WEBVTT 00:00:00.440 --> 00:00:05.200 Thanks. Yes, let me add my word of welcome. My name is David Reimer. For those of you 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:09.560 who don't know me, and it's my privilege to be sharing with you from God's Word tonight. 00:00:10.099 --> 00:00:16.359 As Gary mentioned, and as you'll see momentarily, we have a long psalm, not the longest psalm, 00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:22.199 but still a long psalm this evening. And this is the last sermon in our series of psalm 00:00:22.199 --> 00:00:27.219 studies over the past few weeks, nine in all. So we thought it would be an opportune evening 00:00:27.219 --> 00:00:33.719 just to have a little glimpse back and set up and read this long psalm together. Then 00:00:33.719 --> 00:00:39.820 we'll sing again before we tuck in and look at what God has to say to us this evening from 00:00:39.820 --> 00:00:49.359 His Word. So as I mentioned, last of our psalm studies. So there's, I can do the maths, 141 00:00:49.359 --> 00:00:54.739 more psalms to look at. And we're working our way through them on the Wednesday evening Bible 00:00:54.740 --> 00:01:00.660 studies. We're up to 39, are we? 38? So lots more to go. So do come along Wednesday evenings 00:01:00.660 --> 00:01:08.140 if you just haven't had enough of the psalms yet. But as I say, ninth of nine sermons. And 00:01:08.140 --> 00:01:17.520 we began back in April with Psalm 19. Peter Irvine opened that out for us. And this evening 00:01:17.519 --> 00:01:24.759 we come up to Psalm 18. So it's almost like we've gone full circle. But as I say, only 00:01:24.759 --> 00:01:32.140 nine psalms, whether planned or not. See later, maybe this is planning and maybe I'm making 00:01:32.140 --> 00:01:37.759 this up. But it seems to me that they fall into three groups of three, in fact, as we look 00:01:37.760 --> 00:01:46.540 back over our sermons. Psalms 19, 33, and 24, our first three, really are about the praise 00:01:46.540 --> 00:01:52.880 of God in creation. We see God as creator really clearly in those first three psalms. 00:01:53.660 --> 00:02:03.040 In the middle three psalms, Psalms 13, 10, and 73, in each of those we see a psalmist in distress 00:02:03.040 --> 00:02:09.040 for various reasons and a moment of deliverance. So if in our first three psalms we especially 00:02:09.040 --> 00:02:16.120 saw God as creator, in our middle three psalms we especially see God as redeemer. And when 00:02:16.120 --> 00:02:22.640 we come to these last three studies, Psalm 30, a couple weeks ago, 27, last week, and tonight 00:02:22.640 --> 00:02:28.840 Psalm 19, in each of these three psalms we see someone has been delivered. And the response 00:02:28.840 --> 00:02:34.219 to that and a sense of longing for more of God, a sense of yearning and a sense of being 00:02:34.219 --> 00:02:40.860 sustained in the life of faith. So it seems to me we have quite a nice Trinitarian shape 00:02:40.860 --> 00:02:47.539 to our set of studies with God as creator, redeemer, and sustainer. In fact, those themes running 00:02:47.539 --> 00:02:53.620 through all our psalms in one way or another. And we've also had mentioned, I think, in almost 00:02:53.620 --> 00:03:01.599 every sermon of the nine, that taking account of neighboring psalms can really help us understand 00:03:01.599 --> 00:03:06.840 the particular psalm we're interested in. I think sometimes we get the sense that psalms 00:03:06.840 --> 00:03:15.580 are not quite a random lucky dip of psalms, but a fairly amorphous, unshaped collection. 00:03:15.759 --> 00:03:22.280 But I think we have seen through this series that actually taking attention to the context 00:03:22.280 --> 00:03:27.680 of a psalm can help us to understand that individual psalm. And so too, this evening, 00:03:27.879 --> 00:03:36.639 Psalms 17, 18, and 19, as a trio, form quite a remarkable set. And we won't be taking time 00:03:36.639 --> 00:03:40.780 this evening to attend to that aspect to them, but perhaps in your own reading of the psalms, 00:03:40.860 --> 00:03:44.840 your own studies and meditations, that will be a help. 00:03:45.960 --> 00:03:51.500 Well, I'll make three introductory comments to Psalm 18 in particular now, and then we'll read 00:03:51.500 --> 00:03:57.860 it, and as I say, then we'll sing again. So first of three introductory comments, Psalm 00:03:57.860 --> 00:04:05.460 18 is quite special in many ways. One of the most striking things about this psalm, we don't 00:04:05.460 --> 00:04:11.740 see from looking at it, but by realizing that it actually occurs elsewhere in the Old Testament. 00:04:12.300 --> 00:04:19.519 There are other psalms that get repeated within the psalms, but as I'm sure most of you will 00:04:19.519 --> 00:04:29.099 realize, Psalm 18 appears again at the end of 2 Samuel. So 2 Samuel chapter 22 is Psalm 18, 00:04:29.319 --> 00:04:38.120 with some very minor changes. In 2 Samuel 22, the psalm there comes very near the end of David's life. 00:04:38.599 --> 00:04:45.459 In fact, the next chapter is the last words of David. Well, he's not quite dead yet. And there's 00:04:45.459 --> 00:04:51.759 some small differences between them, one or two significant differences, and one of those will 00:04:51.759 --> 00:04:58.319 come back to as almost the last thing we consider later on this evening. But to notice this, that 00:04:58.319 --> 00:05:05.579 our psalm this evening comes at the end of David's career, really embeds this psalm in the life of David 00:05:05.579 --> 00:05:13.179 in a significant way, and in a special way, more so than most of the psalms, in fact. Which leads me to my 00:05:13.180 --> 00:05:19.500 second introductory comment. In the psalms, you'll often notice there's a little bit in small print 00:05:19.500 --> 00:05:25.439 at the heading of the psalm. Now, that's not, I don't mean the modern editor's title for the psalm, 00:05:25.519 --> 00:05:31.620 but often there's a little verse or instruction or comment that isn't numbered in our English 00:05:31.620 --> 00:05:37.019 versions. In fact, if we had our Hebrew Bibles open in front of us this evening, we see they're 00:05:37.019 --> 00:05:42.899 numbered in the Hebrew psalms. And there is a superscription, which is what they're called, 00:05:42.959 --> 00:05:48.740 to our psalm this evening. And in fact, it's one of the, it is the longest superscription of all the 00:05:48.740 --> 00:05:55.979 psalms. For the director of music, of David, the servant of the Lord, he sang to the Lord the words 00:05:55.979 --> 00:06:01.819 of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all his enemies and from the hand of Saul. 00:06:01.819 --> 00:06:10.860 And although other psalm superscriptions might be shorter or more specific, this one, again, 00:06:11.000 --> 00:06:17.899 just as we notice with the repetition of this psalm in 2 Samuel 22, really locates and embeds this 00:06:17.899 --> 00:06:25.560 psalm in David's career. There's a very clear resonance between the circumstance of David's life 00:06:25.560 --> 00:06:33.819 that the superscription sets out. David's been given peace from his enemies. That situation calls forth 00:06:33.819 --> 00:06:40.959 this song of praise that we see this evening. Now, in some ways, it looks as if the psalm that we're 00:06:40.959 --> 00:06:47.860 going to read comes when he's just enjoying that first period of rest from his enemies, whereas in 00:06:47.860 --> 00:06:54.360 2 Samuel, it comes near the end of his career. But however it works out chronologically, it's very clear 00:06:54.360 --> 00:07:01.560 that God's working in David's life to grant him this peace calls for this song in response. 00:07:02.500 --> 00:07:09.600 And my final introductory comment, I mentioned already it's a long psalm. It's precisely the third 00:07:09.600 --> 00:07:20.300 longest psalm. We're not reading Psalm 119 tonight. Psalm 78 is the other second longest psalm. 00:07:20.300 --> 00:07:27.500 But given that it's a long psalm, it makes it a little bit difficult, I think, to take in. 00:07:28.079 --> 00:07:34.160 I mean, as we read it, we'll see that the chunks in the psalm are quite clear. But as we read through it, 00:07:34.240 --> 00:07:40.780 what kind of shape does it have? It's a challenge to take that in at first sight or even at first hearing. 00:07:40.779 --> 00:07:52.559 And its language is a bit intense. So I'll give you a little sketch map of the psalm, and then we'll 00:07:52.559 --> 00:08:00.619 read it together. And then we'll take a break to sing again. So essentially, it divides up into three 00:08:00.619 --> 00:08:07.919 big chunks, topped and tailed, with a little frame around it. The first chunk and the third chunk really 00:08:07.920 --> 00:08:17.280 correspond to each other. So basically, verses 4 to 19 are about the Lord acting in response to David. 00:08:18.660 --> 00:08:23.680 Then we have a middle section in which we see David's life and the life of his Lord sort of woven 00:08:23.680 --> 00:08:31.439 together. And the third section is about David acting in response to the Lord. So if the first section is 00:08:31.439 --> 00:08:37.379 about the Lord acting for David, the third section is about David acting in response to the Lord, 00:08:38.019 --> 00:08:43.740 the middle section is a kind of mediating section in which we see their characters and in some sense 00:08:43.740 --> 00:08:50.820 their life intertwined. And then, as I say, the first verse and the last few verses stand out as a kind of 00:08:50.820 --> 00:08:58.080 response of praise to what's happening in between. So with that sketch map in mind, these three chunks, 00:08:58.080 --> 00:09:08.820 let's read the song together, and then we'll sing. So for the director of music of David, the servant 00:09:08.820 --> 00:09:14.980 of the Lord, he sang to the Lord the words of this song when the Lord delivered him from the hand of all 00:09:14.980 --> 00:09:19.379 his enemies and from the hand of Saul. He said, 00:09:19.379 --> 00:09:32.179 I love you, Lord, my strength. The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer. My God is my rock in 00:09:32.179 --> 00:09:41.539 whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. I call to the Lord 00:09:41.539 --> 00:09:45.819 who is worthy of praise, and I am saved from my enemies. 00:09:48.879 --> 00:09:58.339 The cords of death entangled me. The torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave 00:09:58.339 --> 00:10:06.039 coiled around me. The snares of death confronted me. In my distress, I called to the Lord. 00:10:06.039 --> 00:10:15.620 I cried to my God for help. From his temple, he heard my voice. My cry came before him into his ears. 00:10:16.639 --> 00:10:25.519 The earth trembled and quaked. The foundations of the mountains shook. They trembled because he was 00:10:25.519 --> 00:10:34.959 angry. Smoke rose from his nostrils. Consuming fire came from his mouth. Burning coals blazed out of it. 00:10:34.960 --> 00:10:44.879 He parted the heavens and came down. Dark clouds were under his feet. He mounted the cherubim and flew. 00:10:45.620 --> 00:10:52.879 He soared on the wings of the wind. He made darkness his covering, his canopy around him. 00:10:53.920 --> 00:11:01.200 The dark rain clouds of the sky. Out of the brightness of his presence, clouds advanced with 00:11:01.200 --> 00:11:09.500 hailstones and bolts of lightning. The Lord thundered from heaven. The voice of the Most High resounded. 00:11:10.400 --> 00:11:17.060 He shot his arrows and scattered the enemies. Great bolts of lightning and routed them. 00:11:18.180 --> 00:11:25.180 The valleys of the sea were exposed and the foundations of the earth laid bare at your rebuke, 00:11:25.179 --> 00:11:35.539 O Lord. At the blast of breath from your nostrils. He reached down from on high and took hold of me. 00:11:36.339 --> 00:11:45.179 He drew me out of deep waters. He rescued me from my powerful enemy, from my foes who were too strong 00:11:45.179 --> 00:11:52.239 for me. They confronted me in the day of my disaster. But the Lord was my support. 00:11:53.139 --> 00:12:00.739 He brought me out into a spacious place. He rescued me because he delighted in me. 00:12:00.740 --> 00:12:09.060 The Lord has dealt with me according to my righteousness. According to the cleanness of 00:12:09.060 --> 00:12:15.960 my hands, he has rewarded me. For I have kept the ways of the Lord. I have not done evil by 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:23.060 turning from my God. All his laws are before me, and I have not turned away from his decrees. 00:12:23.059 --> 00:12:30.919 I have been blameless before him, and have kept myself from sin. The Lord has rewarded me according 00:12:30.919 --> 00:12:38.959 to my righteousness, according to the cleanness of my hands in his sight. To the faithful, you show 00:12:38.959 --> 00:12:46.739 yourself faithful. To the blameless, you show yourself blameless. To the pure, you show yourself 00:12:46.740 --> 00:12:59.539 pure. But to the crooked, you show yourself shrewd. You save the humble, but bring low those whose 00:12:59.539 --> 00:13:10.360 eyes are haughty. You, O Lord, keep my lamp burning. My God turns my darkness into light. With your help, 00:13:10.360 --> 00:13:21.080 I can advance against a troop. With my God, I can scale a wall. As for God, his way is perfect. The word of the 00:13:21.080 --> 00:13:30.919 Lord is flawless. He is a shield for all who take refuge in him. For who is a God besides the Lord? And who is 00:13:30.919 --> 00:13:40.120 the rock except our God? It is God who arms me with strength and makes my way perfect. 00:13:40.360 --> 00:13:48.700 He makes my feet like the feet of a deer. He enables me to stand on the heights. He trains my hands for 00:13:48.700 --> 00:13:58.659 battle. My arms can bend a bow of bronze. You give me your shield of victory, and your right hand sustains 00:13:58.659 --> 00:14:07.700 me. You stoop down to make me great. You broaden the path beneath me so that my ankles do not turn over. 00:14:07.700 --> 00:14:17.480 So I pursued my enemies and overtook them. I did not turn back till they were destroyed. I crushed them so that they 00:14:17.480 --> 00:14:27.320 could not rise. They fell beneath my feet. You armed me with strength for battle. You made my adversaries bow at my 00:14:27.320 --> 00:14:37.680 feet. You made my enemies turn their backs in flight, and I destroyed my foes. They cried for help. But there was no one to be a 00:14:37.679 --> 00:14:50.579 one to save them. To the Lord. But he did not answer. I beat them fine as dust born on the wind. I poured them out like mud in the streets. 00:14:50.580 --> 00:15:01.060 You have delivered me from the attacks of the people. You have made me the head of nations. People I did not know are subject to me. 00:15:01.860 --> 00:15:13.300 As soon as they hear me, they obey me. Foreigners cringe before me. They all lose heart. They come trembling from their strongholds. 00:15:13.299 --> 00:15:28.759 The Lord lives. Praise be to my rock. Exalted be God, my Savior. He is the God who avenges me, who subdues nations under me, who saves me from my enemies. 00:15:29.459 --> 00:15:41.479 You exalted me above my foes. From violent men you rescued me. Therefore, I will praise you among the nations, O Lord. I will sing praises to your name. 00:15:41.480 --> 00:15:57.039 Amen. He gives his king great victories. He shows unfailing kindness to his anointed, to David and his descendants forever. Amen. 00:15:58.039 --> 00:16:03.920 Well, as this psalm settles into our hearts and minds, let's sing again to the praise of this God. 00:16:11.480 --> 00:16:17.200 Let's just take a moment to pray before we study God's word. 00:16:21.279 --> 00:16:23.220 Hosanna in the highest. 00:16:24.000 --> 00:16:28.240 Lord, these are ancient words of praise as well as a cry for help. 00:16:28.240 --> 00:16:30.960 So we ask for your help now. 00:16:31.580 --> 00:16:39.820 As we attend to your word, your spirit might take it, work it into our lives so that we might be a people who glorify you. 00:16:40.440 --> 00:16:43.240 For your glory's sake we pray. Amen. 00:16:43.240 --> 00:16:43.320 Amen. 00:16:46.379 --> 00:16:52.680 Well, perhaps as we read this long psalm, you'll have noticed that it has many striking features, 00:16:53.039 --> 00:16:56.080 and we certainly can't deal with the whole psalm. 00:16:56.460 --> 00:17:02.419 And there's plenty, plenty that I know I'll be leaving unsaid this evening. 00:17:03.399 --> 00:17:08.900 And perhaps you found some of its language extreme or difficult to relate to. 00:17:08.900 --> 00:17:16.759 So what I'm going to do this evening as we look at this psalm is just pick out a theme from each of those three sections. 00:17:17.200 --> 00:17:19.300 Who is the God who comes to save David? 00:17:19.540 --> 00:17:22.100 What is the nature of this David who's in distress? 00:17:22.640 --> 00:17:25.200 And who are the enemies that David deals with? 00:17:25.280 --> 00:17:30.100 Those three questions, in some ways slightly uncomfortable questions, 00:17:30.099 --> 00:17:40.019 to see where they lead us in reflecting on this psalm as we observe God saving David 00:17:40.019 --> 00:17:43.719 and David's response to the God who saves. 00:17:44.740 --> 00:17:48.019 So our three questions corresponding to the three sections then, 00:17:48.599 --> 00:17:50.639 who is the God who saves? 00:17:50.939 --> 00:17:53.079 Who is this God who saves? 00:17:53.559 --> 00:17:56.119 Who is this David who's in distress? 00:17:56.799 --> 00:17:59.699 And who are those enemies who are defeated? 00:18:01.099 --> 00:18:04.399 So first of all then, who is the God who saves? 00:18:05.719 --> 00:18:11.240 Well, the psalm begins with very personal descriptions of this God who saves, 00:18:11.299 --> 00:18:12.859 and I think that's unmissable. 00:18:13.779 --> 00:18:21.339 The God who is my God, my rock, my shield, my stronghold, and on it goes. 00:18:21.339 --> 00:18:26.939 And I think these are terms that we're used to seeing not only from other psalms that we read, 00:18:27.019 --> 00:18:30.819 but from other songs that we sing together as a congregation. 00:18:31.899 --> 00:18:39.899 And what we might find less comfortable is the God who turns up in response to David's cry. 00:18:39.900 --> 00:18:47.240 So in verses 4 through 6, you'll have heard the desperation that David has. 00:18:48.120 --> 00:18:50.160 Chords of death entangled me. 00:18:50.280 --> 00:18:52.240 Snares of death confronted me. 00:18:52.320 --> 00:18:54.700 In my distress, I called out to the Lord. 00:18:54.700 --> 00:18:58.059 And the Lord comes. 00:18:58.180 --> 00:19:03.519 Now, I hope you've got Bibles open in front of you as we work through this psalm. 00:19:04.299 --> 00:19:09.920 And so then we have in verses 7 to 15 the description of this God who turns up to save. 00:19:10.600 --> 00:19:15.880 And these verses are frankly somewhat terrifying. 00:19:15.880 --> 00:19:25.500 We hear the voice of the desperate, the distressed, the drowning David, weak and helpless. 00:19:26.020 --> 00:19:35.480 And the one who responds to his cry as the earth trembles and quakes is in every sense larger than life. 00:19:36.860 --> 00:19:43.540 He's not only powerful, but his very presence brings upheavals, 00:19:43.539 --> 00:19:47.539 even convulsions to the natural order. 00:19:49.879 --> 00:19:53.960 If David is fragile and is in the face of the enemies, 00:19:54.079 --> 00:19:56.920 we think at least the earth has a kind of permanence. 00:19:57.180 --> 00:19:59.079 But then this God comes. 00:19:59.980 --> 00:20:02.740 And what does this permanent world look like? 00:20:03.879 --> 00:20:05.940 The earth quakes. 00:20:07.019 --> 00:20:08.539 Mountains shake. 00:20:09.480 --> 00:20:11.240 The heavens tear. 00:20:11.240 --> 00:20:13.980 Lightning splits. 00:20:15.059 --> 00:20:16.880 Oceans flee. 00:20:19.019 --> 00:20:21.720 And the hand of God reaches down 00:20:21.720 --> 00:20:26.519 and grasps a lost and limp David 00:20:26.519 --> 00:20:31.480 and brings him, in verse 19, to a spacious place. 00:20:31.480 --> 00:20:42.519 Perhaps a green pasture beside still waters where his soul is restored and his spirit revived. 00:20:44.360 --> 00:20:48.440 We sometimes sing the hymn has this verse. 00:20:48.440 --> 00:20:49.440 Father-like. 00:20:49.440 --> 00:20:52.559 Father-like he tends and spares us. 00:20:52.700 --> 00:20:55.120 Well, our feeble frame he knows. 00:20:56.480 --> 00:20:59.720 In his hand he gently bears us. 00:21:00.420 --> 00:21:03.460 Rescues us from all our foes. 00:21:04.400 --> 00:21:07.299 It's just what David's experienced here. 00:21:07.299 --> 00:21:12.799 But the one who gently bears in his hand to this place of safety 00:21:12.799 --> 00:21:18.960 is also the ones whose very presence brings upheavals in the created order. 00:21:18.960 --> 00:21:23.420 Now, this isn't new language to Psalm 18. 00:21:24.299 --> 00:21:30.279 This language harks back to other aspects of Israel's story with this God. 00:21:30.940 --> 00:21:33.660 Most clearly to the language of the Exodus. 00:21:33.660 --> 00:21:44.100 In which God's presence in fire and cloud parted the waters to save and rescue God's people. 00:21:44.099 --> 00:21:53.799 Not for nothing does the song of Moses in Exodus 15 call this God a man of war. 00:21:55.199 --> 00:21:57.719 It echoes other Exodus language. 00:21:58.359 --> 00:22:01.399 Especially the experience at the mountain of God 00:22:01.399 --> 00:22:04.179 when the law of God is given to the people of God. 00:22:04.819 --> 00:22:11.240 When God spoke from a mountain on fire through thunder and lightning 00:22:11.240 --> 00:22:16.579 and smoke on a mountain that trembled in Exodus 19. 00:22:17.620 --> 00:22:21.359 And as Moses reflects on that in Deuteronomy 5, he says, 00:22:22.319 --> 00:22:23.779 speaking God's words to them, 00:22:23.819 --> 00:22:27.259 they were right to be afraid at the mountain 00:22:27.259 --> 00:22:31.359 and ask for Moses to intercede on their behalf. 00:22:32.059 --> 00:22:36.380 And it resonates through the experience of God's people in the Old Testament. 00:22:36.380 --> 00:22:44.320 As other experiences of the divine warrior rescue the people. 00:22:45.240 --> 00:22:48.940 One of the closest parallels to our Psalm this evening 00:22:48.940 --> 00:22:51.640 comes at the end of the little book of Habakkuk. 00:22:52.420 --> 00:22:53.060 Habakkuk. 00:22:53.600 --> 00:22:54.280 Habakkuk. 00:22:54.520 --> 00:22:55.540 Chapter 3. 00:22:56.820 --> 00:23:00.960 And there the prophet prays a Psalm very much in these languages, 00:23:00.960 --> 00:23:03.680 using these words to come back to God 00:23:03.680 --> 00:23:09.100 and pray that this God would be the one who saves his imperiled people 00:23:09.100 --> 00:23:11.120 from the hand of the enemy. 00:23:12.340 --> 00:23:16.460 Well, I rehearse these echoes of Psalm 18 in the Old Testament 00:23:16.460 --> 00:23:20.240 to point out that this language is maybe intense, 00:23:21.019 --> 00:23:26.779 but it's fundamental and important to the Old Testament people of God 00:23:26.779 --> 00:23:31.980 that this picture is a true picture of the God who saves. 00:23:33.579 --> 00:23:39.420 For all that, we have a more complete picture of this saving God 00:23:39.420 --> 00:23:42.460 in the person of his Son in the New Testament. 00:23:43.259 --> 00:23:47.319 I want to suggest that even though that's a more full picture, 00:23:47.500 --> 00:23:48.799 a more complete picture, 00:23:49.279 --> 00:23:54.279 it's still one that's coherent with this picture in Psalm 18. 00:23:54.279 --> 00:23:57.039 It remains fully coherent with it. 00:23:57.799 --> 00:24:00.660 Just think for a moment about Jesus' earthly life, 00:24:01.000 --> 00:24:03.720 his ministry as we've been thinking about it over weeks 00:24:03.720 --> 00:24:07.940 in our Luke series in the morning services. 00:24:08.819 --> 00:24:15.660 We catch a glimpse of this God of Psalm 18 in Jesus' life on this earth. 00:24:17.359 --> 00:24:21.059 Jesus is the one who stills the storm. 00:24:21.059 --> 00:24:25.299 And who can still the storm except the one who brings it? 00:24:26.099 --> 00:24:29.619 Jesus is the one who cleanses the temple in his wrath. 00:24:31.639 --> 00:24:34.940 And we see as he conquers his enemies, 00:24:35.119 --> 00:24:37.019 laying down his life on the cross, 00:24:37.419 --> 00:24:39.579 disturbances in the natural world. 00:24:40.879 --> 00:24:44.059 And as other parts of the New Testament go on to tell us, 00:24:44.440 --> 00:24:47.940 when Christ comes again, so it will be. 00:24:47.940 --> 00:24:50.920 There will be these disturbances in the natural world, 00:24:51.059 --> 00:24:53.539 just as we see in Psalm 18 here, 00:24:54.039 --> 00:24:57.400 as the saving God responded to David's cry. 00:24:58.940 --> 00:25:03.039 So I think as we spend time in Psalm 18 and with it, 00:25:03.140 --> 00:25:05.799 we need to and are expected to, 00:25:06.900 --> 00:25:10.980 insofar as our feeble senses permit, 00:25:10.980 --> 00:25:18.900 to take in the very Godness of this God who comes to save. 00:25:21.860 --> 00:25:25.360 This God is not like us, 00:25:25.599 --> 00:25:28.120 as I heard it put in a sermon recently. 00:25:29.200 --> 00:25:32.039 This God isn't like us. 00:25:33.759 --> 00:25:36.539 This is the God that we have come to worship this evening, 00:25:36.660 --> 00:25:38.440 one who is wholly other. 00:25:38.440 --> 00:25:45.440 And I do wonder sometimes how our approaches 00:25:45.440 --> 00:25:47.400 to times of corporate worship 00:25:47.400 --> 00:25:50.460 or the lives that we live before this God 00:25:50.460 --> 00:25:53.019 might be different if it had really settled 00:25:53.019 --> 00:25:55.779 into our spirits and into our hearts and minds 00:25:55.779 --> 00:25:57.360 who this God is. 00:25:58.720 --> 00:26:01.360 Yes, we are accompanied by his Son 00:26:01.360 --> 00:26:04.720 and brought into his presence by our Savior. 00:26:04.720 --> 00:26:08.360 It's no less this God. 00:26:10.299 --> 00:26:14.319 This is the one whose presence split the skies, 00:26:15.200 --> 00:26:16.120 shakes the earth, 00:26:16.980 --> 00:26:17.900 empties the sea, 00:26:18.640 --> 00:26:20.680 and rescues. 00:26:21.380 --> 00:26:23.299 This is the God who saves, 00:26:23.980 --> 00:26:26.319 the one that we've come to worship this evening. 00:26:26.319 --> 00:26:31.220 So if that's a glimpse into the 00:26:31.220 --> 00:26:32.720 who is this God, 00:26:32.779 --> 00:26:33.700 the God who saves, 00:26:33.939 --> 00:26:35.339 our second who question 00:26:35.339 --> 00:26:38.720 is who is this one in distress? 00:26:39.679 --> 00:26:42.619 Well, we can answer that question pretty quickly. 00:26:42.720 --> 00:26:43.279 It's David. 00:26:43.439 --> 00:26:45.700 Okay, let's move on to section three. 00:26:46.099 --> 00:26:48.200 Well, not quite so quickly. 00:26:48.919 --> 00:26:51.220 Mention that the first and third sections 00:26:51.220 --> 00:26:53.240 really correspond to each other 00:26:53.240 --> 00:26:55.500 as God acts on David's behalf, 00:26:55.700 --> 00:26:57.420 David acts in response to God. 00:26:57.740 --> 00:26:59.460 And then there's this middle section 00:26:59.460 --> 00:27:01.640 which mediates between them. 00:27:03.519 --> 00:27:05.980 And here we see the characterization 00:27:05.980 --> 00:27:08.579 of the psalmist of his own standing 00:27:08.579 --> 00:27:09.720 before this God. 00:27:10.740 --> 00:27:13.539 And it comes out strikingly in three statements. 00:27:14.059 --> 00:27:16.920 So I slightly paused over them as we read, 00:27:17.259 --> 00:27:19.079 and you won't have missed them, I don't think. 00:27:19.819 --> 00:27:20.819 Verse 19, 00:27:20.819 --> 00:27:23.679 He brought me out into a spacious place. 00:27:23.919 --> 00:27:27.319 He rescued me because He delighted in me. 00:27:27.659 --> 00:27:29.879 And it carries on into verse 24. 00:27:30.639 --> 00:27:32.019 The Lord has dealt with me 00:27:32.019 --> 00:27:34.579 according to my righteousness. 00:27:35.419 --> 00:27:37.879 According to the cleanness of my hands, 00:27:37.960 --> 00:27:39.079 He has rewarded me. 00:27:39.500 --> 00:27:40.559 And then there's some reflection 00:27:40.559 --> 00:27:41.799 on how that might be, 00:27:41.899 --> 00:27:44.299 and then it's repeated in verse 24, 00:27:44.659 --> 00:27:46.159 almost word for word. 00:27:46.159 --> 00:27:48.159 The Lord has rewarded me 00:27:48.159 --> 00:27:49.679 according to my righteousness, 00:27:49.680 --> 00:27:52.779 according to the cleanness of my hands 00:27:52.779 --> 00:27:53.580 in His sight. 00:27:55.720 --> 00:27:58.039 This is, most definitely, 00:27:58.380 --> 00:28:00.960 not the way we're used to thinking of ourselves. 00:28:01.680 --> 00:28:04.799 Christians commonly self-identify as sinners. 00:28:05.400 --> 00:28:06.640 It's a good reason for that. 00:28:07.539 --> 00:28:08.320 We are. 00:28:09.840 --> 00:28:12.080 But David's perception here 00:28:12.080 --> 00:28:13.320 seems quite different. 00:28:13.319 --> 00:28:15.700 And we should pause then for a moment 00:28:15.700 --> 00:28:17.599 just to think about what's going on 00:28:17.599 --> 00:28:20.419 as David makes this claim. 00:28:21.059 --> 00:28:23.359 In fact, this isn't the first time in our series 00:28:23.359 --> 00:28:24.960 we've heard this kind of language. 00:28:25.679 --> 00:28:27.019 But some weeks ago, 00:28:27.019 --> 00:28:28.480 when we looked at Psalm 24, 00:28:28.480 --> 00:28:30.399 we heard it there as well. 00:28:30.579 --> 00:28:32.319 We heard the question posed, 00:28:32.779 --> 00:28:35.019 Who shall ascend the mountain of the Lord? 00:28:35.359 --> 00:28:38.339 And who shall stand in His holy place? 00:28:38.339 --> 00:28:40.379 To which came the reply, 00:28:41.519 --> 00:28:42.939 The one with clean hands 00:28:42.939 --> 00:28:44.639 and a pure heart, 00:28:45.199 --> 00:28:46.659 who does not lift up his soul 00:28:46.659 --> 00:28:47.619 to what is false 00:28:47.619 --> 00:28:49.720 and does not swear deceitfully, 00:28:50.159 --> 00:28:52.359 this one will receive a blessing 00:28:52.359 --> 00:28:53.500 from the Lord. 00:28:55.019 --> 00:28:57.299 Nor is this the only place in the Psalms 00:28:57.299 --> 00:28:58.779 where we see this kind of language, 00:28:58.899 --> 00:29:00.439 where the psalmist really says, 00:29:00.440 --> 00:29:04.559 It's because I'm doing right 00:29:04.559 --> 00:29:07.340 that God has acted on my behalf. 00:29:07.779 --> 00:29:12.799 Psalm 7, Psalm 17, Psalm 26, Psalm 44, Psalm 112, 00:29:12.799 --> 00:29:14.900 and there's a number of others. 00:29:15.519 --> 00:29:17.620 They all point in the same direction. 00:29:18.880 --> 00:29:21.620 So, our question then, 00:29:22.240 --> 00:29:25.500 what's with David's righteousness language here? 00:29:25.500 --> 00:29:30.099 I think it's important to note 00:29:30.099 --> 00:29:31.700 that righteousness in Scripture 00:29:31.700 --> 00:29:34.759 isn't simply a mysterious religious word 00:29:34.759 --> 00:29:36.619 for something that's out of the grasp 00:29:36.619 --> 00:29:37.880 of human beings. 00:29:38.880 --> 00:29:40.880 It simply means this. 00:29:41.900 --> 00:29:44.720 Righteousness is to be right. 00:29:45.200 --> 00:29:47.960 It's to act in accord with a given standard 00:29:47.960 --> 00:29:52.500 or to have a status in accord with that standard. 00:29:52.500 --> 00:29:55.539 It's to have your actions or your being 00:29:55.539 --> 00:29:58.920 in accordance with a given standard. 00:29:59.579 --> 00:30:03.039 To be sure, when it is God's standard, 00:30:03.799 --> 00:30:05.660 then it's exacting and demanding. 00:30:06.579 --> 00:30:09.980 But it's also a joy and a delight 00:30:09.980 --> 00:30:11.720 to do what is right, 00:30:12.200 --> 00:30:14.779 to be righteous in his eyes. 00:30:15.720 --> 00:30:16.700 Jesus said, 00:30:17.259 --> 00:30:18.559 Blessed are those who hunger 00:30:18.559 --> 00:30:20.180 and thirst for righteousness. 00:30:20.440 --> 00:30:21.880 They shall be satisfied. 00:30:22.500 --> 00:30:24.539 And he instructed his followers 00:30:24.539 --> 00:30:26.759 to seek first the kingdom of God 00:30:26.759 --> 00:30:28.220 and his righteousness. 00:30:30.099 --> 00:30:33.180 So, do we simply dismiss David's language here 00:30:33.180 --> 00:30:34.160 as being enlightened, 00:30:34.440 --> 00:30:36.000 or at least unchristian, 00:30:37.380 --> 00:30:39.539 somewhat self-righteous? 00:30:40.640 --> 00:30:41.500 Well, no. 00:30:41.740 --> 00:30:44.480 I believe this would be a misreading of our psalm. 00:30:45.480 --> 00:30:47.180 Rather, we should think in terms 00:30:47.180 --> 00:30:48.920 of the well-known claim 00:30:48.920 --> 00:30:50.619 on the life of the people of God 00:30:50.619 --> 00:30:51.759 from Leviticus. 00:30:51.759 --> 00:30:53.640 Be holy, 00:30:53.640 --> 00:30:56.599 because I, the Lord your God, 00:30:57.079 --> 00:30:57.779 am holy. 00:30:59.299 --> 00:31:01.200 So, when we look at David 00:31:01.200 --> 00:31:02.279 used these words, 00:31:02.480 --> 00:31:03.539 what we're seeing 00:31:03.539 --> 00:31:07.099 is the character of David 00:31:07.099 --> 00:31:09.079 being conformed 00:31:09.079 --> 00:31:11.059 to the character of God. 00:31:11.059 --> 00:31:14.899 It isn't about David 00:31:14.899 --> 00:31:16.440 being absolutely perfect. 00:31:17.379 --> 00:31:18.799 Clearly, clearly, 00:31:19.159 --> 00:31:20.339 even in the Old Testament, 00:31:21.279 --> 00:31:23.279 the property of sinless perfection 00:31:23.279 --> 00:31:25.579 belongs only to the Creator. 00:31:26.579 --> 00:31:27.819 But it's equally clear 00:31:27.819 --> 00:31:29.799 that it's the business of those 00:31:29.799 --> 00:31:31.599 who bear the image of God 00:31:31.599 --> 00:31:34.799 to be in a creaturely sense 00:31:34.799 --> 00:31:37.000 conformed to that holiness 00:31:37.000 --> 00:31:38.380 and that righteousness 00:31:38.380 --> 00:31:39.839 of the Creator. 00:31:40.680 --> 00:31:42.440 So, it's important to see, again, 00:31:42.519 --> 00:31:43.480 that this isn't simply 00:31:43.480 --> 00:31:45.220 an Old Testament principle, 00:31:45.220 --> 00:31:46.160 but is at work 00:31:46.160 --> 00:31:47.420 in the New Testament. 00:31:47.779 --> 00:31:48.759 I've mentioned already 00:31:48.759 --> 00:31:49.660 Jesus' words 00:31:49.660 --> 00:31:51.180 encouraging his followers, 00:31:51.380 --> 00:31:51.980 his disciples, 00:31:52.220 --> 00:31:53.319 to be righteous, 00:31:53.500 --> 00:31:54.819 to seek righteousness. 00:31:54.819 --> 00:31:57.659 And in Matthew 25, 00:31:57.980 --> 00:31:59.879 he describes this discrimination, 00:32:00.240 --> 00:32:01.339 the division of the sheep 00:32:01.339 --> 00:32:02.059 and the goats. 00:32:02.179 --> 00:32:03.740 And he identified the sheep 00:32:03.740 --> 00:32:05.899 as those righteous ones 00:32:05.899 --> 00:32:07.919 who had fed the hungry, 00:32:08.579 --> 00:32:09.559 clothed the naked, 00:32:10.159 --> 00:32:11.220 visited the sick 00:32:11.220 --> 00:32:11.939 and the prisoner. 00:32:13.279 --> 00:32:14.679 That is what it means 00:32:14.679 --> 00:32:15.980 to be a sheep, 00:32:16.099 --> 00:32:17.859 to be among the righteous. 00:32:18.539 --> 00:32:19.960 Or as Paul says 00:32:19.960 --> 00:32:21.460 in Romans 8, 00:32:21.879 --> 00:32:22.960 God foreknew 00:32:22.960 --> 00:32:24.679 those he foreknew, 00:32:24.680 --> 00:32:25.680 he progestened 00:32:25.680 --> 00:32:26.680 to be conformed 00:32:27.420 --> 00:32:28.140 to the image 00:32:28.140 --> 00:32:28.840 of his Son. 00:32:29.940 --> 00:32:31.019 Or in the letters 00:32:31.019 --> 00:32:31.660 to Timothy, 00:32:31.840 --> 00:32:33.500 twice giving the instruction 00:32:33.500 --> 00:32:35.759 to pursue righteousness. 00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:38.259 This is, in fact, 00:32:38.340 --> 00:32:39.600 the lasting picture 00:32:39.600 --> 00:32:40.660 of the Christian life 00:32:40.660 --> 00:32:41.840 right up to the end 00:32:41.840 --> 00:32:43.220 of the New Testament. 00:32:43.900 --> 00:32:45.200 In all of the writings 00:32:45.200 --> 00:32:46.860 of John that conclude it, 00:32:47.000 --> 00:32:48.480 but perhaps most clearly 00:32:48.480 --> 00:32:49.519 in these verses 00:32:49.519 --> 00:32:51.080 from 1 John 3, 00:32:51.620 --> 00:32:52.820 verses 7 and 8. 00:32:53.460 --> 00:32:54.279 Dear children, 00:32:54.279 --> 00:32:55.460 do not let anyone 00:32:55.460 --> 00:32:56.460 lead you astray. 00:32:57.460 --> 00:32:58.160 He who does 00:32:58.160 --> 00:32:59.059 what is right 00:32:59.059 --> 00:32:59.960 is righteous, 00:33:00.359 --> 00:33:01.960 just as he is righteous. 00:33:02.720 --> 00:33:03.379 He who does 00:33:03.379 --> 00:33:04.180 what is sinful 00:33:04.180 --> 00:33:05.460 is of the devil, 00:33:05.759 --> 00:33:06.579 because the devil 00:33:06.579 --> 00:33:07.420 has been sinning 00:33:07.420 --> 00:33:08.160 from the beginning. 00:33:08.940 --> 00:33:10.379 The reason the Son of God 00:33:10.379 --> 00:33:11.000 appeared 00:33:11.000 --> 00:33:12.859 was to destroy 00:33:12.859 --> 00:33:14.139 the devil's work. 00:33:14.140 --> 00:33:19.520 Dietrich Bonhoeffer 00:33:19.520 --> 00:33:22.759 was a German pastor-theologian, 00:33:23.140 --> 00:33:25.720 executed just three weeks 00:33:25.720 --> 00:33:28.480 before his concentration camp 00:33:28.480 --> 00:33:30.140 was emancipated 00:33:30.140 --> 00:33:32.259 by American troops. 00:33:33.080 --> 00:33:34.980 But he wrote a little devotional book 00:33:34.980 --> 00:33:35.940 on the Psalms, 00:33:36.340 --> 00:33:38.840 and in that he wrote this, 00:33:38.839 --> 00:33:42.119 If, in other respects, 00:33:42.220 --> 00:33:43.699 we take God's action 00:33:43.699 --> 00:33:44.500 toward us 00:33:44.500 --> 00:33:45.619 at all seriously, 00:33:46.619 --> 00:33:49.039 then we not only may, 00:33:50.000 --> 00:33:51.259 but plainly must, 00:33:52.019 --> 00:33:53.119 in all humility 00:33:53.119 --> 00:33:54.099 and certainty, 00:33:54.339 --> 00:33:54.679 pray, 00:33:55.679 --> 00:33:56.659 I was blameless 00:33:56.659 --> 00:33:57.599 before God, 00:33:58.099 --> 00:33:59.319 and I kept myself 00:33:59.319 --> 00:33:59.939 from guilt. 00:34:00.519 --> 00:34:01.459 Psalm 18, 00:34:02.019 --> 00:34:02.879 verse 23. 00:34:02.880 --> 00:34:05.660 If, in other respects, 00:34:05.760 --> 00:34:07.000 we take God's action 00:34:07.000 --> 00:34:07.820 towards us 00:34:07.820 --> 00:34:08.740 at all seriously, 00:34:08.880 --> 00:34:10.300 this is the God who saves, 00:34:10.900 --> 00:34:11.960 then we not only may, 00:34:12.059 --> 00:34:13.059 but plainly must, 00:34:13.220 --> 00:34:13.519 pray, 00:34:13.640 --> 00:34:14.300 in all humility 00:34:14.300 --> 00:34:15.059 and certainty, 00:34:15.660 --> 00:34:16.579 I was blameless 00:34:16.579 --> 00:34:17.720 before God, 00:34:17.800 --> 00:34:18.780 I kept myself 00:34:18.780 --> 00:34:20.119 free from guilt. 00:34:21.559 --> 00:34:22.780 Bonhoeffer's point is 00:34:22.780 --> 00:34:24.160 that as we reflect 00:34:24.160 --> 00:34:25.140 on the life 00:34:25.140 --> 00:34:26.360 of the desperate David 00:34:26.360 --> 00:34:27.280 who cries out 00:34:27.280 --> 00:34:28.400 to the God who saves 00:34:28.400 --> 00:34:29.300 in Psalm 18, 00:34:30.519 --> 00:34:32.200 we feel that claim, too, 00:34:32.199 --> 00:34:34.619 to live a righteous life, 00:34:34.980 --> 00:34:35.799 quite simply, 00:34:36.359 --> 00:34:37.779 a life in accord 00:34:37.779 --> 00:34:38.859 with God's will 00:34:38.859 --> 00:34:40.480 and God's ways. 00:34:42.759 --> 00:34:44.159 Now, perhaps you're here 00:34:44.159 --> 00:34:44.719 this evening, 00:34:44.799 --> 00:34:45.500 I don't know 00:34:45.500 --> 00:34:46.679 everyone in the room, 00:34:47.239 --> 00:34:48.279 perhaps you're here 00:34:48.279 --> 00:34:48.859 this evening 00:34:48.859 --> 00:34:49.939 as one who's begun 00:34:49.939 --> 00:34:50.699 to recognize 00:34:50.699 --> 00:34:51.759 in this God 00:34:51.759 --> 00:34:54.439 someone to be revered, 00:34:55.159 --> 00:34:57.099 someone to be worshipped, 00:34:57.480 --> 00:34:59.119 and you also recognize 00:34:59.119 --> 00:34:59.779 in yourself 00:34:59.779 --> 00:35:01.739 a life that is not lived, 00:35:02.199 --> 00:35:03.819 conformed to the character 00:35:03.819 --> 00:35:05.259 of this God. 00:35:06.419 --> 00:35:07.319 Well, if that's you, 00:35:07.399 --> 00:35:08.539 let me encourage you. 00:35:09.399 --> 00:35:10.779 There was one man 00:35:10.779 --> 00:35:12.719 who brought together 00:35:12.719 --> 00:35:13.379 completely 00:35:13.379 --> 00:35:14.739 the holiness 00:35:14.739 --> 00:35:15.619 and righteousness 00:35:15.619 --> 00:35:16.480 of the Creator 00:35:16.480 --> 00:35:17.619 in the life 00:35:17.619 --> 00:35:18.460 of a creature. 00:35:19.119 --> 00:35:19.919 That one man 00:35:19.919 --> 00:35:21.419 was Jesus Christ. 00:35:22.779 --> 00:35:24.199 And in his life 00:35:24.199 --> 00:35:25.359 and death 00:35:25.359 --> 00:35:26.699 and resurrection, 00:35:27.279 --> 00:35:28.219 he triumphed 00:35:28.219 --> 00:35:29.639 over sin and death, 00:35:29.639 --> 00:35:32.079 living the life 00:35:32.079 --> 00:35:33.440 we should have lived. 00:35:34.099 --> 00:35:34.980 He died the death 00:35:34.980 --> 00:35:35.940 we should have died. 00:35:38.099 --> 00:35:40.400 And now invites us 00:35:40.400 --> 00:35:42.480 to turn from sin 00:35:42.480 --> 00:35:44.799 and turn to the living God. 00:35:44.920 --> 00:35:46.159 That's what we call repentance. 00:35:47.440 --> 00:35:50.039 And to place our trust in him, 00:35:50.519 --> 00:35:52.440 to live our life 00:35:52.440 --> 00:35:53.940 with and for him. 00:35:53.940 --> 00:35:56.380 And if this captures 00:35:56.380 --> 00:35:58.119 your sense right now, 00:35:58.659 --> 00:35:59.440 then I'd be happy 00:35:59.440 --> 00:36:00.659 to speak with you about it 00:36:00.659 --> 00:36:01.579 after the service 00:36:01.579 --> 00:36:03.860 or let the friend 00:36:03.860 --> 00:36:04.780 that you've come with 00:36:04.780 --> 00:36:05.539 this evening know 00:36:05.539 --> 00:36:06.400 and I'm sure they'd be 00:36:06.400 --> 00:36:07.700 happy to do the same. 00:36:09.920 --> 00:36:11.420 So we've reflected on 00:36:11.420 --> 00:36:12.700 who is the God 00:36:12.700 --> 00:36:13.380 who saves. 00:36:13.760 --> 00:36:14.740 We've reflected on 00:36:14.740 --> 00:36:16.159 who is this David 00:36:16.159 --> 00:36:17.240 in distress. 00:36:17.619 --> 00:36:18.159 And finally, 00:36:18.280 --> 00:36:19.500 we reflect on 00:36:19.500 --> 00:36:20.679 who is, 00:36:20.940 --> 00:36:21.519 who are, 00:36:21.519 --> 00:36:22.900 these enemies 00:36:22.900 --> 00:36:23.900 who are defeated. 00:36:25.719 --> 00:36:26.480 And again, 00:36:26.539 --> 00:36:27.139 I think we have 00:36:27.139 --> 00:36:28.940 a little discomfort level 00:36:28.940 --> 00:36:29.780 with each of these 00:36:29.780 --> 00:36:30.539 three sections 00:36:30.539 --> 00:36:31.239 that perhaps 00:36:31.239 --> 00:36:32.420 it is most acute 00:36:32.420 --> 00:36:33.539 in this third one. 00:36:34.380 --> 00:36:35.380 I characterize 00:36:35.380 --> 00:36:36.619 this third section 00:36:36.619 --> 00:36:39.000 as David defeats 00:36:39.000 --> 00:36:39.880 the Lord's enemies. 00:36:40.039 --> 00:36:40.820 The Lord defeats 00:36:40.820 --> 00:36:41.579 David's enemies 00:36:41.579 --> 00:36:42.440 in section one. 00:36:42.500 --> 00:36:43.360 In section three, 00:36:43.759 --> 00:36:44.460 David defeats 00:36:44.460 --> 00:36:45.300 the Lord's enemies. 00:36:45.440 --> 00:36:46.920 But you say to me, 00:36:47.000 --> 00:36:47.280 aha, 00:36:48.019 --> 00:36:49.519 aren't these actually 00:36:49.519 --> 00:36:50.679 David's enemies? 00:36:51.519 --> 00:36:52.440 Well, yes, 00:36:52.500 --> 00:36:53.039 they are. 00:36:53.460 --> 00:36:54.139 But there are also 00:36:54.139 --> 00:36:54.820 the Lord's 00:36:54.820 --> 00:36:55.579 and it's important 00:36:55.579 --> 00:36:57.259 to see how this works 00:36:57.259 --> 00:36:58.280 in our psalm. 00:36:59.759 --> 00:37:01.259 In biblical psalms, 00:37:01.360 --> 00:37:02.179 there are often, 00:37:02.300 --> 00:37:03.099 very often, 00:37:03.219 --> 00:37:04.079 three characters 00:37:04.079 --> 00:37:04.900 in the psalm. 00:37:05.019 --> 00:37:05.579 There's God, 00:37:06.219 --> 00:37:07.179 there's the psalmist, 00:37:07.360 --> 00:37:08.340 the one who prays, 00:37:08.420 --> 00:37:08.820 the poet, 00:37:09.300 --> 00:37:10.579 and there's the enemies. 00:37:10.840 --> 00:37:11.400 And these three 00:37:11.400 --> 00:37:12.119 come together 00:37:12.119 --> 00:37:13.239 again and again 00:37:13.239 --> 00:37:14.739 through the biblical psalms. 00:37:15.559 --> 00:37:16.599 And so here too, 00:37:16.679 --> 00:37:17.320 you'll have seen this 00:37:17.320 --> 00:37:18.880 right throughout Psalm 18. 00:37:19.119 --> 00:37:20.820 This is the three characters, 00:37:20.820 --> 00:37:21.400 if you like, 00:37:21.440 --> 00:37:21.980 in the narrative 00:37:21.980 --> 00:37:22.980 that unfolds. 00:37:23.760 --> 00:37:24.180 God, 00:37:24.980 --> 00:37:25.600 the psalmist, 00:37:26.120 --> 00:37:26.640 the enemies. 00:37:28.260 --> 00:37:29.460 And just as David 00:37:29.460 --> 00:37:30.480 calls this God 00:37:30.480 --> 00:37:31.620 my God, 00:37:32.240 --> 00:37:33.360 so too he calls 00:37:33.360 --> 00:37:34.160 these enemies 00:37:34.160 --> 00:37:35.700 my enemies. 00:37:36.260 --> 00:37:36.920 Verse 3, 00:37:37.120 --> 00:37:37.880 verse 17, 00:37:38.000 --> 00:37:38.720 verse 37, 00:37:38.820 --> 00:37:39.300 verse 40, 00:37:39.380 --> 00:37:39.880 40, 00:37:39.880 --> 00:37:40.000 40, 00:37:40.000 --> 00:37:40.080 40. 00:37:40.180 --> 00:37:41.300 It's right through the psalm. 00:37:41.740 --> 00:37:42.200 And in fact, 00:37:42.260 --> 00:37:43.120 our superscription 00:37:43.120 --> 00:37:44.220 that we noted 00:37:44.220 --> 00:37:45.100 at the beginning 00:37:45.100 --> 00:37:46.539 sets it up this way too. 00:37:46.760 --> 00:37:47.660 The Lord delivered him 00:37:47.660 --> 00:37:48.280 from the hand 00:37:48.280 --> 00:37:49.160 of all his enemies, 00:37:49.540 --> 00:37:50.620 presume that's David's, 00:37:50.760 --> 00:37:51.880 and from the hand 00:37:51.880 --> 00:37:52.260 of Saul, 00:37:52.320 --> 00:37:52.960 that's certainly 00:37:52.960 --> 00:37:54.000 David's enemy. 00:37:56.480 --> 00:37:58.560 So where do we find 00:37:58.560 --> 00:37:59.040 the clue 00:37:59.040 --> 00:38:00.380 to this fuller identity 00:38:00.380 --> 00:38:02.040 of who these enemies are? 00:38:02.720 --> 00:38:03.580 God's enemies? 00:38:03.760 --> 00:38:04.480 David's enemies? 00:38:05.580 --> 00:38:05.760 Well, 00:38:05.780 --> 00:38:06.360 we find it 00:38:06.360 --> 00:38:07.320 in contrasting 00:38:07.320 --> 00:38:09.920 verses 6 and 41. 00:38:11.440 --> 00:38:12.440 Verse 6, 00:38:12.580 --> 00:38:13.100 we read, 00:38:13.099 --> 00:38:14.559 in my distress 00:38:14.559 --> 00:38:16.239 I called to the Lord. 00:38:16.539 --> 00:38:17.940 I cried to my God 00:38:17.940 --> 00:38:18.539 for help 00:38:18.539 --> 00:38:20.460 from his temple. 00:38:20.599 --> 00:38:21.679 He heard my voice. 00:38:21.779 --> 00:38:22.940 My cry came before him 00:38:22.940 --> 00:38:24.400 and he comes to save. 00:38:25.480 --> 00:38:25.659 Now, 00:38:25.739 --> 00:38:26.819 with that precise language 00:38:26.819 --> 00:38:27.339 in mind, 00:38:27.420 --> 00:38:28.639 look at verse 41 00:38:28.639 --> 00:38:31.299 as David's dealing 00:38:31.299 --> 00:38:32.239 with the enemies. 00:38:33.319 --> 00:38:34.839 They cried for help. 00:38:35.599 --> 00:38:36.719 There was no one 00:38:36.719 --> 00:38:38.000 to save them. 00:38:38.880 --> 00:38:39.839 To the Lord, 00:38:40.480 --> 00:38:42.139 he didn't answer. 00:38:43.099 --> 00:38:44.139 Well, 00:38:44.179 --> 00:38:44.920 we might find 00:38:44.920 --> 00:38:45.719 this contrast 00:38:45.719 --> 00:38:47.559 between verses 6 and 41 00:38:47.559 --> 00:38:48.839 uncomfortable 00:38:48.839 --> 00:38:50.719 for more than one reason. 00:38:51.799 --> 00:38:52.839 Aren't we supposed 00:38:52.839 --> 00:38:53.920 to love our enemies? 00:38:55.039 --> 00:38:56.980 Can one cry to God 00:38:56.980 --> 00:38:58.299 and not be heard? 00:38:59.460 --> 00:39:00.039 And so we need 00:39:00.039 --> 00:39:01.059 to think about this. 00:39:01.920 --> 00:39:02.940 It's important then 00:39:02.940 --> 00:39:03.259 to note, 00:39:03.339 --> 00:39:03.500 well, 00:39:03.659 --> 00:39:04.619 three quick things. 00:39:06.159 --> 00:39:07.059 First of all, 00:39:07.139 --> 00:39:08.179 this isn't personal. 00:39:08.920 --> 00:39:09.759 This isn't about 00:39:09.759 --> 00:39:11.199 David's spat 00:39:11.199 --> 00:39:12.940 with neighboring monarchs 00:39:12.940 --> 00:39:13.840 or his being 00:39:13.840 --> 00:39:14.960 an imperialist 00:39:14.960 --> 00:39:17.220 or settling old scores 00:39:17.220 --> 00:39:19.280 with old enemies 00:39:19.280 --> 00:39:20.440 when he was on the run. 00:39:21.599 --> 00:39:23.220 It's David 00:39:23.220 --> 00:39:25.000 as the Lord's king 00:39:25.000 --> 00:39:27.420 dealing with the Lord's enemies. 00:39:28.200 --> 00:39:29.059 Second thing, 00:39:29.760 --> 00:39:31.240 we're not David. 00:39:31.760 --> 00:39:32.500 You're not David. 00:39:32.559 --> 00:39:32.720 Well, 00:39:32.780 --> 00:39:33.599 I'm not David 00:39:33.599 --> 00:39:34.559 in this sense. 00:39:35.340 --> 00:39:36.579 None of us are this. 00:39:37.179 --> 00:39:37.639 We had a lot. 00:39:37.820 --> 00:39:39.079 We had four Davids 00:39:39.079 --> 00:39:40.460 in one pew this morning. 00:39:40.460 --> 00:39:42.900 But we're not David. 00:39:45.099 --> 00:39:46.760 You haven't been placed 00:39:46.760 --> 00:39:47.559 at the head 00:39:47.559 --> 00:39:48.639 of Israel's armies. 00:39:50.079 --> 00:39:51.079 And the third 00:39:51.079 --> 00:39:52.240 quick thing to note, 00:39:52.360 --> 00:39:54.000 we do have enemies. 00:39:54.740 --> 00:39:55.400 And I'll say 00:39:55.400 --> 00:39:56.400 a little bit more 00:39:56.400 --> 00:39:56.940 about that 00:39:56.940 --> 00:39:58.159 in just a moment. 00:39:58.800 --> 00:40:00.380 So this is David's position 00:40:00.380 --> 00:40:01.099 in the psalm, 00:40:01.240 --> 00:40:01.480 however. 00:40:01.800 --> 00:40:02.679 His enemies 00:40:02.679 --> 00:40:04.300 are the enemies of God. 00:40:04.880 --> 00:40:06.199 And hating what God 00:40:06.199 --> 00:40:07.920 hates in the Old Testament 00:40:07.920 --> 00:40:09.019 is the counterpart 00:40:09.019 --> 00:40:11.440 of loving what God loves. 00:40:11.480 --> 00:40:12.400 Or as we sang 00:40:12.400 --> 00:40:13.019 in the song 00:40:13.019 --> 00:40:14.460 just before the sermon, 00:40:15.079 --> 00:40:17.099 what breaks God's heart 00:40:17.099 --> 00:40:19.340 breaks our hearts. 00:40:20.920 --> 00:40:22.360 And so we begin to see, 00:40:22.480 --> 00:40:22.740 I think, 00:40:22.780 --> 00:40:23.920 in reflecting on things 00:40:23.920 --> 00:40:24.539 this way, 00:40:24.659 --> 00:40:25.900 what Psalm 18 00:40:25.900 --> 00:40:27.300 is telling us here. 00:40:28.440 --> 00:40:29.960 That the Holy God 00:40:29.960 --> 00:40:31.940 is a God of justice. 00:40:32.440 --> 00:40:33.519 And it is right, 00:40:33.599 --> 00:40:34.940 we would want it to be right, 00:40:34.940 --> 00:40:37.920 that this God visits justice 00:40:37.920 --> 00:40:39.159 on oppression 00:40:39.159 --> 00:40:40.519 and injustice. 00:40:41.840 --> 00:40:43.039 That this God 00:40:43.039 --> 00:40:43.760 should consume 00:40:43.760 --> 00:40:44.700 his enemies. 00:40:45.619 --> 00:40:46.300 It's a truth 00:40:46.300 --> 00:40:47.500 that Jesus teaches 00:40:47.500 --> 00:40:48.320 in his parables 00:40:48.320 --> 00:40:49.099 as we've seen 00:40:49.099 --> 00:40:50.099 from Luke. 00:40:52.220 --> 00:40:53.320 And this is the point 00:40:53.320 --> 00:40:53.880 at which I think 00:40:53.880 --> 00:40:54.720 it's helpful to think 00:40:54.720 --> 00:40:55.880 about our enemy. 00:40:56.300 --> 00:40:57.260 Our enemy. 00:40:58.340 --> 00:40:59.500 Our enemy is, 00:41:00.200 --> 00:41:01.579 we become God's enemy 00:41:01.579 --> 00:41:02.340 when our sin 00:41:02.340 --> 00:41:03.880 separates us from him. 00:41:05.639 --> 00:41:06.539 And Isaiah 00:41:06.539 --> 00:41:08.119 spelt this out 00:41:08.119 --> 00:41:08.980 fairly clearly. 00:41:09.119 --> 00:41:10.440 He affirmed a truth 00:41:10.440 --> 00:41:11.659 and then drew out 00:41:11.659 --> 00:41:12.360 an implication. 00:41:12.579 --> 00:41:13.639 So listen to his words. 00:41:13.760 --> 00:41:15.360 This is Isaiah 59. 00:41:16.380 --> 00:41:17.300 Surely the arm 00:41:17.300 --> 00:41:17.800 of the Lord 00:41:17.800 --> 00:41:19.200 isn't too short to save. 00:41:19.420 --> 00:41:20.340 Of course the arm 00:41:20.340 --> 00:41:20.780 of the Lord 00:41:20.780 --> 00:41:22.280 isn't too short to save. 00:41:22.960 --> 00:41:24.240 Nor is his ear 00:41:24.240 --> 00:41:25.300 too dull to hear. 00:41:25.860 --> 00:41:26.740 Verse 41. 00:41:27.840 --> 00:41:29.059 This God can hear. 00:41:30.400 --> 00:41:31.880 But Isaiah goes on. 00:41:32.400 --> 00:41:33.280 Your iniquities 00:41:33.280 --> 00:41:34.500 have separated you 00:41:34.500 --> 00:41:35.480 from your God. 00:41:35.480 --> 00:41:36.980 Your sins have hidden 00:41:36.980 --> 00:41:38.679 his face from you 00:41:38.679 --> 00:41:40.559 so that he does not hear. 00:41:42.019 --> 00:41:44.199 That's precisely the situation 00:41:44.199 --> 00:41:45.960 of Psalm 18. 00:41:46.539 --> 00:41:47.199 41. 00:41:48.420 --> 00:41:49.559 The holy God 00:41:49.559 --> 00:41:51.199 is a God of justice. 00:41:52.079 --> 00:41:53.400 But it's important too 00:41:53.400 --> 00:41:54.619 then to realize 00:41:54.619 --> 00:41:55.760 that the holy God 00:41:55.760 --> 00:41:57.480 is a God of mercy. 00:41:57.480 --> 00:41:58.039 mercy. 00:41:59.460 --> 00:42:00.480 And rightly received, 00:42:01.300 --> 00:42:02.119 his judgments 00:42:02.119 --> 00:42:03.740 can turn enemies 00:42:03.740 --> 00:42:05.159 into friends. 00:42:07.179 --> 00:42:08.320 C.S. Lewis 00:42:08.320 --> 00:42:11.039 reflected on his time 00:42:11.039 --> 00:42:12.079 as an unbeliever 00:42:12.079 --> 00:42:13.300 in his autobiography 00:42:13.300 --> 00:42:14.440 in these terms. 00:42:14.599 --> 00:42:16.380 It's a slightly difficult sentence 00:42:16.380 --> 00:42:17.920 but it's worth hearing. 00:42:17.920 --> 00:42:20.440 So he's thinking back now 00:42:20.440 --> 00:42:21.059 to the time 00:42:21.059 --> 00:42:22.380 when he 00:42:22.380 --> 00:42:24.260 was an atheist 00:42:24.260 --> 00:42:26.280 and he was an enemy 00:42:26.280 --> 00:42:26.840 of God 00:42:26.840 --> 00:42:28.240 and the things 00:42:28.240 --> 00:42:29.099 that God sowed 00:42:29.099 --> 00:42:29.940 into his life. 00:42:31.539 --> 00:42:32.460 He writes, 00:42:32.460 --> 00:42:34.360 not that I might not 00:42:34.360 --> 00:42:35.199 have learned this 00:42:35.199 --> 00:42:36.900 sooner and more safely 00:42:36.900 --> 00:42:38.679 in ways I shall never 00:42:38.679 --> 00:42:39.400 now know 00:42:39.400 --> 00:42:41.019 without apostasy 00:42:41.019 --> 00:42:42.820 but that 00:42:42.820 --> 00:42:44.760 divine punishments 00:42:44.760 --> 00:42:46.360 are also mercies 00:42:46.360 --> 00:42:48.639 and particular good 00:42:48.639 --> 00:42:49.559 is worked out 00:42:49.559 --> 00:42:50.720 of particular evil 00:42:50.720 --> 00:42:52.860 and the penal blindness 00:42:52.860 --> 00:42:55.480 is made sanative. 00:42:56.240 --> 00:42:57.539 A penitential blindness 00:42:57.539 --> 00:42:58.940 becomes a cure. 00:42:58.940 --> 00:43:02.820 So attending rightly 00:43:02.820 --> 00:43:03.599 to the judgments 00:43:03.599 --> 00:43:04.200 of God 00:43:04.200 --> 00:43:05.800 can realign our lives 00:43:05.800 --> 00:43:06.599 so that we are 00:43:06.599 --> 00:43:07.159 no longer 00:43:07.159 --> 00:43:08.059 God's enemies 00:43:08.059 --> 00:43:09.639 but his friends. 00:43:10.800 --> 00:43:11.860 And for those of us 00:43:11.860 --> 00:43:13.420 conformed to God's character 00:43:13.420 --> 00:43:14.340 then we strive 00:43:14.340 --> 00:43:15.280 to have rightly 00:43:15.280 --> 00:43:16.440 ordered affections 00:43:16.440 --> 00:43:17.220 like David 00:43:17.220 --> 00:43:19.519 to hate those things 00:43:19.519 --> 00:43:20.300 that God hates 00:43:20.300 --> 00:43:21.760 to have our heart breaks 00:43:21.760 --> 00:43:22.440 for the things 00:43:22.440 --> 00:43:24.360 that break God's heart 00:43:24.360 --> 00:43:26.440 to love those things 00:43:26.440 --> 00:43:27.619 that God loves. 00:43:27.619 --> 00:43:29.659 much as James 00:43:29.659 --> 00:43:30.500 put it in 00:43:30.500 --> 00:43:32.199 James chapter 4 00:43:32.199 --> 00:43:33.199 and sums up 00:43:33.199 --> 00:43:34.199 in these words 00:43:34.199 --> 00:43:35.039 in James 4 00:43:35.039 --> 00:43:36.159 don't you know 00:43:36.159 --> 00:43:38.099 friendship with the world 00:43:38.099 --> 00:43:40.039 is enmity with God? 00:43:40.900 --> 00:43:42.059 And so we seek 00:43:42.059 --> 00:43:42.940 as we look at 00:43:42.940 --> 00:43:45.039 David's psalm 00:43:45.039 --> 00:43:46.359 and experience of God 00:43:46.359 --> 00:43:47.400 being conformed 00:43:47.400 --> 00:43:48.500 to the character of God 00:43:48.500 --> 00:43:49.759 also to have 00:43:49.759 --> 00:43:52.119 rightly ordered affections 00:43:52.119 --> 00:43:53.480 to sow 00:43:53.480 --> 00:43:56.099 beyond the Lord's side. 00:43:56.099 --> 00:43:58.659 well it's 00:43:58.659 --> 00:43:59.880 time to draw 00:43:59.880 --> 00:44:01.279 our thoughts together 00:44:01.279 --> 00:44:02.659 we've reflected on 00:44:02.659 --> 00:44:03.819 who is this God 00:44:03.819 --> 00:44:04.500 who saves 00:44:04.500 --> 00:44:05.380 who is this 00:44:05.380 --> 00:44:06.460 David in distress 00:44:06.460 --> 00:44:07.460 and who are 00:44:07.460 --> 00:44:08.559 these enemies 00:44:08.559 --> 00:44:11.319 we see through the psalm 00:44:11.319 --> 00:44:12.799 but we stand back 00:44:12.799 --> 00:44:14.259 to make two observations 00:44:14.259 --> 00:44:15.420 one a little bit longer 00:44:15.420 --> 00:44:17.380 and one very very short. 00:44:17.380 --> 00:44:20.000 the first thing 00:44:20.000 --> 00:44:21.619 I hope you've seen 00:44:21.619 --> 00:44:23.000 and we've reflected 00:44:23.000 --> 00:44:23.820 on it directly 00:44:23.820 --> 00:44:25.099 in some sense 00:44:25.099 --> 00:44:26.200 is the way 00:44:26.200 --> 00:44:26.820 in which 00:44:26.820 --> 00:44:28.420 God and David 00:44:28.420 --> 00:44:29.599 form a partnership 00:44:29.599 --> 00:44:30.880 in this psalm. 00:44:31.360 --> 00:44:31.920 Did you see 00:44:31.920 --> 00:44:33.599 how David's life 00:44:33.599 --> 00:44:34.220 is woven 00:44:34.220 --> 00:44:34.980 into the life 00:44:34.980 --> 00:44:35.460 of God 00:44:35.460 --> 00:44:36.079 and especially 00:44:36.079 --> 00:44:38.260 in that central section 00:44:38.260 --> 00:44:39.619 and the acts 00:44:39.619 --> 00:44:40.240 of God 00:44:40.240 --> 00:44:41.280 and David 00:44:41.280 --> 00:44:43.160 are woven together? 00:44:43.159 --> 00:44:46.379 I think it comes out 00:44:46.379 --> 00:44:46.819 so well 00:44:46.819 --> 00:44:47.299 it comes out 00:44:47.299 --> 00:44:48.739 clearly in many ways 00:44:48.739 --> 00:44:49.399 but just set 00:44:49.399 --> 00:44:50.000 these two 00:44:50.000 --> 00:44:51.420 part verses together 00:44:51.420 --> 00:44:52.279 verse 30 00:44:52.279 --> 00:44:53.399 as for God 00:44:53.399 --> 00:44:55.159 his way is perfect 00:44:55.159 --> 00:44:57.119 verse 32 00:44:57.119 --> 00:44:58.719 it is God 00:44:58.719 --> 00:45:00.599 who makes my way perfect 00:45:00.599 --> 00:45:03.159 God and David 00:45:03.159 --> 00:45:04.099 God acts 00:45:04.099 --> 00:45:05.319 and David acts. 00:45:05.320 --> 00:45:07.519 I think we have 00:45:07.519 --> 00:45:08.400 an understandable 00:45:08.400 --> 00:45:09.240 tendency 00:45:09.240 --> 00:45:09.940 to look at 00:45:09.940 --> 00:45:10.860 some of this 00:45:10.860 --> 00:45:11.680 kind of language 00:45:11.680 --> 00:45:12.320 that we see 00:45:12.320 --> 00:45:13.160 in Psalm 18 00:45:13.160 --> 00:45:14.620 and say 00:45:14.620 --> 00:45:16.039 God calls us 00:45:16.039 --> 00:45:17.320 to do X 00:45:17.320 --> 00:45:20.240 we can't do X 00:45:20.240 --> 00:45:22.460 Jesus did X 00:45:22.460 --> 00:45:23.720 we don't have 00:45:23.720 --> 00:45:24.539 to do X 00:45:24.539 --> 00:45:26.420 it's the good news 00:45:26.420 --> 00:45:27.940 well there's a truth 00:45:27.940 --> 00:45:28.340 there 00:45:28.340 --> 00:45:30.100 but if that's 00:45:30.100 --> 00:45:31.800 all we say 00:45:31.800 --> 00:45:33.220 then the truth 00:45:33.220 --> 00:45:34.000 I'm afraid 00:45:34.000 --> 00:45:35.539 becomes a half truth 00:45:35.539 --> 00:45:38.400 and a less than a truth 00:45:38.400 --> 00:45:39.559 is on its way 00:45:39.559 --> 00:45:40.159 to becoming 00:45:40.159 --> 00:45:41.099 a snare 00:45:41.099 --> 00:45:43.639 I think a better way 00:45:43.639 --> 00:45:44.239 of putting it 00:45:44.239 --> 00:45:45.400 is this way 00:45:45.400 --> 00:45:46.619 with Jonathan Edwards 00:45:46.619 --> 00:45:47.500 now some of you 00:45:47.500 --> 00:45:48.139 will know of 00:45:48.139 --> 00:45:48.780 Jonathan Edwards 00:45:48.780 --> 00:45:49.860 he was the revival 00:45:49.860 --> 00:45:50.860 preacher during 00:45:50.860 --> 00:45:51.679 the New England 00:45:51.679 --> 00:45:52.300 revivals 00:45:52.300 --> 00:45:52.960 in the early 00:45:52.960 --> 00:45:54.099 18th century 00:45:54.099 --> 00:45:54.940 in the early 00:45:54.940 --> 00:45:56.079 1700s 00:45:56.079 --> 00:45:57.579 and he was writing 00:45:57.579 --> 00:45:58.420 about a particular 00:45:58.420 --> 00:45:59.960 theological controversy 00:45:59.960 --> 00:46:00.599 in his day 00:46:00.599 --> 00:46:01.300 and he's writing 00:46:01.300 --> 00:46:02.159 here about 00:46:02.159 --> 00:46:04.079 efficacious grace 00:46:04.079 --> 00:46:07.440 the effective grace 00:46:07.440 --> 00:46:08.339 that God works 00:46:08.339 --> 00:46:09.119 into the lives 00:46:09.119 --> 00:46:09.519 of those 00:46:09.519 --> 00:46:10.420 who turn to him 00:46:10.420 --> 00:46:12.579 and Edwards 00:46:12.579 --> 00:46:13.619 writes this 00:46:13.619 --> 00:46:15.159 I'll use his 00:46:15.159 --> 00:46:16.980 18th century language 00:46:16.980 --> 00:46:20.119 in efficacious grace 00:46:20.119 --> 00:46:21.500 we are not 00:46:21.500 --> 00:46:22.659 merely passive 00:46:22.659 --> 00:46:24.500 nor yet does 00:46:24.500 --> 00:46:26.000 God do some 00:46:26.000 --> 00:46:27.639 and we do the rest 00:46:27.639 --> 00:46:29.460 that God does 00:46:29.460 --> 00:46:30.119 all 00:46:30.119 --> 00:46:31.739 and we 00:46:31.739 --> 00:46:32.879 do all 00:46:32.879 --> 00:46:34.679 God produces 00:46:34.679 --> 00:46:35.299 all 00:46:35.299 --> 00:46:36.719 we act 00:46:36.719 --> 00:46:37.420 all 00:46:37.420 --> 00:46:38.980 for that is what 00:46:38.980 --> 00:46:39.639 he produces 00:46:39.639 --> 00:46:40.639 in other words 00:46:40.639 --> 00:46:41.960 our own acts 00:46:41.960 --> 00:46:44.039 God is the only 00:46:44.039 --> 00:46:46.420 proper author 00:46:46.420 --> 00:46:47.319 and fountain 00:46:47.319 --> 00:46:49.000 we are 00:46:49.000 --> 00:46:49.719 the only 00:46:49.719 --> 00:46:51.099 proper actors 00:46:51.099 --> 00:46:52.659 we are 00:46:52.659 --> 00:46:53.379 in different 00:46:53.379 --> 00:46:54.159 respects 00:46:54.159 --> 00:46:55.679 wholly 00:46:55.679 --> 00:46:56.179 passive 00:46:56.179 --> 00:46:58.179 and wholly 00:46:58.179 --> 00:46:58.679 active 00:46:58.679 --> 00:47:00.579 we are 00:47:00.579 --> 00:47:01.019 in different 00:47:01.019 --> 00:47:01.679 respects 00:47:01.679 --> 00:47:02.819 wholly 00:47:02.819 --> 00:47:03.339 passive 00:47:03.339 --> 00:47:05.179 and wholly 00:47:05.179 --> 00:47:05.819 active 00:47:05.819 --> 00:47:07.619 in the metrics 00:47:07.619 --> 00:47:08.299 of the kingdom 00:47:08.299 --> 00:47:09.139 it's not 00:47:09.139 --> 00:47:10.099 50-50 00:47:10.099 --> 00:47:11.819 in the metrics 00:47:11.819 --> 00:47:12.500 of the kingdom 00:47:12.500 --> 00:47:13.299 it's this 00:47:13.299 --> 00:47:14.699 paradoxical 00:47:14.699 --> 00:47:16.099 100% 00:47:16.099 --> 00:47:16.519 God 00:47:16.519 --> 00:47:18.699 100% 00:47:18.699 --> 00:47:19.000 you 00:47:19.000 --> 00:47:21.519 that's David 00:47:21.519 --> 00:47:22.000 in Psalm 00:47:22.000 --> 00:47:22.379 18 00:47:22.380 --> 00:47:24.200 and as we 00:47:24.200 --> 00:47:24.860 spend time 00:47:24.860 --> 00:47:25.320 with Psalm 00:47:25.320 --> 00:47:25.960 18's 00:47:25.960 --> 00:47:26.280 David 00:47:26.280 --> 00:47:26.840 so we're 00:47:26.840 --> 00:47:27.340 called 00:47:27.340 --> 00:47:28.160 into this 00:47:28.160 --> 00:47:28.840 same kind 00:47:28.840 --> 00:47:29.380 of life 00:47:29.380 --> 00:47:31.240 it's the 00:47:31.240 --> 00:47:32.099 same paradox 00:47:32.099 --> 00:47:32.519 I think 00:47:32.519 --> 00:47:33.019 that Jesus 00:47:33.019 --> 00:47:33.840 invited us 00:47:33.840 --> 00:47:34.099 into 00:47:34.099 --> 00:47:34.440 when he 00:47:34.440 --> 00:47:34.880 reflected 00:47:34.880 --> 00:47:35.300 on the 00:47:35.300 --> 00:47:35.680 teaching 00:47:35.680 --> 00:47:36.400 of the 00:47:36.400 --> 00:47:36.680 true 00:47:36.680 --> 00:47:37.099 vine 00:47:37.099 --> 00:47:39.119 if you 00:47:39.119 --> 00:47:39.800 keep 00:47:39.800 --> 00:47:40.220 my 00:47:40.220 --> 00:47:41.019 commands 00:47:41.019 --> 00:47:42.200 doing 00:47:42.200 --> 00:47:42.660 all 00:47:42.660 --> 00:47:43.980 you 00:47:43.980 --> 00:47:44.260 will 00:47:44.260 --> 00:47:45.160 abide 00:47:45.160 --> 00:47:46.039 in my 00:47:46.039 --> 00:47:46.519 love 00:47:46.519 --> 00:47:47.599 resting 00:47:47.599 --> 00:47:48.300 all 00:47:48.300 --> 00:47:49.680 just as 00:47:49.680 --> 00:47:50.440 I have 00:47:50.440 --> 00:47:50.880 kept 00:47:50.880 --> 00:47:51.920 acting 00:47:51.920 --> 00:47:52.800 my 00:47:52.800 --> 00:47:53.340 father's 00:47:53.340 --> 00:47:53.780 commands 00:47:53.780 --> 00:47:55.000 and 00:47:55.000 --> 00:47:55.840 abide 00:47:55.840 --> 00:47:56.880 resting 00:47:56.880 --> 00:47:58.059 in his 00:47:58.059 --> 00:47:58.500 love 00:47:58.500 --> 00:48:01.079 or just 00:48:01.079 --> 00:48:01.659 one more 00:48:01.659 --> 00:48:02.079 example 00:48:02.079 --> 00:48:02.519 from the 00:48:02.519 --> 00:48:03.079 very end 00:48:03.079 --> 00:48:03.820 almost end 00:48:03.820 --> 00:48:04.039 of the 00:48:04.039 --> 00:48:04.659 New Testament 00:48:04.659 --> 00:48:05.320 the little 00:48:05.320 --> 00:48:06.260 letter of 00:48:06.260 --> 00:48:06.720 Jude 00:48:06.720 --> 00:48:07.740 addresses 00:48:07.740 --> 00:48:08.400 Christians 00:48:08.400 --> 00:48:09.300 in his 00:48:09.300 --> 00:48:09.680 day 00:48:09.680 --> 00:48:10.639 and he 00:48:10.639 --> 00:48:11.139 writes to 00:48:11.139 --> 00:48:11.720 those who 00:48:11.720 --> 00:48:12.420 are loved 00:48:12.420 --> 00:48:13.119 by God 00:48:13.119 --> 00:48:13.680 the father 00:48:13.680 --> 00:48:14.740 and kept 00:48:14.740 --> 00:48:16.380 for Jesus 00:48:16.380 --> 00:48:17.039 Christ 00:48:17.039 --> 00:48:18.099 passive 00:48:18.099 --> 00:48:19.099 kept 00:48:19.099 --> 00:48:20.880 and 00:48:20.880 --> 00:48:21.420 finishes 00:48:21.420 --> 00:48:21.960 the letter 00:48:21.960 --> 00:48:22.679 by addressing 00:48:22.679 --> 00:48:23.380 those same 00:48:23.380 --> 00:48:23.799 people 00:48:23.799 --> 00:48:25.019 and instructing 00:48:25.019 --> 00:48:25.199 them 00:48:25.199 --> 00:48:26.019 keep 00:48:26.019 --> 00:48:27.159 yourselves 00:48:27.159 --> 00:48:28.639 in God's 00:48:28.639 --> 00:48:29.059 love 00:48:29.059 --> 00:48:29.900 as you 00:48:29.900 --> 00:48:30.299 wait for 00:48:30.299 --> 00:48:30.739 the mercy 00:48:30.739 --> 00:48:31.119 of our 00:48:31.119 --> 00:48:31.739 Lord Jesus 00:48:31.739 --> 00:48:32.279 Christ 00:48:32.279 --> 00:48:33.179 to bring 00:48:33.179 --> 00:48:33.639 you to 00:48:33.639 --> 00:48:34.440 eternal 00:48:34.440 --> 00:48:35.000 life 00:48:35.000 --> 00:48:36.619 active 00:48:36.619 --> 00:48:39.400 so God 00:48:39.400 --> 00:48:40.579 does all 00:48:40.579 --> 00:48:42.000 Christ 00:48:42.000 --> 00:48:42.920 has 00:48:42.920 --> 00:48:43.579 one 00:48:43.579 --> 00:48:44.259 all 00:48:44.260 --> 00:48:46.080 and there 00:48:46.080 --> 00:48:46.900 is all 00:48:46.900 --> 00:48:47.580 for us 00:48:47.580 --> 00:48:48.200 to do 00:48:48.200 --> 00:48:50.720 first 00:48:50.720 --> 00:48:51.420 reflection 00:48:51.420 --> 00:48:51.760 as we 00:48:51.760 --> 00:48:52.280 stand back 00:48:52.280 --> 00:48:52.760 the second 00:48:52.760 --> 00:48:53.060 one 00:48:53.060 --> 00:48:53.900 much 00:48:53.900 --> 00:48:54.320 shorter 00:48:54.320 --> 00:48:55.300 where the 00:48:55.300 --> 00:48:56.120 psalm ends 00:48:56.120 --> 00:48:57.500 we end 00:48:57.500 --> 00:48:58.760 I will 00:48:58.760 --> 00:48:59.460 praise you 00:48:59.460 --> 00:49:00.000 among the 00:49:00.000 --> 00:49:00.400 nations 00:49:00.400 --> 00:49:00.960 oh Lord 00:49:00.960 --> 00:49:01.800 I will 00:49:01.800 --> 00:49:02.560 sing praises 00:49:02.560 --> 00:49:02.960 to your 00:49:02.960 --> 00:49:03.320 name 00:49:03.320 --> 00:49:04.900 and as 00:49:04.900 --> 00:49:05.600 our week 00:49:05.600 --> 00:49:06.280 begins 00:49:06.280 --> 00:49:08.040 let's 00:49:08.040 --> 00:49:08.460 begin it 00:49:08.460 --> 00:49:08.860 where the 00:49:08.860 --> 00:49:09.220 psalmist 00:49:09.220 --> 00:49:09.860 begins 00:49:09.860 --> 00:49:12.480 I love 00:49:12.480 --> 00:49:12.760 you 00:49:12.760 --> 00:49:13.820 oh Lord 00:49:13.820 --> 00:49:15.100 my 00:49:15.100 --> 00:49:15.920 strength 00:49:15.920 --> 00:49:18.200 let's 00:49:18.200 --> 00:49:18.500 pray 00:49:18.500 --> 00:49:23.140 and as 00:49:23.140 --> 00:49:23.420 we draw 00:49:23.420 --> 00:49:23.960 our thoughts 00:49:23.960 --> 00:49:24.460 together 00:49:24.460 --> 00:49:25.539 and reflect 00:49:25.539 --> 00:49:26.320 back over 00:49:26.320 --> 00:49:27.180 the psalms 00:49:27.180 --> 00:49:27.519 that it's 00:49:27.519 --> 00:49:27.820 been our 00:49:27.820 --> 00:49:28.460 privilege to 00:49:28.460 --> 00:49:28.680 see 00:49:28.680 --> 00:49:29.160 let's just 00:49:29.160 --> 00:49:29.539 take a 00:49:29.539 --> 00:49:29.920 moment of 00:49:29.920 --> 00:49:30.340 quiet 00:49:30.340 --> 00:49:32.140 let's 00:49:32.140 --> 00:49:32.559 consider 00:49:32.559 --> 00:49:32.960 first 00:49:32.960 --> 00:49:33.300 this 00:49:33.300 --> 00:49:34.000 God 00:49:34.000 --> 00:49:34.200 who 00:49:34.200 --> 00:49:34.500 comes 00:49:34.500 --> 00:49:34.720 to 00:49:34.720 --> 00:49:35.120 save 00:49:35.120 --> 00:49:36.960 we know 00:49:36.960 --> 00:49:37.600 that saving 00:49:37.600 --> 00:49:37.940 God 00:49:37.940 --> 00:49:38.340 let's 00:49:38.340 --> 00:49:38.980 thank him 00:49:38.980 --> 00:49:39.660 and ask 00:49:39.660 --> 00:49:40.019 him to 00:49:40.019 --> 00:49:40.539 show us 00:49:40.539 --> 00:49:40.840 more 00:49:40.840 --> 00:49:41.220 of who 00:49:41.220 --> 00:49:41.460 he 00:49:41.460 --> 00:49:41.840 is 00:49:41.840 --> 00:49:45.900 and 00:49:45.900 --> 00:49:46.320 perhaps 00:49:46.320 --> 00:49:46.620 we 00:49:46.620 --> 00:49:46.880 come 00:49:46.880 --> 00:49:47.260 tonight 00:49:47.260 --> 00:49:47.519 as 00:49:47.519 --> 00:49:47.960 one 00:49:47.960 --> 00:49:48.180 of 00:49:48.180 --> 00:49:48.740 those 00:49:48.740 --> 00:49:48.920 who 00:49:48.920 --> 00:49:49.160 is 00:49:49.160 --> 00:49:49.760 desperate 00:49:49.760 --> 00:49:50.079 and 00:49:50.079 --> 00:49:50.500 needing 00:49:50.500 --> 00:49:50.960 help 00:49:50.960 --> 00:49:54.200 is there 00:49:54.200 --> 00:49:54.640 sin in 00:49:54.640 --> 00:49:55.039 the way 00:49:55.039 --> 00:49:56.039 this is 00:49:56.039 --> 00:49:56.500 the moment 00:49:56.500 --> 00:49:57.019 to say 00:49:57.019 --> 00:49:57.539 Lord 00:49:57.539 --> 00:49:57.860 I'm 00:49:57.860 --> 00:49:58.300 sorry 00:49:58.300 --> 00:50:00.280 I've 00:50:00.280 --> 00:50:00.780 been 00:50:00.780 --> 00:50:01.260 acting 00:50:01.260 --> 00:50:01.559 like 00:50:01.559 --> 00:50:01.720 an 00:50:01.720 --> 00:50:02.019 enemy 00:50:02.019 --> 00:50:04.780 please 00:50:04.780 --> 00:50:05.620 forgive 00:50:05.620 --> 00:50:05.960 me 00:50:05.960 --> 00:50:06.820 so I 00:50:06.820 --> 00:50:07.079 can be 00:50:07.079 --> 00:50:07.300 your 00:50:07.300 --> 00:50:07.700 friend 00:50:07.699 --> 00:50:12.399 Lord 00:50:12.399 --> 00:50:12.579 we 00:50:12.579 --> 00:50:12.839 know 00:50:12.839 --> 00:50:13.259 you 00:50:13.259 --> 00:50:13.399 are 00:50:13.399 --> 00:50:13.539 the 00:50:13.539 --> 00:50:13.719 one 00:50:13.719 --> 00:50:13.899 at 00:50:13.899 --> 00:50:14.239 work 00:50:14.239 --> 00:50:14.500 in 00:50:14.500 --> 00:50:14.679 our 00:50:14.679 --> 00:50:15.159 lives 00:50:15.159 --> 00:50:16.219 to 00:50:16.219 --> 00:50:16.839 accomplish 00:50:16.839 --> 00:50:17.319 your 00:50:17.319 --> 00:50:17.519 good 00:50:17.519 --> 00:50:17.960 pleasure 00:50:17.960 --> 00:50:19.579 so 00:50:19.579 --> 00:50:19.919 grant 00:50:19.919 --> 00:50:20.159 us 00:50:20.159 --> 00:50:20.379 as 00:50:20.379 --> 00:50:20.539 your 00:50:20.539 --> 00:50:20.879 people 00:50:20.879 --> 00:50:21.279 gathered 00:50:21.279 --> 00:50:21.639 here 00:50:21.639 --> 00:50:21.819 in 00:50:21.819 --> 00:50:22.039 this 00:50:22.039 --> 00:50:22.460 place 00:50:22.460 --> 00:50:22.619 in 00:50:22.619 --> 00:50:22.799 this 00:50:22.799 --> 00:50:23.199 part 00:50:23.199 --> 00:50:23.359 of 00:50:23.359 --> 00:50:23.699 Edinburgh 00:50:23.699 --> 00:50:23.960 in 00:50:23.960 --> 00:50:24.139 this 00:50:24.139 --> 00:50:24.619 neighborhood 00:50:24.619 --> 00:50:24.899 and 00:50:24.899 --> 00:50:25.000 in 00:50:25.000 --> 00:50:25.139 the 00:50:25.139 --> 00:50:25.539 neighborhoods 00:50:25.539 --> 00:50:25.859 where 00:50:25.859 --> 00:50:26.059 we 00:50:26.059 --> 00:50:26.359 live 00:50:26.359 --> 00:50:27.219 as 00:50:27.219 --> 00:50:27.399 your 00:50:27.399 --> 00:50:27.799 people 00:50:27.799 --> 00:50:28.500 distributed 00:50:28.500 --> 00:50:31.059 may 00:50:31.059 --> 00:50:31.260 we 00:50:31.260 --> 00:50:31.519 work 00:50:31.519 --> 00:50:31.719 out 00:50:31.719 --> 00:50:31.940 our 00:50:31.940 --> 00:50:32.440 salvation 00:50:32.440 --> 00:50:32.739 with 00:50:32.739 --> 00:50:33.039 fear 00:50:33.039 --> 00:50:33.219 and 00:50:33.219 --> 00:50:33.599 trembling 00:50:33.599 --> 00:50:34.480 and 00:50:34.480 --> 00:50:34.739 lift 00:50:34.739 --> 00:50:35.079 high 00:50:35.079 --> 00:50:35.400 your 00:50:35.400 --> 00:50:35.760 name 00:50:35.760 --> 00:50:36.400 in 00:50:36.400 --> 00:50:36.599 our 00:50:36.599 --> 00:50:37.059 lives 00:50:37.059 --> 00:50:37.579 for 00:50:37.579 --> 00:50:37.760 your 00:50:37.760 --> 00:50:38.099 glory 00:50:38.099 --> 00:50:38.519 sake 00:50:38.519 --> 00:50:38.679 and 00:50:38.679 --> 00:50:38.840 in 00:50:38.840 --> 00:50:39.119 Jesus 00:50:39.119 --> 00:50:39.440 name 00:50:39.440 --> 00:50:39.619 we 00:50:39.619 --> 00:50:39.920 pray 00:50:39.920 --> 00:50:40.860 Amen