[0:00] Good evening, Vision Baptist Church. This is missionary Kevin Hall. I want to say thank you to Pastor Trent for asking me to bring the message on Psalm 30 this evening. But before I do that, I just want to let you know that we love you guys.
[0:11] We're praying for you. We're praying for Pastor Gardner every day. And would not be where I am today had it not been for the influence that your pastor had in my life. And so we love you.
[0:22] Love you, Miss Betty. Praying for the family. Praying for the church. And hope that we can all rejoice together soon. With that being said, take your Bible and turn to Psalm 30. And hope that this message will be a blessing to you this evening.
[0:35] Let's read together from the Word of God. It says, A psalm and psalm at the dedication of the house of David. I will extol thee, O Lord, for thou hast lifted me up and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
[0:46] O Lord my God, I cried unto thee, and thou hast healed me. O Lord, thou hast brought my soul from the grave. Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down to the pit. Sing unto the Lord, O you saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
[1:00] For his anger endureth but a moment, and his favor is life. Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning. And in my prosperity I said, I shall never be moved.
[1:11] Lord, by thy favor thou hast made my mountain to stand strong. Thou didst hide thy face, and I was troubled. I cried to thee, O Lord, and unto the Lord I made supplication.
[1:22] What profit is there in my blood when I go down to the pit? Shall the dust praise thee? Shall it declare thy truth? Hear, O Lord, and have mercy upon me.
[1:33] Lord, be thou my helper. Thou hast turned for me my mourning into dancing. Thou hast put off my sackcloth and girded me with gladness. To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee and not be silent.
[1:47] O Lord my God, I will give thanks unto thee forever. This evening I'm going to preach a message entitled, God is still working on you. Until we see Jesus, God is still working on each and every one of the saints of God.
[2:02] The key verse that I want to kind of draw your attention to, we'll get to at the very end of the message, is verse 12 where it says, To the end that my glory may sing praise to thee and not be silent.
[2:14] And in this psalm I think we see a saint maturing. I think we see this person growing in the Lord. We see the psalmist gaining greater understanding and growing as worship of God and understanding of his purpose in place in life.
[2:33] We see God still working on this man. And I hope that as we read this psalm that God will speak to your heart and realize that you're not what you should be and you're not where you ought to be.
[2:43] And you don't have to stress about that. But God, just understanding that God is still working on you. You have a long way to go in your Christian life. Until we see Jesus, God is still working in us, mighty.
[2:56] And I think we see that in this psalm. We as believers, as we see in this psalm, we experience so much of the goodness of God. So much of the goodness of God that we don't even give him credit for.
[3:08] That we don't even stop to give him thanks for. It goes unnoticed. And when all is well in our life, when we have health and we have prosperity and everything's going good, we tend to forget God.
[3:19] We tend to say, as the psalmist said, that in my prosperity I shall never be moved. And it is in those times when we get pumped up with pride and self-sufficiency.
[3:32] And I've got this. And there's kind of this, almost this fake faith in God. That we're not really depending on him, but we're still wearing our Christian outfit. It is during those times that God has a way of humbling us with his chastening hand.
[3:48] Proverbs 30 verse 8 says this. Remove far from me vanity and lies. Give me neither poverty nor riches. Feed me with food, convenience. Give me for me. And here's the reason why he's saying this.
[4:00] Why he is praying this. Proverbs 30 verse 9 says this. Lest I be full and deny thee. And say, who is the Lord? I don't want to forget you God.
[4:12] I don't want to be too rich. I don't want to be too poor. I don't want to forget you. I want to know that I need you God. And he goes on to say, well lest I be poor and still and take the name of my God in vain.
[4:23] So the writer of Proverbs understood the danger of having much and how he could easily forget God and say, who is the Lord? And I, in my prosperity, said I shall never be moved.
[4:34] And how many of us have been in that situation? When all is well, we have very little need of God in our life. We forget him very easily. And when this happens, we as the children of God, we experience another sign of the goodness of God, though we would never say this.
[4:50] That being his chastening hand. As no child has ever, that I've known, none of mine in any ways, has turned around after receiving a good hearty spanking from their father that loves them.
[5:02] Not that's outraged and has uncontrolled anger, but has given them a spanking. Never has a child turned around and said, whoo, that was a good one, could you please give me another one?
[5:15] No. But nonetheless, this is still the goodness and the love of that father to that child. And so it is with the Heavenly Father. He's not doing it in uncontrolled anger.
[5:25] He's doing it in disciplined love. He's doing it out of perfect balance of who he is. And that he will not allow us to go off into something that would shame his name and ruin our lives.
[5:39] He's going to bring his chastening hand into our lives. It's the goodness of God to the believer. In Proverbs 13, 24, it says, He that spared his rod, hateth his son.
[5:51] But he that loveth him, chasteneth him the times. And I can just pause here and say, thank God his chastening hand has been in my life on many occasions. Because I have a heart that is prone to wonder.
[6:03] And I have ventured off the path and started going toward things that I should not. But God was there to discipline me. And though at the time I did not appreciate that, in hindsight, I can praise God about it.
[6:17] Hebrews 12, 6 says, For whom the Lord loveth, he chastened and scourged every son whom he receiveth. Being disciplined by the Lord, being corrected by the Lord, being scourged by the Lord, being corrected by the Lord, is part of being a part of the family of God.
[6:36] And when we get puffed up with pride, you can be sure that his chastening hand is going to be there. So as we progress through this psalm, I'm going to break it down with just several Ps.
[6:49] I'm not a person that likes to outline and really have a fancy outline. But I want to give you these in a very simplistic way. That way maybe you can take something away with you that has helped you.
[7:00] And it also helps me. But the first one is this, the praise of the saint, the perspective of the saint, the prosperity of the saint, the prayer of the saint, and the last one is the purpose of the saint. As we look at this idea of God is still working on us.
[7:15] The first one is this, the praise of the saint. It says in verse number one, I will extol thee, O Lord, for thou hast lifted me up and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me. We see the praise of this saint.
[7:26] He's extolling God. That means to raise up God. He's praising God, giving him worship. He is singing unto him. And that is what the psalmist is doing here.
[7:38] He's raising up God. And not only the praise of the saint is raising up God, but it is also responding to God. In verse 30, verse 5, it says, For thou hast lifted me up and hast not made my foes to rejoice over me.
[7:53] Verse 3, O Lord, thou hast brought up my soul from the grave. Thou hast kept me alive, that I should not go down from the pit. And so the psalmist is responding to what God has done for him and done in him.
[8:07] All the blessings that God has done for him. That is what praise is. We're responding to God. All of his goodness in our life. Count your many blessings. Look around and see what God has done for you.
[8:19] That was what the psalmist was doing. I'm reminded of 1 John chapter 4, verse 19. It says, we love him because he first loved us. Friend, God loves you. And God has blessed you in so many countless ways.
[8:31] I would encourage you to look around in the midst of all the bad that is going on. And see how much good, good and blessings that God has given you. We have so much to extol or to raise God up about, to praise him for.
[8:48] Not only is the praise of the saint raising God up and responding to God, but it is also remembering God. In verse 4 it says, sing unto the Lord, O you saints of his, and give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness.
[9:02] We should go to him and sing to him. We are the saints of God. In our praise to him we give thanks at the remembrance of his holiness. Now this word holiness, many times is kind of a scary word to us as sinners saved by grace.
[9:19] And we think of the holiness of God, how holy he is. A thrice holy God to magnify and to kind of give us an idea of how holy he is. Holy, holy, holy is our God.
[9:32] But God's holiness is not something that should scare us. We should respect him for it. We should reverence him for it. But it should also comfort us. To let us know that God is perfect.
[9:43] He is complete. He never has a bad day or a bad moment or bad judgment. He's not a respecter of persons. He is not an angry man. He is holy.
[9:54] It means all of his characteristics, all of his attributes are perfect and complete. We can praise God. We can extol God. We can give thanks to God.
[10:06] Because and because and when we remember that he is holy. As we remember his holiness. And so we see the praise of the saint.
[10:17] Secondly, we see the perspective of the saint. I'm going to go through these fairly quickly. It says in verse five. For his anger endureth but a moment. In his favor is life. We even may endure for a night.
[10:29] But joy cometh in the morning. God's anger is momentary. The word used here is to speak. Used here to speak of anger is that of a traveler that is coming through to stay for the night.
[10:45] But he's going to be gone in the morning. And when you wake up in the morning. Though anger was there for the evening and spent the night. Joy was there to meet you in the morning.
[10:56] Because we have the favor of God upon us as the children of God. And God disciplines us sometimes. God chastens us sometimes. And God is carving us out and making us more like Jesus in the midst of this crooked and perverse world.
[11:11] He wants us to shine brighter and brighter as his witnesses. As his mirrors. As his images in this earth. On this earth. For this short period of time.
[11:21] While he is still saving men from the wrath to come. And that is unpleasant at times. But friend I want you to know. That anger may endure for a moment. But joy is coming in the morning.
[11:33] In the morning. That's the promise of God. God's favor is forever. And I believe this friend. That even in the midst of the anger of God. Or the chastening of God in our lives.
[11:44] That God has not removed his favor. When I spank my child. I have not stopped loving my child. I love him. And that is why I am taking the time to discipline him.
[11:55] I don't take my neighbor's kids and discipline him. I would probably be arrested for that. I wouldn't think of doing that. Even though I might care for them. But there is a special love that I have for my own children.
[12:05] And a responsibility. That I have as a father. To take the time. To chasten them. To correct them. To discipline them. They may experience the anger of their father at times.
[12:18] Though it would be controlled. And all in conjunction with my love. And my love at the same time. But it would be for a moment. And that relationship never being broken.
[12:31] And the joy of our fellowship together. Being there at the end of it all. And so he says. For his anger endureth for a moment. But a moment in his favor's life. Weeping may endure for a night.
[12:44] But joy cometh in the morning. Joy comes in the morning. Thirdly. The prosperity of the saint. It says in verse 6. And in my prosperity.
[12:54] I said. I shall never be moved. Verse 7. Lord by thy favor. Thou hast made my mountain to stand strong. Thou hast. Thou didst hide thy face. And I was troubled. In my prosperity.
[13:05] I said. I shall never be moved. By thy favor. Thou hast made my mountain to stand strong. Thou didst hide thy face. And I was troubled. And so. We see here. There's. There's.
[13:15] I want to point this out rather. That there's nothing wrong with having prosperity. There's nothing wrong with having the riches of this world. There's nothing inherently wrong with money. Or the riches of this world.
[13:26] The things of this world. The material things. They're things. There's nothing moral about them. But it's what we do with them in our heart. And how our heart sets itself upon those things.
[13:38] And makes little idols out of them. And loves them. And chases after them. And gives them the worship. That we are only to give to God. That makes it evil.
[13:49] There are dangers. The New Testament tells us. Of having the riches of this world. I'll read a few of those verses to you. 1 Timothy chapter 6 verse 9. It says. But they. Which will be rich. Fall into temptation.
[14:00] And a snare. And into many foolish and hurtful lusts. Which drown men in destruction. And perdition. Now that doesn't mean all rich people. Are going to do that very thing. But those that would be.
[14:11] Those that would set their hearts upon. And make it the goal of their life. I'm going to be rich. And they chase money. With their life. They chase riches with their lives. Well. They will fall into temptation.
[14:22] A snare. And many foolish and hurtful lusts. Which drown men in destruction. And perdition. And I'm sure as you hear this verse. You know some people just like that.
[14:32] And maybe even at points and times in your life. You also felt those snares. And those temptations. In verse 10 it says. For the love of money. The word they like to keep out a lot of times.
[14:43] The love of money. Is the root of all evil. Which while some coveted after. They had erred from the faith. And pierced themselves through. With many sorrows. On down in that chapter.
[14:53] Paul writes. Verse 17. Charge them. That are rich. In this world. Charge them. That are rich in this world. That they do not. High minded. Don't get. Don't say that in my prosperity.
[15:04] I shall never be moved. Don't get this idea. That man. You're the stuff. And everybody should listen to you. And you don't need to listen to anybody. And you've got all the answers. And you don't need anybody.
[15:16] You don't need. You don't even really need the Lord. Don't get that kind of attitude. A high mindedness about you. Nor trust in uncertain riches. Remember the Bible tells us. That riches have a way of.
[15:27] Developing wings. And flying away on us. Just as we thought. We had our best grip upon it. Uncertain riches. But in the living God. Your riches are never to be your God.
[15:38] Your riches are never to be your source of security. You keep your security. In the living God. Who giveth us richly. All things. To enjoy. He giveth us all things to enjoy.
[15:50] As Christians. We practice a life of. Stewardship. Not ownership. We realize that all that we have. Comes from the Lord. And we don't worship the things that we have. And we don't find the security.
[16:01] In the things that we have. We rather give glory to God of heaven. And we do good unto our fellow man. And we serve him. With the things that he's given us. Because it's a stewardship. From him.
[16:11] Giving us all things. To enjoy. Verse 18. That they do good. And that they be rich in good works. Ready to distribute. Willing to communicate. And so rather than.
[16:22] Getting prideful about what you have. And the prosperity. And the things that God has given you to enjoy. And the things that God has entrusted you with. Rather than finding your security in them.
[16:33] We are rather. To be willing to communicate with them. To distribute. To be a blessing to others. And to help in the cause of world of anxiety. Money and riches and prosperity.
[16:44] Can unfortunately. Capture your heart. And fill you with pride. And self-sufficiency. And cause you to forget God. The psalmist here.
[16:55] Believed to be David. Let the peace. And the prosperity. As one man said. Seduce his heart. Into thinking nothing could move him. Nothing could hurt him.
[17:06] Or bring him down now. He had reached a level. In his life. Of success. That he was unmovable. How foolish. He was. To trust. In uncertain riches.
[17:18] Or in the arm of flesh. He wished to know. The physical. David. If this is who this is. He wished to know. The physical and political strength. Of his kingdom.
[17:29] And forget. Forgotten. Depend on God. And he desired. One of his men. Joab. To go and make a census of the people. And which God punished. In the manner related.
[17:40] Over in 2 Samuel chapter 24. Which this. These verses seem to. Kind of relate to. Or be pointing to. But isn't it crazy. That the very things.
[17:51] That God kindly gives us. To enjoy. And entrusts us with. Are the very things. That we allow. To pull us away. And to distract us. And to seduce us.
[18:02] Away from. Worshipping. And serving. And living. For God. It's crazy. Remember. Where your blessings. All of it. Come from.
[18:12] They come. From. The Lord. Don't let them become your God. Here's the principle. Don't let your status. In life. Blind you. To your desperate need of God.
[18:24] Every step of the way. Don't let your status in life. Blind you. To your desperate need of God. Every step of the way. In this life. And then fourth. I'm going to hurry.
[18:34] The prayer of the saint. He says in verse 8. I cried to the Lord. I cried to thee. O Lord. And under the Lord. I made supplication. What profit is there. In my blood. When I go down to the pit.
[18:45] Shall the dust. Praise thee. Shall it declare. Thy truth. Verse 10. Hear O Lord. And have mercy upon me. O Lord. Be thou my helper. Once you see some things about this prayer.
[18:56] It was serious. First of all. He cried unto the Lord. O Lord. It was an earnest prayer. It wasn't a. Now I lay me down to sleep. I pray thee Lord my soul to keep. This was a serious.
[19:07] Heartfelt. Heartfelt. Prayer. From David. It was a spiritual prayer. He made supplication. In James chapter 4 verse 3. We were warned about superficial prayers.
[19:19] It says this. In selfish prayers. It says. You ask. And receive not. Because you ask amiss. That you may consume it. Upon your own lusts.
[19:30] Now if we be honest. Many of the prayers that we pray. Are filled with our own lusts. And we wonder. Why God does not answer our prayers. And he tells us. Because it's a selfish.
[19:41] Self-centered. Lustful prayer. That you're praying. This prayer was focused on. Benefiting God. Whereas many of our prayers. Are focused on. Benefiting us. Notice.
[19:51] What it says. It says. What profit. Speaking of God. What profit for you God. Is there in my blood. When I go down to the pit. God I can't serve you. I can't worship you.
[20:02] If I'm dead. He says. Shall the dust. Praise thee. God I want to praise you. And I'm asking you to lift me up. Once again. I'm asking you to help me. In this situation.
[20:13] Because I want to praise you. Is that what your prayer is about? In the midst of your hurting. In the midst of your trial. In the midst of your tribulation. When you pray to God. Are you asking God. To just help you up. So that you can go back.
[20:25] And do the foolish things. That you were doing before. Are you asking God. To lift you up. So that you can truly. Praise him. And we can say one thing. With our mouth. But God. Is not fooled by our lips. He's the maker.
[20:35] Of our innermost being. And so he's going to read. He's going to read. The deepest. Deepest level of our hearts. And see whether or not. We mean business. And the psalmist meant business.
[20:46] He goes on. He says. Shall it declare thy truth? You see how. This whole prayer. That he was praying. It wasn't about benefiting himself. It was about benefiting God. Yes. He would benefit from it. But his benefit.
[20:57] Was secondary. To the benefit. That it would bring God. That God would raise him up. Once again. God. I. I. Will. Profit you. God. I. Will praise you. God.
[21:07] I. Will declare your truth. If you will just. Help me. These were the things. That David. Had realized. That he was to be doing. And had forgotten. In the midst of his pridefulness. And could only do.
[21:19] If the Lord. Allowed him. To do it once again. Allowed him to live. It was not only a serious prayer. A spiritual prayer. But it was a sober prayer. He said. Have mercy. Upon me.
[21:30] The psalmist realized. That he didn't deserve. To be heard. He didn't deserve. To have his prayer answered. He asked. For mercy. Mercy. Has been defined.
[21:41] As not getting. What we deserve. He knew. He did not deserve. To be helped. And therefore. He asked for mercy. Friends. Just take a moment. Before you pray. And remember.
[21:51] Your sinfulness. Remember. Where God found you. God commended. His love. For you. That while you were yet a sinner. Christ died for you. God doesn't come. God didn't send his son. To die for good people.
[22:01] He came to. Send his son. To die for those. That were lost. That were dead. In their trespasses. And sins. That were condemned. To die. And to be sent. To eternal hell.
[22:13] That's where God found you. You were. There was nothing beautiful about you. There was nothing good about you. There was nothing redeemable. About you. But Christ came. And died.
[22:23] And saved you. He extended his love to you. He made reconciliation possible. Between you. And a holy God. God. And that kind of person. That has received.
[22:34] That kind of salvation. And every time we come to God. We should come to God. With an attitude. Remembering. That we don't deserve this. And we should have an attitude of gratitude.
[22:45] In our prayers. There was a soberness in this prayer. God have mercy. Have mercy upon me. There was no entitlement. In this prayer. He asked the Lord to help him. You're not making wise decisions.
[22:57] You're not making wise decisions. Nor going to succeed. In your plans. Until you can honestly. Ask the Lord. To help you. Can you ask God to help you? If God would raise you up.
[23:09] And you were to go about. About your life. Could you ask God. To bless. The direction of your life. And when you come to the point. Where you cry out to God. In prayers that are filled.
[23:21] With asking for mercy. How you. And how you can serve him. And how you can declare his truth. And how you can praise him. Then God will hear you. But prideful. And self-serving.
[23:32] Lustful prayers. God resists. He's against it. So stop praying with him. You're wasting your time. And you're worsening. Your situation. The kind of prayer.
[23:43] That God answers. Is a serious prayer. It's a spiritual prayer. It's a sober prayer. And then number five. When I'm finished. The purpose. Of the saint. I love this verse. Look at verse 12. What do you think about this?
[23:54] To the end. That my glory may sing praise to thee. And not be silent. Oh Lord my God. I will give thanks. Unto thee forever. Pay close attention to that verse.
[24:04] Verse 12. To the end. That my glory. That is my whole being. All that I am. By your mercy. And your favor. May sing praise to thee. And not be silent.
[24:16] You can put. Put in the word purpose there. Where the Bible says. To the end of that. For the purpose. That my glory. All my being. All that I am. By your mercy.
[24:26] By your favor. For the purpose. That all that I am. May sing praise to thee. And not be silent. So the. The climax. The goal. Of this man's prayer. Was that.
[24:38] God would lift him up once again. And that. And him being lifted back up. Him. Being able to live. Him being able to. To. To. To. To move. And to work. And to serve.
[24:48] All these different things. Was that. In his whole being. That he would be able to sing. Sing. Give glory. To his maker. To his Lord. Now let me read you a few verses.
[25:00] From the New Testament. Revelation chapter 4. Verse 11 says this. I love this verse. It says. Thou art worthy. O Lord. To receive glory. And honor. And power. For thou hast created all things.
[25:12] And for thy pleasure. They are. And were. Created. You were created. For the pleasure. Of God. God was not created. For your pleasure. You were created. For his pleasure.
[25:23] Your whole life. Should be about bringing. Pleasure. To God. Colossians 1. 16 says this. For by him. Were all things created. That are in heaven. And that are in earth.
[25:33] That's you. Visible and invisible. Whether they be thrones. Or dominions. Or principalities. Or powers. Listen. All things were created. By God. By him. And. For him.
[25:45] So you want to know. Why you were created. For him. 1 Corinthians 6. 19. What? Know ye not that your body. Is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Which is in you. Which ye have of God.
[25:55] And ye are not your own. For ye are bought with a price. Therefore glorify God. In your body. And in your spirit. Which are God's. Which are God's.
[26:06] The purpose. Of the saints. What was the purpose. Of the psalmist's prayer here. To God. To the end. For this purpose. That my glory. May sing praise.
[26:17] Under thee. And not be silent. In essence. He's saying. God. Raise me up once again. Help me. Show me. Mercy. That my name. My life. My works.
[26:28] My job. My time. My resources. My money. My abilities. My success. My glory. May sing praise. To you.
[26:39] Oh Lord. My God. He says. I give. I will give thanks unto thee. Forever. Friend. The purpose. Of the saint. Is to give glory.
[26:51] To God. The psalmist was asking. God just raise me up again. Help me. Give me mercy. Would you. Would you. Would you. Would you. Would you. Help me in this situation. So that I might be raised up.
[27:02] And that my whole being. All that I am. All my glory. Would sing praise. To you. That I would be able to declare. Thy truth. Once again. Friend. As God is working on you.
[27:13] I can assure you. That the goal of it all. Is working toward that end. That you would realize. Your life is not about you. That God is. Through the trials. And tribulations of your life.
[27:23] That he's teaching you some lessons. And the lesson. The lesson that he wants us to learn. Is that. All of us. Everything about us. Our glory. Our whole being. Would sing praise.
[27:34] And glory. To our maker. The one. That we were made by. And for. And for his pleasure. God is still working on you. This evening. I'm praying for you guys. And I hope that this message.
[27:45] Was a blessing to you. Let's pray. Heavenly Father. We thank you for this song. Thank you for your word. That corrects us. And edifies us. And comforts us. I pray that you be with. Vision Baptist Church.
[27:56] And that you use this message. In their hearts and lives. In Jesus name. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen. Amen.