The Lord Reigns
Psalms 93
January 10, 2021
Charles Spurgeon wrote an introduction to this Psalm
That I don’t think can at all be improved upon,
So I to begin our study tonight I simply want to read his prologue to you.
He writes:
“This brief Psalm is without title or name of author, but its subject is obvious enough, being stated in the very first line. It is the Psalm of Omnipotent Sovereignty: Jehovah, despite all opposition, reigns supreme. Possibly at the time this sacred ode was written, the nation was in danger from its enemies, and the hopes of the people of God were encouraged by remembering that the Lord was still King. What sweeter and surer consolation could they desire?”
(Spurgeon, C.H. [The Treasury of David; Volume 2, Part 2; Psalms 58-110; Hendrickson Publishers; Peabody, MA] pg. 134)
My heart leaps upon that final statement:
“and the hopes of the people of God were encouraged by remember that the Lord was still King. What sweeter and surer consolation could they desire?”
There really isn’t any.
For those of you who don’t know,
We have recently had a presidential election in our country.
I do not at all wish to get into politics during this sermon
(I save that for text messages with Cody)
I only mention it because every election,
And this one has been no exception,
Can be a cause of great anxiety, anger, fear, despair, and dread.
When faced with the possibility of a reigning government
• That censors free speech,
• Seeks to shut down businesses and livelihoods,
• Seeks to shut the doors of the church,
• And which holds quite unbiblical moral views on almost everything.
And when faced with the reality that
• Those who oppose such government have totally lost their voice
• Both by having their speech censored,
• Their concerns ignored,
• And their votes manipulated.
It can leave a person feeling helpless, frustrated, and angry.
I’m not going to lie to you.
I am one of those people.
And I only tell you that because
THIS PSALM IS SUCH A TIMELY AND NEEDED REMINDER FOR ME.
It begins with a declaration that we all know,
But perhaps it is so routine that at times we forget it.
“The Lord reigns”
• Read it again: “The Lord reigns”
• Read it again: “The Lord reigns”
• And again: “The Lord reigns”
I know that. You know that.
But when fear, anxiety, doubt, and hopelessness creep in
(like they have too often done with me in the last couple of months)
All we can deduce is that we have forgotten that.
Psalms 93 confronts our despair and then crushes it with this one blow.
“The Lord reigns”
Spurgeon would go on to say:
“Whatever opposition may arise, his throne is unmoved; he has reigned, does reign, and will reign forever and ever. Whatever turmoil and rebellion there may be beneath the clouds, the eternal King sits above all in supreme serenity; and everywhere he is really Master, let his foes rage as they may. All things are ordered according to his eternal purposes, and his will is done…Let us repeat the proclamation, “the Lord reigneth,” whispering it in the ears of the desponding, and publishing it in the face of the foe.” (ibid. pg. 134)
There is the reminder.
There is the encouragement.
And tonight we want to walk through
This tremendous and totally encouraging reminder.
We can break this Psalm into 3 points tonight.
#1 THE REIGNING KING
Psalms 93:1-2
There is such encouragement here for the believer.
Being reminded of God’s eternal and unmovable throne
Has been the rallying point for Christian encouragement
Throughout the ages.
• It is His throne that allows us hope for justice…
• It is His throne that allows us hope for salvation…
• It is His throne that allows us hope for prosperity…
We are very much that widow from Luke 18
Who goes before our Judge day and night seeking justice.
But unlike that widow, our Judge is a righteous Judge and One with full authority.
This is a constant source of encouragement.
And as we ponder this,
I want to show you perspective throughout the ages.
TURN TO: ISAIAH 6
As you turn there, I want to give you the cultural backdrop.
2 Chronicles 26:1-15 “And all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king in the place of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah after the king slept with his fathers. Uzziah was sixteen years old when he became king, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem; and his mother’s name was Jechiliah of Jerusalem. He did right in the sight of the LORD according to all that his father Amaziah had done. He continued to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding through the vision of God; and as long as he sought the LORD, God prospered him. Now he went out and warred against the Philistines, and broke down the wall of Gath and the wall of Jabneh and the wall of Ashdod; and he built cities in the area of Ashdod and among the Philistines. God helped him against the Philistines, and against the Arabians who lived in Gur-baal, and the Meunites. The Ammonites also gave tribute to Uzziah, and his fame extended to the border of Egypt, for he became very strong. Moreover, Uzziah built towers in Jerusalem at the Corner Gate and at the Valley Gate and at the corner buttress and fortified them. He built towers in the wilderness and hewed many cisterns, for he had much livestock, both in the lowland and in the plain. He also had plowmen and vinedressers in the hill country and the fertile fields, for he loved the soil. Moreover, Uzziah had an army ready for battle, which entered combat by divisions according to the number of their muster, prepared by Jeiel the scribe and Maaseiah the official, under the direction of Hananiah, one of the king’s officers. The total number of the heads of the households, of valiant warriors, was 2,600. Under their direction was an elite army of 307,500, who could wage war with great power, to help the king against the enemy. Moreover, Uzziah prepared for all the army shields, spears, helmets, body armor, bows and sling stones. In Jerusalem he made engines of war invented by skillful men to be on the towers and on the corners for the purpose of shooting arrows and great stones. Hence his fame spread afar, for he was marvelously helped until he was strong.”
What we have described there is A GREAT KING.
He made Israel great again.
• He reigned for 52 years
• He enlarged the borders
• He strengthened the military
• He secured the nation
It was good to be alive while Uzziah was on the throne.
Now to Isaiah 6.
We read: “In the year of King Uzziah’s death…”
Do you want the context?
• Isaiah saw an empty throne.
• The man responsible for so much good in Israel was now gone.
• The future was uncertain, and fear abounded.
Where would Isaiah receive encouragement?
(READ 6:1-4)
Isaiah saw the real throne.
Isaiah saw the LORD.
And all at once it becomes obvious that
The security and the prosperity and the glory of Israel
Was not due to Uzziah’s throne,
It was because of the LORD’S throne.
INCIDENTALLY,
It was at that moment that Isaiah volunteered into service for the Lord.
Isaiah 6:8 “Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I. Send me!”
After seeing the highest throne,
Serving any lesser throne just seemed like a pitiful job.
TURN TO: PSALMS 11
The setting here is a little different.
(READ 1-3)
• David wasn’t mourning the loss of stability as Isaiah was.
• David was actually living in corrupt times.
• His friends actually told him to flee because the foundations had been
destroyed and there was nothing the righteous could do.
In short, they had no voice.
But David looked past the newspaper and into his bible, where he learned:
(READ 4-7)
David found his courage by understanding that
Despite the chaos of the world, nothing had changed in the heavens.
TURN TO: REVELATION 4
Just the very mention of Revelation
Gives you insight into what we are discussing.
We are talking about a time of tribulation like the world has never known.
• John is about to see global death…
• John is about to see demonic invasion…
• John is about to see massive persecution…
• He is literally about to witness “all hell break loose”
How would John handle such horrible times?
Because God first solidified for John the throne.
(READ 4:1-8)
Everything there is about the throne.
“The LORD reigns”
• It doesn’t matter if you are leaving a time of PROSPERITY…
• It doesn’t matter if you are in a time of ADVERSITY…
• It doesn’t matter if you are facing a time of HOSTILITY…
All comfort and all peace comes from the same place
And that is realizing that “The LORD reigns”
I know you know it, but now remember it.
And the Psalmist here gives 3 quick realities about His reign.
HIS EMINENCE (1a)
“He is clothed in majesty; The LORD has clothed Himself with strength;”
It is what Isaiah saw.
• It is glory, it is “majesty”,
• It is unapproachable holiness and perfection.
• There is no corruption
• There is no deceit
• There is no weakness, only “strength”
This is no impotent throne.
This is no paper throne.
This is no corrupt throne.
We have One sitting upon the throne clothed in glory and splendor.
HIS EFFECT (1b)
“Indeed, the world is firmly established, it will not be moved.”
We could not be sure of anything
If we were not sure of His dominion.
But because God is firmly established, His world is firmly established.
You see this so easily in Scripture.
• When God draws near, things are sanctified and perfected.
• When God pulls away, things fall apart and sin abounds.
The great tribulation is the clearest picture of this.
• When the Lord begins to withdraw creation immediately falls into absolute and utter chaos.
Things stand only because He stands.
That is why in heaven, when you see God worshiped, the first reason listed is His sustaining power.
Revelation 4:9-11 “And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, “Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.”
They stand because You stand.
Life endures because You endure.
HIS ENDURANCE (2)
“Your throne is established from of old; You are from everlasting.”
• Israel has many feasts and festivals.
• Israel has many events meant to remember and highlight what God has done.
But there is no feast in Israel
That commemorates the day God took the throne.
Because there was never a day when God took the throne.
He has always been on the throne.
And He will always be there.
It doesn’t matter who may attack, it doesn’t matter who may usurp,
All attempts at dethroning God are absolutely in vain.
You can try a COUP DE’ TAT, but there will be no success.
Remember this story?
Genesis 11:1-9 “Now the whole earth used the same language and the same words. It came about as they journeyed east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. They said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks and burn them thoroughly.” And they used brick for stone, and they used tar for mortar. They said, “Come, let us build for ourselves a city, and a tower whose top will reach into heaven, and let us make for ourselves a name, otherwise we will be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth.” The LORD came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. The LORD said, “Behold, they are one people, and they all have the same language. And this is what they began to do, and now nothing which they purpose to do will be impossible for them. “Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, so that they will not understand one another’s speech.” So the LORD scattered them abroad from there over the face of the whole earth; and they stopped building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the LORD confused the language of the whole earth; and from there the LORD scattered them abroad over the face of the whole earth.”
• That was the day humanity united with one intent and that was to storm heaven and overthrow God.
• The only even mention of inconvenience to God was that He had to “come down” to see what they were doing.
Or how about this often quoted Psalm?
Psalms 2:1-6 “Why are the nations in an uproar And the peoples devising a vain thing? The kings of the earth take their stand And the rulers take counsel together Against the LORD and against His Anointed, saying, “Let us tear their fetters apart And cast away their cords from us!” He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord scoffs at them. Then He will speak to them in His anger And terrify them in His fury, saying, “But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain.”
Want to give God a good laugh?
Conspire against Him.
Or how about this event?
Revelation 12:7-9 “And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.”
You can unite all the forces of the heavens…
You can unite all the forces of earth…
And none of them can even threaten the throne of God.
He is the reigning King.
Always has been, always will be.
“The LORD reigns”
And yet, as we just saw, His power has not stopped men from trying.
And that leads us to the second point of the Psalm.
#2 THE MIGHTY KING
Psalms 93:3-4
Here we have the emergence of a foe.
• The foe is described as a title waive.
• It is a tsunami of evil and oppression.
“The floods have lifted up, O LORD, The floods have lifted their voice, The floods lift up their pounding waves.”
It is a rebellious, loud and relentless enemy.
Just pounding over and over and over and over.
• There seems to be no end to the attack
• There seems to be no relief from the onslaught
• It is loud and it is brutal and it won’t stop
And yet we read:
(4) “More than the sounds of many waters, Than the mighty breakers of the sea, The LORD on his is mighty.”
What a great word…
“More than”
• How much power does an ocean wave carry?
• How much was the force with which the tsunami hit the shore a few years ago?
• How much was the force of the flood that hit Houston?
How much power does a river or a title wave have?
Well the Lord has more.
Psalms 46:1-3 “God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth should change And though the mountains slip into the heart of the sea; Though its waters roar and foam, Though the mountains quake at its swelling pride. Selah.”
Why can you cease from fear when the oceans roar?
Because God is stronger.
Matthew 8:23-27 “When He got into the boat, His disciples followed Him. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being covered with the waves; but Jesus Himself was asleep. And they came to Him and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!” He said to them, “Why are you afraid, you men of little faith?” Then He got up and rebuked the winds and the sea, and it became perfectly calm. The men were amazed, and said, “What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
I’ve always liked that the word Matthew used for “storm” was SEISMOS, which is where we get our word “seismograph”, which is the way we measure earthquakes.
Matthew said it was “a great earthquake on the sea”
(pretty good description for a tax collector)
But you’ll remember that even the fishermen in the group thought it was over.
• They cried out “Save us, Lord; we are perishing!”
But after Jesus rebuked the sea and it became calm they said,
“What kind of a man is this, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?”
The sea represented unmeasurable power.
• It was unpredictable and wild.
• It was dangerous and unyielding.
And yet it was no match for God.
His power is “More than the sounds of many waters, than the mighty breakers of the sea,”
“The LORD on high is mighty.”
And we see that it didn’t matter what enemy approached,
They were all powerless before Him.
No doubt the Psalmist here is NOT TALKING ABOUT A LITERAL FLOOD.
These aren’t literal waves that are pounding him.
• This is the relentless enemy which seems to attack him at every turn.
• There is no letting up.
• This enemy has risen against him.
• This enemy has mocked him with his voice.
• This enemy has pounded him repeatedly.
Where does his hope come from?
Namely that the God who reigns is mighty.
This is the very confidence of Paul:
Romans 8:35-39 “Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? Just as it is written, “FOR YOUR SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED.” But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. For I am convinced 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 in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
What next?
• We saw the Jews rise up and try to crush the early church, all they did was flourish.
• We know that in the dark ages the Catholic church tried to crush the true gospel, all the gospel did was flourish.
• Various nations like Russia, and China, have tried repeatedly to crush the church, and all it has done is flourish.
There is not a wave strong enough to unseat God from His throne.
“The LORD on high is mighty.”
He is The Reigning King He is The Mighty King
#3 THE HOLY KING
Psalms 93:5
The Psalmist says “Your testimonies are fully confirmed;”
What does that mean?
Only that God has totally done everything He said He would.
That sounds like no other politician I have ever met.
Even the very best of them fail in some way or another.
But not this God.
Not this throne.
The Psalmist can go down the list one by one and check off every box.
God has not failed to do a single thing He promised.
Because of that the Psalmist says:
“Holiness befits Your house”
“befits” is the Hebrew word NA’AH
It has to do with loveliness or comeliness.
Song of Solomon 1:10 “Your cheeks are lovely with ornaments, Your neck with strings of beads.”
Isaiah 52:7 “How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, Who announces peace And brings good news of happiness, Who announces salvation, And says to Zion, “Your God reigns!”
The New English Bible translates it
“Holiness is the beauty of Your house”
That is to say
• Of all the things that we admire about Your house….
• Of all the things that we love about Your throne…
• The attribute that is most attractive to us is Your “Holiness”
We love that You are a holy King!
We love that You are an upright King!
We love that You are an honest King!
We love that You are a just King!
You are perfect!
And this is truly the great desire we have in a King.
• More than anything we desire holy leaders.
• More than anything we desire upright leaders.
We long for a holy city and a holy throne.
Hebrews 11:13-16 “All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. For those who say such things make it clear that they are seeking a country of their own. And indeed if they had been thinking of that country from which they went out, they would have had opportunity to return. But as it is, they desire a better country, that is, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God; for He has prepared a city for them.”
That’s our desire isn’t it?
Well, in the heavens we have one!
• There is a holy city.
• There is a heavenly city.
• There is a holy throne.
And one day we will have it on earth.
Isaiah 11:1-5 “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, And a branch from his roots will bear fruit. The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD. And He will delight in the fear of the LORD, And He will not judge by what His eyes see, Nor make a decision by what His ears hear; But with righteousness He will judge the poor, And decide with fairness for the afflicted of the earth; And He will strike the earth with the rod of His mouth, And with the breath of His lips He will slay the wicked. Also righteousness will be the belt about His loins, And faithfulness the belt about His waist.”
“Holiness befits Your house, O LORD forevermore”
And we love that You reign forever.
He will never stop reigning.
• He never started and He will never stop.
And that friends is a cure for despair.
• When like Isaiah you see an empty throne…
• When like David you see a corrupt system…
• When like John you see an oppressive future…
Look above.
“The LORD reigns”
• Do you want a throne to watch?
• Do you want a throne to seek?
• Do you want a throne to trust?
Isaiah 40:21-24 “Do you not know? Have you not heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not understood from the foundations of the earth? It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. He it is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth meaningless. Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble.”
Isaiah 40:27-31 “Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the LORD, And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God”? Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is inscrutable. He gives strength to the weary, And to him who lacks might He increases power. Though youths grow weary and tired, And vigorous young men stumble badly, Yet 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, They will walk and not become weary.”
Psalms 46:10 “Cease striving and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth.”
There’s your encouragement in confusing times.
