WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:15.599 Hi, my name is George Sinclair. I'm the lead pastor of Church of the Messiah. 00:00:15.599 --> 00:00:20.480 ! It is wonderful that you would like to check out some of the sermons done by Church of the Messiah, 00:00:20.480 --> 00:00:25.679 either by myself or some of the others. Listen, just a couple of things. First of all, would you pray for us 00:00:25.679 --> 00:00:32.159 that we will open God's Word well to His glory and for the good of people like yourself? 00:00:32.159 --> 00:00:37.359 The second thing is, if you aren't connected to a church and if you are a Christian, 00:00:37.359 --> 00:00:42.159 we really, I would really like to encourage you to find a good local church where they believe the 00:00:42.159 --> 00:00:48.799 Bible, they preach the gospel, and if you have some trouble finding that, send us an email. We will do 00:00:48.799 --> 00:00:55.120 what we can to help connect you with a good local church wherever you are. And if you're a non-Christian, 00:00:55.119 --> 00:01:00.320 checking us out, we're really, really, really glad you're doing that. Don't hesitate to send us 00:01:00.320 --> 00:01:05.280 questions. It helps me actually to know, as I'm preaching, how to deal with the types of things 00:01:05.280 --> 00:01:17.359 that you're really struggling with. So God bless. Let's pray. May the words of my mouth and the 00:01:17.359 --> 00:01:24.480 meditation of all our hearts be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our strength and our Redeemer. Amen. 00:01:25.519 --> 00:01:26.159 You may be seated. 00:01:26.159 --> 00:01:42.079 So, the musicians mentioned that summer here at Messiah, we're doing the Psalms. So it's a 00:01:42.079 --> 00:01:52.239 different Psalm every week. And today's Psalm 95. And I love Psalm 95. Psalm 95 is unique. It's for a few 00:01:52.239 --> 00:01:58.640 reasons. One reason it's unique is that it's been used in worship by Christians and by Jews for a 00:01:58.640 --> 00:02:05.919 long, long time. So for Christians in the Anglican tradition, this has been part of morning prayer. So 00:02:05.919 --> 00:02:12.319 if you look through a Book of Common Prayer, you'll find this, the Psalm 95, called the Vanity, which in 00:02:12.319 --> 00:02:19.039 Latin just means come. Those Latin titles are just the first word in Latin. So 95 is come, the Vanity. 00:02:19.039 --> 00:02:26.259 And for Jews, many Jews anyway, this is used to bring in the Sabbath. So they would read this Friday 00:02:26.259 --> 00:02:33.500 night. This is a way of kind of ushering in that day of rest. So it's unique in that way. But it's also 00:02:33.500 --> 00:02:41.280 unique in that it's one of three Psalms in the Psalter. There's 150 of them in the Bible. It's one of 00:02:41.280 --> 00:02:49.360 three that has God speaking in the first person. So normally it's a, it's a Psalmist, often David, but some 00:02:49.360 --> 00:02:56.759 other people too. And they're speaking either to God or they're speaking to the community. But three of them, 00:02:57.120 --> 00:03:05.340 and 95 is included in that, has God speaking in the first person. But see, God doesn't speak in the first 00:03:05.340 --> 00:03:12.460 person through the whole thing. God does speak through the whole thing. But there is in the first 00:03:12.460 --> 00:03:21.420 half of the Psalm, the Psalmist speaking. And there is in the second half of the Psalm, the Holy Spirit 00:03:21.420 --> 00:03:27.900 speaking. So there's this clear division that divides the Psalm into two. And you'll notice, I'm just going to 00:03:27.900 --> 00:03:35.560 read through it again. And you will notice a major shift in tone. So that first bit that the Psalmist 00:03:35.560 --> 00:03:42.939 is speaking is all about, come, it's an invitation to worship. The second part is a pretty stern warning. 00:03:44.900 --> 00:03:53.640 Now, the Psalms are the prayer book or the hymn book of the Bible. And nowadays, we don't do that so 00:03:53.639 --> 00:03:59.799 much. We don't have such starkly different tones in our worship songs. Like, generally, you don't have 00:03:59.799 --> 00:04:07.419 exuberant joyful praise combined with a stern warning. But the Bible does that. And the Bible 00:04:07.419 --> 00:04:13.879 holds things together that we often pry apart. The Bible has a way of holding all these different 00:04:13.879 --> 00:04:19.979 things together. But that's what this, that's what this Psalm does. And the big question it asks us, 00:04:19.980 --> 00:04:30.600 the big question Psalm 95 asks us is, what kind of heart do you have when you come to God? 00:04:31.460 --> 00:04:37.540 Another way to say that is, what is your spiritual posture before God? So that's the question. 00:04:38.120 --> 00:04:44.180 So I'm going to read the first half. That's the joyful, exuberant part. And we'll talk a bit about 00:04:44.180 --> 00:04:49.939 that. And then we'll shift to the warning part. So here's the first bit. It goes from verse 1, 00:04:49.980 --> 00:04:56.480 to halfway, half of verse 7. So here it is. Psalm 95, beginning at verse 1. 00:04:57.480 --> 00:05:05.060 O come, let us sing to the Lord. Let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. 00:05:07.460 --> 00:05:14.500 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving. Let us make a joyful, joyful noise to him with songs of 00:05:14.500 --> 00:05:23.420 praise. For the Lord is a great God. Just pause here. If you read the Bible, the Old Testament, 00:05:24.000 --> 00:05:32.160 and you see the word Lord, and it's capital L with lowercase o-r-d, that just means like God or 00:05:32.160 --> 00:05:41.000 master or something like that. It's a general term. If you see Lord with all caps, capital L-O-R-D, 00:05:41.000 --> 00:05:49.160 all capital, that is God's name, which is something like Yahweh. It's the name that God gave Moses at 00:05:49.160 --> 00:05:55.560 the burning bush. So if you ever see, as here, like in verse 3, you see all capitals. That's God's name. 00:05:56.500 --> 00:06:00.579 For Yahweh, or Jehovah is sometimes how that's put in English, is a great God, 00:06:00.579 --> 00:06:08.560 and a great king above all gods. In his hand are the depths of the earth. The heights of the mountains 00:06:08.560 --> 00:06:16.259 are his also. The sea is his, for he made it. His hands formed the dry land. O come, let us worship 00:06:16.259 --> 00:06:24.659 and bow down. Let us kneel before Yahweh, Jehovah, our maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of 00:06:24.660 --> 00:06:34.200 his pasture and the sheep of his hand. That's the first half. Now, just a couple things on worship 00:06:34.200 --> 00:06:44.040 generally. You'll notice in here that there's a lot of action words. There's come, sing, make, a joyful 00:06:44.040 --> 00:06:53.580 noise, give thanks, bow down, kneel. See, biblical worship involves every part of us. It's not just our 00:06:53.579 --> 00:07:02.599 hearts or minds, it's our bodies, okay? It envisions the whole person being engaged in this act of praise 00:07:02.599 --> 00:07:10.599 and thanks to God. Now, we do that regularly. Why do Christians worship regularly? Well, the idea here is 00:07:10.599 --> 00:07:18.759 as we pour all that we are out to God regularly, week after week, it forms a habit, and habits have a way of 00:07:18.759 --> 00:07:27.579 shaping our hearts, forming our hearts. And so the goal in all of this, as we worship and come open-hearted 00:07:27.579 --> 00:07:35.740 to God, week after week, the idea is we form habits of being open and receptive to God. We form inner 00:07:35.740 --> 00:07:43.099 dispositions, okay? Open-hearted to God. That's the goal here. And that's all done, of course, with 00:07:43.100 --> 00:07:48.660 gratitude. So, okay, so that's a little bit about worship. Now, who are we worshiping? Well, we're 00:07:48.660 --> 00:07:58.000 worshiping God and the Lord of, the maker of heaven and earth, the God of Israel, and the Father of 00:07:58.000 --> 00:08:05.500 our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. And God, this God, is described really in three ways in this text. 00:08:05.500 --> 00:08:18.259 So I want to show you that. God is described first as the creator. Look at verse 4. So in, so this is, 00:08:18.379 --> 00:08:27.360 this is God. In God's hands are the depths of the earth. So think like the deepest caves in the world, 00:08:28.060 --> 00:08:34.080 where there's strange little creatures down there, there's darkness, and you can watch interesting 00:08:34.080 --> 00:08:39.520 YouTube videos about people, cavers. I mean, it's terrifying. I would never do it. But cavers who go 00:08:39.520 --> 00:08:47.139 like, like miles into the ground. Anyway, all that, down to the earth's core, is, it belongs to God, 00:08:47.220 --> 00:08:54.900 the creator. So all, all that's kind of beneath our feet right now. And then go high, and all the 00:08:54.900 --> 00:09:00.780 mountains, these great hills, these are all gods too. He formed these. He made them. And the sea, 00:09:00.779 --> 00:09:05.720 including, you know, you want to talk about depth, go beneath the sea, that's all gods. 00:09:06.519 --> 00:09:13.459 And of course, the dry land, which is where we're standing now, thankfully. All his. And so this is 00:09:13.459 --> 00:09:20.980 meant, like any encounter with creation in this way, it's meant to evoke awe. And it's meant to evoke awe, 00:09:20.980 --> 00:09:30.659 but evoking awe in such a way that we think, well, if the created world is this impressive, 00:09:31.060 --> 00:09:37.740 imagine the maker of it all. Right? I mean, if creation is this impressive, imagine how great 00:09:37.740 --> 00:09:43.860 the creator is. And so this is all a way of telling us of the greatness of God. He made it with his word, 00:09:43.860 --> 00:09:51.340 everything. Right? But it does something else. Well, before I tell you what else it does, I want 00:09:51.340 --> 00:09:57.360 to share a story that I shared this morning at eight o'clock, just about the awe of creation. 00:09:58.940 --> 00:10:05.060 When we were in Iqaluit, my family and I, we lived there for seven years in Nunavut, 00:10:05.820 --> 00:10:11.100 the northern lights were unbelievable. Often they were like the aurora borealis. Often they were 00:10:11.100 --> 00:10:17.040 mostly green, but occasionally you would get purples and reds as part of the northern lights. 00:10:17.480 --> 00:10:22.240 And I remember one time, I don't, couldn't tell you what year or whatever, but it was one time in 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:27.720 those years, we, my wife, Jen and I, we were up late and we looked outside and it was a dome, 00:10:28.279 --> 00:10:37.639 a dome of northern lights, reds and purples and greens. And it was astounding. And Ben, our son, 00:10:37.639 --> 00:10:42.039 was probably like six at the time or something, we were like, we gotta wake him up for this. 00:10:42.720 --> 00:10:49.199 So we woke him up and Ben stumbled out of his bed, half asleep, and looked outside at this giant dome 00:10:49.199 --> 00:10:57.340 of light. And his, I remember his comment, he said, is this real? And we said, I think so, yeah, it's real. 00:10:57.340 --> 00:11:04.440 And there was just a sense of awe. And that's what this psalm is trying to evoke in us. 00:11:05.500 --> 00:11:11.899 Awe at the created world. Because if the created world is this wonderful, imagine what God is like. 00:11:12.019 --> 00:11:20.560 That's the idea. Now, so it does that. The greatness of God. It also actually kind of implicitly is warning 00:11:20.559 --> 00:11:29.339 us about the foolishness of idolatry. Because if everything in the created world was made by God, 00:11:29.739 --> 00:11:35.259 it means, even though it's impressive and wonderful, it's less than God. So implicitly, 00:11:35.779 --> 00:11:42.099 this psalm is saying, you can look high and low through all of creation and you will never find 00:11:42.099 --> 00:11:49.500 anything worth worshipping. You will find a lot of things. You will find a lot of impressive things, 00:11:49.500 --> 00:11:55.440 but you will never, never find anything worth worshipping. That belongs to God alone. 00:11:56.860 --> 00:12:04.259 So, God's the creator. God's also the king. The king. Look at this. Verse 3, 95 verse 3. 00:12:05.320 --> 00:12:13.100 For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods. 00:12:13.100 --> 00:12:22.980 The Old Testament talks a lot about God. Our God. The true God. It also talks a little bit about 00:12:22.980 --> 00:12:32.600 gods with a lowercase g. Gods. A little like... And Christians have disagreed whether these lowercase g 00:12:32.600 --> 00:12:41.660 gods have reality. Are they fallen angels that are presenting themselves as gods and misleading people? 00:12:41.659 --> 00:12:47.539 Maybe. Maybe. Yeah. Are they figments of human imagination? Maybe. 00:12:48.959 --> 00:12:57.120 But either way, we can say that lowercase g gods represents anything that human beings are tempted 00:12:57.120 --> 00:13:04.539 to worship. So that includes, like, in the Old Testament, Baal. It includes Greek gods like Zeus. 00:13:04.539 --> 00:13:12.159 It includes, like, modern political ideologies. It includes all kinds of things. Anything that human 00:13:12.159 --> 00:13:18.899 beings are tempted to worship, you can call a small g god. And the point is, God is above all of that. 00:13:19.000 --> 00:13:29.059 Not even in the same realm, ballpark. Not, like, no comparison. And so, again, the greatness of God, 00:13:29.059 --> 00:13:35.219 yes, he's higher than any spiritual power. He's higher than any ideology. He's higher than anything 00:13:35.219 --> 00:13:42.639 that anybody has worshipped. He's greater. But again, it tells us the foolishness of idolatry, 00:13:43.259 --> 00:13:51.399 which is, like, you can explore every religion, every spirituality. You can mine books for the world's 00:13:51.399 --> 00:13:58.719 wisdom. You'll learn a lot of things. But if the true God is not in there, you will not find anything 00:13:58.720 --> 00:14:04.160 worth worshipping. You will find nothing that's worthy of your worship. 00:14:07.940 --> 00:14:13.540 Third way God is described is a bit more surprising here. This is God the shepherd. So, verse 7. 00:14:15.899 --> 00:14:19.680 Well, let me, verse 6 kind of starts it. So let's do that. Verse 6 and 7. 00:14:19.679 --> 00:14:26.879 Oh, come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord, our maker, for he's our God. 00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:36.319 And then listen to this. Listen to who we are. We are the people of his pasture. We are the sheep of his hand. 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:44.180 So, when I talked about the greatness of God over creation and over all our gods, that's kind of, 00:14:44.340 --> 00:14:54.500 it's about how huge and vast and immeasurable God is. This image, God as shepherd, actually is about God, 00:14:54.900 --> 00:14:57.860 God's greatness being in how close he gets to us. 00:14:57.860 --> 00:15:06.659 See, because a large part of God's greatness is not just in how vast and far away he is from us. 00:15:06.879 --> 00:15:18.259 It's that he stoops down and comes near and presents himself as our shepherd. In the ancient world, even now, 00:15:18.259 --> 00:15:26.519 if people think about gods, they think about God distant, far away, remote from human concerns, 00:15:26.860 --> 00:15:35.360 that is not our God. That is not the biblical God at all. Vast? Yes. Powerful? Yes. Huge? Yes. But close. 00:15:36.860 --> 00:15:38.340 Closer than your very breath. 00:15:38.340 --> 00:15:47.980 And so, that is a sign of God's greatness. That he is so great, he is willing to lower himself. 00:15:48.980 --> 00:15:52.820 And we just went through Philippians, right, where it talks about the ultimate act of lowering, 00:15:52.980 --> 00:15:58.280 where Jesus becomes a human being, goes to death on the cross for us. 00:15:59.540 --> 00:16:05.240 That's the God we worship. Great? Yes. Humble? Yes. 00:16:05.240 --> 00:16:14.039 So, there's a greatness, a true greatness in humility. 00:16:15.460 --> 00:16:17.860 But, also the warning about idolatry. 00:16:18.100 --> 00:16:23.659 So, this is an indirect rebuke to any kind of self-worship. 00:16:24.180 --> 00:16:29.379 So, we're sheep. We're not little sovereigns. We're sheep. 00:16:29.379 --> 00:16:34.820 And so, this is saying, you can search inside yourself, you can search your own heart, 00:16:34.919 --> 00:16:37.399 and you will find nothing in there worthy of worship. 00:16:39.000 --> 00:16:40.419 You'll find a lot of things. 00:16:41.080 --> 00:16:43.240 But you won't find anything worthy of worship. 00:16:43.379 --> 00:16:45.939 So, God is the creator, the king, the shepherd. 00:16:46.740 --> 00:16:48.700 All of those speak of his greatness. 00:16:49.320 --> 00:16:52.240 And all of those speak of the foolishness of idolatry. 00:16:53.519 --> 00:16:53.820 Okay? 00:16:54.780 --> 00:16:56.420 That's the first part. It's an invitation. 00:16:56.840 --> 00:16:57.760 Worship. Come. 00:16:58.720 --> 00:17:01.900 With your whole self engaged, and worship this God. 00:17:01.980 --> 00:17:04.460 He wants you here, worshipping. 00:17:04.920 --> 00:17:06.460 And he takes delight in that. 00:17:08.059 --> 00:17:09.700 So, now we're going to shift. 00:17:11.400 --> 00:17:12.299 Now we're going to shift. 00:17:12.460 --> 00:17:13.440 And I'm going to read this, okay? 00:17:13.840 --> 00:17:17.279 So, we're halfway through verse 7, or towards the end of verse 7. 00:17:17.559 --> 00:17:18.519 I'm going to read it to the end. 00:17:19.200 --> 00:17:20.299 And remember what I said at the beginning. 00:17:20.460 --> 00:17:22.299 This is a shift in tone now. 00:17:23.440 --> 00:17:25.319 It's going to be a stern warning. 00:17:26.660 --> 00:17:28.160 It's a shift in voice. 00:17:28.740 --> 00:17:32.279 So, now you're hearing God speak in the first person, the Holy Spirit in the first person. 00:17:34.259 --> 00:17:38.839 And it'll feel a bit abrupt to you, but that's okay. 00:17:39.460 --> 00:17:40.339 So, let's read that. 00:17:40.339 --> 00:17:42.839 So, halfway towards the end of verse 7. 00:17:42.839 --> 00:17:48.919 And today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts. 00:17:50.119 --> 00:17:53.159 As at Meribah, I'll tell you what that is in a minute. 00:17:54.199 --> 00:17:56.639 As on the day at Massa in the wilderness. 00:17:56.980 --> 00:17:58.259 And again, I'll tell you about that. 00:17:58.899 --> 00:18:03.679 When your fathers put me to the test and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work, 00:18:04.559 --> 00:18:07.959 for 40 years I loathed that generation and said, 00:18:08.679 --> 00:18:11.500 they are a people who go astray in their heart. 00:18:11.500 --> 00:18:14.119 And they have not known my ways. 00:18:14.819 --> 00:18:18.599 Therefore, I swore in my wrath they should not enter into my rest. 00:18:20.680 --> 00:18:26.519 Now, how we know this is God speaking, it's not only that you can detect a shift. 00:18:26.640 --> 00:18:29.359 It's that Hebrews, the New Testament book of Hebrews, 00:18:29.500 --> 00:18:31.400 which we don't have a lot of time to get into this morning, 00:18:32.180 --> 00:18:35.420 but if you want to, when you go home, if you're looking for something interesting to read, 00:18:35.859 --> 00:18:40.940 Hebrews 3 and 4, chapter 3 and 4, reference this psalm a lot. 00:18:41.500 --> 00:18:46.519 And Hebrews says, it's the Holy Spirit, starting at the word today, 00:18:46.940 --> 00:18:49.420 the Holy Spirit's saying this now in the first person. 00:18:50.740 --> 00:18:54.920 And this warning about don't harden your heart, 00:18:55.339 --> 00:18:59.579 the example that is used for what not to do, 00:19:00.059 --> 00:19:03.359 is a particular incident in the book of Exodus. 00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:04.980 I'll tell you a little bit about that. 00:19:04.980 --> 00:19:08.319 What they refer to as Meribah and Massah. 00:19:08.519 --> 00:19:10.880 Those words are place names. 00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:14.220 I don't know if it's the same place or two different places, 00:19:14.380 --> 00:19:16.920 but it means like quarreling and testing. 00:19:18.059 --> 00:19:19.059 That's what the words mean. 00:19:19.920 --> 00:19:23.360 So what happens in, it's in Exodus 17, 00:19:24.039 --> 00:19:25.720 which we won't go too deep into now, 00:19:25.759 --> 00:19:26.740 but I'll just tell you what it is, 00:19:26.799 --> 00:19:30.319 because the warning is tied to this particular event. 00:19:30.319 --> 00:19:35.899 So in Exodus 17, Israel's just been released from generations of slavery. 00:19:37.539 --> 00:19:37.899 Wonderful. 00:19:38.220 --> 00:19:41.579 And it was a series of miracles God did to get them out of Egypt. 00:19:42.379 --> 00:19:45.059 You know, the crossing of the Red Sea and the plagues and all that, 00:19:45.139 --> 00:19:46.259 and feeding them with manna. 00:19:46.500 --> 00:19:49.359 I mean, it was just God's provision, 00:19:49.559 --> 00:19:53.879 miraculous provision again and again and again and again. 00:19:53.880 --> 00:19:58.400 But then they face a crisis, their first big one, but not their last. 00:19:58.720 --> 00:19:59.560 There's no water. 00:19:59.680 --> 00:20:01.400 Turns out there's not a lot of water in a desert. 00:20:01.920 --> 00:20:06.080 Well, so they're thirsty and they're cranky, 00:20:06.380 --> 00:20:08.540 and they start to argue with Moses. 00:20:08.780 --> 00:20:11.440 Moses is the leader who's led them out, God's chosen leader. 00:20:12.140 --> 00:20:14.100 And they test God, and they even say, 00:20:14.300 --> 00:20:15.920 is the Lord among us or not? 00:20:15.980 --> 00:20:16.900 Like, is God even here? 00:20:18.420 --> 00:20:20.900 The God who, like, rescued them miraculously, 00:20:20.900 --> 00:20:22.940 and suddenly there's no water, and it's like, 00:20:23.000 --> 00:20:24.900 ah, maybe he's gone, maybe he's... 00:20:25.900 --> 00:20:34.200 And what happened here is there was a hardening of the heart, 00:20:35.759 --> 00:20:36.940 a closing off. 00:20:38.019 --> 00:20:42.380 So God does still, in this incident, God still does provide water, 00:20:43.000 --> 00:20:49.200 but this moment here becomes, like, exhibit A in what not to do. 00:20:49.200 --> 00:20:52.120 The Bible talks a lot about what to believe and what to do. 00:20:52.220 --> 00:20:56.120 It also talks a lot about what not to believe, what not to do. 00:20:56.340 --> 00:20:57.440 This is what not to do. 00:20:57.819 --> 00:21:00.759 And this becomes kind of exhibit A as what not to do. 00:21:01.380 --> 00:21:03.559 And it says they missed God's rest, 00:21:04.340 --> 00:21:07.779 which in that context meant they didn't get to the promised land. 00:21:09.640 --> 00:21:14.920 Let's think a moment about hardening your heart. 00:21:15.100 --> 00:21:17.480 It's kind of an odd phrase, hardening your heart. 00:21:17.480 --> 00:21:21.200 It's not just that you have doubts, 00:21:21.920 --> 00:21:23.440 because we all have doubts. 00:21:24.400 --> 00:21:25.160 How could you not? 00:21:27.559 --> 00:21:31.480 It's willful resistance to God and His will. 00:21:32.420 --> 00:21:35.640 It's willful closing yourself off from God. 00:21:36.460 --> 00:21:39.220 It's a willful decision to not listen. 00:21:39.220 --> 00:21:43.319 See, it's also not just complaining either, 00:21:43.440 --> 00:21:45.039 because if you read through the Psalms, 00:21:45.360 --> 00:21:47.220 there are complaints all over. 00:21:47.339 --> 00:21:49.100 Like, the Psalms are full of complaining. 00:21:50.400 --> 00:21:52.120 They're called lament Psalms. 00:21:53.019 --> 00:21:53.960 Full of those. 00:21:54.360 --> 00:21:57.019 So it's not just that they complained or had doubts. 00:21:57.079 --> 00:21:57.960 That's not the problem. 00:21:57.960 --> 00:22:04.700 It's that they began accusing God in such a way 00:22:04.700 --> 00:22:06.720 that they maligned God's character. 00:22:07.840 --> 00:22:12.380 See, a lament in the Psalms is that you come to God, 00:22:12.640 --> 00:22:15.799 and you ask for deliverance, and you cry out to God, 00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:19.480 but you do that based on His character. 00:22:19.480 --> 00:22:23.180 You do that with a sense of confidence in His character. 00:22:24.120 --> 00:22:26.180 The kind of Meribah and, what's it called? 00:22:26.279 --> 00:22:27.160 Meribah and Massah. 00:22:27.579 --> 00:22:30.059 That kind of complaining is a closing off. 00:22:30.700 --> 00:22:32.019 It's a maligning of God's character. 00:22:32.140 --> 00:22:33.160 It's a rejection of God. 00:22:34.380 --> 00:22:34.759 Okay? 00:22:34.880 --> 00:22:36.500 So what you read in the Psalms about laments, 00:22:36.599 --> 00:22:37.759 that's not rejecting God. 00:22:38.059 --> 00:22:39.079 That's faithfulness. 00:22:39.480 --> 00:22:41.339 There's a faithful way to complain to God. 00:22:41.339 --> 00:22:45.119 And it's consistent with God's character. 00:22:45.439 --> 00:22:46.279 God, deliver me. 00:22:46.879 --> 00:22:48.740 Because you are my God. 00:22:49.619 --> 00:22:50.679 I trust in you. 00:22:51.419 --> 00:22:52.659 Deliver me from my enemies. 00:22:53.179 --> 00:22:53.399 Okay? 00:22:53.899 --> 00:22:55.419 That's a faithful kind of complaining. 00:22:56.179 --> 00:22:57.559 God, are you even here? 00:22:58.939 --> 00:23:01.319 You've rescued us, but you've abandoned us now. 00:23:01.379 --> 00:23:02.240 Like, we're on our own. 00:23:02.439 --> 00:23:03.559 That's not faithful complaining. 00:23:03.740 --> 00:23:03.859 Okay? 00:23:03.919 --> 00:23:04.619 There's a big difference. 00:23:06.019 --> 00:23:07.240 And so, in the Bible, 00:23:08.720 --> 00:23:10.299 the heart is sort of, 00:23:10.299 --> 00:23:11.639 it's not just emotions. 00:23:11.799 --> 00:23:13.379 We think about the heart as mostly emotions. 00:23:13.519 --> 00:23:14.659 But in the Bible, 00:23:15.019 --> 00:23:16.839 the heart involves feeling and thinking. 00:23:17.339 --> 00:23:19.680 And it's the place from which your decisions come. 00:23:20.159 --> 00:23:21.500 It's how you choose. 00:23:21.579 --> 00:23:22.740 You choose out of your heart. 00:23:23.379 --> 00:23:25.779 And actually, your decisions reveal the state of your heart. 00:23:26.799 --> 00:23:28.659 And a hard heart, in this sense, 00:23:28.720 --> 00:23:29.799 as we saw with the Israelites, 00:23:30.039 --> 00:23:32.319 is a heart, or is a person, 00:23:32.440 --> 00:23:34.159 that is resisting God's influence. 00:23:35.619 --> 00:23:36.619 An open heart, 00:23:37.119 --> 00:23:38.099 you may have doubts, 00:23:38.099 --> 00:23:39.319 and you may have all kinds of things, 00:23:39.319 --> 00:23:40.919 but you're open to God's influence. 00:23:41.839 --> 00:23:42.099 Okay? 00:23:42.319 --> 00:23:42.859 See the difference? 00:23:43.819 --> 00:23:44.539 A good, I mean, 00:23:44.619 --> 00:23:46.460 one way to think about this is like, 00:23:46.859 --> 00:23:47.339 concrete. 00:23:47.700 --> 00:23:48.819 When you pour concrete, 00:23:49.059 --> 00:23:50.519 it's soft and pliable, 00:23:50.679 --> 00:23:52.460 and you can shape it and all that. 00:23:53.059 --> 00:23:54.960 That's how you want your heart to be. 00:23:55.179 --> 00:23:55.619 Shapeable. 00:23:56.720 --> 00:23:58.339 If it hardens over time, 00:23:59.240 --> 00:24:00.960 concrete or a heart, 00:24:01.200 --> 00:24:03.279 it becomes a lot harder to soften that, 00:24:03.399 --> 00:24:04.099 and to shape it. 00:24:04.099 --> 00:24:05.559 And so, 00:24:05.639 --> 00:24:06.899 if we get into habits, 00:24:06.899 --> 00:24:09.139 where we close ourself off to God, 00:24:09.359 --> 00:24:10.539 where we shut God out, 00:24:10.819 --> 00:24:13.019 where we resist God's influence, 00:24:13.659 --> 00:24:14.599 like concrete, 00:24:14.740 --> 00:24:15.699 our hearts get harder, 00:24:16.179 --> 00:24:17.299 it becomes a lot harder 00:24:17.299 --> 00:24:18.899 to open ourselves to God. 00:24:19.419 --> 00:24:22.379 And the extreme form of hard-heartedness 00:24:22.379 --> 00:24:23.359 is apostasy. 00:24:24.559 --> 00:24:26.139 Apostasy is a word that means 00:24:26.139 --> 00:24:29.199 you came into contact with the truth, 00:24:29.200 --> 00:24:31.600 and you willfully walked away. 00:24:33.440 --> 00:24:34.440 That's apostasy. 00:24:35.539 --> 00:24:36.779 Different than heresy. 00:24:37.000 --> 00:24:37.340 If you say, 00:24:37.420 --> 00:24:38.440 if you hear the word heresy, 00:24:38.640 --> 00:24:40.460 that means you're trying to teach the truth, 00:24:40.559 --> 00:24:41.120 but you don't. 00:24:41.200 --> 00:24:41.660 You fail, 00:24:41.759 --> 00:24:42.620 you teach falsehood, 00:24:42.799 --> 00:24:44.080 but you're trying to teach the truth. 00:24:45.000 --> 00:24:47.180 Apostasy is when you willfully, 00:24:48.319 --> 00:24:49.980 deliberately make a choice 00:24:49.980 --> 00:24:51.180 to walk away from God 00:24:51.180 --> 00:24:52.519 and to close yourself off to God. 00:24:53.340 --> 00:24:53.840 And so, 00:24:54.059 --> 00:24:56.440 this hardening of the heart 00:24:56.440 --> 00:24:57.440 isn't an overnight thing, 00:24:57.500 --> 00:24:58.440 it happens gradually, 00:24:58.440 --> 00:25:00.340 it comes through habits, 00:25:00.500 --> 00:25:01.240 spiritual habits, 00:25:01.440 --> 00:25:03.980 that are warped and turned from God, 00:25:04.180 --> 00:25:05.480 but it happens. 00:25:06.240 --> 00:25:09.059 And the warning's real. 00:25:13.220 --> 00:25:15.960 See, the warning is more a plea. 00:25:16.420 --> 00:25:16.860 It's like, 00:25:17.019 --> 00:25:18.460 it's the call to worship, 00:25:19.059 --> 00:25:21.400 and then the Holy Spirit coming in and saying, 00:25:22.220 --> 00:25:24.480 I beg of you 00:25:24.480 --> 00:25:27.660 to not shut the Lord out. 00:25:28.440 --> 00:25:29.779 I beg of you. 00:25:32.019 --> 00:25:32.660 Okay. 00:25:32.900 --> 00:25:33.640 Key word here. 00:25:34.779 --> 00:25:35.120 The 00:25:35.120 --> 00:25:37.779 most important word in this, 00:25:38.519 --> 00:25:39.000 probably, 00:25:39.259 --> 00:25:39.460 in this, 00:25:39.799 --> 00:25:40.160 and when I, 00:25:40.340 --> 00:25:40.880 in Hebrews, 00:25:41.160 --> 00:25:41.940 in the New Testament, 00:25:42.500 --> 00:25:43.100 when, 00:25:43.220 --> 00:25:45.180 when Hebrews uses this psalm, 00:25:45.860 --> 00:25:49.200 Hebrews really zeros in on this word, 00:25:49.680 --> 00:25:50.100 today. 00:25:51.720 --> 00:25:52.320 Today, 00:25:52.319 --> 00:25:55.579 if you hear his voice. 00:25:55.899 --> 00:25:56.220 Now, 00:25:56.419 --> 00:25:57.279 why today? 00:25:57.279 --> 00:25:57.599 Well, 00:25:57.720 --> 00:25:57.980 today, 00:25:58.179 --> 00:25:59.679 today is actually the only, 00:25:59.759 --> 00:26:01.119 the only time you're guaranteed. 00:26:03.159 --> 00:26:04.399 Today is all you have. 00:26:05.419 --> 00:26:07.019 The past is gone, 00:26:07.279 --> 00:26:08.639 and you can look back, 00:26:08.779 --> 00:26:09.939 and you can learn from mistakes, 00:26:09.980 --> 00:26:10.559 and you can, 00:26:10.720 --> 00:26:13.939 you can rejoice in God's faithfulness to you. 00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:15.579 The future is, 00:26:15.740 --> 00:26:16.859 has not come yet, 00:26:16.960 --> 00:26:18.000 and it's no guarantee, 00:26:18.000 --> 00:26:20.640 and we have hope in the future, 00:26:20.859 --> 00:26:22.700 because Christ has risen from the dead, 00:26:23.000 --> 00:26:25.720 but we don't know what the future holds for us personally, 00:26:25.980 --> 00:26:27.319 but we do have today. 00:26:27.500 --> 00:26:27.839 In other words, 00:26:27.880 --> 00:26:28.680 we do have now, 00:26:29.240 --> 00:26:33.480 which is the only place we can possibly live, 00:26:33.859 --> 00:26:34.660 which is the only, 00:26:34.720 --> 00:26:36.259 only time we can choose, 00:26:36.339 --> 00:26:39.579 the only context in which we can respond to God. 00:26:39.579 --> 00:26:41.699 So every day is today. 00:26:43.119 --> 00:26:43.919 Every day, 00:26:44.299 --> 00:26:44.899 every moment, 00:26:45.299 --> 00:26:48.079 is a chance to open your heart to God, 00:26:48.699 --> 00:26:50.559 and to respond to his influence. 00:26:51.139 --> 00:26:53.019 Every moment is a chance to do that. 00:26:54.460 --> 00:26:56.000 There's an urgency here. 00:26:56.119 --> 00:26:57.240 Do you hear the urgency? 00:26:57.759 --> 00:27:00.859 Which I think is why Jews and Christians have chosen to, 00:27:00.919 --> 00:27:02.339 to use this in worship, 00:27:02.480 --> 00:27:03.599 and to repeat it often. 00:27:04.039 --> 00:27:04.299 It's, 00:27:04.379 --> 00:27:05.159 it's this urgency, 00:27:05.159 --> 00:27:06.319 and it always applies, 00:27:06.379 --> 00:27:07.500 because it's always today. 00:27:07.500 --> 00:27:09.099 So when you, 00:27:09.160 --> 00:27:09.839 when you're a Christian, 00:27:09.980 --> 00:27:10.759 and morning prayer, 00:27:10.900 --> 00:27:11.319 and today, 00:27:11.500 --> 00:27:11.660 oh, 00:27:11.799 --> 00:27:11.960 okay, 00:27:12.500 --> 00:27:16.039 today's another day I have to choose deliberately to not harden my heart. 00:27:17.140 --> 00:27:18.079 If you're Jewish, 00:27:18.200 --> 00:27:19.299 and you're getting into the Sabbath, 00:27:19.460 --> 00:27:20.180 the day of rest, 00:27:20.920 --> 00:27:21.140 aha, 00:27:21.339 --> 00:27:23.559 today's another chance to not harden my heart, 00:27:23.700 --> 00:27:23.839 to, 00:27:23.880 --> 00:27:24.599 to remain open, 00:27:24.759 --> 00:27:25.200 to remain, 00:27:25.200 --> 00:27:26.059 uh, 00:27:26.059 --> 00:27:26.460 uh, 00:27:26.460 --> 00:27:28.099 supple, 00:27:28.240 --> 00:27:29.839 open to God's influence. 00:27:31.420 --> 00:27:31.900 It, 00:27:31.980 --> 00:27:32.220 uh, 00:27:33.039 --> 00:27:34.019 it means, 00:27:34.200 --> 00:27:34.519 uh, 00:27:34.519 --> 00:27:36.660 that all too human excuse, 00:27:36.660 --> 00:27:38.180 I'll do it later. 00:27:40.000 --> 00:27:41.860 The Bible's got no room for that. 00:27:43.220 --> 00:27:43.700 Today. 00:27:45.080 --> 00:27:45.519 Today. 00:27:48.620 --> 00:27:49.100 So, 00:27:49.320 --> 00:27:50.000 I'll wrap it up here. 00:27:50.000 --> 00:27:50.480 Uh, 00:27:50.640 --> 00:27:50.759 the, 00:27:51.259 --> 00:27:52.980 Psalm 95 talks about rest. 00:27:55.060 --> 00:27:55.500 Initially, 00:27:55.500 --> 00:27:57.360 they would have thought that's the promised land. 00:27:57.500 --> 00:28:01.080 We know rest is beyond this world. 00:28:01.620 --> 00:28:02.100 Why? 00:28:02.099 --> 00:28:03.859 Because Christ has gone through death, 00:28:03.939 --> 00:28:04.679 out the other side, 00:28:04.959 --> 00:28:07.039 and risen to glory at the right hand of God. 00:28:07.399 --> 00:28:07.740 And so, 00:28:07.859 --> 00:28:09.980 rest for us is eternal life with God, 00:28:10.459 --> 00:28:11.099 with Jesus, 00:28:11.259 --> 00:28:11.919 through Jesus. 00:28:12.579 --> 00:28:13.500 It's salvation. 00:28:14.959 --> 00:28:16.619 And Jesus is, 00:28:16.619 --> 00:28:19.539 the one who leads us into that rest. 00:28:21.039 --> 00:28:22.399 Jesus embodies God, 00:28:22.459 --> 00:28:22.959 the creator. 00:28:24.659 --> 00:28:26.219 Jesus embodies God, 00:28:26.299 --> 00:28:26.819 the king. 00:28:26.819 --> 00:28:28.980 Jesus embodies God, 00:28:29.059 --> 00:28:29.439 the shepherd. 00:28:29.599 --> 00:28:31.240 He is God in the flesh. 00:28:32.639 --> 00:28:33.259 And Jesus 00:28:33.259 --> 00:28:35.759 is worthy of worship. 00:28:37.480 --> 00:28:38.079 And so, 00:28:38.159 --> 00:28:39.799 the choice is quite stark. 00:28:40.200 --> 00:28:41.659 Psalm 95 gives us is, 00:28:42.059 --> 00:28:44.119 is you have the option of a coming to God 00:28:44.119 --> 00:28:45.279 in worship and gratitude 00:28:45.279 --> 00:28:46.679 with an open heart. 00:28:48.279 --> 00:28:48.919 And you, 00:28:48.960 --> 00:28:50.019 you do that through 00:28:50.019 --> 00:28:51.399 habitually 00:28:51.399 --> 00:28:53.519 coming to God in that way. 00:28:53.759 --> 00:28:54.899 And it solidifies, 00:28:55.000 --> 00:28:55.500 that's a habit. 00:28:55.500 --> 00:28:55.579 heart. 00:28:56.539 --> 00:28:57.019 Or, 00:28:57.460 --> 00:28:59.519 you can harden your heart 00:28:59.519 --> 00:29:01.200 and you can drift away gradually. 00:29:02.920 --> 00:29:03.759 The choice, 00:29:03.880 --> 00:29:03.960 though, 00:29:04.000 --> 00:29:04.480 is real. 00:29:05.079 --> 00:29:05.079 00:29:05.160 --> 00:29:05.980 and it's, 00:29:06.160 --> 00:29:08.819 the Bible often puts these choices starkly. 00:29:08.900 --> 00:29:10.420 There's two paths you can choose here. 00:29:11.319 --> 00:29:12.700 Do you want the soft-hearted path 00:29:12.700 --> 00:29:14.500 with Jesus? 00:29:15.500 --> 00:29:17.700 Or the hard-hearted path alone? 00:29:18.119 --> 00:29:19.079 Those are the options. 00:29:21.480 --> 00:29:21.940 And, 00:29:22.339 --> 00:29:23.440 the choice, 00:29:23.579 --> 00:29:25.240 the time to make that choice 00:29:25.240 --> 00:29:27.140 is not tomorrow. 00:29:27.420 --> 00:29:28.359 It's not next week. 00:29:29.140 --> 00:29:30.220 It's not even yesterday. 00:29:31.259 --> 00:29:32.019 It's now. 00:29:32.980 --> 00:29:33.400 Today. 00:29:34.400 --> 00:29:34.640 So, 00:29:34.960 --> 00:29:35.259 friends, 00:29:35.779 --> 00:29:36.259 today 00:29:36.259 --> 00:29:38.160 is the day of salvation. 00:29:38.339 --> 00:29:40.099 Today is the time to respond to God 00:29:40.099 --> 00:29:40.839 with an open heart. 00:29:41.700 --> 00:29:42.000 Amen. 00:29:42.000 --> 00:29:42.120 Amen. 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:42.120 00:29:42.120 --> 00:29:44.180 Amen.