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[0:00] There's a selection of psalms. There's all sorts of different moods and different situations in the psalms.! Each different one challenges us to feel an involvement with that particular situation, that particular mood.

[0:17] And this psalm I've chosen because it's a psalm of thanksgiving and praise. There's that particular type of psalm and this is a representative of it. So this is my introduction.

[0:30] To ask this question. Where do I fit in in this world? Where do I fit in in this world?

[0:42] What is it that gives me identity? This is who I am. And meaning? This is why my life's worth living. And purpose? This is what I'm living for.

[0:54] So I suppose some people approach this by trying to be a king and to exert power and rule and get.

[1:06] Getting money. Getting power. Some people approach it as a warrior. Fighting. Fighting for things.

[1:19] Fighting against things. Fighting perhaps against everyone and everything maybe. Or some people. Or some people are just warriors rather than warriors.

[1:32] Drifting. And feeling that the world is just too confusing. Too big. Which one might feel useless.

[1:43] And helpless. And aimless. The king. The warrior. And the warrior. But the psalm wants to make. It wants to answer the question by saying you need to be a worshipper.

[1:59] A worshipper fits in. By fitting in with the creator. Who made. Each of us. The psalm is going to say that that alignment with my creator.

[2:14] Is the very thing that aligns me in my identity. In the meaning of my life. And in the purpose of my life. And the psalm is going to have two particular angles on that.

[2:27] The number one is in the first few verses. To praise and bring glory to our maker. Sing joyfully to the Lord you righteous.

[2:38] It is fitting for the upright to praise him. And that taps in on the thought that all things are made for his glory. And when I begin to be a person in this world.

[2:53] For his glory. Then I've begun to fit in. To what I'm meant to be. And the second strand of this. Is dependence.

[3:03] And that's what's at the end of the psalm. Where the psalm singers say. We wait in hope for the Lord. He is our help and our shield. In him our hearts rejoice.

[3:17] For we trust in his holy name. And the psalm is going to end. With this theme. Of depending on the Lord. This is how I live from day to day.

[3:29] Not as an autonomous king. Or as a warrior fighting against him. Or as a warrior. Unsure about my place in the world.

[3:40] But as I trust in the Lord. This gives me my place in this world. I become a worshipper. That's the answer that the psalm gives.

[3:50] So that's where we're going to go with the psalm. And let me explain the plan to you. The first three verses give reasons to sing.

[4:02] Sorry. It tells us to sing. And the rest of it gives us the reasons. Sing joyfully to the Lord you righteous. It is fitting for the upright to praise him.

[4:14] So the psalm starts off very strong on praising the Lord. And you could almost say that that pinpoints a particular occasion.

[4:26] You're all together. You stop and you praise God together. Which is exactly what we've done as we've gathered together this morning. And as the commentator Derek Kidner says.

[4:38] He says we're to praise him with fervor. And freshness. And skill. Good set of things to combine together isn't it? Fervor. So sing joyfully to the Lord.

[4:51] Freshness. Sing a new song. Verse 3. And skill. Play skillfully. So it's involving our emotions.

[5:01] And our minds. And our creativity. In singing to the Lord. So I looked up what a ten string lyre looked like.

[5:12] And that was the nearest I could get. Make music to him on the ten string lyre. So that's the people doing what it says there. And the end of it. To trust.

[5:24] A way of living. Rather than just a one off. Or periodic. Or periodic. Event. It seems to me that that is a long term approach.

[5:36] A way of living. Quiet joy. Patience. And prayer. We wait on the Lord. We wait in hope on the Lord. And the prayer.

[5:47] Verse 22. May your unfailing love rest upon us. O Lord. Even as we put our hope in you. So there's the way of living.

[5:58] If you like. The Sunday thing is the sing joyfully to the Lord. And the Monday to Saturday thing is the waiting in hope on the Lord. He is our help and our shield.

[6:09] That's a little bit of an oversimplification isn't it? And the reasons for singing and living that way. I suggest are in the verses in between.

[6:21] And I've got I think five of them. And they've all got a kuh in them. So if you can remember three out of five. By the end of it you're doing very well. So his active character. His careful creation.

[6:36] His sovereign schemes. A bit forced isn't it? His blessed choice. And his watchful care.

[6:47] So those I thought were five sub-topics as we go through. I hope they're more helpful than unhelpful. His active character. His careful creation.

[7:00] His sovereign schemes. His blessed choice. And his watchful care. So I'm just going to go through the psalm. And pick out those five topics.

[7:16] And it struck me. And I've added this in this morning. As I read it all over again. The psalm is about the Lord. As creator of all. And that makes him Lord of the material world.

[7:28] Lord of the inhabited world. And the psalm is about how to be right in that situation. He is the Lord who's made heaven and earth. The nations are before him.

[7:40] But in particular. There are his people. The upright. The righteous. Those who trust in him. And how to fit in to that. Okay.

[7:50] Let's carry on. How needful and blessed to be in right relation to him. Let's look at verses 4 and 5. Why do we sing him a new song and play skillfully and shout for joy?

[8:05] 4. Let me just stop for a second. It's a little bit of a cliche.

[8:16] But when people pray they say we just want to praise you Lord. The Bible hardly ever if ever does it like that. We just want to praise you.

[8:28] The Bible says we want to praise you for this reason. It nearly always gives a reason for it. And it doesn't just say we just want to praise you.

[8:38] We want to praise you for this reason. And here's a reason that he gives straight off in verse 4. 4. 10.

[8:49] 11. 11. And he's starting off with the way God has made everything and the way God works everything.

[9:14] He starts off with the idea of the word of the Lord as the instrument by which he does this. The word of the Lord. The God of the Bible is a speaking God.

[9:25] And as he speaks into the world he sort of extends himself into the world. And activates things and initiates things and energizes things as he speaks into the world.

[9:40] So the word of the Lord is right and true. He is faithful in all his works would be perhaps a better translation of it. And the earth is full of.

[9:51] So there's the word of the Lord. And he says the word of the Lord is right. The word meaning upright and true. Not meaning mathematically accurate but so much as meaning dependable.

[10:07] Faithful. Faithful. You can count on his word. So different from us isn't it? We tend to say I'll see you next Tuesday and then I'll cancel.

[10:20] You know the Lord never does that. He never says oh sorry I've just got to text you. I'm going to cancel my promise for today. I'm a bit busy. He never does that. His word is true.

[10:32] Is right and true and faithful in all his works. And he's going to the works includes. Well the psalmist is thinking of the world that he's made isn't he?

[10:45] The world which I've done a little sketch of there. And he says in making the world and running the world. Please notice this verse 5. The Lord loves.

[10:57] Now what does he love? He loves these fantastic Hebrew words. Obviously translated into English. He loves tzedakah.

[11:09] Righteousness. He loves righteousness. He loves things done rightly. Honorably. Truthfully.

[11:20] Honestly. With integrity. He loves righteousness. A similar word. Mishpat. Justice. Order. Right order.

[11:32] It's the opposite of chaotic. It's the opposite of people just doing their own thing and getting in each other's way. He loves an orderly. Fair world.

[11:42] He loves tzedakah and mishpat. And it says he loves righteousness and justice. The earth is full of unfailing love.

[11:54] Well you know this word. Chesed. And it says. So this is. In case you didn't know the word. It's a word which is particularly appropriate to the Lord God himself.

[12:10] He specializes in this. It's the sort of love that sticks and holds and doesn't let down and keeps its promises.

[12:20] And you could have a whole psalm on this. Saying. The steadfast love of the Lord lasts forever. He is king of kings. The steadfast love of the Lord lasts forever.

[12:30] He is lord of lords. The steadfast love of the Lord lasts forever. And so on. So this beautiful quality of God. That he is full of steadfast love.

[12:42] And it is said here. The earth is full of his steadfast love. So this psalmist looks around. He says. You can see many things in this world.

[12:53] But one of the things I don't want you to miss. Is the. And it's still there. You can still see it. Even in this fallen world. The orderliness. And the care. And the.

[13:04] The integrity of God. The earth is full of his steadfast love. So in a picture. I just put some. Sploshing over the side of the world. Because it's full.

[13:15] Of his steadfast love. Isn't that a wonderful thought? God. It teaches us to look rightly. Doesn't it? Because. You know. You can look in the world. See all sorts of different things. But he says. I want you to.

[13:25] See what I see. That the earth is full. Of his steadfast love. And just moving on. Through this. So. We're talking about.

[13:36] His active character. And this makes the psalmist. Enthusiastic. About creation. God fills. Creation.

[13:46] With the expression. Of himself. And as Christians. We too. Need. To follow our. Our saviour in this. It's right for us.

[13:58] To go off on holiday. And. Take pictures of the stars. And the seas. And the forests. And the mountains. And the sun. And the moon.

[14:09] When we were in. Our holiday. One of the striking things. Was you go outside. At about. Nine o'clock. At night. The sky was black.

[14:20] Because. We weren't near a town. And the stars. Just burst. Out of the sky. And you. So impressive. We. We don't really get that. In our urban. Skyscape.

[14:32] But the. The ancient writers. Would have been. Totally impressed. Look at the. The hands that flung. Stars into space. You can see them. You know. They're almost close enough.

[14:42] To touch. It would seem. And they sparkle. And gleam. The psalmist is enthusiastic. About creation. And that includes. Family.

[14:54] Marriage. Food. Picnics. Roses. These sorts of things. The.

[15:05] The. The. The. Old rabbis. Used to say that. People would be judged. For the. The good. Honest pleasures. That God has given. That we have.

[15:16] Failed to take up on. I don't know whether. The old rabbis. Were quite right on that. But the. In the new testament. Says God gives us. All things richly. To enjoy. And we shouldn't. We shouldn't.

[15:27] Be down on. This created world. We shouldn't be down. On family. Or down on marriage. Or down on enjoying food. Or having a picnic. From time to time. Or smelling the roses.

[15:39] God's. Made all that stuff. And the psalmist. Is enthusiastic about it. And the psalmist. Is enthusiastic about God. These qualities. Their relational. And moral qualities.

[15:50] He's the God. Who loves. Rightness. And fairness. And dependability. And compassion. And trustworthiness. This is our God. Not all gods. Are like this God. This is our God.

[16:01] They're beautiful qualities. And he says. For this reason. Sing joyfully. And I suppose. You'd also say. Imitate him. Be.

[16:13] Yourself. As someone. Made in his image. Somebody who loves. Righteousness. And fairness. And dependability. And compassion. And trustworthiness. Etc. Let's move on a little bit.

[16:23] We're still talking about. Now we're talking about. His careful creation. So come into verse 6. By the word of the Lord. Were the heavens made. By the starry host.

[16:35] By the spirit of his mouth. He gathers the waters of the sea into jars. He puts the deep into storehouses. He's speaking metaphorically.

[16:47] Isn't he? But he's saying something. As he speaks metaphorically. By the word of the Lord. Were the heavens made. The starry host.

[16:58] By the breath of his mouth. So we have the word. Parallel. So that's. Dabar. Word. With breath. Which is ruach. Which is spirit. Breath and spirit.

[17:09] The same thing in Hebrew. And the same thing in Greek. So you've got the word and the spirit together here. There's a little. There's a little play on words. With heavens. Which is shamayim.

[17:20] And waters. Which is mayim. So the. The heavens were made. With the stars and everything. And the mayim. The waters. And it says. I wonder what to make of this.

[17:40] Little children like water play. Except we're too grown up to do water play. Unless we don't have a dishwasher. When we call it doing the washing up. Is this.

[17:52] Is this. Verse. Inviting us to think that. That the. The vast oceans. Are to God. The sort of thing he can.

[18:02] Pour into jars. And pour out again. And. Because he's so great. Even. The great oceans. Are things that he can. Pour this way. In that. He.

[18:14] It says. He gathers the waters. Of the seas. Into jars. He puts the deep. Into storehouses. And he does this. As he speaks. Where have I got that.

[18:25] Verse nine. He spoke. It says. The Lord's word of power. Is not. Relativized. By creation. But is supreme. Over creation. It isn't that you.

[18:36] In this world around us. We've got a number of forces. Forces. And they all. Sort of. Fairly powerful. And one of the forces. Is the Lord. I think that's how. Our default.

[18:47] Mental position on this. We think. There's many forces. Around us. So there's the bus. Time table. There's the weather. There's how I'm feeling. Today. There's. You know.

[18:58] Whoever. We're up against. All. And whatever. And the Lord. Is one of the players. In this. And the. The psalm says. Actually. That's not. Right.

[19:09] The Lord. Is. The overarching. Lord. Of all the things. He is Lord. Of the bus. Time table. He is Lord. Of how your digestion. Is today. He is Lord.

[19:20] Of the admissions process. He is Lord. Of first day at school. He is Lord. Of all these things. He is not. Relatively. A percentage.

[19:30] Of it. He is supreme. Over this. By. The word. Of the Lord. Were the heavens made. Their starry host.

[19:40] By the spirit. Of his mouth. He gathers. The sea. The waters. Of the sea. Into jars. He gathers. The waters. Of the. Sorry. He puts the deep. Into storehouses. Let the earth. Fear the Lord.

[19:52] Let the people. Of the world. Revere him. For he spoke. And it came. To be. He commanded. And it stood. Firm. This reminds us.

[20:02] Then. That nothing. Is too hard. For the Lord. It's worth. Being reminded. Of this. When we. When we pray. We're not.

[20:16] Praying. To a God. Who's going to have a problem. Answering our prayer. Well. At least. Not unless we're asking him. To commit sin. We're not praying to a God. Who is. You know.

[20:26] It's touch and go. Whether. It's not like they. Like a test match. You know. Whether you think. Will. Will they actually get to the end of this. Will God be able to do this. There's no problem. With God being able.

[20:37] Will. The thing is. Is it part of his will. And is it part of his will. At this time. So we. We get this wrong about prayer.

[20:47] Don't we. We think. I'm going to pray to God. Because he needs a bit of a push. To do this. And. If I. If I push it. Maybe he'll manage it. It's not like that at all. By the word of the Lord.

[20:58] The heavens were made. He can do whatever he wants. Whenever he pleases. Is. What we're. What we're. Praying to. Is to. To be engaged. In. In what his will is.

[21:09] Isn't it. If it is your will. You can do this Lord. And the Lord can do what is. Impossible. Is anything too hard for the Lord. No. No.

[21:20] He's the creator of the ends of the earth. And while we. Just stop on this matter of the word. We could. Slide over into the New Testament.

[21:32] And. Notice that the beginning of John's gospel. It says in the beginning was the word. And the word was with God. And the word was God.

[21:43] And that's the word. Who is. Jesus himself. Sort of. The back of all creation. Is the word.

[21:55] And. Like. One of us. Entering the world of dino trucks. Which would be a weird thing. The saviour has entered. Our world.

[22:07] His glory veiled. To save us. The word. Became flesh. And dwelt among us. Let's move on. So that was his careful creation.

[22:18] Number three. His sovereign schemes. So the psalmist moves to this thought. Verse 10. The Lord foils the plans of the nations.

[22:30] He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever. The purposes of his heart. Through all generations. And this is to do with planning.

[22:43] And scheming. And policies. And. And. And programs. Should have done it with a p. Shouldn't I. His power. And his plans. Intrude.

[22:53] Into the affairs. Of actual people. So. God is not. The. The deist. God. Who.

[23:04] Stands a long way off. And leaves the world. To run. By some sort of. Internal clockwork. And he. Is not bothered with it. Actually. He is bothered with it. And he. Intrudes.

[23:15] His plans. And schemes. Into. The lives of. Us. And. The. The mention here. Is of the nations. Verse 10.

[23:26] So you think of it in its context. The nations would not have been believers. They would have been opponents. The Lord. Foils the plans of the nations. He thwarts the purposes of the people.

[23:38] So here's the nations. The war like nations. And they have their plans and schemes. And if you look in Psalm 2. You find a bit more detail about their plans and schemes. Let us.

[23:48] Now what does it say? Let us break the chains of the Lord and his anointed. Let's get rid of God. Let's get rid of his king.

[24:00] Let's. Be like. Destructs. And run the world ourselves. That's the. That's the way the nations think. And of course. The psalm is pointing out.

[24:12] The sin of the nations. The sin of the multitude of the nations. Is what? Is simply. Not to let God be God. That's what it is. And that's the essence of sin.

[24:24] Not to let God be God. God is the ruler. He makes the plans. As we were thinking last Sunday morning. He writes the story. But what human beings want to do is say.

[24:35] We want to be God. We want to write the story ourselves. We want to rule. We want to do it our way. That's sin.

[24:46] To get rid of the Lord. To get rid of his Messiah. And quite possibly to get rid of his people. But it says. The Lord foils. The plans of the nations.

[24:59] And thwarts. The purposes of the people. God's sovereign schemes. A little bit like in Psalm 2.

[25:10] Where the nations come up and say. We're going to get you God. We're going to get rid of you. A little toddler. Saying to his dad. I'm going to knock you down. And the dad is this big. And the toddler is that big.

[25:21] And the Lord who sits in heaven. And laughs. Your schemes will come to nothing. Foil your schemes. And thwart your schemes.

[25:32] Because I'm the Lord. His sovereign schemes. And I can just stop and say. Which schemes are you living by? Why? It's a very important question.

[25:45] Whether at root. And at base. You're saying. The Lord's will be done in my life. That's what my life is. It's for his will. I offer myself as a living sacrifice.

[25:57] For his will. His will be done. Or whether you're saying. Well. I'd like his will to be done. As long as it coincides with my will. It's quite different isn't it?

[26:09] So this is my plan. Lord help me with my plan. That's a different. That's a different way of doing it. The Lord foils the plans of the nations.

[26:21] His sovereign schemes. The Lord has plans and schemes. As it goes on to say in verse 11. The plans of the Lord. Stand firm forever.

[26:34] The purposes of his heart. Through all generations. Which is a very strong statement. Isn't it? That the Lord. The God of Israel.

[26:45] The creator God. The God and father of Jesus Christ. Has his plans and schemes. Sometimes they work very quickly. And sometimes they work very slowly.

[26:56] But nothing stops them. Nothing stops. Stops. The plans of the Lord. Stand firm forever. The purposes of his heart.

[27:08] Through all generations. Brothers and sisters. I think we really should grab hold of this. Because in our thought world.

[27:20] Because we're not God. We see things confusing. We see things not working. Not working the way that we think they ought to work.

[27:32] But we shouldn't be taken in by that. That's just our perception of it. The truth of the matter is. God is working out his purposes. His purposes stand firm.

[27:44] Through all generations. And he will not be thwarted. He says I will. This is my plan. I will do it.

[27:56] I will make the seed of the woman. Crush the serpent's head. I will do that. The plans of the Lord stand firm forever. I will. Isaiah 11 and 9. I will make.

[28:07] Oh dear. I will fill the earth. With the knowledge of the Lord. As the waters cover the sea. I will do that. Says the Lord. Jesus. I will build my church.

[28:20] And the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Jesus said on a more personal level. I will come back. And take you to be with myself. If it were not so I would have told you.

[28:32] These plans and purposes. He will do. Nothing can stop him. I will. Says God.

[28:43] In Revelation 21.5. I will make all things new. I am going to do that. Nothing will stop. The timing of it. The way we get to it.

[28:54] Says God. Well. I understand that. You don't necessarily. But I will do that. I will do that. Fourth thing. His blessed choice.

[29:05] Verse 12. Blessed is the nation.

[29:16] Whose God is the Lord. The people he chose for his inheritance. So as God looks down on the world. The nations are doing their thing. But here is a nation.

[29:26] Whom God has chosen. And blessed. A group of people. We might say. As we come into New Testament terms. That God has chosen. Blessed are the people.

[29:37] Blessed is the nation. Whose God is the Lord. And. It's a nation. And as we know from the other Psalms. It has a headquarters. Or it used to have a headquarters on earth.

[29:49] And a holy hill. And a holy place. Which nowadays is different in New Testament times. Blessed. Can we just stop on that word.

[30:01] Blessed is the nation. Whose God is the Lord. The people he chose for his inheritance. This is how people become Christians. This is how people are Christians.

[30:12] This is how people are to understand. What it is to be a Christian. You've been chosen. Now I know there are other processes that were involved. I know there were processes involved.

[30:24] Reasoning. Maybe struggling. Praying. Working things out. All of that on the human level. But underneath. The reason that you're a Christian. Is because God decided you'd be a Christian.

[30:37] You're blessed. Because you've been chosen. And. Paul says this to the Ephesians. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who chose us in him.

[30:50] Before the creation of the world. To be holy and blameless in his sight. We have to sort of recalibrate for that. Don't we? You're blessed. If you're a believer.

[31:03] You are blessed. Because God chose you to be that. As I just repeat. There are other processes involved. And they're not nothing.

[31:14] They're significant. But this is more significant. You're a Christian. Because God decided to bless you. And he chose to do so.

[31:25] Not because you're beautiful. Wonderful. Clever. Anything like that. He just said. I want to bless this. Rather. Currently rather obnoxious person. I want to bless them.

[31:36] And make them a beautiful person in the end. Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Who chose us in him. Before the creation of the world. To be holy and blameless in his sight.

[31:50] And blessed are the people he chose for his inheritance. So in the New Testament terms. Jesus tells the story about the sheep and the goats being gathered together. And of the. I think it's the sheep isn't it?

[32:01] He says. Come you blessed of my father. Father. Inherit the kingdom prepared for you. Since the creation of the world. And he goes on to say.

[32:13] You. Visited me when I was in prison. You fed me when I was hungry. And the righteous say. Whoa. This can't be right. We never did any of those things. And he goes on to say.

[32:24] Well you did it to other Christian people. But the. That's what goes on later in what Jesus said. But this is the beginning of it. Come you blessed of my father. My father.

[32:36] Inherit the kingdom. Prepared from you. For you. Since the creation of the world. That's blessed isn't it? So.

[32:49] Today this word is not saying to us. You've got to try hard. You've got to do more. It's saying. Just stop a second. And realise how blessed you are. If you're a Christian. Just be.

[33:00] Find it a breathtaking thing. Blessed. Blessed. Blessed. To be chosen. Blessed. Blessed. To have an inheritance set up for you. Blessed. To be taken. From the unbelieving world.

[33:13] And brought to Jesus Christ. You're blessed. We need to get a hold of that one. Don't we? Hmm. Blessed. Are you. Says Jesus.

[33:23] And if we're a Christian. Blessed are us. Is that right? Blessed are us. Blessed is us. Blessed. We're blessed. Yeah. His blessed choice. And number five.

[33:33] His watchful care. And the psalm now talks about the vision. No. Not vision. The surveillance that the Lord has. Verse 13.

[33:44] From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all the sons of men. All mankind. From his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth. He who forms the hearts of all.

[33:56] And considers everything they do. He says that the Lord sees everybody. Sees into their hearts. And he's going to say that there's a particular surveillance.

[34:09] Or particular seeing. Of his people. And where have I got that? Verse 18. The eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him. So God sees it would appear in two different ways.

[34:21] In a sort of general seeing. But in a particular seeing. Rather like. Let me just give a grandparent illustration again. Like if your kids are playing on the swings in the park.

[34:35] You keep a particular eye on them. Don't you? I'm sure you get the idea of that. Even if you have to imagine that. So we talk about his watchful care.

[34:46] He sees everyone. Verse 16. No king is saved by the size of his army. I thought they were.

[34:57] Apparently not. No warrior escapes by his great strength. I thought they did. Apparently not. A horse is a vain hope for deliverance.

[35:09] Despite all its great strength. It cannot save. So kings are not saved by their military power. Now I know God works in certain ways.

[35:23] But I think what it's saying here is. Having military power. Is no guarantee. If God has decreed otherwise. Your military power cannot save you. Kings are not saved by their military power.

[35:37] Nor by their personal strength. I put another tank there. Nor the tools or aids. Which I guess is what a horse is. That doesn't save either.

[35:50] In the big picture. In the last analysis. Being strong. Does not cut it with God. Go to war with God.

[36:03] You will lose. We need the right spectacles to see this. It would be easy to misjudge this.

[36:16] And say. Well the strong and the powerful always win. And sometimes. It looks like that. Temporarily. But God says. Just hold on.

[36:28] Because. In the last analysis. Human strength. Does not. Dominate. My plans and schemes. It is only a temporary state of affairs.

[36:41] I mean. Not least. Because. Death will get you in the end anyway. Was it Ozymandias? The poem? The ruin in the sand.

[36:53] Where the. The sort of. Half. Eroded. Caption. The caption says. Look upon my works. You mighty and despair. And actually. It's all tumbled down.

[37:04] Because. Human strength. Decays. Kings are not saved. By the size of their army. Nor a warrior. By his great strength. And Jesus said the same thing.

[37:15] Didn't he? He said. Bless to the meek. For they will inherit the earth. The bible. The bible is so counter cultural.

[37:29] Isn't it? I want to say this is. If I may. As an encouragement. If you feel powerless. If you feel that the whole system is against you. If you feel you're on the wrong end of all the tide of economics and politics.

[37:42] And you say. I wish I was a king. I wish I had power. Jesus would say. Now actually you have the blessing. If you're a trusting. Meek.

[37:55] Believer. Looking to the lord. That makes you stronger than a king. Makes you richer than a multi-millionaire. You will inherit the earth.

[38:09] Lest of the meek. For they shall inherit the earth. His watchful care. The almighty sees and watches all people. But he particularly sees his people. Verse 18.

[38:19] The eyes of the lord. Are on those who fear him. It doesn't mean fear in a. Trembling. Craven way.

[38:29] But it's fear in the sense of the. The hugest. Respect. The greatest. Place. In one's vision. I put there.

[38:40] Meaning to respectfully. And deliberately. And sacrificially. Put him first. For the. The believer.

[38:51] Who fears the lord. The eyes of the lord. Are upon that person. And you might think. Oh I've been forgotten. I'm in a world of.

[39:02] Currents. Currents. And tides. And things. Who am I. And God says. If you're. If you're putting me first. Then my eye is on you. You know.

[39:12] When you're in the big playground. Of this world. I'm watching you. So you don't trip over. So that you don't fall head first. Down the slide. So that you don't fall off the swings. I'm. My eyes on you. In that sense.

[39:25] The eyes of the lord. Are on those who fear him. Whose hope. Is in his unfailing love. And here's that wonderful. Word again. Hesed. And it's really brought into play.

[39:37] Here isn't it. Saying. This is the characteristic. Of these people. They. Put their. Dependence. On his. Unfailing love.

[39:49] So that word hope. Could mean. Wait. Or trust. And they're sort of intermingled here. And he says. This is what. Believing people do. They.

[40:00] Trust. In. The lord. God. And this might mean. Waiting. It might mean that he doesn't do it. Straight away. But you know.

[40:10] That. Through thick and thin. He will never let you down. And this is the characteristic. Of these people. Isn't it? They put their hope. In his unfailing love.

[40:21] And it isn't just. Pie in the sky. When you die. Because it's actually. Cake on your plate. While you wait. Because in verse 19. He delivers them from death. And he keeps them alive. In famine. So it really works.

[40:32] In everyday life. It doesn't solve everything. But he can be trusted. In everyday life. But it works. Beyond everyday life. We wait in hope. For the lord.

[40:43] He is our help and shield. In him. Our hearts rejoice. For we trust. In his holy name. May your unfailing love. Rest upon us.

[40:53] Oh lord. Even as we put our hope. In you. And I think that's a prayerful. I mean. It is actually a prayer. Isn't it? That last bit. May your unfailing love.

[41:04] Rest upon us. Even as we wait in you. I had a text from somebody. The other day. Who said. I can't wait. For God to do such and such. Such and such. And my reply was.

[41:16] That it is those who wait for the lord. Who renew their strength. Our relationship. Our fitting in with God. Fitting in with his plans. Involves.

[41:26] To some degree or another. Waiting. Putting our hope in him. He will not let us down. He might not do it the way we want. He might not do it with the timing that we want.

[41:38] But he will unfailingly keep his promises. And those who fear him. Hope. Wait. On his unfailing love.

[41:49] His hesed. Which leads to actual. Answers to prayer in the here and now. But in the end. Long term brings full and final salvation. We wait.

[42:00] For the coming. Of the saviour. Don't we? That's the ultimate thing we wait for. We wait. For the revelation. Of the son of God from heaven. So. We have.

[42:11] Been thinking about. Reasons to praise God. And reasons to trust God. And the points I picked out. Were his active character. He works.

[42:23] The earth is full of his unfailing love. He is faithful in all his works. His careful creation. By the word of the Lord were the heavens made. And the starry host.

[42:34] By the breath of his mouth. He is over creation. And cares for it. His sovereign schemes. The nations plot. In vain. He foils the plans of the nations.

[42:45] But his own plans. Stand. And we thought about his blessed choice. That of all the peoples of the world. How blessed it is. For him to have chosen us.

[42:58] To set his love upon us. How privileged we are. If you're not in that position yet. Ask him. I'd love to be in that Lord. Bring me into that. Whatever it takes.

[43:09] Whatever the mystery of it. Bring me into that position. His watchful care. The eyes of the Lord. Are on those who fear him. On those whose hope is in his unfailing love.

[43:21] That's how we fit in with the Lord. That's how we find the place. That we are supposed to be. When we become. Not warriors. Or warriors. Or try to make ourselves kings.

[43:31] But we become worshippers. These are the reasons. That the psalm gives. To praise the Lord. Let's get our heads into gear. To be grateful. This is a good God. It's a great position to be in.

[43:43] And these are the reasons. That the psalm gives. To live day by day. Trusting the Lord. And let's be people. Who live by trusting him. And if we're in that place. That's exactly the place.

[43:55] God wants us to be. If we're in that place. Of thanking him. And trusting him. That's exactly the place. God wants us to be. We're going to sing together.