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February 22, 2022 7:00 am
As Dave writes this armies praising God. Now because he's confident that God will bless him in the future. He doesn't wait until he experiences the blessings and so I will praise him, then no he says right now I'm confident this is the truth. But with John Green, founding pastor of truth Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio where God is teaching God's people. God's word. I build right done is said that as we stand for and in our commitment to living a life that is faithful to God, we can be supremely confident he will honor our commitment by blessing us in an immeasurable way, both here on earth and in eternity were glad you're with us for today's lesson.
Open your Bible now to Psalm 16 as we get started, here's Don Greenwood part two of a message called our refuge in life and death. Going back to Psalm 16. If you would hear in this closing portion of the opening section expresses the exclusivity of his affection to God. Look at Psalm 16 verse five he says the Lord is the portion of my inheritance and my cup you support my lot.
The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places. Indeed, my heritage is beautiful to me he's expressing here the purity of his satisfaction in the person of God and and and he says he says that the Lord you are what I will receive in life and that is enough to me, that is beautiful to me. Your person is my reward who you are is the gift to me.
That is the outcome of my life and I find that beautiful and pleasing to me is what he says. He says the Lord is the portion of my inheritance. If you remember back when we surveyed Joshua's a few weeks ago God distributed in the Old Testament, the land of Canaan to the different tribes of Israel. In the section of the promise land that each tribe received was there inheritance from the Lord.
It was a place where they would physically live and receive their blessing. What David is saying here is that he sees the Lord himself as his inheritance. It is is is the Lord himself that this is blessing by knowing God by being in submission to him by being in relationship with him. He has the blessing he has the reward. He has everything that he could possibly want and what David is expressing in these two verses is the complete nature of his devotion he is expressing his his final satisfaction in God alone. He's just expressing this law on this commitment and this devotion in this faithfulness to God in prayer, declaring it before men saying I want you to know that that my lot is with the Lord and I'm content there in his satisfaction 11. Manna said that God is most glorified when we are most satisfied in him. David is saying I find my complete satisfaction in Yahweh and in that I am expressing the fullness of my commitment to him. It's not that I need Yahweh and something else to make my heart satisfied. I have Yahweh and Yahweh alone is enough here in the New Testament era, there should be this since this realization, this aspiration of our heart that says I have asked and that is enough to satisfy my soul. I have the one who laid down his life and love for my soul. This one who gave himself for me who loved him and gave himself up for me. I would boasting nothing. I would glory and nothing but the cross of Christ because in Christ. I find the one who loves me. To that extent, and in response to his love.
I give him all of my love and all of my affection without distraction. If I have Christ have and so those of us with Christ would look at Psalm 16 verse six and then an even greater way than David said the lines of fallen to me in pleasant places the boundary marks of my life. The boundary lines of my life are found centered on the Lord Jesus Christ.
I have a good this is pleasant to me. This is pleasing to me. Time with Christ my earthly circumstances fade in importance by comparison.
Indeed, my heritage belongs to me, my heritage in Christ is beautiful to me and it's instructive for us men to realize David doesn't hesitate to use words like blahs pleasant and beautiful to describe his appreciation for the gift of God in his salvation he see how is just expressing this fullness of commitment. This commitment to faithfulness. Well, that's the first six verses as you proceed in the rest of Psalm 16. It only gets better.
He's expressing because he's expressing more than just a commitment to faithfulness here. It's more than David lifting his heart up, as it were, and offering it to God and in an act of pure devotion and worship. It's more than that he's expressing as you go through the rest of the song confidence that God is going to bless him, he's expressing a confidence in blessing so point number one. He was expressing a commitment to faithfulness, but now is expressing here in the rest of the Psalm. Point number two, a confidence in blessing and he articulates in verses seven and eight is serene and peaceful, confident, assured view of the future. Look at verses seven and eight, it says I will bless the Lord, was counseled me indeed.
My mind instructs me in the night. I have set the Lord continually before me because he is at my right hand I will not be shaken. This is a statement of complete confidence about what the future holds for him and he's and it's it's totally separate from his circumstances. It has nothing to do with knowing how this trial or that works out. It has nothing to know without it has nothing to do with knowing the outcome of his life. He says God is at my right hand. God is it the place of preeminence and exultation in my heart and as a result of that, I am confident that I will not be shaken. I will not be moved. God is with me and beloved. This is so practical and personal. God is not a theoretical concept to David is not a theological construct is personal God to David is who he really is. God is a living person who is with him throughout all of his life. It would be abhorrent to David to here is some people out on the world's the big man upstairs. What a what is shameful way to allude to God. David years him.
David's him and hence tense in this great and compassionate and faithful God so completely consumes his affections.
He says this God with me. I am unconquerable. My heart cannot be moved because it is so completely anchored in affection for this one who is my God, we ask ourselves is that the way the that we feel was that the way that we think is that the way that we respond to our Christ.
Are we so conscious of his presence is it so real to us that we can express it in this way, with a confidence in blessing that says I will not be shaken. Romans 838 who can separate us from the love of Christ that actually verse 35 tribulation, or distress, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword convinced that neither death nor life powers, nor height, nor depth, or any other created thing can separate us from the love of God was in Christ Jesus our complete confidence. So that's the thing. This is set in his mind it doesn't Verizon flow and Evan flow with his circumstances. He's expressing a settled conviction that God is good God is sovereign God is always with him so the destination can only be positive.
It can only be good. And so far from David being in a time of distress when he writes the song I think that he's in a period of raspberries able to clarify these convictions. You know you know from experience that there are times when trials hidden and sometimes this view of things gets a little bit cloudy. Beloved, listen, if you're in a time of blessing. That's the time to seek God all the more and let these convictions in these affections, be crystallized and clarified in your mind so that they go even deeper so that what you see in the light is what establishes your mindset toward life in the window trials, and when the clouds overshadow you. You don't deny in the darkness what you came to know in the light. David here is riding in a time where things were clear to him and expresses the settled convictions and they help to carry him when the trials came later in life. Psalm 23 is similar in important verse four Psalm 23 verse four says I fear no evil for what you are what with me. I fear no evil for you are with me your my shepherd. You guide me directly provide for me. Verse eight of Psalm 16 he's at my right hand I will not be shaken. These are the settled convictions of the person who truly knows Yahweh and listen beloved let's get personal about this and let's take this and work this all the way through this. This challenges us.
If you're like me and you tend toward a more pessimistic, you know, and you have 10 reasons why things can go bad with every situation that comes up.
Notice what David is doing here. We need to address that pessimistic streak in our in our spirits and are constitutions in our dispositions and and and corrected biblically.
Notice what David is saying he is praising God. Now, as he writes this Psalm is praising God now because he's confident that God will bless him in the future. He doesn't wait until he experiences the blessings and so I will praise him, then no he says right now I'm confident right now I'm telling you, I will not be shaken. My heritage is beautiful to me right now because he's with me right now and defines and shapes the way that he looks at the future seeing you work it all the way through, and it could be no other way. Listen to me if God is really who you say you believe that he is every one of you here would say almost everyone without exception, say sovereign he's good he's faithful if we sang hymns like that you would stand up and you'd sing that from your heart what you you would sing those things will if that's true then work out the implications of it. If he's good and gracious and faithful now and he's the unchanging God then that's not going to change in the future.
And so, by what twisted sense of logic do we look at the future with fear and anxiety. If our God is who we say that we believe him to be. If this good and gracious and faithful God is always with us, then he can't possibly do anything other than come out good for us. In the end. That's why David can say he's at my right hand I will be shaken.
Spiritual confidence spiritual maturity. Doubt is not good faith is good confidence in God is good to doubt God.
In light of what he is revealed himself to be in the Scripture down in the light of Christ crucified and resurrected and ascended into heaven. Doubt is sin by what basis do we cast questions on the character of God on the sovereignty of God on righteous basis do we question his character and his intentions for his people. That's not the mark of faith.
The question that to do it in a settled way in an ongoing way is not just in a moment of weakness is a sign of unbelief. No, beloved for you and me. For those of us gathered under the teaching of the Psalms in the word of God. Let's be like David, shall we, let's let's settle it in our minds right here right right right this moment that says because he is at my right hand I will not be shaken. He knows the outcome, because he knows it's God. Everything else is details. Imagine what would happen fantasize with me for a moment imagine something with me for a moment imagine how it will transform our prayer lives.
Even your prayer life. If, if, instead of of focusing and majoring on our needs in the physical and circumstantial problems that were facing in this day and week in our lives. Imagine what would happen. Imagine how it would be transform if instead we spent a greater amount of time thanking God that he was at our side and affirming in prayer or confidence they will always be good gracious and faithful to us is because were his imagine how that would change the atmosphere of your prayers from one of desperation to one of serenity and confidence. That's what David's expressing here verse nine. David's soul is rejoicing. He says therefore my heart is glad and my glory rejoices. We talk often about noticing words like, therefore he's at my right hand I will not be shaken. Therefore, here's the implication that he draws out of that because he's out my right hand because I will not be shaken. Therefore, the implication of this is that my heart is glad in my glory rejoices in my flesh also will dwell securely is expressing in multiple ways with the word heart and flash, and his glory. His inner man is saying.
There's joy their security. I'm glad. As a result of all of these things.
The reality of who God is and who I am in relationship to him, dries my disposition toward life while see what I mean when I say that these things shape the way that we think this shapes everything about the way this shapes the fundamental way that you view life and process everything that happens to there is nothing that is outside the boundaries of what this encompasses in your inner man, David is undivided in his confidence. He's not like James describes in chapter 1 verse eight is not a double minded man who is unstable in his ways. David is expressing a settled maturity.
God is glorified in his heart and beloved, to the extent to which you recognize that that your heart is not quite there yet. You haven't come to that point yet in your Christian experience make this the aspiration that I want to move in that direction.
II reject being a faithless doubting professing Christian, I reject that I want to be like David Lord move me in that direction move may saliva be settled in, confident, and consistently proclaiming my confidence in you and my satisfaction and you and now we get to the best part of the song counting on the good part yet. It's all good, I mean David comes to a great climax here in verse 10 is confidence source to profound and breathtaking heights in verse 10 He Works His Way through so that it encompasses even his view of death. Verse 10 he says my flesh will dwell securely.
There at the end of verse nine. Four. He's drawing out another implication. He's just working through implications and taking it all the way to its logical conclusion, for you will not abandon my soul to shield nor will you allow your holy one to undergo decay shield is a reference to the round of the dead, but David is saying here in verse 10, even as an Old Testament saint is this he saying even death won't separate me from this gracious God was with me he says and he said he's working this all the way through before Christ before the resurrection and he says he says I belong to this living God and he is good and he is faithful and that means when I die, he will still be good and faithful to me and therefore the grave will not be the end of my existence will not bring a separation between me and my God couldn't be that way because God is too good and faithful to his people. This is an Old Testament expectation of eternal life, and it's even more breathtaking than that. David here in this verse is actually prophesying about the eventual resurrection of Jesus Christ. David thousand years before Christ. From this position of confidence in the blessing and goodness of God was moved by the Holy Spirit to speak of the ultimate resurrection of our Savior Scripture defines that for us. It says in verse 30 there because he was a prophet should skip over verse 29 brother and I may confidently say to you regarding the patriarch David.
They both died and was buried in his tomb is with us to this day. He was physically buried.
Although his spirit was with the Lord but is talking about the holy one not undergoing corruption so verse 30. He was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to see one of his descendents on his throne. He looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ that he was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh suffer decay. Psalm 16 is a direct prophecy of the resurrection of Christ. David wasn't saying that he himself would not undergo physical decay saying that Christ is the one who would not undergo decay in Psalm 16. David is expressing a profound inner sanctification he is expressing a significant level of spiritual maturity expressed in a mature commitment to faithfulness and a confident expectation of God's blessing on his life and that commitment and trust, provide a context for us to understand the resurrection of Christ. Beloved, listen to me these words about the resurrection came as David was reflecting and expounding on the goodness and faithfulness of God to his people and he says God is so faithful that not even death will separate us from him. David says God is so powerful that death could not bring decay to his Christ death, decay to go together at the Christ. That's how supreme the power and faithfulness of God is now watch this watch what this means for you.
Those of you who tremble at the thought of death. Let that be put away from your soul.
Here we know, the same God that David knew. But now we have even more than David had when he wrote those words for us, Christ has come, we look back now and see that Christ is resurrected in Christ said in John 1419, to his disciples, because I live you will live also.
We have no fear of death, God brought Christ through the resurrection and by our union with Christ we know for certain fact that he will bring us through death to the rest ultimate resurrection as well. We are joined together with Christ. What happened to him will happen to us.
We have a physical resurrection, then we will to.
There is no fear of death as a result.
That's why we can say with David. Look at Psalm 16 verse 11 we say with confidence, born of the knowledge of God and the true knowledge of Christ. David says he concludes on this final word of confidence that stretches into the realms of eternity you will make known to me the path of life in your presence is fullness of joy in your right hand there are pleasures forever God will lead us in life. Our Christ will lead us through death he will bring us safe to the other side. He will give us because he loves us. Pleasures at his right hand and when we know this God and we know his intentions for us.
What can we do accept the committed to faithfulness and confident in his ultimate blessing we go out in confidence in peace and serenity in a joyous love for that stolen green bringing his message. Our refuge in life and death to a close, will continue in our series called, set apart for God. Next time on the truth pulpit.
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It takes a lot of courage to live a joyful and fearless life that glorifies God. But how do we find that courage as society becomes more secular and hostile to Christianity and even as governments in some parts of the world become directly hostile to Christians and to the church under Christian thinking in Christian speaking, so we need to know an answer to this, my friend and I would say this Christian courage starts from having a deep knowledge of God and his attributes. You have to start there. When we know who God is, when we know who the Lord Jesus Christ is when we know that he is sovereign and he works all things together for good to those who love him and we know that he turns what men mean for evil. He even works that out for good. All of that begets courage in our hearts, and when we remember the deep love of Christ for our souls as we remember the deep love of Christ as he suffered for us at the cross. It gives us a desire to glorify him to honor him to be faithful to him and to be bold to please him, no matter the cost.
That is the soil.
My friend, in which the roots of Christian courage grow. Don't start by trying to be courageous start by knowing God in the person of his son the Lord Jesus Christ. Thanks, Don friend on Bill right looking forward to being with you again next time is done. Green continues teaching God's people. God's word here on the truth