Please open up your Bibles this morning to the book of Psalms.
Book of Psalms. Treg mentioned last week, I was not here with you, but Treg mentioned that we are
beginning a new series during the summer through the book of Psalms. We'll pick back up
right where we left off in the book of John, Lord willing, in August.
But we're going to spend some time together in the Psalms this summer.
And you may have noticed that we titled this sermon series through the Psalms,
The Anatomy of the Soul. And I'll tell you why. Because you asked.
John Calvin, in his commentary on the Psalms, he says this. He says,
I have been accustomed to call this book, I think not inappropriately, an anatomy of all the parts of the soul.
For there is not an emotion of which anyone can be conscious that is not here represented as in a mirror.
Or rather, the Holy Spirit has here drawn to the life all the griefs, sorrows, fears, doubts, hopes, cares, perplexities.
In short, all the distracting emotions with which the minds of men are wont to be agitated.
In other words, one of the main reasons why I think we tend to be so drawn to the Psalms
is because they are so human. Do you find that to be true as you read through the Psalms?
They are expressive and real. Oftentimes they're raw.
They're asking questions that we ask. They're dealing with struggles that we deal with.
They explore the depths of the human soul,
but they do so in ways that align our soul with the Word of God,
with the truth of God's Word.
And so I would add a second illustration to Calvin's quote here that,
yes, the Psalms are an anatomy of the human soul,
but they are also an alignment of the human soul.
Just as you drive down Highway 17, you might hit a pothole
and you have to get your tires realigned so that everything works properly.
So it is with us as we go through life,
the difficulties, the trials that we walk through.
Oftentimes we need a soul realignment.
And the Psalms help us to do just that.
They probe the depths of our heart
and they point us to the promises of God.
I think we'll see both of those functions here in our passage this morning on full display.
So let's open up now.
We're in Psalm chapter 2 this morning.
Lay your eyes there on God's Word and follow along with me as I read.
Why do the nations rage in the people's plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together
against the Lord and His anointed,
saying,
Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.
He who sits in the heavens laughs.
The Lord holds them in derision.
Then He will speak to them in His wrath and terrify them in His fury,
saying,
As for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.
I will tell of the decree.
The Lord said to me,
You are my son.
Today I have begotten you.
Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage,
and the ends of the earth your possession.
You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.
Now, therefore, O kings, be wise.
Be warned, O rulers of the earth.
Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you perish in the way.
For His wrath is quickly kindled.
Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.
This is the Word of God.
Let's bow once more and ask Him to bless the reading and the preaching of His Word.
Lord, we thank You again for the privilege of opening up this Word,
and now we ask again that You would move powerfully through the preaching of Your Word.
We pray.
In Christ's name.
Amen.
I made a mistake this week.
In preparation for this sermon, I did something that I don't normally do,
and I looked at the news.
And I forced myself to read some of the headlines.
Now, this is a dangerous thing, I know, for a pastor to do,
because I recognize that each one of you here before me in this room,
you all have your own political leanings, your own political opinions.
Some of you share those.
Some of you disagree on those.
And that's okay.
I've made a promise to you before that I will not preach a political sermon from this pulpit.
But this is a political text, but maybe not in the way that you think.
So I offer these observations without any commentary,
without any agreeing, disagreeing, debating, taking sides whatsoever.
I'll just tell you what I saw when I pulled up the news this week.
You do with it what you will.
I saw one former president indicted on over 30 criminal charges.
I saw another current president facing articles of impeachment.
I saw news of fatal shootings just this week in Tennessee and Texas, California, Maryland, and Ohio.
I saw several articles for Pride Month here in the month of June advocating gender-affirming care for trans youth and children.
And I saw pictures of the Pride Progress flag flying front and center over the entrance of the White House of the United States of America.
And all of that, obviously, is just our country here.
I don't know how anybody keeps up with this stuff.
When you zoom out of our mess and you see the mess that's going on throughout the rest of the world,
there are wars here and there.
There are refugees fleeing their countries.
There is corruption and chaos all over the map.
And it's obvious to me, and it should be to you, that the entire world is in a constant state of turmoil and chaos.
How should Christians navigate the chaos of this fallen world?
Hopefully, you're not surprised what I'm going to tell you.
That Christians should not get their worldview primarily from Fox News or CNN or the newspaper or any political television, political radio, any political outlet that you might prefer.
Christians are those who get their view of the world from the Word of God.
Amen?
Amen.
And what a treasure we have in the Word of God that allows us to see from God's own perspective,
God's own view of all of the current events that happen within His own world.
Psalm chapter 2, what we see this morning, Psalm chapter 2 gives us a lens through which to see the world and all the chaos in it from God's own perspective.
And it calls us to understand the political landscape of the world, not in terms of Republican versus Democrat,
not in terms of America versus the rest of the world,
but in terms of the kingdom of this world versus the kingdom of God.
Psalm chapter 2, it shows us that there are ultimately two types of people in the world.
There are those who, by the grace of God, recognize that God is king,
and there are those who think that they are king.
There are those who are in the kingdom of this world raging against the true king,
and there are those who, by the grace of God, are in the kingdom of God resting in the true king.
And the question for us as we read this passage this morning, Psalm chapter 2, is which one are you?
Which one do you act like?
How do we respond to the lordship of King Jesus?
We're going to see this psalm in four parts this morning.
We're going to see the nations rage,
the Lord reigns,
God's people remember,
and all people must respond.
I see you writing, so I'm going to slowly say that again.
I'm not going to lose anybody this morning.
The nations rage,
the Lord reigns,
God's people remember,
all people must respond.
First, we see that the nations rage.
Now look there to verse 1 with me,
Psalm chapter 2, verse 1.
David asks this question,
Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?
The kings of the earth set themselves,
and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and his anointed.
And I want you to take note here, first of all,
before we dive too far in,
the connection between these first two psalms.
Hopefully you can see them both together there in your Bible,
Psalm 1 and Psalm 2.
You're going to hear me say this a lot
as we go through the book of psalms together.
We've got 148 to go,
and so you might hear this again.
It's that we often treat the psalms as a greatest hits album
when really they're more of a concept album.
Do you know the difference?
We often treat them as if they are just individual,
stand-alone, excellent individual works
when really, yes, they stand alone,
but they speak to one another.
They work together.
They play off of each other.
This is one book that communicates one message all throughout.
So we have to take these psalms together.
In Psalms 1 and Psalm 2, taken together,
they serve as an introduction to the entire book of psalms.
Last week you saw that the blessed man,
look up to Psalm 1,
the blessed man walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
but instead he, what?
He meditates on the law of God.
And here in Psalm 2,
we see that the kings of the earth are setting themselves up,
the rulers of the earth are taking counsel together
against the Lord and against His anointed,
literally, the Messiah,
and the nations and the peoples plot in vain.
Literally, the wording here is the exact same.
It says that the people meditate on vanity.
You see the connections there between Psalm 1 and Psalm 2.
You see the contrast that they're drawing out for us.
This is the counsel of the wicked.
This is the counsel that the blessed man will avoid.
And what is the counsel?
What do they say?
Let us burst their bonds apart
and cast away their cords from us.
This is the mantra of wickedness.
This is the national anthem of the kingdom of this world.
Let us burst their bonds apart
and cast away their cords from us.
And it's amazing, isn't it,
when you begin to see the world through this lens,
how united the entire world actually is.
Now, there is a profound unity
in the rebellion of all the nations of the world
against the Lord and His anointed.
195 countries in the world,
over 17,000 individual people,
groups in the world,
over 7.8 billion people in the world,
different cultures,
different tastes,
different preferences.
But despite this incredible diversity,
they are united, David says,
in one thing.
They want God off of His throne.
They are united in rebellion.
Now, you might hear this and say,
well, that's ridiculous.
North Korea and South Korea are not united.
They hate each other.
Russia and Ukraine are not united.
But you're only seeing things on a horizontal level.
Horizontally, they fight and they kill each other.
They wage war against each other
because at the end of the day,
they want to be king and no one else.
But they all agree,
whether they realize it or not,
they don't want God to be king.
And so the common bond
that unites all the nations of the earth
is a vertical, Godward,
spiritual raging and rebelling
against the Lord and His anointed king.
And the word for this is sin.
You can imagine the United Nations
gathering together,
representatives from almost every organized nation
in the world,
planning and plotting,
assembling resources,
developing strategy.
But from God's perspective,
what are they scheming?
Rebellion against the Lord and His anointed.
Do we realize this is how the Lord sees
all the rebellion in the world?
It's not simply horizontal raging as we see it.
It is a vertical, Godward attempt
to break themselves free
of the reign of God.
I wonder if this is how we see
the chaos of the world.
This is how David understood it.
Clearly, David was no doubt calling to mind
all the many times that Solomon
tried to pin him up against the wall
with a spear.
How Absalom, his son,
tried to take away the kingdom.
How the Philistines,
the Moabites,
the Amorites,
the Ammonites,
the Syrians,
they all raged against him,
different countries,
different nations,
different motives.
All of them united
in one pursuit
to dethrone the reign
of God's appointed king.
He saw it not just horizontally
as man against man,
he understood it vertically
as man against God
and his appointed ruler.
And I'm sad to say
that in the past couple thousand years,
I'm not sure much has changed.
The kings,
the rulers,
the presidents,
the people
of all nations,
including ours,
rage against the Lord
and his anointed,
who we know
is King Jesus.
when nations
such as ours
endorse
the type of
sexual insanity
that has been celebrated
all month long,
we have to understand
it's not just rebellion
on a horizontal
man-to-man level.
It's not just
a political issue.
This is an attempt
to break themselves
free
from the law of God.
And when we see it,
like David,
we ask,
why?
Why do the nations
plot in vain?
Here's the answer.
It's because
unless you have been saved
by the grace of God
and made citizens
of his kingdom,
you belong
to another kingdom.
You belong
to the kingdom
of this world.
And the rallying cry
of the kingdom
of this world
is God
will not
rule over me.
This is the essence
of sin.
And we know
that every one
of us
used to be
a part
of this kingdom.
Every single one
of us
used to be a part
of this same
rebellion
against the Lord
and his anointed.
But Christian,
don't you know
that you have been
plucked out
of belonging
to this chaos?
You're here.
You still live
in the middle of it.
You see it every day.
You're interacting
with it.
You're engaging
with it.
But you no longer
belong to it.
If by the grace
of God
you have been saved
through faith
in Jesus Christ,
if by the grace
of God
you bowed the knee
to King Jesus,
do you know
what that means?
It means you no longer
belong
to the kingdom
of this world.
God has
delivered you
from the kingdom
of darkness
and transferred
you now
to the kingdom
of his beloved
son.
You know what this means?
It means now
you no longer
primarily identify
as an American
citizen.
You now identify
as a citizen
of the kingdom
of God
who happens,
just so happens,
to live in this
rebellious place
called America
as an exile
here
waiting
for the true
king.
Your loyalty
is not ultimately
to any political
party,
your loyalty
is not ultimately
to the Republican
party,
is not to the
Democratic party,
your hope
for an end
to the social
raging in our
nation is not
for any human
political candidate
to come and do
what only Christ
can do.
Your identity
and your hope
are entirely
in a coming
king,
in a coming
kingdom.
You realize
you may be
a citizen
of America
for a hundred
years,
max,
if you have
a good long
life,
but if you
are in Christ
you'll be a
citizen of
God's kingdom
for all
of eternity.
Don't you think
that ought to
impact how we
respond to the
chaos around us?
Don't you think
that ought to
impact how we
think and
engage,
how we vote,
how we react,
how we talk
about all the
raging chaos
in our nation?
The nations
rage against
the Lord,
but when we
see the world
from God's
perspective,
we'll see that
all of this
raging is in
vain.
Why?
Because second,
the Lord
reigns.
The Lord
reigns.
Look there
to verse four.
Here we see
God's response
to the rebellion
of the world.
Look what it
says.
He who sits
in heaven
laughs.
He laughs.
The Lord
holds them
in derision.
I had to
look up that
word just to be
sure I knew
exactly what it
meant.
It means it's
a mockery.
It's a joke.
He laughs it
off as if it
is nothing.
For all the
scheming and
fighting and
raging and
rebelling,
for as much as
we tend to
panic and
freak out
when things
seem to fall
apart in our
world, guess
what it does
to God?
Not a thing.
When our
president candidate
doesn't get
elected, when
our stock market
prices crash,
when our nation
seems to rage
into war,
all the
thrashing about
of our world
cannot move
our God
one inch
off of his
throne.
God
what a
stabilizing
truth, isn't
it?
And when we
see all the
rebellion are
all around us,
when we turn on
the news station
and we see the
mess in the
world around us,
how do we
respond?
With panic?
With anger?
With frustration?
Or do we
respond like
those who know
with confidence
that no matter
what happens
here, that
the Lord
reigns?
We believe
that our
God is in
the heavens,
he does all
that he
pleases,
Psalm 115
tells us.
And we
believe that
the earth
is the
Lord's and
the fullness
thereof,
as Psalm
24 tells
us.
And do you
see the
irony here?
Do you
see the
reason why
God laughs
at the
rebellion of
the world?
It doesn't
seem too
funny to
me, but
do you
see the
reason why
God is
laughing?
It's because
if anyone
has anything
at all,
it is because
God, the
King, has
given it to
him.
All life,
all breath,
everything is
from God.
It is God
who appoints
leaders.
It is God
who appoints
presidents.
It is God
who puts any
earthly ruler
into place.
Anyone who
has any
authority at
all is
given that
authority by
God.
So how do
you think
God responds
when they
then use
that God
given authority
to rebel
upwards against
him?
When they
use their
God given
brains and
God given
ability to
think, to
think and to
plot up
vanity against
him?
To use their
God given
strength, their
God given
wisdom to
then plot and
to turn the
peoples against
him, to lead
them further
and further
into immorality,
how does he
respond?
He laughs.
It's a joke.
It's like
an angry
baby.
Maybe you
remember these
days.
Changing a
baby's diaper,
a baby's upset
at you,
a baby's kicking
and screaming
and crying,
doing everything
he can to let
you know he's
not happy,
and in his
rage he might
kick that diaper
back up at you,
it hits you in
the hand,
what does it
do to you?
Not a thing.
Maybe if he's
lucky he grabs
a wipe,
flutters down,
gets you a
little bit wet.
At the end
of the day,
for all his
raging,
all of his
tantrum,
all of his
anger,
all of his
tears,
as you continue
to care for
him,
provide for
him,
meet his
needs,
give him
everything that
he needs,
all you
can do
is laugh.
But that
time of
laughing,
we see
there in
verse 5,
it will
not last
forever.
Look how
quickly the
tone changes
here from
verse 4
to verse 5.
Verse 4,
God is
laughing at
their rebellion,
but then
verse 5,
he lets us
know that a
time for
laughing will
soon be
done.
Then he
will speak
to them in
his wrath
and terrify
them in
his fury,
saying,
you can
do whatever
you like,
you can
appoint whatever
leader that
you want.
As for me,
I have set
my king on
Zion,
my holy
hill.
You see,
the kingdom
of God is
not a
democracy,
it's a
theocracy.
God says,
I am the
ruler of
the world,
you don't
get a say
in it,
you can't
vote me
out,
you can
kick and
scream all
you want,
you can
rage and
rebel all
you want,
but my
king is
going right
there on
my holy
hill and
he will
reign forever.
And when
the kings
of this
earth lay
eyes on
him,
then they
will know
that all
of their
raging and
rebelling was
in vain.
I watched
a video of
a Mike
Tyson fight
this week.
Y'all ever
seen this
man fight?
I don't
know why
anyone would
want to get
in the ring
with Mike
Tyson.
He was
fighting Mitch
Green.
Mitch Green
came out
swinging with
both fists,
just running
wild around
the ring,
trying his
best.
And you
can,
if you
slow it
down,
see Mike
Tyson
smile.
He smirks,
dodges beneath
another punch,
dodges beneath
another punch.
He's toying
with them,
laughs.
He can't
catch them.
But then the
moment comes
when Mike
Tyson stops
smiling,
and he
decides he's
going to put
an end to
the fight.
I don't
have to
tell you
how that
fight
ended.
I don't
have to
tell you
how this
fight will
end.
It's not
a fight.
The raging
and the
rebelling of
all the
world,
all the
world is
engaged in
a pointless,
vain,
empty fight
against the
almighty king
of kings,
and when he
decides that
he's had
enough,
he will put
an end to
it.
our
confidence,
Christian,
in the
face of
all the
wild
rebellion
of this
present
age,
is that
no matter
what
happens,
our God
is on
his throne.
And the
day will
come when
he will
return and
will address
every attempt
to dethrone
him.
But what
do we do
as we
wait?
What do
Christians do
as we
wait for
that day?
We do as
David does
here in
verses 7
through 9.
We
remember.
We
remember
the promises
of God.
The nations
rage,
the Lord
reigns,
and third,
God's
people
remember
God's
promises.
Look there
to verse
7.
Where does
David turn
when he's
faced with
the wickedness
of his
day?
He recites
the promises
of God.
He says,
I will tell
of the decree.
the Lord
said to me,
you are
my son.
Today I
have
begotten
you.
Ask of
me and
I will
make the
nations
your
heritage
and the
ends
of the
earth
your
possession.
You
shall
break
them
with a
rod
of
iron
and
dash
them
in
pieces
like a
potter's
vessel.
He's
remembering
the promises
that God
has made
him.
This
decree,
this
covenant
God
had promised
David
in 2
Samuel
chapter 7.
2 Samuel
chapter 7.
That a
king would
come from
his line.
And that
God would
single-handedly
make it so
that he
would establish
the throne
of this
kingdom
forever.
This was
David's
hope.
It was the
hope of all
of Israel.
They were
longing for
this ruling
king and
ultimately
it's all
of our
hope.
This was
a promise
of a
forever
king from
the line
of David
who will
come to
reign and
to rule.
This was
David's
confidence.
This is
what rooted
him when
all the
world around
him was
tossing and
turning and
raging.
And so it
is with
us,
Christian,
the only
way to
persevere
through the
chaos of
this world
is to
cling to
the promises
of God.
And as
David looked
forward with
wonder,
wondering,
believing,
trusting,
but wondering
about these
promises of
God, who
will this
king be?
We look
backwards,
believing and
trusting with
confidence that
all the
promises of
God are
fulfilled in
Jesus Christ,
the son of
David.
Don't you
love living on
this side of
the cross?
With a
finished Bible
in hand that
helps us
understand these
psalms in
light of the
Messiah,
Jesus Christ.
Christ, I
want you to
see two
places in
the book
of Acts.
Two places
where the
apostles, they
show us
Christ in
Psalm chapter
2.
First, Acts
chapter 4, and
then Acts
chapter 13.
Acts chapter
4.
The passage that
was read for us
earlier this
morning, he
says,
The sovereign
Lord who
made the
heaven and
the earth and
the sea and
everything in
them, who
through the
mouth of our
father David,
your servant,
said by the
Holy Spirit,
why did the
nations rage
and the
peoples plot
in vain?
The kings of
the earth set
themselves and
the rulers were
gathered together
against the
Lord and his
anointed.
For truly in
this city,
they were
gathered together
against your
holy servant
Jesus, whom
you appointed,
both Herod and
Pontius Pilate,
along with the
Gentiles and
the peoples of
Israel, to do
whatever your
hand and your
plan had
predestined to
take place.
See, the
apostles read
Psalm 2, and
they understood
that the raging
of the nations
against the
Lord and
against his
Messiah was
most clearly
seen in the
crucifixion of
the king,
Jesus Christ.
They raged
against the
Lord's
anointed.
They fought
against him.
His words
went over
them like
ropes, like
cords, and
they tried and
tried and
tried to
burst themselves
free, and
when they
finally had
enough, they
killed him.
But Acts
chapter 13
tells us that
all of it
was in vain.
All of it
was in vain.
Acts chapter 13,
and though they
found in him
no guilt
worthy of
death, they
asked Pilate to
have him
executed.
and when
they had
carried out
all that
was written
of him,
they took
him down
from the
tree and
laid him
in a
tomb.
But God
raised him
from the
dead.
And for
many days he
appeared to
those who
had come up
with him from
Galilee to
Jerusalem, who
are now witnesses
to the people.
And we bring
you the good
news that what
God promised
to the
fathers, this
he has
fulfilled to
us, their
children, by
raising Jesus.
As also it is
written in the
second psalm,
you are my
son, today I
have begotten
you.
Let's put it
all together
here.
Jesus endured
the raging
of the
nations.
He took
their best
shot, but
all of it
was in
vain.
He rose to
prove that
all of God's
promises are
true in
him.
We read
these promises
in Psalm
chapter 2 in
light of
Jesus Christ.
God decrees
Jesus, you
are my son,
today I have
begotten you.
Adam was the
son of God, but
he failed.
Israel was
called the
son of God, but
they failed.
King Jesus
is the true
and better
Adam.
King Jesus
is the true
and better
Israel.
King Jesus
is the true
and perfect
son of
God.
And in
him, under
his reign, you
and I can be
called sons and
daughters of
God.
That's the
promise to us
in Christ.
God decrees the
nations are the
heritage of
Christ.
The ends of the
earth are his
possession.
All of it is
his.
Jesus has
universal sovereignty
over all the
nations of the
earth.
So where we
see wickedness
in our own
heart, where
we see wickedness
in our own
nation, where
we see wickedness
and rebellion
in any place in
all of creation,
we pray that he
would replace our
rebellion with
his reign.
Church, you
know, this is
why we go to
the uttermost
ends of the
earth to
proclaim the
name of
Jesus.
It's because we
believe all of
it belongs to
him.
All of it is
for him, and
all of it must
be subjected to
his reign.
God decrees
Jesus is the
judge of all.
There is no
doubt as to
how this will
end for those
who rebel against
him, is there?
Like a piece
of pottery
rebelling against
an iron rod,
the judgment
that awaits
the nations
is certain
and it is
imminent.
You shall
break them
with a rod
of iron and
dash them in
pieces like a
potter's vessel.
And so we
pray, we
pray that the
nations would
repent, that
we would
repent, and
that Christ
would return
quickly to
set all
things right.
Church, do
you see how
these promises
align our
souls?
In the midst
of chaos, do
you see how
unlike all of
the many broken
campaign promises
that we hear
every several
years from
politicians, from
men and women
who promise big
things and they
never come
through, the
word of God
has promised
you unshakable
certainty in
the reign and
rule of King
Jesus.
God's promises
are anchors for
us when we're
tossed about in
the wickedness of
this present
evil age.
God's people
remember God's
promises and
finally,
ultimately,
all people must
respond.
all people
must respond
to the
lordship of
Christ.
And this is
what David
calls us to
do here in
verse 10.
Look there
with me.
It's very
clear.
Now, therefore,
in light of all
we've heard, in
light of the
universal reign of
Christ, in
light of the
vanity of your
rebellion,
therefore, O
kings, be
wise, be
warned, O
rulers of the
earth, serve
the Lord with
fear, rejoice
with trembling,
kiss the
sun, lest he
be angry and
you perish in
the way, for
his wrath is
quickly kindled.
So let's close
here with this
call for all of
us to respond.
If you are not
a believer, if
you're part of
the rebellion, if
you do not know
the Lord, if you
have not yet
bowed the knee
to him, then
your response to
the passage like
this is to
repent.
Jesus Christ
alone is owed
all honor and
all respect and
all service and
all submission and
all worship.
And the fact is,
if you will not
honor the
son, then you
will honor
something or
someone else.
We are never
neutral.
we are all
honoring someone.
All of us are
kissing someone.
We're kissing the
son or we're
bowing the knee
honoring someone
else, either to
the creator or to
the creation.
And Jesus will not
stand to let the
honor that is due
to him and him
alone be given to
anyone or anything
else.
Isaiah 42, verse
8, he says,
I am the
Lord, that is
my name.
My glory I give
to no other, nor
my praise to
carved idols.
This is why it
calls us to
serve him with
fear and to
rejoice with
trembling.
It's because all
of us, every one
of us, is prone
to wonder and
prone to give
our honor, to
give our love, to
give our service
to lesser things
when King Jesus
is the one who
demands it all.
But the time is
coming when the
wrath of the
Lord will be
quickly kindled
and that time of
laughing will stop
and the time of
his wrath will
begin.
Now this is,
for all of us,
a sobering
warning.
Do not take
too light a
view of your
sin.
Do not take
too light a
view of his
holiness.
Examine
yourselves this
day.
See if you're
walking in any
unrepentant sin.
Examine yourselves
and see if there's
any corner of
your heart that
remains in
rebellion against
the reign of
the Lord.
Serve him with
fear and rejoice
with trembling.
You know, the
most terrible
force in all the
universe against
a sinner is the
holiness of the
Lord.
But for the
believer, there's
hope.
Not in our
goodness, not in
our strength, not
in our ability, but
in the goodness of
King Jesus.
Listen to me here
because this is the
good news of the
gospel.
We know that God
in all of his
holiness is the
most dangerous
force in all the
universe for any
who rebel against
him, but we
praise God that
God and his
holiness is also
the safest place in
the universe for
all who take
refuge in him.
The good news of
the gospel is that
God himself brings
us into the
blessing of God by
putting all of the
force of his
holiness and power
and his glory in
us and for us
instead of against
us.
Because he has
judged your
rebellion in
Christ on the
cross, there is
no judgment left
for you to bear,
for you who take
refuge in him.
And so we look
forward to the
day of his
return, not with
fear, not with
anxiety, but with
eagerness because
we know by the
grace of God we
could never be more
safe than in the
presence of our
king.
This is where the
psalm ends, isn't
it?
It concludes with
this line of hope
and blessing.
Blessed are all
those who take
refuge in the
king.
Are you taking
refuge in him?
Right now?
There are two
types of people in
the world, church.
There are those
who belong to the
kingdom of this
world and those
who belong to the
kingdom of God.
Those who try to
cast off his
authority and those
who crave it, who
long for it.
There are those who
seek life and
freedom from God
and those who seek
life and peace and
freedom in God
himself.
Those who fear his
coming and those who
say with eagerness,
come Lord Jesus.
Those who rebel
against him and
those who take
refuge in him.
Which one are you?
For the believer,
our response now and
always, the words of
Psalm 46.
God is our refuge and
strength, a very
present help in
trouble.
Therefore, we will
not fear, though the
earth gives way.
Though the mountains
be moved into the
heart of the sea,
though those waters
roar and foam,
though the mountains
tremble at its
swelling, we rest in
the reign of the
king.
Let's pray.
Amen.
God, we thank you
for this unshakable
certainty that despite
the chaos all around
us, Lord, this is our
hope that the Lord
Jesus reigns and rules
over all.
And that if we know
him by faith, if you
brought us into his
kingdom, Lord, we have
nothing to fear.
There's nothing but
goodness and mercy that
follows us all the
day of our life and we
will dwell in the
house of our Lord
forever.
That's our hope.
And we pray that you
would deepen our
trust, deepen our
confidence in the
reign of King Jesus,
we ask in Christ's
name.
Amen.