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Anticipating Worship: Motivating Obedience
Psalms 128
June 5, 2022

You know that we’ve been studying these Psalms
Which have the common distinction: “A Song of Ascents”

• As those songs which were sung by the caravan as they traveled to Jerusalem and anticipated the coming corporate worship of the saints.

• We are learning a lot about the blessings and benefits of those moments when we gather with the saints and worship the Lord together.

Without a doubt, the most popular verse in regard to attending worship
Is the one often quoted from the book of Hebrews.

Hebrews 10:23-25 “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”

The writer of Hebrews was clear on a number of points.

1) Is that we were to be committed to our personal confession of hope in the Lord and were not to waiver.

• It was a call to personal faithfulness.
• That each of us should individually remain faithful to the Lord and not to abandon Christ.

2) Is that we were to be committed to pushing one another to that same end.

• The writer actually said, “let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds”

“stimulate” there is an interesting word choice.

It is PAROXYSMOS (pair-ox-oos-mos)

It comes from a root word that means “to sharpen”.
And it carries the ideas of being poked by a sharp stick.

In fact, the word can be translated “to irritate” or “to provoke”
(Which I think is why I really identify with this verse)

You see it used in:
Acts 17:16 “Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols.”

• It is also the word used when Paul and Barnabas had a “sharp disagreement” in Acts 15 regarding whether or not they should take Mark along on the second missionary journey.

The NIV actually translates it “consider how to spur one another on”

And perhaps the spur is a better analogy for our part of the world.
It’s not always pleasant, but it is effective.

It brings to mind:
Proverbs 27:17 “Iron sharpens iron, So one man sharpens another.”

• The process of sharpening can be painful.
• There is friction.
• Metal is removed.

All of these sort of paint the same picture that
As we assemble part of the calling is to prod one another forward Even if our encouragement can seem a little irritating.

We are not to just allow one another to sit back comfortably,
But we are to goad one another on;
We are to grind away one another’s complacency;
We are to spur toward obedience.

THAT IS THE CALLING.

And of course the writer of Hebrews pointed out that
It is impossible to do that if we don’t assemble together.

3) So he wrote that we were to “not forsake our own assembling together…but encouraging one another”

In short we were to understand that
One of the reasons we are commanded to gather together
Is that we might be constantly evaluated by one another.

Our world loves to throw out their favorite verse:
“Judge not lest ye be judged”

BUT YOU DO REALIZE THAT
WE HAVE NO BUSINESS QUOTING THAT
TO ONE ANOTHER IN THE CHURCH.

Remember Paul’s admonition to the Corinthians regarding the sinful brother?
1 Corinthians 5:9-13 “I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people; I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world, or with the covetous and swindlers, or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually, I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or a swindler—not even to eat with such a one. For what have I to do with judging outsiders? Do you not judge those who are within the church? But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG YOURSELVES.”

Paul rhetorically asked there: “
Do you not judge those who are within the church?”
And the implied answer is “YES”.

Part of assembling together for corporate worship
Is for the process of judgment.

Certainly we DO NOT do it to condemn one another.
• We do it to sharpen one another.
• We do it to poke or goad or spur on one another.
• We examine one another and we push each other to love and good deeds.

And you can’t do this if you stay home,
And you can’t receive this if you stay home.

If you hide yourself away in your closet,
I don’t care how many tv preachers you watch,
It’s not the same as having a brother who knows you
Spur you in a personal and specific way.

IT IS IMPORTANT.

And, as I said, Hebrews 10 is undoubtedly
The most quoted in regard to corporate worship.

Well TONIGHT I bring it to your attention because
Psalms 128 deals with that very issue.

Now Psalms 128 DOES NOT come across like a sharp stick.
It hardly feels like one is being spurred or poked or irritated here.

However, the purpose behind it is very much
That of corporate exhortation, or to motivate obedience.

The entire purpose of the singing of this Psalm is
To push those around you to fear God and to walk in His ways.

It is the Old Testament equivalent to the hymn we sing today:
“When we walk with the Lord in the light of His word, what a glory He sheds on our way! Let us do His good will; He abides with us still, And with all who will trust and obey. Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, than to trust and obey.”

And that seems to also be the very motive of our Psalmist
Who is promising happiness to those around Him.

In fact you read in verse 1 “How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD”
And you read in verse 2 “You will be happy and it will be well with you.”

“blessed” (1) and “happy” (2) are the same Hebrew word.
And it means “happy”.

“Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”

That’s the corporate motivation here.
That’s the gentle spurring of this Psalm.

It takes the man who is not walking in obedience
And pokes him with a stick
And says, “Hey, that path will not lead to happiness. Come walk over here.”

So tonight we talk about motivating obedience
And we talk about the result of happiness.

And we see the role that corporate worship has in this process.

There’s two main points tonight.
#1 THE REALITY
Psalms 128:1-4

What the first 4 verses have in common is that
They speak of a basic reality.

They speak of what are spiritual realities for
“everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in His ways.”

And you see that the reality for that person is blessing or happiness.
“How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD”

So the issue right out of the gate is
The promise of blessing or happiness.

Incidentally, Jesus preached this way as well.
Matthew 5:3-10 “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted. “Blessed are the gentle, for they shall inherit the earth. “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God. “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God. “Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”

The same is true there.
That word “blessed” can also be translated “happy”

It sort of changes your mindset about happiness, doesn’t it?

Our world is always seeking happiness and rarely finding it.
• They seek for it in sin and selfishness and it can’t be found there.

God is the author of happiness.
God is the distributor of happiness.
He determines when mankind can be happy and when they can’t.

Jesus said happiness is found through
• Understanding spiritual poverty,
• Grieving over sin,
• Being submissive,
• Pursuing righteousness,
• Being pure,
• Being merciful,
• Being peaceful,
• And even through being hated.

The world wouldn’t say that any of those were avenues to happiness.

But those avenues lead us to
• Enter the kingdom of heaven,
• Find comfort,
• Inherit the earth,
• Find satisfaction,
• Receive mercy,
• See God,
• And be called sons of God.

It is where true happiness is ultimately found.

Well the Psalmist is preaching the same.
“How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways.”

Do you want happiness?
Then “fear the LORD…walk in His ways”

INCIDENTALLY, you also learn there what it means to fear the LORD.
OBEDIENCE.

So the point is simple.
Do you want to be happy?
Do you want to understand blessing?

THEN DO WHAT GOD SAYS.
That’s a really simple premise.

The God who created you knows what happiness is
And how it is achieved.

If you want to be happy, it will NOT be found in rebellion or sin,
It will ONLY be found in obedience to God.

DON’T LISTEN to the SERPENT at the tree who’ll tell you that
Sin is delightful to the eyes and desirable to make one wise.

You’ll never find happiness outside of the will of God.
There is only SHAME and REMORSE and GRIEF
And SUFFERING and PAIN and TOIL and ENMITY.

Well, the Psalmist here starts by reminding of that simple reality.

“How blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, Who walks in His ways.”

And then he begins to get even more specific
About the happiness he is talking about.

(2-3) “When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine Within your house, Your children like olive plants Around your table.”

What he is speaking of there is very simply the happiness of life.
(It’s almost the flip-side of the message of Ecclesiastes)

You might be TEMPTED TO ASSUME he is saying:
That obedience to God only brings frustration in this life, but if you’ll just push through it, then in heaven you’ll finally be happy.

You know, obedience today is not fun at all,
You have to wait for heaven before obeying God will make you happy.

That’s the way Satan offers it.

No, the Psalmist talks about the happiness of this life.
He talks about the temporal blessings
That are ENJOYED TODAY by those who obey God.

And by the way, these are grounded in the word of God.
Let me show you real quick.

TURN TO: DEUTERONOMY 28:1-14

• You read there of the detailed blessings of obedience.
• And it ranges from your children to your crops, to your battles and so on.

God will bless and prosper your life.
In short, if you obey God, He’ll make you happy.

(I understand that suffering is also a part of this life and we are definitely anti-prosperity gospel, but don’t let that cause you to think that God is out to make life miserable)

God is not some sort of cosmic kill-joy.
He has “good will toward men”

IT’S SATAN WHO TELLS YOU THAT
God is trying to keep you from having any fun.

God’s way has always been the way of happiness.

Our Psalmist lists 3 of those happinesses!
1) FRUITFUL LABOR (2)

“When you shall eat of the fruit of your hands, You will be happy and it will be well with you.”

It is the blessing of reaping the benefits of your labor.
It is the happiness of the harvest.
It is the satisfaction of the paycheck.

WHEN YOU work hard and plant your field
Or do your job

AND THEN YOU are given your reward which is the harvest
Or your pay

There is a deep satisfaction with what you’ve accomplished.

YOU KNOW THAT FEELING.

It’s NOT that we mind work.
In fact, if truth be told, we enjoy it.

WHAT MAKES WORK FRUSTRATING
Is when we work and our labor produces no fruit.

When you labor and get no crop.
When you work and the wages aren’t enough.

That is when frustration sets in.

But God promises if you walk in His ways then your labor will be fruitful.
• He is the provider.
• He is the one who makes plans succeed.
• So He is more than capable of making your labor succeed or fail.

I told you last week how it is apparent to me that
God won’t let me make money building furniture.

And that’s ok, I’ve always related to that story in John 21

• When Peter tries to go back to fishing, but Jesus re-routed all the fish in the sea of Galilee so that he caught nothing all night.
• The next day Jesus told him to cast on the other side and it nearly sunk his boat.
• When they got on shore Jesus told Peter 3 times, “Feed my sheep”
• “You’re not a fisherman anymore Peter, you’re a shepherd.”
• You may fish some for fun.
• You may catch a fish or two to eat.
• But you’ll never make a living fishing any more, I won’t allow it.

I SEE THAT IN MY LIFE.

But I’ve also seen the other side of that coin.
I’ve seen how God caused my family to sell furniture like crazy when we weren’t good at it at all.

• We used to build cedar beds and cedar furniture.
• I cringe to tell you how bad they were.
• We didn’t have tools, we didn’t know what we were doing.
• And we couldn’t keep from selling the stuff.

It’s because God had determined that we would
“eat the fruit of our hands, and we would be happy and it would be well with us.”

GOD CAN DO THAT.
• He can provide with 5 loaves and 2 fish.
• And He can make you starve to death on a 6 figure salary.

Happiness is up to Him.
And that includes the happiness of fruitful labor.

He gives fruitful labor.
2) FAITHFUL LOVE (3a)

“Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house,”

There’s a couple of ways to look at the analogy of your wife being a “fruitful vine”

On one hand it can be a reference to children.
• And based on Psalms 127 which reminded us that “children are a blessing of the Lord; the fruit of the womb is a reward”
• We can certainly see how that can be true.

There’s also the Song of Solomon fruitful vine mentality.
• Who likens the beauty of his bride to the beauty of the vine
• And ponders the beauty and joys of intimacy with her.

The point there of course being that you will be satisfied
And even enamored with the beauty of your wife.

And not only that but he says she will be “within your house”

This is IN CONTRAST to the sinful woman of Proverbs.
Proverbs 7:11 “She is boisterous and rebellious, Her feet do not remain at home;”

There is no satisfaction in having a beautiful wife
If she is prone to wander.

BUT YOU GET THE PICTURE HERE AS WELL.
It’s the absolute satisfaction and joy of marriage.

Even in the glory of the garden
God saw that it was not good for man to be alone.

Even then
God determined to give him a suitable helpmate.

She certainly was not meant to be one who irritated him or whom he’d always want to get away from.
• She’d be one who would complete him.
• She’d be one he’d be willing to leave his father and mother for.
• She’d be one who would bring him joy and happiness.

Proverbs 31:10-12 “An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life.”

Proverbs 31:28-29 “Her children rise up and bless her; Her husband also, and he praises her, saying: “Many daughters have done nobly, But you excel them all.”

And so the picture here is the happiness of the marriage.

In a day when marriage is seen in a negative light.
When people would just as soon live together.
And when marriage is thrown aside at the drop of a hat.

I’ve got to say:
“I’M A SATISFIED CUSTOMER!”

I thank God that He tucked Carrie away in the middle of nowhere
So that I could marry her before she had a chance to see all the other fish in the sea!

“Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine within your house”

We live in a culture that throws God’s commands behind their back
And then they can’t figure out
Why 50% of all marriages end in divorce.

Marriage was never meant to be the burden of your life.
IT WAS MEANT TO BRING YOU HAPPINESS.

And people know this.
• Weddings are happy affairs.
• People get married because they want to be “happily ever after”

And God delights in giving that.
You should enjoy your spouse.
You should delight in your spouse.

That is a happiness that God gives to
Those who fear Him and who walk in His ways.

• When husbands love their wives…
• When wives submit to their husbands…
• When the Lord builds the house…

It’s amazing how fun marriage can be!

Fruitful labor Faithful love
3) FUTURE LEGACY (3b)

“Your children like olive plants Around your table.”

The picture here is one of new life and legacy.
• It is not uncommon in an olive grove to see an old gnarly olive tree
• Surrounded by small saplings ready to grow and bear fruit of their own.

That is the picture.

A man gains children and not just children
But faithful children and enjoyable children.

Boy could our culture stand to learn this today.

The Bible says children are born with foolishness
And that foolishness must be extracted with the rod of discipline.

The Bible says children are born with ignorance
And so you must teach them and bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.

And if you’ll do that you’ll find that children are a blessing,
In fact they are a tremendous happiness.

But today I see parents who WON’T DISCIPLINE their kids
And I see parents who WON’T INSTRUCT their kids.

It’s no wonder you also see parents
That don’t even appear to like their kids.

Their kids are no fun to be around.
They are wild and misbehaved and disrespectful.

That shouldn’t happen.
But it happens all the time when people fail to obey God or fear Him.

AND I MUST GIVE TESTIMONY HERE

I don’t work for a living – but God continually meets my needs.
• God even meets so many of my “wants”
• I’ve traveled the world, I’ve seen Victoria Falls, The Great Wall of China, The Giant Sequoias, and I’m about to see the College World Series!

I was never a heart throb, and I’m kind of a pain to be around.
• But I have a great wife whom I love and enjoy as much today as I ever have. And she loves Jesus so she’s stuck with me!

And even in the kid department.
• I’ve heard all these stories about how by the time your kids graduate you’ll be ready for them to go.
• I can tell you that wasn’t the case with Zek at all.
• We are proud of him and excited for what God will do in his life,
• But there was no eagerness on our part to push him out the door.

Now, that’s not because there’s something special in us.
It’s because God has granted happiness to our home.
We love to be at home with our family.

And the Psalmist says:
(4) “Behold, for thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD.”

That’s just a simple reality.
That’s just a theological truth.

And as these pilgrims travel toward Jerusalem
They sing about how there is happiness in obedience.

And then comes the second point.
#2 THE EXHORTATION
Psalms 128:5-6

Now the song moves from generic to personal.
Now, as you sing, you turn to the person walking on the right and you sing:

“The LORD bless you from Zion, And may you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life. Indeed, may you see your children’s children. Peace be upon Israel!”

That is that spurring on!
That is the sharp stick poking each other.

That is to look at your neighbor and remind them that
• There is a blessing for them.
• They too can experience God’s happiness.

BUT IT ALL COMES FROM ONE SOURCE.

And it does not come from the world.
“The LORD bless you from Zion”

That is where the blessing comes from.
From God and from His temple.

It is God alone who grants prosperity (or at least the ability to enjoy it)
It is God alone who grants posterity (or at least the ability to enjoy it)

Only God can grant happiness and He grants it to those
Who fear Him and who walk in His ways.

And the song of the caravan is to spur each other on to it.

And this is one of the great realities of the corporate worship.
We “consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds”

We poke one another. We perhaps even irritate one another.
We spur one another on.
• We spur on one another to obey God.
• We spur husbands to love their wives.
• We spur wives to submit to their husbands
• We spur fathers to discipline and teach their children

WE DO SO BECAUSE
We know there is happiness found in obedience to God.

You push them toward obedience to God
So that God might bless their life and make them happy as well.

This is a genuine reality of corporate worship.
We push one another toward the blessing which God promises.

And not only do we spur one another on,
But we look at the happiness of one another
As a testimony and an encouragement.

This is one of the ways that the body operates.

You take a man and wife and their family.

And those who are in the church,
Their marriage should be fulfilling and their kids should be delightful.

And when you come, you should be able to see that God’s blessing is resting on their family and it should prompt you to say, “I want that too”

That is a basic encouragement of gathering together.

The promises of God are that He will allow you to eat the fruit of your hands.
If you are not able to then you should want to know why.

We see that all throughout the Old Testament.
We read it last week in Haggai where God told them
I’m withholding rain from you because you have neglected My temple.

The promises of God are that your wife shall be a fruitful vine within your house.
If she isn’t then you should want to know why.

Why is my marriage miserable?
Why do I not enjoy my spouse?

The promises of God are that your children will be like olive plants around your table.
If they aren’t you should want to know why.

And it is the church that helps you right that ship.
It is the church who spurs you back on the right path.

God has promised happiness to His people.

Now DON’T turn that into something greedy or sinful,
We AREN’T talking about the prosperity gospel here.

I’m not saying God promised you a Corvette or a swimming pool.

But God did promise that you wouldn’t have to worry about what you will eat or what you will wear.

And God did say that marriage should be a testimony to the world and satisfying to you.

And God did say that children are supposed to be a blessing.

And all of those things are true
When we fear the Lord and walk in His ways.

I can picture the congregation walking to Jerusalem
Singing this song and encouraging one another to obey God
So that they might find the blessing and happiness they seek.

“Trust and obey, for there’s no other way, to be happy in Jesus, but to trust and obey.”

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Understanding Christian Love – Part 3
1 John 3:11-18 (16-18)
June 5, 2022

For the past month and a half we’ve been looking at 1 John 3
And we have continually referenced it as a sort of “PATERNITY TEST”

John holds up Jesus and right beside Him, John holds up the devil.
HE COMPARES THEM.

And as we have said, they are total opposites.
• Jesus never sinned, the devil sinned from the beginning.
• Jesus sacrifices Himself for His brother, the devil murders his brother.

And John basically asks, “Whose steps are you following in? Whose DNA are you carrying?”

IT IS A GOOD CHAPTER FOR SELF-EXAMINATION.

So we’ve highlighted two main attributes that are unique to Christians.

1) PRACTICAL RIGHTEOUSNESS
• We have said that Christians live righteous lives.

2) BROTHERLY LOVE
• We have also said that Christians love their brother.

1 John 3:10 “By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.”

We’ve spent the last two weeks seeking to understand Christian love.
• What is it?
• Why is it a fruit of Christianity?

We’ve seen two point thus far.
#1 LOVE IS THE EXPECTATION OF CHRISTIANITY
1 John 3:11-12

John made it clear that brotherly love has always been the expectation.
It wasn’t added at a later date.

“this is the message which you have heard from the beginning…”

We noted the reason love is such an integral part of Christianity
Is because love is the best way to describe
God’s behavior toward humanity.

God loves.
• He loves His enemies.
• He loves sinners.
He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, He sends rain on the just and the unjust.

And certainly God loves His own.
“But God demonstrated His own love for us in that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.”

There is no version of Christianity that does not include brotherly love.

Love is the expectation of Christianity
#2 LOVE IS AN EXHIBITION OF NEW LIFE
1 John 3:13-15

We talked about this last week.
Namely that we should not buy into the world’s logic or definition of love.

It is a disastrous scenario when the church starts allowing the world
To determine whether or not we love like Christ.

“The modern church is so eager to obtain the world’s approval
That we begin to abandon Biblical love which redeems and transforms
In favor of worldly love which enables and overlooks.”

You cannot let the world be the judge of your love.

For the simple fact is that the world hated Christ.
• They have rejected His love.
• They killed Jesus.

So the verdict of whether or not we love like Christ
Can never come from the world.

In fact, John said, “Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.”

• IF YOU WALK IN LOVE you are likely to be hated by the world.
• IF YOU ARE LOVED BY THE WORLD it might very well be an indication that you aren’t loving like Christ.

We know that we have new life, not because we are loved,
But because we do love.

“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death. Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”

If you want to know whether or not you have been born of God
And do indeed have new life, simply look at your love.

Do you sacrifice yourself for your brother?
Or do you hate (withhold love) your brother?

Love is the expectation of Christianity
Love is the exhibition of new life
#3 LOVE IS THE EXAMPLE OF CHRIST
1 John 3:16-18

John started this section by showing us the example of the devil.
(12) “not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother.”

Now John gives us the opposite example of Jesus.
Where as the devil slays his brother, Jesus saves His brother.

The entire mission of Jesus was born out of love for His brethren.

Hebrews 2:11-12 “For both He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified are all from one Father; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying, “I WILL PROCLAIM YOUR NAME TO MY BRETHREN, IN THE MIDST OF THE CONGREGATION I WILL SING YOUR PRAISE.”

Jesus loves His brethren and the question you and I must ask is:
“Do I resemble Christ?”

Let’s take a closer look at the example of Christ – 4 things
1) A SACRIFICIAL DEMONSTRATION (16a)

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us;”

John answers a very important question here.
• What is love?
• What does it look like?

“We know love by this…”

We said last week that the worst thing we can do is
Allow the world to push upon us their definition of love.

We are not interested in what the world calls love.
• We want true love.
• We want Biblical love.
• We want God’s love.

And when you want to know that love then you look at Christ.

And the chief characteristic of Christ’s love is obvious.
SELF SACRIFICE

“He laid down His life for us;”

John 15:12-13 “This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you. “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends.”

The PUREST expression or demonstration of love
Has always been self-sacrifice.

Let’s think about this in the life of Jesus for a moment.

Certainly we think almost immediately about His death on the cross,
But He was laying down His life long before then.

Consider His INCARNATION
Philippians 2:5-8 “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

We certainly do not minimize His cross in any way,
But any conversation about the love of Christ
MUST BEGIN WITH THE INCARNATION.

He “emptied Himself”
He “humbled Himself”

As we have said many times while examining the glory of the incarnation.
• Jesus didn’t quit being God – He just quit being honored as God.
• He sacrificed His comfort
• He sacrificed His glory

Paul noted in 2 Corinthians that He sacrificed His RICHES.
2 Corinthians 8:9 “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you through His poverty might become rich.”

Christ reigned in glory as God Most High
And yet He left the glories of Heaven to walk the dirt of earth.

• He was born in obscurity.
• He was raised in the hated Nazareth.
• He lived as a basic nomad telling the crowds “The Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head.”
• He had to take money from a fish to pay the tax in His own temple.

He gave up the comforts and glories and riches of heaven
That He might come to save His brethren.

THAT IS LOVE

And we don’t just talk about His initial coming,
We must also consider HIS LIFESTYLE

Galatians 4:4 “But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law,”

Hebrews 10:5-7 “Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME; IN WHOLE BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN YOU HAVE TAKEN NO PLEASURE. “THEN I SAID, ‘BEHOLD, I HAVE COME (IN THE SCROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME) TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.’”

Matthew 5:17 “Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill.”

Each of those verses speak to the same glorious reality;
That Jesus submitted Himself to the Law of God.

I thought about this even this past Wednesday night
As the youth are studying Galatians.

We talked about “The Losses of Legalism”
(What you lose if you come under the Law and seek to earn God’s favor on your own)

Galatians 5:2-5 “Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you. And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law. You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness.”

Paul said those who seek to earn God’s favor through their works lose:
• The Benefit of Christ
• The Freedom of not being under the Law
• Grace
• Hope

But do you understand that
These are the things Christ also forsook that He might come to save us?

Christ was “born under the Law”

Christ wasn’t living under grace, He was having to earn a righteous standing.
Christ wasn’t free from the ordinances, He had to fulfill them all.

He sacrificed His freedom for the sake of His brother.
He submitted Himself to criteria that He was free from
So that He might save those who were under such stipulation.

THAT IS LOVE.

And then think about HIS MINISTRY

Jesus lived a sacrificial life on behalf of His brethren.

You could really go to any day in His life to illustrate this,
But one of my favorites is the day He fed the 5,000.

Matthew 14:13-16 “Now when Jesus heard about John, He withdrew from there in a boat to a secluded place by Himself; and when the people heard of this, they followed Him on foot from the cities. When He went ashore, He saw a large crowd, and felt compassion for them and healed their sick. When it was evening, the disciples came to Him and said, “This place is desolate and the hour is already late; so send the crowds away, that they may go into the villages and buy food for themselves.” But Jesus said to them, “They do not need to go away; you give them something to eat!”

Jesus just heard word of John the Baptist’s death.
• There is a whole lot of emotion wrapped up in that news.
• John was the forerunner and the cousin of Jesus.
• It must have been a stinging reminder to Jesus of His own fate.

Not only that, but Mark’s gospel gives the setting too.
Mark 6:31-33 “And He said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a secluded place and rest a while.” (For there were many people coming and going, and they did not even have time to eat.) They went away in the boat to a secluded place by themselves. The people saw them going, and many recognized them and ran there together on foot from all the cities, and got there ahead of them.”

Mark reveals that on the heels of the news of John
JESUS wanted to just get away with His disciples.

They had been so bombarded by the crowds that they couldn’t even get time to eat.

SO
• Jesus is grieving…
• All of them are physically exhausted…
• They haven’t even really been able to eat well…
• It’s time to get away and rest and refuel.

And yet the crowd figured out where He was going and went ahead of Him
And as soon as they arrived the requests for healing started up again.

How would you feel if you tried to get away on vacation
And found all of your problems waiting for you at your vacation home?

And yet, there was Jesus.
• Putting His grief aside…
• Pushing through His exhaustion…
• Meeting needs and healing diseases…
• He even feeds that crowd with 5 loaves and 2 fish…

That’s called putting your own plans aside.
That’s called sacrificing your agenda for your brother.

THAT IS LOVE

Certainly in discussing His love we must talk about HIS DEATH

John 10:17-18 “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down My life so that I may take it again. “No one has taken it away from Me, but I lay it down on My own initiative. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This commandment I received from My Father.”

Jesus laid down His life.
No one took it, they couldn’t.

• We remember Him agreeing to go with the soldiers in the garden…
• We remember Him declaring Himself the Son of God while on trial…
• We remember Him refusing to defend Himself to Pilate or Herod…

The only reason they were able to nail Him to the cross
Was because He allowed it.

AND HE SUBMITTTED HIMSELF TO DEATH ON OUR BEHALF
• He bore the full wrath of God.
• He bore the scorn of evil men.
• He was “pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities.”

He did that for His brethren.
He did that for His elect.

“He laid down His life for us;”

THAT IS LOVE

And I suppose we could continue talking about His love even today.
We think about HIS INTERCESSION

Hebrews 7:23-25 “The former priests, on the one hand, existed in greater numbers because they were prevented by death from continuing, but Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently. Therefore He is able also to save forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.”

It is not as though Jesus retired from ministry.
• For He came, He lived, He died, He rose, He ascended.
• And now 24/7 He always lives to intercede on our behalf.

What manner of commitment and love is that?

HE DOES NOTHING FROM SELFISHNESS.
• There is no absence of love in His life.
• He always gives.
• He always sacrifices Himself for us.

IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS, THAT IS IT.

It’s NOT ENABLING love like the world wants.
It’s NOT SELF-PRESERVING love like the world offers.

The love of Jesus put your needs before His own.

He left the glories of heaven, was born under the Law,
Lived among sinners, died upon a cross,
Rose from the dead and now lives to intercede.

It is a sacrificial demonstration.
2) A SINGLUAR OBLIGATION (16b)

In response to the remarkable love of Christ, John simply says:
“and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”

Are you a follower of Christ?
Are you seeking to be conformed into the image of Christ?
Do you want to demonstrate Christ-likeness in your life?
THEN FOLLOW HIS LEAD.

I like how Paul says it:
Romans 13:8 “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.”

“Owe nothing…except to love”

That is to say, “Treat love like a debt you never fulfill.”

We think to ourselves:
• When did Christ ever declare that He had loved enough?
• At what point did Christ say, “That’s it, that’s all the love you’re gonna get from Me”?

YOU GET THE POINT.

We are called to do what He did.
• Did He give up His comfort, so should we.
• Did He give up His glory, so should we.
• Did He give up His riches, so should we.
• Did He give up His freedom, so should we.
• Did He give up His retirement, so should we.

Philippians 2:4-5 “do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,”

He is the example of love and we are called to follow His example.
This is the Christian obligation; it trumps every other obligation.

I think about the church at Corinth.
If you remember that church had all kinds of problems.
• They were divided over their favorite pastors.
• They laughed at sexual immorality.
• They dragged each other into court.
• They caused their brother to stumble into idolatry.
• They visited prostitutes at night.
• They got drunk during the Lord’s Supper and hoarded the food.
• They failed to compensate their ministers.
• They all wanted the glorious roles in the worship service.

And one might wonder how in the world
You’d ever fix a church that is as messed up as theirs?

Paul knew exactly what would fix it.
1 Corinthians 12:31-13:7 “But earnestly desire the greater gifts. And I show you a still more excellent way. If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but do not have love, I have become a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing. And if I give all my possessions to feed the poor, and if I surrender my body to be burned, but do not have love, it profits me nothing. Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.”

For all the problems the Corinthians had,
It all could be funneled down to 1 main problem: THEY DIDN’T LOVE

If they would start loving one another then
All that greed and glory hunting and division would take care of itself.

It is a singular obligation and we learn it from Christ.

A Sacrificial Demonstration A Singular Obligation
3) A SELF EXAMINATION (17)

Here John has a very convicting question.
He comes right at us with this one.

“But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?”

John explains to you a situation and then asks, “Can you call a guy like that a follower of Christ?”

What is the scenario?
• Well there is a brother who is in need.
• And there is another brother who has what is he needs.
• But the second brother refuses to share it.

And John just wants to know:
Does that sound more like something Christ would do,
Or something the devil would do?

Do you see the DNA test there?

I told you last week that the statement “closes his heart”
IS AN EXPRESSION OF HATE.
It is to withhold love.

John even speaks of this closing of the heart, NOT in a dismissive way, but in an intentional way.

John says he “closes his heart AGAINST him”
• This isn’t an honest mistake.
• This isn’t a slipping of the mind.
• This is a person who saw the need and made a conscious decision not to help.

And John simply wants to know:
“How does the love of God abide in him?”

Does that look like God to you?

I’ve always liked the passage in Deuteronomy 15 when discussing the issue of helping our brother with the physical things of the world.

The first part of the chapter is significant:
Deuteronomy 15:1-2 “At the end of every seven years you shall grant a remission of debts. “This is the manner of remission: every creditor shall release what he has loaned to his neighbor; he shall not exact it of his neighbor and his brother, because the LORD’S remission has been proclaimed.”

• You know about the year of remission.
• There was a command to forgive all debts at the end of 7 years.
• Well imagine what went through people’s minds if they wanted to some
financial help right around the 6 ½ year mark?

Moses addressed it.
Deuteronomy 15:7-11 “If there is a poor man with you, one of your brothers, in any of your towns in your land which the LORD your God is giving you, you shall not harden your heart, nor close your hand from your poor brother; but you shall freely open your hand to him, and shall generously lend him sufficient for his need in whatever he lacks. “Beware that there is no base thought in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of remission, is near,’ and your eye is hostile toward your poor brother, and you give him nothing; then he may cry to the LORD against you, and it will be a sin in you. “You shall generously give to him, and your heart shall not be grieved when you give to him, because for this thing the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in all your undertakings. “For the poor will never cease to be in the land; therefore I command you, saying, ‘You shall freely open your hand to your brother, to your needy and poor in your land.’”

There are some words that really jump out at you there.
“freely” – “generously” – “sufficient” – “whatever” – “not grieved”

And I’ve especially always liked the warning.
“Beware” Moses said.

And most of the time in our culture the “Beware” is followed with: “Beware that they aren’t cheating you.”

As in, if anyone wants a loan at the 6 ½ year mark you need to be skeptical because they’re just trying to take out a loan they know they won’t have to pay back.

But that is NOT what Moses said.
Moses said, “Beware that there is no base thought in your heart, saying, ‘The seventh year, the year of remission, is near,’ and your eye is hostile toward your poor brother, and you give him nothing;”

In other words: Beware that you aren’t so worried about getting cheated that you don’t help.

That would be a sin.

And so the point is again made.
God expects Christians to love their brother.

Therefore if you have a brother who won’t meet the needs of another can you really say that person is born of God?

Here John references someone who “HAS the world’s goods”

But many times Christian love comes even from those who don’t.
2 Corinthians 8:1-5 “Now, brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, that in a great ordeal of affliction their abundance of joy and their deep poverty overflowed in the wealth of their liberality. For I testify that according to their ability, and beyond their ability, they gave of their own accord, begging us with much urging for the favor of participation in the support of the saints, and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God.”

That is Christian love.
That is the example of Christ.
And so we are called to examine ourselves with this one.

Can we see the love of Christ in our lives?
Or is there a withholding of love from us?

A Sacrificial Demonstration A Singular Obligation A Self Examination
4) A SIMPLE CLARIFICATION (18)

Just to make sure we don’t miss the point.
“Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”

He might as well say,
“Love like Christ, not the world.”

The world will throw out the phrase, “I love you”
But they are empty words.
• They are words that enable sin and ignore eternity.
• They are words that are manipulative and meant only to make me look good.
• They do not sacrifice their own glory or freedoms or riches.

They love in word only.

And it is absolutely unchristian when the church does the same.

The church doesn’t love in word only, but “in deed”.

James 2:14-17 “What use is it, my brethren, if someone says he has faith but he has no works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,” and yet you do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that? Even so faith, if it has no works, is dead, being by itself.”

You know that verse.
It is ridiculous to call empty sentiment Christian love.

• The love of Christ is weighty.
• The love of Christ is measurable.
• The love of Christ is visible.
• The love of Christ is no mere sentiment.

It doesn’t just recognize needs, it meets needs.
You can see it, you can feel it.

I was reading recently on Christian love
And one author spoke of 5 actions steps by which we measure love.

OPEN YOUR EYES – actually see others.

Matthew 9:36 “Seeing the people, He felt compassion for them, because they were distressed and dispirited like sheep without a shepherd.”

Don’t turn a blind eye to the plight of your brother.

OPEN YOUR EARS – listen to people and ask them about their trials.

OPEN YOUR HEART – be willing to feel compassion and to enter into their pain.

OPEN YOUR MOUTH – certainly for encouragement, but also correction.

John said to love “in deed AND TRUTH.”

We talked about it last week how Jesus confronted sin and this was love.

Galatians 4:12-16 “I beg of you, brethren, become as I am, for I also have become as you are. You have done me no wrong; but you know that it was because of a bodily illness that I preached the gospel to you the first time; and that which was a trial to you in my bodily condition you did not despise or loathe, but you received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus Himself. Where then is that sense of blessing you had? For I bear you witness that, if possible, you would have plucked out your eyes and given them to me. So have I become your enemy by telling you the truth?”

It was one of Paul’s most confrontational letters, but it was born out of love for the Galatians and he was intent on telling them the truth.

And finally:
OPEN YOUR HAND – Give to meet your brother’s need.

Love is measurable and visible.
And this is the love of Christ.

If someone says, “Jesus loves me”
And you ask them, “How does Jesus love you?”

That question can be answered can’t it?
He loves my be leaving heaven, fulfilling the Law, sympathizing with my weakness, bearing my sin, paying my debt, confronting my sin, interceding on my behalf.

And now the question is “What about our love?”

If we tell someone, “I love you”
And they say, “How do you love me?”

Can that question be answered?
Or is it mere empty sentiment?

Do I sacrifice myself for the good of my brother
Or do I sacrifice my brother for my own personal good?

One is to be like Christ.
The other is to be like Cain who was a child of the devil.
And so you see here again a paternity test.

You can either FIND ASSURANCE of your new life here
Or you can FIND CONVICTION and your need for Jesus.

And it is all bound up in your brotherly love.

This morning we conclude our service with the Lord’s Supper.

The Lord’s Supper certainly points to the love of Christ,
But it is also an ordinance that highlights brotherly love.

In fact, the early church often referred to it as the “love feast”

And in this ordinance we focus on the love of Christ
And let it motivate us to love our brother the same way.

In fact we most effectively honor Christ’s love
By imitating it toward one another.

To that church in Corinth who lacked love Paul gave a very specific instruction:
1 Corinthians 11:20-22 “Therefore when you meet together, it is not to eat the Lord’s Supper, for in your eating each one takes his own supper first; and one is hungry and another is drunk. 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.”

They were actually making a mockery of the Lord’s Supper
Because they did it without love for one another.

And when Paul tells them to partake in a worthy manner
The most fitting application is that they partake with love for one another.

This morning as we partake, focus on the love of Christ
And how you might show that love to your brother.

We’ll have a time of preparation and then we’ll partake.

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Anticipating Worship: Rest
Psalms 127
May 29, 2022

Tonight we continue with our songs “of Ascents”

• It is that segment of the book of Psalms that was devoted to anticipating the worship which would occur in Jerusalem.

• For us they are reminders of the blessing of corporate worship

• And they are brief earthly pictures of the glory of the coming day of worship in Heaven.

Tonight’s song is said to be “of Solomon”

If you’ll remember God gave Solomon the name “Jedidiah”
Which means “beloved of the LORD”

It is the word used in verse 2 which says, “For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.”

So we find here a song in which Solomon gave tribute to
The blessing of God which he had received as God’s “beloved”.

And this one I find to be extremely fitting
And a tremendous reminder to us
Especially as we talk about the benefit of corporate worship.

Perhaps tonight we should talk about the PRIORITY of corporate worship.

I’ve often said it and still believe it that in America, as much as we love money, MONEY IS NOT OUR GREATEST TREASURE.

In America our greatest treasure is our time.
In fact, many people will spend their money to save their time.

And so the main excuses we hear for not attending corporate worship
• Is no longer “That church only wants my money”
• Now we hear “I just didn’t have time”.

Sunday nights struggle in churches across America,
Not because the worship service costs too much,
But because people are using their time in other ways.

Sometimes it’s RECREATION,
• They just want to play longer on the weekend and they certainly can’t give up the work week for play so they cut out church.

Sometimes it’s to CATCH UP.
• There were projects or assignments that they needed to get done and Sunday was a day to accomplish it.

Sometimes it’s OCCUPATIONAL.
• They could make more money if they worked on Sunday. The world is driving forward and no longer breaks for the Lord’s Day so why not be a part of the rat race and get what you can.

However you slice it, what we’ve seen is that
Sunday has been a day where people are
Increasingly seeing worship as a waste of time.

Many of you have seen the Methodist church across the street
Meeting earlier on Sundays.

That has been done out of necessity
Since they have been sharing a pastor with Matador.

I had one man tell me, “I really like it. You get up early and go and…”

He never finished the sentence.

I sensed he was about to say, “Get it over with without killing the whole day.”

I like to think he thought about what he was about to say,
Got convicted, and chose not to say it.

Regardless of that one conversation, the fact is that
It is a common sentiment with so many in our culture;
Even among so many who still think going to church is important.

This is why Sunday nights are dying across the nation.
• Corporate worship is seen as a waste of time.
• They have better, more urgent things to do than come back to church.
• I certainly applaud those of you who are faithful here.

There is a rising mentality that
Attending corporate worship is a waste of time.
(Or at the very least there are ways to make better use of our time)

Well, think about our pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem.
They weren’t being asked to give up a whole day, more like 2 to 3 weeks.

Depending on how far they had to travel, and knowing that most of these feasts lasted from Sabbath to Sabbath, they were going to have be gone a while.

Livestock was left…
Fields were left…
Houses were left…

How much could get done if you just skip it this year?
How much could you accomplish if you stayed home?

You could get some repairs done on the house.
Certainly you could watch over your place. (It’s not like looters wouldn’t know you were commanded to go to Jerusalem.)

And so you were then faced with the same dilemma
That men are faced with now.

WHERE IS THE VALUE IN GIVING YOUR TIME TO THE LORD?
Think about that.

The answer is found in this one word: REST

Rest is a big word in the Bible.
It comes as the most appropriate request of people who lived under the curse.

Remember God’s response to Adam’s sin:
Genesis 3:17-19 “Then to Adam He said, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife, and have eaten from the tree about which I commanded you, saying, ‘You shall not eat from it’; Cursed is the ground because of you; In toil you will eat of it All the days of your life. “Both thorns and thistles it shall grow for you; And you will eat the plants of the field; By the sweat of your face You will eat bread, Till you return to the ground, Because from it you were taken; For you are dust, And to dust you shall return.”

It’s not long before we see men fulfilling that promise
And dying left and right.

And then we read:
Genesis 5:28-29 “Lamech lived one hundred and eighty-two years, and became the father of a son. Now he called his name Noah, saying, “This one will give us rest from our work and from the toil of our hands arising from the ground which the LORD has cursed.”

What you see from the beginning is
Men who lament the harshness of labor.

We learn from the very beginning that the answer is never man’s works.

• God said from the beginning that man will bust his head against the ground and ultimately lose.
• He will strive and strive and strive and fail.
• Man learned quickly that they wanted rest.

It is certainly significant that when Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt
They went seeking a land that offered to them rest.

They never found it of course because they refused to trust and obey God.

We remember Jesus arriving on the scene:
Matthew 11:28-30 “Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. “Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and YOU WILL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. “For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

The goal was rest.

Now ULTIMATELY that rest
Is a rest from works intended to earn God’s favor.

Hebrews 4:9-11 “So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God. For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His. Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience.”

The picture of rest in the Old Testament was meant to be a foreshadow of the spiritual rest that we enjoy in Christ.
• He did the work, we rest in Him.
• He earned God’s favor, we rest in Him.
• He satisfied God’s wrath, we rest in Him.

THAT IS THE ULTIMATE FULFILLMENT OF REST.

But there is still what we might call
A lesser fulfillment of rest to be enjoyed today.

It is the rest associated with faith in God.
Some might better understand it as “peace”

• It is that calm assurance that God can handle and is handling what I cannot.
• It is that peace that comes with knowing that when I trust God, He’ll work it all
out.

It is this type of rest or peace that Jesus referenced in Matthew 6
Matthew 6:31-33 “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.”

There is a rest there.
There is a peace there.

Where we say, “Alright God I’m trusting You to meet my needs while I focus on Your kingdom. I can actually in one sense neglect physical things and leave them to You, while I focus on spiritual things.”

Now, that DOES NOT enable laziness in the life of the believer.
Clearly Paul told the Thessalonians who just wanted to quit work and wait on Jesus that “if a man shall not work, he shall not eat.”

This isn’t an excuse for slothfulness.

But it is what allows us to obey God’s commands,
• Even when obedience seems to throw a monkey wrench in our plans for worldly success.

It is what allows us to see that taking a day to break from the world
• Is not a waste of time, for we know that God is watching over our needs.

When we understand that our works accomplish nothing,
We can then focus on the things He has commanded
And enjoy peace of mind that He will take care of everything else.

• This peace of mind or rest is what allows us to prioritize a day for the Lord.
• This rest is what allows us not to try and use Sunday to get ahead.
• This rest is what allows us to worship and leave the world to itself for a day.

And it is a good reminder for the pilgrims traveling to Jerusalem.
(I can leave my labors and fields behind, God will take care of it while I worship)

So let’s break this Psalm up into 2 main points.
#1 THE VANITY OF LABOR
Psalms 127:1-3

When you read those verses there is ONE WORD
That obviously comes to the forefront and it is the word “vain”

Now just because you will probably try to connect the dots, this is NOT the same Hebrew word that Solomon liked to use in Ecclesiastes.

He spoke of things being “vanity”.
That word is HEBEL
It is a vapor or smoke or a mirage

And he categorized the things you try to earn or achieve in this life as “vanity”

The word “vain” here is SAV (shawv)
It means “emptiness” or “worthlessness” or “falsehood”

It is the word used
• When we are commanded not to “take the name of the LORD in vain”
• (that is: don’t make a worthless confession of God)

It is a word often used
• To describe idols and their benefit to humanity.
• They are “vain idols”, they are worthless falsehoods.

So here Solomon isn’t saying that your pursuits are all a mirage,
He’s saying that on your own
You can’t accomplish anything that’s worth anything.

• You may build a house but it will be a worthless house.
• You may protect a city but it will be worthless protection.

In fact, the Psalmist here outlines 3 areas that are vain by man’s efforts.

1) CONSTRUCTING (1a)

“Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it;”

It is simply making the point that man on his own
Can’t build anything that has any worth.

They great ironic structure of the Old Testament is the “Tower of Babel” where men were going to build a tower to the heavens.

• What a monumental structure they were going to build.
• They didn’t realize that without the LORD’S help they couldn’t do it.
• They needed God’s help to communicate with one another.

When God removed communication the whole project fell apart.
Without God’s help that was a worthless construction project.

We think of Zerubbabel and his mandate to rebuild the temple after the exile.
• It was a daunting project.
• It was actually referred to as a mountain.
• It was insurmountable by his own strength.

And yet the promise was given to him:
Zechariah 4:6-7 “Then he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel saying, ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ says the LORD of hosts. ‘What are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you will become a plain; and he will bring forth the top stone with shouts of “Grace, grace to it!”’”

There’s no way Zerubbabel can build that tower on his own.
It was an impossible construction project without God’s help.

Probably the most mind-boggling when you think about it has to be Noah’s ark.

I don’t know what you think is the most difficult command God has ever given you to obey, but try this one on.

Genesis 6:14-17 “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood; you shall make the ark with rooms, and shall cover it inside and out with pitch. “This is how you shall make it: the length of the ark three hundred cubits, its breadth fifty cubits, and its height thirty cubits. “You shall make a window for the ark, and finish it to a cubit from the top; and set the door of the ark in the side of it; you shall make it with lower, second, and third decks. “Behold, I, even I am bringing the flood of water upon the earth, to destroy all flesh in which is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is on the earth shall perish.”

• What is “gopher wood”?
• Where do you get “pitch”?
• Does anyone know how to build a boat?
• What’s a cubit?

It’s not like there’s a Home Depot where you can go pick up materials,
You’ve got to chop down trees, split them into beams and make lumber.

Oh, but wait,
• Where do you get an axe?
• Where do you get a saw?

So you have to dig up iron ore and heat it and forge an axe?
• What do you dig it up with?

And even though it’s your first boat, you need to DO IT RIGHT
Because I’m gonna flood the whole earth.

Can we just say IMPOSSIBLE?

“Unless the LORD builds…they labor in vain who build it.”

And by the way this is true for every structure any man ever built.
Just down the street they’re constructing a Family Dollar
And they’re moving right along.

It looks like those guys know what they are doing.
• Where’d they get the intellect?
• Who supplies strength to their arm?
• Who allows them to communicate?

MAN CAN’T DO IT ON HIS OWN.

Often times this verse is even applied sort of metaphorically to marriage.

Some of you may not realize this
But men and women aren’t exactly compatible.

And many have noted that
The only thing that allows a marriage to be a blessing is “the LORD”.

That’s true, even if a secular marriage lasts a long time.

Marriage is meant to be a testimony of the relationship between Christ and the church and two people on their own cannot do that.

They may have a marriage but without the Lord,
In it’s truest purpose it will be a worthless one.

“Unless the LORD builds the house, They labor in vain who build it.”

You can’t build anything on your own.
Solomon certainly understood this with his great projects.

So, what does that say about all those projects you have to put on hold so that you can go and attend corporate worship? (they’ll be fine)

Are you really going to assume that you are saving time by neglecting God’s command of corporate worship?

You’re going to ignore God’s mandate because you’ve got something to build?

Do you see how foolish that is?
Like you can build anything without Him.

If God doesn’t show up to the jobsite you might as well lock up the tools.
• That’s true in construction.
• That’s true in your marriage.
• That’s true in this church.
• That’s true in anything you want to build.

Jesus said:
Matthew 16:18 “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

Paul reminded:
1 Corinthians 3:5-9 “What then is Apollos? And what is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, even as the Lord gave opportunity to each one. I planted, Apollos watered, but God was causing the growth. So then neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but God who causes the growth. Now he who plants and he who waters are one; but each will receive his own reward according to his own labor. For we are God’s fellow workers; you are God’s field, God’s building.”

The point is that construction only occurs with God.
If God tells you to take a break and come worship,
You’ll be fine since He’s the builder anyway.

• You can leave your crops for a couple of weeks.
• You can leave your project for a couple of weeks.
• “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit”

So if God builds, what do you get? REST
• God is allowing you to rest today and to come and worship Him with the saints.
• What a blessing!

There’s a second area that is vain by man’s efforts.
Constructing
2) CONSERVING (1b)

“Unless the LORD guards the city, The watchman keeps awake in vain.”

I’m not skipping worship to build something,
I’m skipping worship to protect or enjoy what I’ve already built.

Hmm…

• It’s the idea of using Sunday for “family time”
• Or working more to be able to afford what I want.
• Skipping worship because that time needs to be used to protect my lifestyle.

But here we see the same reality.

If you are trying to guard your own city you will do that “in vain”.

In other words, you can’t.
• The LORD has always been our security…
• The LORD has always been our assurance…

Jesus asked if you could add even an hour to your life by worrying?

Only God has the ability to provide and protect.

We think of the impenetrable wall of Jericho
• And how it fell simply with the Israelites marching around it 7 days.

We think of the fortress of Jerusalem,
• But Ezekiel saw God depart from Jerusalem and then she easily fell to the Babylonians.

One can’t help but think about our nation here.

Our culture can’t understand the simple principle
That only God is our strength and security.

So our culture continually pushes God and His laws aside
But then are shocked when evil rises up and terrorizes us.

Do you really think metal detectors and armed security officers
Can keep Satan at bay?

I don’t care how many soldiers Jerusalem had, once God’s glory departed that battle was over.
• That is true for our schools.
• That is true for our nation.

It is a futile endeavor for men to assume
That they can conserve what they’ve built.

Do you remember the farmer who wanted to protect his fortune so he tore down his barns and built bigger ones?

• The problem was he had no control over the day of his death
• And what he worked so hard to preserve
• Was actually all given to someone else in the blink of an eye.

• No one had to steal it…
• Famine didn’t have to touch it…
• In a moment he lost it.

And so it is obvious, man can’t construct and man can’t conserve,
Only God has that ability.

And that is still true of your marriage or your family.
Only God has that ability.

NOW WE KNOW HUMANITY DON’T WE.

Man can hear this and say, “Well, I’ll work harder!”

It is man’s tendency to assume that he can avoid hardship
If he just works hard enough to prevent it.

Isaiah 30:15-17 “For thus the Lord GOD, the Holy One of Israel, has said, “In repentance and rest you will be saved, In quietness and trust is your strength.” But you were not willing, And you said, “No, for we will flee on horses,” Therefore you shall flee! “And we will ride on swift horses,” Therefore those who pursue you shall be swift. One thousand will flee at the threat of one man; You will flee at the threat of five, Until you are left as a flag on a mountain top And as a signal on a hill.”

That is man isn’t it.
We’ll just work harder.

But God has an answer for that man.
(2a) “It is vain for you to rise up early, To retire late, To eat the bread of painful labors;”

What is God’s response to man’s solution to just working harder?
IT WON’T WORK.

• Go ahead, skip worship.
• Use Sunday as a day to get ahead.
• Use the Lord’s Day as a time to get that extra work done and see how it works
out.

Now, don’t get me wrong, you might actually succeed a little.
This man worked hard and he did supply bread.

The problem was that even that was “vain”.
It was worthless; it was unfulfilling.

We’ve recently read Haggai in our Sunday night scripture reading.
They were a people who had neglected God’s house.

Worship was not a priority.
Listen to what God was doing as a result.

Haggai 1:9-11 “You look for much, but behold, it comes to little; when you bring it home, I blow it away. Why?” declares the LORD of hosts, “Because of My house which lies desolate, while each of you runs to his own house. “Therefore, because of you the sky has withheld its dew and the earth has withheld its produce. “I called for a drought on the land, on the mountains, on the grain, on the new wine, on the oil, on what the ground produces, on men, on cattle, and on all the labor of your hands.”

Haggai 2:15-17 “‘But now, do consider from this day onward: before one stone was placed on another in the temple of the LORD, from that time when one came to a grain heap of twenty measures, there would be only ten; and when one came to the wine vat to draw fifty measures, there would be only twenty. ‘I smote you and every work of your hands with blasting wind, mildew and hail; yet you did not come back to Me,’ declares the LORD.”

The point?
• God has other ways of making sure it doesn’t work.
• It is never fixed with harder labor.

You need God working for you, not against you.

Do you remember that passage about tithing in Malachi?
God made them a promise if they would again start honoring Him with their wealth.

Malachi 3:11 “Then I will rebuke the devourer for you, so that it will not destroy the fruits of the ground; nor will your vine in the field cast its grapes,” says the LORD of hosts.”

Might I suggest that the devourer can be a devourer of time too.

The point is that only God can cause construction to succeed
And only God can conserve what you wish to protect.

There’s a third vanity of humanity.

Constructing, Conserving,
3) CONCEIVING (3)

“Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward.”

The simple point here is that children only come from God.

I think it’s a cruel mistake to put too much emphasis on the word “reward” as though God rewards people’s behavior with children.

I think that is obviously not the point.
• The Texas Girls and Boys Ranch sees all the time that some of the most
wicked people imaginable are granted kids.

The point is that children are not a bi-product of human effort,
But of God’s grace.

Only God can create life.
Only God can form a child.

A man can try to do it, but if God does not grant it, it won’t happen.
Ask Sarah or Rebekah or Rachel or Hannah or Elizabeth.

But there is again a another reality in which man needs God.

And I think here about all the Sunday worship that is missed
Because families want to enroll their kids
In some extracurricular program.

Travel ball or even family time with the kids
And parents participate in such things at the expense of worship.

Have they forgotten who gave them those kids to begin with?
Have they forgotten the grace of God to even allow that?

Hannah is a marvelous example of a woman who never forgot.
• God gave her a son
• She didn’t run off with him and enjoy him by neglecting God.
• She returned that boy and dedicated him to the Lord.

And that boy became one of the most prominent and godly leaders in Israel’s history. His name was SAMUEL.

Remember that it is vain to try and construct or conserve or conceive.
Only God can do those things.

And so neglecting Him in order to attempt those things is VAIN.

Now let’s quickly look at the second point.
#2 THE BLESSING OF GRACE
Psalms 127:2b-5

It is in fact implied in the first two voices by the phrase “Unless the LORD”

But it is stated explicitly in verse 2.
“For He gives to His beloved even in his sleep.”

I think there is a translation issue there.
You’ll notice the words “even in his” are italicized indicating that they were added.

That means that the translators thought that
The Psalmist was saying that God’s provision is totally of God
So that even in a man’s sleep God is working for him.

AND THAT CERTAINLY MAY BE TRUE.

But I think it’s best to leave it as the original language suggests and read it “For He gives to His beloved sleep”

(Now that’s not a new ambition for your posture in church)

What is Solomon saying?
• Man works and toils and strives to construct and conserve and conceive.
• He labors and works.

But to the man who trusts and honors God, God gives something else.
• What does God give that man? “sleep” or REST

Do you understand this?
• When you prioritize God…
• When you trust God…
• When you honor God…

It is God who constructs and God who conserves
And God who grants children.

Now I’m NOT SAYING that if you’ll start going to church
Then God will build you a house, protect it from thieves
And cause you to fill it with children.

That’s not the point,
For certainly we are aware of His sovereign prerogative in life.

What I am saying is that only He can do those things
And you’ll certainly never achieve them by neglecting Him.
And even if you do, it will be vain (worthless)

GOD GIVES REST FROM OUR LABORS.

His chief command WAS NEVER “work harder” for Him.
His chief command WAS to “love Him” with all you’ve got.

Jesus didn’t say “come to Me and put on your work gloves”.
Jesus said “come to Me and receive rest”.

God is a God of grace.

Remember the story of Matthew 20 about all the men who worked in the vineyard and those who worked longer assumed they’d be paid more?

Matthew 20:9-15 “When those hired about the eleventh hour came, each one received a denarius. “When those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more; but each of them also received a denarius. “When they received it, they grumbled at the landowner, saying, ‘These last men have worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden and the scorching heat of the day.’ “But he answered and said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for a denarius? ‘Take what is yours and go, but I wish to give to this last man the same as to you. ‘Is it not lawful for me to do what I wish with what is my own? Or is your eye envious because I am generous?’”

• Those men were angry because they wanted to be compensated based on
their performance.
• Indeed, for that day that might have worked out well for them, but I promise
over a lifetime you don’t want that arrangement.

You’d much rather a God who provides by grace than by works.

AND THAT IS WHAT SOLOMON IS REMINDING OF.

That is what this caravan is singing as they depart from their fields to go worship God for a couple of weeks.

I learn this all the time.
• I feel like I’m a pretty talented wood-worker
• And yet I have learned that God does not let me make money doing wood work. (O there are a few rare occasions)
• But I can’t sell anything.
• Yet, God has made my livelihood off of the generosity of His people.

And isn’t that better?
• Would I actually prefer to have to depend on my labor to make a living?
• Or would I rather devote myself to His kingdom and He just take care of my life?

GOD PROVIDES BY GRACE.

(3-5) “Behold, children are a gift of the LORD, The fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, So are the children of one’s youth. How blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them; They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.”

One could spend some time here, especially in an abortion happy culture
And talk about what a blessing children are.

Solomon here makes an analogy.
He says that children are “Like arrows in the hand of a warrior”

A warrior with many arrows is confident in battle.
A man with many children is confident in the future.

• You think of the joy children produce.
• You think of the comfort they produce.
• You think of the labor they can offer.
• You think of the care they may give you in old age.
• You think of the legacy they provide.

A man with many children is like a warrior with many arrows.
“They will not be ashamed When they speak with their enemies in the gate.”

But the analogy goes even deeper.

The point is that those things which God gives you
Are greater than those things which you earn.

So in this life trust God, seek God, worship God, honor God
And put your labors on the back burner that you may do so.

In this world you have labor which results in vanity.
With God you have grace which results in rest.

This is a great reminder when you are tempted to set worship aside
So that you might accomplish something in the world.

Corporate worship is a blessing and a time to rest!

Download Here:

Understanding Christian Love – Part 2
1 John 3:11-18 (13-15)
May 29, 2022

We have been now several weeks in the 3rd chapter of 1 John.
We have likened it to a paternity test.

In the first 10 verses John gave the first area of examination which was PURITY or practical righteousness.

He gave the attributes of the potential fathers:
• Jesus (3:5) “in Him there is no sin”
• Devil (3:8) “the devil has sinned from the beginning”

So the first dividing attribute was sin.
• Jesus never did it.
• The Devil always does it.

John then told us to look at our lives with one penetrating question.
Who are you more like?

We looked at our practical righteousness to determine our spiritual pedigree.

Starting in the end of verse 10 John gave a second criteria by which we examine our spiritual pedigree.

1 John 3:10 “By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.”

So the next segment is our BROTHERLY LOVE.

And again John gives the attributes of the potential fathers.
• Devil (3:12) “Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother”
• Jesus (3:16) “He laid down His life for us;”

So the devil slays his brother, Jesus saves His brother.

And again the obvious question is: Who are you more like?

So we are currently examining our brotherly love.

And again we want to make sure we understand the point of John.

John is NOT primarily preaching about love as that which you should do. (Certainly you should)

John is preaching about love as that which Christians do.

In other words, John is speaking about
Brotherly love as revealing fruit.

You can tell if you are a child of God
By whether or not you love your brother.

So just as we did with righteousness, we would also make a definitive statement regarding love and say: CHRISTIANS LOVE THEIR BROTHER.

And it is this love which we have begun to examine.

We saw the first point last week:
#1 LOVE IS THE EXPECTATION OF CHRISTIANITY
1 John 3:11-12

John called it “the message which you have heard from the beginning”
• This has always been the chief expectation of the Christian call.
• There is no genuine form of Christianity that does not include brotherly love.
• From day one, this has been the expectation for those who trust in Christ.

And the reason is because no attribute better describes
God’s behavior toward humanity than love.

God loves humanity.
God loves even His enemies.
God certainly love His redeemed.

If we are to claim to be children of God we must also walk in love.

This has always been the expectation.

And John even helped us DIFFERENTIATE that love a little bit.

He told us to love, but “not as Cain, who was of the evil one and slew his brother.”

• We talked about Cain and how he brought an offering of works.
• We talked about how Abel brought an offering of faith.

And we talked about that since Abel showed Cain up
And in a manner of speaking condemned him,
Cain chose to sacrifice his brother for his own self-interest.

THAT IS NOT LOVE.
Christian love sacrifices self for the good of the brother,
It does not slay his brother for the good of himself.

Christians save their brother, they don’t slay them.
Love is the Expectation of Christianity.

This morning we move on to the second point.
#2 LOVE IS THE EXHIBITION OF NEW LIFE
1 John 3:13-15

NEW LIFE has really been one of John’s main points of emphasis.

We remember earlier in the chapter when
John made a big deal about the reality of being “born of God”

1 John 3:9-10 “No one who is born of God practices sin, because His seed abides in him; and he cannot sin, because he is born of God. By this the children of God and the children of the devil are obvious: anyone who does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor the one who does not love his brother.”

John mentioned being “born of God” which refers to the new birth.
• It is reference to what Ezekiel spoke about when he said God would wash you with clean water and put His Spirit within you.
• Jesus referred to it as being “born again”

And the simple point is this:
When you get saved you immediately get this new life.

2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

You get new life through God’s Holy Spirit.

And the question on the table before us is:
HOW WILL I RECOGNIZE THIS NEW LIFE?

Well the first was that it will produce RIGHTEOUS LIVING.
The second is that it will produce BROTHERLY LOVE.

And it is such a reliable fruit that John will remind us many times that
If you don’t have love then you do not have this new life.

1 John 4:7-8 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”

So you understand again John’s point.

If you do not have brotherly love then you do not have this new life
Which Christ gives to those who trust Him.

That is why we say: CHRISTIANS LOVE THEIR BROTHER
(not: Christians should love their brother)

But again we want some CLARITY here.

And I have to tell you that I think what John says here

Might be the most important couple of verses
That the 21st Century church needs to hear regarding love.

We are talking about how love is the exhibition of new life.

And to that end there are a couple of points I want to make
To help you identify whether or not you have this love.

1) THE OLD LIFE HATES THE NEW LIFE

By “old life” I mean the life of flesh.
• The life of the unredeemed.
• The life that is still enslaved in sin.
• The life that is still at enmity with God.

By “new life” I mean the life of the Spirit.
• The life which Christ gave you at redemption.
• The life which has been poured into you.
• The life that has made you a child of God.

And I’ll say it again: “The Old Life Hates The New Life”

Now look at Verse 13.
“Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.”

Boy let’s just stop right there and chew on that a moment.

On one hand we have the reality that
A Christian can actually be hated by the world.

And on the other hand the reality that
It is apparently unsurprising when they are hated.

So on the surface we would simply remind you that:
RECEIVING THE NEW LIFE
DOES NOT PRODUCE WORLDLY FAVOR

DO YOU UNDERSTAND THAT?

We talked earlier in the chapter about how God’s love is a redeeming love.
DO YOU REMEMBER THAT?

1 John 3:1 “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God; and such we are. For this reason the world does not know us, because it did not know Him.”

Remember we talked about how the world used to love us, but after God’s love was poured upon us they no longer recognized us?

We noted then that God’s love must change us in some way.

When God set His love on us, it made us no longer attractive to the world.

Now we go A STEP FARTHER and realize
That when God manifests His love within us
It actually causes us to be hated by the world.

And this should NOT surprise you.
1 Peter 4:12 “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery ordeal among you, which comes upon you for your testing, as though some strange thing were happening to you;”

Now let me tell you why the 21st century church needs to hear this.

Somewhere over the course of time
The church has begun to allow the world to deliver the final verdict
On whether or not we love like Christ.

THAT IS TO SAY THAT
It has come all to common place for Christians to go out and behave a certain way in the world and then we let the world determine whether or not our action was loving.

And if what we did or what we said “feels” loving to the world then they say, “Thank you for loving me like Jesus.”

And if what we did or what we said “feels” unloving to the world then they say, “You don’t love me at all like Jesus”

And the church has sort of willingly accepted that as status quo.

And so the measure of whether or not we are loving people
Is whether or not the world sort of “checks our box” and says we are.

You know, whether or not the world would give us our
“Loves Like Jesus” merit badge.

AND WHAT THIS HAS PRODUCED IS THAT
We no longer operate according to God’s definition of love,
But we instead operate according to the world’s definition of love.

DOES THIS MAKE SENSE?

Let me say it another way.

If we do exactly what God commands and the world deems that unloving,
• Then all too often the church will abandon God’s command in favor of what the world wants
• Because we are more concerned with being perceived by them as “loving”
• Than we are with being obedient to what God actually says love is.

I remember years ago when Carrie and I attended a church in Stephenville after we were first married.

You know those awards that go around Lubbock that you see posted in various businesses that will say “Lubbock’s Best…”

Well they did that in Erath county too.
And apparently one year our church won “Best Church of Erath County”

I remember the pastor showing me that plaque with this half-cocked grin like I was supposed to applaud the award and his humility for being so reluctant to show it to me.

I responded: “Great! The world thinks we are the best church.”

I didn’t know at the time that the year before he had won “Best Pastor of Erath County”, but you’ll understand why his face quickly turned sour.

Where did we ever come up with the idea that
The world would be a good judge of whether or not
The church followed Christ correctly?

THAT IS SO FOOLISH!
And yet that is precisely what happens in the department of love.

We allow the world to tell us
Whether or not we are loving them like Christ.

And if they say we are, then we pat ourselves on the back.
And if they say we aren’t, then we must need to figure out how to do it better.

LET ME TELL YOU WHY THIS IS A DISASTROUS FORMULA

It is built on 2 faulty presumptions.

ONE IS THAT the world actually knows Christ and what His love looks like.

Why would we ever think that one who is an enemy of Christ would have any true knowledge of Him at all?

That makes no sense.
• They don’t know Him.
• They don’t read His word, they don’t commune in prayer, they don’t follow
Him, they don’t have His Spirit, they are not being conformed into His image.

Yet we assume they recognize what is and what isn’t Christ-like love?

That’s a faulty presumption.

THE OTHER FAULTY PRESUMPTION IS THAT when they did experience Christ’s love that they liked it.

And that is not true either.
They, every day of their life,
Have done nothing but reject the love of Christ.

The world wouldn’t recognize Christ’s love
If it was poured out on their head
And every time it has been poured out on their head, they hated it.

So why in the world would the church let the world determine whether or not we are being loving?

DOES THAT MAKE SENSE?

AND YET when we go out and “the worlds hates” us

ONE OF THE FIRST THINGS WE DO IS
WE ASSUME WE MUST NOT BE ACTING LIKE JESUS.

As though the world knows or even wants the love of Jesus.
• THEY DON’T!
• THEY NEVER HAVE!

John 8:39-47 “They answered and said to Him, “Abraham is our father.” Jesus said to them, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham. “But as it is, you are seeking to kill Me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. “You are doing the deeds of your father.” They said to Him, “We were not born of fornication; we have one Father: God.” Jesus said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. “Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. “You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. “But because I speak the truth, you do not believe Me. “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I speak truth, why do you not believe Me? “He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

Do you see that?
Here is the most truthful and loving Man who has ever lived
Standing in front of the world…
And they hated Him! They wanted to kill Him!

They DIDN’T SAY, (as the world would have us believe) “Oh, we feel Your great love for us. Thank You for loving us so wonderfully.”

They didn’t say that to Jesus, and they won’t say it to you either.

If you love men like Jesus loves men
Then they will hate you like they hated Him.

John 15:18-25 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. “If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. “Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also. “But all these things they will do to you for My name’s sake, because they do not know the One who sent Me. “If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin. “He who hates Me hates My Father also. “If I had not done among them the works which no one else did, they would not have sin; but now they have both seen and hated Me and My Father as well. “But they have done this to fulfill the word that is written in their Law, ‘THEY HATED ME WITHOUT A CAUSE.’”

See, the love of Jesus is PURE LOVE.
• The love of Jesus “does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices in the truth”
• The love of Jesus told men to leave their sin.
• The love of Jesus exposed their heart idols.

Do you remember that Rich Young Ruler?
Jesus exposed his greed and covetousness which was buried in his heart.

• No one else had ever seen it.
• That man was a synagogue ruler.
• He had been able to conceal his idolatry from everyone else
• AND JESUS PUT A SPOTLIGHT ON IT.

WHY?
Mark 10:21 “Looking at him, Jesus felt a love for him and said to him, “One thing you lack: go and sell all you possess and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me.”

Why did Jesus expose him? He loved him.

Did the Rich Young Ruler appreciate that love? No, he left.

“Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.”

John 16:1-3 “These things I have spoken to you so that you may be kept from stumbling. “They will make you outcasts from the synagogue, but an hour is coming for everyone who kills you to think that he is offering service to God. “These things they will do because they have not known the Father or Me.”

The church has bought into the lie that
If we live enough like Jesus in the world
Then we will know that because the world will love us.

BUT THAT IS BASED UPON THE ASSUMPTION THAT
THE WORLD LOVED JESUS, AND THEY DIDN’T!

LISTEN, being loved by the world is NOT an indicator salvation.

Luke 6:22-23, 26 “Blessed are you when men hate you, and ostracize you, and insult you, and scorn your name as evil, for the sake of the Son of Man. “Be glad in that day and leap for joy, for behold, your reward is great in heaven. For in the same way their fathers used to treat the prophets…Woe to you when all men speak well of you, for their fathers used to treat the false prophets in the same way.”

THE SIMPLE POINT HERE
Love is definitely the exhibition of new life,
But don’t expect the world to be the one who affirms it.

Brotherly love is not defined by the world.
God defines what true brotherly love looks like.

Want me to show you some examples of it?

Matthew 18:15 “If your brother sins, go and show him his fault in private; if he listens to you, you have won your brother.”

• Brotherly love is unwilling to allow a brother to live in that which God will judge.
• Brotherly love will take a brother aside and say, “You can’t do that”

James 5:19-20 “My brethren, if any among you strays from the truth and one turns him back, let him know that he who turns a sinner from the error of his way will save his soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.”

I CRINGE SO OFTEN TODAY with the type of absolutely false love that is handed out even by the church.

I see people celebrate all sorts of things on social media.

I see someone in a homosexual relationship post it on social media
• And inevitably there will be someone who claims to be a Christian post “So
happy for you!”

I see a couple decide to live together outside of wedlock, in blatant sexual immorality. They’ll post in social media
• And some supposed Christian will say, “How fun, congratulations on
starting your life together!”

I see an unwed girl post pictures of how she’s going to have a baby
• And some supposed Christian will say, “Congratulations! So happy for
you!”

And the world says, “NOW THAT’S LOVING LIKE JESUS DID!”

REALLY? (That’s how Jesus loved sinners; by affirming them?)

LET ME REMIND YOU AGAIN.
GOD’S LOVE IS REDEEMING LOVE, IT IS NOT ENABLING LOVE.

DO YOU KNOW THE DIFFERENCE?

Now I’m NOT SAYING you should get on social media and call those people out, that’s hardly the place. But Christian love urges that person to repent.

Christ tells those in sexually immoral relationships the same thing He told the Woman caught in adultery:
John 8:11 “Go. From now on sin no more.”

Christ tells those who have reaped the consequences of sinful choices, the same thing He told the Cripple at the Bethesda pool:
John 5:14 “do not sin anymore, so that nothing worse happens to you.”

Jesus told the crowds:
Matthew 4:17 “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

Why would He be so direct?
Why would He so boldly tell them to stop?

BECAUSE HE LOVED THEM
(really loved them)

Love is the absolute exhibition of new life,
But make sure you’re identifying the right kind of love.

We are NOT talking about what the world calls love.
We ARE talking about the kind of love Christ has for sinners.

The kind of love that loved them too much to leave them in their sin.
The kind of love that will get you hated in the world.

“Do not be surprised, brethren, if the world hates you.”

THE OLD LIFE HATES THE NEW LIFE
• It convicts them. (As Abel did Cain)
• It confronts them.
• They hate that new righteous change.
• They hate the love that corrects them.

That is not a shocking thing.
Being loved by the world is NOT a fruit of genuine Christianity.

THEN WHAT IS?

(14) “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren. He who does not love abides in death.”

And this is the second point I’d make to you this morning.
2) THE NEW LIFE LOVES THE NEW LIFE

Unredeemed people hate people who CONFRONT their sin
And EXPOSE their idolatry and CALL them to repentance.

But redeemed people love people who do that.

• Redeemed people love those who walk in righteousness.
• They love people who challenge them through their testimony.
• They love those who warn them and call them to purity.

THEY LOVE RIGHTEOUSNESS.
It is such an obvious distinction.

And this is the criteria by which we know if we have the new life or not.

DO I LOVE THOSE WHO LOVE RIGHTEOUSNESS?
(Or do those people get on my nerves?)

“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.”

That is to say we love to receive Christ-like love from the brethren
And we love to show Christ-like love to the brethren.

Now John is here PRETTY GENERIC.
In a moment he’s going to show you exactly what he means; namely the self-sacrificing aspect of love.
• That we, like Jesus, “ought to lay down our lives for the brethren”
• And that we should love “in deed and truth.”

When you are willing to lay down your life for the brethren,
That’s how you know you have been given new life.

Being loved is not the measure of Christ-likeness, loving others is.

And because we’re on the thread let me give you a concept of this
That perhaps you’ve not thought about before.

We just talked about how Jesus confronted sin and exposed sinners
And called them to repentance.

THAT WAS LOVE, THAT’S WHY HE DID IT.

But do you know what it is when we affirm sinners instead of calling them to repentance?

That is a terrible form of selfishness.
(That is self-love)

You and I know full well why we don’t like to confront sinners.
We don’t want to do it because in the world’s eyes
It will make us look like the bad guy.

They will hate me if I confront them.
They won’t like me.
I’ll be ostracized if I don’t affirm them.

YOU KNOW THAT’S THE TRUTH.

And so the motive behind
Why you affirm them instead of confronting them
Is not because you love them, but because you love yourself.

You would rather they get judged than you get hated.

At that moment you will sacrifice them instead of yourself.
And you do it craftily and deceitfully by pretending to bless them.

That is NOT an attribute of Christ.
That is an attribute of Satan.

Charles Spurgeon once said:
“The most shameful way of cursing another is by pretending to bless him.”

The world may call it love.
But the only kind of love it is, is self-love.

That is not the love we are called to give to the brethren.

You want A PICTURE of Christian love to the sinning brother?
Galatians 6:1 “Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; each one looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.”

The name of the game is restoration.
• Gently? Absolutely!
• Humbly? It better be!
• But you restore him, you don’t affirm him.

Jude 21-23 “keep yourselves in the love of God, waiting anxiously for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ to eternal life. And have mercy on some, who are doubting; save others, snatching them out of the fire; and on some have mercy with fear, hating even the garment polluted by the flesh.”

If a brother is on fire, you don’t say, “Those flames look so good on you!”
• You snatch them out of the fire.
• You throw off that burning jacket and you stomp it on the ground.

THAT IS CHRISTIAN LOVE.

And “We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.”

• Do you?
• Do you love your brother?

What about when role is reversed (and it will be) ?
What about when you are the one who messed up and it is your brother who comes to restore you?

Do you hate him for it?
Or do you love him for it?

“We know that we have passed out of death into life, because we love the brethren.”

DO YOU LOVE YOUR BROTHER?
“He who does not abides in death.”

If you don’t love your brother there is no new life in you.
LOVE IS THE EXHIBITION OF NEW LIFE

And John goes on.
(15) “Everyone who hates his brothers is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him.”

Now we are back to the word “hates”

Interesting word.
Often times “hate” is lifted up as the opposite of love.

It’s really not.
Hate is the absence of love.

Hate is actually a word that is used to measure our love for another.
Let me give you a passage to show you what I mean.

Luke 14:25-26 “Now large crowds were going along with Him; and He turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.”

Jesus was speaking in exaggerated language there.
• His point was that the love you have for Him must be so great
• That it would actually make your love for everyone else
• Seem like it was non-existent.

Hate isn’t really the opposite of love
So much as it is the absence of love.

It is when instead of sacrificing yourself,
You withhold that love and instead allow your brother to be sacrificed.

Later in verse 17 John defines hatred a little differently.
He says, “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him…”

• There hatred is described as the closing of one’s heart.
• It is the absence of love.
• It is the refusal to sacrifice self.

And John says:
“Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer;”

That’s a bold statement.

“Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer;”

Where is he getting that?
He’s getting it from the example of Cain who was a child of the evil one.

You know Cain was a murderer
Because he lifted up his hand and murdered his brother.
In all reality Cain was a murderer long before he ever lifted up his hand.

Cain had no love for his brother.
Cain hated his brother.

Matthew 5:21-22 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER’ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court; and whoever says to his brother, ‘You good-for-nothing,’ shall be guilty before the supreme court; and whoever says, ‘You fool,’ shall be guilty enough to go into the fiery hell.”

Do you understand that?
• Murder is of the heart, not the hand.
• All the hand does is expose the heart.

So all hatred…
All moments of withholding love…
Those moments reveal the same evil heart that Cain had.

That is the very heart of the unredeemed.
• They withhold love from others.
• They refuse to sacrifice self for others.
• It is hatred and it is not a fruit of redemption.

The new life which is given us in Christ
Exhibits itself by its willingness to sacrifice for our brother.

And again I remind you,
True love might not be called true love by a world that hates true love.

But that’s not how we measure it.
We measure it by our willingness to sacrifice
Our comfort, our safety, our reputation, our provision, and anything else
In order to benefit our brother.

That kind of love is the exhibition of new life.

Next time we’ll look at the final point about this Christian love.

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Anticipating Worship: Encouragement in Captivity
Psalms 126
May 22, 2022

Everyone here knows the beloved song “Amazing Grace” by heart.
Those verses ring so true to the journey of our lives.

“Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come. Tis grace has brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home.
The Lord has promised good to me, His word my hope secures. He will my shield and portion be as long as life endures.”

Those two verses of that great hymn
Could easily be the theme song of Psalms 126.

We return to these songs of ascents and it is as though
We journey with the pilgrims as they make their way to Jerusalem.

Each time they face a new hill or a new burden
It is as though the leader of the caravan shouts out,
“Psalms 122 everyone!” or “Let’s all sing Psalm 125 together”.

They are songs of encouragement and hope
Meant to express the sheer joy it will be
When we all arrive together to worship the Lord in Jerusalem.

Certainly each of these Psalms has its ULTIMATE FULFILLMENT
In the coming worship of heaven.

“When we’ve been there ten thousand years, bright shining as the sun,
We’ve no less days to sing His praise than when we’ve first begun”

That is the ultimate fulfillment of all these hymns
As we are all on this pilgrimage together.

But as we journey we find A SYMBOL or A PICTURE of that fulfillment
As we gather for corporate worship.

The gathering of the church is
The closest glimpse we are allowed to see of the coming glory of heaven.

And while we wait for the day of glory, corporate worship
Becomes one of our greatest joys and greatest encouragements.

So we have been talking about
The tremendous blessings of corporate worship.

Everything from fellowship in suffering to joy in arrival.
Everything from a sanctuary from evil to a place where hope is rekindled.

It is a blessing to be able to gather with God’s people in worship.

And TONIGHT we talk about this blessing some more.
Here we have a people in “captivity”.

I think it is best to see their “captivity”
In a GENERIC SENSE rather than a specific one.

By that I mean, I’m not certain the reference is here to the Babylonian captivity,
Or even a captivity that has removed Israelites from their land.

Rather, it’s best to see it here as a generic burden.
• Perhaps the Philistines have attacked…
• Perhaps the locusts have ravaged the fields…
• Perhaps there is a drought in the land…
• Perhaps it is that “scepter of wickedness” that disheartens…
• Perhaps it is a time of spiritual apathy in the land…

It is a figurative captivity.

We’ve felt something to that effect over the last few years in our nation.
• When people were told to stay home or wear masks or stay 6 feet away.
• When stores were closed and services were not rendered.
• When travel was restricted and gatherings monitored.

• Now when inflation is driving up prices and life is harder.
• As drought and fires ravage our part of the world.

It is a bondage
It is a burden
It is a captivity of sorts

That is what is going on in the lives of our pilgrims.

And again we see that relief in this captivity is found
As they gather with the saints and find some perspective
In their difficult circumstances.

They get encouragement.
How valuable is this in difficult days!
Encouragement is a true blessing of corporate worship.

Let’s work our way through this 126th Psalm
And see the encouragement our pilgrims have found in captivity.

We describe here what the corporate gathering is used for.

#1 A TIME TO REFLECT
Psalms 126:1-3

There is definitely a present and real conflict or burden
That faces our pilgrims.

LIFE IN THE PRESENT IS DIFFICULT.

BUT as they gather for corporate worship
It is NOT to immediately recount all their problems.

Indeed, God has told us:
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.”

While there is a time to present our requests and burdens to God,
(As our pilgrims surely will.)

The first business of the church when they gather
Is to give thanks to God for all that He has done.

Our first mandate and priority is to praise and give thanks to our God.

And that is where these pilgrims begin.
It begins with a time of reflection
On all the places where God has brought them.

They remember a time of prior deliverance.

“When the LORD brought back the captive ones of Zion…”

As the pilgrims assemble there is a time given to remember where they once were.
• They were in captivity.
• They have struggled before…
• They have suffered before…

BUT THE FOCUS OF THE SONG
Is not on the suffering but rather on God’s redemption.
“the LORD brought [them] back”

And this is of course where we are called to begin
Every time we gather.

We even periodically take the Lord’s Supper
To remember what Christ did for us.

We all must stop and think about what we were.
• Do you remember your life before redemption?
• Do you remember the sin that enslaved you?
• Do you remember your terrible attitude toward life?
• Do you remember your fallen logic?
• Do you remember the way you used others?
• Do you remember your idolatrous ambitions?

You were in captivity.

Paul spoke to Timothy about ministering to such people.

2 Timothy 2:24-26 “The Lord’s bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.”

The reality is that this was us.
We used to be enslaved.
And God redeemed us!

Psalms 40:1-3 “I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me and heard my cry. He brought me up out of the pit of destruction, out of the miry clay, And He set my feet upon a rock making my footsteps firm. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God; Many will see and fear And will trust in the LORD.”

Titus 3:3-7 “For we also once were foolish ourselves, disobedient, deceived, enslaved to various lusts and pleasures, spending our life in malice and envy, hateful, hating one another. But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that being justified by His grace we would be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

Ephesians 2:1-7 “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 raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

“Amazing grace, how sweet the sound that saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost, but now am found, was blind but now I see.”

That is the opening song of the congregation.

But it’s NOT JUST salvation we remember.
There have been plenty of other captivities from which we have also been saved.

• Remember that time of financial hardship and God carried you through?
• Remember that time when your marriage was on the rocks and God fixed it?
• Remember that time you were sick and God healed your body?
• Remember that time your kids were in peril and God brought them back?

• Or even remember that time of tragedy and grief and God sustained you?

Remember your captivity and how God delivered!

We delight and we rejoice once again in the joy of that day.

(1b) “We were like those who dream.”

We were people who, in that moment, thought God could do anything.

If you’ve ever seen the movie “Facing the Giants”
It’s that story of the football coach who is losing, who is about to be fired, who can’t pay the bills, and who as a couple can’t have children.
And God does great things for him. He starts to succeed, his finances turn around and his wife gets pregnant.

And on the heels of each blessing the question is asked, “Tell me what is impossible with God?”

You know how you feel on the day of God’s deliverance.
There is an unbridled hope that God can do anything!

• Imagine the optimism when the Red Sea split!
• Imagine the optimism when that giant fell!
• Imagine the optimism when Cyrus issued the decree for Israel to go home!

You felt that once when God delivered you.
(2) “Then our mouth was filled with laughter And our tongue with joyful shouting;”

• When God delivered did you shout?
• When God delivered did you sing?
• When God delivered did you laugh?

I’ll bet you did!
It was a glorious time of rejoicing
Because God redeemed you from your captivity.

And what an IMPACT it even had on those around you.
“Then they said among the nations, “The LORD has done great things for them.”

Even those around you could see God’s great redemption in your life.
• We think of Balak terrified because he saw how God was favoring the
Israelites.
• We think of Rahab in Jericho saying, “We’ve heard about how God is on
your side.”

• Or we think of others who notice God’s deliverance and God’s transformation.
They notice the change God works in us.

And they see God’s glory through our redemption.

That is a reality which God has worked in our lives.
From captivity to redemption
From redemption to testimony

And the pilgrims here first spend a moment thinking about
All that God has done on their behalf.

TURN TO: NUMBERS 33
(1-37)

And you read that and say, “Preacher, that’s pretty boring.”
It is unless you were one of the children of Israel.

And then every one of those stops becomes another story in the journey.
• Another place of God’s deliverance.
• Another place of God’s protection.
• Another lesson learned of God.

YOU COULD DO THAT IN YOUR LIFE.
We could do that in THIS CHURCH.

I think of 2004 in September we had a month of stillness and how a few women came forward compelled to go on mission and a year later God sent us to Africa, Lebanon, Israel, and El Paso.

In 2006 we were compelled to go to China but had no money and the PBR hired us to build all of those spur racks.

In 2012, 16 people were compelled to go to Sanyati and we certainly could not afford the projected $64,000 it would cost until God opened the flood gates and send like $75,000 to us.

How God sent funds to remodel a kitchen and the sanctuary.

I think of the day people in our church were saved.
Or the day when those in sin found repentance.

“Through many dangers, toils, and snares I have already come.
Tis grace has brought me safe thus far and grace will lead me home.”

When you go back over the course of time it is quite remarkable
All that God has done in His work of redemption.

And it culminates with A CORPORATE STATEMENT.
(3) “The LORD has done great things for us; We are glad.”

And there we rest a moment.

I don’t know what captivity you currently endure…

I know there are some we corporately endure.
• We have a sceptor of wickedness in our land…
• We are enduring drought…
• We are dealing with economic inflation…

You may have some personal issues that make life difficult as well.

But before you take another step,
Can you gather with God’s people and say,
“The LORD has done great things for us; We are glad.”

The opening of worship is the recognition of all that God has done.
And a declaration that He is good and you are glad.

The is the epitome of Christian gratitude.

It is impossible for Job not to come to mind here.
On the day when Job lost everything on earth.
Job 1:20-21 “Then Job arose and tore his robe and shaved his head, and he fell to the ground and worshiped. He said, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, And naked I shall return there. The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away. Blessed be the name of the LORD.”

Can we do that first?

I love the break in the book of Romans.
After 11 chapters in which Paul outlines the glory of the gospel and all that God has done for us through Christ Jesus.

Chapter 12 begins the application section of the book and Paul says:
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.”

The motive of Christian worship is not merely what God will do
But what He has already done.

Before you petition Him for His promises of future deliverance
You must first worship Him for His past mercies.

START THERE.
If God never did another good thing for us,
Thank Him for what He has done.

Make that declaration: “The LORD has done great things for us; We are glad.”

AND OF COURSE WE DO THAT CORPORATELY
SO THAT: those who currently struggle with the pain of captivity
Might be caught up to join us.

There are times
When our burdens are heavy and bitterness threatens to steal our joy.

It is then that
The rest of the congregation (through their worship) does us the great service of reminding us of all that we have to be thankful for.

START THERE.
That is what corporate worship is, it is a TIME TO REFLECT.

And then comes the next chapter:
#2 A TIME TO REQUEST
Psalms 126:4

I’m so glad that God not only permits this, but even commands it.

Philippians 4:6 “Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.”

There is certainly a time to “let your requests be made known to God”

And that is where we come now.
Having remembered that our God is a God who delivers the captives,
The congregation now cries out for deliverance once again.

“Restore our captivity, O LORD”

That is a little misleading.
• They are NOT asking to go back into captivity,
• They ARE asking for deliverance from their current captivity.

Psalms 85:1-2 “O LORD, You showed favor to Your land; You restored the captivity of Jacob. You forgave the iniquity of Your people; You covered all their sin. Selah.”

Clearly the idea of “Restore our captivity” is a reference to restoring us from it.

It is the idea of restoration and bringing us back.

And because the congregation spent a moment
Remembering God’s past mercies and power
Now it is easier to pray in faith about their present predicament.

When you fail to give thanks…
When you fail to worship for what God has done…
It robs you of your faith when you present your current requests to God.

First take a moment and remember who you are addressing
And then let your faith rise in your request to Him.

They are not praying to an indifferent God.
They are not praying to an impotent God.

They are praying to a God who has a track record of deliverance,
And to a God who even if He doesn’t deliver,
It is only because He is at work in a greater way.

So remember that and then cry out.

We ask Him to save because He has saved before.
We ask Him to deliver because He has delivered before.
We ask Him to send rain because He has sent rain before.

You get the idea.

“Restore our captivity, O LORD, As the streams in the South.”

There deliverance is compared to the relief after a long drought
When the waters come and the streams again begin to flow.

What was your mood when it rained last Monday night after almost 12 months of drought?

Well that is what we still pray for.
That God would deliver and restore as He has done so many times before.

And we do this not only individually, but corporately.

And can I put a plug in again for prayer meeting?

I realize it’s difficult and perhaps uncomfortable for some to come and just pray around a circle, but something in me refuses to make it about anything other than prayer.

I have this crazy belief that one ought to be able to expect the children of God to be willing to gather and to pray.

Personal prayer is certainly important, but I can think of few things more basic than when God’s people gather to pray together.

That just seems like something that is obvious church behavior.
We should gather together to seek and present our requests to God.

The corporate gathering is a time to REFLECT and a time to REQUEST.
#3 A TIME TO REMIND
Psalms 126:5-6

Our Psalmist takes what has been true in the past, adds to it a prayer of faith
And then reminds the congregation of the coming result.

• We know who God is.
• We know what God is done.
• We know He responds to the prayers of His people.

And now, we gather corporately
And we remind one another of what God has promised.

“Those who sow in tears shall reap with joyful shouting. He who goes to and fro weeping, carrying his bag of seed, Shall indeed come again with a shout of joy, bringing his sheaves with him.”

IT’S FARMING.

I often use the analogy at funerals,
But the bible uses farmers for illustrations a lot and farmers always represent the same thing.

Farmers are pictures of hope.
(That’s all they have)

• A farmer will spend a large amount of money on a seed.
• Sometimes he’ll even go into debt to acquire that seed.
• And then he will do the unthinkable with it.
• He buries it in the ground.
• Ground he has prepared, but he buries it none the less and then he waits.
• All he has is hope that a crop will be produced.

It is hard labor, but if that crop comes up it will be pure rejoicing.

I don’t know if Lance and Willie and Chris actually cry when they have to go plow and plant, but I know they rejoice when they sell that cotton.

THAT IS THE ANALOGY USED HERE.

But it is more than a picture of farming,
It is a picture of bearing burdens.

We go through difficult events in our lives.
We go through difficult seasons in our lives.

And there are many times when we don’t really have a clue
Why we have been charged to go through them.

We have only the promise:
Romans 8:28 “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose.”

Romans 8:18 “For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”

2 Corinthians 4:16-18 “Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.”

We go through these times of captivity and all we have is the promise
That God knows what He is doing and it will be worth it.

BUT LET’S BE HONEST,
When you are in the middle of captivity it’s hard to see that.

And if you stay secluded it’s really hard to remember that.

YOU NEED THE CONGREGATION.
You need that brother or sister who will come up
And remind you of what you already know.

Hebrews 12 is that great chapter about God’s discipline
And how it produces righteousness in us.

The writer reminds:
Hebrews 12:10-11 “For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”

WE KNOW THAT,
But in the middle of captivity it’s hard to remember that.

And that is where the corporate reality comes in.

Notice what the writer of Hebrews says next:
Hebrews 12:12-13 “Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble, and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.”

What is that?
• That’s when the brother or sister approaches and lifts you up.
• You’ve got weak knees and feeble legs.
• You’ve been beet and it feels like something is dislocated.

What a blessing when
• One comes up and helps you bear your load by reflecting with you on God’s past redemption.
• One comes up and helps you by joining you in prayer to the Lord.
• One comes up and helps you by reminding you of God’s promise to work for good.

Those are the absolute joys of corporate worship
Which cannot be overstated.

There is even a tremendous correction that can come here.
Hebrews 12:15 “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;”

That is a blessing in our pain as well isn’t it?

Sometimes in our captivity we are prone to bitterness.
• We don’t understand and we get angry.
• Satan whispers in our ear and we listen to him.

What a blessing to have the church who can recognize that bitterness,
Expose it, and call us back to gratitude and gladness.

You see here that the corporate worship is also a time to remind.

We remind one another that “weeping may last for the night but joy comes in the morning.”

We remind one another that “plowing and planting and weeding is hard work, but the harvest is so worth it.”

We remind one another that “even though God may allow trials and suffering in our lives that He is always at work for our good.”

BEYOND THAT…

Many people use these verses in an evangelistic sense.
They liken the sowing to the preaching of the gospel
And the harvest to the day a sinner is saved.

AND THAT IS NEEDED AS WELL.

Paul told Timothy to be faithful “in season and out of season”
There would be times when it seemed like people couldn’t get enough of the gospel
And there would be times when no one wants to hear it.

• The call to the Christian is to preach anyway.
• The call to the Christian is to keep sowing seed even if it feels like it’s all fallen on hard or weedy soil.

BUT THAT’S HARD ISN’T IT?

It’s hard to keep teaching that class week after week when it doesn’t appear they are listening.

It’s hard to keep sharing the gospel with that friend who just never seems to listen.

And fatigue hits us all.

But it’s then that
• We gather and reflect on how God has saved in the past. He has saved before and He will save again.
• We gather and request again God’s salvation of the lost.
• We gather and remind one another that God can save anyone, even the most hard hearted.

Paul said:
1 Timothy 1:15-16 “It is a trustworthy statement, deserving full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost of all. Yet for this reason I found mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Jesus Christ might demonstrate His perfect patience as an example for those who would believe in Him for eternal life.”

That is encouraging isn’t it!
There’s hope for that friend you’ve been witnessing to.
There’s hope for that kid you’ve been teaching.

And sometimes we need that encouragement.
• Keep plowing…
• Keep sowing…
• Some day the harvest will come.

This is the encouragement we receive even in times of captivity.
WE NEED THE CONGREGATION.

• They help us remember what God has done.
• They petition God with us.
• They remind us that God is faithful to bring a harvest.

And in our captivity we are encouraged.

We love the blessing of being able to gather together.