it, would she not call together her friends and neighbors and say, “Rejoice with me, I have found the coin which was lost.”?

Then He says in Luke 15:7, “I tell you, there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over the 99 righteous who need no repentance.” That’s the heart of a Father. Really what he was saying to the Pharisees, you ought to be rejoicing that sinners have been found. If you’ve come to the end of yourself, if you thirst for a drink from the well, Jesus is calling.

B. Never stop pursuing God

“Come,” He says to the altar. “The Father’s arms are open wide.” You have found Him, and you will discover that He was pursuing you all along, but may I suggest that once you have found Him, never stop pursuing Him. That is one of the great themes. Never stop pursuing God. I said earlier, there were two aspects of seeking God. David is seeking God, and is thirsting for God, not because he’s empty, no, but because his soul has been satisfied and he longs for more. Notice Verse 2, “I have beheld you in the sanctuary. I have seen your power and your glory. I know that your love and kindness, it’s better than life.”

David has discovered that which God does is beautiful on the soul. He has discovered the beauty of the Lord. I don’t think a lot of people really think of that particular perspective, the beauty of the Lord, but David did, and it’s one of the great insights that David gives us into the soul. That the soul is made beautiful by the glory of God. That’s why David wrote, again, Psalm 27, one of my favorite Psalms, Verse 4, it’s got to be the highlight of the Psalm where he says this, “One thing I’ve asked from the Lord, and that is what I seek.” I want one thing. I’m asking for one thing. That I may dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord, that’s the one thing I seek. I want to behold. I know it’s beautiful, I would love to spend my life, all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to meditate in His Temple. When you have found God, you have discovered how much God rejoices over you. You have discovered that that which God does is beautiful on the soul, and you want more. God wants you to keep thirsting for more. He’s pleased, He wants you to search and to seek and to thirst for more. Never stop pursuing God for more.

Let me give you some great Scriptures where we see it. Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith, it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is,” that’s foundational, “and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.” Never stop seeking. Matthew 7:7-8, Jesus is, again, teaching here, and He says, “Ask, I tell you to ask.” In the Greek, it’s quite clear, and keep asking. “Ask and it will be given to you, seek, you will find. Knock and it will be opened unto you, for everyone who asks, receive. And he who seeks, finds. And to him who knocks, it will be opened.” He’s speaking here of God, the presence of God, the Holy Spirit, the Glory of God. Ask, seek, knock.

I’ll give you another illustration. I love to speak of this example. When Moses, after he had led Israel out of Egypt and brought them to Mount Sinai, you remember there was a tragedy that unfolded there. As Moses was up on the hill those 40 days in the presence of God, receiving the Law, the Word of God, Israel grew impatient, “We don’t know what has happened to Moses” so they said to Aaron, his brother, “Make us a god that we could honor him.” Aaron took the gold and whatnot and fashioned a calf, and then the people started to revel and to party and whatnot. Moses came and here’s Israel in this great sin. All right, at one point then, Moses is interceding. Israel has sinned greatly, and Moses is interceding. He’s praying to God on their behalf, but while he is praying, while he’s interceding, he asks something for himself. While I’m asking, something for me? What would you ask? What is the one thing that you would ask of God that is higher than any other thing? The highest ask? What is the greatest highest thing you can ask? The one thing that’s higher than all other things?

C. The beautiful soul responds to glory

Moses says, “Something for me? Show me your glory.” That was the highest. “Show me your glory.” Why did he ask for glory? He had already seen more of God’s Glory than any living person. He was in the presence of God with so much Glory abounding that there was literally a radiance of glory. He had already seen more of God’s Glory than any living person, why would he want more? Because he knew, because he had seen how beautiful it is. I want more. God was pleased because he asked. God is pleased when that is what you want, that is what you seek, and then would you notice this out of Psalm 63, “That the beautiful soul then responds to that glory.”

David wrote, “I have beheld you in the sanctuary, to see your power and your glory. I know that your loving kindness, it’s better than life itself. Therefore,” notice, “Therefore,” David wrote, “Therefore my lips will praise you, I will bless you. I will bless you as long as I live, and I will lift up my hands to your name.” What is that? That is the soul’s response to glory. “I’ve seen your glory. I’ve seen your power. I’ve beheld you at the sanctuary. I know your loving kindness is better than life” and my response, “Yes, my lips will praise you, I’ll bless you, I’ll bless your name as long as I live, and I’ll lift up my hands to your name. I give you glory.”

Think of it this way, in the same way that the moon receives light from the sun and then responds by reflecting that light in return, the soul that receives beautiful glory wants to respond with glory. Notice Verse 11 where he wrote, “Everyone who swears the allegiance of the soul will glory.” It’s right there. Even creation itself declares the glory of God. Notice Psalm 19:1, “The heavens declare the glory of God, and their expanses declaring the work of His hands.” Isaiah 6:3, “Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts. The whole of Earth is full of His glory.”

Then Psalm 19 is amazing. Psalm 19:14 where he writes, “Therefore, let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be acceptable,” which means pleasing, “in your sight, oh, Lord my rock and my redeemer.” What does he mean here? What David is saying here is you have poured so much glory, it’s beautiful. What you have done to my soul is so beautiful, I want the words of my mouth, and even the very meditations of my heart to be pleasing to you. I want to pour back glory, I want glory. This is so important for us to see. When you have received glory, when glory is abounded on the soul, and as you are filled and even overflowing, well, then what is it that comes out of you?

Again, if you have received that which is beautiful, the glory of God fills and overflows, and God does a beautiful work, what is it that comes out? God’s filled you with glory, so what comes out is glory. God has filled you with that which is beautiful, so what comes forth is that which is beautiful, pleasing to God, edifying, uplifting. Jesus said a very similar thing. Jesus said the good men out of the good treasure of his heart will bring forth what is good.

The good man out of the good treasure will bring forth what is good. For the mouth speaks from that which fills the heart. What fills your heart? From that, you will speak. Jesus said, of course, the opposite is also true. The evil man out of the evil treasure will bring forth that which is evil, and ugly things will come out of the mouth. When I look at that equation, I want to be on the glory side of that. What comes out of my mouth, I want it to be pleasing to you, Lord. When I consider both, I want glory. I want to give you glory. I want the words on my mouth, even the meditations of my heart, I want them to be pleasing. Then he says, “For my soul is satisfied as with marrow and fatness.” All right, now that’s a very beautiful expression. Morrow is literally bone marrow, and it was considered a delicacy. The choicest and best food. Like, “Ah, it is the best.” In fact, in many parts of the world today, bone marrow is considered a delicacy.

I happened upon and it was interesting. I love to cook, and so I look up recipes, and somehow on my news feed came a description of how to prepare barbecued bone marrow. Have you ever had bone marrow? It is amazing. I’m kidding, I’ve never had it, but I understand from those– In fact, Pastor Jean was telling me they eat bone marrow in South Africa. It’s like you put it on top of the steak, it’s like butter on the steak. No, no, it’s like, “Oh, this is good.”

David is describing marrow and fatness. Fatness, those of you who eat steak know that fat is the flavor of the steak. The more fat it is, the more flavorful it is. That’s why you want a well-marbled steak. In fact, wagyu beef is– Ever heard of wagyu beef? It’s the most expensive beef you could buy. It is so beautifully marbled, and tender, and juicy. It is the best. An average cost of wagyu beef is $100 a pound. You can spend up to $200 a pound for wagyu beef. Although, I learned that there is a type of wagyu beef that comes from one prefecture beef actually in Japan called Kobe beef that is even more expensive, even better, up to $500 a pound. You’re supposed to say, “Wow.” Yes, that’s what I’m talking about.

What David is saying is, David is saying, “My soul is satisfied as though God is giving the choicest food for the soul. I delight in the Almighty.” Isn’t it a beautiful understanding? I delight in the Almighty. That is another great theme of those who understand this depth of relationship. “I delight.” David wrote, Psalm 34:8, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good. Taste.” You need to taste. You need to experience the glory of God. It’s like an illustration. It’s like this, you don’t go to a restaurant just to read the menu. Can you imagine going to a restaurant, and you and your wife sit there? They give you the menus and you start reading and you say, “Oh, this is amazing. Will you listen to this? This is amazing, right? Delectable, delightful, drizzling with this. Oh, it’s mouthwateringly delicious, right?” Your wife says, “Oh, yes? Listen to this one.” Then she describes a more amazing. “Oh, yes, yes? Well, listen to this one.” Then you describe, “Oh, that sounds so amazing. Oh, it’s mouthwateringly delightful. Oh, well, listen to this one. Oh, we haven’t even got to the dessert yet.” Then the waiter comes. “What would you like to order?” You say,”Nothing?” “Nothing?” “No, we didn’t come to eat. We just came to read the menu.” No, you did not. You’re not leaving until you’ve had and tasted that it is good.

Did you come to church to read the menu? Did you come to church to read about how good God is, about how glorious He is, or did you come to taste, to experience? God’s glory is meant to be filled in the soul. I thirst for that. I don’t want to just read the menu. I want to experience the glory. I want to see. I want to know how beautiful it is. When it transforms the soul. That’s why I love Psalm 36. It’s one of my favorite now. Verses 7-9, where he writes, “The children of men take refuge in the shadow of your wings. They drink their fill of the abundance of your house. And you give them to drink of the river of your delights. For with you is the fountain of life.” What an amazing description is that? Jesus says, “I am the living water. He who drinks will never thirst again.” “You give them to drink of the river of your delights.” What a beautiful picture is that?

II. By Faith Trust in God’s Help

Now we go back to Psalm 63 and understand, but David is in trouble. All of that is the attitude of his faith. The foundational bearing of navigating through the adversity. It shows us then that David, by his faith, is going to trust God. By faith, trust God’s help. We know that David was in great distress because of what he wrote in Verse 9. “Those who seek my life to destroy it,” David was under threat of life’s. Absalom had an army ready to pursue David. David is in the midst of one of the most difficult times of his life, and he needs God’s help, but would you notice the attitude of David’s faith? He’s not angry with God because of his troubles. David has been through so much adversity, and through so many troubles, that he’s given up being angry with God a long time ago. That does not help anything. The whole Psalm, up to this point, has been about the attitude of his faith, that he seeks God earnestly. That his soul thirsts for God, that he will bless the Lord as long as he lives. This is the key to navigating through that turmoil of adversity and deep trouble. Would you notice then that David brings us to this point? You must recount then the ways that God has helped.

Notice Verse 6. “Oh, I remember. I remember you on my bed. I meditate on you in the night watches, for you have been my help.” If you’ve ever been in trouble, and I mean really in deep, deep trouble, you’re going through a really bad one, if you’ve ever been through a really bad trouble, you know that you can’t sleep well. You just lie there on your bed at night, and you just think about it, and you think about it, and you think about it, and it just turns, and turns, and turns over in your mind. David says, “When I come to that place where I’m lying there, I remember you. I remember, I meditate on you in the night watches. You’ve been my help. God, you have saved me over. I can recount all of the times. I remember you did this, and then you did that. It was amazing what you did. Makes me rejoice when I think about it. So, Lord, here I am. I’m in trouble again. Do it again.”

A. Recount the ways God has helped

Psalm 46:1, “God is a refuge and a strength, the very present help in times of trouble.” Psalm 9:9-10, “The Lord is a stronghold in times of trouble. Those who know your name will trust in you. For you, oh Lord, have not forsaken those who seek you.” Recounting the ways that God has helped is a much better attitude of faith than being angry with God, which many do, or, frankly, being angry with anyone for that matter. Anger is a bearing and attitude.

It never helps. It only makes matters worse. David is giving us here an example of the attitude and the bearing of faith. When you recount all of the ways that God has helped, your faith is reminded, is stirred up. “God, I remember all of the ways that you’ve helped me over and over and over, I can recount them, but Lord, here I am now and I’m in trouble again. Do it again. Lord, I need your help. You’ve been amazing in my life. Do it again.” In fact, at one point David wrote, “And it is God’s help that makes me great.” We look at David as an amazing man of faith, and of victory, and of accomplishment. David says, “No, it was God’s help that made me great.”

B. May your soul cling to the Lord

Then lastly, we’ll close with this. He writes in Verse 8, “My soul clings to you.” That’s a great word. May your soul cling to the Lord. That word is a strong word. It’s used in the Scriptures in many, many places to describe the soul that holds on. Clings is so important. “I cling to it, Lord.”

Deuteronomy 30:19-20, where God is speaking here to Israel, and He says, “Choose life in order and that you may live.” How? “By loving the Lord your God, by obeying His voice, by holding fast.” There it is right there, clinging, holding fast to Him. This is life, and this is length of days. What your soul clings to will determine what your soul will become. Please let me say it again. What your soul clings to will determine what your soul will become. We are transformed by what we love, by what we desire, by what we seek.

David writes, “I will seek you earnestly. I seek you. My soul thirsts for you in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Your love and kindness, Lord, it’s better than life, and I will bless you as long as I live. My soul. God, you’ve satisfied my soul, as with marrow and fatness, and my mouth offers praises with joyful lips. For the soul, the pledges, the allegiance of the heart will glory.”

Let’s pray. Lord, we are so amazed of what you reveal to us in your word that that which you do is glorious, beautiful on the soul. God, we thirst. We long for more. Only you can satisfy the desire, the hunger, thirst of the soul. We want more.

Church, as all eyes are closed, heads are bound, maybe you’re here today and you have not yet found God, you’ve been searching, there’s something deeply unsettled, something’s wrong, haven’t known what it is, you’ve come to the end of yourself, and you thirst for a drink of the well, then come. Jesus says the Father’s arms are open wide. He delights to receive sinners. He’s knocking, He’s searching, He’s calling your name. If that is you, if you would settle this matter with God today, I want to pray for you. I’m going to ask that if you would receive the Lord Jesus Christ into your heart as Lord and Savior, if you would trust Him for life, I want to ask that you would just lift up your hand. I want to just pray for you and just agree with you. Pray over you. Just lift up your hand if you would. I just want to agree with you in prayer today.

God bless you. I see you over here on my left. I see you over there in the right. God bless you. Anyone else? I see you there in the back as well. God bless you as well. Amen. Anyone else? I want to give you an opportunity. Anyone else? Praise God. I see you there in the back, onto my left. God bless you. Anyone else? Up here in the front, I see you too. God bless you. Anyone else? Let’s settle this. I see you right there on the left hand side. I see you, friend, in the middle here. Anyone else? Let’s settle this for God, He says. Let’s settle this. “I love you. Oh, come. God sent me,” Jesus says, “to bring you home. Come.” Anyone else?

Father, I want to pray now for everyone who lifted their hand in response to that invitation. God, I pray that you would meet them here in this place. They have found hope. They have found the answer to their soul’s deepest desire. It’s you. God, meet them here, pour out your Spirit of life upon them. Fill them with your glory. Reconcile them to your Father, our Father. Show them life, forgiveness of sin, the renewing of purpose and meaning, God. Then walk with them in the course of this life. That you would honor your name in their lives. We give you this prayer and ask, God, that you would meet everyone who’s made that decision now, in the name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. and everyone said. Can we give the Lord praise and glory and honor? Amen. Amen. Amen.

Decisions that Set the Course
1 Samuel 15:9-29
May 15-16, 2021

Bible study. If you would open to 1 Samuel 15, beginning in verse 9, the title of the message, decisions that set the course of life. Now, I think many know that there are decisions that alter the course. In fact, if you’re old enough, no doubt, you can look back on your life and recognize that there have been certain key decisions that have become like, you might call them, hinge points that have altered the course, have changed the direction.

This is important to recognize because there are many decisions and choices yet ahead of you, but how do you choose well? That’s the question. How do you choose well so that the course of your life is the path of greatest blessing and favor of God, that’s surely what we want. Now you can’t choose all things that come into your life. You can’t choose all your battles.

We didn’t choose this battle, but you must take what lies in the course before you, but how you respond and how you choose will set the course. They’re like hinge points, and God gives principles in His word to guide you in those decisions so that you choose well and live in a place of greatest blessing and favor.

Even if life is hard, even if troubles come that you never expected, God never promised that life would be easy. If you come to faith in Christ, it doesn’t mean life will be easy. Jesus said, “In this world, you will have many troubles, but take courage, I have overcome the world.” In another place He said, “The man who builds his house on the rock or his life on the rock, when the storms come, for surely, they will, that house will stand,” that life is strong. That’s the word of the Lord. He gives the principles so that we choose well.

Our story, as we were looking at last week, Saul, we meet the famous King Saul, the first King of Israel. He was inaugurated as the King of Israel and this calling set the course of his life, but he has a path in how he’s going to live out that calling. The same is true, I mentioned last week, if you’ve accepted Jesus Christ into your heart as Lord and savior, you have purpose in your life. He has meaning that He has in your life. You have a mission to fulfill, but you have a part. How do you live out that mission, that calling?

Now the decision Saul would make, would determine whether he would build a legacy as a King who did good and rights, or a man whose decisions cost him dearly. The same is true for all of us. The decisions that we make determine the course, whether we leave a legacy of doing good and right, or costing dearly by decisions that divert the course and alter it in a way that’s not good.

Now, the backstory to this is the people of Israel came to Samuel, a very well-respected prophet in Israel, and demanded a King. “We want to be like the nations around us,” which of course is always a dangerous thing to want to be like everyone else around. He brought this to the Lord who said, “Give them what they ask. They’re not rejecting you, they’re rejecting me as King.”
God wanted to be their King, but God gave them what they asked, gave them a man after their own heart. Someone who was head and shoulders taller than other men, and it tells us he was the handsomest man in Israel, which for sure is a qualifier. I say that sarcastically. Nevertheless, God gave Saul everything that he needed to do well on this course. He strengthened his unbelief.

You can imagine being told, “You’re going to be the chosen one to lead Israel.” What a tremendous piece of news that is. He needs to have his faith strengthened for it and God strengthened his faith by giving him confirmations, exact confirmations of the word. Then he anointed him with the Holy Spirit, He even allowed him to prophecy with the prophets. He gave him everything he needed for life in Godliness, to stay the course, to live out that calling, and to live it well.

Unfortunately, Saul’s decisions became turning points, wrongful decisions altered the course. A couple of chapters back Samuel had told him, “Wait seven days, I will arrive and bring burnt offerings and peace offerings,” but Saul grew impatient. Samuel did not show up till the very last minute and in his impatience, he took on the role of the priestly office and brought the sacrifices himself, wrongful decision and it altered his course. Samuel said, “Now the kingdom will not endure. The Lord has sought out for Himself another man, a man after His own heart.” He’s speaking of David, of course.

“The Lord appointed him as ruler over His people because you have not kept what the Lord commanded.” That brings us to chapter 15. Here, Saul has another opportunity to demonstrate obedience to the Lord, but he did not do well, he veered off the course. There we learn many life lessons in this story. It’s a life lesson of being faithful and true and walking in the course of life, honoring God with decisions at every point of turning.

Now, the backstory to this chapter is that when Israel had come out of Egypt and they were going through the desert, that the Amalekites came in an unprovoked attack and in just a heinous way. They attacked from the rear, killing all that were straggling behind, mothers with children, elderly, the weak, the lame, and they just continue this relentless pursuit by attacking the weak in the rear, and it was just heinous.

God said to Moses, when the people settle in the land, this matter with the Amalekites will be settled. That mission is given to Saul. He’s been given the direction to take these people out and to leave nothing, no sheep, oxen, no lamb, nothing. That’s where we pick up the story in 1 Samuel 15:9, “But Saul and the people spared Agag.”

He was the King of the Amalekites, “and they spared the best of the sheep and the oxen and the fatlings, and the lambs and all that was good. They were not willing to utterly destroy them,” which of course was what God said, “but everything despised and worthless, that they destroyed. Then the word of the Lord came to Samuel, the prophet saying, ‘I regret that I made Saul king,'” or it grieves me that I made Saul king, “for he has turned back from following me. He’s not carried out my commands.

Saul hearing this was deeply distressed and cried out to the Lord all night long.” Deep was the distress on this prophet. “Samuel rose in the morning to meet Saul, and it was told Samuel, ‘Saul came to Carmel.'” That’s a mountain on the end of the Jezreel Valley, where you can see out all over the land. It says, “He came to Carmel and behold, he set up a monument for himself. This is not the humble King that God wanted. Then he turned and went down to Gilgal. Samuel came to Saul.” Now, when Saul sees him, he’s at first very happy to see Saul.

“Blessed are you of the Lord, I have carried out the command of the Lord. Samuel said, ‘Really? What then is this bleating of sheep in my ears? What is this lowing of oxen that I hear?’ Saul said, ‘They, the people, they have brought them from the Amalekites, for the people spared the best of the sheep and the oxen in order to sacrifice to the Lord, your God.'” Wasn’t that a good thing? “Now, the rest we have utterly destroyed. Then Samuel said to Saul, ‘You wait and let me tell you what the Lord told me last night.'” Saul said, “Well, say it.”

Samuel said, “Is it not true, though you were little in your own eyes that you were made head of the tribes of Israel? Is it not true that the Lord anointed you king over Israel and the Lord sent you on a mission? He said, “Go and utterly destroy these sinners, these Amalekites and fight against them until they are exterminated for what they did to Israel. Why then did you not obey the voice of the Lord, but you rushed headlong upon the spoil and you did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.”

Then Saul said to Samuel, “I did obey. I did it. I did obey the voice of the Lord. I went on the mission that the Lord sent me and I brought back Agag, the King of Amalek and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites, but the people, they took some of the spoil, the sheep and the oxen, the choices of things, devoted to destruction, to sacrifice to the Lord, your God at Gilgal.” Then Samuel said this. This is a very important response, underline this, highlight it, it’s a really deep insight.

Samuel said, “Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to heed is better than the fat of rams. For rebellion, on the other hand, rebellion is as the sin of divination, witchcraft, the occult. Insubordination is as iniquity and idolatry.” Those are strong words, “Because you have rejected the word of the Lord, He has rejected you from being king.”

Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I have indeed transgressed the command of the Lord and your words because I feared the people and I listened to their voice. Now, therefore, please pardon my sin and return with me that I might worship the Lord.” Samuel said to Saul, “No, I will not return with you, for you have rejected the word of the Lord and the Lord has rejected you from being king over Israel.” Samuel turned to go, but Samuel seized the edge of his robe and it tore, so Samuel used it as the picture.

Samuel said to him, “The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you today. He has given it to the neighbor who is better than you.” Of course, to David, “And, also, the glory of Israel will not lie or change His mind for He’s not a man that He should change His mind.” These are the verses, very important lessons, life lessons that come to us out of this story. We’re talking about the decisions that Saul makes because decisions and choices alter the course.

I. Build on the Foundation of His Word

We need those principles that would guide those decisions. In fact, we gained a tremendous insight and principle and that is this, “Build on the foundation of the word.” God gives a word, live by it, build then a foundation. That mission was given to Saul, but he did not obey. He spared Agag, the king, and the best of the sheep and the oxen and the lamb and all that was good.
At first, Saul is glad to see Samuel, “Blessed are you of the Lord. I carried out the command of the Lord.” He thought he did, but he didn’t. “What is this bleating of sheep I hear? What is this lowing of oxen?” If he had only carried out, see the word there, carried out, in Hebrew, it means to establish. I have established his word in my life. If only he had. For the word establish means, to build a foundation from which you act, from which you live.

A. Those who are wise — build

Here’s the point. It’s a life lesson. Those who are wise, build. Those who are wise, build. They build their lives upon this foundation. God’s word is the foundation on which to build your life, but how do you do it? You build your life on God’s word by what you do, by the decisions you make, by the character within you, by how you live. Let me give you a great verse. You no doubt have heard this verse. If you’ve been around very much, I love to quote it. “Whoever hears these words of mine and acts upon them, he’s like a wise man who built his house on a rock.”
You very likely have heard that, but let me put it in its context because when you see that in its context, it has tremendous force and power. This is out of Matthew 7:21-24. Listen to this word of the Lord who is instructing. Jesus says, “It is the one who does the will of my father who will enter the kingdom of heaven.

Now, many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy and cast out demons and perform miracles in your name?’ I will say to them, ‘I never knew you, depart from me you who practice lawlessness.’ Therefore, whoever hears these words of mine and acts upon them is a wise man who built his house on a rock.” There’s the context.

When you see it, it’s powerful. Now, Saul did not carry out. He did not build the word as the foundation and it altered the course of his life. Verse 11 is interesting because it says, God regretted that He made him King.” In other words, it grieved Him. It grieved Him because God loves, and it grieves Him when you veer off course. When you veer off the course, you bring destruction to your life and to those around. It grieves Him when you make decisions that bring troubles. You no doubt have heard the verse, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.”

Well, let’s put that verse in its context because when you see that verse in its context, it also has tremendous force and power. Notice, it comes out of Ephesians 4:29-31. Paul begins that section by saying, “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth.” Let’s just stop right there. I mean, that is a powerful word. Would you not agree?

B. Beware the deception of self

That is a powerful phrase right there. “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth.” The key to that phrase is the word, No, none, nada, [foreign language], none. “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth. None, nada, that’s all the foreign languages I know right there. None, no unwholesome word.

Then he says, “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit.” You see, when an unwholesome word comes out of your mouth, it grieves the Holy Spirit because He knows it brings destruction. It brings destruction to those who receive it, and to you who say it. “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God.” Notice, “By whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” If you ask Jesus Christ into your heart, He has sealed you, anointed you with the Holy Spirit, the very same Holy Spirit that anointed Saul for his mission. He’s anointed you for your call as a son or daughter of God.
Then he adds, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you because all of these things grieve the Holy Spirit,” because He loves you. These things are destructive and He wants the best. Use these as a guide for the decisions that you make. Now here’s another life lesson that comes from the story, beware the deception of self. Is it possible to deceive one’s own self?

How does that work exactly? Is it possible to turn something around in one’s mind so that it is thought of as good when in fact it is not good, when in fact it’s bad, or when in fact it’s wrongful? Can a person turn something around in his own mind, so as to deceive himself? The answer, oh yes, it happens all the time. The one who is wise will beware the deception of self.
Verse 15, Saul says, “The people spared the best of the sheep in order to sacrifice to the Lord.” Now, that’s good, isn’t it? What could possibly be wrong with that? Does not the word say to bring gifts and offerings like this? What could be wrong with this? Isn’t that good? No, it’s not good because that’s not what God said. See, to Saul, he has a good reason. He’s turned it in his mind. He’s got a good reason. It’s not a reason. It’s an excuse.

In fact, of course, we know the nature of man. People have been using excuses a long time. I was thinking of a humorous illustration, a true story. There was a top government aid on the East Coast who didn’t file tax returns for five years. Now, his lawyer explained that the reason that he could not pay his taxes is because he suffered from a medical condition. The medical condition is called late filing syndrome and it caused his depression.

The lawyer said, “Even though this depression didn’t stop him from being a highly functional professional and enjoying an active social life, it did apparently affect his ability to pay his taxes for five years. Unfortunately, late filing syndrome is not recognized as a psychiatric condition. Now, apparently, he suffers from another syndrome. It’s called tax penalty syndrome.” I had to throw that in. See, there’s the point, to turn something around in the mind, to turn something in the mind so that is thought of as good when in fact it’s not.

C. Take responsibility; don’t shift the blame

Therefore, it brings us to this next life lesson, take responsibility, don’t shift blame, take responsibility. It’s a life lesson. In the decisions, in the choices that alter the course of life, take responsibility, don’t shift the blame. Verse 20, Samuel directly confronts. “Saul, why did you not obey the voice of the Lord?” He says, “I did. I did obey the voice of the Lord. It was the people, the people they took some of the spoil.” Shifting blame, that’s old too. Shifting blame is as old as Adam and Eve.

When Adam and Eve sinned in the garden and the Lord confronted Adam over this, what did he do? He shifted the blame. “It was that woman that you gave me.” You want to talk about shifting the blame, he’s actually blaming God for this. “It was that woman, and you gave her to me. She’s the one, she gave me to eat, and then I ate it.” Then when the Lord confronts the woman, she says, she shifts the blame. “The devil made me do it,” but to accept personal responsibility is the cornerstone of transformation. It’s the cornerstone for making decisions and choices in a way that honor God.

Saul has authority that makes him responsible. He was the King of Israel. When you have authority, you are responsible. When you have authority, you are responsible. Here’s an interesting application. You have authority over your own flesh. You know this flesh of ours, this troublesome flesh that we carry around with us, it wants to be the master. It wants to be the boss. It wants to tell you what to do. Me want. Me want, you give. Me want meat, me want more, and me want woman. Me want, you give.

It wants to tell you what to do, but you have authority over your own flesh. You have authority that makes you responsible. In fact, Paul brings this great word out of 1st Corinthians 9:27. Paul says, “I discipline my body.” The word there, the root of it is to instruct. I” discipline my body. I make it my slave.” It’s not going to tell me what to do because the flesh will get you in a whole lot of trouble. It’s not going to tell me what to do. “I discipline my body. I make it my slave so that after I’ve preached to others, I myself might not be disqualified.”

II. Choose the Highest Good

That’s a good word because it will ruin your life. Saul finally does take responsibility, kind of, not quite. Verse 24, “I have sinned. I’ve transgressed because they feared the Lord because I listened to their voice.” Back to our story, here’s another, this next section gives us principles that guide in our decisions, and it’s this, choose the highest good. When deciding, when choosing the course, these hinge point decisions, use this as a guiding principle, choose the highest good.

Samuel’s response to Saul is powerful, it’s to the point. “Has the Lord as much delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord.” In other words, which one is better? Now, both are good. Both are good, which is better. It’s the principle of choosing, of making decisions in the will of God. If decisions are hinge points that change the course, we need the wisdom of God’s principles to make sure that those decisions are in the will of God.

A. God’s greatest delight is in your heart

He brings this into the question, “In which does the Lord have more delight?” It’s not just the question of which is better, “In which does the Lord have more delight? See, when you bring God into the formula, when you bring God into the equation, when you consider God’s view of the thing, it changes it entirely. Which does God have more delight in? Now that’s an interesting question. What does bring God delight? May I submit and suggest that God’s greatest delight is in you, your heart. When your heart is right in God, that’s what God is asking.
Sacrifice and offerings, they were a picture of something. They represented. Firstly, they represented the offering of the son of God on the cross of Calvary, who then paid for our sins? Thereby, then, sacrifices and offerings were to represent the heart of the worshiper. You brought a gift and offering to represent the heart of the worshiper. There were peace offerings representing peace with God. There were fellowship offerings for fellowship of communion.

There were free-will offerings. The person would bring, a worshiper would bring a free-will offering just as it suggests, by his own free will, just because he wanted to. I want to do this because I want to. “I love you, God. I am so thankful for what you are doing in my life. You are the joy of my life. I want to do something. Out of my own free will, I do this,” because the gift represents the giver, the worshiper. I was thinking of an illustration, it’s like this.

When a man gives flowers on Valentine’s day or whatever, the flowers are a symbol. They represent something. They represent his love. They represent his heart. “Oh, you brought me flowers.” Y”es, because I love you.” “You brought me a card.” Yes. I even wrote out with my own hand a nice beautiful message because I love you.” “That’s wonderful, you brought me a gift.” “Yes. I brought you a gift because I love you.” See, a gift, it represents my love. That’s beautiful.

What if there isn’t love? What if there isn’t love? Then the flowers are just flowers, where the card is just a card. The gift is just a gift. It’s the heart behind it that makes it something. That’s what give it significance. It’s the heart. It says, no, see, I love you. This pictures it. This is like a representation of it. That’s what God wants. Let me give you a tremendous verse. Psalm 40:6-8, “Sacrifice and meal offering you have not desired, for an offering and sin offering you have not required. Then, I said, ‘Behold, I come.'”

I don’t bring that which represents me, I bring me. Here I am. Then, I said, “Behold, I come in the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do your will, O my God. Your law, your word is written on my heart.” That’s what God delights in. When it’s you, the reality of your heart, that’s what he wanted. Here’s another one, Mark 12:33. “To love God with all the heart, and with all the understanding, and with all the strength and to love one’s neighbor as himself is much more than all the burnt offerings and sacrifices.” All of that pales in comparison to when you love from your heart.

Verse 23, “On the other hand, rebellion is like the sin of divination.” This is a strong word. Rebellion is like the sin of the occult of witchcraft. That’s a strong word. See, rebelliousness and hard heart rejects God as surely as someone who rejects God by the divination. These are strong words. Saul minimized the importance of obedience and he missed God’s heart because his heart wasn’t right. The results, Samuel said, “The kingdom would be taken from him and given to another who is better.” It was a hinge point. He was referring to David.

B. Decisions and choices bear fruit

Lastly, and we’ll close with this. When considering the decisions that alter the course, it’s important to see that decisions and choices bear fruit. There’s an outcome. It brings us to something. Decisions and choices bear fruit. Saul’s disobedience is going to bear bitter fruit, not only in Saul but actually for all of Israel 200 years later.

Now, at the end of Saul’s life, we’re going to come to this in a few chapters, Saul will be defeated by the Philistines. They’re in the battlefield, as his lingering near death, he calls for someone to take him out, to put him out of his misery. Who should happen to come? An Amalekite who then put him out of his misery. At the end of his life, it was an Amalekite. It came back. In other words, it always comes back. It always comes back.

200 years later when Israel had been taken captive and exiled to Babylon, when the King of Persia was on the throne, one of his assistants, an evil man by the name of Haman plotted, hatched the plan by which the King must issue this edict that would destroy all Hebrews in the world. Now God intervened in it, but that man Haman, he happened to be an Agagite which is to say a descendant of Agag the king of the Amalekites. It came back, it came back. It always comes back. It’s a principle of the scriptures.

I like to quote this because it’s such a powerful understanding. It’s called the principle of the harvest. It’s found in Galatians 6. I quote this often because it’s such an important word in the decisions that alter the course of life. Galatians 6:7-8, “Do not be deceived. God is not mocked. Whatever a man sows, this, he will also reap.” It’s a principle. There it is. That’s the principle of the harvest. “The one who sows to his own flesh, will from the flesh reap and he’ll reap destruction, but the one who sows to the spirit will also reap and he will reap life, even eternal life.”
I want that life. I want that joy. I want that peace. The goodness, the faithfulness, the gentleness, I want that. It comes because you have sown to the spirit. These are the things you reap when you sow them. Throughout our lives, throughout the course, as you’re walking the course of your life, you are either sowing the seeds of weeds and thorns and poisoned things, or you’re sowing that which is good and right and to the spirit, then you’re sowing one or the other.

If you find yourselves in a field of weeds, it could well be that you’ve been sowing those seeds of trouble a long time and they’ve just now been growing up. It reminds me of a number of years ago, a fellow happened to just look us up in the phone book, needed to find a pastor. He looked us up and randomly called and said, “Is there a pastor?” He was told, “Come.” I sat with him and I said, “What can I do?”

He began to tell his story, oh, what a tragic story. One trouble after the other, so troubled, filled over and over the things that he was just talking about, it just breaks the heart to hear them, and then God gave me this picture. I said, “You know, it’s like this, you’re standing in a field and there are weeds all around you.” He said, “Yes, exactly. What do I do?” I said, “These weeds that are now grown up all around you, these are things that you have sown a long time ago.” He said, “It’s true, it’s true, but what do I do?”

I said, “Let’s start with this. Let’s begin with this. Don’t sow any more of those seeds. Don’t sow any more of them. Let’s start with that. Don’t water them and don’t feed them, but God knows the way through the wilderness. God will show you the way, but as you’re walking, you begin to plant the seeds of righteousness. You sow to the spirit. You will see, you will see. These things that you planted they’re now grown up, and the things that you’re now planting, you’re just putting them in. You won’t maybe see much at the beginning, but you wait, you wait, you’ll see.

God’s not finished, you will reap. This will come. These things will die and these things will grow. You watch. God’s not finished.” In the course of your life, choose well. He said, “Pray for me.” I said, “I will pray for you, but I want you to pray first.” I said, “Would you get on your knees with me together?” There in my office, we got on our knees and we leaned against these chairs. I remember I put my arm like this on the chair, put my arm around him and he starts praying.

As he’s praying, he begins to weep, just deep, deep sobs. As he’s weeping in his prayer, I had my arm like this, and his tears are just wetting my arm. I immediately thought of that verse. You know the scripture that says, “He takes our tears and holds them in a bottle.” In other words, they’re precious to the Lord, such tears are beautiful. This is a beautiful thing. This is beautiful what God is doing now. As he’s beginning to pray, “God, help me, direct my steps. I see now all of these things that I’ve been deciding and just doing all these years are now such trouble. Help me, God, now.”

Oh, this is the right word. God is not finished. Choose well the course of your life. The scripture says, “A good name is better to be chosen than fine riches.” Choose well. A good life is better than fine riches. Let me say to you, I want the finest things in life. I want the finest things. I have a taste for the finest things in life. You say, “What are the finest things?” The finest things in this life are the things that come from the hand of God.

Many people are thinking that the finest things are the finest things of the world. No, these things will perish and they’ll perish with the using, but I want the finest things. Peace, joy character, integrity, honor. To live with honor in your heart is one of the finest things. Peace, finest things. A joy that comes from his hand, that’s the finest things. I want the finest things, well, then, so the seeds of the finest things. Plant the seeds that come forth from the spirit, the hand of God, the life of God, those are the finest things that will give you a beautiful life.

God wants you to have a beautiful life. The finest things come from Him. Let’s pray, Father, thank you so much for your hand. For showing us a foundation on which we can build our lives, that would guide our decisions and choices that in so many ways alter the course, will alter the course for good, alter the course in a way that’s honoring to you. I want to live out the purpose and calling and mission of my life in a way that honors you. God, be honored as you stir us up by your spirit.

Church how many today as right now, today, before the Lord, how many would say to the Lord? I want the things that come from God. I want those things. I want the finest things. I want that peace. I want that joy. I want that goodness, that faithfulness, that character of integrity. I want the finest things, do this in my life, God. Build a foundation, be that rock on which I stand, guide my steps. Help me to plant those seeds by the decisions I make that honor you.

Church, today, would you say that to the Lord? Would you ask God for these things? Would you say, “That is the very thing I want, that is the very thing I desire. I want those finest things.” Would you just say it to the Lord by raising your hand, just lift your hands to the Lord? I want that which comes from God, the finest things. Transform me into those things that are the best, the hand of God.

Would you just raise your hand? Father, thank you for moving. Thank you for touching. Thank you for stirring. Thank you for showing us the way of greatest blessing and favor. Even though we walked through the valley of trouble, we believe that you’re with us. Father, thank you for everyone who has said yes to you, we honor you now. In Jesus name, and everyone said–
Can we give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen.

Faith in God Most High
Psalm 57:1-11

January 6-7, 2024

Psalm 57 is about the importance of the attitude of faith necessary to navigate the calamities, the difficulties, the adversities of life. If anyone understood how to navigate through such adversities and calamities in the attitude and bearing of faith, it would be David. David is the one who wrote this Psalm. It is the tremendous insight into that attitude of faith because if you do not master adversity, adversity will master you. How do you have this attitude bearing in faith? That’s what David shows us. He gives us the answer here in this Psalm.

Now, we know the backstory because God tells us that in the introduction, but there’s another part of the introduction that I think is very interesting. Notice how it says, for the choir director, which is, in other words, David wanted this to be sung, but he says, also, “Set to Al-tashheth.” Now, most Bible scholars believe that there was a song well known at the time and David wanted the words of this Psalm sung to that tune. It was called Al-tashheth. It means in the Hebrew, do not destroy it.

Now, that is an interesting phrase. It actually was one of those common phrases that people just would say, how people just have sayings. We have sayings, and this was the saying, “Do not destroy it.” Where it came from the idea was, imagine there’s a cluster of grapes and they’ve been on the vine a long time and now they’re starting to wither. We can all relate to that because there’s a personal application to here. If you’ve been on the vine a long time you know exactly what I’m saying. You start to wither, right?

The expression comes from grapes been on the vine a long time, they’re starting to wither, and the expression came, “No, there’s still a blessing in there. There’s still juice in that grape. Don’t destroy it. There’s still opportunity.” There’s the application that’s why it became a phrase. That’s because it was the idea, “Don’t throw it, don’t destroy it. There’s still opportunity.” That’s a great message for you and for me. God’s not done right there. You’ve been on the vine, maybe you’ve withered. Maybe your faith is withered, don’t destroy it, there is still yet opportunity. Notice, it comes right out of an expression in Isaiah 65:8.

There, it says, “This is what the Lord says, as when juice is still found in the cluster of grapes, and people say,” it’s in the saying, “Don’t destroy it. There is still yet blessing in that.” I will do on behalf of my servants, I will not destroy them all. There’s that idea. In fact, we see it further in the next few verses, Isaiah 65:10, where God says like a picture of it, “The Valley of Achor will be a resting place of herds for my people who seek me.” Now, the Valley of Achor was a valley of trouble. That’s what it means. There in that valley Israel faltered, Israel failed, and all that trouble that came because of that.

He says, “I will transform that valley of trouble into a resting place for my people who seek me.” There it is. There is still yet opportunity to turn this around for God to bring about a great thing, even though it’s been withered on the vine. There are principles of faith. There are principles of character that we’re going to see that will guide you to navigate through adversities, difficulties, calamities. We see it here. You see David’s relationship to God through it, you see his faith in God Most High. It’s an example for us because we all understand calamity and adversity.

We’re living in a broken world. It is a messed up world. You will have adversity, there will be difficulty. You’ll find that we need to understand how to navigate through it. Now, the backstory of Psalm 57 is this, David was facing trouble of epic proportions. Backstory, he was literally in danger of his life. After David defeated the Philistine giant, David became famous in Israel. The people loved David. King Saul attached him to his army, gave him command of 1,000 men. David prospered. The Hand of God was on David, but King Saul saw that and became very threatened by David.

Here’s why. Because the prophet Samuel had already told Saul that God had rejected Saul as king because of his unfaithfulness, and that God had sought out a man after his own heart. Saul could quite see easily that David was favored by God, but Saul refused to accept that word that God had rejected him. He refused to acknowledge it. No. He soon found himself fighting against God. Kinking against God, you might say, resisting God in every turn. Now, no longer anointed by the Spirit, no, now he’s raging, he’s angry. He’s trying to kill David. He’s trying to thwart the will of God by killing David.

With a contrast, you see Saul’s attitude, anger, jealousy, rage, and then you see David. In fact, Psalm 57 gives us the insight of David, the faith David has, the attitude, that bearing, what a key for us to understand how to navigate in trouble. David had escaped every attempt on his life. He finally fled to the wilderness, to the Cave of Adullam. Tells us then that everyone who was in distress, everyone who was in debt, everyone who was discontented came to David and gathered to him. There he became captain over them.

Tells us first there were 400 men who joined up with David. Later 200 more. Now, David has a group of 600, you might call them a group of malcontents. Together they formed a band of warriors and brothers. David left there, then the Cave of Adullam, and he swung southeast to the wilderness of Ziph. There, another great trouble arose because the Ziphites betrayed David to Saul. They essentially said to Saul, “He’s here. He’s right here.” Saul sent out his whole army to pursue David. He almost had him, it was that close. He had him.

What happened was David was on one side of the mountain, Saul and his men were on the other, and Saul made a pincer move. He’d sent half of his army around the mountain this way, the other half of the army around the mountain that way. They almost had David, but word came that the Philistines had raided the land, so Saul had to withdraw his men to deal with this attack by the Philistines. It was that close because he had him, but he had to withdraw. Again, you see the intervening Hand of God. David then left the wilderness of Ziph and continued eastward toward En Gedi which is right next to the Dead Sea.

Many believe that David wrote this Psalm after that narrow escape there in the wilderness of Ziph, went to En Gedi, and there are caves– if you ever go to Israel with me by the way, we always love to go to En Gedi. One of my favorite places. It’s right next to the Dead Sea. It’s desert, but it’s right there in the Judean Hills come down there, and water flows down the crags, and is very rough terrain. There’s wild goats, a plenty. In fact it’s called the place of the wild goats. Food is a lot of food.

Wild goat is amazing. If you’ve never had it, it is amazing. I’m kidding. I’ve never had it. It’s a thing. They love it. There’s lots of water there. It’s rough terrain. It’s easy to hide out, you might say, difficult for an army to pursue. There are caves. It’s a great place for David to hide. David is there. He’s escaped from the whole thing with the Ziphites. He’s resting in this cave, not knowing what now is going to happen. Then now there David was in that stronghold of En Gedi, wrote out a beautiful song, giving us an insight into his attitude, the bearing of his faith here.

He didn’t know what was going to come next. He didn’t know what trouble, what calamity would come next, but what happened next was nothing short of amazing. This is what happened. When Saul returned after he had to deal with the Philistines, he was told David is in En Gedi. Now he knew that land. It was very rough, difficult, so instead of bringing his whole army, he brought 3,000 of his choicest soldiers, you might call them special forces, to pursue David.

Now, they’re seeking him. They can’t find him. At one point, Saul needs to relieve himself, and he goes into a cave. It just so happens to be the exact cave in which David and his men were hiding in the inner recesses. Saul has literally been placed into David’s hand, and now the tables have turned for Saul has walked into the very place where David and his men are hiding and he has no army. He is by himself. This is extraordinary. This is amazing. Who could have known?

I. God Accomplishes All Things for You

David penned this Psalm. He had no idea what was going to come next. Who could have known that Saul was going to walk in without soldiers into the very cave? Who could have known this? This is extraordinary. Extraordinary things happened to extraordinary people with extraordinary faith. Let’s read the Psalm and then see how it interweaves with the story. Psalm 57:1, “Be gracious to me, O God, be gracious to me.” Treat me better than I deserve, that’s what he means. “For my soul takes refuge in thee, and in the shadow of your wings I will take refuge until destruction passes by. I will cry to God Most High.”

That’s where we get the title of the message here. “I will cry to Elohim Elyon,” beautiful in the Hebrew, God Most High, “to God who accomplishes all things for me.” Again, we’re getting an insight into the bearing of faith. Notice, “I know,” verse 3, “that He will send from heaven and save me. That He even will reproach him who tramples upon me. God will send forth. I know it. He will send forth His loving kindness and His truth, or his faithfulness.”

He says, “Look, my soul is among lions. I must lie among those who breathe forth fire. Even the sons of men whose teeth are spears and arrows, their tongue is like a sharp sword, but then he turns again to the Lord, “But be exalted, you be exalted, O Lord. Be exalted above the earth, that Your glory be above all the earth.” Then verse 6 he turns again to his troubles. “They have prepared a dent or they’ve laid a trap in other words for me, O, my soul has bowed down. They’ve dug a pit for me, O Lord, let them fall into the midst of it, but my heart is steadfast.”

A. Cry out to God Most High

Again, David’s giving us a great insight. “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast.” Then verse 8 is like the grand finale, “Awaken my soul to glory. Awake my glory, Awake O, harp and lyre.” That’s like a guitar. “I will awaken the dawn.” In other words, I will sing when the sunrises, “I will give You glory. I will give thanks to You, O Lord, among the people. I will sing praises to You among the nations for Your loving kindness is great.”

Now, here’s David in the midst of a calamity. He didn’t know what was going to come, but he knew that God’s loving kindness was great over him. “Up to the heavens and your truth to the clouds,” again, the grand finale, “Be exalted above the heavens, O God, and let your glory be above all the earth.” What a great Psalm. What a great insight into the attitude and bearing of faith in the midst of the troubles. Notice there’s so much for us to take hold of. Notice, for example, in verse 2 where he says, “God accomplishes all things for me.”

That’s a great word. That’s the bearing of faith. To believe that God accomplishes all things. He says, “I will cry to God Most High, Elohim Elyon, and I know that He will accomplish all things for me.” Now, that word literally translated is, that God will bring it to completion. God will bring it to an end. In other words, God will finish it. David believed that God somehow, didn’t know how, didn’t know what was going to come, somehow that God would intervene. He had no idea that Saul, to relieve himself, would literally walk into the very cave in which David was hiding.

This is key. Faith is so key. The attitude of faith. The bearing of faith is so key. Because let’s say you’re navigating through adversity or distress or whatever, and your attitude is defeat or anger, frankly, a lot of people get angry when things get difficult, they’re angry at God, they’re angry at others, they’re just angry. That’s their bearing. Or other times people just throw up their hands and quit. If you do that, you’re giving up on God. See, David is not going to give up on God. No. He says in verse 7, “My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast. I will not relent. I will not quit. I believe that my God accomplishes all things for me,” which is why he says, notice, “I will cry out to God Most High. In the shadow of the wings of God Most High, I take refuge.” The bearing and the attitude of faith.

God must high is a beautiful name of God that declares God to be above all things. Above all of the troubles, and I take refuge under His wings. It means you’re drawn near at a trust in God’s hand to protect, that God would intervene. God’s intervening hand is still very much a part of our lives today if we would believe. Amen. Notice, for example, Psalm 91, it says a very similar word, “He will cover you with His pinions,” it’s an expression of feathers or wings, “and under His wings, you may seek refuge. His faithfulness is a shield and a bulwark.”

Notice then how God responds to that, “Because He has loved me, says the Lord, therefore, I will deliver him and I will set him–” this is a key, “I will set him securely on high. He is God Most High. I will set you high. Because he has known my name, he will call upon me, I will answer him. The one who calls upon me, I will be with him in trouble, I will rescue him and I will honor him.” Notice David’s faith again, verse 3, “I know God will send from heaven and He’ll save me, and He will even reproach the one who tramples upon me.”

B. Walk in High places

David didn’t know what would happen next, yet he believed that somehow some way, that God would move, not only to rescue and save, but to reproach the one who’s trampling upon me. Would you notice this? Because this is a very important part. He’s crying out to God Most High and believes that God will send him security in high places, but that he must himself walk in a high place. See, in other words, you and I must learn to walk on high places. You’re going to call out to God, Most High, that we need to learn to walk on high places in ways that are higher, the ways of God that are higher.

Habakkuk 3:19, it’s a thing you see throughout the Scriptures. “The Lord God is my strength. He has made my feet like hinds’ feet and makes me walk on high places.” Hind is, again, a doe, a deer. When you go to Israel, you’ll see the bounding deer upon the cliff and you think, “Wow, that’s amazing. They’re so sure-footed.” Right. That’s what God does. He sets me surely on high places that I might walk high. Psalm 18 says it similarly. “God girds me with strength and He makes my way blameless to walk high. He makes my feet like hinds’ feet, sets me in high places.

C. Call others to walk higher

See, in other words, you and I must learn what it means. If we’re going to call out to God Most High, then we need to live in such a way that we are walking on high places. The ways of God are high and God calls us up to live higher. Notice, Isaiah 55:8-9, where He says to that prophet. He says, look, “My thoughts are not your thoughts and your ways are not my ways, declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways. The ways of men are not high. I’m calling you higher. My thoughts are higher than your thoughts. I’m calling you higher.”

See, and you see this in the story. When Saul came into the cave where David and his men were hiding, David’s men saw this as an opportunity to get revenge. “It’s like he has been pursuing you wrongly. What have you done to him? You’ve done nothing to deserve this. It’s only right that you bring retribution. It’s only right that you bring justice to bear. You have every legal right to do it. Do it, David. Do it. He’s right there. He has no army. He’s right there. Do it.” In fact, they said, “Isn’t this a God thing? Essentially, it’s a God thing.”

You have to admit, it’s pretty amazing.

Who could have known that Saul, to relieve himself, would walk into the very cave– you got to admit, that’s pretty amazing. Now, when something amazing happens like that, a lot of people would assume, “Hey, that’s a God thing.” It is a God thing, but what do you do about it? In fact, they said, “Wasn’t there a prophecy, David, that your enemy would fall into your hand, and that you should do what seems good to you?” Which is true. What should he do? By the way, if you’ve ever wondered, side note, how could this conversation be happening and Saul not hear it if they’re in a cave?

Well, when you go to En Gedi with me sometimes, we love going there. You go to En Gedi, you walk up into the crags, and the water is running down the valleys. That’s the answer. Water bounding off the rocks is echoing through the cave. Yes, they can have a conversation in there as rushing water sounds are echoing through it. They are saying to him, “Do it, David.” David, in the bearing of faith, knows that there’s something higher at work. This is a very important point for us. Don’t just listen to someone else’s advice. Don’t just listen to someone else’s advice. Discern it. Discern it yourself. Have spiritual discernment yourself.

Now, it’s good to hear, it’s good to receive, but discern it yourself. God’s word must be correctly applied. David knew that there was a higher principle here. Yes, it’s true. Retribution was deserved. True. Saul was an unrighteous king. True. Israel would have been better off without him. True, but David says, “But he’s the Lord’s anointed. He was placed there by God, and if he is going to be removed, God’s going to have to do it. I won’t do it.” There is a principle at work here that is higher.

What David did is that he snuck over while Saul is doing his business, cut off a corner of the cloak, went back into hiding. In fact, interestingly, his conscience even bothered him that he did that. Now, culture tells us that the edge of the cloak represented authority. See, that’s why it bothered David because he’s cutting off that which represents authority. He did it. It was strategic. Then notice, David had made this decision and then insisted that they all obey the direction and decision that David had made. There is a high principle here. No one will touch him.

In other words, David recognized that he was called to live higher, but he’s calling them too. See, you call others. If you are called to live high, then call others to walk higher too. How David responded is amazing. 600 to 1 you might say. “It’s a God thing. David, do it.” David is the leader. He’s got the responsibility to walk higher himself but to convince them to walk higher as well. If he’s crying out to God Most High, then we must walk in high places. A leader is not led by circumstances. A leader is led by the Holy Spirit in the bearing of his faith.

Look deeper. In order to walk higher, you must look deeper for the higher principles that are at work. David is not led by emotions. He’s not led by the pressure of his men. No, he’s looking for the principles that are higher. I tell you, there are high principles of God throughout the Word of God. You look throughout God’s Word you will find there are many, many principles laid, written out there for us. I’ll give you just a few, for example, 1 Peter 2:17. He writes, “Honor all people.” See, that’s the principle of life in how you relate to other people that is high. Honor all people. Don’t be dishonoring and disrespectful and spit mean things. No. Honor all people.

Love the brotherhood. Give an extra portion of love to the brothers. Fear God. That means you respect and revere Him. Honor the king. These are principles that are high even though you may not agree with whoever is the king or the president or whoever. You may not agree but you honor him. It’s a principle that’s high. Here’s another one. Proverbs 24:29. Where he says do not say this. “Do not say, ‘Oh, thus I shall do to him as he has done to me.'” Don’t say that. That’s not a high principle, that’s a low principle.

You’ve heard this. No doubt. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” You heard this golden rule. It’s in the Scriptures and Jesus quoted it as well. That is a high principle. You call it higher. You want to live under the shadow of Elohim Elyon, then live higher. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Do not say, “Well, thus they did to me so I will do it to them.” No, don’t say that. Notice Romans 12:19. “Never take your own revenge beloved. Leave room for the wrath of God for it is written, ‘Vengeance is mine I will repay,’ says the Lord.”

In other words, God will finish it. God will settle it. That’s what David is saying, isn’t he? God will settle it. God will settle the account. No, don’t take your own revenge because you will have to lower your character to do it. See, if you have to lower your character to do it, then don’t do it. No, we’re called to live under the shadow of El Elyon, under the God Most High, therefore, do that which brings your character to a higher place. “You don’t understand, pastor, he was so mean to me, can’t I do the same thing to him? He was mean to me, he deserves it.” Well, maybe he does, but let God settle it. Don’t lower your character to do it. Amen.

II. Keep the Soul Beautiful

The principle is keep your soul beautiful. Keep your soul beautiful. You see David’s soul, this is beautiful. David’s soul is beautiful. You see his faith, you see his honor, “Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, your loving kindness is great above all the earth.” This is beautiful. One of the most amazing principles of God’s Word is that God wants to do that which is beautiful on your soul. That which God does is beautiful and will transform your soul into that which is beautiful. You can see it’s one of the greatest themes, maybe it is the greatest themes in the Word of God that the heart of God is to do a transforming work upon your soul.

That which is beautiful comes from His presence, His glory. God’s glory is beautiful on the soul. Amen. The presence of God, the fruit of the Spirit of the Living God is beautiful on the soul. Love. Galatians 5:22 tells us the fruit of the Spirit that is to say that the presence of the living God, the Holy Spirit in your life, will bear forth itself as fruit to be seen in your character in your soul. He describes there in Galatians 5:22 and following, that the fruit of the Spirit is love. Love is beautiful on the soul. God is love. When God’s glory abides on your soul, it will be seen in that which is beautiful. Love, joy, it’s beautiful. Peace that passes understanding, that’s the transforming work of God to bring peace.

A. Your part is peace

You see it in the story. Peace is beautiful. Your part is peace. Notice what comes in the story. Saul, he picks up his cloak and he leaves the cave. Now, he would go down from the cave, down into the valley where the men were. After he left, David came out onto the mouth of the cave and calling out to him, “My lord the king.” He’s got the edge of his cloak. “My lord the king.” He turns, “David.” He knows that was the very– I was just there in that cave. “David, is that you, my son?” “See the edge of your robe. I could have killed you, and some said that I should, but I won’t do it. I won’t do it. Please know and perceive there is no evil or rebellion in my hands. I have not sinned against you though you are lying in wait to take my life. I wouldn’t do it.”

See, you see here a beautiful soul and he’s going to abide in that soul, he’s going to keep his soul beautiful. “I’m not going to do it. You’re lying in wait to take my life wrongfully. I’m not going to do it.” He’s going to keep his soul beautiful. Romans 12:18, it’s a New Testament principle, if possible, so far as it depends on you, be at peace with all men, in your relationships. As far as your part, so your part is peace, because when you have that beautiful work of God in your soul, let it be then seen. Let that bearing be in your relationships, keep your soul beautiful. Your part is peace.

Now, He does say if possible because, frankly, we know there are people that are quite impossible, we know that, but your part is peace. Second Corinthians 6:3-4, “Give no cause for offense in anything because you are under the shadow of Elohim Elyon, God Most High, so live higher, give no cause for offense, don’t offend. You don’t lower your character to offend. Don’t offend, give no offense so that the ministry might not be discredited, but in everything commending ourselves as servants of God Elohim Elyon. Commend yourself as a servant of Elohim Elyon, give no cause for offense.” He says.

In much endurance, give no cause for offense. In afflictions, give no cause for offense. In hardships, give no cause for offense. In distresses, give no cause for offense. You’re under the shadow of Elohim Elyon, the fire. Twice, David said a remarkable thing when he stood there on the mouth of the cave and called out, “You are lying in wait to take my life but my hand will not be against you. I won’t do it. My hand will never be against you. You may pursue me and pursue me and pursue me. My hand will never be against you. I won’t do it.”

Notice verse 7. “My heart is steadfast.” In other words, my hope is in the Lord. I won’t do this thing. Now, this is important. We all live in times of distresses. Relationships can sometimes be difficult. If somebody is having a conflict with you. If their hand is against you, be sure that your hand is not against them. No, you’re under the shadow of Elohim Elyon. Saul is convicted, “David–” he actually starts weeping, “you are more righteous than I.” I tell you what, if David had lowered his character and taken Saul’s life, that could have never been said, but that declaration was because David had dwelt in the shadow of Elohim Elyon and kept his soul beautiful, and therefore, he was convicted.

Saul says, “Now I know. I know it. You will be king.” I know. I know that God will bless character like that. I know that God will bless faithfulness like that, and He will. Do you believe Him? He will. He surely will. I tell you, and this is important, everyone there that day heard this, between David and Saul, everyone could see the difference. All of Saul’s 3,000 men, all of the men with David could see the difference. What a powerful lesson everyone learned that day. Which is why when we come later to the story of David’s life, we know that David turned these men into great men of God.

B. Awaken the glory in your soul

These ragtag group of malcontents and distressed ones that joined David. He transformed them into some of the greatest men who accomplished feats by faith. David’s influence. Everyone there could see the difference. What a powerful declaration. Then, lastly, as we go back to Psalm 57, the grand finale, keep your soul beautiful. You see the beautiful soul of David where he says, “Awaken the glory of my soul.” Notice, awaken my glory. Do you have glory? God’s glory abiding in you makes the soul glorious. “Awaken my glory. Awaken O harp and lyre,” musical instruments.

“O, awaken the dawn. The culmination, the grand finale. I will give thanks to you, O Lord, among the people. I will sing your praises among the nations. Your loving kindness is great up to the heavens. Your truth is great up to the clowns. Be exalted.” What does the word exalted means? It means to be lifted up. “Be lifted up O Elohim Elyon. I lift up your glory. I lift up your name. I lift you up among the nations, and I will sing of your loving kindness. I will sing of your glory.” What a grand finale. “Be exalted above the heavens, O God. Let your glory be above all the earth because your glory is beautiful.”

Oh, may God do a beautiful work. It’s His presence that makes the soul beautiful. Let this be a year of revival. Let this be a year where we abide under the shadow of Elohim Elyon. Amen. Lord, we love you. Thank you so much for showing us the beauty of Your glory, the beauty of Your presence with us. Deuteronomy would say to the Lord today, “I want to walk in higher places. I want to dwell under the shadow of Elohim Elyon. I want my soul made beautiful. I want to keep my soul beautiful by walking in higher places, living in a higher way because you are high, O Elohim, Elyon. Show me what it means to walk on higher places. Transform me.”

Church, is that your heart? Your desire? Would you just declare it to the Lord by raising your hand to the Lord? Just by raising your hand, you declare it, “I want character like that. I want faith like that. I want a soul like that, O Elohim Elyon. I want to walk higher. I want to live higher. I want glory to reside. I want my soul made beautiful.” Lord, thank you for everyone who’s moved of the spirit and touched of the Lord. Do that in us we pray in Jesus’ name, and everyone said. Can we give the Lord praise and glory? Amen.

The Renewed Steadfast Spirit
Psalm 51:1-17

December 9-10, 2023

This is a Psalm written by David. We know the exact reason and time that David wrote it because it tells us. It was when Nathan the prophet confronted David because he had sinned against the Lord when he took Bathsheba to himself. Of course, it’s one of the most famous of the Psalms. Many, many songs have been written over the years based on the words of this Psalm. When you read the Psalm, I mean you really must hear the passion of David’s words. Maybe this is the most passionate of all the words that David has ever written.

After David sinned, his soul was just crushed within him. He was carrying anguish in the depth of his soul. He could not rest; his sin was constantly ever before him. He writes he couldn’t sleep. He would lie down on his bed and just hot tears would come down his face night after night, after night, after night. That’s how deeply David was feeling the trouble and the anguish because of his sin.

Now, that is important to note because some people sin, and it doesn’t trouble them at all. It doesn’t bother them in the slightest. The only time they get bothered is when they get caught, and then instead of being humble and contrite, they get angry at the one that caught them. That’s a whole different thing. David, why was David so deeply broken and anguished so deep in his soul, why? Well, because David had known the heights of glory.

David had tasted how good the presence of God was in his life. David understood so much, and all of that now it’s gone. His relationship to God meant so much to David, and now he’s at risk of losing it all. Now, someone watching that whole scene might have said to David, “David, was it worth it? Was it worth it?” What did you gain that made you risk so much? Of course, the answer is, “No, it was not worth it.”

In fact, interestingly, Paul wrote something very similar to this in his letter than he wrote to Rome, it’s in Romans 6:21. I mentioned last week that when I was in my 20s, I memorized Romans 6 and Romans 8. When you’re memorizing a whole chapter, you meditate on it, and you recite it to yourself over and over. Verse 21, at first, you just memorize it and then you start to think about it.

I thought, that’s a really great question. Romans 6:21 says, “What benefit did you gain from the things of which you are now ashamed? The outcome of those things is death.” Again, I’m reading that, meditating on it, and then I thought, that’s a good question. What did I gain? I didn’t gain anything, and the outcome of that is death. Paul writes a very similar thing, no, it’s never worth it. I mean, you ask anyone who’s crushed their lives, and they will tell you, “No, it wasn’t worth it.” The problem, of course, is that at that moment, right their flesh was being drawn into the disaster, they weren’t calculating the consequences. They weren’t considering the cost, no, their flesh was blinding them to the consequences.

The very definition of spiritual wisdom is the ability to foresee the consequences, the ability to consider the cost and to understand, “I don’t want that,” and to choose that which is better. That is what spiritual wisdom is, because, see, many cannot see that there are external disastrous consequences. Then there are the consequences in the inner man, in the soul within, the anguish of the soul.

I mean, if you’ve ever done a disastrous thing, you know what I’m saying. There is such a yucky condition, it’s like you’ve just got to get rid of this poison thing. It’s like, oh, it’s anguish in the soul, and the anguish is much deeper when you know the value of what you lost. Now, in order to understand Psalm 51, we really need to be reminded of the back story that led David to write such a passion-filled Psalm.

The story of that is found in 2 Samuel 11 and 12. It starts out by saying, it happened in the spring, at the time when Kings go out to war. David did not go out to war, David remained in Jerusalem, and then it says. “One evening, David arose from his afternoon nap,” which says a lot right there. “David arose from his afternoon nap, and then walking about on the roof of the king’s house,” roofs were flat in those days. “He looked out from the roof and he saw a woman bathing, and the woman was beautiful.” David inquired about the woman, and then someone responded and said, “Is this not Bathsheba, daughter of Eliam, wife of Uriah the Hittite?”

Now, when David heard that, that should have put an end to it right there. Daughter of Eliam, wife of Uriah the Hittite. That should have put an end to it right there, but it did not. David, blinded, pursued, sent word, and she came. As we know the story, they had sexual relations and then she sent word to David, “I’m pregnant.” Then David tries to cover, hide, which is so typical of men, right? To try to hide and cover the thing. David, this is what he did, he sent a message to the commander of the forces. Uriah was serving in the war, “Send Uriah the Hittite to me.”

When Uriah came from the battlefield to David, David said, “Go down to your house and wash your feet,” wink, wink. The next morning, someone said to David, Uriah did not go to his house, he camped outside the king’s house. He spent the night outside the king’s porch. David said to Uriah, “Why didn’t you go to your house?” Uriah responded, “The soldiers of the king are camping in the open field, shall I go to my house and eat and drink and lie with my wife? By your life and the life of my soul, I would never do such a thing.” This man’s got character and God is going to use Uriah’s character to convict David’s lack of character.

David amps it up. He steps it up to the next level, he invites Uriah to dinner and then serves him wine. Then keeps serving the wine and keeps serving the wine until he’s drunk, and then he tells him to go home to his wife. No, Uriah spent the night again camping outside the king’s house. This man’s got character even when he’s drunk. Now, David is desperate, so he wrote a letter to Joab, the commander of his forces. He sent it by the hand of Uriah, and in that letter he wrote that Uriah was to be placed at the front of the fiercest battle. Then have the men withdraw so that he would die in battle. Then shortly after, David got word Uriah is dead.

The thing that David had done was evil and displeasing in the sight of the Lord. This was one terrible disastrous sin after another, nothing is hidden from the sight of the Lord. The Lord sent Nathan the prophet to confront David. Now, this will not be easy, and so Nathan told David a parable. Now, the point of the parable was to open David’s eyes to injustice so that David would indict himself.

Now, it’s important to note that David did not know that it was a parable. He thought this was real circumstance. Nathan said to him, “Now, there were two men in your kingdom, one was very rich, wealthy, and he had many flocks and herds. There was another man who was poor, but he only had one lamb, only one. This lamb was like a dear pet to him, he even would had him in his house and

it was like almost raised it like his own daughter, but one day a guest came to visit the rich man, but instead of taking from his own flocks and herds, no, he went and he stole the lamb from the poor man, and he took it and he butchered it and then he served that to his guest.

David heard that and he became enraged. “The man who did this thing, that man deserves to die.” Then Nathan said, “You are the man.” Oh, David knew right then. He had indicted himself, but then Nathan said to him, “Thus says the Lord God of Israel, I anointed you king over Israel. I delivered you from the hand of Saul. I gave you the house of Israel and Judah and if that had been too little, I would’ve added even more. Why have you despised the word of the Lord by doing evil in his sight?”

Then David broke and he said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan said, “The Lord has taken away your sin, you will not die.” Now, David of course, knew, recognized that he deserved to die, but he said, the Lord has taken away your sin you will not die. Now, the word in Hebrew taken away your sin. The word in Hebrew is passed over. God has passed over your sin. You will not die. To which I say, really? It’s that simple? God just passes over. Is that it? God just passes over to sin? After all that David did that was so disastrous, God just passes over it? Is it that simple? To which I say, oh no, it is not that simple.

No, God didn’t simply pass over it. No, this sin must be paid for, and it must be paid in full. What David did was wrong on every level. It was wrong. It was offensive, it was ugly. If righteousness will prevail, then there must be a reckoning. There’s got to be a payment and there will be, there would be. There would one day come a descendant of David who would not only be called the King of Israel but the king of the whole earth.

One day they would be born in the city of David, a child. A child who was called the Son of God. God would send forth his only begotten son, the descendant of David, who would bring that reckoning to David’s sin, that sin must be reckoned for. God’s going to reckon it in his Son by taking that sin and the sins of every one of us and laying them on that Son who would be called the Son of the living God and the Son of David who would be king of all the earth. That is a glorious, wonderful truth.

Let me give you a great verse that helps us to see that so beautifully, maybe one of the most important verses in the Bible. Roman 3:19-26, where Paul wrote this. He said, “Now all the world has become accountable to God for all have sinned, but the righteousness of God has been manifested. The righteousness must prevail.” He says, “The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe. That righteousness,” he says, “that those who believe would be justified as a gift. It’s a gift through grace, through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus,” he says, “whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation.”

Propitiation meaning the satisfying of God’s wrath, the satisfying of God’s judgment, the satisfying of the demand of sin, that propitiation is done in his blood through faith. This was to demonstrate his righteousness but would you notice then, because in the forbearance of God, he passed over the sins previously committed? Do you see the direct connection?

He said for the demonstration I say of his righteousness at the present time, so that he would be just, and the justifier of the one who has faith in Christ Jesus. That means everything to us because all of us are implicated in the story. All of us need to realize that it was the mercy of God that brought the reckoning for all of our sins to bear on the cross that Jesus paid for us and he paid it all and we are all very thankful for that. Amen. Let’s give him praise and glory for that. Amen.

That was all the introduction, which is the longest introduction in the history of the world. Now let’s read it. Psalm 51. We begin Verse 1 and we’ll just read 17 verses, “Be gracious, have mercy, God, according to your loving kindness.” See, David knows God. He knows that God is love and your loving kindness, “have mercy, according to the greatness of your compassion, blot out my transgressions.” In other words, I cannot carry this anymore. If this thing is poison in my soul, I can’t carry this anymore. “Wash me,” Verse 2, “wash me thoroughly from my inequity. Cleanse me from my sin. I know my transgression from my sin is ever before me. I can’t get away from it. I cannot escape it. It’s always there.”

Then he says, interestingly, Verse 4, “And against you and you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight.” That’s interesting. We’ll look at it, “so that you are justified when you speak and you’re blameless when you judge.” In other words, you’re right, God, I don’t deny any of it. You’re absolutely right. “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin, my mother conceived me.” What does this mean? We’ll look at it. “Behold, you desire truth in the innermost being, and in the hidden part, you will make me no wisdom. Build it again, Lord, in me. Then purify me with hyssop and I will be clean. Wash me and I will be whiter than snow.” Very interesting. We’ll see it.

“Make me to hear joy and gladness. Let the bones which you have broken, let them rejoice. Restore me in other words, hide your face from my sins. Blot out my iniquities,” and then that beautiful Verse 10, “creating me a clean heart. Oh God, renew, do it. Renew a steadfast spirit within me. Don’t cast me away from your presence. Do not take your Holy Spirit from me. No, restore to me the joy of my salvation and sustain me with a willing spirit, then I will teach transgressors your ways and sinners will be converted to you.” Now, I love that verse.

“Deliver me from my blood guiltiness God, oh God, on my salvation. Then my tongue will joyfully sing. You do this, God, I’m going to rejoice. I’m going to sing. I’m going to shout of your righteousness. I’m going to shout, I’m going to praise your righteousness.” This is very interesting because God doesn’t just pass it over. God’s going to demonstrate righteousness by the applying of blood, by his– We’re going to see it very beautiful. “My tongue is going to joyfully shout, open my lips,” Verse 15, “that my mouth may declare your praise, for you do not delight and sacrifice, otherwise I would give it. That’s not sufficient for the righteousness of God to be satisfied. You’re not pleased with burned offerings. No, the sacrifice of God is a broken spirit. Oh, a broken and contrite heart. Oh God, you will not despise.” That’s what God desires to see.

I. God Washes Thoroughly

Oh, what a passion field amazing Psalm. Again, we’ll look at the other verses around this after Wednesday, verse-by-verse service, but I want us to see how God would apply this right to our lives as well, and that is that God washes thoroughly. He does. He washes thoroughly. You must hear the compassion of David’s plea and recognize also that we are part of the story. It’s something for us to take hold of for ourselves that God would do the same. He’s crying out from the very depths of his soul that God would blot out

his transgressions, wash him thoroughly from his iniquity, cleanse him from his sin.

Notice Verse 7 where he says ”Purify me with hyssop, and I’ll be clean, wash me, and I’ll be whiter than snow.” What does this mean? Well, on the original Passover there in Egypt, anyone who took a branch of hyssop and then dipped it into the blood of a innocent lamb would therefore die, give us his life, his poor blood, dip the hyssop into the blood of the lamb and then apply that blood to the lintel and the doorpost of the house and then when enter through that blood into his house that the angel of death, the angel of condemnation would pass over that house because of the blood of the innocent lamb applied to that house.

God would pass over because the payment of that life had been made. Notice then that when the commandment given to Moses had been spoken there to all the people in Mount Sinai that then afterward Moses took the blood of a calf mixed with water. Then he took a branch of hyssop, interestingly, blood mixed with water should remind you of something, and then he dipped the hyssop into the mixture and then he sprinkled the book of the law and then interestingly he walked through the people sprinkling them with blood from hyssop, throwing blood on all the people, indicating what we know is a great truth in Hebrews 9:22 that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.

A. God is gracious because He loves

That’s why David says, “Take your hyssop Lord, that which you do, take your hyssop and you purify me and then I’ll be clean. Wash me. You wash me and then I’ll be whiter than snow. Take your hyssop.” Look, when Jesus was dying on the cross being crucified, they took a branch of hyssop and they dipped it into– with a sponge full of sour wine and brought it to his mouth. Very interesting. Would you notice back to Psalm 51 he’s crying for mercy because God is gracious because he loves. David knows God and he knows that God is love and so he’s appealing to that.

“Be merciful according to your great love,” he says, “because,” Verse 3, ”I know my transgressions and my sin it’s ever before me.” David feels terrible about what he did. Now, again, it’s important to see that only people with conscience feel terrible. He cannot escape it. Agony and anguish of his soul brought him to tears every night, but David knew where help comes from. David knew that God and only God could help him now. He wants this washed out of his soul. He wants this stain, this ugly thing, I don’t want to carry this anymore. If anyone has ever done something disastrous in your life, you know exactly what David is saying. I don’t want to carry this thing anymore. This thing is poison to me, but God I know that you can do it.

Now notice in Hebrew 10:22, it’s almost an exact parallel. Notice where the writer there in Hebrews 10 says ”Let us draw near right to the Living God with a sincere heart in full assurance of our faith having our hearts sprinkled clean” See, again, there’s that idea, the hyssop, the sprinkling of that blood, the blood of the Son of the Living God sprinkled upon your life. He says ”let us draw near in full assurance of faith having our hearts been sprinkled clean from an evil conscience’.’ See that conscience? That, oh, that thing, it’s in my soul, it’s a stain, I don’t want that anymore.

B. This is between you and God

No, your conscience even has been washed and our bodies washed, cleansed inside and out. You can see the direct parallel. David cries for mercy because he knows the greatness of God’s compassion and loving-kindness. That is everything to David. Then notice this part of the story Verse 4, “That this is between you and God,” very personal. Notice Verse 4, ”Against you and you only have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight”

Now some people say wait, wait, what about Bathsheba? He hurt her. What about her? What about Uriah? What about all the results of consequences in his family? What about the whole nation of Israel? What about them? David hurt every one of them. Right, you true. Yes, he most certainly did, but what makes sin to be sin is the fact that it’s against God. See, every man is accountable to God. In other words, this is the very definition of what sin is, that it is against God. Notice for example Romans 14:23, ”Whatever is not from faith is sin.” It has everything to do with your faith.

Leviticus 6:2 is very clear there. ”If anyone sins and commits a breach of faith against the Lord by deceiving his neighbor in a matter.” You see the point? He’s clearly deceived his neighbor and he’s offended his neighbor, but he calls it a breach of faith. Now if you hurt someone, yes, you should ask for their forgiveness because you hurt them. Yes, you must. You should redirect it to ask forgiveness and to forgive. David knows and recognizes that in order for anything else in his life to be right, it has to start by settling this between him and God. We’ve got to settle this God. Until this is settled between God and David, nothing will be right.

Now would you notice that David doesn’t try to minimize it, but he owns it outright? This is a great key. He owns it outright. He doesn’t minimize it, doesn’t try to tuck it, and ”Oh, let’s not make–” no, no. David owns it outright. “Look, you are right, God. You are justified when you speak. You are blameless when you judge. This is for all of us to receive.” We got to get this right between us and God’s. Between me and God, is between you and God. Don’t minimize it, don’t ignore it. Don’t pretend it never happened, but you can trust God’s love, his compassion, his grace, his mercy.

II. Renew a Right Heart within You

You can trust God that God will pour out that love, that he will hear your heart. That when you come to him, notice where it goes next in the psalm, he says ”Renew a right heart” That’s what God will do for you, renew a right heart within you. Would you notice though how he leads up to it Verse 5? ”I was brought forth in iniquity and in sin my mother conceived me.” Now this is an expression which means I was born with a sinful nature. Now some people which is of course true, every person is born with the nature of man, the nature of sin. We’re all born in a sinful nature.

Now some people would use that to minimize their sin. In other words, they would say, ”Look, this is who I am, okay? That’s just the way I am, okay?” Yes, you got to see that way of like they’re trying to excuse it. ”All right. Look, this is just the way I am, okay?” What are they saying? What they’re saying is, look, this is my disposition. Okay? This is the DNA I inherited, okay? Now, that is true of the animal kingdom. The nature of hyenas pretty much dialed into its DNA. It’s probably going to act like a hyena all his life.

I was thinking of an illustration. We were visiting some friends in Eastern Oregon and we were on a walk, and on the path there was a rattlesnake, a baby rattlesnake. There’s a baby rattlesnake, isn’t that cute? All right, get along little buddy because he’s blocking our path, right? There’s rocks here. Come on now. Come on now, get out of the way. Come on. Anyone. That thing’s not afraid of us. He’s just a little baby, right? He’s not afraid of us at all. Like, no, you go around and I can see attitude, I could see in his eyes. You go around, I’m not budging, you go around. I’m thinking that thing’s not afraid of us at all. Little baby. Attitude right away. No, you go around. Take me on, you want to try it? Try it. You want a little bit of this? Come on, you try it.

Yes,

it’s dialed into his DNA, but is that true of us? Well, you did inherit a disposition, true, but I know my God, and I know that God can change that. Oh, I can tell you so many people who have lived in the disposition of whatever they inherited, whatever addiction, whatever anger, whatever thing. I tell you, I know my God, and I have seen over and over and over and over again that God can take a broken soul and he can heal it, he can transform it because God is still doing it today and God’s not done yet. Amen. Let’s give him praise for that, right?

See, this is not David. David is not going to use this as an excuse. No, it’s the opposite. What David is saying is, I was born with this thing and unless you intervene in my life, it will ruin me. Now, there’s the right heart. See, that’s the prayer, I was born with this thing, this disposition. My flesh is so drawn to it, and every one of us knows exactly what I’m saying here. I was born with this thing, my flesh is so drawn to it. God, if you don’t intervene, if you don’t put your hand on my life, I am done for. That’s what David is saying. That’s why he says, “Behold,” Verse 6, “you desire truth. In the innermost being, this is what you desire and you will do it. In the hidden part, you will make me know wisdom. I need that. Do that in me.”

A. “Create in me a clean heart, O God”

That’s what he says in that beautiful Verse 10. Really, Verse 10 is like the peak of the mountain here. “Create in me a clean heart.” God, I want my heart clean. I don’t like this thing, this ugly thing in my life. I don’t like, I don’t want it anymore. I want a clean heart and I know that you can do it. That’s why he’s asking God to do it. See, so many people they’ve got it wrong, they think that God is saying you, “You get your act together. What are you doing, doing all these things? You get your act together there.” Many people think that’s the way God is. No, David says, “No, this is what you do. God will do it.” God is saying to you, “Look, you give me your life. You let me come in and fill, I’ll do it. I’ll create in you that clean heart and renew a steadfast spirit within you.”

It’s as though David is saying, “Can I come back? Can I come back? I want my heart right again. Can I come back? I need you, God. I’m asking that you would create in me a clean heart, that you would renew a steadfast spirit.” He knows only God can do this. Only God can change the nature of which you were born. Only God can create in you a clean heart and renew that right spirit. David knows that if his heart isn’t right, then nothing’s right. David knows if this thing with God isn’t right, nothing’s right. He’s desperate, passionately crying out to God.

Notice what he says next in Verse 11. “So cast me not away.” Don’t cast me away. Don’t take your Holy Spirit from me. It says, though David is saying, “Don’t give up on me, Lord. Don’t reject me. Don’t give up. Don’t cast me away. Don’t toss me aside. Don’t take your Holy Spirit from me.” Now, on this side of the cross, looking back on all that God has done for us through his son, we have a deeper understanding of this. We understand. See, if you are away from God’s presence, it’s not because God has cast you away. It’s because you chose that.

No, God is the one. It’s the opposite. God is the one drawing you near. God’s not going to reject. God’s going to draw you near. In fact, this is so important because people, so many people have it wrong. So many people, so many have it wrong when it comes to this perspective on God. That’s why I want to just– like we’re going to say this over and over until it is locked into our soul. So many people believe that they do some disastrous thing, some sin of great depth and that God looks at that and says, “I am done with you,” and he cast them. I’m so offended at what you’ve done, right? God be gone. I have nothing to do with you. I cast you away. I reject you. I’m so offended.

They believe that God is looking for retribution in his anger. Nothing could be farther from the truth. That is the enemy wanting you right there to judge, to give up. I’m not worthy and God wants you to quit and give up. Excuse me, the enemy wants you to quit and give up, but God is the opposite. God said that he sent his Son to seek out sinners. Go find them. Go, go find them and bring them home. That is the complete opposite. God isn’t rejecting. God is pursuing. That’s what I’m reading.

God is pursuing. Go get them, find them. No matter how deep the sin, no matter how bad the soul, go get them and bring them home. Reconcile them to God, their father. You might say, “Well, but God is offended at sin.” You know why? Yes, he is. You know why? Because it hurts people he loves. That’s why God is offended at sin because it hurts people that he loves. He loves. God so loved the world that he gave his only son. He loves, he’s offended at sin, yes, because I love you and it’s hurting you. It’s destroying you. I want you to come and find life. I sent my Son to seek and to save that which was lost.

Now, it’s important to recognize too that if you have trusted by faith Jesus for the forgiveness of sin and the promise of eternal life, that God will not take the Holy Spirit from you. You can understand this from this side of the cross. We understand that when you receive the Lord Jesus Christ, that you are sealed by the Holy Spirit. You are sealed in the courtroom of God. You are sealed and unless you got more authority to God, nothing’s going to undo that. Amen.

Yes, let’s give a little praise. Absolutely right. Can there be more of the Holy Spirit in your life? Can you ask for more? You’ve been sealed and you’ve been given the Spirit, but can you ask for more? Yes, absolutely you can. Ephesians 5:18 says, “Be ye filled by the Holy Spirit.” Therefore, if you can ask for more and be filled with the Spirit, then can you have less? Yes. If you don’t abide, if you don’t abide in that relationship, then less. You’re not walking in the life of the Spirit, then less.

David is asking for more. Create in me a clean heart, renew a right spirit within me. Then verse 12, “And restore to me the joy of my salvation.” That’s everything. David knows the beauty of the presence of the living God. David understands that glory is beautiful on the soul. Restore it to me, I want to rejoice again. I want the joy in my soul again and sustain me with a willing spirit. It’s like saying, I want my soul restored to you, Lord. Do that which is beautiful in being again.

B. God uses restored sinners

Then lastly, we’ll close with this. Would you notice that God uses restored sinners? God uses restored sinners. Do this in me, God. Create in me a clean heart. Renew a steadfast spirit. Restore to me the joy of my salvation. Wash me and I will be whitened in snow. You do this, God. Verse 13, “And then I’m going to teach transgressors your ways and sinners are going to be converted to you.” I love that part of the story. David has gone to the deepest pit of regret and sorrow over his sin, but has been restored and renewed and he’s going to find the joy again of his salvation. He’s going to experience again the heights of glory.

David’s got something to say to sinners. I want to teach transgressors the ways of God. I want sinners to be converted to you, God. What a grand conclusion. What a grand conclusion. So many are convinced that their sin and sorrow mean that God is so ashamed, that God sets them aside. Well, I guess we’re done here, aren’t we? Well, I guess you’re blown, and I guess that’s it, huh? Set you aside? No, nothing could be farther from the truth if you have been restored, if God has created in you that joy again of your salvation, you’ve got something to say to sinners.

I’ll tell you what, there are so many people today that have crushed their lives. There are so many broken people today. There are so many who are just buried in their sin and God says, “But you have tasted and seen how good God is.” You know that God can restore. You know that God can create in you that which is beautiful. You’ve got something to say to those sinners, say it. God’s not done. God’s going to restore you to meaning and purpose and significance. He’s not going to set you aside. He’s going to bring you here and say, “Say it. Tell people how glorious it is to be restored. God is not done. God doesn’t quit. God doesn’t give up on sinners. God restores them.” That’s the glory of God to do that. Say it, because you know it’s true, and God will give you meaning and purpose in your life.

You know how gracious God is? In this circumstance, God’s grace was poured out so amazingly that the next king of Israel came from Bathsheba. Solomon was the Son of Bathsheba. That’s grace. That is nothing but grace, and it makes me love the Lord even more to know that God will have that same grace on all of us. Amen. Father, we are so thankful. What can we say? Restore the joy. God, we know that what you do is beautiful on the soul. Restore the joy. Create in us a clean heart. Renew a steadfast spirit. God, that’s what we want. We see now the beauty of that which you do in our lives, we need you to put your hand, intervene, otherwise, all is lost. We need you, and then, God, use us for the King, use us for the Kingdom.

There are people all over this room, God, who’ve got something to say, the sinners because God’s done it, God’s restored, God has used them. Church, if you’re here today and you would say to the Lord, “God restore the joy of my salvation, create in me that heart, that heart after God. I want that heart within me, and God, I want your purpose. I want your significance. I want the meaning that comes by me being used of the King. I want to tell transgressors about the ways of God. I want to see sinners converted. God, use me for the Kingdom.”

Church, is that you? Would you just raise your hand and that’s your prayer, your desire that God would do that in your life? God, we’re so thankful for you. Oh, thank you, Lord, for your grace, your mercy, for the greatness of your love poured out upon us. We give you glory and honor in Jesus’ name and everyone said, Amen. Let’s give the Lord praise.

Be Still and Know that He is God
Psalm 46:1-11

December 2-3, 2023

The famous verse out of this Psalm, really, it’s a wonderful, amazing Psalm, but the most famous is the verse where it says, be still and know that I am God. One of the great deep understandings of our relationship to God. We make plaques and put them on the walls and put the saying on great letters and all this, but the deeper context really reveals a depth of meaning out of this Psalm. So this Psalm was written to strengthen your faith in times of trouble.

The idea of intent was to increase your confidence in who God is. That is faith itself, that you would arise in your confidence to understand who God is so that you’re not shaken or torn down, or that your faith would be shipwrecked in even the severest of circumstances. There are principles of victory that we see in this Psalm, and the theme again, is that your faith would arise, that you would have confidence in who God is.

He wants us to see, in advance, these things that you would be ready, that you would be paired, that your soul would be in revival, so that when the storm comes, your soul is strengthened, your strength will not fail. Know you’ll stand strong. Now, this Psalm, as with many of them, were meant to be sung. You see that right away because it says for the choir director.

In fact, one of the greatest hymns of the church was written based on this Psalm. You’ll recognize most of you who know Psalms or hymns would recognize a mighty fortress is our God. A mighty fortress is our God, one of the famous ones, written by Martin Luther, based on Psalm: 46, the very first words of the Psalm.

The idea, of course, is that you sing a Psalm to memorize it. That was the intent, to memorize the words, but I submit that there’s something beyond memorization. What I mean by that is, what is beyond memorization is when you write the words on your heart. In other words, when you take hold of them for your life because you believe in them. They become pillars of faith, the truths of God have become the construction of your character and your soul. That goes beyond memorization. That’s when the words are knitted into the fabric of who you are.

I was thinking of an illustration. When I was a teen and we were going to a small country church, they offered to give scholarships to summer camp if we would memorize Bible verses. The more Bible verses you memorized, the more scholarship you would get to summer camp. Well, we were very poor, and so my mom says, “If you’re going to summer camp, you’re memorizing those verses.” I memorized the verses, but did I take hold of them? No, I did not.

I looked for the easiest, shortest verses to memorize. The easy one, John 3:16, check. Romans 8:1, check. What is the shortest Bible verse in the Bible? Jesus wept. John 11:35, check. I know, and this is my time to recite them like, oh, check, check, check, check, but did I take hold of that? No. Or maybe better said, did they take hold of me? No. There’s something beyond memorization. Then I remember in my 20s, and my heart is now stirring, God is doing something.

I was challenged to memorize large sections of Scripture. I memorized all the Romans 6, all the Romans 8, and something happens when you memorize the large sections and you have to repeat them over and over and over and over. Something happens. Something happens. They started to take on deeper meaning. Something was dawning on my soul. It was changing me. Something is beyond memorization.

Then later on, roll the tape forward in time. Then later as a pastor teaching God’s word, verse by verse, chapter by chapters, a Calvary Chapel Pastor, to prepare in passage– and I’ll give you an insight on how I would prepare a message. That is to read the section over and over and over and over and over. Don’t go to the commentaries, read it over and over and over and over and over until it’s written on your heart, until you know the heart of the one who gave us that word.

I’ll tell you what, I’ve been doing this now for 34 years, and it is changing me. I am seeing things now. I’ve got to teach God’s word. This is our fourth time to the entire word of God, but for me to prepare is by reading over and over and over and over, and something happens. I am seeing deeper truth than I have never seen before. I am seeing the beauty of the Lord in His word. I’m seeing the glory of what God wants to do on the soul. That which is beautiful in marvelous, and it is bringing revival to my life.

I am being changed by the word of God, and it is causing me to see how beautiful the Lord is. It is revival itself, and I want that for all of us. Amen? Let’s give the Lord praise. That’s what God wants to see us do. This is one of those Psalms. If you would take hold of this Psalm, your faith would be strengthened. Your confidence in God would arise, knit these words on the fabric of your soul, for they are some of the greatest truths that will strengthen your faith and your confidence that God is your refuge, God is your strength, God is a very present help in time of trouble.

Let’s read it. Psalm 46:1. There’s 11 verses. God is our refuge. God is our strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the Earth should change. Notice how he describes here, poetic expression. Even if there are cataclysmic type of things that happen, it’s a poetic, powerful expression of cataclysmic life, earth-shattering type of things. Even if the earth should change, that the mountains slip into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at its swelling pride.

There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the Holy dwelling places of the Most High. God is in the midst of her, and she will not be moved. God will help her when mourning Dawns. The nations made an uproar, kingdom tottered, but he raised His voice and the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Come, behold the works of the Lord who has rut desolation in the earth. It is He who makes wars to cease to the end of the earth.

It is He who breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two. It is He who burns the chariots with fire. Then now famous word, so be still, cease striving and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Now, that is a powerful song, wonderful truths to strengthen your confidence in who God is in even cataclysmic events of life.

I. God is a Very Present Help in Trouble

Though, let’s look at these principles that God would give a starting notice in verse 1. God is a very present help in trouble. Verse 1, God is our refuge. God is our strength. Not a refuge, our refuge. There’s only one place we run to seek refuge from the storm. That is the idea. In the storms that arise, the adversities and troubles of life. No, you run into the shelter of the Most High.

Some great verses I love to quote. These are some of my favorites. Proverbs 18:10. The name of the Lord is a strong tower. The righteous run into it and are saved. Run, you move into the shelter of the  most High in the storms of adversities. Psalm 91:1-2. Love these verses. He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High. Oh, what a beautiful picture. Is this poetically powerful? He will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. Oh, I love this verse. To abide in the shadow of the Almighty. See, you’re drawing near, you’re running to the shelter of the Lord. Then he says, “I will therefore say to the Lord my refuge, my fortress, my God in whom I trust.” See, notice though that he says, “God is the refuge and God is my strength.” See, in other words, when there is trouble, when there’s adversity, even like cataclysmic type of events, you run under the shelter of the Most High, but you’re not just there abiding in the shadow of the Almighty waiting for the storm to pass. No, you’re not just waiting the storm out. No. Something happens there. When you run under the shelter of the Most High, under the shadow of the Almighty, something happens there and that is that God would be your strength. He will strengthen your soul.

In other words, you get along with God, you run to the shelter of the Most High, you get along with God, and you let him speak life, and you let him speak truth into that soul, and your faith will be renewed and strengthened. Confidence in God will arise and there in the shadow of the Almighty, he there will direct your steps and show you the way through the trouble, through the adversity, through the storm. See, in other words, you’re not running from your troubles. No. You are running through the tower of the Lord, to the shelter of the Almighty.

There you are strengthened so that you are able then to face your troubles head-on, to drive directly straight into the teeth of the storm. In other words, don’t run from your troubles. This is a scriptural principle of victory. Don’t run from your troubles. No, you’ll be strengthened in the shadow of the Almighty and know that your confidence is in Him, that He is a very present help, and that He then will direct you in the steps that His help will provide.

Now, I recently mentioned a great example. We were looking at this in an earlier Psalm, the story of David, where, and again, it’s a great illustration at this point. This was before David was king. One of the great troubles of David’s life occurred when David and His men had been away from the village facing an enemy for sometime.

When they returned, they found that the Amalekites had raided the village and burned the village with fire and taken the women and children hostage, which ought to remind us of the current situation, by the way. What happened next is the lesson. It says in 1 Samuel chapter 30:6. “Moreover, David was greatly distressed.” This was a problem of epic proportions. Now, David is greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him because all the people were embittered each because of his sons and his daughters.

A. God’s help is the victory

Here is the point, here is the lesson. Here is what David did, but David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. What did David do? He ran into the shelter of the Most High. There he didn’t just wait out this trouble, no. There under the shelter of the Most High, God strengthened him in his faith. He arose again in that confidence of who God is. Then he came back like a roaring lion and he led those people to victory. That’s what God does when you come into the refuge of the Almighty and your soul is strengthened because God’s help is the victory.

See, notice verse one. God is our refuge. God is our strength. God is a very present help in trouble. Now, the phrase, a very present help in the Hebrew is literally translated God’s help in trouble found exceedingly. You see, he’s trying to give us a beautiful picture of the exceedingly great nature of God’s help, exceedingly found. Now, this is one of the greatest keys to David’s faith. See, David’s faith was different than most.

For David, he understood where help comes from, number one, but he knew how to take the faith that reside in his soul and then bring it to bear into the adversities and the difficulties and the troubles that he was facing in the everyday course of life. David could take faith and live it. That is what made David’s faith different. One of the things we have to understand is that God desires to help, God desires to show himself strong in your behalf, it’s a theme that runs through the Scriptures.

Let me give you one of my favorite Bible verses in the whole Bible. 2 Chronicles 16:9. I love this verse. It’s like a life verse for me. The eyes of the Lord are searching. God is looking to show himself strong. The eyes of the Lord search to and fro throughout the whole earth to show himself strong in behalf of those whose hearts are completely His. There it is. You see that God wants– he’s looking for those who would trust him, who would arise in confidence in their faith.

Now, David, we know was considered to be a great captain, a great warrior, a great leader, a great king, but David was also called a man after God’s own heart. You cannot separate the two. They are intricately related. It was David’s heart after God that made him a great warrior and king and leader and captain. That was the key. David understood, no, it is God’s help that makes me great. That’s why David’s faith was different. Notice, for example, 2 Samuel 22, several verses there, David explains to us, he’s showing us the insight of his faith.

He says this. “By you, I can run upon a troop.” Yes, David was a great captain and warrior, but he says, “It’s by God. By my God, I can leap over a wall. No, it is he who makes my feet like hind’s feet.” A hind is a deer.” In Israel, you can see these deer up on the cliffs bounding from rock to rock, and you think, how can they do this? David says, “That’s like God to me. He makes my feet like hinds’ Feet. He sets me on high places.” Then he gives us the great insight. No, your help is what makes me great.

Then there’s Psalm 27:3, where we see again, David’s confidence in the Lord is the key to his faith. He says this, “Though a host in camp against me. In other words, even if I’m outnumbered, my heart will not fear. Though war arise against me, in spite of this, I shall be confident.” See, in other words, God is our refuge. God is our strength, a very present help in time of trouble. Therefore, we will not fear. There is the insight. When your confidence arises, he says, “Therefore, do not fear because fear and faith are complete opposites.”

B. Therefore, do not fear

Now, we were born in the nature of man. The nature of man, the natural condition is that of fear. Fear, insecurity, weakness, that’s the normal state in which every person is born. Faith arises in your life as you draw nearer and nearer in your heart for the Lord. Faith arises, and as faith arises, fear abates. The greater your faith, the greater your confidence in God. The less that fear abounds, it abates, but the likelihood of fear increases as troubles melt.

See, in other words, the greater the trouble, the more likely the fear. We can understand that. The greater the trouble, the more likely the fear. To help us to see this, the Psalmist writes  poetic expression are catastrophic, like cataclysmic, earth-changing types of troubles. He says it poetically to express the types of troubles that will shake you to the very core of your life. Notice how he says that. “Though the earth should change, we will not fear. Though the mountains should slip into the heart of the sea, we will not fear. Though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains quake at a swelling pride, we will not fear.” Now, we would be very wise to take heed of these words because of what we are seeing now. The world is on the precipice of deep and catastrophic trouble. Look and see the condition of things in the world today. There is a deep economic turmoil ahead of us. As the US mountain of debt nears a tipping point of no return. There are great economic troubles, and if the United States’ economic situation collapses, the whole world will be in trouble.

Then we see world’s alliances being transformed into a new axis of evil that’s arising in the world. Then, the war between Israel and Hamas has brought the world to the brink of a new world conflict, but God is our refuge. God is our strength. God is a very present help in times of trouble. Therefore, we will not fear. When faith in God arises, your confidence arises in who He is. Even though earth-shaking cataclysmic things should happen, we will stand.

C. Make glad the heart in the river of God’s delight

Notice then where he goes next in the Psalm after expressing all of that. Verse four, he brings us to this. Make glad the heart in the river of God’s delight. This is a tremendous transition in the Psalm after declaring earth cataclysmic type of events. Therefore, we will not fear. Then he brings us to this. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy dwelling place of the Most High. Oh, beautiful, poetic expression.

For in there, in that holy dwelling place, the soul is made glad. This is the key to faith. This is the key to victory, for he wants us to see. Not only do I say to you, do not fear, but I also say to you that the joy of the Lord is strength. Joy of the Lord is strength. When your soul is made glad in the presence of the Almighty, there is strength in that because your confidence in God is arising because the presence of God is filling, and when the presence of God fills your soul, He does a great and beautiful thing.

You know when we think about the throne of God, we think about the presence of God. Many times, people think in the sense of awe and fear, which is understandable, but what he describes is that the nearness of God is beauty on the soul. The heart is made glad in the dwelling places of the Almighty. The soul is filled with glory. See, the river that flows is a picture of the presence of God, the Holy Spirit of the living God.

Wherever the river flows, there is life, there is joy, there is peace. There’s glory made glad in the presence of the king, and whoever drinks from the river will find delight in the soul. This is a theme. It is strength itself. We’ve seen this theme now running through the Psalms. For example, Psalm 36 is becoming some of my favorite verses. Psalm 36:8-9 where it says, “They drink their fill of the abundance of your house, and you give them to drink of the river of your delights.”

Isn’t that beautiful picture? To drink your fill in the river of God’s delights, that is strength itself. When faith arises, confidence in God arises. You’re drinking from the river of God’s delight, for with you is the fountain of life, and in your light, we see light. Then, notice when he goes next in verse five. Therefore, when God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved. That’s an expression that we can take hold of for our lives as well.

II. Cease Striving and Know

When God is in the midst of your soul, when God is doing this work of building confidence and faith in God, then you know that you are standing on that rock and your life, your faith will not be moved. That’s where he brings us then to the famous verse 10. Cease striving and know that I’m God. Cease striving. I will be exalted in the nations. I will be exalted on the earth.

Now, striving in oneself is a picture of someone thinking that they can pull themselves up by their own bootstraps or by their own self-effort they can win the battles of life, but this is vanity, God says. This is emptiness itself. Cease all this you’re driving and know that He is God. Striving can also mean the worries, the fears, the anxieties, the soul that is disturbed within cease all of this striving.

Notice how the Psalmist then throws light on God Almighty. See, earlier in the Psalm, he spoke of world cataclysmic events that could shake your life to the very foundations. Now, he contrasts all of that, those earth’s shaking events, with the greatness of God. It reminds us that in Hebrews chapter 12:27, where there’s a prophetic word about– he says, “Those things which can be, will be shaken so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.”

A. He makes wars to cease

Though there will be a great earth cataclysmic shaking, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain. When your life is built on that rock, on that foundation, you will not be moved, for your confidence is arising in who God is. That’s why he makes this declaration. After looking at all of the earth-shaking cataclysmic events, he brings light to God Almighty, and he declares it is he who makes wars to cease.

See, he’s causing your faith to arise. Notice how he says it, starting in verse six. Nations made an uproar, kingdoms tottered, but he raised his voice, and the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our stronghold. Come behold the works of the Lord who has brought desolation in the earth, and it is he who makes wars to cease to the end of the earth. It is he who breaks the bow and cuts the spear in two.

He burns cherries with fire. Cease striving and know that I am God. See, we are reminded. We need to be reminded of this great truth of the greatness of the Almighty so that our faith would arise in confidence because of what we see unfolding in the world today. Jesus spoke of the signs of the times of the latter days in Matthew 24, and he describes there in Matthew 24 Earth-shattering cataclysmic events that he says are merely the beginning of birth pangs as the latter days draw near.

Notice, Matthew 24:6-7. Jesus says, “You will be hearing of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not frightened.” Now, notice the similarity. “Make sure that you do not become frightened because those things must take place, but that is not yet the end. For nation will rise against nation. Kingdom will rise against kingdom, and in various places, there will be famines and earthquakes, but all of these are merely the beginning of birth pangs.”

When nation arises against nation and kingdom arises against kingdom, this is man striving with man, but God is the one who will arise in  the latter days and he will set all things right. This is a mess of broken-down world and we know how this story ends. We know that the king of kings and the Lord of Lords will come and he will set all things right. The nations will give him glory when he comes and sets all the things right. Let me describe it to you out of Revelation 19:11-16 where he says, “I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse. He who sat on it is called faithful and true and in righteousness, he judges and wages war. His eyes are a flame of fire and on his head are many diadems and he has a name written on him which no one knows except himself. He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood and his name is called the Word of God.

The armies which are in heaven clothed in fine Lenin white and clean. We’re following him on white horses and from his mouth comes a sharp sword so that with it he may strike down the nations and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God the Almighty on His robe and on His thigh. He has a name written King of Kings and Lord of Lords. We know how the story ends. Amen, let’s give him praise and glory. Amen.

B. Know that He is God

Notice the correlation to Psalm 46 for after declaring be still and know that I’m God. He says, “I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted on the earth.” Notice how he finishes, be still, and know. Let this settle on your soul. Let this be settled. Know that he is God. See, to be still in a time of turbulence even cataclysmic, epic aspects of adversities and turbulence, to be still at such a time speaks of a heart that is at peace with God. You’re at peace. Your soul is settled with the almighty. Faith has arisen.

Confidence in God is settled so that you know that you are standing on a rock of foundation and that you will not be moved. It’s as though you were saying, “I know my God.” Be still and know. It’s as though you’re saying, “I know my God.” I know how he moves and I have every confidence in who he is. My soul is at peace. I will not allow my heart to be troubled within me. In other words, he says, cease, be still. Do not be anxious or fearful or taken captive by doubt.

No, let all such worries and fears and striving cease, stop, be still. It doesn’t say just be still. Be still and know something arises when you know, I know my God. I know how he moves. I know my confidence is in him. I know in whom I have believed and I am persuaded that my God is able. There is that peace, I know. Be still and know, not just be still, be still and know. I know my God, I know how he moves and I see this world is in great and grave trouble. Do not let your heart be afraid.

Do not be troubled within. I know my God, I know how he moves. Let faith arise, that confidence arise. Be at peace and know your God. I know my God and my soul is settled within me. Your word is settled in heaven and it has settled on my heart. This is settled with me. I am at peace. I know my God. Amen. Father, thank you for showing us such glorious truths so that faith would arise.

Confidence would be settled on the soul. I know my God, I know how he moves, be still. Stop all this fear and worry and anxiety and insecurity, stop. Be still my soul and know that He is God. Let confidence in the Almighty arise in your soul, church how many would say to the Lord today, “My soul is settled with thee.” I know my God. I am at peace with my Lord, and I know that He is a rock. I will not be moved.

My confidence arises in you oh my God. I want to make that declaration to the Lord. Would you just raise your hand as that declaration to the Lord? God, I want to just declare it to you. I am at peace because you are that rock. I know my God. Lord, thank you for everyone who is moved and filled by the Spirit of the living God, that we would have great confidence in you in who you are. That faith would arise in us today. We give you glory and honor in Jesus’ name. Everyone said, amen. Let’s give the Lord praise. Amen. Amen

As the Deer Pants for the Water
Psalm 42:1-11

November 18-19, 2023

I think most of your Bibles will show that Book Two starts with Psalm 42. The Psalms are divided into five books. Not sure exactly how or when that got to be divided that way. From the earliest manuscripts, we have these five divisions. Book One that we just finished was almost entirely written by David. Book Two that we now begin is 31 of the Psalms, 18 or so were written by David.

This one, Psalm 42, it’s easy to become confused in regards to the author of Psalm 42 because the introduction says, “For the choir director, a Maskil of the Sons of Korah.” Now, many people believe, therefore it was written by the Sons of Korah. I submit that the book was written, or the song was written by David and then given to the Sons of Korah, who were the choir masters, the chief musicians in David’s court. They were the masters of music and of choir, very, very gifted.

I mentioned before, and Barry’s repeating that David, of course, was a great musician himself, loved worship, loved music, and he had a massive choir and orchestra, you might say, all full-time. Can you imagine full-time musician’s, full-time choir? How good would they be if that’s all that they did five days a week? No, five days. That’s the American thing. Six days a week. All week long, they’ve just worshiped, practiced the harmonies, perfected the tone, and all that.

I would’ve loved to have been there. Just imagine how glorious, and that was David’s heart. “God is a worthy of great honor. We want our worship to be lifted to the heavens and glory.” That was the Sons of Korah. Now, the context of the Psalms, as we’re going to see, fits exactly with one of David’s greatest and deepest troubles, again, as we will read into the context going through it.

I want us to look at the Sons of Korah because they are very interesting. They are descendants, of course, of Korah. Korah was one of the greatest troublers of Israel in all of their history. He was the greatest troubler when they were in the desert. Yet they themselves, the Sons of Korah are the very opposite of trouble. They were the masters of worship, as I said in the courts of the king. Their heart was to create the most beautiful glorious God-honoring worship that people would rejoice in the house of the Lord.

What happened? What an amazing turnabout. That turnabout is a great lesson all in itself. All right. Their ancient father Korah, he and the family were Koa fights, Levites. They had the honor and the responsibility of carrying on their shoulders the most holy of artifacts in the Tabernacle. The arc of the covenant itself would be born on their shoulders. What an honor is this? Now, they could not see it because it was covered, of course, but what, in honor to carry the arc, the very presence of God upon their shoulders.

No, that honor was not enough for Korah and those who conspired with him. No, he wanted the highest place. He wanted to overthrow Moses himself. Right away we go, “Whoa. What?” Exactly, he wanted to overthrow Moses and Aaron. “You have gone far enough. All the people are holy. what makes you think that you stand above all the others?” Because they have been calling. We want to elect someone to bring us back to Egypt. “Don’t you remember the good old days when we were in Egypt?”

He led a rebellion and it almost worked. In fact, so much so that if they had voted, Moses would’ve been voted out. He swayed so many people over to his side that Moses and Aaron would’ve been voted out. If Korah was voted in as the leader, he would’ve marched them right back to Egypt, right back to oppression and slavery. Moses went before the Lord and then gathered all the people together, a great assembly, and declared that everyone should pull back from the tents of Korah and the other conspirators. When they pulled back, of course, the ground opened and Korah and the others were consumed.

Now, we read many generations later, here are the Sons of Korah serving in the house of the Lord, becoming some of the greatest leaders of worship, great musicians, choir leaders, writers of songs and hymns that lead people into revival. What an amazing turn. Could it be grace? Could it be that they were so thankful that God extended such mercy by keeping their family in that place of honor in the house of God, that they were so thankful to that, that they spent the rest of the generations honoring God in the highest way?

See, I believe this is a great lesson, a great life lesson itself, and that it does not matter what attitude or bearing that you inherited from your father. God can start afresh and anew in your generation. You do not have to repeat whatever attitude or bearing that you received from your father, no matter what it was. I give you my own testimony because many of you know my story. My father was an alcoholic and angry and contentious and difficult. I’ll tell you what, I remember calling out to God saying, “God, let this thing end and let it end with me,” and God has honored his word.

We do not have to repeat the sins of our fathers. We can be set free when God is our Father. Amen? Let’s give the Lord praise for that. Amen. In fact, the Sons of Korah wrote some of the most beautiful God-honoring Psalms. For example, Psalm 84:10, “One day in your courts is better than a thousand days elsewhere. I would rather stand at the threshold of the doorway of the house of my God than dwell in the tense of wickedness.” That is a beautiful, beautiful word right there. “One day in your courts is better than a thousand days anywhere else. I would rather stand in the doorway of the house of God than in the tens of wickedness.” That is so beautiful.

Here we are, Psalm 42. Let’s read it starting in Verse 1. “As the deer pants for the water brooks, so my soul pants on lungs for You, oh God. My soul thirsts for you, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? My tears have been my food day and night while they say to me all day long, ‘Where’s your God now.'”

See David, again, we’re going to look at this. David was king at this point, and he had to flee Jerusalem from his own son who had conspired against him, so David fled Jerusalem and was dwelling on the other side of the Jordan longing to be in the presence of God in the house of the Lord. He says, “Oh, tears are my food day and night. While they say to me all day long, ‘Where’s your God now? Where’s the help of God now, David?'”

They accuse, and then he says, “These things I remember and I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go along with the throng and lead them in procession to the house of God. With the voice of joy in Thanksgiving, a multitude keeping festival. Oh, I long again my soul longs for the glory again.” Then Verse 5 is so interesting. He says, “Why are you in sow despair? Oh, my soul, why have you become so disturbed within me? Hope in God, man, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence.”

“Oh, my God, my soul is in despair within me. Therefore, I remember you from the land of the Jordan and the peaks of Hermon from Mount Mizar.” I love Verse 7, “Oh, what a beautiful poetic image He gives us.” In Verse 7, “Deep calls to deep. At the sound of your waterfalls, oh, Your breakers and waves have rolled over me.” “The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.” That is beautiful.

I will say to God my rock, “Why have you forgotten me?” In other words, God, I wait and I wait and I wait. Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of my enemy? As a shattering of my bones, my adversaries revile while they say to me all day long, “Where’s your God now?” He says again, repeats, “Why are you in despair, oh, my soul? Why have you become disturbed within me? Hope in God for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God.” What a beautiful Psalm is this.

I. Deep Calls to Deep

I want us to go back, of course, and look at some ways that God would apply these wonderful words to our lives. Starting in verse 7. I love that beautiful poetic image he gives us, that deep calls to deep at the sound of your waterfalls. I tell you, this is a really wonderful image. It is revival itself. What he means is that the deep things of the Lord are calling to the deep things of my soul, the depths of my soul. The deep things of God. Deep is calling to deep. David is pointing out his soul to God. Longing to being near to God again in the house of the Lord.

Now this is something to take hold now for us as well. It truly is a deep spiritual picture that the deep things of the Lord are calling to the deepest desire of the soul. Now, as I mentioned, words of the Psalm seemed directly connected to the time of greatest trouble when his son Absalom conspired against him. Now, the backstory is very helpful to understand the Psalm. That was that David was in his life doing very well really, until he’s made tragic choices that brought epic consequences. All of that culminating in David fleeing Jerusalem from his son Absalom. Darkest hour of David’s life.

What had happened was David had sinned terribly. We know the story of Bathsheba. David sinned terribly there. At first, he tried to hide it within himself, but that did not go well because the hand of the Lord was heavy on him. The conviction upon his soul was agony within. Finally, God sent the prophet Nathan to confront him. “You are the man,” Nathan said.

Then how David responded to that is a great lesson. He fully then trusted that God would forgive and would rescue and save. Notice, for example, Psalm 32:5-7. David wrote, “I acknowledged my sin to You. I said, ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord, and you forgave the guilt of my sin.'” This is something that we are so very, very thankful for that God’s grace and God’s mercy is extended in the forgiveness of sin. How amazing is that?

The forgiveness of sin that was bought and paid for by the blood of His own son that day when Jesus died on the cross. It is that provision of forgiveness for which we are very, very thankful. Then David says, “You are my hiding place.” David is the one who acknowledges, “I did it. I was the one who did it, but God, I hide myself in thee. You preserve me from trouble and You surround me with songs of deliverance.”

All right. Now, David’s failure there, it began to then be seen in his family, and that is often, of course, the case. His son Amnon raped his half-sister, Tamar. David, paralyzed by his own sin, took no action. Finally, Tamar’s brother, Absalom, took matters into his own hands. Arranged for Amnon’s death. Then Absalom himself had to flee the country, banished for three years, while again, David took no action.

Finally, David extended mercy to Absalom and brought him back to Jerusalem but would not see him, refused to see him. For two more years, bitterness is building up in Absalom’s heart because David would not see him. Finally, Absalom pleaded to see David’s face, David relented. When David saw his son, Absalom, it was a moving scene, David wept. He’s weeping over his son now, kisses his son.

You might say it was too little too late because Absalom had already been brewing bitterness in his heart and a conspiracy was hatching in his mind. What he did, to win the people over, he wanted to give the impression that he was a great warrior. He had 50 men running in front of his chariot. Wherever he goes about the city, he’s got 50 men running in front of the horses and his chariot.

He’s done the regalia. Trying to give the impression that he was a great warrior when he had not fought a day in his life, but he wanted to give the look of the thing. He did have the look of the thing. We understand reading the scripture that he was tall and handsome. If you’re going to do a conspiracy, it helps that you’re handsome. He had hair. This is part of the story, he did a long, flowing, really beautiful hair. It’s like, hair. It really looked beautiful.

The women, oh, woo-hoo. The guys are like, “Oh, here’s a man.” That was the impression he gave. Here’s a man. He’s a leader. Then he would stand to win the people over. He would stand by the gate when people are coming in. “Oh, come here my friend. I’m the king’s son. You have something to say? I have ears to hear. What concern may I bring?” “Oh, Absalom, he cares. He’s very concerned for all of us. He listens.”

Little by little he started to win the people over. Then he set up headquarters in Hebron, which is just the south there in the hills. That’s when David got wind. That’s when David heard just how deep this conspiracy was. When David heard how deep it was, he realized that he had to flee Jerusalem in order to spare the city from the calamity of war because Absalom was determined to bring an army down to bear on Jerusalem, and David would not have it, not in his beloved city. Jerusalem must be spared.

A. The soul was made for God

David fled Jerusalem, crossed over to Jordan. It was from there he wrote this Psalm longing to return to the nearness of God in the house of God. Deep is calling to deep. That’s what we see. Notice, for example, in Verse 1, we see that the soul was made for God. The deep things are calling to the deep places of my soul because the soul was made for God. Verse 1, “As the deer pants for the water so my soul longs for you.” See, deer can smell water. We cannot smell water. They can smell water in the air for a long way off. They turn toward it and long forward. They could be in a dry and weary land, but water far off, they can smell it.

What a picture, he says, of my soul. Now, you might recognize the words of that because one of the most beautiful worship songs on the church has come out of that verse. “As the deer panteth for the waters, so my soul longeth after thee.” Beautiful, beautiful. Your heart just wants to resound in the words of it. Reminds me of what David wrote in Psalm 63. Also, he says, “Oh God, you are my God and I seek You earnestly. My soul thirsts for You. My flesh yearns for You in a dry and weary land where there is no water.”

In many ways, I submit that that describes our times today. We are living in a dry and weary land where there is no water. Our nation is in deep trouble. Turning our back on the Lord. People mock the things of God. Today, we are in deep trouble as a nation, and we are living in a dry and weary land where there is no water.

David then says, “Your loving kindness is better than life.” That’s the water. That’s the soul satisfied. It’s your loving kindness, for my lips will praise you. You have been my help, and in the shadow of your wings, I sing for joy. Notice Verse 4 where he says, “My soul longs. I remember. Oh, I remember. My soul is poured out within me. Oh. To lead the multitude in celebration. Oh, glorious days. I long for it again.”

See, here’s what he’s telling us, that once you’ve tasted and seen that the Lord is good, once you’ve tasted that the glory of God is beautiful on the soul, once you’ve been filled with the joy of the Lord, peace that passes understanding, then the deep things of God will always call to the deep places, the depth of your soul to long for it. Again, my soul longs like a deer pants for water. My soul longs for you.

Deep is calling to deep, but then would you notice what follows next in Verse 5? Speak life to your own soul. Notice Verse 5 where he says, “Why are you in despair, oh my soul? Why have you become disturbed within me?” Hope in God, man, for I shall again praise Him for the help of His presence. My question to you is this, who is David speaking to there? “Why are you in despair? Oh, my soul?” Who is he speaking to? He’s speaking to himself. He’s speaking to his own soul.

B. Speak life to your own soul

Question, how many people talk to themselves? Do you talk to yourself? How many people talk to themselves? I read, see, I’m glad I’m not the only one who talks to themselves. I read that people who talk to themselves, it’s a sign of intelligence. I’m pretty sure it’s true. Pretty sure it’s true. I mean, after sometimes you just need an expert opinion. Forget I said that. That didn’t sound right. That didn’t sound right at all. Forget that, but it’s true.

Here’s the fact. Everyone talks to themselves. Every single person talks to themselves. The question then is, what do you say to yourself, because this soul now sets the standard for how to speak life to your soul? The reason I say that is because there are many who defeat themselves because they speak out of a lack of faith to themselves. They just dwell in that weakness or that failure or whatever it was. They just dwell in it.

Have you ever done something really dumb and then just say to yourself, “That was really dumb.” Then you just revel in like, “I can’t believe I would do–“ and you just revel in the failure. Many do. They’re defeated because they speak out of a lack of faith, and their lack of faith informs what they say to themselves. Here, the Psalm, Dave gives us the standard for how to speak life to your soul. Your soul is in despair. Your soul is downcast.

Then speak life. Speak faith within your own heart. Speak faith to life. Remind yourself again of the great truths of who God is toward you. Speak life. Remind yourself again. Stand on the great truths and speak to your soul. You’re downcast? Why so downcast? Hope in God now.

Notice, for example, Proverbs, I should say Proverbs 23:7, “For as a man thinks in his heart, so he is.” That is a great truth. As a man thinks, as a person thinks, so you will be. You think defeated, you will be defeated. You speak faith, you speak life, you speak hope, you’ll stand on that hope. Proverbs 4:23. “Watch over your heart with all diligence.” Watch over your heart. “For from it flow the springs of life.” See, here’s what I’m trying to say. When the attitude of the heart is wrong, nothing good can come out of that.

When the attitude is defeated and wrong, nothing good can come out of it. We must learn to take every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. That’s what Paul wrote to us. We must learn to take every thought captured through the obedience of Christ. In other words, we must understand how to convert despair within. We must learn how to convert the despair, the downcast by drinking from the water of life abiding within the soul.

I submit that there is a well. If you’ve received the Lord Jesus Christ as the Lord and Savior, that God has taken resonance in the soul by the Holy Spirit, and it is a well of water springing up to life that you might drink from it abundantly.

I want to repeat some of the verses I mentioned last week because they’re so appropriate to where we are today. Notice for example, in John 4, again, Jesus is speaking to that Samaritan woman at the well, and He says to her, in verses 13 and 14. Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water,” the water from that well, “will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give will never thirst, for the water that I give will become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.”

For example, Psalm 36, oh, how beautiful are these verse is? Psalm 36:8-9, “They drink their fill of the abundance of your house, and you give them to drink of the river of your delights, for with you is the fountain of life and in your light we see light.” David understands giving us here that great lesson of how to speak to the soul that’s downcast or in despair, speaking life.

There’s another example of this by the way that we see powerfully in David’s life. This is quite a bit prior, back before David was king, and the story unfolds in that David and his men were out and about, and when they came back that evening to the village, they came back to discover that the Amalekites had raided the village. Again, this is David’s village. They were out and about. They come up back and they discovered the Amalekites have raided and burned the village and taken the women and children hostage. David became very distressed because the men blamed David for this and even spoke of stoning David. Again, here now we see a great lesson of life unfold.

1 Samuel 30:6 is that great story. It says, “Moreover David was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him for all the people were embittered, each because of his sons and his daughters.” David, you see, here’s where David now, now we learned a great lesson from a great leader. David is distressed. I mean, this is a very, very dark moment, even as though men are speaking against him. David is embittered, excuse me, distressed rather, because the men are embittered. What does David do? David strengthened himself in the Lord his God. How did David do that?

I believe what we see in the story is that David went and dwelled just him and God. David need to get it alone with God, just him and God, just calling out to God. “God, strengthen me now. Be my help. God, show me your help. Show me your power. Show me your strength. God strengthen my soul within me. Oh God, be my help now.” Then David and God just did this business, and then David came back before these men like a roaring lion.

David now stands up like the leader and captain that we’ve respected him to be. He stands before the men. First, he calls the priest and says, “Seek this question from the Lord. Shall we pursue?” The priest comes back and says, “Yes, the Lord says, ‘Pursue and you shall surely overtake.’” David spin before his men and said, “Then, get on your horses. We are going to pursue them. You’re too tired, stay behind. I’m going, let’s go.” David is like the bold lion now. Why? Because he went and strengthened himself, just him and God. I’ll tell you, this is a great lesson.

I know it’s true because I have seen this and experiences with my own life. I have been through many, many distresses and many difficulties, and I know that if I can just get alone with God, I just need to get alone with God. If I can just get alone with God, God and I can do this. I know that I can call out to my God. I know my God and I know what He can do to my soul, and He will speak life to me. I just need to get alone with God.

Then when I have done that with God, then I’ll come back like a roaring lion. Then I know that God is with me. Then I know that God will show me the way to lead through this trouble. I know my God. I know he’ll do it and He’ll do it for you. Amen. Amen. Amen.

II. His Song Will be with You

We see that in the rest of that psalm. I love Verse 8 where he is showing us that his song will be with you. Notice Verse 8, “The Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime.” Notice, now again, David is speaking life to his soul. “I know this, the Lord will command His loving kindness in the daytime, and His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.” That is beautiful.

There’s two parts to that verse, both are so beautiful. Deep is calling to deep. David is reminding his soul that Jehovah will command His loving kindness. In other words, His favor, His help, His hand to save. David’s confidence is in the loving kindness of God, and that David believes that God will command the loving kindness in His favor toward David. Then he adds that beautiful phrase, “His song will be with me in the night, a prayer to the God of my life.”

This is, again, may the soul sing. This is understanding that God will minister to your soul. God will minister to your soul. There’s that strengthening of that soul within, “His song will be with me in the night. It is a prayer to the God of my life.” Now, the darkness of night there is a picture of the dark hour of the soul going through some great trouble. “Your song,” David understood this very deeply, “Your song will be with me in the night. I’ll sing it as a prayer to the God of my life.” God ministering to you, strengthening your soul to trust Him, to look, to watch. Help is on the way.

A. May the soul sing a song of prayer

Reminds me of Psalm 63 where David wrote this in Verses 6-8, “I think of You through the watches of the night because You are my help. I sing in the shadow of Your wings. My soul clings to You and Your right hand upholds me.” See, when I think of that verse, “Your song will be with me in the night, ministering help to the soul, a prayer to the God of my life,” I think of other examples in the scriptures.

A great example, there’s Paul and Silas in the Book of Acts. They’re on a missionary journey. They were in Philippi, they were arrested, of course, for the gospel, beaten it says with rods as thick as a man’s finger, and then thrown into this inner prison. In other words, the darkest, deepest place of the prison. Then it tells us, Acts 16:25-26, that about midnight, Paul and Silas were praying, singing hymns of praise to God. Other prisoners were listening to them.

Can you imagine, suddenly there came a great earthquake so that the foundations of the prison were shaken, and immediately all the doors were open. Everyone chains were unfastened, Paul and Silas would not leave, by the way. I wonder about that scene. What did they sing? What song is this that they’ve been beaten with rods, thrown, now they’re in the darkest inner prison, they’re sitting on the cold stone in the dark, and they sing?

“Your song will be with me in the night. Prayer to the God my life.” What did they sing? I imagine that scene unfolding something like this. Paul says, “Are you okay Silas? “I hurt.” “I know, I know. Me too. I like to sing. I want us to sing that hymn.” “Yes, let’s sing.” Maybe they sing that song that Jeremiah the prophet wrote in the darkest hour of Israel’s history that we have captured in a great hymn.

Great is thy faithfulness

Oh God, my Father

There is no shadow of turning with me

Now, change is not thy compassions

They feel not as thou has been forever will be.

Jeremiah wrote that, Lamentation 3:21-24, in the darkest hour of Israel’s history where he says, “This I recall to my mind?” Does that remind you of song? “Oh, I remember you. This I recall to my mind. Therefore, I have hope.” See, I recall it to my mind. It’s like David is speaking life to his soul. I’m reminded again, therefore, I have hope that the Lord’s loving kindnesses indeed never cease, that His compassions never fail.

They are new every morning

New every morning

Great is your faithfulness

The Lord is my portion declares my soul

Therefore, I have hope.

When the jailer saw their heart, their character, their faith, he cried out, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?” The Holy Spirit was just pouring life. In fact, we believe that that jailer became one of the great leaders of that church in Philippi. Would you notice, and I want us to look at Psalm 43, I want to close with this. Psalm 43, many believe by the way, is an extension of 42 because it’s so identical to it. It just continues it. The lesson of it is this, that God will lead you to His holy hill.

B. God will lead you to His holy hill

Notice Psalm 43:3-4, “Oh, send out your light and send your truth and let them lead me. Let them bring me to your holy hill. Then I will go to the altar of God to God my exceeding joy.” See, David finishes both Psalm 42 and 43 as he began by speaking life to the soul. “Why are you in despair, oh my soul? Why are you disturbed within me? Hope in God for I shall praise Him the help of my countenance and my God. Oh, lead me to your holy hill. Lead me to your glory.”

I love that verse in the Hebrews where it says, he will lead many sons to glory because deep is calling the deep. The deepest things of God are calling to the deepest aspect of your soul. Only God can fill that. “As the deer pants for the water so my soul longs for you God.” It’s what God does in the soul that matters. Deep is calling the deep. Let your soul arise because deep is calling to the depths of your soul. Oh, along there’s something that so longs for the courts of the Lord. Lead me to Your holy hill. Lead many sons to glory because deep is calling to deep.

Let’s pray. Lord, we are so thankful. Oh, how beautiful are the words, the song has captured that deep is calling to deep, that the soul longs, desires like a deer panting for water. My soul longs for you, oh God, for deep is calling to deep. Church, how many would say that to the Lord today? God, my soul is longing. There is a deep desire in my soul. Lead me to your holy hill, lead me to your glory, for deep is calling to deep. My soul, deep within me, longs, desires like a deer panting for water. I have a deep, deep desire in my soul for glory, for God in my life.

Is that you? Would you just raise your hand to the Lord in that declaration of desire? Deep is calling to deep. God, my soul is stirred. I long like a deer panting for water. I long for you. Oh, the depths of my soul long. Lord, thank you for everyone raising their hand or lifting their soul, crying out to you in that deepest desire of the soul. We give you honor. We give you praise for it all in Jesus’ name, and everyone said, Amen. Let’s give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen. Amen.

Drink from the River of God’s Delight
Psalm 37:1-40

November 11-12, 2023

David wrote this Psalm, and we know that he was old when he wrote it. How do we know that? Is because he told us. “Once I was young, now I’m old.” What follows then is a Psalm that is filled with David’s greatest life lessons. He looks back on his life and wants us to have those insights that he has gained from walking with the Lord by that faith since he was a young shepherd, the youngest of eight brothers.

Now, he’s old, he wants to share that wisdom, those life lessons for us. Whenever someone is old and they’ve been there, they’ve done it, they’ve lived, they’ve been filled with wisdom, people are eager to hear what they have to say. To learn from them, to glean from that wisdom that they’ve collected and gathered through the many years of life experience.

I was thinking of an example. Many of you have heard the name Warren Buffett. Warren Buffett and his partner, Charlie Munger, they have an annual Berkshire Hathaway Shareholders Meeting and they take questions from the crowd. Literally, they will fill in coliseum, and they will be in there for hours as people hang on every word they have to say because they’re old, they’ve done it, they’re successful. People are like, “Oh, they’re Oracle of Omaha.” They want to hear what he has to say.

Here’s the thing, that’s only about money and business. Oh, there’s way more to life than that. David understood that. David understood how to bring his faith into every aspect of life. If you want to know how to take faith and live it, David would be one of those that you would say, “I want to hear what he has to say. He’s done it.” He was a captain and king, victorious in battle, inspiring in leadership. He knew how to trust God as a rock, a fortress, a refuge, and how to delight his soul in the Lord.

This Psalm is filled with wonderful, wonderful lessons of life, and we would do well to pay close attention to what David has to say so that we can live by our faith, victorious in adversity and trouble, and understanding how that our souls can be delighted. That’s probably the one theme that rises above all other themes in David’s life. Now, we know that because he told us in Psalm 27, and we read through that, where David said, “One thing I’ve asked from the Lord, one, that I have desired, that I would dwell in the House of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord.”

That’s the one thing that he desires above all things, that the Lord is beautiful on the soul, and it was the delight of David’s life. Now David is old, and he says, “Take hold of this life lesson for yourself.” Let’s read. We’re going to read in two sections today because it’s very long. Psalm, we’re not going to read all these verses as we go verse by verse, we’ve covered the rest.

I want us to start in Psalm 37:1. Again, life lessons, notice how we begins. “Do not fret because of evildoers. Don’t be envious toward wrongdoers. No. They will wither quickly like grass, they will fade like the green herb. No. You trust in the Lord. Do good.” This is life lesson. “Dwell in the land and cultivate faithfulness.” There’s a great phrase. We’re going to look at that carefully. It is a picture of understanding how to walk in that faith. No, you cultivate faithfulness

Then verse 4 is famous. I love quoting it because it is David’s greatest theme. “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in Him and He will do it.” David is telling you, “He will do it. He will bring forth your righteousness like the light and your judgment as the noonday. No, rest in the Lord.” Wage, in other words. Rest in the Lord. Be still. Stop all this striving. Wait, and wait patiently, longingly for Him.

Don’t fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who carries out wicked schemes. No, cease from anger. No. Forsake wrath, don’t fret, it only leads to evildoing on your part. Don’t do it. For those who wait for the Lord, they will be blessed. They will inherit. Wait, God will do it. Great, great lessons. These are the verses I want us to look at first. We’re going to look at other verses later, but I want us to know the life lessons. David is old. He’s now telling us some of the great keys of his faith.

I. Cultivate Faithfulness

He tells us in verse 3, “Cultivate faithfulness.” Faithfulness is something that you cultivate in your life. It’s your picture of somebody like planting, nourishing, growing, cultivating that which they wish to harvest, to reap. You cultivate. That’s the cultivating part. The faithfulness part is the steadfastness of that, doing that faithfully, cultivating, and then you will reap that which is good in your life.

See, this is one of the themes that comes out of this Psalm and out of David’s life, and it is a theme that runs through the Scriptures. Understand that life has consequences, that you reap what you sow. Therefore, cultivate faithfulness because it’s the theme that runs both ways, both for good and for evil. It’s a great life lessons. In other words, be thoughtful about what you are cultivating because it will affect the outcome of what you then will be harvesting or reaping in your life.

See, you can’t just will an outcome into existence, something that you want to achieve, no. You plant, you sow, you build, you cultivate, you cultivate faithfully, you cultivate steadfastly, David said. In other words, be very careful how you walk, how you cultivate. Make sure that you cultivate faithfulness. Then notice what he says from the very beginning, verse 1, “Do not fret or be anxious. No, don’t do it,” he says. It’s a life lesson I’ve learned. Don’t fret because of evil doers.

A. Don’t fret or be anxious

Why not? It can be so frustrating, so infuriating, so aggravating when someone does wrong to you. We understand, but please don’t do it. You can be so infuriated, you’re at your flesh, wants to rise up against them. David’s life lesson, “No, don’t do it. Don’t fret because of those who are hurtful or evil doers.” Then he gives several reasons. “Firstly, understand,” he says, “That it will not end well for the wrongdoers.” See that it will not end well for them. It’s the principle of the harvest. They are cultivating anger or hurt or evil, and there’s no faithfulness in it and will not go well for them. Know that in advance.

Notice, for example, verse 2, “They will wither quickly like the grass. They will fade like the green herb.” Then he says in verses 12-13, “The wicked plot against the righteous and gnashes at him with his teeth, but the Lord laughs at him for He sees that his day is coming.” Take hold of that. Don’t fret, don’t be anxious, don’t be aggravated. No, the Lord sees. The Lord knows his day is coming. God settles all matters. God settles all accounts. Don’t fret. Don’t let that upset your faith. No.

He says in verse 15, “Their sword will enter their own heart.” In other words, their wrongful and hurting plotting is only going to come back on their life. That’s the first reason. The second reason he says not to fret or be anxious is because it won’t end well for you. Cultivate faithfulness. Do not allow the root of bitterness or anger to arise in the field that you are sowing. You are trying to sow.

He says, “Do not fret. Do not forsake anger or wrath.” He says, “Don’t fret, it only leads to wrongdoing on your part.” Now, this reminds us of what James said in the New Testament, very similarly, James 1:19-20, he says, “Now, this you know my beloved brethren, that everyone must be quick to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger, for the anger of man does not achieve the righteousness of God.” Now, see, it does not achieve, it will achieve something, but it’s not the righteousness of God.

I was thinking of an illustration of this, when I was going through Bible college many, many years ago, I was in Bible college preparing to go into ministry and God provided an opportunity for us to manage apartments. It was great provision for a Bible college student. Had free rent and free utilities, a little stipend for groceries. I was like, “Yes.” We managed 40 unit apartments. We had a particular tenant that just refused to be a good neighbor.

He was just difficult, cantankerous, angry. Anybody that bothered him, he would just make such a ruckus over that. If he didn’t like the smells of the food cooking in the neighbor, he’d pound on their door. If he heard anything from the neighbor below, he’d stamp with his cowboy boots. We talked and we talked and we tried our best to convince him to be a good neighbor, but no matter what we said or did, he just refused to be a good neighbor. Finally, we realized we got to just remove him.

One day I posted an eviction, 30-day eviction notice. He comes home and he sees the eviction notice and calls me on the phone, “Hey, what’s this?” I said, “Pretty sure it’s an eviction notice.” He said, “Hey, meet me in the back parking lot right now.” I have to tell you, it caught me off guard a little. I laughed and I said, “Hey, I got over that stuff in eighth grade. Man, you can be in the parking lot by yourself, I’m not going to join you.” “Oh, shall we let our attorneys handle this?” I said, “Fine, let our attorneys handle this. Meanwhile, you need to be out in 30 days.” Then just to be spiteful, he removed all of the light bulbs before he left.

You know what his greatest punishment is? He has to take himself with him everywhere he goes. Imagine, what is he sowing? What is he cultivating in life? Everywhere he goes he’s doing this. You can imagine, everywhere, all the relationships, everything. Everybody that bothers him, he is like this. What is he cultivating? Anger, wrath, bitterness, sorrows. What’s he going to harvest? What’s he going to reap? David says, “No good will come from this.” You’ll not read good of that.

I remember when we, of course, adopted our boys, one of them came from a home for emotionally disturbed children. He had so much anger. He told us very straightforward that he was angry, hurt, angry, mean at himself and everybody. Now, he’s turned out to be a fine, wonderful young man. In those days, oh, we had so many discussions and talks about it and the theme that I wanted him to see, over and over I would say to him, “Look, you must learn to master your anger or your anger will master you. It will master your life. You must learn to master it or it will master you.”

B. Trust in the Lord and do good

That reminds me what Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 6:12, “I will not be mastered by anything.” There’s a life lesson that David is giving to us. Don’t fret, don’t be anxious, don’t be aggravated. No, God settles all matters. Notice what he says next, “No. You trust in the Lord and do good.” In other words, cultivate faithfulness by doing good while you are trusting in the Lord. If you believe that the Lord is the blesser of your life and that you’ll reap what you sow, well, then do good and you’ll reap that which is good.

Cultivate faithfulness. This is a lesson of life from David. No, cultivate it. It reminds us of what Paul wrote in Galatians 6:9, “Do not lose heart in doing good.” See, steadfastness in it. Don’t lose heart in it, for in due time, you will reap if you don’t grow weary in it. Now, that’s the summation of what he introduced to us in Galatians 6:7-8. That’s what I call the principle of the harvest. You’ll want to dog-ear that page because it’s a great principle of life.

He says in Galatians 6, “Do not be deceived. God is not mocked, for whatever a man sows, this he will also reap. The one who sows to the flesh will from the flesh reap corruption.” Life lesson. “The one who sows through the spirit will reap from the spirit life, even eternal life.” It is a life lesson. Notice how he begins. Those are very, very strong words there in Galatians 6, where he says, “Do not be deceived.” No, God is not mocked. It’s a principle set down by the Almighty. No, it’s a principle. God’s not mocked. That principle will stand.

See, a person mocks when they have derision, when they disregard it, they have no respect for it at all. It’s like they’re saying, “Whatever.”

Yet, whether you recognize it or not, it’s a principle that will stand. Now we can even add to that principle. You reap in the manner of which you sow. If you sow corn, you’re going to reap corn. If you sow anger, you’re going to reap from the anger. If you sow discontent, you will reap discontent. If you sow in the flesh, you’ll reap from the flesh. Then, we know, of course, that you reap more than you sow. In fact, Hosea 8:7, “They sowed the wind, but they’re going to rape the whirlwind.” This is a lesson. Oh, if a person could understand this when they’re young.

See, a lot of young people, they have a really hard time understanding consequences. They have a hard time understanding that their actions are the cultivation of life, that they are producing something that they will reap in the future. If they only knew– See, I’ll tell you how many people, how many people have said to me, “If I had known what it would cost me, I wouldn’t have done it. If I had only known how much it was going to cost me, I wouldn’t have done it.” How many would have the same? “Oh, I look back at life, if I had known, I wouldn’t have done it.”

 II. Delight Yourself in the Lord

See, that’s the principle that David is giving us. I want you to see that when you cultivate faithfulness, it will come to you. You’ll reap, believe me, He’s a trust God in it. You’ll see. That’s why he gives us this wonderful principle in the next verse, “Delight yourself in the Lord. Cultivate faithfulness.” Cultivate this by delighting yourself. It is everything to do with your soul. Would you notice the emphasis on your choosing, your choice in the matter? As for you, choose to delight your soul in the Lord. How?

Actually, we get a picture of this in Psalm 36. They’re just interwoven together. It’s really one of the most beautiful pictures, where he says, “Drink fully from the river life.” Beautiful, poetic. Notice Psalm 36:8-9 how David writes it, “They drink their fill of the abundance of your house.” Drink fully. Notice? “You give them to drink of the river of your delights.” How beautiful is that? A river full, wide, flowing, fresh, refreshing. “Drink fully and of the river of your delights, for with you is the fountain of life. In your light we see light.”

A. Drink fully from the river of life

Whatever you partake of in your soul will have a direct impact on your life. Be thoughtful about what you are partaking. That’s why drinking is that beautiful picture because you are bringing it into your soul. See, now, I think one of the most powerful pictures of that has to be of when Jesus had an encounter with a woman at a well, she’s a Samaritan woman. This is a famous story out of John. John 4 tells us that a woman from Sychar came to this well where Jesus was resting. He was by himself. The disciples had gone into town to seek provisions.

The woman comes to draw water. Jesus says to her, “Woman, give me a drink,” and then she says to Him, “Now, how is it that you being a Jew ask me for a drink since I’m a Samaritan woman?” See, the Samaritans were hated and despised by Jews. “How is it that you asked me a Samaritan for a drink?” This is John 4:10, Jesus said to her, “If you knew the gift of God and who it is who says to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ then you would’ve asked Him and He would give you living water.” She says, “Sir, give me this living water.” He says to her, “Go call your husband.”

Now, right away you might think, “Well, that’s a very strange thing to say to someone who just says, ‘Sir, give me living water.” Well, He is going to give her living water, but first, He’s going to show her that there is no life in the well from which she has been drinking.” “Go call your husband.” “I have no husband.” He says, “You have answered well that you have no husband because you have had five husbands and the man you are now with is not your husband.”

There are many people like this woman. Her life is a mess. She’s had five failed marriages, and now she’s given up even trying that anymore. She thought she could find life there in relationships, but they were all messed up. Instead, all she fell into was pain, and emptiness, and loneliness. You can imagine how many times she went out under the stars at night in anguish, crying out, “What’s wrong with me? I failed at every relationship. I’m despised and hated by everyone. I’m lonely. I’m lost. Everything I touch fails. What’s wrong with me? What’s wrong with my life?”

But then she said, “But I know when Messiah comes, He will have the answer.” There she’s talking to, “Is He the one?” See, this reminds me of that worship song that we sing. This is one of my favorites, O Come to the Altar. I’m going to just read some of the lyrics to you.

Are you hurting and broken within,

Overwhelmed by the weight of your sin?

Jesus is calling.

Have you come to the end of yourself?

Do you thirst for a drink from the well?

Jesus is calling.

Come to the altar.

The father’s arms are open wide.

Forgiveness was bought with

The precious blood of Jesus Christ.

Oh, what a savior.

Isn’t He wonderful?

Sing hallelujah, Christ is risen.

Beautiful, beautiful picture of that invitation to the ones who have come to the end of themselves. I thirst along for a drink that would satisfy. That’s why Jesus said John 4:13 and 14, Jesus said, “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again, but whoever drinks of the water that I give shall never thirst, and the water that I give shall become in him a well of water springing up to eternal life.” That is a beautiful picture. Verse 4, “Delight yourself in the Lord and He will give you the desires–” Notice, “He will give you the desires of your heart.” Desires is what you desire, seek, long for, searching.

See, so many people, they’re pursuing their longing. There’s a great searching. People are looking for something to fill their soul with joy, happiness, meaning, purpose. They’re longing, they’re searching. He says, “I’m going to give you a lesson of life if you will drink fully from the river of His delights.” If you will delight yourself in the Lord, you’ll find all that you are desiring, all that the soul longs for. Drink fully. Let me give you a life lesson, drink fully. I know where it is found, and it is found by drinking of the river of His delights.

B. And God will delight in you

God wants your soul delighted. That’s what He says. Notice the next section I want to read to you, where God then shows us you drink from the river of God’s delight and you walk in that path cultivating faithfulness, God will delight in you. Oh, it’s a beautiful picture. Let’s read it starting in verse 23. Go back to Psalm 37, starting in verse 23, “The steps of a man are established by the Lord, ordained the way of God, and God the Lord will delight in him, in his way. When he falls, he will not be hurled headlong.”

He won’t fall off the cliff. No, because the Lord is the one who holds his hand. “I have been young, now I’m old, and I have never seen the righteous forsaken. Never, or his descendants begging bread.” No. All day long He’s gracious and lends, and His descendants are a blessing. In other words, He’s abundantly blessed. He’s just so blessed that He’s generous even, gracious. He says, “Depart from evil, do good, and then you’ll abide forever, for the Lord loves justice and He does not forsake His Godly ones.” No, they’re preserved forever. Descendants of the wicked, they are cut off, but the righteous they will inherit the land to blessings in favor and they will dwell in it forever.

Then verse 30 is beautiful, “The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom.” This will be the result in your life. You will be filled. You delight and drink from the river of His delight, what will come out of you, you will utter words that are wise. Wisdom. Your tongue will speak that which is right, just, because the law of God is in His heart and His steps do not slip. All right. Those are the verses I want us to see where He is showing us now God will delight in you when you know that He is ordaining your way, He is establishing your steps.

David is an old man now. He can look back over his life. Now he can see it. He can see it so clearly now. “God was the one. I see it now. God ordered my way. God established my steps. God ordained. He opened the doors. He made the path. I see it now. God did it.” He’s saying this so that you would trust in it. “God will do it for you. I’m an old man. I look back, I see it now. God did it. He ordained my way. He established my steps. He will do it for you.”

Trust in the Lord and He will do the same. God will ordain your steps. They will be established by the Lord into that which is good, the favor, the blessing, because God is delighting in your path as you are cultivating faithfulness, as you are walking by that, God delights to pour out His favor on your life. See, I’m old enough now that I can look back and I can see it so clearly. I could never have told you in advance how God would move, how God would bless, the doors that He would open for me, the steps that He would establish for me.

There have been so many miracles in my life, so many ways that God has blessed. Many of you know my story, I would never have known, I could never have predicted what God did in my life. Many of you know my story. I was raised in extreme poverty. My father was an alcoholic, angry, contentious. There was chaos and dysfunction all in my growing-up years. Statistically, people that are raised in environments like that don’t do very well in life. That’s statistics, but God did take hold of my life. God ordained my way. He showed me early in life that He is the delight of the soul. If you will delight in the Lord, He will establish your path. He will open the doors.

I tell you what, I am so thankful what God has done in my life. I am so, so blessed. What a privilege it is to be able to pastor a church like this. I have a wonderful marriage. I love my kids. I am so, so blessed, and I give God all the glory for it all. Amen. Amen. Amen. David is saying, “I want that for you.” Would you know the miracles that God will do, the ways that God will prove His favor? I’ll tell you what, I can literally write a book on the way that God has established my steps with His favorite and with His love.

Oh, do not get me wrong, there have been troubles, many troubles, but God has always been there. In fact, He says it right there in Psalm verse 24, “If you fall, you will not be hurled headlong.” No. God will be in there. He is the one who holds your hand. He will establish you on the rock and put you on that path that He’s established. Then lastly, when God establishes your way, ordaining the steps of your life, when you cultivate faithfulness, when you drink from the river of His delight, it will bring forth wonderful results in your life.

What will come back to you will be so amazing, so wonderful. He pictures it for us in verses 30-31. Notice what he says, “The mouth of the righteous will utter forth wisdom.” Words of Wisdom will come off of your mouth. Why? Because he says the word of the Lord is in his heart. He speaks that which is good and right. Everyone will see it.

In other words, when you’re working the steps that God has ordained, and you’re cultivating faithfulness along the way, and you’re drinking from the river of His delights, God will increase your stature, He will increase your soul, He will increase your wisdom, He will increase your stature in life. It is a great reward and a wonderful blessing to have God’s Word in your heart so that you can speak of the abundance of what God has done.

I’m reminded of what job– When we were studying the book of Job, we saw this in his life, where– Notice, Job 23:11-12, where he writes, “My foot has held fast to His path.” Now you see right here a direct correlation to Psalm 37, “My foot has held fast to His path. I have kept His way. I have not turned aside. I’ve not departed from the command of His lips. I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food.” Job delighted in the Almighty, he says. He treasured God’s word more than his necessary food and God was increasing him in stature and in wisdom. God was building in him the construct.

See, that’s it. When you’re faithfully steadfastly walking in the path that God has established with His favor and His blessing, when you’re drinking of the river of His delight, when your soul is delighted in the Almighty, knowing God will construct and build in you as He did in Job the construct of integrity, of wisdom, of stature. It’s the posts, the beams, the steel, the rocks, the strength of integrity and character of the soul. God builds that when you delight in the Almighty, when you drink from the river of His delight, when you walk in the path that God has established for you, and then the result is something that everyone can see.

Everyone can see it when you walk in that steadfastly over the course of years. Everyone can see it. It’s evident in your life. This is why Job said, Job 29:7-11, he said, “When I went out to the gate of the city, when I took my seat in the square, young men saw me and hid themselves.” In other words, they were intimidated. “Old men would rise, stand on their feet. Princes stopped talking. Voices of nobles was hushed. When they heard, they called me blessed.” That’s the value of the soul which God builds. He constructs.

This is David saying, “Look, I want to give this great truth to you. I tell you that God will build it. You cultivate faithfulness. You walk in the path that God has established by His favor when you delight in Him. When you drink from the river of God’s delight, God will establish this. He will build this. He would pour the increase of your stature. It will become the poster being, the steel, the rocks of the strength of your life, your integrity, your character of your soul.

God will build it when you delight in Him, when you drink from the river of His delight. Oh, what it will bring forth in your life is amazing. You’ll see it. Man, you’ll look back on your life and see it. “God did that. He built that. God established my path, I see it now.” You’ll be so thankful. You will be so thankful that you drank from the river, fully drank from the river of God’s delight. What it will do to your soul words cannot express. “I want this for you,” David says. God says in His word, “I will do it. Trust. I will do it. I will delight to do it. Drink fully.”

Let’s pray. Lord, we do thank You. We’re amazed. You have proven Yourself. You’ve shown us a great truth that if we would just cultivate faithfulness, if we would just walk in the steps that You have ordained, if we would just drink from the river of Your delights, oh, what God would build. Oh, what God would do that we can look back in our lives and see it. God, You have been the greatest blessing in my life. It begins with that decision to delight yourself in the Lord, to drink fully from the river of His delight.

Church, how many would say that to the Lord today, “I want to drink fully from the river of His delight. I want to be filled and overflowing. I want to walk in the steps that God has ordained. Construct that in me. Build that in me. God, I want to drink fully from the river of Your delights”? Would you just raise your hand as a way of expressing that desire to the Lord? I want to drink fully from the river of Your delights. Oh, do that wonderful work in me, Lord. God, we thank You, we honor You, we praise Your name for showing us the way to work in the joy of the Lord. We praise Your name in Jesus’ name.

Taste and See that the Lord is Good
Psalm 34:1-22

November 4-5, 2023

Psalm 34, written by David is an acrostic Psalm. There’s a few of those, and what it means is, there are 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet. Notice there’s 22 verses. Every verse begins with the next letter in the Hebrew alphabet. The first verse starts with Alef, Bet, Gimel, Dalet, et cetera, all the way down through the Hebrew alphabet, and the reason is so that it’s easy to remember. Great memorization technique, and of course, the idea is that every word, every verse of this amazing Psalm is so important. You want to memorize it, you want to write it on the soul of your heart because it is filled with so many practical living applications for us.

Now, the introduction of the Psalm tells us what was happening in David’s life when he wrote it. David was in great peril, he got himself in a very, very difficult and dangerous predicament. Afterward, he escaped to the cave of Adullam, and there he sat down and wrote this Psalm in honor of God, because God had rescued and saved him yet again. This is one of the most famous, it’s certainly one of the most quoted of the Psalms, and you’re going to see how many of these verses are very familiar to those who, of course, take hold of great truths in the Word of God. This is so important for us.

David was in great predicament and peril, so he gives us in the Psalm principles that guide us through predicament and peril and difficulty. Life is filled with difficult predicaments, and we would do very well to learn from David. You see, there are principles for navigating through troubles, even in the most difficult predicaments of life that are found in this Psalm. When you’re navigating through difficulty, perils and predicaments, you come to what I call decision points, right? Turns in the road, paths that cross, decision points, what do you do? Do you go this way? Do you do that? What do you do? There’s no GPS turn by turn navigation for troubles.

Wouldn’t that be marvelous if there was? Don’t go straight, there’s a big jam up ahead. You’re going to get into great trouble. No, take this exit, go this way. Wouldn’t it be great if there was a GPS to navigate through troubles? Just my luck, it would be a GPS with an attitude. Do you remember back in the day when GPS was first a thing? Remember they used to get GPS devices and then you would put them on your dash or whatever? Back in the day, I discovered that you can download different voices, and I thought it would be fun to download Yosemite Sam. Only problem was Yosemite Sam had an attitude, and if I missed a turn, Yosemite Sam was saying to me, “I said turn left, you hermit,” and “Okay.”

Back to our regular story. There’s no such thing as GPS to navigate you through troubles. No, but there are principles from God’s Word. God’s Word is a lamp to your feet. It is a light for your path, and we are going to see those principles that you need to know and take hold of before the peril, before the predicament of life. All right. Now, the backstory here is found in 1 Samuel, and it’s this. King Saul had become jealous and angry over David. What happened was, of course, after David killed Goliath the Philistine, he became famous in Israel. Saul attached him to his army, made him and captain and he was amazing.

Just a hero on the battlefield, one victory after the other, and the women started to sing songs that Saul did not like at all. The women were saying, “Saul has slain his thousands, but David his ten thousands.” and Saul was infuriated. What more can he have of the kingdom? There was the problem. The prophet Samuel had already told Saul that God had found a man after his own heart to replace him as king. It became quite obvious to Saul that David was that man. Therefore, Saul sought to destroy David and thwart the will of God that was against him. In fact, twice David was in the dining hall there with the king and the king’s men, and at one point, actually twice, Saul became so hot with rage, he took hold of a javelin and a spear, and hurled it at David trying to pin him to the wall. David ducked.

Now, that’s a sure sign right there that Saul’s not happy. David realized the peril and that he needed to flee. At first, he fled to the Prophet Samuel, but Saul sent men in pursuit there. Then David went to Ahimelech, the priest at Nob and interestingly, when David went to Ahimelech the priest, he did not reveal to the priest the true reason that he was on the move, not wanting to expose the priest to danger. He did not want to put the priest in the predicament of having to choose sides, of having to side with David, which would make him become treasonously disloyal to King Saul. David was trying to save his life by keeping the truth from him.

The truth was that David was on the run from that murderous, jealous, angry king. Instead, David said to the priest that Saul had sent him on a secret mission and that no one must know that he was there. David did ask for help from the priest, and that request put the priest in a difficult place. He asked the priest, “Do you have any weapons? I left. The king’s mad, it was urgent, and I brought no weapons. Do you have any weapons?” The priest said, “No, the only weapon we have is the sword of Goliath the Philistine who was slain there in the Valley of Elah, but if you wish it, take it.”

David said, “The sword of Goliath. There is none like it,” and he took that. Then he said, “Do you have any food? Do you have five loaves of bread? Anything?” The priest said, “We have no ordinary bread. We have only the consecrated bread of the presence.” In other words, every Sabbath day, the priests would bring 12 loaves of flat bread into the presence of the Lord, and then that would be all week without those loaves, and then he would take the old loaves, and that would be for the priests and the priests only were allowed to eat of that consecrated bread. He said, “I have no ordinary bread, I only have the consecrated bread. However, if you and your men have kept yourselves consecrated, you may have it.”

I. Choose the Highest Good

Here’s where some interesting principles arise out of the story. David withheld truth from the priest so as not to put the priest in the predicament of betraying the king, which would be treasonous. The priest offered David consecrated bread, which was lawful only for priests. Here is where the principles unfold. What do you do when no matter which path you choose, it is a difficult choice? What do you do when principles collide? Here is the principle. Choose the highest good when principles collide, when no matter what path you choose, it is fraught with difficulty, what do you do? There’s the principle. Choose that which is highest good.

Now, if decision points are hinge points that change the course, then we need wisdom. How do you choose the course? The wisdom of God’s principles that help us know the way to choose when principles collide, here it is. You choose the highest good. Here’s an example from our own life. Not nearly as apparent as this, but nevertheless, the story is this. My wife was pregnant with our third and about 10 days before the due date, she woke up with this pain. So excruciatingly painful was this that she said it feels like her pelvic bone was broken and she could not move, excruciating pain.

I called the hospital, they said, “This is an emergency, you need to get her here either by ambulance or by car. She needs to get to the hospital right now. The baby could be in peril, you must get her to here right now.” I said to my wife, “It’s an emergency, either we take the ambulance or I drive you, we got to go now.” She says, “Drive, let’s go.” Of course, part of the problem now is that she feels like a her pelvic bone is broken, she cannot move, so I had to pick her up. I picked her up and brought her in the car. Now that part of the story is not important but I just had to mention that part there.

Anyway, all right, so we get in the car and we’re driving down the road, down teeny highway and we came upon a red light. Now, the law of the land for law abiding citizens is that when you come upon a red light, you wait. You cannot go through a red light, that’s the law. All law body citizens agree. That’s the law. Of course, now the baby is in peril. This is an emergency but there’s a red light, that is the law. I sat there and waited for three minutes. No, I did not. I looked both ways and went right through that red light. I have to tell you, it felt good, and then we came to the next red light, I did the same thing, looked both ways, went right through it.

I came to another red light. Interestingly, there was a car there, and I just felt something, and I went and threw the red light, quickly it turned green, he caught up to me, and then there’s another red light went through that one. He turned me into the police. He called. Yes, me. He did. All right, now the story unfolds, then we get to the hospital. Turns out the baby had a raging blood infection and they had to do an emergency C-section, of course, the baby was quarantined, mom was quarantined and later the doctor said, “Yes, if you had not brought that baby in, if you had not come in when you did, the baby would’ve died.”

I said, “Well, what was that pain? I mean a blood infection that does not explain that degree of pain.” He said, “I have no idea but if it wasn’t for that pain, then you would not have been here and the baby would’ve died.” He said, “We have a phrase for that in the medical world, we call that providential intervention.” I go, “That’s interesting. We have a name for that in the church too. We call that the hand of God, a miracle.” Amen. I get home, the quarantine, the baby is all better. We get home and there’s a letter from the sheriff. “You were seen going through red lights in this and that section.”

I thought, oh, we better call the sheriff’s office. We don’t want that pastor arrested for red light. No, we had to– I called the sheriff’s office and explained what happened, and interestingly, the sheriff’s representative said, “You did not break the law. When life is in peril, you go through that red light. Now, call us next time we’ll give you an escort, but you don’t wait. If that’s an emergency, you go through it.” That is interesting. Bring God into every equation, into every decision of choosing and He will direct your course into that which is highest good. Do you run through a red light? You break the law, or do you save a life?

Either way, the choice is that which is the highest good. Jesus interestingly, spoke of this very principle when the Jewish leaders one day accused Jesus of doing that which was not lawful to do on the Sabbath. He and the disciples were walking through a grain field, they had picked some grains of wheat and rubbed it and ate it. They said, “Oh, that is harvesting, you’re doing that which is not lawful.” Jesus said to them, Luke 6:3-5, Jesus answered them and said, “Have you not even read what David did when he was hungry, how he entered the house of God and how he took and ate the consecrated bread which is not lawful for any to eat except the priest alone and gave it to his companions.”

A. Bless the Lord at all times

The sinner man is Lord of the Sabbath. That path is that path of highest good, choose the highest good. All right, now, back to Psalm 34. Let’s read the Psalm, starting in verse 1. “I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth.” All right, David again, he’s in the cave of Adullam and he looks back now and God has rescued and delivered and saved David from one peril after the other. He says, “I will bless the Lord at all times, His praise will continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boost in the Lord.” Oh, the humble will hear this and they will rejoice.

I love verse 3. “Oh, magnify the Lord with me. Let us exalt his name together and come on, let’s exalt his name together.” He said, now verses 1-3 by the way, is like a blanket that covers the whole Psalm. Then he’s looking back and says, this is what happened. Verse 4, “I saw the Lord, He answered me, He delivered me from all my fears. They looked to Him and were radiant and their faces will never be ashamed those who look to God.” This poor man cried, David says, the afflicted, I was afflicted. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all of his troubles. That’s the theme.

The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear Him, another great principle and will rescue him. Then verse 8, very famous, very, very quoted, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good.” He’s saying to everyone who reads this, taste for yourself and see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Oh, fear the Lord. Now, the word fear in English, I think is better translated to Hebrew revere. Definitely powerful, poetically beautiful. “Oh, revere the Lord, oh you his saints, for to those who revere Him, there is no want.” There is no lack. The young lions lack and suffer hunger dependent on the matriarch lion.

No, but those who seek the Lord, will be in want of no good thing. They shall not be in want of any good thing. Great principle. Then he says in verse 11, he becomes our instructor. “Come children, listen to me. I will teach you the revering of the Lord. Who is the man who desires life.” Of course, we would all raise our hand there. “Who is the man who desires life? Who is the one who loves length of days that he may see good?” Then listen. “Keep your tongue from evil, keep your lips from speaking lies, deceit, depart from evil, do good.” This is the revering. You do this out of revering out of respect.

Seek peace, pursue it. Why? Because the eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears are open to their cry. Now, the face of the Lord is against evil doers to cut off the memory of them from the earth, but the righteous cry, and the Lord hears and delivers them out of all of their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted. Here’s another verse very famously, “The Lord saves those who are crushed afflicted of spirit.” In verse 19, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers them out of them all.” Now the famous verse, write that one down. Verse 20, “He keeps all his bones, not one of them is broken.”

All right, this is quoted in John 19, referencing the Lord on the cross, not one of his bones was broken, is fulfillment of our verse. Verse 21, “Evil shall slay the wicked.” In other words, they’ll come back on their head and those who hate the righteous will be condemned. They’ll be held guilty “But the Lord redeems the soul of his servants and none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.” All right, this is our Psalm. Beautiful, powerful, great principles, again for all of us to take hold of. Notice starting in verse 1, “Bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be in my mouth.”

See, David is writing the Psalm now, after all is said and done, he looks back. God has saved him over and over and over. He’s giving God glory for rescuing and saving him, but when you notice, first of all, please notice the attitude of David’s faith. This is very important, David’s attitude of faith. Faith has this attitude of trust. I will

bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be in my mouth. This is important because David has gone from peril to predicament, to difficulty, to trouble. Many people do not know how to navigate through predicament, or peril, or trouble. They get angry, they get frustrated, they say things, then they get hurt, angry even at God.

David is showing us a very important key to navigating through peril and predicament. No, I will bless the Lord at all times. There’s an attitude of faith. His praise will continually be in my mouth. I will not do it. I will not get angry. I will not get frustrated. Now this is a very important principle and I’ll tell you why. Anger is destructive. When you’re angry, frustrated and do things and say things, it’s destructive but faith, trust, looks and believes. It’s constructive, it builds. Let me give you another word. I wish I would’ve put this in the notes. Isaiah 26:3-4 “You will keep in perfect peace him whose mind is steadfast because he trusts in you.

Trust in the Lord at all times for the Lord is a rock.” Now that’s a good word. That’s a great word. You will keep in perfect peace him who trusts in you. This is the key to David’s attitude of faith, and peril, and predicament. Anger is destructive. Now watch, wait, trust, he’s a rock. Here’s an example. When Israel was rescued and saved out of the oppression and slavery of Egypt, they had been crying out in their oppression and God look and hear us. They were so going through difficulty. God by his miraculous hand brought them out of that and into the desert, and then provided for them there in the desert again by God’s miraculous hand, but they’re in a desert.

They got to go through the desert which is hot. Frankly, if you’ve ever been through a desert you know it is hot and you get irritated. It’s difficult. All right, how do you navigate through? You got to go. We’re not done. He saved them out of Egypt. We’re not done. We got to get through this desert. There’s a bearing, there’s an attitude of faith. We got to get through this thing, but what did they do? They started to grumble, complain. You know what? They didn’t need to be in the desert for 40 years. They could’ve made straight way but that attitude kept them, and so God said those grumblers and those who lacked faith and those who were complainers, every one of them will perish in the desert.

The next generation they’re the ones that will go into the land I promised. For example, Numbers 11:4-6. He says, “The rabble among them,” interesting description. “The rabble among them had greedy desires.” He said, “Oh we remember the fish we had for we used to eat free in Egypt. Oh, the cucumbers and the melons, and the leeks and the onions. Oh, don’t you remember the good old days when we were in Egypt? Don’t you remember the good old days when we were oppressed and slaves? No there’s nothing now here for us at all except this manna. Manna, manna, manna.”

It says Numbers 11:1 “The people became like those who complained of diversity in the hearing of the Lord.” They became like those who complain of adversity. When you’re doing adversity David is giving us the key. I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will continually be in my mouth. There is an attitude of faith. This is important. This is a key for us. Then he says verse 2, “May your soul boast in the Lord.” Notice verse 2, my soul will boast in the Lord. See it’s interesting that David begins there by saying my soul boasts. See in other words, within his own heart, within his soul, he’s giving God a glory, a boasting of God in his own soul. It’s just like it’s between him and God.

B. May your soul boast in the Lord

God, you are amazing. You did it again. Lord, I’m amazed. Bless your name, how you have done this I boast of God in my own soul. Now he says the humble will hear of this. Oh, and they’ll rejoice. He starts out by saying I’ll boast in my soul. This is a key again to David. You did it, God. It’s between him and God. Notice 2 Samuel 22:36. David here in 2 Samuel 22 is looking back over his life. “You have given me the shield of your salvation.” The shield is what you hold up in front of adversity. “Your help makes me great.” This is another great key to victorious faith. Walking through the life’s predicaments in peril., God’s help.

David walked through every peril. He marched right into trouble with that faith believing God is with me. Your help makes me great. You enlarge my steps under me and my feet have not slipped. Psalm 32, “You surround me with songs of deliverance.” That’s beautiful. Now when David left Ahimelech the priest, remember the story. Do you have any weapons? Only the sword of Goliath, the Philistine. David took the sword and after he left Ahimelech the priest, he went immediately to the area of the Philistines. Now he went there believing that Saul would not pursue him there, and the area that he went to, the city he went to was that of Gath.

Now if you remember your history you might remember that Goliath just so happened to be from the city of Gath. This was likely not David’s finest hour. Here’s my point. Now we can understand why David thought to escape Saul, his wrath by fleeing the country, but to arrive in Gath the city of Goliath, carrying the sword of Goliath on your side is probably not going to end well. Now he gets there and the servants of Achish who’s the king of Gath they recognize David. “Wait a minute isn’t this David? Isn’t this the one that they sing about, Saul has slain thousands but David his ten thousands, is this not him?”

Now when David heard those words he immediately knew there is trouble. He is out of options. What do you do when you’re out of options? He has no army with him. What do you do? He’s out of options, and there David gets creative. There and just in that moment, we believe that God just put an idea on his heart. He just David got creative. He feigned madness. He started acting mad and crazy. He’s scribbling on the doors letting saliva run down his beard. It was a convincing ruse because the King Achish wanted him out of his presence.

Notice 1 Samuel it should say, 1 Samuel 21:14-15 “Then Achish said to his servants, ‘Behold oh you see this man, you see this man behaving like a mad man why did you bring him to me? Do I like madmen, in my kind– Is that it? Do I like madmen that you brought this one to act like a madman in my presence? What should I bring him into my house? Get him out of here.’” It worked. David escaped to the cave of Adullam 7, 10 miles away. He’s looking back, he’s blessing the Lord, God you did it. David was out of options and God put this on his heart to escape from the grip of danger.

I believe that in that predicament God will put on your heart in that moment what you need. I’ll give you an example from my own life. Again far far less than what David experienced but the story is this. We were in Russia, we were adopting our boys. It was a Russian adoption. We were in Moscow, the night before our departure and our plane was going to leave the next day I think around noonish. Our interpreter was going through our paperwork and said “Hey, those passports–” they just got new passports, “They don’t have the stamps or the signatures. They’re not leaving this country without those stamps and those signatures, they’re not going anywhere.”

The problem is the office that they would get those stamps and signatures was an hour and a half drive through snow and ice one way.

We thought, what do we do? We decided we would get up in the middle of the night, drive there be the very first ones when that office opened, we had it all figured out. We’d be the very first ones. The office opens we get our stamps and signatures, we then drive quickly to the embassy get that stamped, and then go to the airport. We had it exactly, had to be just so and we have to be the first ones. All right, so we get up and it’s dark it’s icy, it’s cold.

The driver that they hired was going down 80 miles an hour and I’m thinking, oh God, here we are in your hands. We get there to the office and I thought, oh no, there was a line in the no, probably 20 deep. I thought, oh no, what do we do? We are out of options if we wait for that whole 20 people to be processed I know Russian bureaucracy, this will take forever. What do we do? We are out of options. Then I see the officials drive up in their official cars, and then instantly an idea comes to my mind. I realized I am wearing an army surplus coat. I inherited it from my brother. It meant a lot to me.

It was a nice thick wool army surplus one of those real long ones. I realized that’s an army surplus coat, that looks official. I thought, hmm. I said to the people with me, I had one other father, the interpreter, and the oldest boy. I said, “Follow me, do not speak. Walk the way I walk.” We went over stood by in the snow as they’re getting out of their cars. When the last official started going past me, I got right behind him. I walked and looked like authority, and I walked right past the whole line and they opened the door. I walked in and I stood before the official with a bearing of authority. I said to him in Russian, “[Russian language] I need your help, please, sir.”

He looked at me and said, in Russian, “What do you need?” I turned to the interpreter. In other words, “My assistant will take it from here.” He said, “He needs these stamps and these signatures. It’s urgent.” He looks at me, he looks at the passports.” Stamp, stamp, sign, sign, go. Yes. Amen. I believe that God will give in the moment the predicament. If the attitude of faith is show me, God what do we do now? Don’t relent on faith. What do we do now? Then notice back to Psalm 34:8 “The word of the Lord is tested and tried.” See, notice verse 8 “Taste and see that the Lord is good.”

II. The Word of the Lord is Tested and Tried

He’s saying taste it for yourself. See, the relationship with God is far more than a theological understanding to David. No, it is a manner. It is a way of life. It is a spiritual bearing of faith. David’s trust was everything to David. David went from peril to predicament, to trouble, to difficulty. This was the bearing of that faith relationship with God. It’s everything. Now taste it yourself. Taste and you’ll see it yourself because the word of the Lord is tested. Notice Psalm 18:30. “The word of the Lord is tried, tested.” God has proven himself to me. He’s a shield to all who take refuge in him. Taste it for yourself.

See, when you taste and see that the Lord is good, you are partaking in the life of God for yourself. It becomes life within you. See this verse suggests that when you partake of the Lord, it is good on the soul. It settles well on the soul. This is far deeper than any theological understanding. This is not mental agreement. Taste and see that the glory of God settles well beautifully well on the soul. You must partake on the soul. It’s glorious. See there’s a great difference between studying the ingredients in food and eating it. There are many people that are very well-studied that are empty and hungry.

They have nothing in their soul. They’re studied well, but they have not tasted of it. You must taste of it. When you go to a restaurant you don’t just study the menu. I’m not leaving till I have– I want my soul nourished. You must partake. David is showing us a king here. God wants all of us to take hold of this great principle. No, you must partake of it. Oh, it is good. It settles well on the soul. It is beautiful in the life and in the heart. See, when you partake you’re tasting and you’re being transformed, your soul is being transformed by it. However, let there be no mistake. The opposite is also true.

Notice Job 20. We studied it when we were going through the Book of Job, “Though evil is sweet in the mouth and it is the world is sweet on the mouth, but in the stomach, it’s changed to the venom of cobras within.” That is a good word right there. You want a principle of life. You want one of those principles that would guide you, should I go this way? Should I go that way? What should I do? Here’s a principle. Write this one down. Evil is sweet in the mouth. You might look at something and you say, “You know what? That is very sweet to the flesh but is poison to the soul.” It becomes the venom of cobras within.

A. There is no want in those who revere God

Interestingly, the one who delights in the taste of evil will even lose his financial bearing. That’s what it says. He swallows riches but he’ll vomit them right back up because God will expel them from his belly. You want a good word? That’s a good word. Then he says, notice in contrast to that, notice where he goes next in the Psalm. “There is no want in those who revere God.” That’s a great practical life-bearing word. There is no one in those who revere. See, notice verse 9 “Oh revere the Lord you his saints for to those who revere him, there is no lack.” Now the Hebrew poetry then is beautifully seen as that David then recites that truth beautifully over and over.

Notice verse 10, “Young lions lack, suffer hunger but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good thing.” Notice the key those who seek, it’s an active faith. Those who seek the Lord, taste and seek, desire and hunger for that which is gloriously beautiful on the soul, actively seeking. For those who revere will seek him. If you respect God and revere him you will seek. For those, they will have no lack. He will be your Jehovah Jireh. The eyes of the Lord, verse 15 are toward the righteous. He will be your Jehovah Jireh, your provider. Psalm 23:1 “The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want, I shall not lack.”

Then David becomes our instructor. Notice verse 11 David will be our instructor and life principles will follow. David says, “Come Jordan, listen to me. I will teach you the revering of God. I will show you now the revering of God.” David says. Immediately our ears perk up. David’s going to show us something of the revering of God because we know that this is a key to David’s understanding. This is a key to David’s victorious faith. He’s going to show it to us now.

“Listen, children, I will teach you the revering of God. Who is it that seeks for life?” We do. “Length of days that he may see good.

Then let me show you, verse 13 and 14. Then keep your tongue from evil. Keep that out of your mouth because of your revering God. If you revere God, if you respect God, then keep that out of your mouth.” I’m saying that boldly but I think that’s what David is trying to say. David is trying to say something bold here. You want to– it’s a key to David’s understanding. You want to revere God, keep that evil out of your mouth. Notice then, keep your lips from speaking lies, deceits, no depart from evil. Do good, seek peace and pursue it. See, your bearing is a pathway of your choosing. Do you desire life that you may say good?

Then revere God and show it by the choosing of the path. The pathway of peace. The pathway of life, or the pathways of good are loving kindness and truth. Choose that. You want to revere God, you want to respect God, choose that path because there’s another path too. There’s a path of worldliness and disrespect and dishonor. You will not do well in your soul. You will not do well in peril. You will not do well in a predicament. Let me give you a key to life’s perils and predicaments. Choose the pathway of peace that which is good, pursue it. Seek it, long for it and then notice verse 19, “Many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers them out of them all.”

B. Many are the afflictions of the righteous

David says, “Let me tell you, taste for yourself. Taste and see that the Lord is good. You’ll see it. I know this many are the afflictions of the righteous.” Jesus said in very similar words, in this world you’ll have many troubles but take courage starting with your faith now, the bearing of your faith. Take courage man, I’ve overcome the world. There will be troubles, there will be afflictions. In fact, many are the afflictions of the righteous. Many people do not know how to navigate through peril or predicament. This song will show you how. There are many afflictions but the Lord will deliver them, Him from them all.

David ends the Psalm similarly to how he began. David has endured one affliction after the other but he maintains his faith victoriously. I will bless the Lord at all times. The attitude of David’s faith, the bearing of David’s faith. His praise will continually be in my mouth. That’s what’s in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the Lord. Yes, many are the afflictions of the righteous but the Lord delivers him out of them all, and He’ll do it for you. The attitude of faith. The bearing of faith. There will be many afflictions, many troubles, David is saying, but he shows us a key to his understanding.

I will not be moved, I will not be shaken. I will not quit. I will stand on this rock for I know my God and I know that He rescues and says that He’s good. I have tasted and I’ve seen that the Lord is good. The glory is good on the soul. I want that for you. He says, taste it for yourself. Let’s pray, Lord we stand amazed of who you are. How glorious is the promise. Taste it for yourself, David says. How many would say to the Lord today, I want to taste in full. I want my soul filled, overflowing because I know it’s good. I know that it settles well on the soul. It’s beautiful. It settles beautifully on the soul. God, I want that. I want to be filled to taste it for myself.

Church, would you say that to the Lord? Would you just raise your hand as a way of saying that to the Lord? I want to taste it myself. I want to be filled. I know it settles on the soul beautifully, I want to pursue more. I seek God, I seek you, I want to taste it for myself. I want to see the glory that settles well in the soul. Just raise your hand as a declaration to God. Father, we are so thankful for everyone who’s stirred, moved of God that we would be those who are victorious in our faith. Show us the life of victory that is found in the name of our Lord and Savior in Jesus name, and everyone said, can we give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen.

Behold the Beauty of the Lord
Psalm 27:1-14

October 14-15, 2023

Psalm 27, behold the beauty of the Lord and I got to tell you out of all the Psalms, Psalm 27 is my personal favorite. Now I know you’re not supposed to have favorites. Is it like kids, in the sense that you’re not supposed to have a favorite child? We raised five kids, and many times we were asked by our kids, “Who’s your favorite?” [laughs] I always would give them the answer. I would tell them who my favorite was. I said, my favorite is whoever needs me most. That’s my favorite. Amen. I’m going to be there.

I think in some ways it’s perhaps like that with the Psalms, your favorite, I think, is the one that ministers to you most, that resonates with you most. Maybe it ministers to you in your time of need, or maybe it just speaks life to you when you need a word of encouragement. I know that for me when I’ve gone through a valley of trouble or I’ve gone through a circumstance that it’s difficult, I know that just opening my Bible and just reading the Psalms, they just bless the soul. It’s just like refreshing water to the soul. It just brings life.

There’s just something about the Psalms that just brings life. Have you experienced this? It’s just so beautiful. Psalm 27, I think, resonates with me personally because God used it to transform my life and confirm my call to be a pastor. Of course, I’ve given you this story, many of you know my story, but it’s just so important to me because here we are in Psalm 27. The story is this, when I was a young man in my early 20s trying to find my way in life, I would go to church oftentimes, and I would oftentimes go to church alone. I know.

I would get there early and I just loved being at church. I loved the smell of it. [laughs] I don’t know, I just really loved just sitting. I would get there early. I would just sit there in the chairs, the pews, and they would have beautiful worship playing, and I would just sit there and read my Bible. One day I’m sitting there and I’m reading Psalm 27 and the words of this Psalm sitting there in that sanctuary, listening to that beautiful music in that place. The words became beautiful to me. Those words became just resonating on my soul, that when you read the psalm, you’ll know what I mean.

They just speak a heart after God. It blessed me and I immediately knew that I wanted to be a pastor. It just confirmed in my heart, reading that psalm. See, this is one of those psalms that revealed the inner workings of David’s faith. David’s perspective on God, David’s relationship with God was the very substance of his faith, right? David, in several places is called a man after God’s own heart. That is something we all ought to desire to be, a man or a woman after God’s own heart. You see that in several places, for example, in Acts, but it’s in not the places in the Old Testament too.

Acts 13:22, after God had removed Saul, He raised up David to be their king, concerning whom He testified and said, “I found David, the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart who will do My will.” That’s the key now, to David’s faith, his victorious life is because he is a man after God’s own heart, which means he loved God. He delighted in the Almighty, his soul was filled and was overflowing. Remember Psalm 23, my cup overflows, his soul prospered in the light of God. That’s what it means to be a man or a woman after God’s own heart and that is what we all ought to desire to be.

I. Deeper Faith brings Confidence in God

God loved David because he was a man after His own heart. See, for David, faith was more than just a belief system, you might say, more than just a theological understanding or a theological bearing. No, no. It had everything to do with how you live. The practice of living was born out of thou faith. In other words, how you live, how David lived is because of what he believed, his faith, his relationship to the living God. David was a man of action. Men and women of faith are men and women of action. See, David encountered many, many troubles, many conflicts, many battles, many difficulties.

For him, his faith was a practical part of victory. In those conflicts, in those troubles, in the day-to-day struggles, he did those struggles by his faith. His faith was tried and tested over and over and over because God was with him. God walked with him through every one of those, and he walked by faith. David gives expression to that faith in the Psalm. See, you see a Psalm now where his faith is defined. Ah, this is David. This is what David believes. This is how David lives. This is how David takes that faith and puts it into life. That’s why it’s so important.

Anyone who desires to be victorious in the practice of living, and I think everybody would say, “Yes, I want to be victorious in how I live my life.” See, if anyone wants to be victorious, if anyone wants to have a heart after God, then these words out of Psalm 27 will resonate in your soul. Let’s read it and then we’ll look into it together. Psalm 27 and will begin in verse one, “The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear?” Now, see, I don’t know, you got to read it with a determined faith, right? The Lord is my light. The Lord is my salvation so whom should I fear?

The Lord is the defense of my life. Now, by the way, the word Lord is in all caps, which means it’s the name of God, it’s Yahweh, Yahweh, Yahweh, however, you want to say. It’s the name of God. He’s naming God by name. Yahweh is the defense of my life, so whom then should I dread if God is the defense of my life? When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, my adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell. Notice verse three, “Though a host in camp against me, my heart will not fear.”

This is faith right here in the practice of living. He then says, “Though war arises against me, in spite of this, I shall be confident.” Then verse four. This is what, when I was sitting there in that church on that beautiful evening, these were the words right here. Verse four, “One thing I have asked from the Lord and that I shall seek one thing. One thing above all other things I ask and I seek and it’s this, that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and to meditate in his temple.”

I read those words and I thought, I want that. That’s what I want. I want to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. I’m a pastor. I get the privilege of dwelling in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. I get to teach five times a week the word of God. Am I blessed? I’m blessed. Amen. I’ll tell you what, and we’re going to read it because all of the paths of the Lord are loving, kindness, and truth. All the paths of the Lord are loving, kindness, and truth. When I get to teach the word of God, I get to bless, but I am blessed.

See, whenever you’re blessed, you get to receive a blessing. Oh, I am so, so blessed. David, that’s his prayer. That’s what I’m asking all the days of my life. Then he says verses five and four, “In the day of trouble, He will conceal me in His tabernacle or His shelter in the secret place of His tent He’ll hide me and He will lift me up on a rock. Now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me. I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy, I will sing. Yes, I will sing praises to Yahweh, to the Lord. I will shout it. I will sing it. I will praise his name.

Hear, oh Lord, when I cry with my voice, be gracious and answer me. When you said, ‘Seek My face’ my heart said to You, ‘Your face, oh Lord, I will seek.’ Do not hide your face from me. Do not turn your servant away in anger. You’ve been my help. Do not abandon or forsaken me. Oh God of my salvation. Father and mother have forsaken me but the Lord I know will take me up.” Verse 11, “Teach me your way. Oh Lord, teach me, lead me in a level path because of my foes. Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries.

False witnesses have risen up against me.” David had many opponents, many challengers, many who would rise up against him. He said, “As such, they breathed out violence. I would’ve despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living.” Yes, I know I will see the goodness of the Lord when I breathe my last, and I’m in His presence. I believe I will see the goodness of the Lord right here, right now in the land of the living.” That’s why he says verse four, he turns his attention to those who would read this Psalm.

“Wait for the Lord, be strong.” He means, here, “Arise, in your faith, let your faith arise in strength. Be strong and let your heart take courage.” Yes. Wait for the Lord. Oh, now is that a good psalm or what? Yes, it’s a good psalm. It’s the best one of all of ’em. Okay. It was a little strong, but it’s awesome. Let’s read it. Let’s look at it. There’s so much to apply. Starting with this, deeper faith brings confidence in God. This is a theme, one of the great themes of David’s life. Confidence. David was a very, very confident man. This is a theme of David.

David was confident because of his faith. He was not self-confidence. It was confidence because of faith in God. It’s boldness in David. It came from the depths of faith. God wants this for you, that you be a man after God’s own heart means to walk in that faith. A boldness, man of faith are men of action. David faced his troubles straight on. He drove straight into a storm that you got to just admire the boldness, the courage, the faith. He would drive straight into the storm knowing that God was with him, that God was for him. That with God there would be victory.

By the way, some are I think sometimes confused on this point because there are other Scriptures that suggest that victory is ours when the battle is the Lord’s and that God will do the fighting for us. We do not have to engage the enemy at all. That is true. We do see examples of that in the Scriptures. In other words, God works in many different ways. We need to wait on God to discern how God is moving in the circumstances. We do need to see that God does move in different ways.

For example, later on in Israel’s history, the story unfolds that nations on the other side of the Jordan had formed an alliance of countries and nations against David and even across the Jordan and encamped at En Gedi. Jehoshaphat was the king. He gathered all the assembly from the cities of Judah to seek the Lord, pray for God’s help. They were standing there with their infants, their wives, and their children just waiting on God. That right there is a great lesson. Then notice the word of the Lord. 2nd Chronicles 20:15-17. “Then the spirit of the Lord said,” Okay, there they are.

They’re all standing. They’re waiting. Got their babies in their hands. They’re just waiting. Jehoshaphat had made an amazing prayer. Yes. Then they’re just waiting on God. Then the spirit of the Lord came upon Jehaziel. He said, “Listen, oh, Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem and King Jehoshaphat. Thus says the Lord to you, do not fear or be dismayed because of this great multitude for the battle is not yours, but God’s. You need not fight in this battle station yourselves. Stand and watch and see the salvation of the Lord on your behalf.”

We know the story. God set the armies of those nations into confusion and they attacked one another. While the army of Judah stood and watched the scene unfold them, they did not engage in the battle. That’s a powerful example of how God can move in your behalf. God moves in many different ways in the Scriptures, but your confidence is in Him. You pray and you seek the heart of God, and you do not move until you have the direction of God for whatever you are encountering. Whatever challenges before you, you wait and hear the direction of the Lord.

There are times when He says, “Do not engage at all. Be silent. Do not even speak a word.” I felt the Lord speak that to my heart at times. Don’t even speak a word in response. Sometimes silence is very powerful. For example, 2 Kings, 18:34, “The people of Jerusalem are silent and answered the captain of Assyrian, not a word, for the king’s command was ‘Do not answer him a word.'” Sometimes that’s what God uses. That’s what God would say. Do not answer. Do not engage, do not speak a word. Sometimes God just wants you to give a gracious answer and move on.

A. If God is for you, who can be against you?

There are other times, however, when God says, encounter the problem head-on, go straight into the storm believing that God is with you in the midst of it and that God will be your help. God is with you in the storm and that God’s help will make you great. God’s help will make you victorious. There’s a theme here in this psalm that is a theme of David’s life. I submit that it is a theme that we see in the New Testament as well. It’s this, if God is for you, who can be against you? It’s the New Testament principle. We see it in David’s faith.

We see it in David’s life, is the very substance of David. If God is for me, who can be against me? It comes right out of Romans 8:31, 37, and 39, where Paul writes this, “What then shall we say to these things if God is for us, who can be against us?” That is a great word right there. Do you believe that word? It’s a strong word of God. If God– and really the best way to see that is since God is for us. In the Greek, it’s even more clear. It’s the word since God is for us then who can be against us?

For in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him, God’s help makes me great through Him who loved us. For nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is found in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Romans 8 is one of the most powerful chapters in the whole Bible. There you see the substance of it. See, that was David’s faith. Notice verses one and two. Notice what he says. “The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life. Whom shall I dread?” Is he not saying the same thing?

If God is for me, or since God is my light and since God is my salvation, then you tell me, should I be afraid of someone if God is my light and God my salvation, and God is the defense of my life, should I be afraid? David said, “No, I will not.” See, I love that phrase, the Lord is my light. See, light is vision, light is understanding, it’s clarity, it’s insight, it’s hope, it’s life. Darkness is despair, uncertainty, doubt, confusion. Now, the Lord is my light. I do not have doubt. I do not have confusion. I do not have despair.

God is my light. I have clarity. I have hope, I have vision. God is my light. God is my salvation, whom shall I fear? See, whenever you read Psalm 27, the reason those words are so encouraging is because we know that David did it. That these words are tested and tried. David proved it. Therefore, we look at our lives and say, then I will test it and I will try those words and God will prove it in my life. See, your faith arises when you read a Psalm like that because you want to say, the Lord’s my light, the Lord’s my salvation, and the Lord is the defense of my life and I will not be afraid.

B. You pursue what you desire

“The war arise against me. In spite of this, I shall be confident,” David wrote. See, in other words, his confidence in God was greater than the fear of war arising. God is with me. Then, would you notice verse four? Oh, how beautiful is verse four? Obviously, to me, it’s the high point of the Psalm. I like to perhaps see verse four from this view that you pursue what you desire. It’s one of the most beautiful, insightful verses here. In my view, Psalm 27:4 is one of the most beautiful and insightful verses in the Bible.

I submit that we are right now, you are, we are, I submit we are pursuing what we desire. By nature, by our nature, what we desire, what we long for. See, having desires and longings is part of the nature of men. Everybody’s got desires. We don’t even need to do a show of hands. I know everybody has desires. Everybody has things they long for, things that they’re striving for. You could write a list of the things that you’re desiring and striving for. You pursue the things that you are desiring, that you are searching for.

Therefore, what you desire has everything to do with who you will become. Your desires define who you will become. Now, I can tell you personally that what I pursue and what I desire has changed over time. When I was a young man in my, let’s say teens and early 20s, the things I desired then are not the things I desire now. Anybody old enough to agree with what I say here? I think what happens as you get older, and if you’re in your teens or 20s, trust me, you’ll change because what happens is the value of things change.

You see the things that you value change because the things have different values. See, for example, I’ve come to see the value of my soul like I’ve never seen it in my life. Now, I’ve been a believer since I was very young but the depth of understanding of what God is doing and how precious it is to the soul is what David is saying. David is saying, “I’m asking one thing above all things and that is the one thing I seek.” I ask because I seek. What is that one thing to you? I mentioned this Wednesday, and it’s a good question to ask, if you could ask one thing above all things, one thing, what would you ask of God for you personally?

I’m not talking about world peace, I’m talking about you. What would you ask for, for you? Me? Yes, the one highest, the one that’s above all things. This is got to be you. It’s not world peace. That’s you. What’s the one thing you would ask for from God? David says, “One thing, above all things, one thing I want is this, I want to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life. I want to behold the beauty of the Lord. I want to meditate in His temple.” Why would David ask that? Because he understood the value, the beauty of the soul. Even understood what few understand.

He understood the depths of the beauty of the Lord. Once you see the depths of the beauty, the glory, the amazing, beautiful delight of God’s glory, you see it throughout the Scriptures. I’ve used this illustration before, I want to use it again because I cannot think of a better one. It’s like this, it’s like someone who’s colorblind and then they get a gift of those, they’re called EnChroma glasses that allow a colorblind person to see in color. All their life they’ve seen monochrome and that that’s what life is to them, everything’s monochrome.

Then for their birthday, they’re given these glasses where they can see in color. Maybe you’ve seen these videos on YouTube, they’re very moving. You start crying because they put on these glasses for the first time and it’s like, of course, everybody there knows what it is and so they’ve got their beautiful balloons and reds and yellows and blues, what everybody’s wearing and they got flowers. Then the guy puts on the glasses. He goes, “Wow, is this life? Is this real? This is the way you see? This is the way you see?” Yes, this is the way we see. This is life.

“I had no idea.” He goes outside and looks at the green grass and the blue sky, and he’s crying. This is so amazing. He’s discovered the beauty, what he never saw before and everything was monochrome to him. Here’s my point, it’s like that, David sees what many do not see. David sees the glory. David sees the beauty. Many people, they had no idea. They read the Bible in monochrome. God wants to bring a depth. I’ll just tell you what, you see the beauty and the glory, it will bring revival. It will bring revival to the soul. It will.

I’m here to tell you, it will bring revival to the soul because the glory of God resonates upon the soul. That’s why David says, “I want that above all things.” Then he adds, “For in the day of trouble,” verse 5, “He will conceal me in His tabernacle,” or His shelter, “And in the secret place of His tent, He will hide me and He will lift me up with a rock.” In other words, and I know that in that day of trouble that God will draw me closer to Himself, that’s what he means. In the day of trouble, God will draw me into the shelter of His wings.

He’ll draw me nearer to Himself. That is victory. When God draws me near, He covers me with His wings, He covers me with His protection. He says, “And then He will lift me up on a rock.” See, there under the shelter, verse 6, notice under the shelter of the Almighty David says, “And then I will offer sacrifices with shouts of joy. I will shout it out and I will sing, and I will sing praises to my God and I will just let my voice be heard on high. I want God to know, I am so thankful to Almighty God for all that He’s done in my life.”

II. God says to you, “Seek My Face”

See, you see what David’s doing? He’s giving something back. See, he’s received and received and he’s received, and he’s received, and he is so amazingly blessed and he wants to give something back. He says, “God, I want to shout it out. I want to give you praises. I want to just declare it.” Now we see David’s faith in the practice of life. Then notice where he goes with the Psalm next, God says to you, “Seek My face.” David said, “When you said to me, ‘Seek my face,’ my heart said, ‘I will.'” I will seek your face.

I submit that God is saying that to you. God is saying to you, “Seek My face.” God wants you to seek His face. Now, you cannot see God’s face, but you can seek God’s face. You can seek God’s face when you pursue God’s presence. The nearness of God to your soul, when you are seeking the glory, the beauty, you are seeking the face of God. See, let’s think of it this way. When you have a relationship with somebody, you address them to their face. See, when I speak to you, you have turned your face to me. Thank you.

When you are addressing me, you see my face. I don’t speak to you with my– that would be very rude. See, what it speaks to is relationship because the face is the expression of the countenance. You can see the countenance. If there’s joy, it’s in the countenance. If there’s peace, it’s in the countenance. You can’t really hide your countenance. I said some people do, the pretenders. Generally speaking, we are where we are. Out of the abundance of the heart is the countenance of the face. Would you agree with me?

Some people you can just tell they’ve been eating sour grapes for a long time. They must have sour grapes for breakfast. They eat sour grape nuts even. Work with me here. At least I think it’s funny. Note to self, don’t use that one tomorrow morning. It’s the countenance of the face. You seek his face when you desire his glory. The glory of God is the countenance of God. The beauty of his presence. You come to see that you seek for more. “Seek My face. Seek My face,” He says, you seek it, you want more. God wants you.

He says it many places. Here’s another one. 1 Chronicles 16:10-11. Glory in His holy name. Let the heart of those who seek the Lord be glad. Seek the Lord and His strength. Seek His face continually. Then notice in verse 11, and then when you seek His face, He says, “Seeking to know the ways of the Lord.” When you seek His face, then you’ll seek the ways. Notice verse 11, teach me Your ways, oh Lord, and lead me on a level path. There’s a vast difference between God’s ways and man’s ways. Vast, vast, vast, vast difference.

A. Seek to know the ways of the Lord

Proverbs 14:12-14. There is a way which seems right to a man, but the end is the way of death. The backslider in heart will have his fill of his own ways. In other words, God’s way is the way of life. When you seek His face, when you delight in the Almighty, you want to walk in the ways. There’s a path. There’s a way to live. See, for David, faith was the practice of living. He put it into the path. How you live, how you walk, the bearing of your countenance, the bearing of your faith. When you seek the ways of the Almighty, when you walk in the ways of God, it will come back to you as great blessing.

It will come back to you as great blessing. For example, Matthew 6:33, seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added unto to you. It comes back to as blessing. First, seek first the kingdom of God. Order your way by that and it’ll come back to you. Psalm 25, we just read this on Wednesday. Psalm 25 is amazing. You can write a book on Psalm 25. It is so amazing. If you missed it, I taught it on Wednesday. It is on YouTube and on the app. Psalm 25 is amazing. Notice Psalm 25:10 and 12-13. All the paths of the Lord are loving, kindness, and truth.

God says, seek the ways. Talk about the path. Walk on the path. All the paths of the Lord are loving, kindness, and truth. Who is the man who reveres the Lord? God will instruct him in the way that he should choose, and his soul will abide in prosperity. That’s such a good word right there. His soul with abide in prosperity. We’re not talking about prosperity gospel that has nothing to do with it. We’re talking about a soul that’s prosperous because glory abides, because the joy of the Lord is made known because the love of God overflows.

That’s the soul. See, you can choose the way, the path of God, and have your soul alive and overflowing with the joy of the Lord, or you can walk in the ways of the world, the ways of the flesh, the ways of man, and it will bring about a soul that’s sick. All the paths of the Lord are loving, kindness, and truth, but the pathways of the world and the pathways of man bring sickness to the soul. I was thinking of an illustration on a trip that I took down for going time. We were doing pastors conferences and at the end of the week, we brought all of the churches from those pastors all together in one big gathering.

It was wonderful. Oh, the worship, oh, it was amazing. I had the privilege of bringing the word and I was talking on this theme. I was thinking of an illustration. As we were driving through the town, we saw this creek and you can’t help but notice it because everybody throws their garbage in it. They use it as a toilet. It is just, you’re with me on this? I said, “You know that creek?” They all knew that creek. “You know that creek? Would you drink that water?” Of course, in Africa, they’re very, very responsive. “Would you drink that water?”

They all shouted, “No. No, we won’t drink that water.” I said, “What if we put sugar in it? Made it sweet. Would you drink it then?” “No. No, we won’t drink it even if it’s sweet to the taste we won’t drink it.” “Would you drink a glass of water with only one drop in it?” “No. I don’t even want one drop in my glass of water.” “Why?” “I know where it came from and I know what’s in it. I don’t want it.” I submit to you that if we knew what was in the stuff that people drink from the world, if we really knew what it did to the soul, if we really knew, you wouldn’t drink it.

B. Wait for the Lord; be strong

That’s what revival is. That’s what revival is. My eyes have been opened. Now I see the depths of the glory of God. I see that thing which was sweet to the taste, I know what it’s made of. I don’t want it. Now, if none of this makes sense to you, then perhaps you need to taste and see that the Lord is good. Psalm 34:8, taste and see the Lord is good. Oh, how blessed is the man who takes refuge in Him. Then lastly, we’ll close with this verse 13. Verse 13 is personal with David. Be strong. Wait for the Lord. Be strong. He says, “Great finale,” because he turns his attention to you, the reader.

Wait, let me give you a lesson from my life. Wait for the Lord and be strong. He says, “I would’ve despaired, unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. See, David believed with all his heart that he would see the goodness of the Lord, that walking in the pathways of the Lord would mean that he would see the goodness of the Lord right now in the land of the living. To wait on the Lord means that you wait with eager expectation. God is my help. God is my help, the very present help in times of trouble.

I will wait with eager expectation. Don’t be impatient. Look to God to be your help in time of trouble. Wait. Do not move. Do not move until you’ve waited for the Lord, until the Lord shows you the way and God will strengthen you while you wait. Isaiah 40:29-31, “It is He who gives strength to the weary and to him who lacks might. It is He who increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired and vigorous young men stumble badly, those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength. They will mount up with wings like eagles.

They will run and not get tired, and they will not be faint.” Wait. Be strong. While you wait, be strong. What he means by that is strong in faith, courageous in faith. Courageous in faith, that’s what he means. David surely knew what he was speaking of. David knew what it meant to be strong in faith. Steadfast, take courage, but wait and God will renew your strength. God will reveal to you the beauty, the beauty of the glory. Seek His face, God says to you. Let’s pray. Father, we are so amazed. What can we say? We are so amazed. God is my light, my salvation, so whom should I fear?

The Lord is the defense of my life, so whom should I dread? The war arise against me. In spite of this, I will be confident. There is one thing I have asked from the Lord, one thing that I seek that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life to behold the beauty of the Lord and meditate in His temple. God, when you said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, Lord, I will. I will seek it.” Church, how many would say that to the Lord today? I will seek Your face. I want to know Your ways. I want to know You. I want to seek Your glory.

I want to see the depths of the beauty of what You would do. I see it now. I see it now, God. You’ve opened my eyes. I see it now. I want more, more of God. I seek Your face. Father, thank you for everyone who raised their hand to You as a prayer, as a declaration of desire. You said, “Seek My face,” and we say to You, “Your face, oh, Lord, we will seek.” Show us your glory, Lord. We love you. We delight in the Almighty and we shout a word of praise. We will sing your praise in the house of the Lord, for you are worthy of it all.

In Jesus’ powerful name, and everyone said, let’s give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen. Amen. Amen.

The Beautiful Shepherd
Psalm 23:1-6
October 7-8, 2023

This is, of course, the most famous of all of the Psalms. Many people have memorized Psalm 23 at some point in their lives. It’s, of course, memorialized on plaques and cards and artwork and home screen in small. It resonates with us because it touches the greatest desires and the greatest needs of the soul. Now, we know David wrote it and David was a shepherd.

We get the theme of the Psalm right away. The Lord is my shepherd. When David wrote it, we are not really sure. We know that David was a shepherd in his teens. In fact, we know that when David was attending the sheep, the day that Samuel the prophet who was told of the Lord to go to the house of Jesse, David’s father, and there he would anoint the next king of Israel.

Samuel, when he arrives in the house of Jesse, he first sees the oldest son, Eliab, and he thinks to himself, oh, this must be the one. After all, he was tall. He had the look, he was staturely, he had probably a cleft chin, I’m thinking, kind of the Dudley Do-Right look. He thought, oh, surely he must be the one. The Lord said, no, this is not the one. Because he said, do not look at his appearance or the height of his stature. God sees not as man sees. Man looks at the appearance, but God looks at the heart.

This is not the one. The next son appeared before Samuel. This is not the one, and the next one, this is not the one. In fact, seven, David had seven brothers. All seven of his brothers appeared before Samuel and then Samuel’s confused. God did not choose any of these. Is this all you have? Is this all of the children? Then Jesse said, “No, there’s David, but he’s a shepherd.” “Well, go get him.”

I love that scene where Samuel says, “We will not sit down until he comes.” I don’t know. I love that part. David comes and he is the one. He’s anointed there to be the king of Israel. God used those years though when David was a shepherd. God used them. God was preparing David. David had no idea, but God was preparing David for his calling on his life. There he is a shepherd and then a lion, you know the story.

Lion came to tear away one of the lambs from the flock. Then David arising in tremendous boldness of courage, confronts the lion, snatched the lamb from the mouth, killing the lion. Then later on, a bear came attacking the sheep. Again, David confronts the bear, snatching the lamb out of his jaws, killing the bear. God was preparing David to when they face a giant. You can imagine all of the hours that David had alone out there watching the sheep. What would you do with all of those hours?

I just imagine David taking his sling and practicing slinging rocks and taking aim at the trees and whatnot. That’s what young boys would do, for sure, throw rocks but with a sling, oh, you could really send those things like missiles, that would really be helpful when a wolf approached or whatever. Hour after hour, David would throw rocks with that sling, not knowing that God would use David to save the nation using that sling and one rock.

Or maybe David, I imagine him out there writing songs. David was a musician, probably had one of those harps rather one that you can just hold in your arms. David was skilled upon it. David wrote lyrics, songs. I just imagine David out there and there’s nobody out there. David out there just singing to the Lord. The sheep are like– Can you just imagine? David just worshiping the Lord. The lambs are like, oh, well, and there’s something David was learning.

David, his heart was being poured out and those who you see the loving, caring relationship between a shepherd and the sheep. The sheep completely trust the shepherd. In fact, the Scripture tells us the sheep know the voice of the master. It’s really beautiful. The sheep know the voice of the master. I mentioned this on Wednesday. If shepherds would get together, imagine they’d bring all the sheep and the shepherds all come together to say hi to one another. All their sheep are mingling together in some one big thing.

The shepherds are like, oh, how are you doing? How’s your wife? How’s the kids? How about them cowboys? They’re just talking amongst themselves. Then it’s time to leave. How do you separate all the sheep? They’re all mingled up now together and they all look the same. Well, the shepherds would just call out, help and they know the voice of their master. They would just follow. They just follow.

I remember reading the story, took place during World War I when some Turkish invaders broke into a Jewish sheep fold and were driving away the sheep. They’re going to steal the sheep. At night the shepherd hears the commotion and he comes, steps out into the field there at night as they’re trying to drive away his sheep. He stands out into the field. He begins to call out to a sheep and they all just hear his voice and all turn around and just come running back to the shepherd. The Turkish invaders could do nothing to stop them. I love that story. The sheep know the voice of their master, and that speaks volumes about our relationship to the Lord. The sheep know the voice of their master.

David never forgot the days when he was a shepherd. They formed some of the greatest lessons of his life. Very likely, David wrote this psalm. Later you can get a sense of that. David is remembering now. He has survived many battles. He’s faced many challenges. He’s faced many hardships and many enemies. Through them all, the Lord was his shepherd. One day he sat down and wrote out this beautiful psalm, truly one of the greatest ever written. It strengthens your faith. How many people ever read this psalm and it’s encouraged them? The principles here will renew your love for the Lord, who is the beautiful shepherd.

Let’s read it. Psalm 23. I’m going to ask, it’s only six verses, would you read it with me? I’m going to read from the New American and you just read it out loud with me. I know that’s different than what we normally do, but you can do it, right? It’s beautiful. It’s so beautiful. I want to just hear us all sing it together. Yes, we’re going to sing it together. No, no, we’re going to say it together. Can you do me one more favor? Y’all good with this? Will y’all stand on your feet? We’re going to read the Word of God. We ought to be standing on our feet, right?

Let’s read Psalm 23:1. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul; He guides me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for thou art with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You have anointed my head with oil; and my cup overflows. Surely goodness and loving kindness will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Amen. Amen.

I. Sheep Need a Shepherd

Go ahead and be seated. What a great psalm. How beautiful is this? Let’s look at it, starting with this, that sheep need a shepherd. For David, see, when he used the phrase, “The Lord is my shepherd,” it’s a beautiful phrase. It portrays the heart of God. When David says, “The Lord is my shepherd,” he is saying wonderful things about the Lord. Now, when God uses the word ‘sheep’ to describe us, however, I’m not sure it’s exactly a compliment.

Can you imagine? Imagine with me sheep that don’t have a shepherd. They would be in such trouble. Sheep without a shepherd? Sheep are gripped with fear, often irrational fear. If a jackrabbit should bolt out of the bushes, they would all stampede. Interestingly, I read an article written by the columnists, Ann Landers and Dear Abbey. You remember them, that used to be a thing. People used to write them, “Dear Abby, here are my problems.” Ann Landers and Dear Abbey wrote that the one problem that dominated all problems was fear. People were afraid. Afraid of losing their health, afraid of losing their wealth, afraid of losing their loved ones. Fear.

Imagine sheep without a shepherd, they’re vulnerable. They’re absolutely prone to wander. They have no natural defenses at all. Their teeth are not even sharp. Without a shepherd, can you imagine? They would be easy prey. In fact, that’s what the scriptures say. Ezekiel 34:5, God is speaking of course of Israel, “They were scattered for lack of a shepherd and became food for every beast of the field.” Matthew 9:36 is referencing to Jesus, “Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.”

A. I shall not want

David was a man of great strength. We know that David was, and so for him, he understood the significance of having that good shepherd. It meant everything to David. He writes, “The Lord is my shepherd,” and then everything that follows is related to that relationship that God is that beautiful shepherd in his life. He says, “The Lord is my shepherd. Therefore, I shall not want.” I shall not want.

See, a shepherd knows what the sheep need is a picture of God being Jehovah-Jireh. It’s the name of God. God will provide. God answers your greatest need. He knows your need, and He will answer that need. In the Hebrew, I shall not want literally is I shall not lack. It’s the same Hebrew word that is used to describe God’s provision for Israel during 40 years in the desert.

Interestingly, when Moses in Deuteronomy 8, Moses is looking back now over 40 years of Israel in the desert. Notice what he says in verses 3 to 4. He says, “God humbled you and let you be hungry and then He fed you with manna,” which is a miraculous provision of God. He fed you with manna, which you did not know, that He might, and here it is, that He might make you understand. He did this that He might make you understand. God wants you to understand that man does not live by bread alone but by the provision of the body. No, man lives by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of the Lord.

God wants you to understand. He is therefore being your provider. He says your clothing did not wear out on you, and your foot did not swell these 40 years, which is a miracle itself, because if you’ve ever been in the desert, your fingers swell up in two hours. The Lord knows your need and He’s answering your greatest need. When David says, “I shall not want,” it’s a declaration. I will not be anxious, that’s what he’s saying. I will not fret, I will not worry.

See, to be anxious is that. It’s to worry, to fret. It’s based on the fear of the unknown. What if this? What if that? Because it could happen, many people worry as if it will happen. Jesus said this in Luke 12:25, “And which of you by worrying can add a single hour to his lifespan?” Worry does not add to your life. It can take away but cannot add. If you then cannot do even a very little thing, then why do you worry about other matters? Then, of course, He went on to say, “Do you not be anxious. God knows. God will provide.” That’s why he was saying that.

B. He restores my soul

David says, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.” Then the next verses culminate in that great phrase, “He restores my soul.” See, the Hebrew poetry here in verses 2 and 3, they’re interconnected. Poetry does that. It connects. “He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”

Now, the idea on lying down, first of all, a sheep will not lie down at all unless they are free from fear. He says, “I will make them to lie down.” Now, I’ve heard several. He says, “He makes me lie down.” It’s peace. It’s rest. I will make them to lie down in green pastures. See the green there? See, it speaks of the freshest, most nourishing lush grass that feeds the soul. It’s a picture of God feeding the soul. “I will make them to lie down in lush green fresh pastures that they will be well fed.”

In other words, God wants you to be well-fed. Now, He’s speaking spiritually, of course. See, in other words, God doesn’t want you to go to a church just because that church serves Krispy Kreme Doughnuts or dinners three times a week or cookies after the Wednesday service. No, God wants you to go to a church that delights in the Word of God. See, that’s one of the reasons I love this church. I know that there is a delight. There is a hunger for the Word of God.

Now, it just so happens we also serve Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, but more than anything, the soul needs to be fed. The Word of God is that which nourishes. We need to be regularly bringing the life of the Word into the soul. That is how the soul is built and strengthened and edified. Life. God wants to give life to you all the week long. My daily bread.

In other words, you don’t eat once a week, right? You look pretty healthy to me. You eat every day. See, now, you might have a feast once a week. That’s my prayer. Come to church and have a feast. That’s what I want Sunday services and Wednesday. That’s what I want. I want a feast in the Word of God. I tell pastors at pastors’ conferences, “Pastors, you are a chef. Take the Word of God and serve it deliciously.” Amen.

You don’t put raw meat on the plate. You prepare it and cook it and add spice and make it nourishing and delicious. The Word of God is the delight to the soul. Come to church and have a feast, but you need to eat every day. He is your daily bread. Amen. Your soul every day nourished on the Word of God. I love Ezekiel 34 where Jesus or the Lord says this about His people in Israel. “As a shepherd cares for his herd in the day when he’s among his scattered sheep, I will care for my sheep. I will feed them in good pasture and their grazing ground will be on the mountain heights of Israel.”

Beautiful. “There they will lie down on green grazing ground and feed in rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I will feed my flock and I will lead them to rest.” He’s a good shepherd. He’s the beautiful shepherd. Then it says, “And He leads them besides still waters.” It’s all part of the same beautiful poetry. “He makes me lie down in green pastures and then he leads me besides still waters.”

Sheep will not drink from turbulent waters. They will stand there and look at the water, but they won’t drink until it’s calm. The shepherd, actually, if there’s turbulence in the water, will take rocks and form a little pool and then it’s a picture of peace. He leads me to peace. Peace that passes understanding. You can have peace like that in the midst of the turbulence because God is the one who brings. He is my shepherd and He brings me to still waters. He brings peace that passes understanding even in the midst of the turbulence of life.

Then He says, “And He guides me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” You can imagine, of course, a shepherd would make sure that he guides the sheep on the path that is right. It’s good, and that’s the Lord’s heart. He will guide you in the path that’s right and good. Righteousness. He will bring a blessing to your life when you walk in the path that God has set for you. He will keep you from that path of destruction, that path that is danger, that path that is filled with this and that. God will lead you into the right path. Psalm 37:23, he says, “The steps of the righteous are ordered by the Lord.” Literally, ordained by the Lord, “And He delights in His way.”

II. God’s Presence Changes Everything

There’s a beautiful picture. The steps of a righteous man is ordained. God ordains your steps. He sets you in the path that’s right. Then God delights in it. When you walk in the path that God has set before you, God delights in it. Well, let me just submit that not only does God delight in it, you’ll delight in it too. God is keeping you from the path of danger. God is keeping you from the path that’s going to bring destruction. You will delight when you walk in the path that God has ordained. Amen?

All of that then culminates in that He restores my soul, summarizes it all. Restores to what? See, the word ‘restore’ in Hebrew means to come back, to return, to turn back. God turns your soul back from the path of destruction and will restore. See, when God turns you back from that destruction, He will restore by building and edifying into that which is beautiful in your soul.

That’s the beautiful work of God. He takes you out of the mess, takes you out of the mire, takes you out of the mud, takes you out of the trouble that your sin brought you into, and then he’ll start building and edifying and strengthening and He’ll do that. Some work of transforming that’s far, far better than the mess that you had before. He will restore your soul into that which is beautiful. It’s the beautiful work of God.

Then the last section of Psalm 23. I’m telling you, Psalm 23, every verse is so full of depth of understanding. Literally, you could do a message on every verse here, but just the last section is culminated where he says this, “Even though I walk in the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil.” Why? “For thou art with me.” That’s why I do not have fear in my heart because God, you’re with me. That theme is it right there. God’s presence changes everything. You are with me. It’s one of the greatest themes that runs through the entire Word of God from beginning to end, Genesis to Revelation. It is the greatest, perhaps, of all the themes that runs through the Bible.

God’s presence was broken when Adam sinned but restored to us in what Jesus has done, the Son of the living God has brought the life of the presence of God. He is Emmanuel. God is with us. Everything is founded on that great truth. It was the key to David’s understanding of faith. It was the very substance of David’s confidence in God. That’s why he’s writing it, declaring it. The Lord is my shepherd. I will not be afraid. There it is. Do not be afraid.

A. Do not be afraid

I will not be afraid of 10,000 who have set themselves against me roundabout. Why? Because that word ‘with me’ changes everything. Over and over you see it in the Bible, it runs from beginning to end. For example, when Moses had led the people of Israel out of Egypt, they came to Sinai shortly after they were there. While Moses was up on the mountain those 40 days receiving the law of God, the people grew impatient. They said to Aaron, his brother, make us a god, and so they took gold and fashioned a calf, and then they started to revel and to party and to go wayward. Moses comes down, sees this, and smashes the tablets.

God then later said to Moses, “Take the people up from Mount Sinai and bring them into the land that I promised, but I’m not going with you.” I said I would give them the land, I’m going to give them the land. Moses, take them up, but I will not go with you. My presence will not go with you. Moses, interceding in behalf of Israel, says, “If your presence does not go with us, we’re not going anywhere.” Now, that is powerful. Moses is interceding and he says to the Lord, no, we must have you. We must have your presence. God was so pleased with Moses’ interceding prayer, “I will go.” David captures that beautiful thought here in Psalm 23. “I will not be afraid because thou art with me.” Now, David experienced fear. You can be sure of that. David writes about that.

It’s very, of course, common for people to experience fear. But David is writing this to say, I will not be mastered by it. Fear will not master me. Fear is a terrible master. No, it is faith in my shepherd. I will not be afraid. “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will not fear.” Now, those words have encouraged so many. If you’ve ever walked through the valley of deep darkness or a valley of deep trouble, even the valley of the shadow of death, you turn to Psalm 23 and it strengthens. It encourages you. You are reminded. Yes, that’s right. I say the same. I also declare it. I will not be afraid for you’re with me, Lord. Even now as I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will not be afraid. It will not master me. For you are my great, beautiful shepherd. I was thinking of an illustration.

Many of you, of course, know that beautiful hymn that we’ve sung in the church many times. It is well with my soul. Well, the story behind it speaks to this powerfully, quite beautifully, written by Horatio Spafford in the story of his life is that he endured one tragedy upon another. He was ruined financially in the great Chicago fight of 1871. Then in 1873, he planned to travel to England with his family in order to help D.L. Moody’s upcoming evangelistic campaigns in Europe.

There at the port, he gets news that there are more business troubles and that he must attend to. He had to go back to Chicago. He sent his family on ahead. Then as they’re crossing the Atlantic, the ship that they were on collided with another vessel and sink quite rapidly. All four of Spafford’s daughters perished. All four. His wife, Anna, survived and sent him now what is now a famous telegram, saved alone, broken. Broken financially, broken relationships. His daughters all perished.

Shortly after Spafford boarded a ship, the Ville du Havre, in order to join his grieving wife, crossing the Atlantic, he asked the captain to alert him when he approached the spot where the ship carrying his four daughters went down. One evening, deep into the night, the captain of the Ville du Havre came and alerted Spafford that they were approaching the place. He went out, standing on the deck of the ship in the night, looking across the billows of the sea.

The words that came to his heart are out of the same great truth. He said, “When peace like a river attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll,” do you see what he’s saying? “Whether it be peace or sorrows, whatever my lot thou hast taught me to say, it is well, it is well with my soul.” How can it be well? Because I know I have a rock, because I know I have a shepherd, and though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil for thou art with me. This is my great truth, David is writing. This is my great hope, I stand on this, I know it’s great truth, it’s for me. I can add my own testimony. I’m sure you can add your own testimony.

When our daughter died when she was murdered, it brought us to the depth of our grief, but this I know, that I have a shepherd over my soul, that he was walking with me and still walks with me. I’ve got a rock to stand on, and this I know, that the same Lord who forgave my daughter’s sin is the same Lord who forgave my sin. The same Lord who gave her eternal life is the same Lord who gave me eternal life. The same Lord who welcomed her into his presence will welcome me into His presence and I will see my daughter again. I know in whom I have believed. Amen.

B. May His rod and His staff bring comfort

Yes, let’s give the Lord praise. Absolutely right. That’s why David writes it. The Lord is my shepherd. I will not fear because the Lord is my shepherd. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Then he adds this phrase, and your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Yo, that’s beautiful, may His rod and His staff bring comfort. Here’s why. Every shepherd would carry, of course, his staff of wood, usually made of very hard wood like olive wood, for example. Usually with a crook or a hook on the end, and it would serve meaning, purposes.

It would guide. You can guide the sheep with it. You could use it to pull a lamb close to the shepherd. It could be used to rescue an animal slipping out of the reach, but it could also be used to attack a predator. There, see, David saw that it represents the power, the authority, the might of the king. He says the Lord is my shepherd, and when I see that staff, when I imagine that staff in His hand I’m comforted by it, because I know that my Lord knows full well how to use it. I love that.

In Psalm 3:7, he says, “Arise, Lord; save me, oh my God. For You have smitten my enemies on the cheek; You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.” He says, “Salvation belongs to the Lord.” David is strengthened in his faith when he imagines the Great Shepherd with the rod of authority in His hand. He knows full well to use it. That’s why he says in verse 5, “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.” See, in other words, with enemies situated roundabout, I sit down at a table prepared for me by my God. I am at rest, I’m at peace, I’m protected.

C. May your heart overflow in God’s anointing

Even with enemies surrounding me, I will not be afraid, because the Lord, you are with me. Psalm 73:28, “As for me, the nearness of God is my good; I have made the Lord God my refuge that I might tell of all of Your works.” Then lastly, all of it is culminated, I believe in this great statement. “You have anointed my head with oil and my cup overflows.” This is a beautiful picture. I love this. May the heart overflow in God’s anointing. Now, shepherds would anoint with oil to protect the sheep from disease or to heal a wound.

Yes, but David no doubt remembered that day when the prophet Samuel came to the house of his father Jesse to anoint the future king of Israel. When David was finally summoned from watching the sheep, Samuel literally poured oil over his head, anointing, signifying that he is the anointed one, the chosen one of God to be the future king of Israel. Anointed. See, the oil is a picture of the presence of the Holy Spirit, the presence of the living God is the oil poured out upon the life.

Then David says, “my cup overflows.” All right, so you can see that Samuel would literally pour the oil on his head and it would overflow. It was a dramatic picture, but it’s the spiritual picture also, my cup overflows. The presence of God meant everything to David. God was doing a beautiful work on his soul. So much so that he says I’m filled. See, the oil, the anointing of the oil is the presence of the Holy Spirit, and I’m overflowing. God has done such a work by His Holy Spirit in my life that I am overflowing in it.

By the way, did you know that everyone whose named the name of Jesus is given a gift of the Holy Spirit? The same Holy Spirit that anointed David is the same Holy Spirit that is filling and anointing your life. Do you believe that? That overflowing can be yours. My cup overflow. I love that picture. See, I tell you, I have a joy of the Lord. I love the Lord, and I have a joy of the Lord, and I want that joy to overflow unto you. I want that joy to overflow. I have peace. I have a peace that passes understanding. I do, and I want that peace to overflow unto you.

I have love. I love the Lord and I want that love to overflow onto your life. More than that, I want you to be anointed and filled with the presence of the living God so that you overflow. I want there to be such joy in you. That’s my prayer for the church. That there would be such joy, the joy of the Lord would be yours so much that it would overflow onto people around you. Your children, your wife, your husband. It would just overflow upon them because they can just see it in your life.

Peace. There’s such a peace in your life that it overflows upon the people around you. Your family, your children, your husband, your wife. That there’s such love because the presence of God is love that is filling and then overflowing to your children, your husband, your wife, the people in your life. Let there be the overflowing in your life. God wants that for you. You know what it meant for David? It meant, in verse 6, “Surely goodness and loving kindness will fall on me all the days of my life.”

See, the anointing of the Lord, the overflowing cup of His soul meant that goodness and loving kindness follow me all the days of my life. Now, you might say, well, I think I know the story of David and I know that he encountered many many storms. True, but he drove right through those storms and what followed him was goodness and loving kindness. You can look at Joseph in the book of Genesis. God had given to Joseph this vision of grandeur, of greatness that he would be one day that which leads and blesses his people. Then what followed after the vision was trouble upon trouble upon trouble.

Yes, he encountered many storms, but he drove right through those storms and what followed was goodness and loving kindness. God is truly the beautiful shepherd, and goodness and loving kindness will follow you all the days of your life because God is with you. His rod and his staff will comfort you. He’s anointed you with the Holy Spirit, and when you delight in the Almighty, your cup will overflow, and goodness and loving kindness will follow you all the days of your life. That’s what God wants for you. May you walk in it. May there be victory. David was strong in his faith, and when he declared the Lord is my shepherd, that’s all we need to know about the relationship that David had with his God. He’s the beautiful shepherd and He has blessed my life. Let Him bless your life.

Father, we love you, honor you, praise you for being that beautiful shepherd, because in that we shall not want. You make me lie down in green pastures, lead me beside still waters. You, God, you restore my soul. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for you’re with me. You rod and your staff, they comfort me. You anoint with oil. My cup is overflowing, and goodness and loving kindness will fall in me all the days of my life.

Church, how many would say to the Lord today, ‘I want you to be my beautiful shepherd’? Be that to me, oh God. I want to know all that it means to have you as that shepherd in my life that I would say I shall not want. That you make me lie down in green pastures. You anoint my head with oil and my cup overflows. Goodness and loving kindness would follow me all the days of my life. Be that beautiful shepherd. Be thou to me that in my life.

Church, would you say that to the Lord by just raising your hand? It’s a prayer, it’s a request, saying it’s a declaration of desire. Be that beautiful shepherd to me, Lord, and all that it means. Here I am, Lord. Fill and overflow by your Holy Spirit, the goodness and loving kindness would follow me all the days of my life. God, we love you and delight in you. In Jesus’ powerful name, and everyone said, amen. Let’s give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Can we do that? Amen. Amen.

How to Walk on High Places
Psalm 18:1-50

Sept 30 – Oct 1, 2023

David wrote so many of the Psalms, and he wrote Psalm 18 and I think it’s important to know that David wrote Psalms all his life and all of those critical moments of his life. He poured out his faith and his heart to God through the songs, the Psalms, they are songs. When David was a shepherd, simple shepherd tending sheep, he wrote Psalms. when he was pursued by Saul in danger of his life, he wrote Psalms. When he sinned with Bathsheba and his heart was convicted within, he wrote Psalms. When he was fleeing for his life from his son Absalom, he wrote Psalms.

See, he wrote Psalm 18 as a giving God thanks for being the help and the deliverer. God is that deliverer in David’s life so you might call it a Psalm of deliverance. Now, when you study David’s life, you’ll see how often, how many times God delivered David from trouble. It was a theme. David had epic troubles in his life, but God was the deliverer. Over and over and over, God saved, God rescued. He was a very present help in times of trouble, David wrote. A very present help, and he writes these psalms so that you will know that God is a very present help in a time of trouble.

We all know troubles, we all know difficulties and you need to be encouraged that God is that very present help. David faced more troubles than you can imagine. Years he spent on the run from Saul’s wrath and jealousy. He clashed with the Philistines, he confronted enemy armies from the countries around Israel. His own son, Absalom tried to overthrow him. David had to flee Jerusalem to save his own life. He barely was re-established on the throne when he had another attempt to overthrow the kingdom. In all of these troubles, they’re epic, he looked to God to be that help, that deliverer.

See, we love reading Psalms because the Psalms speak to us right where we are. See, songs and Psalms are meaningful when you experience what they are about. It’s true with music in general, you relate to songs. Music has a way of just drawing your emotion, your connection to that. A song becomes meaningful when you experience what the song is about. In other words, people listen to love songs when they’re in love.

People listen to breakup songs when they’re breaking up. People listen to sad songs when they’re feeling sad. Hello, darkness, my friend. You feel sad. I’ve come to talk to you again, you feel sad. It’s a sad song. David faced mini troubles and he would write a Psalm out of that trouble and anyone who has faced troubles could read that psalm and be encouraged. He called out to God in his troubles and God would deliver him. Many of us face troubles, and you need a Psalm of deliverance to encourage you, to strengthen your faith, to arise, to know how to respond to that trouble, to remind you to have hope, to have faith, encourage you to be steadfast.

Because challenges and difficulties and troubles are part of this broken-down evil world and we see it from early on in David’s life. David trusted in God to be his help from early, early in his life. He stood by that all his life. Even in his old age, he would turn to God to be that help that deliverer. In Psalm 18, he writes these words after he’s been delivered by the Lord, yet again. David is called a man after God’s own heart and the words of these songs, these Psalms, really show you that heart that he had after God.

If you would take these words and apply them to your life, you will be strengthened, you’ll be helped. You will know how to call on God to be your help, to be your deliverer in time of trouble. Let’s read it. Now, we’re not going to read the whole Psalm. It’s quite lengthy. We did that a couple of Wednesdays ago, but we’re going to read some of it, starting with verse one, Psalm 18:1. I would like you to notice how he begins this psalm. I love how he begins this Psalm. Just listen to this, “I love you.” That’s how he begins. Isn’t that a great way to start? I love you, Lord.

Now, you got to just love David. David is bold, David is unashamed, David loves the Lord. Do you remember when David was bringing in the arc of the covenant into Jerusalem? He was so excited that he was out there leading the worshipers, and he was worshiping and dancing before the Lord, and he was just full of joy for the Lord. He’s not ashamed to say it. I love you. That’s one of the keys to David’s faith, by the way, that’s one of the keys to David’s success. That’s one of the keys to David’s strength. He’s unashamed. I love you, Lord, you are my strength.

Notice then verse two, he says, “The Lord is my rock, my fortress, my deliverer, my God, my rock in whom I take refuge, my shield, the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” This is a great start. Then he says, “I call upon the Lord.” The Lord who’s worthy to be praised. I call on him and I’m saved. I’m saved from my enemies. The cords of death encompassed me, the torrents of ungodliness or destruction terrified me. The cords of shield surrounded me literally in the place of death, the snares of death confronted me.”

In other words, when David talks about trouble, we’re talking about he was concerned for his life. His very life was threatened over and over and over. You thought you had troubles, David’s very life was threatened over and over and over. He says in verse six, “In my distress, I called upon the Lord and I cried.” Now here it means he literally yelled, he literally called, “I cried out to God for help. He heard my voice out of His temple.” In other words, out of the heavens, “He heard my cry, my cry for help before him came into his ears.” “Then,” it says, I love verse seven, “Then when my cry for help came to his ears,” verse seven, “then the earth shook.” It’s like God arose in David’s behalf.

David prayed and God heard, and so much so that it says that the earth shook and quaked, the foundations on the mountains were trembling and there were shaken because he was angry because of his love for David. Now move forward if you would to verse 20, “The Lord has reward in me. blessed me in other words, according to my righteousness. In other words, my heart for God, according to the cleanness of my hands, he’s recompensed me. I have kept the ways of the Lord. I have not wickedly departed from my God. All of his ordinances are before me.

I did not put away his statutes from me. I was blameless or complete, or I had integrity in other words, with God, I kept myself from my iniquity.” That is a phrase right there. That is a great phrase. I kept myself from my iniquity. That’s a great victory. Therefore, the Lord has recompensed me according to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands before his eyes. Verse 25 is so beautiful, so poetic, so Hebrew poetry, he says, “With the kind, you show yourself kind, with the blameless, you show yourself blameless. With the pure, you show yourself, pure Lord. With the crooked, you show yourself astute. God is not deceived, God sees it all.

For you saved and afflicted people, haughty eyes, you abase or make low. You light my lamp. Literally, you are the light of my lamp.” Isn’t that a great phrase? “You are the light of my lamp. The Lord my God illumines my darkness.” Oh, how many people feel dark in their soul? David says, “No, you are the light in my darkness.” Then to verse 29, oh, I love these verses here. I’ll tell you, you can learn so much from David on these verses right here, verse 29, “For by you, I can run upon a troop. By my God, I can leap over a wall. God is the strength of my heart.” That’s what he’s saying. God is the strength of my life.

As for God, his way is blameless. The word of the Lord, It’s tried. In other words, I’ve tested it. I can tell you it’s true. I put it into practice, and he has proven himself. That’s what it means. The word of the Lord is tried. God proved it over and over and over. God proved it. He is a shield to all that take refuge in Him. Who is God but the Lord? Who is the rock except for our God, the God who girds me with strength and he makes my way blameless? Verse 33 is one of those classic verses, so beautiful. He makes my feet like Heinz’s feet. What does that mean? He sets me on high places. There it is, that beautiful picture.

He trains my hands for battle so that my arms can bend a bow of bronze. That takes some strength there. To bend a bow of bronze.? That’s amazing. Then he says, “You have given me the shield of your salvation, your deliverance, your help, and your right hand upholds me, and your gentleness, literally, your help makes me great.” That is an insight right there. Your help makes me great. David was a great leader. David was a great king. David was a great warrior. David was a great man of God. Your help made me great. It was you, God, and me that did it.

Your help made me great. You enlarge my steps under me. You enlarge my steps. You are the one that’s made greatness in my life. My feet have not slipped. I pursued my enemies, overtook them, and I did not turn back until they were completed or consumed. Those are the verses I want to look at. We looked at the other verses around this on Wednesday. I want us to take hold of these verses and to see there’s so much to apply to our lives starting with this. Make God your confidence. See, David was surely confident. Anybody who looked at David, his leadership, his stance before the Lord whenever he would face an enemy, you can be sure that David was not afraid.

I. Make God Your Confidence

David was confident. What was the root of that confidence? It was God. It was not self. David was not self-confident. I said it before, it’s very important and worth repeating. God does not want you to be self-confident. You say He doesn’t? What does he want me to do? Should I be insecure and afraid? No. Are those the only two options? Is that all we got? Are those the only two options we got? Either you’re self-confident, prideful, arrogant, self-confidence, or you’re weak, insecure, and fearful. Is that all we got? Is that all the options there are? Are there no more options than that?

Oh, no, there’s another one. There’s another option. How about confidence in God? Let God be your confidence. David looked to God for that help because he knew and he believed that God was for him. He had confidence in that. He knew his God and he knew that God would help. That is faith. Notice Psalm 71. We’re just going to pick some of the verses. David writes, “Be to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come.” This is an insight on how to have strength like David. Be a rock of habitation to which I may continually come. You have given commandment to save me.

God, I know you have sent your word and that word is help David, I know you did. From before, you’re my rock. You’re my fortress. You’re my hope. Oh, Lord God, notice this phrase, you are my confidence. I love that phrase. I’m telling you what, if we can understand the depth of that phrase, it would transform your life. Anybody agree with me? It will transform your life. It will transform your life to have that kind of faith by which you have confidence in God. God does not want us to be weak, insecure, and fearful. God wants us to be confident in God and that will change who you are.

That’s why he says, “I have become a marvel to many.” Many people Marvel at David. Look at David. Would you look at David? That’s amazing. Look at David. He says, “But you are my strong refuge. It’s you, God.” It’s fascinating to study the names of God. Do it sometime. It’s fascinating. What’s even more fascinating is to understand that each of the names of God is personal. See, in other words, one of the names of God is Jehovah Jireh, God the provider. When you see it personally, then it’s not just God the provider. No, God is my provider. It’s personal. The name Yahweh, YHWH, Jehovah, this is the name of God.

What does it mean? It means I am, but a fuller meaning is all that I am, I am to you. See, that is a whole different thing then. All that God is, He says, “I am to you.” Let it be unto you. All that God is, He is to you. He wants to be all of that to you. When you take all of that of God into you and for you, now that’s going to change your life. It’s powerful. One of the great keys right there to David’s spiritual life is that he knew God. He knew who God was and is, and that God was for him. “All that God is,” David said, “is for me.” That’s why David said over and over and over, it’s one of the great phrases, “You are my rock.”

A. You need a Rock to stand on

You need a rock. We need a rock. We need a rock to stand on. If you’ve ever had an opportunity to go to Israel, and hope that you do some time, one of the things you’ll notice in Israel is that there are a lot of rocks. In fact, when you come home and you look through your pictures, you go, “I took a lot of pictures of rocks.” There are a lot of rocks in Israel. David writes, “God is my rock.” There were many times that David had to hide in a cave in the mountains. When David said, “God is my rock,” it was personal. It meant God is my rock. A cave is a cleft in a mountain, a place of safety, protection, a fortress.

You can imagine David writing the Psalm there in the cave under the secure passage when Saul was trying to pursue him, there, David was camped out, “You’re my rock.” Another aspect of a rock is that it doesn’t move. It’s like a foundational rock. It’s bedrock. It doesn’t move. It’s a great picture of God to David. See, David knew God doesn’t change. He doesn’t move. He’s immovable. He’s steadfast. He could trust in God. See, that’s why he made God the foundation of his life. See, contrast to that is that when you don’t have a rock and then your life, something tragic happens, something untoward happens, and your whole life is just shaken, it’s disturbing. It’s upsetting. It’s distressing.

“Oh, no, what do I do? The whole thing is shaking me. What do I do?” I don’t know if you’ve ever been through an earthquake. I’ve been through one earthquake that I know of. I’m sure I’ve been through others I never felt. The first earthquake that I ever experienced was 1993. Anybody remember the famous Oregon 1993 earthquake? The thing about it was it was a 5.6 magnitude earthquake, which is pretty strong. It happened at 5:34 AM in the morning. I happened to have gone to bed at 3:00 AM in the morning. The reason I went to bed so late is because I was in Southern California for a pastors’ conference and decided to drive straight through.

I had to figure out what time we left, but we left way too late, and I ended up getting home and in bed at 3:00 AM. I know. Can you imagine going to bed at 3:00 AM and then at 5:30 AM, the whole house starts to shake? The lights were shaking, everything was shaking, right? I had never been through an earthquake in my life. I was just like, “Oh. What do I do? What do I do?” I jumped out of bed and I said to my wife, “We have to get out of the house,” pointing at the closet. “What?” “I said, “We have to get out of the house,” I’m pointing at the closet. Now, in my mind, I have it all figured out.

I’ll grab the kids, you grab my bathrobe. I don’t want to go outside not wearing a bathrobe. “We need to get outside.” “What?” By the time that we did this several times, it settled down. Now, I know all of you people from California were probably in your beds going, “What do you think that is honey? About a 5.3?” “No, no, no, that’s a 5.6, pretty sure, pretty sure. It’s nothing.” For me, it’s like, “Ah, everything is shaking”

I know that feeling in life too. It’s like you get some news, bad news, something, and it’s like, “Oh, no, what now? No, what might this mean? I don’t know what this might mean. This could be bad.” You need a rock. See, God proved himself to David over, and over, and over. He was a rock, he was solid, foundation. David and God had a history. God proved Himself. See, the word of the Lord is tried, He’s proven it. See, when you’ve been with God so long, and He has rescued you over and over and over and over, then you know that He’ll do it again. That’s when you got confidence.

Now you got confidence in God, “I know my God, I know how He moves. I know this is bad, I know this is trouble, I know this is distressing, but I know my God and I know how He moves. God is going to rescue, God is going to deliver, God is going to save, I know my God.” That’s what God wants for you, to have faith like that. Psalm 40:2, “He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, He preset my feet on a rock making my footsteps firm.” Psalm 62:6, “He and He alone is my rock and my salvation. He is my stronghold,” and I love this, “I will not be shaken.”

    B. Learn to call out to the Lord… more

You cannot shake David’s life, you cannot shake my life. That’s strength, isn’t it? You cannot shake my life. We learn from David. Notice, learn to call out to the Lord more. We see this. Verse six, “In my distress,” what did David do? “I called out upon the Lord. Yes, cried out to the Lord.” Literally, he raised his voice. “Help, Lord. I know you, I know that you will send your word to say, ‘Do it again.'” That’s crying out to God. You’re literally calling, “I know that you sent your word to say, ‘Do it again, God.’ Here I am, I’m in distress.” We need to learn to call out to God more, cry out.

He knew that God would hear his voice, we read it. That his crying for help would come to the ears of the Lord. That’s the key, that is the key to God’s help, crying, calling out to Him. I remember one time when I was a young man, I was early high school and I was going through– many of you know my past. It was traumatic, and I was going through one of those trauma times of my life. We lived way, way on the country. In my distress, in my anguish of soul, I went way out to the woods where no one could hear me and I just yelled, I just called out, “God, this is wrong. Help, Lord, do something.”

I tell you what, something changed in me that day. It’s good to call it out to the Lord. Some people, they expect that when they call out to God, that He will move to rescue and save and that it will be done immediately at the word of His commands. Now, I have seen God do that, I have seen God move, where I cry out to Him, I call out to Him, I’m in some distress, I call out, and I have seen God move very, very quickly to answer. I have also seen where there is a long journey out of the distress, that God does not solve the concern in full right away, but rather, it is a long, enduring journey through it.

I have learned that when God brings me through a long, enduring journey, He is still with me and that He is going to use that long enduring journey for the equipping of my soul, for the strengthening of what he wants to do, for the lessons that he wants me to take hold of in my life, that God will use those for His glory. In other words, I will not complain when God brings me through a long, enduring journey, I will not complain because I know my God, and I’ve seen Him rescue and save right away. I can give you many stories, but I’ve also seen long enduring journeys.

Jesus gave a parable. Luke 11:5-10, Jesus said this, He said to them, Jesus did, “Now suppose one of you has a friend, and you go to him at night, and you say to your friend, ‘Friend, lend me three loves. A friend of mine has come to me from a long journey, and I have nothing to set before him.’ From the inside, he answers and he says, ‘Do not bother me, the door has already been shut, and my children and I are in bed, I cannot get up and give you anything.'” Jesus then continues, “I tell you that even though he will not get up and give him anything because he’s a friend, yet because of his persistence, he will get up and give him as much as he needs.”

Now you see the parable? “Friend, give me three loves. A friend of mine has come from a long journey, and I have nothing to give to him.” The friend says, “I cannot help you, I’m in bed, the door’s locked, the children are in bed. I’m not I’m not getting up, no, I’m not giving you anything.” Jesus says, “Even though he’s as a friend, he says no, but if you keep knocking, ‘No, no, I really need the loaves of bread, I need this loaf of bread.’ If you just keep persisting, ‘I really do need this loaf of bread, I need you to get this loaf of bread. I’m not leaving until I get that loaf of bread, three loaves of bread, I’m not leaving.’ Finally, your friend will say ‘Okay, fine.'”

Is this not true? Mostly true, yes. Jesus says, “So how much more will God do this when you’re persistent?” See, because he’s persistent. Why is Jesus giving this parable? Because He wants you to learn to be persistent, persistent in asking. That’s why He continued the parable in Luke 11, “So, therefore, I say to you, ask.” The Greek is clear, it’s a continual ask. The Greek mix is so helpful. It’s a continual ask, it’s a persistent ask. Ask, I say to you, ask and it will be given to you. I say to you, seek, and there’s a persistency in seeking and you will find. Knock, and there’s a persistency and the knocking, and it will be opened unto you.

For everyone who asks of God, receives, and he who seeks, finds, and to him who knocks, it will be opened. Now, some people, they feel hypocritical when they called out to God in their distress because they were not calling out to God when they weren’t in distress. Now they feel, “Oh, I feel really conflicted because I wasn’t doing it with God. I wasn’t very faithful but now I’m in trouble. Now, I got to have help and now I feel conflicted because is God going to say, “Fine, now, you come to– where were you before? Oh, now you’re in trouble, you come, oh, I see.”

Is that the way God is? God is not like that but people think He is. See, this is what I say. There’s nothing wrong with calling out to God in your distress. In fact, do it. You must call out to God in your distress but don’t forget to thank him when he answers. Don’t forget to give him glory and honor and it will bring you back to Him over and over so that you don’t stray, you stay near. We all need to stay near to the Lord. Amen? In fact, this very Psalm was written as a praise. This very Psalm was written as that, “I thank you God.”

Did you know by the way, God says, “I want you to call out to God.” You’re asking, you’re seeking, you’re knocking, did you know that the Scripture says that the Holy Spirit is also interceding in your behalf? In fact, did you know that the Scripture says that the Son of the Living God is also interceding in your behalf? That’s amazing. Really, when you think about that, that’s amazing. The Holy Spirit of the living God is interceding. He’s asking in your behalf to the Father. The Son is asking in your behalf, to the Father.

I’ll give you some verses. Romans 8:26-28. In the same way, the Spirit helps our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should but the Spirit himself is interceding for us.

Even with groanings too deep for words and then he says, “We know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God. Called according to His purpose,” during the same chapter. How about 1 John 2:1-2. John writes, “If anyone sins, we have an advocate. That’s amazing. That really is amazing because many people think that when they sin that God rebuffs them but he says, “If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father.”

It’s Jesus Christ, the righteous and he himself is the propitiation for those sins and not only ours but also for the whole world. We need to call out to God more. That’s the bottom line because not only does God hear us but he strengthens our faith and our confidence in Him. When you call out to God, your faith is increased, your confidence in Him is increased. How could you not be comforted and strengthened by words like this? Romans 8:35-39, where he says, “Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? You tell me,” he says, “Shall tribulation or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword? Oh no.

In all of these things, we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I’m convinced, I am persuaded. I know this, that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God which is found in Christ Jesus, our Lord.” That is a declaration of victory. Amen? Let’s give the Lord praise. Can we do that? Amen.

      C. God rescues because He delights in you

Then notice this in verse 19. God rescues because he delights in you. David wrote, He rescued me because He delighted in me. I love that. Can you say the same thing? Yes, God delights in you because he’s your father and you are the sons. You know how difficult it is for people to believe that God delights in them. No doubt, people have a hard time believing that God delights in them because they’re very much aware of their sin.

They’re very much aware of their shortcomings and so they think God can’t delight in me but isn’t that true? That our own children are far from perfect and yet we love our own children? Isn’t that true, all your parents? Anybody have perfect children? No. So you’re telling me that all of your children are imperfect? Is that what you’re telling me? All of your children are imperfect, yet you love them? How can this be? Of course, you love them. How much more is God a Father than that? Notice, Jesus said in Luke 11, “Now, suppose one of you fathers is asked by his son for a fish, he wouldn’t give him a snake instead of a fish.

If you then being evil or of the world know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more your heavenly Father will give the Holy Spirit which is the greatest thing He could give to those who ask Him?” 1 John 3:1, how great is the love the Father has lavished on us? How great is that love? He’s lavished his love that we should be called children of God and that is what we are. Zephaniah 3:17, the Lord your God is with you, He’s mighty to save, He will take great delight in you, He will be quiet in his love and will rejoice over you with singing. Back to Psalm 18, I’m realizing the time is slipping away from me.

II. God Strengthens Those Who Trust in Him

Notice this out of Psalm 18, that God strengthens those who trust Him. I love verses 29 and following. David, looked to God to be the strength of his life. For by my God, I can run upon a troop. By my God, I can leap over a wall. Your help makes me great. Those are great verses. To be strengthened in life is to be able to know that you can call on God and he will answer. David’s confidence was God. He gave God the honor by letting it know that it was God in him that gave him strength. In other words, strength of faith brings strength of life. See, when your faith is strengthened, your life is strengthened.

A. Strength of faith brings strength of life

The way you live your life is through strength. Strength of faith brings strength of life. It’s very practical. That’s what it means. David accomplished great victories, survived deep troubles even against terrible odds but David made clear that every one of those victories was accomplished by God’s strength. Your help makes me great. I’ll tell you what, I want to test the limits of God’s help. I want to test the limits of what God can do in my life. How far, how high, how much, how strong, how far, I want to test the limits of God’s help in my life. Anybody want to join me? Amen? See, this is what Joshua said to Israel when he came to the end of his life.

Joshua 23, notice this, it’s a great word. He’s recounting. Joshua’s old now. He’s recounting. Look back, one of your men puts the flight a thousand for the Lord your God is He who fights for you just as he promised you but then he says, “So take diligent heed to yourselves, to love the Lord your God. They are connected. That’s why David began the Psalm, “I love you.” They are connected. Take diligent heed to love the Lord your God. Love Him. God wants a relationship of love. I love you Lord. Joshua says, “Take diligent heed.” Then notice, we’ll close with this. He makes your feet like hind’s feet. He says beautiful there in that.

  B. He makes your feet like hinds’ feet

Verse 33, David paints his beautiful picture when he says that God makes his feet like hind’s feet. What is a hind? I’d love to say a hind is a doe, a deer, a female deer. It is. That’s what it is. It is. When you go to Israel, one of the things you’ll see, you look up on the cliffs and you see these deer walking on what seems to be a sheer cliff. How is that even possible, you think? David saw that and he wrote, “You make my feet like that. You make my feet like hind’s feet.” In other words, God makes you surefooted in difficulty. You are sure afoot. You’re steadfast, you’re immovable, unshaken. You walk on high places because you’re sure afoot.

That’s his point exactly. Surefootness is what caused you to arise. See, the idea of walking high places is spiritual victory. You walk in ways that are higher, higher than the world’s ways because God’s ways are higher than the world’s ways. That’s why David says in verse 34, “By my God, I can bend a bow of bronze.” That is great strength, but I submit that there is even greater strength in withholding the arrow from those who deserve it. An example, when David was fleeing Jerusalem because of Absalom, Shimei, one of from the family of Saul came out and on the other side of the goalie, safely on the other side of the goalie, took dirt clods and started throwing them at David.

Get out, get out. You deserve all of it. You got blood in your hands, you get out. In fact, David’s general next to him said, “Shall I go dispatch him?} No. Let him be. Maybe God will take mercy on me. Later when all of the trauma with Absalom had been resolved and David’s coming back to Jerusalem now victorious, Shimei came running quickly to David before David could even cross to Jordan, and he fell down before David. “Have mercy. I was wrong. I sinned.”

David’s General said, “Shall I dispatch him?” David said there’s been enough dying today. Mercy, my friend. It takes more strength to withhold old than the shooting arrow sometimes. That is character. It’ll make you walk on high places. When you arise in character, when you arise in integrity, when the manner of your life is of godliness, He’s making you walk on high places. You are sure afoot because you’re sure of faith because you have a rock and that rock is God.

Let’s pray. Father, we are so so blessed. What can we say? You are amazing. God, we want to trust you with faith like that. To say with great boldness, “I love you. Be my rock. Be my help. Be my deliverer. Be my fortress,” but I want to know what it means to love you more fully. David began the Psalm, I love you. Everything that follows comes from that one phrase right here. You want God to be your help, your deliverer, your rock? Everything comes from that one great truth.

Would you say to the Lord, “I want to love you like that. I love you, Lord. I want to love you like that”? Would you raise your hand as a way of saying that to the Lord as a declaration of your desire? I want to love you like that. Father, thank you for moving by your spirit, by stirring us up. We love you. Oh God, you have blessed us so much. What can we say? Because you have proven yourself to us over and over and over. We love you and we thank you for it all in Jesus’ powerful name, and everyone said AMEN.

The Joy of the Lord is Victory!
Psalm 16:1-11
September 16-17, 2023

All right. It tells us in your introduction that David wrote this psalm, and it also says a Miktam of David. Now, David did not write that introduction, but one of the scribes who read the psalm and felt so strongly about it that he called it a Miktam, which of course, leads you to the question, okay, well, what is a Miktam then? Well, it’s not a common Hebrew word at all. In fact, it’s only used in ancient Hebrew.

The best approximation of its meaning is that it refers to valuable gold covering over something, likely with writings of precious, treasured value. In other words, it’s not just the fact that it’s a gold-covered whatever, it’s what is written on it. Treasured words written on it. That’s why I like to refer to this psalm and others as the golden psalm. You’ll see why. I have been excited all week and looking forward to speaking on this psalm. This is truly one of the great ones.

Now, I love all the psalms, don’t get me wrong, but there are just some psalms that stand out. You know what I’m saying? They’re just so amazing that they are amazing. That’s why it’s a golden psalm. It stands above the rest. This is one of those psalms, literally where every word is treasured. You can memorize this psalm and treasure every word. It’s so filled. Every word is amazing.

You must really understand each word. Now, it’s also a psalm that has a direct reference to the resurrections of Jesus Christ, as we’re going to see in it. Of course, the Messiah of Israel, the Redeemer of the world. Now, we know that there is a direct connection because Peter told us there was a direct connection in Acts 2, on the day of Pentecost. You remember the story, no doubt, when the Holy Spirit fell upon the disciples there and Pentecost.

A great multitude came together to see what this was. They were bewildered because of the power of the Holy Spirit that they were witnessing, and so they proclaimed, “What does this mean?” Peter stood up with the disciples and lifting up his voice, he declared to them that this is what the prophets foretold in Joel, and then said that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord would be saved.

Then Peter began to proclaim the resurrection. That this Jesus whom you crucified was raised from the dead, and in so doing, He broke the curse of death. He said, “This was foretold by David in–” quoting then Psalm 16 directly. Now, when you see the psalm in that light, well, every word takes on deeper meaning. When Christ was raised from the dead, He broke the curse of death, the condemnation that comes from sin, and that made possible, therefore, because of that, now we can have relationship with the Almighty.

Psalm 16 speaks of everything that flows out of that relationship with the Almighty. It’s all contained in Psalm 16. That’s why it is so amazing. Every verse, verse by verse, word by word, David describes the treasure, the value, the blessing that comes from relationship with the Almighty. David treasures it all. That’s why it’s a Miktam, a golden psalm. Such golden words are to be treasured. See the value of it. Many people, they just read through the Psalm and they don’t understand the value.

I’m telling you, this is a golden psalm. This is one of the amazing golden psalms. Every word is amazing. You must truly see. It’s one of the most beautiful, insightful, powerful psalms ever written. Take hold of the treasure. I’m thinking of an illustration. Ever seen one of those programs where there’s an expert in antiques evaluating some relic, something has been sitting on the shelf for years and finally, the family here’s, “Oh, the antique roadshow is coming into town. We ought take that old thing sitting on the shelf and see what it’s worth. Maybe worth a few dollars.”

They bring it in and they get in line, and then they bring it up to the guy. He looks at it and he turns it this way and that way. He starts to light up and he says, “This piece is the long lost sculpture of a famous artist. I would not insure this for less than $1 million.” You’re going, “Whoa. I had no idea of the value of what I had sitting on my shelf.” It’s like that. I had no idea of that psalm that was sitting in my Bible. That was like, “That’s amazing.”

I. Everything Good Comes from God

Let’s read it. Psalm 16:1, “Preserve me, oh God–” which is a deeper word than help me, “–preserve me. Oh God, for I take refuge in you. I said to the Lord, You are my Lord.” Okay, in the Hebrew it’s more clear. “I said to Yahweh, you are my Adonai, my Lord, my Captain. I have no good besides you. As for the saints who are in the earth–“, the saints, the holy ones, those who delight in the Almighty. “As for the saints who are in the earth, well, they are the majestic ones, in whom is all my delight.” I delight in those who delight in the Almighty.

  1. The Lord is your inheritance

Now, “The sorrows of those who have bartered for another god their sorrows will be multiplied. I will not pour out their libations of blood, their drink offerings.” I won’t have anything to do with them. In fact, He says, “I will not even take their names upon my lips.” Now verse 5, “The Lord is the portion of my inheritance, and the Lord is my cup, and He, you support my lot.” We’re going to look at this. It’s amazing. “The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places. The inheritance that I have received.” God, you are my inheritance. The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places. “Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me.” My heritage that I have in God, God is my heritage. My heritage is beautiful to me.

“I will bless the Lord who has counseled me. Indeed my mind instructs me in the night.” Oh, this is deep. This is the deep understanding. “I have set the Lord continually before me because He’s at my right hand, I will not be shaken. Therefore, my heart is glad and my glory rejoices. My flesh also will dwell securely for You, will not abandon my soul to Sheol.” This is a declaration of the resurrection.

“I know that You will not abandon me to Sheol,” the place of the dead, “Nor will You allow your Holy One to undergo decay.” This is a direct reference to the Lord Jesus fulfilling it. “Therefore, You will make known to me the path of life, and in your presence, oh Lord, there is fullness of joy, and at your right hand there are pleasures forevermore.”

At first look, you say, okay, that is good. That is really good. Oh, let’s go deeper. It is the golden psalm, starting with what David declares. “Everything good comes from God.” Notice how he starts out in verse 1. “Preserve me, O God, for I take refuge in you.” Now, the word “preserve me” here, it’s a beautiful word. It literally means to be surrounded, to be hemmed in, to be protected on every side.

He says, “Preserve me, O Lord, for I take refuge in you.” All right. Picture that might be this. It’s like a man knocks on a door of a great house because he’s seeking shelter from a storm or from some great trouble. He’s knocking on the door, he needs help, and the owner of the house opens the door and invites you in. All right, you have found refuge, but there’s more. You come in, you have found refuge in this great house, but there’s a warm fire and wonderful books and sumptuous meals, and beautiful company. You have found more than refuge from a storm or trouble. You have found that you are in the company of the Almighty.

That’s what David is declaring, verse 2, “I said to Yahweh, to Jehovah. You are my Adonai, You are my captain, my commander, my sovereign, and I have no good besides You.” Now that reminds me, see, he’s declaring, God compared to You, You are everything. All things good are in You.

Notice, I love James 1:17 he speaks similarly, “Every good thing given–” This is a great correlating verse out of the New Testament. “Every good thing given and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights.” God gave it to you. With whom there is no variation or shifting shadow. See what James is saying is similar in that everything wonderful and true comes from God. Everything good.

Now, I’ve often said, I mentioned it Wednesday, bears repeating, that anything I have, I want God to give it to me. If God gave it to me, it is good and it is wonderful. I want it to come from God’s hand. Now, it’s a great test. That thing that you delight in, from where did it come? Did it come from God’s hand? If it did, if it came from God’s hand, then it will be a great blessing to you. If it came from the world, no, it will not end well. Anything I have, I want God to give it to me because every good thing given comes from above, from the Father of lights.

David is saying something even deeper than that. David is saying, “I have no good besides you.” In other words, no good thing compares to the good, the beauty, the wonder of having God Himself. Then, the rest of the psalm flows from that great truth. Notice where he goes then next, “The Lord is your inheritance.” Notice verse 5, “The Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup.” Okay, G big word, “The Lord is the portion of my inheritance.” This see it’s the next high point of the song. It’s like the crescendo of the chorus, it’s to be sung. It’s a crescendo of a chorus. It flows out of that great truth that there is no good compared to the wonder of God Himself.

Notice then, you see how David is building up to this high point. Notice verse 3, “As for the saints who are in the earth, they are the majestic ones in whom is my delight. I delight in the majestic ones.” Now, the saints he’s describing, as for the saints that are in the earth, he says, “The saints are the ones who have set themselves apart for God.” They delight in the Almighty, and they have set themselves apart. It is the word Kadosh in the Hebrew.

Actually, this is an important word. I know sometimes a Hebrew word is not relevant, but this is. Kadosh is one of the great words in Hebrew, one of the wonderful words. It means set apart, but it’s often translated holy in your Old Testament. When you read the word holy in the Bible, oftentimes it’s the word Kadosh, and it means set apart. When we think of the world holy, we often think of moral perfection, the pure glory of God’s moral perfection, but in the Old Testament, the word holy is often Kadosh, set apart.

In other words, Leviticus 19:2, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, “You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy.”” You’ve heard that. The word is better translated like this, speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, you shall be Kadosh. You shall be set apart, for I the Lord your God I’m Kudosh, set apart. See God is set apart from all other gods. There is none like Him, that’s the declaration. There is none like God. He stands above them all so-called gods.

Notice Psalm 86:8-10, “There is no one like You among the gods oh Lord. All the nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, Lord, and they will glorify Your name, for You are great and You do wondrous deeds, and You alone are God.” He is set apart. There is none like Him. He says, “I am set apart. I Want you to be set apart.” In other words, come away, my beloved. Come away from the world. Come away from that mess. Come away from the worldliness and come, my beloved.

There are those who have set themselves apart because they delight in the Almighty. David delights in them. David calls them the majestic ones. Don’t you love that description? There are certain people in the earth that are the majestic ones. I don’t know, I love that description. Wouldn’t you like to be one of those? Imagine David knows you, sees your life, and says, “Ah, you are one of those, the majestic ones. You are the– Ah, you delight in the Almighty. You set yourself apart. You are one of the majestic ones.”

Now, because David delights in the Almighty, his closest associates are those who also delight in the Almighty. That is a life lesson itself, because David delights in the Almighty, his closest associates are those who delight in the Almighty. Can you imagine what a blessing it would be in your life if your closest associates delight in the Almighty? I mean, what a blessing they would be to your life. Let me just tell you something. I am blessed. I am so, so, so blessed. You know why I’m blessed? Well, many reasons. I’ll tell you one reason.

I am so, so blessed because my closest associates delight in the Almighty. I have wonderful, wonderful friends. Many of them are on staff at the church, the pastors that we have, the leaders that we have here. They are my closest friends, and I tell you, they delight in the Almighty, and I delight in them. I’m truly blessed. Amen. I want you to be blessed. Choose your associates well. Delight in the majestic ones. Find them. They’re in the world. They’re in the earth. They’re around. Find majestic ones, and then let them be your closest associates.

The majestic ones, I want to find them. I want them in my life. Here’s a part of David’s life, it’s very interesting. Remember when David– I referred to it recently when David faced down the Philistine giant at the Valley of Elah? You remember this story, right? Well, when David went out there and faced down that giant, it tells us that Saul’s son, Jonathan, was there. Soul’s son, Jonathan, saw this whole scene unfold. He was there when David went out there and the Philistine giant says, what? You send out a boy? What? Am I a dog that you come to me with sticks? What?

His disdained for David is clear and he’s cussing up a storm. Then David famously answers, “You come to me with a sword, a spear, and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord, God of Israel whom you have just taunted. The Lord will give you into our hands this day so that the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel.” Then there’s Jonathan watching this whole scene unfold. That’s amazing. He’s going to face this giant, and it’s all God.

Then the Philistine giant started to come to David, so David took the stones that he had from the brook and he started to– The great sling, a sling that David had is not anything like the slings we grew up with when I was a kid. We used to take surgical tubing and [sound]– I mean you could really put someone’s eye out with that thing. At least that’s what my mom said, but David’s sling, it was probably three, four feet long with leather straps and a good-sized rock smooth and he [sound]. Can you imagine the speed? Then he let that thing go. I tell you, it was directed by the Holy Spirit of the living God.

Now, don’t get me wrong, David was a good marksman, but it was supported by God. Then the route was on. Of course, David ran to the Philistine, took his sword, he removed his head, and then the battle ensued as the Philippines fled and the army of Israel pursued them. Then when it was all done, David came and reported to Saul. “Whose son are you?” He’s going to give him many rewards.

This is first Samuel 18:1. “Now, it came about that when David had finished speaking to Saul, that the soul of Jonathan was knit to the soul of David and Jonathan loves him as himself.” That is amazing. That is an amazing man right there. That is amazing. I respect and love a man like that. That’s what David says. I find people that delight in the Almighty, and they’re my closest associates. When you see someone with faith like that, delight in them.

In contrast, David continues in the psalm, in beautiful Hebrew poetry in contrast, David speaks of those who do not delight in the Almighty. “They are bartered with the gods of the world” he says, “I will not even take their names on my lips.” I will have nothing to do with them.

Verse 4, he says, “they will find–” those who barter with the gods of the world,”– they will find that their sorrows will be multiplied”. See, David knows very well. Their sorrows will be multiplied. David says, “I want no such sorrows.” I do not want to associate with them. Their sorrows will be multiplied. I want no such sorrows. “No, I will not pour out their libations of blood” he said. In other words, I will not join them when they give their drink offerings to the world. I will not even mention, I will not even take their names upon my lips. No.

B. Your heritage is beautiful

Then he continues in beautiful Hebrew poetry, when he says– he turns his attention back to God, “Your heritage is beautiful to me.” My inheritance is beautiful to me. This is what I have. See, that’s why you must make this psalm, the golden psalm of your heart. You must make this psalm the golden psalm. “Your heritage is beautiful.”

Notice verse 3, where he says, “the lines have fallen to me in pleasant places.” Pleasantness is a better translation pleasantness. “The lines have fallen to me in pleasantness. My heritage indeed, is beautiful to me”. Now, at that time in Israel, one could receive an inheritance typically of land. Then upon hearing that you have an inheritance, what would you do? Well, you would want to know the lines. You would want to know the borders of what you have inherited.

David says in verse 5, “the Lord is the portion of my inheritance” where are the lines? You just got word you have an inheritance. You go, whoa, I have an inheritance? That’s amazing. Oh, where are the lines? I want to know the borders. How much did I get? How much did I inherit? How many acres or he hectors or whatever it is? How much did I inherit? You want to go check out the borders, right?

He writes, “The Lord–” is what I inherited “–is the portion of my inheritance. You support my lot.” Okay, what does that mean? Well, he said, “The lines have fallen into me in pleasant places–” pleasantness. Every part of those verses right there is beautiful. Every word is beautiful. Every word right there, every phrase is beautiful. When Israel first entered the promised land, they divided it up into sections according to the tribes of Israel by lot, same word, by lot. Then each of those sections was further subdivided according to family, again, by lot.

In fact, today even we use the word, when someone receives a portion of something, we say it’s their allotment, comes from the same word. That’s your allotment. It fell to you. Where are the borders? They determined it by lot. David says, “I love the lot. I love the lot of my inherits. The lines have fallen to me.” See, by lot, they determine, where do the lines fall? He says, “You support my lot.”

Literally, Your hand made the lines. Your hand did it. You made the lines. God, you controlled the lot. The lines that fell. You determine them. God is my lot. “God is my portion,” David says, “The lines have fallen into me in pleasantness. My heritage is beautiful to me.” See, it’s beautiful. I tell you, to understand this right here, is victory in itself. To understand this is victory itself. It is one of the most beautiful and powerful understandings in the whole Bible.

That my heritage is beautiful to me. If you can only understand the depth of the beauty of what you have received in God, the lots have fallen into you in beautiful places. May your heritage be beautiful to you. I mentioned this before, it is so important, I want to mention again.

Have you ever seen YouTube videos of someone who’s colorblind and then the birthday is coming up, and so the family gets together and gives this colorblind fellow, for his birthday, they give him glasses. Now, the glasses are special glasses. I don’t know if you’ve ever seen these, but these are really touching videos. They have glasses now that can make colorblind people see in color. For his birthday, he opened the gift and it’s glasses. They look like sunglasses.

He’s like, “Oh, that’s nice. Sunglasses. Very thoughtful. Thank you”. “No, no, no, no, no, no. Put them on.” “Oh, I can do that later”. “No, no, put them on. We really want you to put them on.” Of course, they know what they are. They’ve got balloons that are yellow and red and blue. Everyone’s wearing like red and blue shirts, they’re vibrant in color. “Put them on, put them on, put them on.”

He takes out the glasses and he puts them on. “Whoa! Is this the way you see? Is this real?” Now, by this point, he’s crying, “It’s beautiful. I had no idea. This is normal? This is life? This is normal? This is the way you see?” Yes. He walks outside and sees the sky and trees and the flowers. He’s weaving and crying. “Oh, it’s beautiful. I had no idea. All my life, I had no idea.”

He sees, but he did not see before. Now he sees in color. Here’s why I love that illustration. Once you see that your heritage is beautiful, that the lot has fallen to you at beautiful places, you have seen what many do not see. It is the beauty, the color of beauty, of glory, of what God does on the soul is beautiful. I say to you that once you see it, you’ll never see the Scriptures the same again. They’re beautiful. That’s what he says. “My heritage is beautiful to me.” That’s what he says, “I will not associate with those who barter with the world. I won’t even take their name on my lips because my lot has fallen into me in the Lord, and my lot is pleasant to me.” It’s pleasant to me. It’s beautiful to me. My heritage is beautiful.

II. Set the Lord Before You Continually

Then he goes on to say this, “Therefore, I set the Lord continually before me.” It’s beautiful so I set the Lord– Make that personal, set the Lord before you continually. Verse 8, “I have set the Lord continually before me. This is my heritage, it’s pleasantness itself to me. It is beautiful to me.” See what David is saying? “I have no good besides You. You are the greatest good of my life. My heritage is beautiful to me.” Then he speaks of what he receives from the Lord when he sets the Lord continually before him. Notice verse 7. “I will bless the Lord who has counseled me. I set the Lord continually before me, and I bless Him because He has counseled me.”

A. The Lord’s counsel is wonderful

See the Lord’s counsel is beautiful. It comes out of setting the Lord continually before you and that you’re dwelling in the beauty of the Almighty and therefore, He begins to speak. counsel, He begins to pour out to your life, counsel and His counsel is wonderful. God’s counsel will bless your life.

Notice verse 11, where he says, “You make known to me the path of life,” right? The counsel of– You are making known to me the path of life. Notice, for example, Isaiah 30:21. Similarly, he says, “Your ears will hear a word behind you.” As you walk your way, your ears will hear a word, “This is the way. Walk this way. Do not go there. Go here.” The counsel of the Lord is guiding. The counsel of Lord is speaking. Isaiah 9:6, we read it every Christmas, “A child will be more born to us. A son will be given to us, and the government will rest on His shoulders, and His name shall be called Wonderful Counselor,” not just counselor. Wonderful.

God’s Word to you is not just advice. God’s Word to you is beautiful. God’s Word is beautiful on the soul. God’s Word is not just commands to be followed. The counsel of the Lord is beautiful on the soul. His counsel is wonderful. His counsel is beautiful. See, God is making known to you the counsel, the path of life. Then he later says, “And in Your presence, there is fullness of joy.” Fullness of joy. How many people– We can do a show of hands. How many people would like to have some joy in their life? Yes, right, of course, we want to have joy. David says, I know where joy is. I know where there is fullness of joy.”

He later says, “My cup overflows” do we know? It’s wonderful. God is making known to you life, His presence, His fullness. When you write God’s Word on your– when you set the Lord continually before you and the counsel of the Lord, you hear, it will be there when you need it the most.

See verse 7, notice verse 7 is fascinating word to me. Verse 7, I’m telling you right here, you could write a book. I could write a book on verse 7. It is amazing. Notice “Indeed my mind instructs me in the night.” Is his mind separate from him? Literally, my heart instructs me, but there there is this, set the Lord before you, He will counsel you that which is wonderful and you’ll have a living treasure of wisdom, like a living library of glorious treasure of wisdom, because you accept the Lord before you, you are receiving the living treasure of wisdom like a library of wonder. That’s what you are receiving.

Notice Hebrews 5:14 says something similar, “Solid food–” he’s talking about here the Word, the milk of the Word or some people need the ABCs, the elementary things. He’s challenging them to long for the deeper things, the solid things, the wonderful things. Long for the deeper things. Solid food. He says, solid food now is for the mature. “Milk is for babies, but solid food is for the mature who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” What does the word sense mean?

In Greek, it is the faculty of your mind. Training the faculty of your mind. How? By setting the Lord continually before you, by delighting in the Almighty and recognizing that your heritage is beautiful and that His counsel is wonderful, and that you are receiving a living treasure of golden wisdom for life. You are then training the faculty of your mind to be able to discern good and evil.

The counsel of God’s heart will advise you when you need it because you have been filling your soul with a living treasure of glorious wisdom, it will be there when you need it. When you’re in a conflict, when you have trouble, when you don’t know what to do, when you need discernment, when you need insight and understanding. God show me the path of life. Show me the way through this. Navigate with me through this trouble. Lord, You are the treasure of my life. Your Word is the glory of wisdom and You have counseled me. My mind instructs me in the night. It’s there when you need it.

Now, this is for the spiritually mature who because they have been putting this into their life, they have trained the faculty of their mind to be able to discern good from evil. That is good, that is evil. That is good. That is pleasant. That is wonderful. That will harm. That is not good. I don’t want that. I want this. The discernment that comes. Jesus spoke to this also because, please hear this. Please hear this. I love you. God does not want you weak. God does not want you weak-minded. God does not want you weak of soul. God wants you strong of soul. When David stood in front of that giant, you can believe he was not weak of soul. God wants you strong a soul. This is what Jesus said.

Luke 6:47-48. “Everyone who comes to me and hears my words–,” His words are a treasure. His words are the living treasure of wonderful counsel that are pleasant and beautiful on the soul. “Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and acts on them–” lives by them, “–I will show you whom he is like. He is like a man building a house who dug deep, laid a foundation on a rock, and when then the flood occurred–“, troubles, difficulties, storms, conflicts, challenges, “–when the flood occurred, the torrent burst against that house, but it could not shake it because it was well built.” You see there’s deeper words here.

B. You will not be shaken

God does not want you weak, does not want you weak-minded or weak of soul. Strengthen the house. Build it well, strengthen– This is the posts, the beams, the steel, the rock, build the soul. How? By seeing that your heritage is beautiful and set the Lord continually before you. His counsel is wonderful. It’s beautiful. Then He says, “You will not be shaken.” Notice verse 8, Psalm 16 says the very same word. Psalm 16:8, “Because He’s at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” Now, the writer of Hebrews says that in the later days, there will be a great shaking upon the earth. The earth is going to be shaken. Now we know this is so. We see the Scriptures indicating the signs of the times.

The writer of Hebrews says, every thing that can be, will be shaken, so that those things which cannot be shaken will remain. David wrote, “I will not be shaken.” See, I will not be destroyed, you will not abandon me to Sheol. I know in whom I found my life. Now there is a greater counting coming to the earth, we are living in those days that Jesus said are the birth pangs leading up to the latter days. We are seeing the signs of the times unfolding before our eyes.

In those days, everything that can be, will be shaken, so that those things that cannot be shaken will remain. When Jesus was raised from the dead, He defeated death and the condemnation of sin for those found in Him, He was the first fruit of the resurrection. Those who follow Him, will find the path of life. For God sent His Son to lead many sons to glory. How many times did Jesus say, “Follow me”? He will lead many sons to glory. Follow me. Follow Him where? Philip says, “We do not know where You’re going.”

I am the way. I am the truth. I am the life. I am the way to the Father. No man comes to the Father but by me, but how do you follow Him? By communion. By communion? Communion is a symbol of a deeper truth. It’s a symbol only of something far deeper. When you partake of His death, when you follow Him by partaking in that death, you’re being baptized, Romans 6, you’re being baptized into His death. Galatians 2:20, “I’ve been crucified with Christ, and the life that I now live, I no longer live in the flesh but by faith in the One who gave His life for me.” You follow Him. By partaking of that, you are also then partaking of His resurrection.

Then you partake of the newness of life that comes from that resurrection, He is leading many sons to glory. That’s why, Peter on that day of Pentecost, Acts 2:29-33, “He stood up that day, and he proclaimed, “Brethren, I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day, and so because he was a prophet, he was looking ahead and he spoke of the resurrection of the Messiah, of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay.

This Jesus, God raised up again, therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, which is poured forth, this which you have both seen and heard today. What shall we do to be saved?”” 3000 came to faith that day. David finishes the psalm powerfully, just as powerful as it began. As a result of looking ahead and seeing the resurrection of the Lord, the Messiah of Israel. He said, “My life will not be shaken. You will not abandon me to Sheol. I know in whom I have believed.”

God will make known to the path of life and in His presence, there is fullness of joy, and at the right hand of God, there are pleasures forevermore. Until your soul is delighted in God, it does not know life. Life is found in Him and there is no other. I am the way, the truth and the life. Until you know the life of the Spirit of the Living God, until your soul is made alive, you do not know life. Put on these glasses and you will see the living color of the glory of God. He will lead many sons to glory. There is life. You make known to me, life, the path of life.

God wants to build something beautiful, something beautiful in your life. Settle for nothing less. Compromise no more. Settle for nothing less than the beauty of what God wants to give to you in your life. God wants you strong. God wants you blessed. God wants you victorious. God wants to lead you to glory. How many agree with me?

Father, we are so truly blessed. Oh what a golden psalm. How beautiful. What can we say? You have blessed us. We are truly blessed. Our heritage is beautiful. The lines have fallen to us in beautiful places. We will set You before us continually, we delight in the Almighty. We love You. We honor You.

Church, tell me we’re saying that to the Lord today. I want this beauty in my life. I see it now. This heritage that God gives is beautiful to me too. I want this. I want my soul to be made beautiful because of what He has done to it. Church, would you raise your hand if that is your prayer, your desire that you would delight in the Almighty and say, “God, do that in me. Do that in me, Lord.”

Father, thank You for everyone stirred of God, moved by the Spirit. You are leading many sons to glory and so we honor You and we praise Your glorious, glorious name in Jesus’ name and everyone said– Let’s give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen? Amen.

God Leads Many Sons to Glory
Psalm 8:1-9
September 9-10, 2023

Now, at the beginning of your Psalm, it has a little introduction that says, “For the choir director on the Gittite.” A Psalm of David. David wrote it, gave it to the choir director, as we know that the Psalms were meant to be sung. David had a choir. Did you know that David had a full-time choir? That’s all they did was to sing and worship. Can you just imagine how good a choir can be if that’s all they did all day long, every week? Oh, what a glorious choir David had. I mean, David loved worship, and David had a heart of a worshiper, which is God’s heart. David wanted a full-time choir. Oh, amazing.

This song he wrote, gave it to the choir director, wanted it to be accompanied by the Gittite. We don’t know what that is. Could have been a stringed instrument. Now, someone from Gath is called a Gittite, so many presume that it was an instrument used in the Philistine area where David was hiding. You remember when he was running from Saul, who was pursuing him for his life? He hid amongst the Philistines. David very likely saw this instrument, loved that instrument, maybe learned it. He was a very good musician and wanted that Psalm to be accompanied by the Gittite.

This is Psalm, again, sung by the choir, filled with majesty, declarations of worship. It’s also filled with deep insight in the nature of God, the splendor of the majesty of creation, but it also speaks of the nature of man in his lowly condition, but here in the Psalm, there is also a very deep insight, prophetic picture of the Lord Jesus Christ and the restoring of man to glory.

Now, Psalm 8 is quoted and referred to many places in the Bible, in the New Testament, and it’s a very deep Psalm. He writes of the majesty of God and that He displays His splendor above the heavens. Then when he considers the majesty, the splendor of God, then he says, “What is man that you would take thought of him? God is great and wondrous in glory. Why would you even take notice or give any thought to man?” He does. Not only does He take thought of man, He crowns him with glory and majesty. David is like, “That’s amazing.” How He does it is also a display of His splendor. Far above all that He has even done in creation, that is how glorious it is.

I. Worship His Majesty

Let’s read it, Psalm 8:1. “Oh, Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth?” Now, right there. Oh, that’s beautiful in declaration. “Jehovah Adonai, how majestic is your name. In all the earth, your name is Majesty. You have displayed your splendor, far above the heavens, and then turning from the majesty and the splendor of all that he’s seen, he turns, he says to infants.” Look, from the mouth of infants and nursing babes, you have established strength or a bulwark or praise for yourself because of your enemies or your adversaries to make the enemy and the revengeful feasts.” In other words, it is the glory of God to confound his adversaries by the joyful, simple children.

Then he pauses again. Then he says, “When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have ordained, which you have established and set into place, when I consider all of that, then I say, what is man that you would take thought of him or the Son of Man that you would care for him, yet you made him a little lower–” and I’m going to use the Hebrew here, “you made him a little lower than Elohim.” Now, that is a word commonly translated as God or the angels.

Now, the writer of Hebrews interprets this for us as the angels, so that is the interpretation. You have made man a little lower than the angels, Elohim, yet you have crowned him with glory and majesty. That’s amazing, God. You make him man to rule over the works of your hand. You gave him dominion, that you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen and beasts of the fields, birds of the heavens, fish of the sea, whatever passes through the paths of the seas.

Then he finishes the Psalm as he began it. “Oh, Jehovah Adonai, how majestic is your name and all the earth?” Oh, is that not a wondrous, glorious Psalm? Beautiful in aspect and much for us to take hold of and apply to our lives, starting with the beginning. “Worship His majesty.” See that? What a glorious declaration. Oh, Jehovah Adonai, how majestic is your– There’s just something about that that makes your soul want to sing. It makes you just want to lift up your hands and shout.

See, God made our souls to resonate with the glory of God. When you read that, there’s something in your soul that just wants to arise to it. “Oh, Adonai, how majestic is your name.” See, the word majesty is beautiful. I don’t think there is a more fitting word to describe not only the greatness but the goodness of God. All of that is captured in the word majesty, greatness and goodness of God.

David wrote this Psalm, as I mentioned, and it brings to mind that David wanted to build a temple in Jerusalem to the glory and honor of God. See, David was so amazed that God and what God had done for David in his life, that he wanted to build a house for God. The idea that he had was that this was going to be so amazing, so filled with glory, it would be like one of the wonders of the world, and it was.

Now, David was not allowed to build the temple. He had envisioned this grandiose thing, but he could not build that because God says that he was a man of war. It would be built by a man of peace, his son, Solomon. In fact, the name Solomon Shalom, you can see in it, and yet David designed it. He had the architects draw it. He gathered all the materials for it, all the wood, the gold, the silver in vast, vast supply, gold which would cover the walls and the floor. When you walked in the room, the outer court is like, “Oh, amazing Lord.” He was one of the wonders of the world.

The gold from which they would make the ark of the covenant and the mercy seat we set upon it, and the poles which ran through the rings to support it, and the angels that were behind it. All of this, David assembled it all. Then he wanted every aspect of that to be dedicated to the Lord, and so he gathered all the leaders, all the people. Can you imagine? David gives a prayer that is filled with majesty and glory itself. The prayer is so honoring to God, so powerful.

Listen, in 1st Chronicles 29:10-13, where David says in this great prayer, “Blessed are thou, oh, Lord, God of Israel, our Father, forever and ever. Yours, oh, Lord, is the greatness and the power, and the glory and the victory and the majesty, indeed everything that is in the heavens and the earth. Yours is the dominion, oh, Lord.” Here it is, “The dominion Lord is yours and you exalt yourself as head over all. Both riches and honor come from you, and you rule over all and in your hand is power and might, and it lies in your hand to make great and to strengthen everyone. Now, therefore, our God, we thank you and we praise your glorious name.

A. He silences His adversaries in glory

Isn’t that a great prayer? We praise your glorious name. There’s something in your soul that wants to just say amen. Just arise to the great prayer. Oh, amen, Lord. David then in Psalm 8, he speaks of the majesty, the splendor of God, then turns to the babes. There’s glory here. He silences his adversaries in glory by using the simple, joyful little children from the mouth of infants and nursing babes, you have established strength or praise for yourself. It’s a declaration of God’s glory that He would silence His enemies using the simple. Doesn’t it remind you, that verse might remind you of the Lord Jesus who quoted that verse when the chief priests and the scribes became indignant at Jesus. Remember the story? This was on that day that we called a triumphant entry or Palm Sunday, He descended from the Mount of Olives. There was Jerusalem laid out before Him.

He entered the temple, and there He saw those money changers and those selling doves and He took hold of their tables and He threw them over and get out. This is my Father’s house, and it ought to be a house of prayer, and you are making it a den of robbers. Get out. Then it says that the lame and the blind came to Him and He healed them all.

Then the children, they saw Him there in the temple, and then the children started like, “Hosanna, Hosanna.” They were in the crowd that day. Remember when the crowd was shouting Hosanna, Hosanna? That’s Psalm 118. Everyone knew you don’t bring out that Psalm until you got the Messiah. The children, they see Him in the temple and they’re like, “Hosanna, Hosanna.”

See, I love imagining the scene because God loves children. You know this, right? God loves children. I just imagine the scene. You can imagine kids, they’re like, “Hey there He is. There He is. Let’s say it. Let’s say it. Let’s say it. Hosanna, Hosanna to the son of David.” That’s a Messiah declaration. Jesus sees the kids, “Hi kids,” smile on His face. “Hi kids.”

The chief priests and the scribes are like grr, “Do you see all the wonderful things that He’s doing? Look, He’s healing people. We can’t have this. He’s healing the blind, He’s healing the lame, if He goes on like this, He will win everyone over too, and look at the children shouting, Hosanna, Hosanna.”

They say to Him in Matthew 21, the chief priest and the scribe say to Him, “Do you hear what these children are saying?” Jesus said to them, “Yes. And have you never read?” I love that because these were supposedly experts in the law, “Yes,” “And have you never read?” and he quotes Psalm 8, “Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babes, you have prepared praise for yourself.”

God is using children in their simple, sincere joy to silence His adversaries. Children are not complicated by political intrigues. Children are not complicated by dark and ungodly conspiracies. They see the wonderful things and they know that they’re wonderful and they declare them. “Oh, wonderful. Look what He’s doing. Hosanna.”

God uses the simple to confound the wise because it gives Him glory. It’s a declaration of the majesty and the glory of God. Reminds me of First Corinthians 1:27-29 where Paul wrote this, “God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong. And the base things of the world, and the despised God has chosen. The things that are not that He may nullify the things that are so that no man may boast before God.” It gives Him all glory. Can you imagine God turning the world upside down using a few fishermen and a despised tax collector? I’m talking about the disciples of the Lord Jesus.

In fact, there’s an interesting story in the book of Acts chapter 4 where Peter and John, they’re in the temple and a man is healed and there’s a big crowd commotion and so they arrest them and bring them in front of the Jewish leaders to give an encounter of this thing. “In whose name are you doing these things?”

Peter and John stand up in front of the Jewish leaders of council. “If you wonder in whose name these things are being done, well, it is the name of Jesus of Nazareth whom you crucified. He is that stone whom the builders rejected. You rejected Him, but He is that chief cornerstone and it is in that name that this man stands healed today.”

When they beheld the confidence of Peter and John, they noticed that they were uneducated and untrained men, but that they had been with Jesus. I love that. That God is using the fishermen and tax collectors to turn the world upside down. Can you imagine. Why not use the clever? Why not use the eloquent debaters of the day? Because their so-called wisdom blinded their eyes.

God chose the foolish things. Can you imagine God taking the number one enemy of the church, talking about Saul who was later Paul, a man enraged at Christians, persecuting them at every turn and then knocking him off his high horse, literally, and then making him the greatest advocate and preacher of the gospel of Jesus Christ?

It gives Him all glory. Can you imagine God bringing about a revival by using hippies and druggies to lead a worldwide movement of teaching God’s word verse by verse and leading hundreds of thousands to faith? Talking about The Jesus Movement, The Calvary Chapel Jesus Movement. Can you imagine? I love imagining God explaining this to the angels.

I love just how scenes might unfold. I just imagine God explaining, “All right, here’s what we’re going to do. Here’s the plan. We’re going to bring a revival and we’re going to use these hippies.” Angel goes, “What are hippies?” These are, you’ll see them, they have long hair and they’re rebellious, they’re counterculture revolutionaries who are strung out on drugs, and we’re going to use them for a revival,.

You can just imagine the angel saying, “You’re right. That’s amazing. That is glorious.” I love that scene. Can you imagine what God would do? He takes the simple and He takes the humble. Second Corinthians 4:7, we have this treasure in earth in vessels, the treasure, the glory of the gospel, the plan of the ages.

We have that treasure in earth in vessels, simple, clay pots, clay pots. That’s what earth and vessels are. That’s what we are He says. I suppose the older we get, the more we look like clay pots, but His point is that glorious treasure we have in earth in vessels, plain old clay pots, so that the surpassing glory or the surpassing greatness of the power would be of God and not from ourselves.

It gives Him glory. It declares His majesty to do such things. Jeremiah chapter 9 is another one of those places, verses 23-24, “Thus says the Lord, Jehovah, let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast of his might, let not a rich man boast of his riches, but let him who boasts boast of this, that he understands and knows me.

B. In the light of God’s glory, who is man?

That I am the Lord who exercises loving kindness and justice and righteousness on the earth. For it is in these things that I delight.” It gives Him glory. I delight in these things. Then He turns, back to Psalm 8, He turns His attention and He says, “In the light of God’s glory and the grandeur of your splendor, who is man?”

In other words, when you compare man to the glory of God’s majesty, well, man is nothing. Maybe you’ve done this. Have you ever gone out at night, stood under the stars and just stood amazed? “God, will you look at this? This is amazing. Who am I when I consider the vastness of all that you have created by the power of your might and earth is just a speck?

On the corner of the universe and then I stand here on the shore under the stars as nothing. Who am I that you would take note of me? Why do you care for us?” He does notice. He does care. First of all, I think it’s important to point out that of all the stars and the planets in the sky, there is only one that He calls His footstool.

There is only one to whom He sent His Son to give His life as a ransom for many. It is unique. There is only one. Isaiah 66:1-2, “Thus says the Lord, heaven is my throne and earth is my footstool. Where then is a house that you could build for me? Where is the place that I might rest? For my hand made all these things. Thus all these came into being, declares the Lord, but to this one I look. My hand made all these things, but to this one, I look. To him who is humbled -and contrite in Spirit and trembles at my word.”

You might wonder, why would God care for me? Why would I consider the grand jury of your Spirit? Who am I? In fact, you might even say, not only am I just a simple common person, I’m a sinner. Why would God care? Why would God love? I am a sinner. I have messed up my life. Why? Why would God love me?

Answer, because you were made in the image of God. He made you in His image. He loves you. Because you’re made in His image, He’s grieved and broken of heart that you have sinned and messed up the life and He has sent His Son to redeem because He loves. He sent His Son to seek and to save, to reconcile to Himself because you were made in His image.

When I think of that, I think of an illustration, and that is when I was a young man, I was really never into babies. It’s like if you have a baby, that’s nice for you. That’s nice. That’s really nice. “You want to hold my baby?” “Not really. That’s nice. That’s good for you.” I was never into babies until I had one. If there’s a switch to be switched, they were switched. If there’s a light to go on, that light went on.

It is like I’m in now. It’s like, this is my baby, and I’m in. I’m all in. I took the recording of the heartbeat and brought it all to my friends, “This is my baby. Are you listening? This is my baby here.” I was saying, “This is my baby. This is my image.” I was so in. I went to every doctor’s appointment. In fact, I even said to the doctor, “Look, I’m so into this. I want to deliver the baby.”

Our doctor was one of the leaders in the modern birthing movement and whatever that is. He said, “Sure. You can deliver the baby.” I thought, “Yes.” He said, “Now there are two conditions.” I said, “Okay. What are they?” He said, “Well, the first one is if anything goes wrong, you step aside and I take over.” I go, “Oh, I like this one. That’s right. If anything goes wrong, you take over.”

I said, “Now you said there were two. What’s the second condition?” He said, “The second one is that you’re still paying the same price.” “I understand. That’s no problem.” Anyway, it’s like, “I’m in. I’ll get up at night. I’ll change the diapers. I’m in. It’s my baby.” That was our first, Nicole. There’s something about the first, I suppose. We were close all her life. She died when she was 29.

Many of you know my story. We were close. There was something special. All the other kids knew it. She just loves her dad. There was something between us. The night before she died, we were at Starbucks. It was a hot August evening, drinking a cold drink, talking about God, about family, about life. For hours we sat just talking. I’ll never forget what a blessing God gave me to have a conversation like that the night before she died.

II. God Leads You to Glory and Majesty!

Why does God love? Why does God care? Because you were made in His image and He cares deeply, so much so that David says, “Then why wouldn’t you take thought of men? Not only that, but you lead him to glory and majesty. You crown him with glory and majesty.” God leads you to glory and majesty. It’s one of the great declarations of the Psalm. It’s a prophetic declaration because it is fulfilled in the Son.

A. God sent His Son to lead you to glory

God sends His Son to lead you to glory. That’s how God declares His greatness by sending His son to lead many sons to glory. If you step back and you see the purpose and intent of God from the beginning, you are made in the image of God. One great aspect of that image is to move in the authority of God. Notice, for example, Genesis 1:26. Then God said, “Let us make man in our image according to our likeness, and let them rule.”

Very first declaration of the aspect of the image of God. Let them rule to have dominion that is operating and moving in the image of God. Let them rule over the fish of the sea, the birds of the sky, the cattle, and over the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth. The intent of God and the purpose of God was broken when Adam sinned. The relationship to the earth itself was broken as a result of that sin.

Notice Genesis 3:17, where then to Adam, God said, again, this is after the fall, the sin of Adam. As the result and consequence, He said to Adam, “Cursed is the ground because of you. In toil, you will eat of it all the days of your life, but thorns and thistles, it will grow for you and you will eat of the plants of the field, by the sweat of your face, you will eat bread.” That relationship is broken, but it is restored.

B. Dominion is restored under Christ

See, dominion is restored under Christ. We have to see that relationship, dominion is restored under Christ. Notice verse five where he says, “You made him a little lower than the angels.” Hebrews 2 explains what that means. God sent His Son to break the power of sin and darkness over your life. It was sin that brought the curse of death. It was sin that broke that relationship to God.

It was sin that broke even the relationship to the earth. God restores by reconciling you to Himself through His Son. How explains to us because Jesus was made a little lower than the angels. In our behalf, He came to carry our sins upon His shoulders to pay for them in full and then to lead many sons to glory. Notice Hebrews 2 explains it’s a definite specific reference to Psalm. You can read the whole Psalm and see it.

Hebrews 2:9-10. He writes, “We see Him who has been made for a little while lower than the angels.” Meaning He came as a man and suffered as a man. It says in Isaiah 6:53, he had no stately form or majesty. He was marred beyond recognition as a man. He took upon us the iniquities of us all. Scourged on our behalf.

He was made for a little while lower than the angels. Hebrews 2 goes on mainly, “Jesus because of the suffering of death, He was therefore crowned with glory and honor that by the grace of God, He might taste death for everyone, for it was fitting for him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through suffering.”

Oh, what a wonderful phrase. That is the intent of purpose and God to restore that was broken and amen. Let’s hear the Lord Praise. Absolutely right. The intent of purpose of God is to restore what was broken and then to bring many sons to glory. All that was lost through sin has been restored through Him who suffered on our behalf. God even restores dominion over the works of His hems when He led many sons to glory. Romans 8.

Now, you might know that the whole of Romans 8 is amazing, but notice these verses. The Spirit Himself testifies with our Spirit that we are children of God. If we are children, then we are heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ. If indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him, that is the intent and purpose of God to be glorified. He will lead many sons to glory. “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

You have no idea. He is saying the glory that God intends, He will lead many sons to glory, the majesty of it all. He says, “The anxious longing of creation itself waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons of God for the creation was subjected to futility-” Not willingly, but because of Him. “-who subjected it in hope that the creation itself also will be set free from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. That is amazing.

Even the curse upon the earth itself as He will bring forth in the age to come a new heaven and a new earth and dominion reestablished. Having been reconciled with God, I suggest and submit that He’s beginning that even now. He is reconciling us, He reconciles sinners to Himself and then having been reconciled, He will lead many sons to glory. He is leading you to glory. There is something that God is doing and building and leading and that is glory.

He is restoring even dominion and authority to those who are in Christ and under that authority, who reside well under that authority. He is the captain, He is the commander and those who are under that authority then have authority. Jesus says all authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth, and I am with you always even to the end of the age. Sometimes people come to a place in their lives. I mentioned this Wednesday. It bears repeating.

Sometimes people come to a place in their lives where they say, I have enough of God. I’m good. It’s enough. It’s enough to know that I’m saved. I’ll come here, a message now and then. I’m good though. It’s enough for me. To which God would say, “Oh, you have no idea. I sent my Son to lead many sons to glory. I got so much more in mind for you. You’re done? Oh, you have no idea. Don’t miss out. I have something glorious.”

1st Corinthians 2:9. Just as it is written, things which I have not seen, ear has not heard, which have not even entered the heart of man, all that God has prepared for those who love Him. Oh, you have no idea. You have enough? No, you don’t. God has way more in mind for you. God wants you to seek Him, to long for Him, to pursue Him. There’s far deeper things. There’s far greater things. There’s far more glory. You have just got started. He is leading many sons to glory.

Does anybody remember this song? It was very big in the church for a long time a number of years ago, majesty. Anybody remember the song, Majesty, worship His Majesty? That was written by Pastor Jack Hayford. The story behind it is an interesting one. Says, he was vacationing in Great Britain with his wife and it was the same year as the 25th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth’s coronation.

He said symbols of royalty were evident everywhere. He wrote later while visiting many of the castles. “I begin to sense the influence that one might feel if raised as a child in such regal majestic settings, that it would become quite clear to me how a person accustomed to such regality might more likely conceive of themselves as being bred to influence the world.” He began to see the kingdom correlation.

Now, God is doing a work in majesty in us. He says, as I was driving I wrote, I said to my wife, write this down, write this down. He made the words of the song began to come to his heart and his mind and they declare. He said I began to feel something of Christ’s royalty and dignity and majesty that began to feel my heart. I began to feel something new of what it meant to be truly His.

The triumph on the cross, not only unlock for us. The chains of bondage, that restored to us the fellowship of the Father and unfolded to us a life of authority over sin and over hell and raised us in partnership with Him on His throne. Even now He fills us with His majesty and thus the song, I want to read you the words.

Majesty, worship His Majesty,

Unto Jesus be all glory and honor and praise.

Majesty, Kingdom authority,

Flows from His throne, unto His own,

His anthem raise.

So exalt, lift up on high the name of Jesus.

Magnify, come glorify, Christ Jesus the King.

Majesty, worship His Majesty,

Jesus who died, now glorified,

He is the king of all kings.

Majesty, fill me with that Majesty for He has sent His Son to lead many sons to glory.

Let’s pray. Oh, Lord, how amazing it is when we consider we have looked at the stars and wondered how majestic is your name in all of the earth, how you have revealed your majesty above the heavens. What is man? But not only do you take thought of him, you crown him with glory and honor and majesty. That’s amazing. God, we see it now. We see your heart, the intent or purpose of God made in the image of God. You sent your Son to seek and to save that which was lost, then having reconciled them to God, your Father, you led many sons to glory.

Church, how many today would say fill me with your glory? Do that in me, God, I hunger, I search, I seek, I want more. Fill me with majesty. You are leading many sons to glory? Well, here I am. Lead me to that glory. Fill me with your majesty. Is that your prayer, your heart, your desire? Would you just raise your hand as a way of saying it to the Lord fill me with your majesty, that the glory and the dominion of God reside. Lead many sons to glory will lead me to glory.

God, fill me today a hunger and thirst for more. Fill me with your majesty. Thank you, Lord, for everyone who has raised their hand as a prayer of saying do that in me. We praise your Holy name and everyone said, Amen. Let’s give the Lord praise and glory and honor. Amen.

Faith to Trust God in Troubles
Psalm 3:1-9
September 2-3, 2023

As I mentioned last week, David wrote many of the Psalms and he wrote this one, Psalms 3, and it’s interesting to note that David would write the Psalms whenever he was at one of those momentous times of his life. If he was in a place where he wanted to just bring adoration, worship, and glory, he would write beautiful, beautiful words of praise that would be written as a song and worship to the living God. Amazing, but there were other times when David was maybe going through one of those critical, difficult moments of life where he would write a Psalm that would be like a declaration of faith, maybe a prayer for God’s help, God’s deliverance, calling out to God.

He would write during those critical momentous times to remind himself even of the strength of his faith, that God was the one who would help and he would be writing, he’s like he’s speaking faith to life as he writes these declarations. Psalms 3 is one of those Psalms that would help anyone who’s going through a critical momentous time of trouble. Jesus said that life would be filled with troubles. John 16 He said, “In this world you will have many tribulations, many troubles, but take courage, I’ve overcome the world.”

David’s troubles were epic, as we’ve been reading, of course, in the life of David, but to do well and to be victorious in the trouble, you need faith. You need faith to arise and that’s what Psalms 3 would do. It strengthens your faith. You are reminded again, that’s why David wrote it. One of those Psalms that you would just turn to, repeat, speak to your own soul, meditate on, stand in, because there are a lot of troubles in life. There are troubles that come because simply we live in a broken, troubled world. There are other troubles that come to us without any fault of our own. They just come to us.

There are other troubles of our own making and the troubles of our own making are often the most difficult to know how to respond to it because I think a lot of people, they say it’s very common for them to assign themselves to the trouble. In other words, “I did this. I deserve this and I guess I’ll just have to endure this,” but here’s the thing. I don’t believe that’s the way God would see that at all. Does God look at the troubles of our lives, especially, let’s say, the troubles of our own making and does he say, “Don’t come to me for help. You’re the one who made this mess. You’re on your own on this one, pal.” Does God say that?

I submit that he most certainly does not. That’s one of the things I have always loved about the Lord. Oh, I’ve always appreciated this, that he does not leave us in times of trouble, even if that trouble is of our own making. The key to fully trusting God is to call out to him, that he is the one to rescue and to save, even if it’s a trouble of your own making. Now, Psalms 3. To really appreciate Psalms 3, we need to understand what was happening in David’s life when he wrote it. In most of your Bibles, maybe all of them, there’s a little introduction written at the beginning of the Psalm and it reads or it says, “A Psalm of David when he fled from Absalom, his son.”

Now, what happened in David’s life that would culminate in he having to flee from his own son? What culmination of events have conspired to bring David to such a low point of his life that he’s got to flee for his own life from his own son? Now, this is a story that is important. It’s worth remembering. David made tragic choices that brought epic consequences and all of that culminated in him fleeing from his own son. This is his darkest hour. The backstory, very important, David sinned terribly when he took Bathsheba as his own and then arranged for her husband to die in battle.

Now, first he tried to keep it to himself. God would not have that. He sent Nathan the prophet to confront David. “You are the man,” and how David responded to that is another life lesson. David fully trusted that God would forgive him, but also that God would rescue him and save. Notice, for example, Psalms 32:5-7, “I acknowledged my sin to you. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord and you forgave the guilt of my sin,” but then he trusts God to rescue. He says, “You are my hiding place. You preserve me from trouble. You surround me with songs of deliverance.”

Now, the consequences of that epic failure in David’s life began to be seen in his family. Now, that is actually a common thing when it comes to sin. It begins to promulgate itself and it begins to be seen in the outcroppings of those who are consequent to it. Tragic drama story. David’s son Amnon raped his half-sister, Tamar. That’s just tragedy of tragedies inside of a family, but then David, paralyzed by his own sin, took no action. Absalom, here’s Absalom now coming into the story, is Tamar’s brother. Absalom took matters into his own hands and he arranged for Amnon’s death.

Absalom then fled the country himself. Banished for three years. Again, David took no action, paralyzed, hobbled by his own consequent of sin. Finally, David extended mercy to Absalom and brought him back to Jerusalem, but he would not see him, refused to see his face. This went on for two more years, a bitterness building up in Absalom’s heart because David refused to see him. Finally, Absalom appealed to David. David relented and saw his son, and when he saw his son, he fell on him and kissed and reconciled but it’s too late.

Absalom had been building up this now for years and he decided to conspire against David. What he did was this. He provided for himself chariots and horses and then 50 men as runners before him wherever he would go about the city. Oh, what an entourage this was, right? 50 men running chariots and horses. It made it look like Absalom was a great warrior, but Absalom had never fought a battle a day in his life. Oh, it gave the impression that he’s a great leader and a great warrior. Then he positioned himself at the gate of the city and he began to win the favor of the people.

He’s there at the city when people would come in and out and he would greet them and, “Oh, my brother, you have a problem? You have something to say? The king is quite busy. Why don’t you tell me your troubles? I’m the one. I listen. I can help people.” Now, he’s little by little winning the people over. Now, it’s important to recognize also that Absalom was very good-looking. He was very nice looking. Now, that is important because if you’re going to pull off a political intrigue, it helps a lot if you have the look. Absalom had the look. He had beautiful, long, flowing, dark hair.

He had the look, the hair, and the Scriptures really bring out his beautiful, long, flowing, dark hair. It’s like, and the women were like, [gushes] and the guys were like, “Oh, yes, he listens, he cares. you can trust Absalom. He listens,” and little by little he started to win the people, and when he had built up enough, then he made his move. He set up headquarters in Hebron shortly to the south and he built this conspiracy ready now to move a coup de Etat. He is fully intending to march upon Jerusalem and overthrow the city and to overthrow David and to make himself the king.

Now, when David got word of just how deep this conspiracy was and that Absalom had won the people. David decided that he must flee Jerusalem in order to spare the city. Oh, David loved Jerusalem and he wanted the city spared from the battle. It’s like David was saying, “Let’s take this outside the city.” David was now fleeing Jerusalem from his own son Absolom. That’s when David sat down at some moment and he penned this song facing the greatest trouble of his life in his deepest anguish, he wrote the song.

I. Your Help is Found in God

If you are going through some monumental, troublesome difficult thing, Psalm 3 will strengthen you, encourage you, there’s much here for us to receive. Let’s read it, Psalm 3:1, “Oh, Lord,” now remember, he’s crying out and writing the psalm in his deepest anguish. “Oh, Lord, oh, how my adversaries have increased. Many are rising up against me. Many are saying of my soul, ‘there’s no deliverance for him and God.'” God does not help him. God’s against him. That’s what, “But thou, oh, Lord.”

He writes, “Many say manner of things against me. They say, God’s against me but you, Lord, now I declare this,” David writes, “But you, oh Lord, are a shield about me. You are my glory. You are the one who lifts my head. I was crying to the Lord with my voice and he answered from his holy mountain. I lay down and slept. I awoke for the Lord sustains me.” And then verse 6, that declaration, “I will not be afraid of 10,000 who have set themselves against me roundabout. Arise, Lord, save me, oh, my God. Arise in my behalf. Arise, oh Lord, save me, oh, my God, for you has smitten all my enemies on the cheek. I look back and I know that you have done it. I’ve seen it. God, you have smitten my enemies on the cheek.”

What does that mean? To smack someone on the cheek. Again, this is a one-on-one battle thing where one would take his fist and just smash it into his opponent’s face and the teeth go flying. I know that’s a picture but that’s what it is. David says, “I have seen you do it, Lord. You have smitten my enemies under cheek. You have shattered the teeth of the wicked. I’ve seen you do it. Salvation belongs to the Lord.” See how David is writing a declaration in the midst of his epic momentous trouble, “I’ve seen you do it, Lord, you have smitten my enemies in the face. Salvation belongs to the Lord. Your blessing is upon your people.”

All right, let’s look through these verses because they are so key to help us. Starting with this. “Your help is found in God,” verse 2. Many are saying no, there is not God’s against you because look, just the fact that you’re going through all of this trouble is a declaration that God is against you. David will not believe this. No, there is help for me in God and this is where all of us must stand on this great truth. No, there is help. David was in such deep trouble. People were saying, “Oh, David was once a great warrior. David is the one who defeated the Philistine giant. Oh, David could put foreign armies to flight. He was saved from his enemies over and over. Oh, that great, David,” but no more.

Now God’s against him. Look, he’s fleeing but David would not believe it. David refused to give up on God. David would not give up. Sometimes when people are going through troubles, they’re encountering all manner of difficulties, especially troubles of their own making, they quit. They give up on God. They give up either because they think that God has given up on them or because they’re angry with God for even allowing this trouble to come at all, but one of the things you’ve got to really appreciate about David is that he would not give up.

A. God is a shield about you

David never gave up. “I will not relent,” and so he makes and writes out such a declaration, “They say all this about me. God’s against me. There’s no help for me,” but he says, “Oh, you, oh Lord, are a shield. I know it.” God is a shield about you. That is a take hold of that great truth. This is David’s faith. “Oh, there’s no help for him. God’s against him,” but no, he says, “You’re a shield.” A shield is protection. A shield is favor to stand between you and the trouble. “God, you are a shield to me. Come and stand between me and the trouble.” Psalm 32:7, “You, Lord,” as I read it, “You are my hiding place. You preserve me from trouble. You surround me with songs.” I love that. What a picture is that? How poetic, “You surround me with songs of deliverance.”

Psalm 5, we were just looking at this Wednesday, verses 11-12, “Let all who take refuge in you, be glad. Let them ever sing for joy. For it is you who bless the righteous man. Oh Lord, you surround him with favor like a shield. I know you would do it, Lord, may say all manner of things against me but Lord, you are a shield, surround me now.” Now, it is important to know the story that not everyone turned against David. In fact, there was a really interesting scene that unfolds as David was fleeing Jerusalem. He stopped at the last house and he stopped at the last house to just acknowledge all those who had come with him.

As they passed by and beside him, he acknowledged them. Can you just imagine the sadness, the grief, the burden that they’re all carrying, having to leave the city and there’s David standing there acknowledging them as they come by? Then, he sees a man there coming by. His name is Ittai and he’s a Gittite.

The story is 2 Samuel 15:17-21, “The king went out and all the people with him and they stopped at the last house. Now, all the servants passed on before him, all the Cherethites, Pelethites, and Gittites.” These are people from the nations that were right around who had come, who had surrounded David. They believed in David’s God and David himself but then the king saw this man, Ittai. He says to Ittai the Gittite, “Will you go with us? You came only yesterday. You going to come with us? You just arrived yesterday. Now today I shall make you wander with us. You’re going to go with us into all this trouble, you just got here yesterday.”

He says, “Go back, return, go back. Take your brothers with you. Mercy and truth be with you.” In other words, “I respect you, I honor you but go back. Why would you bring such trouble upon yourself? Go back.” Itai answered the king. Oh, you got to love this declaration, “As the Lord lives.” Now here, he’s a Philistine but he’s declaring the God of Israel, Yahweh, Yahava, Jehovah, “As the Lord, Jehovah lives and as the Lord, my king lives. Surely wherever my Lord the king may be, whether for death or for life, there your servant also will be.”

Oh, such loyalty could only have encouraged David in his darkest hour, “Not everyone’s against me. Not everyone says such terrible things about me.” Many were saying such terrible things. They were taking the opportunity. As David was leaving, there’s another story about a man who was walking alongside of him. His name is Shimei. He was walking alongside just across the gully and he’s throwing dirt clods at David, “Get out, blood’s on your hand, you deserve it, get out.” People were saying all things against David. I’ll tell you, it feels terrible when people are saying things about you. When people think terrible things about you especially if you don’t deserve it, it feels terrible.

I was thinking of an illustration of something that happened in my life, not anything close to what David experienced. The story is this. Several years ago, it was a Sunday morning and there was a big snowstorm that had come in and so we decided to cancel all the services and so I was here at the church like, “Sorry, there’s no church, snow was piling. It’s really snowing thick now.” The problem was we had boxes and boxes and boxes of Krispy Kreme doughnuts and I thought, “What do we do with the doughnuts?”

I thought, “Oh, I know what we’ll do. I’ll take them out to the community around where I live and I’ll start giving them to all the neighbors, be a little blessing. I stacked them all in my car and drove through the snow. It’s king. It’s really thick now. I parked out there and I took the first box of doughnuts, walked down the sidewalk, and up their walk, rang the doorbell, “Merry Christmas, I’m the pastor of the church just down the way. Merry Christmas.”

Then I walked to the next one. Sometimes they answered, sometimes they were not. About six doors down, snow’s getting really thick. I’m walking down with a box of doughnuts and I see that there’s a newspaper, someone delivered it but threw it out in the snow. I thought, “Oh, that’s just terrible. I’ll pick up the newspaper and bring it up to the door.” This is back in the days when newspapers were a thing and the Sunday paper was really thick and special. I picked it up, took it underneath my arm, wrapped in plastic. I put it under my arm, had my doughnuts, walked up to the door, rang the doorbell and I waited, no answer. Rang the doorbell, no answer and I thought, “Okay.”

I started to go back and I walked all the way down his walk and down the sidewalk, and I realized, “Oh, I forgot to lean the newspaper. Then I’m going, “Oh, I got to trudge all the way back in the snow and I’m like, “Aah.” I looked over and there’s the neighbor across the street leaning against his shovel, “What are you doing with that paper?” What do you say? No matter what you say now, it looks terrible, “I was just going to leave it at the door.” “You bet you are.” What do you say? How do you say anything? “Oh, I’m the pastor of the church down the street. Come visit us sometime. We have integrity and honor at our church. We steal newspapers while we deliver doughnuts.”

What do you say? I could not say a thing, I just had to trudge back and leave. I thought, “Lord, you know the truth.” I’m sure he’s got all manner of thoughts in his mind. “Lord? you know the truth about who I am, and that’s enough for me.” Amen? What amazing loyalty in Ittai? What commitment? What strength of character? What loyalty of heart as the Lord Jehovah lives and as my Lord the King lives. He knew that David was the Lord’s anointed. It was a declaration of faith, wasn’t it? God has anointed the King of Israel, and therefore, the favor of God surrounds him like a shield, “I will not leave you.” Notice now, there’s more to the verse.

B. My glory and the One who lifts my head

“They’re saying such things against me, but you, oh Lord, our shield,” and then he says, “And you, oh Lord, are my glory and the one who lifts my head.” My glory. Do you have glory? Many people don’t think in such a way, my glory. It just sounds, “Oh yes, my glory.” David is not saying that his glory is his own glory. He says, “You are my glory and the one who lifts my head.” Maybe a way to see it would be this, the moon has no light unto itself, yet a full moon lights the night sky with light because it casts forth the light that it receives from the sun. That is the picture of the fact that God’s glory is ours. We receive that glory and it bears forth out of our lives. You are my glory.

Matthew 5:14-16, Jesus said, “You are the light of the world.” Earlier Jesus said that he was the light of the world but both are true. You are the light of the world because Jesus is the light of the world and you have received it. He has given it to you. You received that. The light of God, the glory is the manifest beauty of God, the beauty of his holiness, the beauty of his presence, the beauty of what he does in your life. The manifest beauty of God is his glory.

The light of God. You are that light. That beauty of God has shined forth in your soul, therefore, you now be that light to the world. Then he adds a city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. You can’t hide that light or he says, if anyone has a lamp, nor does anyone light a lamp and they put it under a basket. No, he puts it on a lamp stand and it gives light to everyone in the house. Let your light so shine. Let your glory so bear that they may see your good works in your life and they glorify your Father who is in heaven. Glory is the manifest beauty of the Lord. The word glory can be translated, fame or renowned.

My glory, the fame, what is the renowned of your name? When people think of your name, what is the renowned of your name? Now, the word literally comes from a meaning heavyweight. In other words, glory is the heaviest, grandest, greatest aspect of who you are, your renowned, your name. What is your renowned? What is the heaviest, greatest aspect of who you are?

David says, “You are my glory. It is the greatest and heaviest aspect of who I am because of you. You are my glory. Because of you, because of your glory, you’re the one who lifts my head.” Now, lifting his head is not a sense of any arrogance at all, not in a haughty way, no. In a way that says, I know my God and I will walk steadfast in my king.

II. Because of God; Do Not be Afraid

When Moses had opportunity to ask for something for himself, personal, what did he ask for? Glory. Then back to Psalm 3, notice in verse 6, it culminates, he builds and he builds and then he culminates, “I will not be afraid of 10,000 of people who have set themselves against me. If an army arises against me, I will not be afraid.”

Because of God, do not be afraid. This is a key to victory in the terrible times of trouble. You need that faith to arise. David is, he’s speaking faith to life, “I will not be afraid.” He’s writing it, declaring it, “If 10,000 of people arose against me, I won’t be afraid,” because David and God had a long history of walking together through many troubles.

A. Faith is built one trouble at a time

Now, in his deepest trouble of all, now is the time to declare that faith that has been established over all those years. In other words, faith is built one trouble at a time. Notice verse 7, “Arise, oh Lord, save me. For you has smitten all my enemies on the cheek. You have shattered the teeth of the wicked.” In other words, over and over and over, David is saying, “God has done it. I have seen. God and I have been through a lot of troubles together and I have seen God do it over and over and over. You have smitten my enemy on the cheek, I have seen it over and over. Salvation belongs to God. I know this because God has proven himself. He’s done it.”

Notice that declaration, “Salvation belongs to God.” David has a part, I submit, that you see here now one of the great keys to faith, that salvation belongs to God but David had a part. What was David’s part? David’s part was faith, David’s part was trust, and David’s part was action. I submit that this is a very important part of faith. Your part, God– David says, “Salvation belongs to God. God will do it. I’ve seen God do it over and over and over. You have smitten my enemies on the cheek. I’ve seen it. I know God is the one. Salvation belongs to him.” You have a part, your part is the faith. Your part is the trust, and your part is the action.

Here’s what I mean, a ship that never leaves the harbor will never be shipwrecked, true, but it will also accomplish nothing. From the very beginning of David’s life, from the very beginning of David’s story, you see that he is willing to get out into the ring. To face the giant, to face down the troubles. David doesn’t say, “Oh, God fights my battles. I guess I’ll go back and watch the sheep. I don’t engage. I don’t like battles and I just let God do my finding for me. I’m going to be with the sheep.” David does not say that.

The story that when David was just a teenager, young lad, his father sent him to check on his older brothers who were serving in the army of Israel. When David came into the camp, he heard that Philistine giant, calling out those taunts against Israel that he had been doing for 40 days. The giant would come out, “I defy the armies of Israel. Send out a man to fight if you have one. I defy the armies of Israel.” Then he would begin to cast insults against God and taunt them and insult them and cuss, oh, he’s just ugly in his words and just cussing violently and insulting them and taunting them, “I defy you. I defy the armies of Israel.”

David arises into the army and he hears this. The men are shrinking back in fear and David is incensed, “Will no one go out to fight him? Is there not a God in Israel?” He’s incensed at this. Of course, the word comes to Saul about David’s words. Saul, you know the story, eventually sends David out. When the Philistine giant sees David, he’s just a youth carrying a staff and the Philistine giant, “What? You send out a boy with a stick? What? Am I a dog that you send a stick? Come here.” Again, the way they would speak, “Come here, boy, I’ll rip your body apart and I’ll feed your dead body to the birds of the air.” That’s the way they speak and more.

That’s what the giant said, “What? You come to me with sticks. Come here.” David responds. Now, the response of David is so important because he declares his faith. Of all the people there, it was David and David alone that was willing to get out into the field. Then he makes his speech and his speech makes it very clear that this is God’s doing. “Know this,” David said to the Philistine, “Oh, you come to me with a sword and a spear and a javelin, but I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, whom you have just taunted.”

Again, David is out there. He is not bragging about himself like, “Oh yes, I am a great–” No. “You come to me with sword, spear, javelin. I come to you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, whom you have just taunted. This day the Lord will do it. The Lord will deliver you into my hand. God will do it so that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. That all this assembly may know.” Here I think he turns to the army of Israel, “So that all this assembly may know that the Lord does not deliver by sword or by spear. For the battle is the Lord’s and he will do it. He will give you into our hands.”

You see, David, his part is faith. His part is trust and his part is action. Men and women of faith are men and women of action. That’s how you and God build your story, your history of God’s rescuing and saving over and over and over one trouble at a time. Faith like this is faith that is built. People are not born with faith like that. It’s built brick by brick, stone by stone, trouble by trouble. David and God had a long history together, and now in his darkest hour, he can recount all of those victories and know that God will do it again.

“Arise, oh Lord, see me. Oh, my God. You have smitten my enemies on the cheek. I’ve seen you do it over and over and over. You have shattered the teeth of the wicked. I say to you, Lord, do it again. Salvation belongs to God. Do it again, Lord. Here we are now. We’ve been through so many troubles, Lord, and now we face the darkest, do it again. I’ve seen you do it over and over.” David and God have a long history. They built now a story of faith, trouble by trouble, brick by brick, stone by stone. The faith is arising that David can say, “I’ve seen it. I know it. You’ve done it over and over. Do it again, God, and you will build that story. God will rescue and save and deliver when you call out to him when you trust him when you believe that salvation belongs to God, God will do it again. Your part is faith. Your part is trust. Your part is the action to believe that God is with you in the midst of it. I will not be afraid of 10,000 of people who have arisen against me roundabout. I’ve seen you do it over and over and over. You’ve smitten my enemy in the cheek. Do it again.”

B. Let the peace of God guard your heart

I’ll tell you from my own life, I’ve seen God prove himself to me over and over and over and over and over again. God and I, we have a story together and God’s not finished yet. How many would add your own testimony? Oh, we have a story. Yes, amen. Let’s give the Lord praise. Exactly right. Do it again, but then notice the peace. Let God be the peace that guards your heart.

“I cried out to the Lord and He answered me from His holy mountain. I know my God.” This is David, “I know my God. I know how he moves. I have seen him do it over and over and over. When I cry out to God, I know that he moves. I know that he hears. I know that he will answer for his holy mountain. I will call out to God and I know my God.” That’s why he says, “I lay down and I slept. I awoke. For the Lord sustains me.” That’s peace. That’s peace in the midst of it, that’s faith that has arisen to believe. That’s peace.

There is help for you in God. Interestingly, when David was fleeing Jerusalem, he ascended the Mount of Olives. If you’ve ever been to Jerusalem, you know that when you ascend the Mount of Olives, you can turn around and there is the city laid out before you. It is the same mountain that Jesus descended on the same path in order to enter into the city and to offer himself as the sacrifice for sin, that you and I would have our sins paid and paid in full, that we would be reconciled to God, that we would call God our Father, and know with every confidence that he is a shield about us.

That he pours forth his favor like a shield, that he is our glory and the one who lifts our head. That we can declare it, God, I know that you’ll walk with me on the journey of this life and that you will do it over and over and over. You have proven yourself to me. You have smitten my enemy on the cheek. Do it again. Jesus won that for us. He won for us the privilege and right to be called children of the living God, that you would know that you can trust him in the midst of all of the turbulence and trouble of this broken life. God will walk with you and he will prove himself to you over and over and over and he’ll do it again. Lord, we love you and thank you.

It’s amazing, but you have shown us in your word. We truly are blessed. Church, how many would say to the Lord today, I believe, God, you have proven yourself to me over and over and over and I know that you will do it again. Lord, here I am. I call out to you. I declare it to you, I know my God, I’ve seen you move. I know that you will do it again, how many would say that to the Lord today? Lord, I need you this very hour. Do it again. Do it again Lord, move in my behalf. Arise, oh Lord, save. Do it again.

Lord, thank you for everyone. Steward of the Lord, we are so thankful to you. Oh Lord, move, reveal yourself. We are truly thankful to you in Jesus’ powerful name, and everyone said, Amen. Let’s give the Lord praising glory and honor. Can we do that? Amen.