Well, good morning, everyone.
My name's Dave.
I'm one of the pastors here.
Would you please pray with me as we come to God's word?
Our Father in heaven, we are scared of coming too close to you
because we know that the light of your truth exposes us.
But Lord, I pray that you would convince our hearts this morning
that you are good and that you want good for us.
And so your truth is good for us.
So please open our hearts to hear you through your word this morning.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Amen.
Well, so far in the series, as David introduced this morning,
we've heard that God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit
is complete and secure in himself.
He's perfect in knowledge, in power, love.
And so he alone is worthy of all our worship.
But if we're to know God as he actually is, he needs to reveal himself to us.
And the good news is he has spoken to us.
His words are spoken through people's words recorded in the Bible
so that we can understand him and have life.
And we've heard that this one true and living God alone created the universe
and rules the world.
And so our lives belong to him.
He created us unique to know him personally, to represent him, to be like him,
to be with him.
So if we were created to know God and be like him in his character
and to live for him in joyful worship as his people, as his community,
why is there such a thing called genocide?
Why is there such a thing called domestic violence?
Tax evasion, theft, pornography, adultery, sex, trafficking,
royal commissions into sexual abuse?
Why is there such a thing as breast and prostate cancer,
economic depression, psychological depression,
rage on social media, poverty, homelessness, chronic illness, war,
refugee camps, terror attacks?
Why is there such a thing as bullying, anxiety, gossip,
drought, suicide, bankruptcy, unemployment, discrimination, divorce, funerals?
I could go on.
But I think we sufficiently get the point and we feel miserable enough.
This world has the marks of once being paradise.
But the longer we live in it, experience tells us that wherever we look,
whatever part we look at, everything screams at us,
something is wrong.
Something is seriously wrong.
What is it?
Depending on where you grow up, depending on what culture you live in,
there's going to be a variety of answers to this question.
And they range from evil spiritual forces
through to corrupt social systems,
through to really bad policies, government policies,
through to just individual personality flaws or psychological brokenness.
And some people will even say there's not a problem at all.
It's just the way things is.
The question is, will we listen to the one who made us?
Will you listen to what he says the problem is?
The whole Bible is God's words and actions to fix this problem.
You cannot, you cannot understand a single page of the Bible
if you don't take this problem seriously.
You cannot understand Jesus.
You cannot love Jesus if we ignore it.
And because the whole Bible is God's response to this problem,
we're only going to scratch the surface this morning.
Next week, Rob will focus on God's solution to the problem.
So please make every effort to hear that sermon.
So what does God say the problem is?
Throughout the Bible, both in the Old Testament and in the New Testament,
the most common word used to describe our problem,
as Alex has helpfully described and shown us,
is along the lines of failing to hit the mark.
It's falling short of the standard.
Now, I think we can all easily understand what this means
when it comes to our own standards for ourself.
So instead of me suggesting ways that we fall short,
let me just ask a very simple question.
Are you the person you want to be?
We don't like to dwell on that question too long, do we?
And that's just our own standards.
God has made us to be like him in his character.
Are you the person God wants you to be?
None of us are, not even close.
We have fallen so far short.
And we've fallen short because we refuse to let God be God.
Have a listen to how James Packer describes what this is in his book,
God's Words.
I like his description.
What is the essence of sin?
Playing God.
And as a means to this, refusing to allow the creator to be God so far as you are concerned.
Living not for him but for yourself.
Loving and serving and pleasing yourself without reference to the creator.
Trying to be as far as possible independent of him.
Taking yourself out of his hands.
Holding him at arm's length.
Keeping the reins of life in your own hands.
Acting as if you and your pleasure were the end to which all else, God included,
must be made to function as a means.
That is the attitude in which sin essentially consists.
Playing God.
This can be seen in really obvious ways or it could be really subtle.
This can have huge social implications, consequences.
Or it might have very little effect on those around us.
And when we play God, it can feel like we're succeeding.
We don't even feel bad.
We actually think we're doing what's right.
So even though dodgy behaviour and the damage we do to others in our own conscience,
all these will testify against us very clearly.
The essence of our problem can't be fully measured by these things.
We only see what we're truly like when we look at the perfection of what God is like.
He's got to be our reference point.
So what's seriously wrong with us?
We fall short of being like God because we refuse to let God be God.
And instead we play God.
How serious is this condition?
What's the extent of it?
What's epidemic?
It's universal.
Every person in every culture, every country, throughout all human history,
has fallen short of honouring God because of their refusal to let God be God.
Everyone.
Except one person.
And it isn't me, in case you're wondering.
When our ancestor Adam, the first man on earth,
who walked with God, knowing him and being like him,
and everything in the world was as it should have been,
when Adam chose to start playing God himself by disobeying God,
because he is the head of the human race,
he represented the entire human race.
And so we all feel the consequences of his choice.
It's in the family.
But we also inherit the same attitude from Adam.
That attitude of refusing to let God be God.
And so we too produce the same rotten fruit.
The one unifying factor across all people
is the world's refusal to let God be God.
Our condition is universal.
And within each individual, it's total.
It is spread all over.
Now, this doesn't mean that we're as rotten as we could be.
By God's grace, we're not.
But it does mean that our refusal to let God be God
dominates every aspect,
from our choices
to our ability to think wisely,
and even the desires of our heart.
So if you look at the first verse of Psalm 36,
transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his heart.
The desire to go against God is constantly speaking,
influencing the very core of our being,
the centre from which the rest of our lives flow.
So if you think of a nature reserve,
so Blackbutt Reserve,
when I first moved to Newcastle,
I was so confused by Blackbutt Reserve.
One second I'm driving at night
and there's civilisation all around me.
I take a turn
and suddenly I'm surrounded by bushland.
It's untouched by civilisation.
It's a beautiful spot.
Go for a walk there sometime.
But within the make-up of the human person,
there is no nature reserve.
There's no part of us that hasn't been infiltrated by sin.
Our thinking, verse 4,
he plots trouble while on his bed.
Our choices.
He sets himself in a way that is not good.
Our words and behaviour, verse 3.
The words of his mouth are trouble and lies, deceit.
He has ceased to act wisely and do good.
Transgression speaks to the wicked deep in his or her heart.
There is no nature reserve.
And therefore we are unable to change ourselves.
We are unable to respond to God as we should.
We are unable to do good.
We can do good in terms of being better than others
when we compare ourselves to others.
But in the sight of God,
we can't do good.
Sin is affecting everything.
So where does this leave us?
Where do we stand with God?
We are lifeless towards him.
Even though he created us to know him,
to be like him,
to worship him,
enjoy him forever,
in our fallen Adam-like condition,
we are totally insensitive and apathetic to what God says.
There could be a great amount of religious activity on the outside.
But Jesus called the Pharisees whitewashed tombs.
They were dead on the inside.
No affection,
no sensitivity towards God
as he has revealed himself in his word.
Never tasting the life that is
to be in right relationship with God.
Spiritually lifeless and dead.
We do not know God.
And the end result of refusing to let God be God
is pictured in verse 12.
There the evildoers lie fallen.
They are thrust down,
unable to rise.
Falling short of honouring God
as God will result in God
causing that person
to lie fallen forever.
Our physical death
is a foretaste
of the judgment
that awaits everyone
who remains spiritually
lifeless towards God.
And yet despite this,
there is no fear of God
before their eyes.
no fear of the judge
of all the earth
who will hold us accountable.
I've been watching
a detective show recently
based on real events,
which is a little disturbing.
But the crimes can be horrific.
But there's a difference
between criminals.
There's one type of criminal
who clearly regret
what they did.
And they're afraid of the police.
And so they hide.
They cover up.
They're afraid.
But then there's
just a few who
in the depths
of their evil intent,
they're not even afraid
of the consequences.
verse 1.
There is no fear
of God
before his eyes.
Falling short
of honouring God
because we refuse
to let him be God,
this condition
is universal.
It is total.
It makes us spiritually
lifeless towards God.
We have no fear
of God.
And therefore,
we're destined to receive
what the Lord
is right to give us,
which is death.
death.
It's heavy,
isn't it?
This dark picture
of our condition
is so bleak.
I think it raises
the question,
if it's really this bad,
why doesn't it always
feel this serious?
I think verse 2
gives us the reason.
For he flatters himself
in his own eyes
that his iniquity
cannot be found out
and hated.
We flatter ourselves.
I think we can flatter
ourselves in two different ways
and I'm sure there's more.
First,
we flatter ourselves
by living up to the standards
of our society,
our world,
which just lowers the bar,
changes the bar,
however they see fit.
So a very small example
of this is
there's a trend
at the moment
where it's socially good
to be conscious
about buying things
that are ethically produced.
Now that's excellent.
That's a good trend,
isn't it?
It's brilliant.
But it still falls short.
Jesus says,
life does not consist
in the abundance
of your possessions.
So our society
tries to be ethical
all the while
remaining thoroughly
committed
to materialism.
so long as we measure
ourselves
by society's standards,
we can flatter ourselves
that we are by and large
doing what is right.
I'm a good person.
But we need to remember
that the world
is against God.
We need to take seriously
the warning
in James 4.4
which says,
whoever wishes
to be a friend of the world
makes himself
an enemy of God.
We flatter ourselves
by just comparing ourselves
to the world around us.
The world that wants
nothing to do with God.
And I think we can flatter
ourselves by letting
something other than God
rule our life.
So I use money
to try and demonstrate this.
Money is a big one.
The Bible has a lot
to say about it.
Money can be more
important to us
than God.
It fills our imagination.
And we look to money
to give us all
that God alone
can give us.
Security,
status,
provisions.
And so we let money
rule our lives.
But then if we let money
rule our lives,
we let money
tell us
what's right or wrong.
The love of money
starts telling us
keep it for yourself.
Invest.
God says,
give cheerfully.
Love of money says,
work to spend on yourself.
God says,
work so that you have
plenty to share
with others.
Love of money says,
worry,
you never have enough.
God says,
don't worry,
you have me.
When we allow
the love of money
to rule our lives,
we excuse ourselves
for doing wrong
and for not doing
what's right.
we call greed
being responsible.
And we flatter ourselves
and hide
from God's standards
by letting something else
rule our lives.
So if our condition
is as serious
as God says it is,
how can we treat it
as seriously?
It's only when
we measure ourselves
to the perfection
of God
will we see
how far
we have fallen short.
It is only then
that we can begin
to hate
our condition.
And it's only
when we appreciate
that there is no
nature reserve
in us
that we begin
to look for a solution
outside of ourself,
outside
of our world,
outside of our own efforts.
this is exactly
why
the psalm
changes tone
so drastically
from verse 5 onwards.
Read or listen,
I don't mind.
your steadfast love,
O Lord,
extends to the heavens,
your faithfulness
to the clouds,
your righteousness
is like the mountains
of God,
your judgments
are like the great deep.
Man and beast,
you save,
O Lord.
And listen to what
God wants to give us
instead of what we deserve.
How precious
is your steadfast love,
O God.
The children of mankind
take refuge
in the shadow
of your wings.
They feast
on the abundance
of your house
and you give them
drink from the river
of your delights.
With you
is the fountain
of life.
In your light
do we see light.
There is only one person
who has ever walked
this earth
who is free
of this condition,
who is free
and able to save us.
His name is Jesus.
We'll hear more
about him next week.
Please make sure
you hear it.
God invites you.
In fact,
he tells you,
take refuge in me.
Feast
from my abundance,
my steadfast
love.
Drink
from my delight.
I am
the fountain
of life.
Don't stay
in darkness.
Come
into my light.
Something
is seriously
wrong.
Don't look
inside yourself.
Don't look
to the world
for an answer,
for a remedy.
You will not
find it.
Will you
keep flattering
yourself?
Or will you
come near
to God
as he has
revealed himself
in his word?
even
though
his light
will
increasingly
expose
how far
you have
fallen short.
Will you
come to him
who is the
fountain
of life
and make
this psalm
your words?
How precious
is your
steadfast love,
oh God.
Will you
pray with me?
Let's pray.
Father,
judge of
all the
earth,
nothing is
hidden from
your sight.
We can
fool
ourselves,
we can
fool those
around us,
but you
search our
hearts.
why you
would invite
us to
come to
you for
safety
and life
instead of
making us
life fallen.
We can't
fully say.
All we can
say is how
precious is
your steadfast
love,
oh God.
Continue
your steadfast
love to us,
your people,
who have
taken refuge
in our
Lord Jesus
Christ.
keep
drawing us
individually
and as a
church into
your light.
Not afraid
to let our
sin be exposed
because you
are the
fountain of
life.
And by
your light
we see
light.
In Jesus'
name,
Amen.