Latest / Journey Elgin / Journey Through Scripture- Ps 104, 107, 111-18, 135-6 & 145-50
Transcript
- Phillip Thomas: Hey, it's good to see you today. Welcome to our Journey Through Scripture podcast. My name is Philip Thomas, Pastor of Journey here in Elgin. Hope that ⁓ you are enjoying our walk through Scripture in a chronological order. ⁓ and it and this is difficult to be chronological because things like the Psalms and some of the smaller prophets, ⁓ we're not sure exactly where to put them. ⁓ but it the so sometimes we go with themes, and that's kind of what we're doing today. ⁓ with reading numerous psalms. These are psalms of praise, all of them kind of towards the end ⁓ of Psalms. ⁓ so I encourage you to to read through ⁓ these these Psalms. ⁓ it's very very powerful and I'm just gonna hit on some of the things that jumped out to me as I was reading through these. ⁓ so we're gonna read Psalm 104, 107, then 111 through 118. 135 and 136, and then 145 to 150. Now, the reason that we're putting them here is that we've just had the dedication of the wall, dedication of the temple, all that stuff is going on. So things are starting to get back to normal in Jerusalem. And these there's a time of praise. Nehemiah ⁓ sets up the the Thanksgiving choirs to to sing praise to God. ⁓ remember last time we we ⁓ wrote about the Psalms of ascent, kind of that going up to the temple. ⁓ these are are psalms of praise as well. And and as you read through them, ⁓ it there's just a lot of instruction there and things that we need to be mindful of and how important it is for us to be praising God, to be thanking him, to be recognizing what he has ⁓ done for us in the past, what he is doing now, how he is engaged in in our lives. ⁓ it's just vital for us never to take all of that for granted. ⁓ so you have Psalm 104. ⁓ so many of these Psalms are not ascribed to anyone. ⁓ many of them end with ⁓ Praise the Lord, ⁓ bless the Lord. ⁓ you know, they there's kind of a common theme through them all. Psalm 104 starts off, Bless the Lord, O my soul. O Lord my God, you are very great, you are clothed with honor and majest majesty, who cover yourself with light as with a garment, who stretch out the heavens like a curtain. It's just beautiful imagery of God. I love these and ⁓ the Psalm one hundred o four it just it keeps going, says ⁓ verse fourteen He causes the grass to grow for the cattle, the vegetation for the service of man, that he may bring forth food from the earth, and wine that makes glad the heart of man. oil to make his face shine, and bread which strengthens man's heart. Just just this connection with all of creation and how it works together and how God was responsible for that. He is the great creator. He is the one who has started all of this process and that he is still involved in that process. ⁓ it ends verse ⁓ thirty five May sinners be consumed from the earth and the wicked be no more. Blessed be the Lord blessed the the Lord, O my soul. Praise the Lord. Psalm one ⁓ seven is a thanksgiving for how God has delivered us, delivered us from distress. ⁓ give thanks to the Lord for he is good, his mercy endures forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from the hand of the enemy. Verse eight. ⁓ that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men. And then it verse nine, for he satisfies the longing soul and fills the hungry soul with goodness. one thing I thought about in reading ⁓ this is one of the common things that you hear whenever people are going through difficult time, especially ⁓ when they experience loss of life, things like that, is the question ⁓ how could God allow this to happen? What why is God ⁓ you know, ⁓ allowing this or causing this? And and those are normal responses, and you should never tell someone not to have that response. ⁓ however, I I think we do a disservice to ourselves ⁓ because we don't prepare ourselves for those times of distress by reflecting and recognizing God's presence in our life when we're not in those times of distress. Right? If if the only time that we really focus and think about ⁓ our relationship with God is when that moment of distress comes, our first question is probably going to be, God, why are you allowing this to happen? ⁓ what what God and He's patient with us and He will help work help us work through those questions. ⁓ but God really wants us in those times of distress to be able to run directly to Him as a source of strength and encouragement. ⁓ and rather than asking God, why are you allowing this that we run into the arms of God and that we put our our trust ⁓ solely in him? And and I I love how it says this a couple of times in this very long psalm. ⁓ that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness and for his wonderful works to the children of men. Right? Are we recognizing God's goodness in those times that we're not in distress or in how God has ⁓ walked with us in previous times of distress and are have we remembered his goodness? Are we living in in the ⁓ the reality of his goodness each and every day so that when things when the difficult times come, rather than asking God why this is happening, that we start looking for his goodness. Even in the midst of the distress, because we know that God has been good in the past, we know that he will good be good in the present, and we know that he will be good in the future. ⁓ and this psalm is kind of that reminder of ⁓ look at look at how God has been with us in the past, that he raises us up, that he will show us the way, that he will help us overcome ⁓ our distresses. ⁓ Psalm ⁓ starting in verse twenty-six. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths, their soul melts because of trouble, they reel to and fro and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wit's end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and he brings them out of their distresses, and he calms the storm so that their waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet, so he guides them to their desired haven. ⁓ that men would give thanks to the Lord for his goodness, for his wonderful works to the children of men, let them exalt him also in the assembly of the people and praise him in the company of the elders. And then a very last verse, verse forty-three, whoever is wise will observe these things, and they will understand the loving kindness of the Lord. Right? Re recognizing how God is involved in all areas of our life. at all times of our life, that he is not the cause of the distress, that he is the deliverer of those who are in distress. That is true wisdom. And when we start to observe and to recognize those things, we see his loving kindness ⁓ no matter what our circumstances may be. Psalm 111, the just praising God for his faithfulness and his justice, verse two, Or verse one, I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright and in the congregation. The works of the Lord are great, studied by all who have pleasure in them. His works his work is honorable and glorious, and his righteousness endures forever. ⁓ the works of his hands are verity or truth and justice. All his precepts are sure, they stand steadfast fast forever and ever. and are done in truth and uprightness uprightness. He has sent redemption to his people. He has commanded his covenant forever. Holy and awesome is his name. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, a good understanding that all ⁓ have all those who do his commandments. His praise endures forever. you see that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. ⁓ we've talked about that before in Proverbs. Listen, what What you fear will drive you, what you fear you will you will ultimately follow. ⁓ and so our fear should be in the Lord, ⁓ because He is the one who desires what is good for us, the desires ⁓ for what is best. And so our our the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. ⁓ one thing that just jumped out to me reading through these Psalms is how many times again It talks about the w ⁓ the Lord being true, ⁓ his truth. And that is so important. ⁓ God's God's truth, that that there are things that are right and wrong, that there is truth. And it as we look at the world around us, one thing that is constantly being ⁓ perpetuated now is postmodernism. And I know that's a philosophical term, things like that, but one of the core tenets of postmodernism is that there is no absolute truth. That's why you hear things like my truth, ⁓ like their truth. ⁓ that that's a very dangerous road to go down. ⁓ and when scripture is filled with God being truth, ⁓ we we better make sure that our truth lines up with his truth. ⁓ if it doesn't, then it's not true. It may be what you feel, it may be what you experience, it may be what you believe, it may be what you hope to be true, but if it doesn't line up with the truth found in God, then it is not true. ⁓ yeah, just a little side note. ⁓ Psalm one twelve, blessed is the man who fears the Lord, who delights greatly in his commandments. ⁓ right, ⁓ recognizing that a faith in God ⁓ includes following his commandments, living out the the life that he has called us to live. Psalm one thirteen, praise O servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord, blessed be the name of the Lord from this time forth and forevermore, from the rising of the sun to its going down, the Lord's name is to be praised. ⁓ Psalm one hundred fifteen talks about idols and the futility of idols. I I really like this. Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but to your name give glory, because of your mercy, because of your truth. Are you there's there's a good phrase, because of your truth, not my truth, your truth. Who should the Gentiles say? So where is God? But our God is in heaven. He does whatever he pleases. Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men's hands. They have mouths but do not speak, eyes they have but do not see, they have ears but do not hear, noses but they do not smell, they have hands but do not handle, feet they have, but they do not walk, nor do they mutter through their throat, those who make them make them are like them, so is everyone who trusts in them. What what are our idols? Who who do we put our trust in? Is it of our own making? Or is it coming from God? ⁓ you just just continue to read through Psalm one hundred seventeen. I I love it, it's just so simple and short. Praise the Lord all you den Gentiles, laud him, all you peoples, for his merciful kindness is great towards us, and the truth of God endures forever. ⁓ right? That's specifically calling out the Gentiles, that God loves the Gentiles, and that the truth of God endures forever. ⁓ A verse twenty-one of Psalm one eighteen, I will praise you, for you have answered me, and you have become my salvation. The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone. This was the Lord's doing. It is marvelous in our eyes. This is the day the Lord has made. We will rejoice and be glad in it. ⁓ verse twenty nine, ⁓ give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, his mercy endures forever. ⁓ just Again, continue to read. Psalm one thirty six. So give thanks to the Lord, for he is good. His mercy endures forever. Give thanks to the God of gods, for his mercy endures forever. if you read through all of one thirty six, you're gonna see his mercy endures forever, over and over and over. I know sometimes we ⁓ make fun of some of the praise songs that just repeat themselves over and over and over, and I agree. Sometimes it can get a little ⁓ monotonous, right? But this psalm repeats over and over and over for his mercy endures forever. His mercy endures forever. Psalm one forty five, one generation shall praise your works to another and shall declare your mighty acts. I think that's one of the things that we have fallen down on is each generation ⁓ has become less and less ⁓ pronounced in their celebrating God and what he has done. ⁓ we have forgotten ⁓ God's role in our society, in our culture. We have we have abandoned ⁓ him ⁓ by not proclaiming how he was part of of our society ⁓ and we're seeing the the consequences of that. ⁓ the Lord is gracious and full of compassion, verse eight, ⁓ slow to anger, great in mercy, the Lord is good to all and his tender mercies are over all his works. Psalm one forty six, do not put your trust in princes, nor in a son of man in whom there is no help. His spirit departs, he returns to the earth, and that very day he plans his plans perish. Happy is he who has the God of Jacob for his help, whose hope is in the Lord his God. Amen. Then again you just continue one forty seven, forty eight, forty nine ⁓ are just praising to God, praises to God. ⁓ Psalm one fifty, praise the Lord, praise God in his sanctuary, praise him in his mighty firm firmament, praise him for his mighty acts, praise him according to his excellent greatness, praise him with the sound of the trumpet, praise him with the lute and harp, timbrel and dance, stringed instruments, flutes, prayed him with loud cymbals and clashing cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Hey, that's what a wonderful way to end the book of Psalms there in Psalm one fifty. So then we'll close out Nehemiah chapter thirteen. ⁓ Nehemiah what's happened is Nehemiah has left, gone back to Persia as he said he would, but then ⁓ the king granted him the ability to come back to Jerusalem. So he's kind of going back and forth. ⁓ he ⁓ he Nehemiah has a very strict view, and he he is looking at what Moses ⁓ said and and he is trying to purify the people again. ⁓ chapter thirteen it says on that day they read from the book of Moses and the hearing of the people, and in it was found written that no anamite or Moabite Ammonite or Moabite should ever come to the assembly of God. Then you go down to verse four. Now before this Eliash Eliash Eliash Eliashib. I should have just plowed through that. ⁓ the priest, ⁓ he partnered with ⁓ an Ammonite. ⁓ and this did not make Nehemiah happy. ⁓ so Nehemiah ⁓ basically ⁓ removed that relationship, removed Tobiah from ⁓ from the temple. again, th there were disagreements ⁓ among how this was supposed to be done, but ⁓ Nehemiah recognized that you have to be careful who you partner with because that will influence you. And what he saw is that the people had allowed these partnerships, and then the reason that it made him so angry is you kinda ⁓ you see down ⁓ later, ⁓ verse fifteen, it says, In those days I saw the people of Judah ⁓ treading wine presses on the Sabbath, bringing in sheaves and loading donkeys with wine, grapes, figs. ⁓ I warned them about the day on which they were selling. ⁓ so they had made these relationships with people that they shouldn't have. ⁓ and it's not because God doesn't love those this those people, but you have to guard the faith. And they were allowing other influences to weaken their faith. And so Nehemiah really was very h harsh in kicking people out and and reminding the people. what they're supposed to do. And he he says in verse twenty two, the end of verse twenty two, Remember me, O my God, concerning this also, and spare me according to the greatness of your mercy. So he he's he's wanting to do good, but he knows this is tough. ⁓ the ⁓ as you get to the end of chapter thir ⁓ thirteen, starting in verse twenty-three, talks about the marriages and marri marrying people that don't have the same values. ⁓ and so he in encouraged those to separate. I mean it was it's pretty pretty ⁓ strict ⁓ stuff and ⁓ at the very end the way that he ends his ⁓ book is remember me, O my God, for good. Right. He is trying to do what is good, ⁓ what is right according to God. and we can debate whether what he did was or not. I I think because it's in scripture that this is what God desired. and you know, we as as we try to interpret scriptures, we try to live out our lives, ⁓ we need to keep in mind that it it should be for good. ⁓ that that we are seeking to do good and what is good in God's eyes, not necessarily what is good in society's eyes, because we are at a place, as in Isaiah it says, ⁓ there is the time where there will ⁓ they will call good evil and evil good. We have to make sure we are basing what is good on what is true, and that is what flows from the heart of God. All right. We will wrap up today and encourage you to read the book of Joel. That's about three chapters. So read the book of Joel and then read Isaiah fifty six through fifty nine. So Joel and Isaiah fifty six through fifty nine. We'll see ya on