Growing Old

Pastor Corvus and a privilege to be here a very unique circumstance. And I'm thankful to God for the opportunity to serve him like an honest effort added the word and also to try and give back with the church that have come to love so much Baptist Church would appreciate everybody's love and prayers and support concern Condon. Me and my family for these now as of this month. 19 years seven the Lord if you want to open your Bibles with me to read some excerpts from Psalm 37 beginning the middle and the end while you're finding your place while mere minutes of trying to get situated. My notes such as they are, can't rely too much on plain old memory. Try to use my time wisely.

Psalm 37 verse one Psalm of David.

Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the work of iniquity that I shall soon be cut down like the grass and whether the Green River trust in the Lord and do good, so shalt thou dwell in the land. Verily thou shall be said delight thyself also in the Lord and he shall give the desires nine Mark commit that way unto the Lord, trust also in him and pass, and he shall bring forth our righteousness is the light in my judgment, as the noonday rest in the Lord and wait patiently for him. Fret not thyself because of him prospered in this way because of the man he bring his wicked devices to pass cease from anger say grass, fret not thyself in any last evil. For evildoers shall be cut off, but those that wait upon the Lord.

They shall inherit the earth's 23 the steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord. He delighted in his way that he fall, he shall not be utterly cast down for the Lord upholds him with his hand. I have been young and now I'm old yet.

Have I not seen the righteous forsaken baking bread is ever merciful and when death seat is blessed depart from evil and do good and well forever more for the Lord loveth judgment sake is not his saints. They are preserved or ever the seed of the wicked shall be cut off. Now verse 35. I have seen the wicked great power spreading himself at the Green Bay tree. Yet he passed away in low was not a I saw him back could not be found the perfect man, and behold the upright for the end of that man, the transgressors shall be void together and of the wicked shall be cut off, but the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord is their strength in the time of trouble in the Lord shall help them and deliver them, he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them because they trust in you. Psalm 37 a Psalm of David. Psalms are wonderful portions of Scripture recently heard that John Piper say that all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ can find themselves in the song and then he pointed out that they are written instructed us to comfort us and to move us or to engage us, and I personally sometimes when it's been too hard to put my words in prayer have used the songs as my own personal prayer book. Psalm 32 concerning salvation.

In Psalm 51 to deal with sin and Psalm 42 sadness in Psalm 119 my appreciation for the Scriptures and on and on we could go so the Psalms are a blessing to the people of God.

Let's consider Psalm 37 in a particular way. Overall what you see here is the absolute security of the righteous and the utter insecurity of the wicked, regardless how things might appear at this present moment. This is a wisdom song.

It extols the virtue of wisdom that's the category that it's put in by those who have studied all through the Psalms and categorize them by their themes and were there topics. It helps us to deal with questions and doubts that arise in life and that is something that I find myself tremendously needing.

David deals with the greatest of all riddles and that is the evidence prosperity of the wicked and the affliction of the righteous, and that in this Psalm, the Lord gently but firmly forbids believers to groan and moan and whine and whimper. Reason being, God has made it plain that our minds can be call when we understand God's present dealings with his flock as well as with the wolves that surround them. Now there are many very important trends in Psalm 37 all woven together that deal with that ultimate picture. The difference between the final end of the wicked and the righteous, but I want to focus on one particular thing unique to this Psalm comes from David's words of testimony and that is the issue of growing old. Growing old.

David said in verse number 25. I have been young. That's what it used to be, but that's not what I am now. Now I am old and as an old believer. He testifies concerning something he's never saying and that is God's own people forsaken and then he testifies down in verse 35 of something he has seen. That is the wicked by Being giant Bay tree and over in the Mediterranean climate. They can grow to be 60 feet high.

They look like a giant shrub and the foliage is very dense and the leaves are very dark and they came to be used as synonymous of strength and victory in virtue and the Roman emperors make their garlands with them and things like that.

David said well here's something I have seen that is the big powerful wicked suddenly suddenly cut down our focus is on something that we are all doing, but a lot of folks don't want to talk about too much and that is growing old Solomon point out a few very practical and I think important beneficial traits about growing old that we can draw from David his life and his statements herein.

Psalm 37. First of all I want to begin by saying that we need understand growing old is a privilege it really is, is the definition of a privilege or privilege is an advantage that only one person or people have not every body privilege is an opportunity to do something special or enjoyable a privilege is a right that has been granted as a favored position and benefit to an individual and I believe that if we think about it, we would have to believe that growing old is actually a privilege out. You might know a bit about the life of David E shows up in first Samuel chapter 16 when Samuel sent to anoint the next king of Israel.

Jesse has eight sons. The seven older ones better for him, and finally the last young one was brought and that was David.

He was young, and to be young in the Bible seems to be a newborn child to be a kid to be a youth young man or woman up to the age of 20. Remember when he went down in the valley of Eli fight with Goliath and how Goliath mocked David because he said David you're just a use just a boy.

You're just a kid but we know that the Scriptures tell us in second Samuel five that David was actually anointed the king of Israel at the age of 30 and we learn from reading first Kings chapters 1 and chapter 2 that he served as King for 40 years.

So if you do your math and you have 30+40 the results is 70 so we know that he lived at least to be 70 years of age and it looks like from the record and first Kings that he lived to be 70 he was stricken with age. He was evident far advanced by his years and then he did pass away.

God took him home and I'm saying for David.

This was a privilege because David had seen a lot of death enough.

David probably saw his parents die. Most likely, some if not all of his older brothers die. He had seen his very good friend Jonathan die. He'd seen countless men die on the battlefield. He'd seen a couple of his own sons adult sons died in young adulthood, he had had the heartbreaking experience of witnessing the death of an infant child. Yet David was alive and well at the age of 70 as a privilege and if we are alive. We need understand that we are alive.

One ultimate reason.

What is that reason. Remember that your life is a paper, it appears for a little time, then it vanishes away, and here's how we should consider the subject. If the Lord wills, we shall live. The one and only reason why I am alive tonight is because it is the Lord's will that I've Eli now down in time. Town North Carolina in the Latham family cemetery that was my grandmother's maiden name. That's how my folks get buried there. There is in that cemetery. The grave that is simply titled as the infant son Fadden Peggy that was my brother.

He was born in March 1959, he was stillborn and is buried there in a little bitty casket and a little bitty grades have been elected that many times and thought what a wonder it is that 12 months later in March 1960 I was born and here I why am I alive, it is because of the will of God.

Read through Psalm 37 and what do you find mentioned number of time.

Some David had seen cut down. Yet he could say I am alive, I'm an old man but is the will of God, live the first of all, it is a privilege to grow old. Not everybody gets to do the second growing old is something that has with it some inherent problems as what we usually think about right. That's what we usually recognize just thinking out on not turn their first Kings chapter 1 verse number one where David is described as being stricken, smitten with this year's and he was covered with a blanket and he was cold and he could not get warmth. Just think of David. There in that particular circumstance compared to what he had been to be old to be old means to be agent to show and to feel your years.

It literally portrays a man in a decrepit state, a man whose old and is CM is hanging down upon us over 11 there's a rest home that privilege of preaching and a few times and I seem to just have a desire in my heart to be a friend with an old gentleman there named Walter in December. Walter turned 90 and Walter Uchitel as the young man was a big burly strongman is a retired truck driver had to go hands but now he had a stroke. He was confined to a wheelchair. He couldn't speak rely on one of his eyes was very damn and cloudy.

There's an old man. The years have taken their toll is what David is using to describe himself. One thing about Walter.

He loved Jesus and he loved oatmeal cookies. Both of them. I can testify but think of David. He had been strong and fast and witty and capable and handsome and talented able to sing and dance to play music and to compose. It was a warrior and a K. It was an impressive figure of a man, but now now he's weak and he slow and is foggy and is disabled and is an intensive and is hindered. His fingers are stiff and the legs are weak in his voice is gone and his body is aching. He is all there are inherent problems that come along with growing all and I know that some people say well your you're really as as young as you feel. I don't find that to be very encouraging. I thought that you were as old as the math calculated. I was born in 1960 is the year 2020, 60 years old, the math doesn't lie, but I can tell there's been some changes and I know that maybe some people listening to me. Don't consider themselves to be old but the truth of the matter is we are all as old as we've ever been. We've never been older than we are right now and there's only one way to start getting old and that is for our lives to the problems, when I was 20 years old I used to pop out of bed every morning and I felt like a new man now I get up and I'm wondering who beat me up while I was sleeping the body dies, changes over time. And there's something important to understand about that.

Think about this. All of these problems that we think that come along with aging. There always symptoms of a root problem may all come from one problem and that one problem is a sin problem. We are fearfully and wonderfully made.

God created man in his image God made Adam from the dust of the ground and he breathed into him doing the breath of life, and he became what Lizzie he became a living, but he gave man one law to obey with a stiff penalty connected to disobedience. If you eat that one particular fruit from that one certain tree. When you dinner, you will die and we know that Adam didn't fall over dead instantly that what happened Adam was.

He began the dying process. He was utterly completely and permanently renew and by CN and that is filtered down to all of us because CN entered into the world by that one man, Adam, and that CN has passed down upon us and like it was with Adam. It is with us – comes along with CN. We are all like fading flowers because of sin, but thankfully there's a solution to the problem and that is the gospel of Jesus Christ by the gospel. We are regenerated by the gospel that inner man is renewed and by the gospel, we shall be resurrected, remade, and these old ruling bodies will be made like under his glorious body. So while there is a boxer inherent trouble problems that come with growing old. The gospel of Christ is the solution to the root cause of all of those problems. Let's move on something that has become so precious to me as the years have gone on is the understanding about the providence of God.

The providence of God. David said I have been young and now I'm all. And here's one thing that I'm sure of the steps of a good man's ordered by the Lord. He delights in his way, he fall, he shall not utterly be cast down for the Lord upholds with him with his hand. Providence, Providence Bentleys care and control as Christians were concerned with God's problem God's Providence is God's power that sustains and guides human destiny.

It is the guardianship and oversight exercised by God. David had the ability and sense to see the unseen.

He said that if a righteous man a good man falls, he will not utterly be cast down because the Lord will not hold them with his hand and that is what is considered to be in and through morphing her nest. The use of a human attribute to convey a truth about God. Jesus told us the reason that he is, is she are say and say secure forever is because they were in his hand and nobody could pluck them out of his hand. Only problem is I've never seen his hand, but I do believe I'm in his hand that is God's providential care of his people. The Lord could have easily have said my people, my believing people are saved and safe forever because of my divine omnipotence within the same reality, but that would've been a lot harder for me to understand when he said I'm in his hands. I can get that on their safe and secure profit and this is very encouraging when the years start to roll by you to think about this with me. Why do we live it's not because of luck or fate direct or exercise the stars or our horoscope. Some people say well it's my jeans. Let me ask you somewhere to get those team.

How does James happen to be gorging all of this is traceable back to the divine hand of God at work in the lives of his why we live and what happens while you the extent of our lives as well as the experience of our lives are the generation as well as the details is because the Lord the L ORD the self existent and eternal God is at work in the circumstances of his people. David said there steps are ordered. There steps are fixed, prepared, established, pointed rendered shore confirmed erected and established by the Lord, and he says this is so because the Lord delights in his way. He is gladly involved in the lives of his people and if they fall if they fall they will not utterly fall and forever fall away wires that the Lord will hold them now if I live until January 26, 2020 1B, the 30th anniversary of when I know that God brought me to faith in Christ. It's amazing to me. 40 years out of 60 at his awesome God's grace is truly wonderful and amazing but I can say one thing is only one reason why I'm still in the faith. And that's because of God's providence is sovereign, care and power exerted in my life. David said he may fall, that is, he might fall down flat on the ground on his face. He might be defeated you my trip and stumble he might drop beneath the burden. But God will uphold him sustaining him, bear him up support him revive here and see him three here's a quote from RC Sproul on this text that I dearly love.

He says the wise man is not perfect and he may fall in the way that God guides him and protects him even when he CN and encounters obstacles to you. That is very hopeful for this, I'll say it. I'm an old saint now I can get senior coffee at McDonald's. I'm 60 years old I learned and that is due to the kindness and goodness of God couple more things I want to deal with next. For those of us who are growing old. As the years go by. It is such a sweet sweet source of encouragement to consider and trust in the promises of God. David said I was young. Now I'm old. Here's something I never say righteous forsaken nor his seed begging bread that promise was first given to the Lord from the Lord to Joshua when he was about to enter into the land of Canaan in Joshua chapter 1 verse number five.

He promised he would never forsake Jocelyn David here reiterates that promise to say I've seen it come to pass in the writer of Hebrews again affirms that promise to the people of God when he says he has said he has promised he will never leave the nor forsake the I think that's a wonderful thing because finances my first psyche and friends. My first psyche and family life or safety, but never will the Lord for site and the child of God might find himself lonely, depressed, afraid, unhappy, nervous system, rest that he will never find himself to be forsaken by the Lord.

No matter what the circumstance. No matter what time is involved now.

A promise of course is only as good as the one who made a promise can be legally binding promises of pleasure. Certainty is an oath I'm telling you now do this 40 I can make a promise to you and be very sincere and failed to come across because I get distracted I get discouraged my resources get depleted I get overcome with some other issue, but that will never be said of God when he makes a promise, it is certain, and one thing we can be sure about.

No matter what we experience as we go through our years. We will never be forsaken by God John Joseph Carlisle points out, this he mentions what David did not say. David Nick did not say in my experience, I've never seen the righteous afflicted is not what David said. He said here's what David said. David said I never saw the righteous left nor forsaken in his affliction, and right away, you might start thinking what I remember a couple of occasions recorded in first Samuel, where David is actually asking for food. I remember them to.

He was running from Saul for his life. He went to the priest at the tabernacle near the Mount of olives and he asked him bread another time. David and his men were being pursued by Saul and encountered a wealthy landowner and ask of him bread and provision in both cases we find David in need of food, but in neither case do we find that his need. David was in the wilderness, but so was God. Where ever we are. Whenever we are and what ever we are. We are always assured that God is with us never know.

Never forsake us a forsake means to turn loose of the walk away from to give up all that will never be done to a believer by the Lord Jesus Christ. He will preserve them.

He will watch over them, keep them safe and carefully cherish and guard one last thing I want to close with this one. The passing of time rolling all is the time for man to think about what is their ultimate priority, ultimate priority priority. That's something that's very important and therefore must be dealt with before other things priority superior is number one.

Now obviously we think about the years going by being good stewards in dealing with medical needs and family matters in the state planning and all of those things are important but they are not of ultimate importance. They are not of ultimate importance what is ultimately important.

According to Jesus, is this seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness as the ultimate important and no doubt you noticed in the passages read seven the number of times humankind is set before us is divided into two categories, those who were righteous and those who are wicked to be wicked is to be a violator of God's law is to be guilty in God's eyes it is to be the object of God's judgment for disagreed disobedience and sin, the righteous, the are those who are lawful, just correct those who were justified and vindicated by God. Those who God considers to be innocent from sin. They also let priority is to be sure that we are not in the wicked category, but in the righteous category now this is on the one hand, and impossibility. How it's impossible because the Scripture says there is none righteous, no not one. The divine solution for that impossibility is the cross of Jesus Christ, God made him to be made sin for us, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him apart from Christ. We are utter failures in the righteousness department. Absolute failure. I think about this if we could talk to David today he could say I was young and I was all, and that in now products. The wise man prepares for the inevitable and even though we don't like to think about it a whole lot probably.

What follows aging is death and what follows death is accountability to God the ultimate priority is to have attributed to our account a righteousness, not that we produce ourselves. That's not possible, but that's provided for us in the Lord Jesus Christ to say something to all of us that needs to be said and obscene units over the years. Some dear loved one gets far along in a certain your body gets ruined with disease and they suffer and finally they pass on, and the assumption always is well their sufferings over and are in a better place and I want to say something to you.

That's the honest truth. People do not go to heaven as a reward for living a long time. People go to heaven as the result of being made and declared righteous by the Lord Jesus Christ very interesting to me and a blessing to me. The salvation of the righteous is of the Lord, the Lord shall help them and deliver them, he shall deliver them from the wicked, and save them. Why simply because they trust in him and is it absurd lately.

I love the words of the song that say my hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness mass for all of us. Time is running out. The only wise counsel would be seek the Lord, call upon him search the Scriptures confess your faults and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be say confess with your mouth that Jesus Christ is Lord and believe that God has raised him from the dead, you will be say.

For with the heart man believe it unto righteousness and confession is made unto salvation. Me ask you something. Are you ready for your last day in your last breath. Paul the apostle was you know he was in a Roman prison when he was an old man, 70, 75 years of age, and here's what he said in chapter 4, second Timothy two young Timothy Timothy the time of my departure the time of my him barking away from this earthly existence and going to be with God the time of my departure is at hand and I'm ready are you ready as the only wise way to live and the reason Paul was. Randy was about 30 years prior to that he had had a soul saving life transforming encounter with the Lord Jesus Christ and from that day to his last day he could say I know whom I have believed them emperors waited that he is able to keep that which I have committed unto him against that day. All of us are growing old, but if were in Christ we can be assured of this. Blessed are the dead guy in the Lord hear something were going to discover in an astounding way that they asked yet, our heavenly father, thank you for your word.

Psalm 37 grace your hand upon the life of David using him as a prophet speak, by way of divine inspiration of the person and work of Christ. Also, Lord is depth of experience in your wisdom was used to shape and mold him to make his words, able to minister to us or thank you that our souls if we have faith in Christ because we trust in him are safe and secure. We pray for any year man, woman, young person hears this message or not.

Pray with Proctor heart bring them. That same Blessed assurance in the name of Jesus we pray