The Lord Knows How To Rescue The Godly
Psalms 28
February 24, 2019

I want to begin our study tonight by first having you Turn to: 2 Peter 2.

At its base, 2 Peter 2 is about false prophets.
Peter outlines their danger and their schemes and even how to spot them.

But Peter also talks about the CERTAINTY OF THEIR JUDGMENT.
In fact, in verse 3 Peter says, “their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

The idea of course being that
• Despite the fact that it appears that they are operating free from recourse, don’t be deceived.
• God sees everything they are doing, God is keeping record of everything they are doing, and God will absolutely judge them accordingly.

And to further inforce that reality, Peter gives some historical evidence.

(READ 4-10a)

Here Peter lays out his evidence that
God most certainly knows how to judge the wicked
And how to save the righteous who live in their midst.

We know He will judge the wicked because:
• (4) He “did not spare angels when they sinned, but cat them into hell…”
• (5) And He “did not spare the ancient world…when He brought a flood upon the world of the ungodly”
• (6) And He “condemned the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah to destruction by reducing them to ashes”

Point being God knows how to judge the wicked.

But Peter also points out that
God knows how to deliver the righteous who live in their midst.

And we know He will deliver the righteous because:
• (5) He “preserved Noah, a preacher of righteousness, with seven others”
• (7) He “rescued righteous Lot, oppressed by the sensual conduct of unprincipled men (for by what he saw and heard that righteous man, while living among them, felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds)”

And then in summary Peter says:
• (9) “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment.”

I’ve always found that to be both an enlightening and encouraging verse.
Namely because
• We live in the presence of wicked men who do things that provokes God.
• We are grieved by their conduct
• We even dread the judgment that they invite
• We have no control over their behavior (the way they vote, etc.)

IT IS GRIEVOUS TO LIVE WHERE WE LIVE AT TIMES
BUT THAT’S NOT NEW

Peter said that Noah was “a preacher of righteousness”.

Can you imagine his frustration?
• He lived in a world where he alone walked with God.
• He lived in a world where he alone was found pleasing to God.

At least we have a place of peace
Where we gather and fellowship with one another.
Beyond that, there are other believers in our town
That we fellowship with on a daily and weekly basis.

But Noah was it.
He continually preached righteousness,
But we know his preaching was ignored,
For no one besides his family was saved.

We think about Lot.
I can hear echoing in my mind Lot’s pleading with the vile men at his door, “Please my brothers do not act wickedly”

• And yet, they called him a judge and tried to crush him inside his own door.
• Even Lot’s wife lusted for the things of Sodom.
• Even his future son-in-laws had no interest in leaving.

Lot was alone, and Peter said that he “felt his righteous soul tormented day after day by their lawless deeds.”

What is more, those men were told of the coming judgment of God.
God told Noah He was going to flood the earth.
God told Lot He was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.

One can only imagine the anxiety
That might accompany such knowledge.

And yet Peter made it clear that “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment.”

Well I give you that truth as sort of a backdrop for our Psalm tonight
Because it appears to me that David is walking in similar circumstances.

Let’s just look at a few things that appear to be obvious to us.

For starters, the Psalm makes it apparent that David must live among wicked people.

After all in Verse 3 he pleads “Do not drag me away with the wicked”
That is really the main request of the Psalm.
Everything else comes really as secondary to that main request.

It paints the picture that when God comes through and begins pulling the wicked from their life of supposed safety and casting them into judgment
THAT GOD NOT MAKE A MISTAKE AND GRAB DAVID TOO.

It would be like Noah saying, “You make sure and give me time to get in that boat before you unleash the flood”

It would be like Lot saying, “Give me time to get out of the city before the fire falls.”

David must be in their midst.

It is also apparent that David knows that these wicked will most certainly be judged by God.

In verse 5 we read: “Because they do not regard the works of the LORD Nor the deeds of His hands, He will tear them down and not build them up.”

If you want a little more backdrop to this,
David spells out their wickedness in verse 3.

He describes them as “those who work iniquity, Who speak peace with their neighbors, while evil is in their hearts.”

That is to say that they are liars.
They flatter men for the sake of gaining and advantage.

(Oddly enough that was one of the things Peter said the false prophets do as well)
2 Peter 2:3 “and in their greed they will exploit you with false words; their judgment from long ago is not idle, and their destruction is not asleep.”

Jude said it like this:
Jude 16 “These are grumblers, finding fault, following after their own lusts; they speak arrogantly, flattering people for the sake of gaining an advantage.”

Even in the Old Testament we have similar references to the false prophets:
Jeremiah 6:13-14 “For from the least of them even to the greatest of them, Everyone is greedy for gain, And from the prophet even to the priest Everyone deals falsely. “They have healed the brokenness of My people superficially, Saying, ‘Peace, peace,’ But there is no peace.”

It just speaks of a broken and corrupt society.
Lies prevail, integrity is gone.
People will tell you anything for the sake of pulling one over on you.

Jeremiah also described his peers like this:
Jeremiah 9:2-6 “Oh that I had in the desert A wayfarers’ lodging place; That I might leave my people And go from them! For all of them are adulterers, An assembly of treacherous men. “They bend their tongue like their bow; Lies and not truth prevail in the land; For they proceed from evil to evil, And they do not know Me,” declares the LORD. “Let everyone be on guard against his neighbor, And do not trust any brother; Because every brother deals craftily, And every neighbor goes about as a slanderer. “Everyone deceives his neighbor And does not speak the truth, They have taught their tongue to speak lies; They weary themselves committing iniquity. “Your dwelling is in the midst of deceit; Through deceit they refuse to know Me,” declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah said “I just wish I could escape this awful band of liars I live among.”
God even chimes in to say, “Through deceit they refuse to know Me”

And that is what David is also referring to. They are just lying people who are nothing like God.

They obviously don’t fear God or else they wouldn’t be so deceptive.

When God gives His famous rundown of the wickedness of man in Romans 3. Even there we read:
Romans 3:13 “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,””THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”;

God just said they are liars!

What do we read about the ministry of Jesus?
John 2:23-25 “Now when He was in Jerusalem at the Passover, during the feast, many believed in His name, observing His signs which He was doing. But Jesus, on His part, was not entrusting Himself to them, for He knew all men, and because He did not need anyone to testify concerning man, for He Himself knew what was in man.”

Jesus knew they were liars,
And just because they said they believed, didn’t mean a thing.

TURN TO: JOHN 8

(Read 28-30)
There are some more of those believers.

But notice Jesus’ response to them again:
(Read 31-32)
• It’s as though Jesus said, “We’ll see if you really believe or not”
• He was kind of taking a “talk is cheap” mentality.

That statement obviously offended them because they started arguing with Him.
(Read 33)

Now there is quite an argument that ensues where Jesus reveals to them
That they are not actually Abraham’s descendants.

But look at what He says later:
(Read 44)

Jesus knew them.
• He knew their talk was cheap.
• He knew what they were really about.

What is more, He knew they were nothing like God,
But were instead of their real father; the devil.
It was just the grief of living amongst a sinful people.

And that is where David obviously is when writing this Psalm.

He is living among “the wicked…who work iniquity, who speak peace with their neighbors, while evil in their hearts.”

And since David knows that’s the kind of people they are, he also knows that God is going to judge them for it.

(5) “Because they do not regard the works of the LORD nor the deeds of His hands, He will tear them down and not build them up.”

David knew that God was going to judge them
Because they were nothing like Him.

They had obviously paid no attention to who God was and what God demanded.
• God is truth
• God never lies
• God is full of integrity in all things

And these people just willfully disregarded God’s demand for integrity
And instead chose to participate in the type of behavior that offended Him

David knew that God would “tear them down and not build them up”

Which is to say, God will crush them for the purpose of judgment, not renovation.

And we read that don’t we?
Revelation 21:8 “But for the cowardly and unbelieving and abominable and murderers and immoral persons and sorcerers and idolaters and all liars, their part will be in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death.”

Revelation 22:15 “Outside are the dogs and the sorcerers and the immoral persons and the murderers and the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices lying.”

Even as kids we used to say, “Liar, liar, pants on fire”

We know God judges liars.
We know their day is coming.
So did David.

And we also notice that David agreed with that.
(4) “Requite them according to their work and according to the evil of their practices; Requite them according to the deeds of their hands; Repay them their recompense.”

• Jeremiah wished he could just get away from them all.
• David here says that he fully understands that these men deserve judgment.

It is another one of those imprecatory prayers.

And we don’t miss the point to that.
• David isn’t asking for God to destroy them because they lied to David, or even because they lied about David.

• David recognizes the justice of their judgment because they offend God by totally choosing a lifestyle that is 100% contrary to His.

• David just understands that if you live your life in violation of God’s Laws then you will rightfully suffer judgment as a result.

• And because David believes God has the right to defend His own nature, He is fully on board with God bringing judgment.

I mean those things are pretty obvious to us.
• He lives among wicked men.
• They are men who have offended God.
• He knows God will judge them for that.
• And He agrees that they deserve it.

His one request is that
God doesn’t fail to recognize that there is still one righteous person living in their midst and that God not just indiscriminately nuke the whole place.

That is the main request:
(3) “Do not drag me away with the wicked”

Now, just from that standpoint, let me ask you:
CAN YOU IDENTIFY WITH DAVID?

I think many in the church today can.
As we referenced even last Sunday night.
• We live in a nation that murders babies inside (and apparently outside) of the womb.
• A nation that pushes abortion, not only to defend the ease and freedom of our sexual immorality, but also because apparently harvested organs from these innocent babies are worth a lot of money.
• We are a nation that has moved way past atheism or agnosticism. We don’t just have people who claim to not believe in God. We live in a nation of people who have made it their ambition to utterly defy Him.
• We see the dishonesty of our political system and new media.
• We see the obvious lust for sexual immorality that reaches from our Jr. Highs even to our nursing homes.
• We see the infatuation with homosexuality, and other perversions like even denying the very gender of a person.
• Pornography is a thriving industry
• My family watches shows on “Vid-Angel” which is a venue that edits foul language and immoral scenes out of movies and TV shows and they are currently in a massive lawsuit with companies like Disney of all people who don’t’ want someone being able to bleep out a cussword or cut out a nude scene.

And here we are as believers who live in this cesspool.
Our kids go to school where sexual immorality is commonplace.
Many of you work in atmospheres where the language is atrocious.

And like David we know that “because they do not regard the works of the LORD nor the deeds of His hands, He will tear them down and not build them up.”

I mean we know that is true.
And like David, WE EVEN SEE THAT GOD IS RIGHT IN DOING THIS.

Would anyone in this room willfully stand up to be the defense attorney for the United States of America before God?

Would anyone in this room volunteer to be the one who defends their actions before God?

Of course not.
We know what is deserved and we know what is coming.

But to that end, I can certainly understand David’s prayer:
“Do not drag me away with the wicked”

What that prayer actually indicates is
MORE than just a man who wants to be spared judgment.

• It is a man who with every fiber of his being rejects the sinful culture in which he lives.
• It is a man who wants desperately not to be a part of them, or to be influenced by them.
• It is a man who may be here to preach the gospel to them, but who does not want any further association.

He openly wants to take his stand in the midst of a wicked people
And declare that he’ll have no part in it.

NOW THAT IS DAVID’S PRAYER.
I think that’s a fitting prayer.

But obviously that prayer represents THE MIDDLE of this Psalm.

So let’s back up for a moment and look at the rest of it.

If you want an outline, we might call verses 3-5:
#2 THE SUBSTANCE OF HIS PRAYER
Psalms 28:3-5

Now let’s back up and look at the first 2 verses, which we might call:
#1 THE SERIOUSNESS OF HIS PRAYER
Psalms 28:1-2

(1-2) “To You, O LORD, I call; My rock, do not be deaf to me, For if You are silent to me, I will become like those who go down to the pit. Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help, When I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.”

Certainly we don’t overlook the fact that David refers to God as “My rock”

Later in the Psalm he’ll also call God
“my strength” “my shield” “their strength” “a saving defense” and “their shepherd”

All of those titles represent salvation.
• He sees God as his “rock” in the midst of the storm.
• He sees Him as his “strength” in battle.
• He sees Him as his “shield” from the enemy’s fiery darts
• He sees Him as his “saving defense” from the opposition
• He sees Him as his “shepherd” who uses His rod and staff to deliver.

We understand the titles that David is using.

But more than that, the first two verses have a very distinct feel,
And that is a feel of DESPERATION.

Our eyes fix on the statement, “For if You are silent to me, I will become like those who go down to the pit.”

“the pit” would be judgment…where the wicked are headed.

And David says, “If You don’t hear me, and make a distinction for me, then I’m just going to be counted as one of the wicked and cast into the pit like everyone else.”

And in a simple sense you know that’s true.
If God doesn’t hear your cry and intervene on your behalf,
What hope of salvation do you have?

Our very hope of salvation hinges not upon our repentant heart,
Or even the sincerity of our faith,
But rather that God would hear us when we cry, and mercifully answer us.

We want mercy in response to our cry
We want grace in response to our faith
But if God didn’t hear sinners, who cares if they are repentant or not.

But David is here desperate for God to hear.
“Hear the voice of my supplications when I cry to You for help, When I lift up my hands toward Your holy sanctuary.”

That’s an interesting statement.
• I think it’s interesting, because David must have referenced it often.
• In fact, after David’s death and Solomon built the temple, and then prayed to dedicate it, I want you to hear his prayer.

TURN TO: 1 Kings 8:22-53

I know that’s lengthy, but you hear that same request coming from him.
• God, we need Your presence
• We need Your willingness to hear us

• Otherwise how will we repent?
• Otherwise how will we find forgiveness?
• Otherwise how will our circumstances change?

It’s just desperation that God would hear us when we call.

David here is LIKE A CAPTURED PRISONER OF WAR in an enemy camp.
• He’s locked in a cell in the midst of their prison and he knows that his home country has scrambled F18 fighter jets to come and destroy this place.

• His urgent plea is to first get word to his own people not to blow that place up until you get me out!

That’s a pretty urgent request!
God You have to hear me!

“Do not drag me away with the wicked”

David’s desperation reveals to us that
• David undoubtedly believes that God is going to judge the wicked.
• David believes that he can appeal to God and God can and will hear him to save him from that fate.

Perhaps the reason our prayers lack desperation is because we don’t really believe God will do what He said He will do.

Perhaps we don’t really believe that God knows how to keep the wicked under punishment and how to save the righteous from their midst.

Well David believed that, and so he was desperate to get through to God.

So in those first 2 verses you see THE SERIOUSNESS OF HIS PRAYER
And then in verses 3-5 you see THE SUBSTANCE OF HIS PRAYER

Well now let’s look at the end, which we could call:
#3 THE SATISFACTION OF HIS PRAYER
Psalms 28:6-9

(6-9) “Blessed be the LORD, Because He has heard the voice of my supplication. The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him. The LORD is their strength, And He is a saving defense to His anointed. Save Your people and bless Your inheritance; Be their shepherd also, and carry them forever.”

Well it’s easy to see why David is so happy.
“He has heard the voice of my supplication”

David got through!
• He may still be a prisoner in that camp…
• He may still be living among the wicked…
• They may still be marked for judgment…
• But somehow God has made it clear to David that he will not be judged with them.

And David breaks out in praise!
“The LORD is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in Him, and I am helped; Therefore my heart exults, And with my song I shall thank Him.”

David is singing because he knows God has not overlooked him.
He knows God has not forgotten him.

He knows what Lot found out on the day that Sodom was destroyed.

That angel grabbed Lot by the hand:
Genesis 19:15-22 “When morning dawned, the angels urged Lot, saying, “Up, take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be swept away in the punishment of the city.” But he hesitated. So the men seized his hand and the hand of his wife and the hands of his two daughters, for the compassion of the LORD was upon him; and they brought him out, and put him outside the city. When they had brought them outside, one said, “Escape for your life! Do not look behind you, and do not stay anywhere in the valley; escape to the mountains, or you will be swept away.” But Lot said to them, “Oh no, my lords! “Now behold, your servant has found favor in your sight, and you have magnified your lovingkindness, which you have shown me by saving my life; but I cannot escape to the mountains, for the disaster will overtake me and I will die; now behold, this town is near enough to flee to, and it is small. Please, let me escape there (is it not small?) that my life may be saved.” He said to him, “Behold, I grant you this request also, not to overthrow the town of which you have spoken. “Hurry, escape there, for I cannot do anything until you arrive there.” Therefore the name of the town was called Zoar.”

Abraham had prayed regarding Sodom:
Genesis 18:25 “Far be it from You to do such a thing, to slay the righteous with the wicked, so that the righteous and the wicked are treated alike. Far be it from You! Shall not the Judge of all the earth deal justly?”

And God certainly honored that prayer.
He would not rain fire on Sodom until that one righteous man was out.

He would not flood the earth until He had shut the door on that ark for Noah.

To read it again:
2 Peter 2:9 “the Lord knows how to rescue the godly from temptation, and to keep the unrighteous under punishment for the day of judgment,”

DAVID KNOWS IT TOO.
In fact, he took that knowledge and
He wrote a song for his own congregation to sing.

It’s a short little chorus and it is found in verses 8-9
“The LORD is their strength, And He is a saving defense to His anointed. Save Your people and bless Your inheritance; Be their shepherd also, and carry them forever.”

David wanted to assure his people that
• Despite living in a vile and wicked world and one that is marked for a certain judgment.
• David wanted the congregation to know that The Lord saves His anointed.
• He saves them and He blesses them.
• He is their shepherd and He carries them forever.

And incidentally, we know that is true as well.

Even during the most horrific judgments in the Bible, God spared His own.
• We already witnessed the flood and Sodom and Gomorrah.
• But what about in Egypt when God spared His own through the Passover.
• What about when the rabble rose up against Moses and Aaron and the LORD intervened on their behalf?

Do you remember the story of the exile?
How God wiped out Jerusalem…

Before He did Ezekiel 9 says that before God sent executioners into the city He first put a mark on the forehead of the righteous

Ezekiel 9:4-6 “The LORD said to him, “Go through the midst of the city, even through the midst of Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations which are being committed in its midst.” But to the others He said in my hearing, “Go through the city after him and strike; do not let your eye have pity and do not spare. “Utterly slay old men, young men, maidens, little children, and women, but do not touch any man on whom is the mark; and you shall start from My sanctuary.” So they started with the elders who were before the temple.”

And while none in Ezekiel are named.
LOOK AT:
Jeremiah 39:11-18 “Now Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon gave orders about Jeremiah through Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard, saying, “Take him and look after him, and do nothing harmful to him, but rather deal with him just as he tells you.” So Nebuzaradan the captain of the bodyguard sent word, along with Nebushazban the Rab-saris, and Nergal-sar-ezer the Rab-mag, and all the leading officers of the king of Babylon; they even sent and took Jeremiah out of the court of the guardhouse and entrusted him to Gedaliah, the son of Ahikam, the son of Shaphan, to take him home. So he stayed among the people. Now the word of the LORD had come to Jeremiah while he was confined in the court of the guardhouse, saying, “Go and speak to Ebed-melech the Ethiopian, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel, “Behold, I am about to bring My words on this city for disaster and not for prosperity; and they will take place before you on that day. “But I will deliver you on that day,” declares the LORD, “and you will not be given into the hand of the men whom you dread. “For I will certainly rescue you, and you will not fall by the sword; but you will have your own life as booty, because you have trusted in Me,” declares the LORD.'”

Or we could go to the very end in the Revelation before God unleased that demonic army from hell and blasted those 7 trumpets, we read:
Revelation 7:1-3 “After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, so that no wind would blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the rising of the sun, having the seal of the living God; and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, saying, “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we have sealed the bond-servants of our God on their foreheads.”

And then we read about those demonic beings:
Revelation 9:4 “They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.”

Do you see it there as well?

WHAT’S THE POINT TO ALL OF THIS?

Your righteousness and your dependence upon God matters.
• Even if it feels like you are the only one.
• Even if it feels like you aren’t making a difference.

I’m sure Noah and Lot and Jeremiah all felt that their righteousness was pointless, UNTIL the day of the judgment and then how precious it was.

David knew this and so not only did he hold to his integrity,
But he would not rest until he had cried out to God
For confirmation that he would not be destroyed with the wicked.

Well the answer is, we won’t, if we are the Lord’s.

So don’t walk the path of the wicked.
• Stand for the Lord amidst the opposition.
• Preach righteousness to your wicked world.
• When your righteous soul is tormented by the ungodliness around you, warn your brothers not to act wickedly.

CLING TO GODLINESS LIKE THAT SCARLET THREAD IN RAHAB’S WINDOW

The Basis For Christian Joy – Part 4
Luke 10:17-24 (21-22)
February 24, 2019

We are in Luke 10 where we are talking about the necessity of Jesus,
But in that we have narrowed our focus even more
To talk about THE BASIS FOR CHRISTIAN JOY.

We’ve seen the first 2 and we’ve begun looking at the 3rd.

It all began with the attitude of the 70 when they returned from their mission rejoicing.
#1 SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY
Luke 10:17-19

They rejoiced that the demons were subject and Jesus confirmed it.
• They were subject
• He saw Satan losing battle after battle
• And He promised that Satan would not be able to claim them back

Certainly we rejoice in Spiritual Authority

#2 SECURE SALVATION
Luke 10:20

Building off of the point that nothing will injure one of the elect
Jesus gives the 70 an even greater reason to rejoice.

“rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven”

And we discussed that.
• It is the list of those “enrolled in heaven” (Heb. 12:23)
• It is the “book of life” (Rev. 17:8; 20:15)
• It is the “Lamb’s book of life” (Rev. 21:27)
• It is the “book of life of the Lamb who was slain” (Rev. 13:8)
• And we learned that it was written “before the foundation of the world” (Rev. 13:8)

Jesus commanded the 70 to rejoice in the fact that God had chosen them for salvation and that God had made that salvation absolutely secure.

That’s definitely a reason for Christian rejoicing.

And then, as we noted last week, that reality led to a 3rd reason for Christian rejoicing, and one that even Jesus participated in.

#3 SOVEREIGN GRACE
Luke 10:21-22

While Jesus certainly rejoiced over various things in His life,
This is THE ONLY PLACE where His rejoicing is specifically mentioned.

“At that very time, He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.”

That’s the portion that we started looking at last time.
Namely because it is a seemingly peculiar statement and reality.

• It doesn’t initially shock us that Jesus “rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit”
• Nor does it initially shock us that Jesus is praising the Father.
• Nor does it shock us that Jesus praises the Father for revealing these things to
infants.

The shocking part is that Jesus actually praised the Father for
Hiding “these things from the wise and intelligent”

That sounds so backward to our typical thought process.

So we spent most of our time last week in 1 Corinthians 1-3 where we gained a little more insight into specifically what was going on.
And not to rehash the entire study, we learned some very important things.

Man in his “wisdom” had failed to honor God as God deserved.

It is alluded to in 1 Corinthians, it is expressly stated in Romans.
Romans 1:21 “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.”

Man was determined to produce salvation
Through his own means and according to his own plan.

If you keep reading Romans you learn:
Romans 1:22-23 “Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.”

Specifically man ran into idolatry.
They replaced the true God with one they made themselves.

They replaced God with one they thought could to a better job.
God therefore determined to make a mockery
Out of this so-called wisdom which rejected Him.

AND THAT IS WHAT GOD DID
By making the message of salvation something TOO FOOLISH
For these “intellectual” minds to accept.

• Jews want powerful signs
• Greeks want mysterious wisdom
• God gave neither what they wanted. Instead He gave the cross.

• The cross appeared too weak to the Jews
• They cross appeared too foolish to the Greeks
• And they would not believe it, and as a result they ended up condemned.

And in that God made their supposed wisdom foolishness
Because it landed them in judgment.

God hid the truth from them by making it unacceptable to them
And ultimately shamed them
By letting them have the result of their own wisdom.

Which is also what Romans teaches:
Romans 1:24-25 “Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.”

They didn’t want the truth, so God didn’t let them see the truth.
Instead He gave them the lusts they craved for
And ultimately they ended up in judgment.

And let me point out again.
JESUS PRAISED GOD FOR THAT!

If it shocks you that Jesus would praise God for that,
Then you have failed to grasp the love that Jesus has for the Father.

He is passionate that God get the glory He deserves.
JESUS PRAISED GOD FOR DEFENDING HIS GLORY

But Jesus also praises the Father for “revealing [these things] to infants.”

That is the ignorant or the foolish or the uneducated.
Those who do not trust in their own intelligence as sufficient for salvation
• God chose to let them know the very deep things of God.
• God chose to reveal His very heart to them.

And as we saw in 1 Corinthians 2, God did that through the Holy Spirit.
Which is why Jesus “rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit”

1 Corinthians 2:12 “Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,”

When we weren’t smart enough to get it on our own,
God chose to reveal it to us, for His own glory.

1 Corinthians 1:26-31 “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and 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, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”

God saved the foolish that He might be glorified;
That He might be honored as God.

And Jesus praised the Father for this.

So, we basically pointed out last time exactly what God did.
• Hid the truth from some
• Revealed it to others through His Holy Spirit
• And Jesus rejoiced in this and praised God for it.

AND CORPORATELY WE CALLED IT SOVEREIGN GRACE
And that’s such an important term.

But as we said, there are many who hate this term.
• There are many who reject it altogether and simply say that God doesn’t do
this sort of thing.
• Others hate any notion of it.

Well, because this passage absolutely drips with sovereign grace,
We need to take the opportunity and talk about it a little more.
Not just what it is, but why it is also a basis for Christian rejoicing.

And I suppose the best way to do that is to simply take a look at the two words.
1) SOVEREIGN

You can’t have Sovereign Grace if God is not sovereign.
And if you’ll notice Jesus is very quick to make sure you realize that.

In verse 21 Jesus identifies the Father as “Lord of heaven and earth”

“Lord” translates KYRIOS

Let me give you a few ways that word is defined.
• He to whom a person or thing belongs, about which he has power of deciding;
• Master, lord
• The possessor and disposer of a thing the owner;
• One who has control of the person,
• The master in the state: the sovereign, prince, chief, the Roman emperor

That is the word Jesus uses to describe the Father.
And Jesus qualifies it by adding that He is “Lord of heaven and earth”

That means that according to Jesus
God has absolute sovereignty regarding any decision
For everything in heaven and on earth.

He gets free reign to make any decision He desires to make.
God is the MASTER, the POSSESSOR, and the One who is in ABSOLUTE CONTROL of all things in heaven and on earth.

• That must include things like salvation…
• That must include things like whose name gets written in the book…
• That must include things like who gets the revelation and who does not…

And we cannot argue God’s right to do these things
Because Jesus is clear that He is the Sovereign Lord.

Now many would argue at this point that God is indeed sovereign, but…
IN HIS SOVEREIGNTY HE HAS YIELDED FULL AUTONOMY TO MAN.

That is to say that God has the right,
But He has opted to give man the full choice.

And yet Jesus just revealed to us that
God, in His sovereign prerogative actually chose to hide these things from some and chose to reveal them to others.

That doesn’t sound like passive sovereignty.
That sounds like active sovereignty.

And then of course some would argue that God may allow men to reject,
But this was never the plan nor is it what God wanted.
HE ALLOWS IT, BUT HE DOESN’T LIKE IT.

But then you have to read what Jesus said,
Namely that “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.”

ARE YOU WITH ME HERE?
Verse 21 drips of sovereignty.

God did choose because God can choose
And God did choose what He wanted to choose.

He did what is well within His sovereign prerogative to do.

One thing we did not discuss is the content of what God revealed.
Jesus referred to “these things”

“You have hidden THESE THINGS from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.”

What are “these things”?

In a broad sense we could say they are truths of salvation.
But I think Jesus actually answers the question in verse 22.

“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father”

That’s really the pinnacle truth right there.
Namely that Jesus is the Messiah, the Christ,
The Sovereign Ruler of the world.

Remember Psalms 2?
Psalms 2:7-12 “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You. ‘Ask of Me, and I will surely give the nations as Your inheritance, And the very ends of the earth as Your possession. ‘You shall break them with a rod of iron, You shall shatter them like earthenware.'” Now therefore, O kings, show discernment; Take warning, O judges of the earth. Worship the LORD with reverence And rejoice with trembling. Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, For His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!”

Remember Peter preaching at Pentecost?
Acts 2:32-36 “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. “Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. “For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘THE LORD SAID TO MY LORD, “SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND, UNTIL I MAKE YOUR ENEMIES A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET.”‘ “Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ — this Jesus whom you crucified.”

Remember Paul’s letter to the Philippians?
Philippians 2:9-11 “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Jesus is head over “all things”

Want me to be more specific?

Well, listen to Jesus:
John 5:21-23 “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom He wishes. “For not even the Father judges anyone, but He has given all judgment to the Son, so that all will honor the Son even as they honor the Father. He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.”

Jesus said there that the “all things” would include things like
• “life” or salvation
• And things like “judgment”.
• He also includes that the Son is to receive the same honor as the Father.

So we are talking about the truth that Jesus is
God’s Anointed King, Savior, and Judge.

And that is essential information if you desire to be saved.
• In fact to be saved you must “confess with your mouth Jesus is Lord”
• You must “call on the name of the Lord”

So knowing that is pretty important.
Knowing who Jesus is, is pretty important.

FURTHERMORE WE KNOW THAT:
No one can know that unless God reveals it to them.

See verse 22 again:
“All things have been handed over to Me by My Father, and no one knows who the Son is except the Father,”

Paul reminded us that in order for a natural man to know that,
That God’s Spirit must read God’s mind and then reveal it to you.

In short:
If God does not reveal to you who Jesus is, then you cannot know it.

Didn’t Jesus tell this to Peter?
Matthew 16:15-17 “He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.”

“Peter, you wouldn’t know that if God hadn’t shown it to you.”

Didn’t Jesus teach us that in John 6?
John 6:44 “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.”

John 6:65 “And He was saying, “For this reason I have said to you, that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted him from the Father.”

If God doesn’t show you, you can’t know Him.

And we saw that the Father actually hides that truth from some people
And reveals it to others by His own sovereign pleasure.

WE SAW THAT DIDN’T WE?
I mean, where just reading what Jesus said.

Well that’s where people throw a fit and start screaming, “NOT FAIR!”

TURN TO: ROMANS 9:14

• After making that infamous statement, “Jacob I loved, but Esau I hated”
• After revealing that before those boys where ever even born, and before they ever did anything good or evil, that God sovereignly chose that the older would serve the younger.
• Those boys had no say in it.

And Paul knew that people would cry, “Not Fair!”

(READ: Romans 9:14-18)
• Is God unjust? NO NEVER!

And then Paul quotes Genesis 25:23 that “I will have mercy on whom I have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I have compassion.”

Very important statement.
Let me tell you what it DOESN’T say.

“I will judge whom I will judge, and I will have cruelty toward whom I will have cruelty”

You know why?
• Because apart from God’s intervention, man is already condemned.
• God doesn’t have to do anything for man to be condemned, he is already condemned by reason of his rebellion.

And if God simply does nothing, then every single human goes to hell.

But if anyone is going to miss hell, and inherit eternal life
Then God will have to act.
He will have to intervene, and He did for some.

He chose to have mercy on some.
He chose to have compassion on some.

John 3:17-18 “For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. “He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

It is NOT like God took a list of neutral humans
• And started throwing some to the left and saying “hell”
• And some to the right and saying “heaven”.

NO.
• All were headed to hell.
• None had pleased God.
• None were good, none were righteous, not even one.

But instead of consigning the entire human race to judgment,
God, in His great mercy, reached in and chose to save some.
That’s not injustice, that’s mercy!

If God hadn’t done that then no one would be saved.
(16) “So then it does not depend on the man who wills or the man who runs but on God who has mercy”

But then Paul takes it ONE STEP FURTHER because that is clear, but we still haven’t addressed the hiding issue or the HARDENING issue.

So Paul says next:
(READ 17-18)

This time Paul reminds of what God did to Pharaoh.
That God raised Pharaoh up (that is brought him to power)

WHY? “to demonstrate My power in you”

God brought him to power so that
Through Pharaoh’s own rebellious heart
God would have opportunity to lay out the plagues
And put His power on display.

Had Pharaoh been a submissive man, you’d never have known about those powerful plagues or how much God loved Israel.

So there’s an instance there where God,
According to His own sovereign prerogative
Chose to save some, and to harden some.

(18) “So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires.”

And to that again people cry foul!

So listen carefully now to Paul.
(READ 19-21)

And there’s the critical issue: HE’S GOD!
As God He has the right!

WE CALL IT SOVEREIGNTY.
• If He wants to save no one, He can save no one.
• If He wants to save everyone, He can save everyone.
• If He wants to save some, and harden others, He can do that too.

Now that’s the first aspect you need to grasp when we talk about SOVEREIGN GRACE. You need to get the “sovereign” part.

But let’s also talk about the second part:
2) GRACE

• Justice is you getting what you deserve
• Mercy is you not getting what you deserve
• Grace is you getting what you don’t deserve

And here we’re talking about GRACE.
Namely that God chose to reveal the truths about Christ to “infants”

Now, before you can fully understand the grace in what God did for you,
YOU FIRST have to understand that you didn’t deserve it.

A proper understanding of sovereign grace
Begins with a proper understanding of sinful man.

If you think man is basically good and deserving of salvation
Then you will always have a problem with election.
It will always appear to be unjust to you.
You will always view election as some twisted doctrine
Where God chose to keep good men out of heaven.

NOTHING could be further from the truth.

I must remind you:
Romans 3:10-18 “as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE; THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD; ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVE BECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.” “THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,” “THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”; “WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING AND BITTERNESS”; “THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD, DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS, AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN.” “THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”

YOU MUST GRASP THAT.

When you talk about election, or sovereign grace
There is always the counter argument regarding MAN’S FREE WILL.

Free will means that a person is free to make any decision
According to the inclination of their heart or their will.

And in that case, IT IS TRUE, MAN HAS FREE WILL.
He is free to choose whatever he wants in regard to salvation.

But here is the reality – PAY CLOSE ATTENTION HERE
MAN IS FREE TO DO WHAT HE WILLS, BUT HIS WILL IS FALLEN.

What do I mean?
Namely that if you give sinful man
The freedom to do whatever he wants,
He will never choose to love God, or trust God, or follow Christ.

Sinful man will choose sin every time.
• “there is none who does good, not even one”
• “there is none who seeks for God, not even one”
• “there is no fear of God before their eyes”

AND THAT’S THE PROBLEM.
If salvation is a matter of man’s free will,
THEN EVERY SINGLE HUMAN WILL DIE AND GO TO HELL.
No one will, of his own free will, choose Christ.

If you think otherwise, then go back and read Romans 3:10-18.

YOU SAY, “But preacher, I chose Christ, I chose to love God, I chose to fear God and obey God. I remember making that choice. I remember that invitation, I remember that convicting sermon, I remember the internal battle. I remember choosing to obey. I sang, ‘I Have Decided To Follow Jesus’”

I KNOW YOU DID.

But the reason you did is because God first did a work in you.
• It was God who first showed you how sinful you were.
• It was God who first showed you how perfect Christ was.
• It was God who first regenerated your heart to cause you to fear Him.
• It was God who first regenerated your heart to cause you to desire Him.

His grace was at work long before you ever made a choice.

For an analogy purpose.
• Jesus called Lazarus out of the tomb, and Lazarus made a choice to obey.
• But before Lazarus even had a choice, he had to be made alive enough to
even hear when Jesus called.

THAT’S CALLED REGENERATION.
God chose to let the dead man hear.
And He could not have heard if God hadn’t chosen that.

That is what God first did for everyone who ever chose Him.
He “revealed these things to infants”

And it’s called GRACE
Ephesians 2:1-5 “And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved),”

And so let’s just be clear about this now.

If you are one of those whose name is written in the book of life,
Then that is something that God did for you.

• He took a dead sinner, who only wanted sin, and who deserved judgment, and
instead decided to give them grace.
• Grace in the form that He made them alive, changed their desires, and gave
them an inheritance instead of judgment.

He didn’t do that for everyone.
But He did that for some according to His sovereign pleasure.

Those He did that for didn’t deserve it, but He did it anyway.
He revealed to them who the Son was so that they might be saved.

And if you are a recipient of that grace
Can you see why you should be rejoicing?

You could still be in judgment! You could still be headed to hell!

We can rejoice in that for the rest of eternity.

Now, at this point, I do want to say something else,
Just to avoid the confusion.

Just in case someone in here is starting to panic,
• “What if I’m not chosen?”
• “What if God didn’t pick me?”

Then let me say this.
Do you want to be chosen?
Then come and submit your life to Jesus Christ.

John 6:37 “All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will certainly not cast out.”

If you want to come you absolutely can.

Well preacher, doesn’t that contradict the sovereignty stuff you just preached?
No, not at all.

Because the fact is this:
• If somehow this morning you know that Jesus is the Christ
• And you have also been made aware that you’re headed for judgment
• And you now desire to submit to Christ and be saved

If that is happening in your life, it’s only because God did that.
• He showed you who Jesus is.
• He showed you how badly you need Him.
• He is drawing you to Him.

So if you want to come, by all means.
God has never (and will never)
Refuse a repentant sinner who wants to be saved.

Because sinners don’t repent if God doesn’t cause it.
It’s all a matter of grace.
Every sinner saved is saved by grace alone.

And look, there’s still more here to this statement of Jesus that needs to be understood, but we’ll have to jump into that next time.

This morning I want you to understand the basis for Christian Rejoicing!

• Not only were the 70 commended for rejoicing in their Spiritual Authority.
• Not only were they commanded to rejoice in their Secure Salvation
• But Jesus Himself rejoiced in God’s Sovereign Grace

And church we should be praising God for this.
We should rejoice in this daily.

Regardless of your ups and downs.
Regardless of you trials and tribulations.

The God of the universe chose to be gracious to you
Even in the midst of your rebellion against Him.

• He gave you His truth
• He revealed it through His Spirit
• He showed you His Son, who also atoned for your sin
• He chose to take you from being an enemy and make you a son
• He gave you an inheritance in heaven where your name is written down permanently

REJOICE IN THAT!

How it must grieve the Father,
That He has done such a wonderful thing for His children.

AND INSTEAD OF PRAISING HIM for it and rejoicing in it,
They instead reject His sovereignty and say
“Any God who would do this is a monster.”

On the contrary!
Any God who would do what He did, is the most gracious Savior ever!

Jesus praised Him for this!
You should as well.

1 Corinthians 1:30-31 “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”

A Song For Life
Psalms 27
February 17, 2019

So tonight we talk a little bit about life.
I know as a kid I always loved it when my parents would say,
“Well that’s just life.”

And we’ve heard them all.
• “Life isn’t fair”
• “Life is hard”
• “What can go wrong, will go wrong”
• “Eat right, exercise daily, die anyway”
• “Money talks, it says goodbye”
• “You have to be tough to get old”
• “No matter how bad things are, you can always make things worse”

The Bible even has one author in particular
Who made sure you picked up on just how hard life is.

Solomon said:
Ecclesiastes 1:14-15 “I have seen all the works which have been done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind. What is crooked cannot be straightened and what is lacking cannot be counted.”

Ecclesiastes 2:22-23 “For what does a man get in all his labor and in his striving with which he labors under the sun? Because all his days his task is painful and grievous; even at night his mind does not rest. This too is vanity.”

Ecclesiastes 4:1-3 “Then I looked again at all the acts of oppression which were being done under the sun. And behold I saw the tears of the oppressed and that they had no one to comfort them; and on the side of their oppressors was power, but they had no one to comfort them. So I congratulated the dead who are already dead more than the living who are still living. But better off than both of them is the one who has never existed, who has never seen the evil activity that is done under the sun.”

Ecclesiastes 5:13-17 “There is a grievous evil which I have seen under the sun: riches being hoarded by their owner to his hurt. When those riches were lost through a bad investment and he had fathered a son, then there was nothing to support him. As he had come naked from his mother’s womb, so will he return as he came. He will take nothing from the fruit of his labor that he can carry in his hand. This also is a grievous evil — exactly as a man is born, thus will he die. So what is the advantage to him who toils for the wind? Throughout his life he also eats in darkness with great vexation, sickness and anger.”

Ecclesiastes 8:14 “There is futility which is done on the earth, that is, there are righteous men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the wicked. On the other hand, there are evil men to whom it happens according to the deeds of the righteous. I say that this too is futility.”

Ecclesiastes 10:8-9 “He who digs a pit may fall into it, and a serpent may bite him who breaks through a wall. He who quarries stones may be hurt by them, and he who splits logs may be endangered by them.”

Ecclesiastes 11:8 “Indeed, if a man should live many years, let him rejoice in them all, and let him remember the days of darkness, for they will be many. Everything that is to come will be futility.”

Ecclesiastes 11:10 “So, remove grief and anger from your heart and put away pain from your body, because childhood and the prime of life are fleeting.”

Well, how’s that for a depressing way to start tonight?

LIFE IS HARD
• And that is to say nothing about the promise of persecution for a believer.
• Or the promise of suffering from God in order to sanctify us.

You get it.
Life is hard.
You struggle against it every single day.

The question is: HOW DO YOU FACE IT?

Well, that’s what this song is about.
It’s about facing the ever increasingly difficult journey of life.
And the song is good advice.

It’s all about who God is during life’s most difficult moments.
There are 4 stanzas tonight.

God is:
#1 MY CONFIDENCE IN ANXIETY
Psalms 27:1-3

When you read these first 3 verses from David you quickly pick up on David’s confident approach.

The emphasis in that first verse is on the words “The LORD is…”

It is similar to when we looked at the 23rd Psalm and saw
“The LORD is my shepherd”

The focus wasn’t so much on the fact that David had a shepherd,
But more so on the fact that the LORD was that shepherd.

That’s the same mentality here.
It’s not so much a focus on the fact that David has “light” and “salvation” and a “defense” as it is that THE LORD IS ALL THOSE THINGS FOR HIM.

“The LORD is my light and my salvation”
“The LORD is the defense of my life”

We’re talking about a person who is in good hands
If he can point to the LORD of heaven and earth as his personal deliverer.

David has the ultimate body guard here.

And so he rightly asks the questions,
“Whom shall I fear?” and “Whom shall I dread?”

I mean, good grief, if the LORD is the one who has your back and who stands as your defense, what enemy are you really afraid of?

And David follows this with a TESTIMONY OF PAST DELIVERANCES.
(2) “When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh, My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.”

• Maybe he refers to the lion and the bear that tried to steal his sheep
• Maybe he refers to the giant that tried to remove his head
• Maybe he refers to the King who tried to run him through with a spear
• Maybe he refers to the Philistines who tried to kill him in battle

Pick one and you find the same outcome every time.
The LORD delivered him.
David’s enemies “stumbled and fell”.

And based upon that reality David has a STATEMENT OF CONFIDENCE.
(3) “Though a host encamp against me, My heart will not fear; though a war arise against me, In spite of this I shall be confident.”

And so now you understand these first 3 verses.
• David is currently in a time of ease.
• At this very moment things are going pretty smoothly.

And yet David knows how life works.
• It may be good today and the bottom may fall out tomorrow.
• We know the nature of tragedy in life.

We call it the “What if’s”
Has Satan ever played that game with you?

It’s called “worry”
It’s called “anxiety”

It’s allowing the fear of what might happen
Or what could happen grip you as though it will happen.

You are aware the Bible has something to say about anxiety.
Philippians 4:6-7 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Jesus spoke of it as well, especially in regard to money.
Matthew 6:31-34 “Do not worry then, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear for clothing?’ “For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; for your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. “But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you. “So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will care for itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”

And we could talk quite a bit tonight if we were so inclined about the sin of worry.
Jesus says that worrying is a lack of faith.

And so you understand why the Bible says
Not to worry or to be anxious for nothing.

AND HERE YOU SEE HOW DAVID FIGHTS IT.

He knows at any moment the bottom could drop out.
• That’s just the nature of life.
• At any moment the phone could ring and your life could be different forever.

We live here every day.
You wake up every morning with the potential for tragedy.
SO HOW DO YOU HANDLE THE ANXIETY OF THAT?

Well I can show you how David did.
HE FOCUSED ON WHO GOD IS.

“light” that is “life”.
• God is the One who gives life.
• God is the one who gives abundant life.
• God is the one who gives hope and peace and joy in life.

And it’s the understanding that regardless of what you may face,
God can still give life in the midst of it.
(Joy and peace and hope and satisfaction)

“salvation”
• This of course reminds us that no matter what we may face, God has the power to deliver us out of it.
• He can heal, He can deliver, I’ve even heard of Him raising the dead if He so chooses.

“the defense of my life”
• Which reminds us that He also has the capability to keep the tragedy from ever occurring at all.

David knew this about God.
He is more than able to handle my hardships.

DAVID ALSO FOCUSED ON ALL THAT GOD HAD DONE.

Namely those VICTORIES against the “evildoers” and “adversaries”
And “enemies” that he mentioned in verse 2.

He knows that God is able to deliver
Because He’s done it so many times before.

And based upon those two realities, David says, “I shall be confident”
That’s the opposite of worry.
That’s the opposite of anxiety.

It doesn’t matter what I face, I will face it with confidence in God.

And this is how you face the anxiety of life.

Philippians 1:18-20 “What then? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is proclaimed; and in this I rejoice. Yes, and I will rejoice, for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, according to my earnest expectation and hope, that I will not be put to shame in anything, but that with all boldness, Christ will even now, as always, be exalted in my body, whether by life or by death.”

Do you hear the confidence there?
• I’m not gonna be “put to shame”
• “this will turn out for my deliverance”
• Paul knows who his God is.

2 Corinthians 1:8-11 “For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many.”

There you have it again.
• “And He will yet deliver us”
• Paul isn’t worried about defeat, so why live in anxiety?

Romans 8:31 “What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who is against us?”

Paul may have even been thinking about this Psalm when he wrote that.

Or even when Paul knew HE WAS FACING DEATH:
2 Timothy 4:6-8 “For I am already being poured out as a drink offering, and the time of my departure has come. I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith; in the future there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day; and not only to me, but also to all who have loved His appearing.”

That sounds like a man filled with worry right there doesn’t it?

And all you are seeing is people who knew who God was
And knew what God had done.
And they walked in faith that He was still God.

They may sound overly simple, but it’s the reality.
2 Timothy 1:12 “For this reason I also suffer these things, but I am not ashamed; for I know whom I have believed and I am convinced that He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him until that day.”

• So don’t worry about what tomorrow might hold
• Don’t be anxious about anything
• Just know who your God is and what He does and be confident in Him.

God is My Confidence in Anxiety
#2 MY CONCERN IN ADVERSITY
Psalms 27:4-6

Well now the situation has progressed.
• The first 3 verses just spoke of what could be if the situation arose.
• Now David speaks of “adverse conditions”

David can see the storm clouds on the horizon.
The conditions are right for things to go wrong.

And honestly, in America, we are here too.
I’m not a big politics guy as you well know.
I don’t follow closely the daily grind of political maneuvering and media propaganda.

BUT I WILL SAY THIS:
• America flaunts sexual immorality
• America fights for homosexual acceptance
• America aborts 3,000 babies per day
• America lives in defiance of authority in every level of authority (family,
government, workplace, church, etc.)

You just don’t live as a nation in such blatant defiance of God
Without judgment.
If you can’t see the storm coming your head is in the sand.

According to Romans 1, we’re already under judgment.

Well David wasn’t likely talking about the judgment of God here,
As much as he was referring to the uprising of enemies,
But the timing is the same.

David isn’t in trouble yet, but he can see it coming.

The question is: WHAT DO YOU DO WHEN YOU SEE THE STORM APPROACHING?

You’ll love David’s answer:
(4-5) “One thing I have asked from the LORD, that I shall 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 to meditate in His temple. For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; In the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock.”

In view of the coming storm, David says, “I do one thing”
• I seek the LORD.
• I dwell in His house
• So I can gaze on His beauty
• And I can meditate on who He is

Really David?
• Don’t you think you should be rationing the perishable goods?
• Don’t you think you should be organizing the army?
• Don’t you think you should be finishing up the bomb shelter?

No, I just draw near to God.
GOD IS MY MAIN CONCERN, NOT THE STORM.

WHY?
“For in the day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; In the secret place of His tent He will hide me; He will lift me up on a rock.”

And so, even though David can see the enemy army approaching,
He’s not panicking, he’s drawing near to God.

(6) “And now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me, And I will offer in His tent sacrifices with shouts of joy; I will sing, yes, I will sing praises to the LORD.”

• David continues to praise God.
• David continues to seek God.
• David continues to meditate on the goodness of God.

What a way to handle the coming storm!

But we see them today.
I think they call them “Doomsday Preppers”
• The people with secret bomb shelters
• And stockpiled food reserves.

But David finds it much more beneficial
To be in fellowship with the One
Who feeds the birds and clothes the fields.

Jesus gave an analogy that fits here.
Matthew 7:24-27 “Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell — and great was its fall.”

Now that’s how your supposed to prep for doomsday.
You tie your house to the only thing that will withstand the storm.

YOU CLING TO CHRIST!!
• David says the same thing.
• I’m going to seek God.
• I’m going to “behold the beauty of the LORD”
• I’m going to “meditate in His temple”

And I’m going to let God handle the coming storm
And hide me as it passes by.

WHAT A GREAT WAY TO DO LIFE.

SO…
• When there is no trouble on the horizon, but only the potential of trouble, just place your confidence in God and don’t give in to anxiety.

• And on the day when the trouble emerges and it looks as though it could get bad, don’t lose your head, just draw near to God and let Him carry you through the trial.

He is My Confidence in Anxiety
He is My Concern in Adversity
#3 MY COMPANION IN ABANDONMENT
Psalms 27:7-10

Well the situation has escalated even more.
Now the trouble has hit and it is apparently so bad that
Everyone has deserted David.

He says in verse 10 “For my father and my mother have forsaken me.”

IT HAPPENS DOESN’T IT?

We saw it with Christ:
Mark 14:43-52 “Immediately while He was still speaking, Judas, one of the twelve, came up accompanied by a crowd with swords and clubs, who were from the chief priests and the scribes and the elders. Now he who was betraying Him had given them a signal, saying, “Whomever I kiss, He is the one; seize Him and lead Him away under guard.” After coming, Judas immediately went to Him, saying, “Rabbi!” and kissed Him. They laid hands on Him and seized Him. But one of those who stood by drew his sword, and struck the slave of the high priest and cut off his ear. And Jesus said to them, “Have you come out with swords and clubs to arrest Me, as you would against a robber? “Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me; but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.” And they all left Him and fled. A young man was following Him, wearing nothing but a linen sheet over his naked body; and they seized him. But he pulled free of the linen sheet and escaped naked.”

Paul spoke of it:
2 Timothy 4:16 “At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them.”

In fact Jesus even promised it would happen.
Matthew 10:21-22 “Brother will betray brother to death, and a father his child; and children will rise up against parents and cause them to be put to death. “You will be hated by all because of My name, but it is the one who has endured to the end who will be saved.”

And I feel certain that you have felt at least a taste of this sting as you have followed Christ.
• We’ve all lost friends…
• We’ve all lost allies…
• Some have even lost family members to this.

David is here feeling the sting of abandonment.

And so it only stands to reason that he runs to the LORD.
(7-9) “Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice, And be gracious to me and answer me. When You said, “Seek My face,” my heart said to You, “Your face, O LORD, I shall seek.” Do not hide Your face from me, Do not turn Your servant away in anger; You have been my help; Do not abandon me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation!”

You can hear David’s desperation.
God, everyone has left me, even my parents, don’t You leave me too!

But I also want you to see David’s commitment.
(8) “When You said, “Seek My face” my heart said to You, “Your face, O LORD, I shall seek.”

The implication here is that it WASN’T A NATURAL RESPONSE.
David is calling back upon a previous commitment that he made to God.

God had called David to seek His face,
And David had committed to do that.

And now that is hard!
It would be much easier to seek after those people who had deserted him
And try to rally the troops again.

But here David is expressing that he will honor his commitment
To continue to seek God’s face.

So here I am God – I’m seeking You – Don’t abandon me!

Now the beauty of it is that DAVID KNOWS HE WON’T.
(10) “For my father and my mother have forsaken me, But the LORD will take me up.”

Everyone may have left, but God won’t!

Isn’t that what Jesus promised?
Matthew 28:20 “teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

The writer of Hebrews reminded those persecuted believers of the fact;
Hebrews 13:5b-6 “…for He Himself has said, “I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU,” so that we confidently say, “THE LORD IS MY HELPER, I WILL NOT BE AFRAID. WHAT WILL MAN DO TO ME?”

Jeremiah experienced it:
Jeremiah 20:10-11 “For I have heard the whispering of many, “Terror on every side! Denounce him; yes, let us denounce him!” All my trusted friends, Watching for my fall, say: “Perhaps he will be deceived, so that we may prevail against him And take our revenge on him.” But the LORD is with me like a dread champion; Therefore my persecutors will stumble and not prevail. They will be utterly ashamed, because they have failed, With an everlasting disgrace that will not be forgotten.”

And incidentally, let me read a little more of that passage where Paul spoke of everyone deserting him.
2 Timothy 4:16-18 “At my first defense no one supported me, but all deserted me; may it not be counted against them. But the Lord stood with me and strengthened me, so that through me the proclamation might be fully accomplished, and that all the Gentiles might hear; and I was rescued out of the lion’s mouth. The Lord will rescue me from every evil deed, and will bring me safely to His heavenly kingdom; to Him be the glory forever and ever. Amen.”

God never forsakes His own.
• It didn’t matter if He had to close the mouths of the lions for Daniel.
• It didn’t matter if He had to jump in the furnace with Daniel’s friends.
• It didn’t matter if He passed through the wilderness with the Israelites.

GOD NEVER LEAVES.

EVEN IN ISRAEL’S DARKEST HOURS.
• Think about the exile.
• We read in Ezekiel about how the glory of the LORD departed from the temple.

God’s presence left that temple, but it never left His people.

How do I know?
• Because I can read the book of Daniel.
• I can read the book of Esther.
• I can see how God never failed them.

And so even in life when it gets so hard that everyone leaves you,
You get to rest in the fact that
You have one companion who never will.

He is our Confidence in Anxiety
He is our Concern in Adversity
He is our Companion in Abandonment
#4 MY COURAGE IN AFFLICTION
Psalms 27:11-14

We spoke earlier about adversity.
What’s the difference between adversity and affliction?

ADVERSITY speaks of adverse conditions. A situation right for hardship.
AFFLICTION speaks the hardship being upon you.

Notice David here.
• He is already facing “the desire of my adversaries” (12)
• “False witnesses HAVE RISEN against me.”
• They “breathe out violence”

The storm is here.
The affliction is real.

It began in the first verses as a possibility.
It became a likely reality
And NOW IT IS HERE.

What do you do?

Here’s what David did.
(11) “Teach me Your way, O LORD, And lead me in a level path Because of my foes.”

David submitted to the LORD and simply asked for God to guide his steps.
• It is the opposite of arrogance.
• It is the opposite of pride.

God, I’m following You, guide me.

(12) “Do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries, For false witnesses have risen against me, And such as breathe out violence.”

As David follows, He also prays that God will deliver
As He has done so many times in the past.

But what is even more impressive is that
Even while David prays
You don’t get some sense of despair of panic.

In fact, David says he had the exact opposite of despair.

(13) “I would have despaired unless I had believed that I would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.”

Isn’t that a great statement!
• I’m well aware of why non-believers despair.
• I’m well aware of why they are given over to anxiety and panic and gloom.

But believers need not dwell here!
• We have a God who delivers
• We have a God who never forsakes.
• We have a God who has promised to save.

And even “in the land of the living”
Meaning David isn’t just talking about eternity here.

He is counting on God’s earthly deliverance.

2 Corinthians 4:8 “we are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not despairing;”

And according to David
The reason we don’t despair is because we believe.
FAITH KEEPS US FROM DESPAIRING

“I would have despaired unless I had believed”

And so, the advice is clear and concise.
(14) “Wait for the LORD; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the LORD.”

And what a great way to walk through affliction!

Consider the apostle Paul:
Acts 16:22-25 “The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief magistrates tore their robes off them and proceeded to order them to be beaten with rods. When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to guard them securely; and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks. But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them;”

• That’s just waiting on the LORD.
• That’s just trusting Him and praising Him and letting Him do what He does.
• There’s no despair
• There’s no anxiety
• Just faith

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.”

• Just trust God.
• Wait on Him.

We don’t walk alone and we don’t walk without help.
2 Timothy 3:10-11 “Now you followed my teaching, conduct, purpose, faith, patience, love, perseverance, persecutions, and sufferings, such as happened to me at Antioch, at Iconium and at Lystra; what persecutions I endured, and out of them all the Lord rescued me!”

There it is again.
“and out of them all the Lord rescued me!”

And if you’ll stop and take inventory you’ll see that
HE HAS DONE THE SAME FOR YOU.

That doesn’t mean He hasn’t allowed affliction.
Sometimes He even brings it.
But He never allows the affliction to have you.

HE DELIVERS, TRUST HIM.

WELL, THIS IS DAVID’S LIFE SONG

When you face life:

DON’T GIVE IN TO ANXIETY
• Focus on who God is and what He has done and don’t worry about tomorrow and the potentials that it could hold.

DON’T FOCUS ON ADVERSITY
• Focus on God and praising Him. He is the One who hides you in the midst of the storm. Don’t look at the giant, look at God.

DON’T FRET ABANDONMENT
• Though everyone should leave and forsake you, God never will. He promised.

DON’T FAINT IN AFFLICTION
• Wait on the LORD and be courageous. He never fails and He never abandons His own.

He is our CONFIDENCE
He is our CONCERN
He is our COMPANION
He is our COURAGE

He is the way we go through life.

The Basis For Christian Joy – Part 3
Luke 10:17-24 (21)
February 17, 2019

As you know, we are in sort of a mini-section here in Luke’s gospel
Where we are taking the opportunity to talk about
“The Basis for Christian Joy”

And the reason we are doing this is because
In this passage we have a unique revelation.

Verse 21 marks the only time in Scripture
Where it is specifically stated that Jesus “rejoiced”

We are NOT going to assume that this is the only time He ever did.
• “Joy” is in reality a fruit of the Spirit.
• That means that joy is part of the very nature of Christ.
• And we are aware of other realities, like that in Luke 15 which reminds that us that there is more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who don’t.

Certainly then Jesus would have rejoiced in things like:
• The salvation of Matthew
• The salvation of the woman at the well
• The salvation of Zaccheus

It’s hard to imagine Jesus not rejoicing
• With lepers who were cleansed
• Or paralytics who could walk
• Or parents who had their dead children raised.

We are not insinuating that Jesus never rejoiced.
Yet, this is the only time Scripture specifically states His rejoicing.

And since it is also coupled with the clear rejoicing of the 70
And Jesus issuing commands about their rejoicing;
It becomes a good opportunity for us to discuss this topic.

WHAT DO CHRISTIANS REJOICE IN?
• IT CAN’T BE STUFF – since we are told not to love this world or to store up treasures here on earth, and since we see believers who joyfully accepted the seizure of their property
• IT CAN’T BE COMFORT – since we are commanded to count it all joy when we suffer various trials, and since we see believers who were beaten and rejoiced that they had been counted worthy to suffer for Christ.
• IT CAN’T BE OUR REPUTATION – since we are considered fools for Christ, and since Peter told us if anyone suffers as a Christian he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name.
• IT CERTAINLY CAN’T BE THE FLESH – since we crucify the flesh with its passions and desires and our greatest longing and joy is to walk in truth.

Well, if we don’t rejoice in all those things like the world does,
THEN WHAT DO CHRISTIANS REJOICE IN?

WELL THAT’S WHAT WE’VE BEEN LOOKING AT.
• It all started with the 70 returning from their spiritual mission and they were rejoicing.
• Jesus commended that rejoicing and then actually took the opportunity to take their understanding of joy even further.

We have here 4 reasons for Christian rejoicing.
#1 SPIRITUAL AUTHORITY
Luke 10:17-19

This was the initial rejoicing of the 70.
• They had expected to go and most likely to be rejected,
• And yet they were surprised when they realized that the demons were subject to them.

More than just the ability to cast out demons, they saw the lost saved.
Jesus COMMENDED this by saying that as they went
He had been “watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.”

Beyond that Jesus revealed to the 70
• That not only did they have authority over the enemy, but they themselves were also off-limits from him. He said, “nothing will injure you”

Nothing can inflict a spiritual injury that can pull you away from Me.

And that statement quickly led us into the next point of rejoicing.
#2 SECURE SALVATION
Luke 10:20

Certainly spiritual authority is a reason for rejoicing,
But comparatively speaking, there is something far greater to rejoice in.
“that your names are recorded in heaven.”

And we talked about this.
• We looked at the various places this terminology was used.
• And we discerned that we are talking here about the heavenly roster, the “Lamb’s book of life.”
• It is the record of the redeemed.
• It is the registry of the bride of Christ.
• Those whose names are recorded there gain entrance into the heavenly city.
• Those whose names are not recorded there are thrown into the “lake of fire”.

And we also learned that this book was written “before the foundation of the world.”
• It was the sovereign decision of God to choose a bride for His Son.
• And even when this bride proved unworthy, the Father sent the Son to come and pay the price of her redemption.

That is why the book is also called
“the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain”
It is the list of those whom Christ atoned for on the cross.

And since Christ promised that
He will not erase our names from the book,
WE REJOICE THEN IN THIS SECURE SALVATION.

So certainly we rejoice in spiritual authority and victories.
But ultimately we rejoice in the victory
That was won on our behalf through Christ in saving us.

And we rejoice that regardless of what we face in this life,
We know we have an eternal home that awaits.

That is why Christians rejoice.

Well, this morning we want to look at THE 3RD REASON.
And it has already been alluded to quite extensively.

We talked about how God chose us before the foundation of the world
And recorded our names in the book of life.

That understanding leads to the 3rd basis for Christian joy
#3 SOVEREIGN GRACE
Luke 10:21-23

And while Jesus commended rejoicing in spiritual authority…
And while Jesus commanded rejoicing in secure salvation…
Jesus Himself celebrated the reality of sovereign grace

“At that very time (literally hour) He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit”

As Jesus explained the reality of God’s sovereign decision
To record the names of the 70 in the heavenly roster;
It no doubt flooded Jesus’ mind again to the sovereign work of God
That has occurred in regard to salvation.
AND AT THIS EVEN JESUS REJOICED.

However what may seem peculiar to some is WHAT specifically He rejoiced in.

He said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.”

Now let’s think about this for a moment.
Just to make sure you understand the setting for His statement of praise.

I want to read this passage to you from Matthew’s gospel
Because I want you to see where Matthew links this statement.

Matthew 11:20-26 “Then He began to denounce the cities in which most of His miracles were done, because they did not repent. “Woe to you, Chorazin! Woe to you, Bethsaida! For if the miracles had occurred in Tyre and Sidon which occurred in you, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. “Nevertheless I say to you, it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon inthe day of judgment than for you. “And you, Capernaum, will not be exalted to heaven, will you? You will descend to Hades; for if the miracles had occurred in Sodom which occurred in you, it would have remained to this day. “Nevertheless I say to you that it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment, than for you.” At that time Jesus said, “I praise You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. “Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.”

Now you recognize that first part of the passage.
• We looked at it in Luke 10 back in verses 13-15 as Jesus was preparing to
send out the 70.
• Jesus just spoke of those cities that would not believe despite the miracles
they saw, and Jesus announced their judgment.

But Matthew then skips the information about the 70 going and returning
And rejoicing in their authority.

Instead, Matthew jumps straight to the statement of praise from Jesus.
(Incidentally when Matthew says “At that time” He doesn’t use the word HORA that Luke uses (hour) he uses KAIROS (time))

But Matthew undoubtedly links the statement of Jesus’ praise
About the truth being hidden from the “wise and intelligent”
To those cities that saw Him and didn’t believe.

Does that help you understand what we are seeing here in Luke’s gospel?
• The “wise and intelligent” are those who have seen the miracles of Jesus and heard the preaching of Jesus but have not believed.
• It is cities like Capernaum and Bethsaida and Chorazin

Incidentally then, the “infants” would be those who did believe.
• He uses “infants” because they are uneducated, untrained, have no experience, and thus are not leaned upon for insight by anyone.

But perhaps the peculiar part in all of this is that Jesus is rejoicing.

Jesus actually says, “I praise You Father…that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants.”

So it is puzzling to some that Jesus would rejoice in this,
Or praise God for this.

I thought we were supposed to praise God when sinners got saved,
But here Jesus is recorded as rejoicing in the fact
That God hid the truth from them.

And let me just point out (as a side note) for a moment:
That in our world there are many WHO HATE the doctrines of grace.
• I’ve encountered many who vehemently fight the doctrine of election as it is supposedly unfair and makes God look like a monster. (so they say)
• They fight it, they argue with it, they hate it.
• But, read Luke 10:21 and you will see that Jesus praised God for it! Jesus rejoiced in it!

When Jesus contemplated the sovereign grace of God
And the fact that God hid truth from some and revealed it to others, THIS DID NOT GRIEVE JESUS, IT LED HIM TO PRAISE.

That tells us where we should land on this doctrine.
You can’t hate a doctrine Jesus clearly rejoiced in.

But let me also tell you that there are two reasons why even genuine believers may hate this doctrine.

1) PRIDE
• Let me be the first to tell you that the doctrines of grace and God’s sovereign election are absolutely pride crushing.
• There is no room for man to get any glory when salvation is a matter of God’s sovereign prerogative and not man’s will.
• Election ends in SOLI DEO GLORIA (the glory of God alone)

And some people, who think too highly of the ability and will of man, and who think too highly of their evangelistic skill struggle with this doctrine.

2) IGNORANCE
• They just don’t understand it. They don’t understand what the Bible teaches about it.

So we’re going to take some time here
And see if we can’t certainly take care of that second problem
And trust that God will take care of the first one.

BUT JESUS HERE IS FOUND IN SEEMINGLY PECULIAR FASHION.
He is rejoicing in the Holy Spirit and He is praising God
For hiding things from the wise and for revealing them to infants.

(If He had just praised God for revealing it to infants we’d have no problem, but it’s the fact that Jesus adds praise to God for hiding these things from the wise)
What are we to make of that?

Well, there is actually a much longer and more detailed passage of Scripture that takes this reality and explains it much more fully.

And I think if we can look at it
That it will answer a lot of the questions that you may have
About why Jesus is rejoicing here.

TURN TO: 1 Corinthians 1:18

Now the statement actually comes as Paul is rebuking the Corinthians for their pride and division in the body.
• Namely their division is regarding which spiritual leader they identify with.
• Some actually seek to gain credit by saying they are “of Paul”
• Paul balks at this notion by saying that he wasn’t crucified for anyone, and no one was baptized in his name, and beyond that he “didn’t baptize anyone”.

And then Paul says (17) “For Christ did not send me to baptize, but to preach the gospel, not in cleverness of speech, so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.”

Now that’s an interesting statement.
We understand the preaching the gospel part.
But Paul says he was specifically sent
To preach the gospel “NOT in cleverness of speech”

That is to say he was NOT TO USE
Worldly logic or wisdom or manipulation or debate.

And someone would say “Why?”
And Paul’s answer “so that the cross of Christ would not be made void.”

So we learn that to preach the gospel
While trying to debate it on an intellectual or “wise” level
Is to actually make void the message of the cross.

That’s a pretty serious issue, wouldn’t you say?
That if you add human wisdom and logic to your presentation of the gospel, all you are doing is stripping the message of all it’s real power.

Incidentally, that’s not the only time Paul said this:
1 Timothy 6:20-21 “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, avoiding worldly and empty chatter and the opposing arguments of what is falsely called “knowledge” — which some have professed and thus gone astray from the faith. Grace be with you.”

Paul told Timothy to stick to the treasure of the gospel and avoid the so called “knowledge” of this world. Men who cling to that actually go “astray from the faith”.

That’s a remarkable statement!
(and we could say so much here about the present-day fascination with scientific argument and “apologetics” that has infiltrated our preaching)

But you have Paul making it clear that in the preaching of the gospel
He is avoiding worldly wise and knowledgeable arguments.

If you want him to clarify it even more just look to chapter 2 here in 1 Corinthians.

(READ 2:1-5)
It’s clear again isn’t.
• He avoided “superiority of speech” and “wisdom”.
• In fact he “determined to know nothing”
• Because he wanted their faith to rest on God’s power not his power of debate.

Paul saw the addition of human argument
As a weakening of the gospel, not as a valuable supplement.

ARE WE CLEAR THERE?

WELL, LET’S SEE WHY.
And the reason is because Paul understood the same thing Jesus understood.

(1:18) “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”

“the word of the cross” is the message of the gospel.
• It highlights the sinfulness of man (why the cross was necessary)
• It highlights the inability of man (you couldn’t be righteous on your own)
• It highlights the sufficiency of Christ (God crushed Him and accepted you)
• It highlights the grace and love and mercy of God (to atone for us)

And Paul reminds that the world thinks that is “foolishness”
“foolishness” there is MORIA in the Greek.
It’s where we get our word for “moron”.

That’s what the world thinks about this message.
They think it’s moronic.

He’ll actually tell you why later in verse 22 saying, “For Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom”

• Jews want demonstrations of power, not the weakness death on a cross
• Greeks want demonstrations of wisdom, not the foolishness of scorn and shame on a cross.

In other words the notion that the God of the universe
Would subject Himself to such abuse and shame
Was beyond believable to them and they rejected it.

Now, we know there is MORE TO THEIR UNBELIEF than that.
We also know that:
• “the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving” (2 Cor. 4:4)
• “unrighteous men suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Rom. 1:18)
• “everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light for fear that his deeds will be exposed” (Jn. 3:20)

But we understand something of why the world hates the cross.
AND THE POINT IS THAT for those seeking “earthly power”
Or for those seeking “earthly wisdom”
THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS IS NOT ENOUGH TO TURN THEM.

Those people think that message is foolish.
(And that’s why so many today have abandoned that message for something more spectacular or for something more intellectual)

But Paul says the gospel is foolish to them.

FURTHERMORE: Paul says that God made it like this on purpose.
(this was no accident)

(1:19) “For it is written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.”

Paul quotes there from Isaiah 29:14

And in our search for understanding, we have to look at this quickly.
(You’re more familiar with this than you know)

Isaiah 29:13-14 “Then the Lord said, “Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote, Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people, wondrously marvelous; And the wisdom of their wise men will perish, And the discernment of their discerning men will be concealed.”

Recognize that passage?
• We just talked about it last Sunday night
• Jesus applied it to the Jews in Matthew 15

It is a passage that speaks of people who don’t love God.
• Their religion is external, but they do not believe.
• And God’s response was that He would deal in such a way with them as to
show the utter foolishness of their plan.

They thought that through their own “works” and “intellect”
That they could devise a religious scheme
That would make them pleasing to God.

God was going to show just how foolish their plan was.

AND THE MEANS BY WHICH GOD SHOWED THEM FOOLISH
WAS THROUGH THE MESSAGE OF THE CROSS.

So, when we preach the cross,
We aren’t just revealing the salvation of God,
WE ARE ALSO exposing the foolishness of worldly wisdom.

AND TO PROVE THAT, Paul in effect tells the congregation to just look around at each other, while he asks this question: (1:20) “Where is the wise man? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age?

THE ANSWER: They aren’t here. (they don’t believe, they aren’t saved)

In all their wisdom, and in all they know, and in all their ability,
They don’t know the most important piece of information
That has ever entered the world.
THEY DON’T KNOW HOW TO BE JUSTIFIED IN THE SIGHT OF GOD.

• They can operate on the brain…
• They can put a man on the moon…
• They can build a bomb that will split an atom…
• They can design buildings that will reach the heavens…
• They can explain mysteries you and I know nothing about…
• They are smart…no doubt about it.

They know how to answer all the problems of physics or how to explain the wonders of chemistry or biology, BUT NOT how to be just before God.

What else can be deduced but:
That their great knowledge and wisdom has ultimately failed them?

To which Paul says:
“Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?”

I mean, you can actually become a rocket scientist, but if you still don’t know how to be just before God, what is your education really worth?

THE POINT: MAN’S WISDOM DOES NOT LEAD TO SALVATION

And again, God DETERMINED for it to be this way.
(1:21) “For since in the wisdom of God the world through its wisdom did not come to know God, God was well-pleased through the foolishness of the message preached to save those who believe.”

Now take that statement for a second.
“For since…the world in its wisdom did not come to know God”

Remember Romans 1?
Romans 1:18-22 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools,”

Since the world didn’t use their wisdom to know God,
God ultimately condemned them by making the truth of salvation that which was too foolish for them to believe.

(1:22-25) “For indeed Jews ask for signs and Greeks search for wisdom; but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men.”

And what Paul is saying then is becoming clear to us.
1. When I come I only preach the cross even though it is a foolish to the wise.
2. But I preach the cross because it is God’s ordained message and the way that He saves those who believe.
3. So in this message (which the world regards as foolish) God actually puts His power and wisdom on display because He saves people with it.
4. Thus, God proves His wisdom as superior to the world’s and God proves His power as superior to the world’s.

In other words, the world can mock all they want
About how foolish the message of the cross is,
But the reality is that their “wise” message isn’t saving anyone,
But God’s “foolish” message is.

You may think it foolish, but in the end, you’ll see who the real fool is.

• So you have arrogant man who in their “wisdom” decided not to seek God because they didn’t need His help.
• And you have God then who proved their “foolishness” by saving men in a way they were too smart to reject.

Can you see the issue here is credit and the glory of God?
Can you see that God is not about to let man get the glory for salvation?
He makes a mockery of the wisdom of the wise because the glory is His.

But the result was salvation, but not to the wise or the strong.

And Paul again says, “Look Around”
(1:26-31) “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble; but God has chosen the foolish things of the world to shame the wise, and 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, so that He may nullify the things that are, so that no man may boast before God. But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption, so that, just as it is written, “LET HIM WHO BOASTS, BOAST IN THE LORD.”

So perhaps now you’re seeing more as to why God did it this way.
• By orchestrating a salvation too foolish for the “wise”
• And by orchestrating a salvation too weak for the “strong”

God not only shamed their supposed wisdom and strength,
But He also put His own glory on display.

If a smart man is saved by his intellect
Or a strong man is saved by his strength,
Then the glory for salvation goes to the wise man and the strong man.

But if a foolish man is saved in spite of his foolishness
And a weak man is saved in spite of his weakness
Then all the glory goes to God.

Jeremiah said the same thing:
Jeremiah 9:23-24 “Thus says the LORD, “Let not a wise man boast of his wisdom, and 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, that I am the LORD who exercises lovingkindness, justice and righteousness on earth; for I delight in these things,” declares the LORD.”

Now that is an explanation as to why God hid salvation from the wise
And revealed it to infants.

But that is not all there is to understand.
For in chapter 2 Paul begins to explain HOW the foolish and the weak were able to come to the knowledge of salvation.

(READ: 1 Cor. 2:6-16)

There Paul does acknowledge that he does in fact preach a deep wisdom.
• It is a wisdom of God that far exceeds earthly wisdom.
• It is a wisdom that the wise didn’t understand, and they proved it by crucifying Christ.
• It is a wisdom which man could never think of and which on his own he could never understand. In fact it is wisdom that is contained in a mystery.

But the question is, how do the foolish come to know this wisdom that is too deep even for the wise of the world to understand?

And here is the answer:
(10-12) “For to us God revealed them through the Spirit; for the Spirit searches all things, even the depths of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him? Even so the thoughts of God no one knows except the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, so that we may know the things freely given to us by God,”

The Holy Spirit is the agent which takes foolish men
And reveals to them the things that only God knows.

• It is knowledge not obtained through worldly studies.
• It is wisdom too deep for philosophy.
• It is wisdom which only comes as a revelation of God’s own Holy Spirit.

A natural man can’t understand it.
Only a man whom God chooses to grant it to can get it.

And if you want the ULTIMATE APPLICATION here to all of this insight,
Paul gives it in chapter 3.

(3:18-20) “Let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks that he is wise in this age, he must become foolish, so that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is foolishness before God. For it is written, “He is THE ONE WHO CATCHES THE WISE IN THEIR CRAFTINESS”; and again, “THE LORD KNOWS THE REASONINGS of the wise, THAT THEY ARE USELESS.”

Paul says you must become foolish.
• That is, you must deny your reliance upon your own understanding as sufficient for salvation.
• You must deny your reliance upon your own power as sufficient to save.
• You must embrace the message that the world regards as foolish.
• You must embrace the power that the world rejects.

And if you will humble yourself in that way,
Then you will receive the spiritual revelation of God’s salvation
Which is in fact far superior to anything the world knows.

Now, I realize that that was a sort of A CRASH COURSE through Paul’s explanation of why God shamed the wise and exalted the foolish.

But take that information and let’s return now
And listen again to what Jesus said.

Back in Luke 10

“At that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, “I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.”

Now we’re going to have to stretch our explanation of this passage into next week, but do you at least now see the basis behind it?

You have Jesus praising God
For hiding the truths of salvation from the wise.

Well, now we know why.
• He was shaming their wisdom and their arrogant pride to think they could figure out salvation on their own.
• He was shaming their power and their arrogant pride to think they can accomplish salvation on their own.

And that’s why He only revealed salvation to “infants”.
Those too ignorant and those too weak to accomplish anything on their own.

And in doing so He proved that all wisdom and all power is His.
That is why Jesus said, “this way was well-pleasing in Your sight”

You did it according to Your will
Because it pleased You and glorified You.

It also helps us understand why Luke says that Jesus began by rejoicing “greatly in the Holy Spirit”

Because it is the Holy Spirit who is the agent of this revelation
• It is the Holy Spirit who took that mystery of God’s salvation and revealed it the infants and allowed them to be saved.

SO WHAT YOU HAVE HERE IS
• Jesus witnessing the spiritual victories of the 70 and then discussing the
secure and sovereign salvation of the 70.

• And as Jesus contemplates that these 70 are not the wise and intelligent like
the people of Capernaum or Bethsaida who rejected the message, but are
instead the foolish infants by worldly standards Jesus rejoiced!

He rejoiced that God had proven Himself wise by humiliating the wise.
He rejoiced that God had proven Himself gracious by saving the foolish.
He rejoiced that God had proven Himself powerful by saving the weak.

JESUS IS REJOICING THAT THE FATHER IS SHOWING HIMSELF SOVEREIGN AND THUS GLORIFYING HIMSELF!

Does that make sense?

By seeing the salvation of the 70
(the weak and foolish infants of the world)
Jesus was blown away by the Father’s wisdom and power to save even infants like them and He praised God!

He rejoiced in the Holy Spirit
And He praised the Father

Now, we’ve got a lot more to talk about in this passage
But this morning I simply want to leave you with this simple element.

Jesus “rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit” because it was the Holy Spirit who revealed the depths of God to men who could not have otherwise known it.

Can you rejoice in that?
Absolutely!

• Can you rejoice that God chose to show you truths that you would have never discerned on your own?
• Can you acknowledge that you could have never searched or studied enough to have figured out how to save yourself, but God chose to reveal it to you through His Holy Spirit?

Yes, we can rejoice in that.
And incidentally, this is called Sovereign Grace!

That God sovereignly chose to reveal to you
What you could never have grasped on your own.

We most certainly can rejoice in that.

WE ALSO SEE THAT Jesus Praised the Father because He had “hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and…revealed them to infants”

Can you praise the Father for that?
• Can you praise God’s wisdom?
• Can you praise God’s power?
• Can you praise God for being wiser than the wisest man and stronger than the strongest man?
• Can you praise God for elevating Himself above all human wisdom and power?

Jesus did, and we do too!

Now, we’re going to work through this text a bit more next time,
But this morning just take these two basic truths.

• REJOICE that the Holy Spirit revealed to you the knowledge of salvation.
• PRAISE God that He sovereignly chose to reveal it to you.

Romans 11:33-36 “Oh, the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are His judgments and unfathomable His ways! For WHO HAS KNOWN THE MIND OF THE LORD, OR WHO BECAME HIS COUNSELOR? Or WHO HAS FIRST GIVEN TO HIM THAT IT MIGHT BE PAID BACK TO HIM AGAIN? For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen.”

The Attitude of Worship
Psalms 26
February 10, 2019

The prophet Isaiah said:
Isaiah 29:13 “Then the Lord said, “Because this people draw near with their words And honor Me with their lip service, But they remove their hearts far from Me, And their reverence for Me consists of tradition learned by rote,”

The Lord referenced there one of the problems
That was occurring in the worship of Israel.

Namely that people were committed to the form,
But had totally failed to grasp the purpose.
They were good at going through the motions,
But their hearts were not united in what they were doing.

You may remember that Jesus quoted this very verse to the Pharisees.
• In Matthew 15 after they rebuked Him because His disciples didn’t wash their
hands before they ate and thus broke the traditions of the elders.
• Jesus first confronted a specific issue of their hypocrisy and then quoted that
verse to them.

You are a people who come near
You are a people who way the right things
But in your heart, you have no desire to truly worship Me

It was this same group that earned that infamous title from Jesus.
He called them “Actors” or, in the Greek HUPOCRATES,
Or in your Bible, “Hypocrites”

• They just went through the motions.
• Like cups that were clean on the outside and dirty on the inside
• Like tombs that were adorned with jewels but full of dead men’s bones

Their actions were, for the most part, on point,
But the problem was their heart.

From these men we learn a very important lesson.
ATTITUDE MATTERS

It has never been enough to just go through the motions with God.
• Sitting through the worship service
• Singing the songs
• Knowing when to stand and when to sit and how to be quiet

That has never been enough.
God has always looks much deeper.
He looks at the heart.

This reminds us of David’s request back in Psalms 19
Psalms 19:14 “Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”

It’s not just the words we say,
But the thoughts of our heart as we say them.

The prophet Micah addressed this issue as well.
Namely that God wanted much more than just for people to complete the list of requirements.

Micah 6:6-8 “What God Requires of Man With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?”

The heart matters. Attitude matters.

We even have an entire section of Scripture called “The Beatitudes”
They focus on things like humility, and repentance, and purity of heart,
And righteous desire, and submission.

It is attitudes of people who genuinely seek God.
And thus we are certain that right worship with a wrong attitude
Is not acceptable to God.

Perhaps the most definitive statement to this regard came from Jesus as He spoke to a Samaritan woman whom He met at a well.
John 4:21-24 “Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem will you worship the Father. “You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. “But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”

The key is obviously worship and the admonition couldn’t be clearer.
When you worship God it must be “in spirit and in truth”

Now on one hand
We know the dangers of worshiping in spirit but not truth.
• That is nothing more than an emotional frenzy.
• This would be the main problem with the charismatic movement.

You can get all excited, but if the truth isn’t there,
Or if you do the wrong thing or do it in the wrong way
(See Aaron’s sons offering strange fire or Uzzah touching the Ark)
The worship is not acceptable.

But the other problem is just as bad,
And that is to worship in truth but not spirit.
• It is to accurately go through all the motions without the genuine heart of worship on the inside.
• It is to have no internal agreement with your external behavior.

That is not acceptable either.

Can we really say we have worshiped God if we sang, without even contemplating the words?
Can we really say we have worshiped if attended, but didn’t want to?

IT REALLY BEGS THE QUESTION
Why did I come?
Why have I assembled?

The LORD said it through Isaiah:
Isaiah 1:12 “When you come to appear before Me, Who requires of you this trampling of My courts?”

I mean, why even mess up the courtyard?

HAVE YOU EVER GIVEN THOUGHT TO HOW YOU’RE GOING TO WORSHIP?
• Have you ever considered if your worship is acceptable?

Or do you just sort of come and go through the motions with little concern as to whether or not God is pleased?

That’s called APATHY
And God strongly rebuked Israel for it.

Malachi 1:6-14 “‘A son honors his father, and a servant his master. Then if I am a father, where is My honor? And if I am a master, where is My respect?’ says the LORD of hosts to you, O priests who despise My name. But you say, ‘How have we despised Your name?’ “You are presenting defiled food upon My altar. But you say, ‘How have we defiled You?’ In that you say, ‘The table of the LORD is to be despised.’ “But when you present the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil? And when you present the lame and sick, is it not evil? Why not offer it to your governor? Would he be pleased with you? Or would he receive you kindly?” says the LORD of hosts. “But now will you not entreat God’s favor, that He may be gracious to us? With such an offering on your part, will He receive any of you kindly?” says the LORD of hosts. “Oh that there were one among you who would shut the gates, that you might not uselessly kindle fire on My altar! I am not pleased with you,” says the LORD of hosts, “nor will I accept an offering from you. “For from the rising of the sun even to its setting, My name will be great among the nations, and in every place incense is going to be offered to My name, and a grain offering that is pure; for My name will be great among the nations,” says the LORD of hosts. “But you are profaning it, in that you say, ‘The table of the Lord is defiled, and as for its fruit, its food is to be despised.’ “You also say, ‘My, how tiresome it is!’ And you disdainfully sniff at it,” says the LORD of hosts, “and you bring what was taken by robbery and what is lame or sick; so you bring the offering! Should I receive that from your hand?” says the LORD. “But cursed be the swindler who has a male in his flock and vows it, but sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord, for I am a great King,” says the LORD of hosts, “and My name is feared among the nations.”

• You see there that the LORD was angry at the priests.
• Because they were accepting blemished sacrifices
• Then they were complaining about how much work it was

And God’s response was, “Oh that there were one among you who would shut the gates, that you might not uselessly kindle fire on My altar! I am not pleased with you,”

In other words, “If you’re not interested in genuinely worshiping, then I’m not interested in having you here.”

• Certainly our ORDER of worship matters.
• Certainly the DOCTRINE of our worship matters.
• But do not forget that equally important is the ATTITUDE of our worship.

Well, with that as an introduction we turn now to Psalms 26.
In this Psalm we get a peek into David’s attitude
Regarding the public corporate worship service.

And it’s a good example for us to follow.
Especially since David is regarded as “a man after God’s own heart”
(David knew a thing or two about worship)

There are 5 realities we find in David here that we wish to express in our own lives.
#1 A REALIZATION ABOUT THE REQUIREMENTS OF WORSHIP
Psalms 26:1-3

You read right off the bat the word “Vindicate”
And we are aware of that meaning.

But the word can also be translated “Judge”
And I think that better fits the language of David here.

For you see 3 other verbs in verse 2 that all speak to that same mentality.
“Examine” – “try” – “Test”

You have here David with a request that
God would thoroughly examine and evaluate him.

Now, that does not mean that David is totally clueless as to his appraisal.
You’ll notice that David has already evaluated himself.

He says,
(1) “I have walked in my integrity”
(1) “I have trusted in the LORD without wavering”
(3) “For Your lovingkindness is before my eyes, and I have walked in Your truth”

Now if you listen to David you see that AS FAR AS DAVID KNOWS
He is worshiping and walking in a manner that is pleasing to God.
And yet, David knows that is not enough.

So He asks the Lord to judge him.
“Vindicate me, O LORD”
“Examine me, O LORD, and try me;”
“Test my mind and my heart.”

That is David’s way of saying that
Despite what he may think about his own actions,
Ultimately he wants the Lord to examine him.

Anyone with that sort of request obviously cares about doing it right.

We see this mentality from him later as well:
Psalms 139:23-24 “Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me and know my anxious thoughts; And see if there be any hurtful way in me, And lead me in the everlasting way.”

Paul made this statement:
1 Corinthians 4:3-5 “But to me it is a very small thing that I may be examined by you, or by any human court; in fact, I do not even examine myself. For I am conscious of nothing against myself, yet I am not by this acquitted; but the one who examines me is the Lord. Therefore do not go on passing judgment before the time, but wait until the Lord comes who will both bring to light the things hidden in the darkness and disclose the motives of men’s hearts; and then each man’s praise will come to him from God.”

Paul understood as David did, that
Our own evaluations of our worship are not the ones that matter.

Didn’t we learn from Jeremiah:
Jeremiah 17:9-10 “The heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it? “I, the LORD, search the heart, I test the mind, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the results of his deeds.”

David knows that.
And so here the first thing he wants is for God to examine him.

What does that indicate to us?
That David’s attitude is one that realizes that worship is about pleasing God not pleasing David.

We read it quite often in Romans 12:
Romans 12:1 “Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship.”

We understand that worship must be that which God accepts.

We may have lost this mentality in our world,
But that mentality was certainly alive and well in David’s.
• Every time the priest went behind that veil…
• Every time the sacrifice was laid on the altar…
• It was vitally important that God accept it or people were in trouble.

One had to be very careful to worship exactly as God prescribed
Otherwise ones worship might be deemed unacceptable.

Well you have David here asking just that.
God examine me and tell me if my worship is acceptable.

And friends that is a tremendous attitude to have in worship.
• To be more concerned about whether God accepts it than if I do.
• To sing with a focus on God’s enjoyment instead of my own.
• To be willing and humble to lift my life before God for His evaluation.

THAT IS A GENUINE ATTITUDE OF WORSHIP.
That it matters to me that my life is pleasing to God,
So much so that I ask Him to evaluate me and tell me if it isn’t.

David knew who worship was supposed to please, and so David asked Him if it did.
#2 A REJECTION OF HYPOCRITICAL WORSHIP
Psalms 26:4-5

In light of the first point, this one makes perfect sense.
• David’s concern is that his worship be internally pleasing.
• He wanted God to test his mind and his heart and make sure it was acceptable.

With that sort of mentality regarding worship,
It certainly makes sense to us to find that
David had little patience for those who didn’t care what God thought.

David had no interest in participating in
Some sort of hypocritical and phony worship service.

And he declared that here.
“I do not sit with deceitful men, Nor will I go with pretenders.”
• He’s talking about liars in worship.
• He’s talking about pretenders in worship.

They are people who attend and sing the songs but they don’t love God.
David says, “I’ll have none of that!”

(5) “I hate the assembly of evildoers, And I will not sit with the wicked.”
• These are people who assemble in worship, but it is all a show.
• They have no intention of leaving their sin.

They are like the people described in Jeremiah 7
Jeremiah 7:8-11 “Behold, you are trusting in deceptive words to no avail. “Will you steal, murder, and commit adultery and swear falsely, and offer sacrifices to Baal and walk after other gods that you have not known, then come and stand before Me in this house, which is called by My name, and say, ‘We are delivered!’ — that you may do all these abominations? “Has this house, which is called by My name, become a den of robbers in your sight? Behold, I, even I, have seen it,” declares the LORD.”

Jeremiah spoke of people who lived for the world 6 days a week
And then thought it was all magically erased because they went to church.

Not hardly!
And God judged those people for that.

David has a similar mentality.
I am not going to sit with the wicked and offer with them
Some sort of defiled worship to God.

David has no tolerance of hypocritical worship.

I should point out that God doesn’t either:
Isaiah 1:10-17 “Hear the word of the LORD, You rulers of Sodom; Give ear to the instruction of our God, You people of Gomorrah. “What are your multiplied sacrifices to Me?” Says the LORD. “I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams And the fat of fed cattle; And I take no pleasure in the blood of bulls, lambs or goats. “When you come to appear before Me, Who requires of you this trampling of My courts? “Bring your worthless offerings no longer, Incense is an abomination to Me. New moon and sabbath, the calling of assemblies — I cannot endure iniquity and the solemn assembly. “I hate your new moon festivals and your appointed feasts, They have become a burden to Me; I am weary of bearing them. “So when you spread out your hands in prayer, I will hide My eyes from you; Yes, even though you multiply prayers, I will not listen. Your hands are covered with blood. “Wash yourselves, make yourselves clean; Remove the evil of your deeds from My sight. Cease to do evil, Learn to do good; Seek justice, Reprove the ruthless, Defend the orphan, Plead for the widow.”

We don’t have time to go read it all, but sometime go read Ezekiel 8-11 and I’ll tell you what you’ll find.
• God sends Ezekiel through a vision to see what is going on in His very temple.
• It is a bunch of people with no love for God.
• In Ezekiel 9 God marks them for judgment.
• In Ezekiel 10-11 God departs from them altogether.

I don’t mind telling you that Jesus had no tolerance for this either.
There is an interesting series of events that unfolds in Mark 11.
Mark 11:11-18 “Jesus entered Jerusalem and came into the temple; and after looking around at everything, He left for Bethany with the twelve, since it was already late. On the next day, when they had left Bethany, He became hungry. Seeing at a distance a fig tree in leaf, He went to see if perhaps He would find anything on it; and when He came to it, He found nothing but leaves, for it was not the season for figs. He said to it, “May no one ever eat fruit from you again!” And His disciples were listening. Then they came to Jerusalem. And He entered the temple and began to drive out those who were buying and selling in the temple, and overturned the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who were selling doves; and He would not permit anyone to carry merchandise through the temple. And He began to teach and say to them, “Is it not written, ‘MY HOUSE SHALL BE CALLED A HOUSE OF PRAYER FOR ALL THE NATIONS’? But you have made it a ROBBERS’DEN.” The chief priests and the scribes heard this, and began seeking how to destroy Him; for they were afraid of Him, for the whole crowd was astonished at His teaching.”

Did you catch how in verse 11 Jesus first looked around and saw it all?
And then the next day He returned and drove everyone out.
No tolerance for hypocritical worship.

And church that disdain hasn’t changed.
• I know we live in this world of “don’t judge”
• And everyone thinks the worship service is some new found manner of “self
expression”
• And we aren’t supposed to criticize anyone else’s worship.

BUT LOOK AT CORINTH.

Remember in 1 Corinthians 5
• When we had that guy sleeping with his father’s wife?
• Paul commanded them to kick that guy out of the church.

1 Corinthians 5:8 “Therefore let us celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”

The congregation should be pure!
Worship is at stake here.

Or look at 1 Corinthians 10
• Where he recognized people who were going to some sort of idol worship on Saturday and then to church on Sunday.

1 Corinthians 10:21-22 “You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the table of the Lord and the table of demons. Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? We are not stronger than He, are we?”

Or look at 1 Corinthians 11
• Where people are getting drunk during the Lord’s Supper and excluding the poor and listen to Paul.

1 Corinthians 11:22 “What! Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or do you despise the church of God and shame those who have nothing? What shall I say to you? Shall I praise you? In this I will not praise you.”

And later Paul said that God was killing some of them for that sin.

Or look at 1 Corinthians 14
• Where Paul rebuked them for all seeking the limelight and the microphone and the up front and center position.

1 Corinthians 14:26 “What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification.”

My point?
Neither David, nor the prophets, nor the apostles, nor the Father,
Nor Jesus had any interest in hypocritical worship.

WE REJECT IT.
• We are not here to go through the motions.
• We are not free to live one way 6 days a week and some other way on Sunday.
• We gather as a committed redeemed bride, and we are right to not tolerate anything less.

It is a good attitude in worship.
• Realization about the requirements of worship
• Rejection of hypocritical worship
#3 A REGARD FOR CORPORATE WORSHIP
Psalms 26:6-8

We have again a statement of David’s pure commitment.

He says, “I shall wash my hands in innocence, and I will go about Your altar, O LORD”

That is his way of saying, my worship will be pure.
“When I appear in Your courts, I won’t just be going through the motions
And I won’t be covering up some sin.
I’m here to genuinely and faithfully and honestly worship You.”

(7) “That I may proclaims with the voice of thanksgiving And declare all Your wonders.”

When you read that verse, we understand David as saying,
“I’m coming in innocence so I can sing faithfully.”

That’s one way to look at it.

ANOTHER (those of you with the MacArthur Bible will notice it in his commentary)
That this verse can also be translated “to hear the sound of praise and to proclaim all Your wonders”

In other words, David could also be saying,
That I am going in innocence and drawing near to Your altar
Because I want to hear the singing of the congregation
And I want to sing along with them.

(8) “O LORD I love the habitation of Your house and the place where Your glory dwells”

That is David’s response to being in a worship service
Surrounded by other believers as they sing hymns of praise to God
And draw near to Him.

David says, “I LOVE THIS!”
Attending worship isn’t a burden, it is a delight.
Attending worship isn’t a drag, it is a joy.
He loves worshiping God alongside other believers!

That is an attitude of worship that must be maintained.

In fact, I’d say if that is not the attitude of your heart in worship
That repentance may be in order.

When the early church was redeemed and filled with the Holy Spirit,
• You did not have to tell them that they should love the company of the saints or that they should give worship a try.

They loved it!

Acts 2:43-47 “Everyone kept feeling a sense of awe; and many wonders and signs were taking place through the apostles. And all those who had believed were together and had all things in common; and they began selling their property and possessions and were sharing them with all, as anyone might have need. Day by day continuing with one mind in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they were taking their meals together with gladness and sincerity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved.”

David had that kind of a love.

Later we’ll read:
Psalms 84:1-4, 10 “How lovely are Your dwelling places, O LORD of hosts! My soul longed and even yearned for the courts of the LORD; My heart and my flesh sing for joy to the living God. The bird also has found a house, And the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young, Even Your altars, O LORD of hosts, My King and my God. How blessed are those who dwell in Your house! They are ever praising You. Selah. For a day in Your courts is better than a thousand outside. I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God Than dwell in the tents of wickedness.”

It’s just a genuine love for being in the house of God
And participating in corporate worship.

I know, we hear it all the time.
People who supposedly love God and believe in Jesus,
But who never assemble with God’s people for corporate worship.

They are fooling themselves.
• If you don’t love corporate worship…
• If you don’t love the fellowship of the saints…
• You really need to ask yourself if your love for God is genuine…

David loved the worship.
#4 A RECOGNITION ABOUT THE SERIOUSNESS OF WORSHIP
Psalms 26:9-11

HERE WE LEARN SOMETHING
About just how serious it is to worship God correctly.

David seems to understand that
Those who do not worship God correctly will be judged by God
And he wants to make sure God knows that he is not one of them.

That’s why he asked Got do examine him earlier.
• He wants to make sure that his worship is acceptable because those who do not have acceptable worship will be judged.

Look at it.
(9-11) “Do not take my soul away along with sinners, Nor my life with men of bloodshed, In whose hands is a wicked scheme, And whose right hand is full of bribes. But as for me, I shall walk in my integrity; Redeem me, and be gracious to me.”

David knew that there were people who did not worship God accurately.
• They were “sinners”
• They had “a wicked scheme”
• Their “right hand is full of bribes”

They were people who are seeking to use God to their own benefit
And their worship is nothing more than some sort of bargaining chip
Seeking to get God off their back.

David knows that such worship is not acceptable
And that God will indeed take them away.

So David wants to make sure that God knows that he is not like them.
David’s desire is to walk in integrity.

What is more David worships God for redemption and forgiveness.
• It’s not that David thinks himself righteous.
• It is that he is pure in heart regarding his worship.
• He knows he needs forgiveness; he knows he needs grace.

The issue is that he wants God to know that his worship is pure
And not to cast him aside with the sinners
Who aren’t concerned about that.

In other words:
• We all sit here in a worship service, and every single one of us is sinful in need of redemption and grace.
• But it is possible that only a portion truly believe that and worship God genuinely for giving it.

It is possible that there are some sinners even in worship
Who do not truly humble themselves before God or worship Him honestly.

Remember the Corinthians that Paul said God was killing because they were not judging their body rightly when taking the Lord’s Supper?

David knows that such people will be judged.
HIS PRAYER IS THAT GOD MAKE A DISTINCTION
Between sinners who love God and value grace
And between sinners who don’t.

What you see here is that worship is a serious issue.
• Failure to do it brings judgment.
• David wants God to know that I am doing it, and I want to do it well.

To that we’d ask the question, “How serious is worship to me?”
• Is it a big deal to me?
• Does it matter to me if I participate?
• Does it matter to me if I do it correctly?

It did to David.
#5 A RESOLVE TO CONTINUE TO WORSHIP
Psalms 26:12

“My foot stands on a level place;”
• He has put his foot down.
• His footstep is firm.
• His decision is resolute.

“In the congregations I shall bless the LORD”

We simply call that commitment.

It wasn’t about, “I’ll go so long as I enjoy it.”
It wasn’t about, “I’ll go if it’s convenient”
WORSHIP WAS A PRIORITY FOR HIM.

• I’m going to church.
• I’m going to stand in that congregation.
• I’m going to bless the Lord with them.

Is that important to you?
Because we live in a world where worship has lost all sense of priority.
We live in a world where anything at all
Is an acceptable reason not to attend corporate worship.

We go to church
• If the weather is pretty,
• And I didn’t stay out too late on Saturday,
• And if I don’t have a basketball tournament, or some other sporting event,
• And if my family or friends aren’t planning some other party or event that I want to go to,
• Or whatever else.

You have David here saying:
“It doesn’t matter what else is happening, I can tell you where you’ll find me. I’ll be in that congregation blessing the Lord.”

Is that not a remarkable attitude for worship?

LISTEN TO IT.
• David has a concern that God is pleased with his worship.
• He is so concerned that he actually asks God to send him an evaluation of how he did.
We call that HUMILITY

• David is also passionate about a pure worship.
• He’s not in this for the style points.
• He wants to gather with the genuinely redeemed and worship with them as God commands.
It was PURITY

• David also has a genuine love for worship.
• No one is making him do it.
• It’s not a burden to him, it’s the delight of his life.
It was LOVE

• David understood that the accuracy of worship matters
• And that God judges those who do not do it correctly.
• And so he was careful to not only worship accurately,
• But pray to God that he not be reckoned with the wicked.
It was SERIOUSNESS

• And David expressed a commitment to be in worship among God’s people blessing God with one accord.
It was PRIORITY

Those are pretty good indicators of the attitude of worship.
HUMILITY
PURITY
LOVE
SERIOUSNESS
PRIORITY
Those are good attitudes to evaluate ourselves by.

But ultimately it begins where David did by asking God to examine him.

Tonight, I think it’s only fitting that we take the Psalm to heart.
And as we come to an invitation time, I would think that the request of the first 2 verses would be a fitting prayer for everyone in this room.

“Judge me, O LORD, for I have walked in my integrity, And I have trusted in the LORD without wavering. Examine me, O LORD, and try me; Test my mind and my heart.