Latest / Stornoway Free Church of Scotland - Sermons / The Believer's Benefits (3)
Transcript
- 0:00We're going to begin our worship this evening. We're going to sing to God's praise in Psalm 40 in the Sing Psalms version, page 50 of the psalm books.
- 0:09We're going to sing from verse 1 down to verse 8.
- 0:14The tune is Rockingham.
- 0:16I waited long upon the Lord. He heard my cry and turned to me. He raised me from the slimy pit and from the mire. He pulled me free.
- 0:26We see in this psalm just that wonder of what the Lord does for us, how he is there to help us.
- 0:35And again, this evening we're going to be thinking of that theme of the benefits of God towards us from Psalm 103.
- 0:43But we're going to sing from verse 1 to 8, Psalm 40. We stand to sing to God's praise.
- 0:48I waited long upon the Lord. He had my cry and turned to me.
- 1:08He raised me from the slimy pit and from the mire. He pulled me free.
- 1:28He laid my cry and turned to me. He laid my cry and turned to me.
- 1:58He laid my cry and turned to me. He laid my cry and turned to me.
- 2:28He laid my cry and turned to me. He laid my cry and turned to me.
- 2:31He laid my cry and turned to me. He laid my cry and turned to me.
- 2:49O Lord, our many and our great day are.
- 3:02Your plans for us are far beyond, our power to number or declare.
- 3:20Good day, not us, but God's or bones, beyond us and great fights for sin.
- 3:39But you have opened up my ears, who did not see burnt offering.
- 3:56And I declare, Lord, I have come and threaten of me endless soul.
- 4:15I want to do your well, my God.
- 4:24You're always in my heart and soul.
- 4:35Let's bow our heads in a word of prayer. Let us pray.
- 4:39Amen.
- 4:41Lord, our gracious God, we come to wait upon you anew this evening,
- 4:46thankful for the patience that you give to us and the patience that you show towards us.
- 4:52We thank you that you are a loving and a gracious God,
- 4:56and you are the one who has, for his people, lifted them up out of the miry clay
- 5:02from the slimy pit and put our feet on the rock that is Jesus Christ.
- 5:07And we thank you for the wonder of that salvation.
- 5:11We thank you for the wonder of your grace towards us,
- 5:14that you are a God who remembers us,
- 5:17and that you give us a joyful song of praise to offer up to you.
- 5:22And we pray this evening that as we begin our worship with that song of praise to you,
- 5:28and as we go on praising your name this evening in song,
- 5:31that you would help us to sing the riches of these words that we look at and that we read and that we sing together.
- 5:40Help us to sing with that joy from our hearts,
- 5:44that you are one who has blessed us with so many benefits.
- 5:49You have been gracious towards us, as the psalmist says,
- 5:53our power to number them or declare is beyond us,
- 5:56because there are so many, the wonders that you have done.
- 6:00And we do bless you, Lord, for the wonders.
- 6:03We bless you for the ones that we so often just see as the normality of life,
- 6:10the wonders of life itself,
- 6:12the wonders of what we see and what we feel, what we touch, what we taste.
- 6:18We have so much to give thanks for, whether it's the food on our tables,
- 6:24the water, the fluids that keep us and sustain us,
- 6:29the wonders of health and strength, the air that we breathe.
- 6:33And there's so many things, Lord, that we just take for granted.
- 6:38And we just want to thank you for them.
- 6:41But we want to thank you too, Lord, for the wonders of your grace,
- 6:45the wonders of salvation and the joy that there is in that,
- 6:49the wonder of the world in which we live in,
- 6:52created by you in all its perfect state,
- 6:56how you brought it all into being by the word of your power,
- 7:00how you saw it all as so very good,
- 7:03the day and the night,
- 7:05the animals, the kingdoms, the seas, the skies,
- 7:10all in their enormity.
- 7:12And yet, oh Lord, also wonderful in the work of your hands.
- 7:17And then mankind as you created us in your image.
- 7:21And we see the marvels of that.
- 7:24And yet we know too, as we read your word,
- 7:26that we see the sin that came into the heart of man.
- 7:30We see the sin that spoiled that relationship, that creation.
- 7:35And yet, Lord, you did not give what we deserved.
- 7:38You remembered us with your steadfast love,
- 7:41your covenant love.
- 7:43And even from the fall, when sin came into the world,
- 7:47you have been a God who has been working out that great plan of salvation,
- 7:53shown to us through the sacrifices in the Old Testament,
- 7:57shown through us through the Passover meal,
- 8:00that your people would remember you on a yearly basis
- 8:04and your deliverance of them
- 8:07as you brought them out of Egypt
- 8:09into a land that was so rich and blessed by you.
- 8:13And we thank you that there was that remembrance
- 8:15down through all the generations,
- 8:17but it was always pointing to a greater remembrance
- 8:20when your love would be seen
- 8:23and you're giving your own son, Jesus Christ,
- 8:26who came into this world,
- 8:28who was born into it,
- 8:29who lived the life that we couldn't,
- 8:34who showed his authority in so many different ways,
- 8:38his teaching, his miracles,
- 8:40his authority over all things.
- 8:43And yet we see a world that condemned him
- 8:46and rejected him.
- 8:47And we marvel then at the cross
- 8:49where he came to give his life for his people,
- 8:53where his body was broken and his blood was shed,
- 8:57and where he reminded us
- 8:59that there was a remembrance in this too,
- 9:02that we would do this in remembrance of him,
- 9:04taking the bread and the wine
- 9:06and that sacrifice shown through them,
- 9:10that we would remember what has been done for us
- 9:13at the cross
- 9:14and through the greatness of the resurrection too
- 9:18and all the promises that that gives to your people.
- 9:22And so, Lord, in these remembrances,
- 9:24we thank you that as a people today,
- 9:26it leads us to that time of remembrance
- 9:30in our own congregation,
- 9:32when once again we will gather, God willing,
- 9:35around your word
- 9:36and around the sacrament of the Lord's Supper
- 9:39in just a fortnight's time.
- 9:42And we pray, Lord,
- 9:43that we would see the benefits there for us,
- 9:46that we would see that our sin is forgiven
- 9:50through faith in Christ,
- 9:52and that we would see that we are indeed
- 9:54to do this in remembrance of him.
- 9:57And so may your blessing be over us as a people,
- 10:00as a congregation here,
- 10:02as we prepare our hearts,
- 10:03as we prepared,
- 10:05as ministers prepared to come and minister here,
- 10:09we think of Rory Stott coming,
- 10:11God willing, next Lord's Day,
- 10:13and then over the communion weekend,
- 10:15having Reverend Roddy John Campbell
- 10:17and Reverend David McLeod with us,
- 10:19we do pray that they will minister
- 10:21a word that you are giving them even now,
- 10:24a word for people here to hear
- 10:27and to be encouraged,
- 10:28to be strengthened,
- 10:30to be challenged and rebuked by,
- 10:32that we would come preparing our hearts
- 10:35to be under the gospel
- 10:37and under the wonder of it.
- 10:39And so we ask that you would hear prayers
- 10:41in these days,
- 10:43not just for ourselves as a congregation,
- 10:45but for all our congregations
- 10:47throughout our presbytery here
- 10:49and throughout our land
- 10:50and throughout the world.
- 10:52We thank you for your people,
- 10:54far and wide,
- 10:56and we just ask that your word,
- 10:57as it's proclaimed even this evening hour,
- 11:00that it would be a blessing to many.
- 11:02We thank you too, Lord,
- 11:04for all that we seek to do in your name.
- 11:06We thank you looking back over the last week,
- 11:08how you have kept us,
- 11:10how you have been with us.
- 11:11Thank you for the encouragement of Friday evening
- 11:13as we enjoyed the current evening,
- 11:16raising funds for the work of the camps.
- 11:18And we thank you for all who helped in that,
- 11:21all who were there in attendance,
- 11:23and for the encouragement that we had together,
- 11:26hearing of the work of camps.
- 11:28We pray for the ongoing ministry of them
- 11:31as leaders prepare for them
- 11:34and as campers prepare
- 11:35to hear word of where they might be going.
- 11:39We pray that there will be a real sense
- 11:41of your peace and blessing in it all.
- 11:44We thank you of our own young people
- 11:46who have been away this weekend
- 11:47in Scaladale.
- 11:48We thank you for that trip.
- 11:50We pray that it will be a real time of blessing,
- 11:53not just in these days,
- 11:54but in the days ahead as well,
- 11:56that there will be great fruit from it.
- 11:59We thank you, Lord,
- 12:00for all your goodness to us,
- 12:02for every remembrance that you have towards us
- 12:04as a people,
- 12:06in all our different needs,
- 12:07in our homes,
- 12:08in our families.
- 12:09Those who are unwell,
- 12:11those who are mourning and grieving.
- 12:14And we do pray, Lord,
- 12:15for funerals that have taken place
- 12:17and will take place,
- 12:18God willing,
- 12:19to motto as well,
- 12:20that your comfort,
- 12:22your grace,
- 12:22and your mercy be with us.
- 12:24We do commit ourselves
- 12:25into your hands now, Lord,
- 12:27as we further sing your praise
- 12:29and hear your word, Lord.
- 12:30May you minister to us.
- 12:32May you bless us by it.
- 12:33And may you go before us
- 12:35in the week ahead as well,
- 12:37in all we seek to do
- 12:38in our homes,
- 12:39in our families,
- 12:40in our work lives,
- 12:42in our day-to-day experiences.
- 12:44Lord,
- 12:44may we do all
- 12:45to your glory
- 12:46and knowing your presence with us.
- 12:49So guide us now,
- 12:50go before us,
- 12:51pardon us
- 12:52for all our sins.
- 12:53That's all we ask.
- 12:54We ask in Jesus' name.
- 12:56Amen.
- 13:00We'll again sing to God's praise,
- 13:01this time in Psalm 112
- 13:03in the Scottish Psalter version.
- 13:07Psalm 112.
- 13:09We're going to sing from verse 1
- 13:14to verse 6.
- 13:17You find this on page 392.
- 13:20Psalm 112.
- 13:23Praise ye the Lord,
- 13:24the man is blessed,
- 13:25that fears the Lord aright.
- 13:28He who in his commandments
- 13:30doth greatly take delight.
- 13:32We'll sing from verse 1 to 6,
- 13:35and the tune is Bethesda.
- 13:36We stand to sing.
- 13:38Amen.
- 14:06The man is blessed,
- 14:10the faith which ain't divine.
- 14:16His gene and offspring powerful
- 14:26shall be the heir upon
- 14:34of the upright man.
- 14:40Blessed shall be
- 14:45a gentle invitation.
- 14:54Wrages unwell
- 14:58shall never be
- 15:03within his heart
- 15:08and store
- 15:11of his unspotted
- 15:17and the truth
- 15:18and the truth
- 15:20in his heart.
- 15:22And truth
- 15:24I could be
- 15:25of Christ,
- 15:27though he
- 15:30in love
- 15:31that's
- 15:32a bright light
- 15:33of Christ.
- 15:34voy voy
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55voy
- 15:57!
- 15:55Let us pray.
- 16:16Let us pray.
- 16:18To a first land
- 16:24He with discretion
- 16:30His affairs
- 16:35Will guide
- 16:37Until the end
- 16:42To be there
- 16:46A daily thing
- 16:52That ever shall
- 16:57Emblem
- 17:00The righteous man's
- 17:05Memoria
- 17:09Shall ever
- 17:13As in truth
- 17:17We'll turn together to read God's Word. A slight change to what's on the bulletin. Our first reading will be in the Gospel of Luke, and then our second reading will be in Psalm 103.
- 17:33So we're going to read first of all in the Gospel of Luke chapter 17 and read at verse 11 down to verse 19.
- 17:41You'll find it around page 1056 of the Church Bibles. Luke chapter 17, and we read from verse 11. And here we read this account of Jesus as he cleanses ten lepers.
- 17:58But what we notice is how many actually came back to give thanks to Jesus.
- 18:04On the way to Jerusalem he was passing along between Samaria and Galilee. And as he entered a village he was met by ten lepers who stood at a distance.
- 18:16And he lifted up their voices saying,
- 18:19Jesus, Master, have mercy on us.
- 18:22When he saw them, he said to them,
- 18:26Go and show yourselves to the priests.
- 18:29And as they went, they were cleansed.
- 18:33Then one of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, praising God with a loud voice.
- 18:40And he fell on his face at Jesus' feet, giving him thanks.
- 18:46Now he was a Samaritan.
- 18:48Then Jesus answered,
- 18:51Were not ten cleansed?
- 18:53Where are the nine?
- 18:55Was no one found to return and give praise to God except this foreigner?
- 19:01And he said to him,
- 19:03Rise and go your way.
- 19:06Your faith has made you well.
- 19:10Then we turn to read in the book of Psalms.
- 19:13We're going to read in Psalm 103,
- 19:15Reading from verse 14.
- 19:23Reading from verse 14 down to the end of the psalm.
- 19:26This last section we're going to look at this evening together.
- 19:30But it's always looking back in light of verse 1 and 2.
- 19:35Bless the Lord, it says in verse 1,
- 19:37O my soul, and all that is within me,
- 19:40bless his holy name.
- 19:41Bless the Lord, O my soul,
- 19:43and forget not all his benefits.
- 19:47Forget not all his benefits is the theme that we've been looking at throughout this psalm.
- 19:52We're going to see further the benefits that we read of in verse 14 to 22 this evening.
- 19:58So we take up our reading at verse 14.
- 20:00For he knows our frame.
- 20:03He remembers that we are dust.
- 20:06As for man, his days are like grass.
- 20:09He flourishes like a flower of the field.
- 20:12For the wind passes over it, and it is gone.
- 20:16And its place knows it no more.
- 20:18But the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him,
- 20:26and his righteousness to children's children,
- 20:28to those who keep his covenant and remember to do his commandments.
- 20:33The Lord has established his throne in the heavens,
- 20:37and his kingdom rules over all.
- 20:40Bless the Lord, O you his angels,
- 20:44you mighty ones who do his word,
- 20:47obeying the voice of his word.
- 20:50Bless the Lord, all his hosts,
- 20:52his ministers who do his will.
- 20:55Bless the Lord, all his works,
- 20:58in all places of his dominion.
- 21:01Bless the Lord, O my soul.
- 21:05Amen.
- 21:06And may God bless these readings from his word.
- 21:09Before we turn to look at this passage together,
- 21:14we'll again sing to God's praise in Psalm 139.
- 21:19This is in the Scottish Psalter version.
- 21:24Page 433.
- 21:26The tune is Belmont.
- 21:28We're going to sing from verse 15 down to verse 18.
- 21:33Psalm 139 at verse 15.
- 21:35My substance was not hid from thee,
- 21:38when as in secret eye was made,
- 21:40and in earth's lowest parts was wrought most curiously.
- 21:45We see then, again in verse 17 there,
- 21:49how precious also are thy thoughts.
- 21:51O gracious God to me.
- 21:53And in their sum,
- 21:55how passing great and numberless they be.
- 21:58The precious thoughts of God,
- 22:00they are numberless towards his people.
- 22:03So we're going to sing from verse 15 to 18
- 22:05to God's praise.
- 22:07Please, if you are singing,
- 22:10Please, if you are singing,
- 22:11Please, if you are singing,
- 22:12Please, if you are singing,
- 22:13Please, if you are singing,
- 22:14Please, if you are singing,
- 22:15What's not in the me, where else in secret I?
- 22:29What's made a day, where's low as part?
- 22:38What's not what's curiosity?
- 22:46Thine eyes, my substance, did thee hold,
- 22:55Yet being that we're fed,
- 23:03And in the war you all I knew,
- 23:12My bed worked so on where it,
- 23:20When tafted in continuance,
- 23:29Where passion'd every one,
- 23:37When us be there, all shameless were,
- 23:46And not then there was none.
- 23:54O precious Lord, so are thy thoughts,
- 24:03O precious Lord, to thee,
- 24:11And in their song a passing play,
- 24:20And numberless may be,
- 24:28If I should have that landless hand,
- 24:37A more and number be,
- 24:45What time so ever I know thee,
- 24:54I ever come with thee.
- 25:02We can turn back to our reading in Psalm 103,
- 25:12And we're going to look at the last part of this psalm this evening,
- 25:16Verse 14 down to the end.
- 25:19We read again at verse 14,
- 25:21For he knows our frame,
- 25:23He remembers that we are dust.
- 25:27And so it goes on,
- 25:28But in light of, as I said, what comes in verse 2,
- 25:31Forget not all his benefits.
- 25:34That's been the theme as we've been going through this psalm.
- 25:38Forget not all the benefits,
- 25:39And we've outlined how many benefits that we see,
- 25:42For God's people in this psalm.
- 25:46If you were to come to the Lord every day in prayer,
- 25:49Just come with one thing to give thanks for every day over 10 years.
- 25:54That would be a total of 3,650 things that you've thanked God for over these 10 years.
- 26:02And to some that might sound a lot.
- 26:063,650 things that you've thanked God for.
- 26:11Sounds a lot.
- 26:13And yet it doesn't come close to the number of things that we have to thank God for.
- 26:19We could spend every day in prayer, all day in prayer.
- 26:23And we just cannot get through the number of things that we can give thanks to God for.
- 26:28As the psalmist said there in Psalm 139,
- 26:33If I should count them,
- 26:34Than the sand they more in number be.
- 26:37The things that we have to give thanks to God for,
- 26:40They're more than the grains of sand.
- 26:42And you think to yourself,
- 26:43How many grains of sand on the beaches around our island here?
- 26:46Just how numberless the things of God are.
- 26:50The same in Psalm 40, verse 5, it says,
- 26:53The wonders you have done, O Lord, how many and how great they are.
- 26:57Your plans for us are far beyond our power to number or declare.
- 27:03We can never cease to give thanks to God for all that He has done for us,
- 27:09His benefits towards us.
- 27:11And yet we do forget.
- 27:13That's the reality of the people that we are.
- 27:16We do forget His benefits.
- 27:18The psalm here is showing us a psalm of David,
- 27:22Who himself was forgetful of the benefits that God had given to him in so many different ways.
- 27:28In some ways, he's reminding himself and reminding us not to forget the benefits of God.
- 27:36And sometimes it takes something to make us just count our blessings.
- 27:41A reminder somewhere along the way to remind us, count our blessings.
- 27:46Remember them, how many they are.
- 27:49One Christian woman said she was reminded, she was a nurse.
- 27:52She worked in a hospital.
- 27:54She was working with young people.
- 27:57And very often these young people were very ill.
- 28:00And she was reminded this day of just how she so often would feel ungrateful.
- 28:06And it was so wrong.
- 28:08When she realized just what other people were going through.
- 28:11And one day she was reminded of it in a powerful way.
- 28:14When this young girl was coming up to her eighth birthday.
- 28:18And she was unwell and she was asked,
- 28:21What would you want?
- 28:22What do you want for your birthday?
- 28:24And the little girl just paused for a moment and says,
- 28:28I don't know.
- 28:29And she started thinking to herself.
- 28:31She said, well I've got two sticker books.
- 28:34And I've got a beautiful doll.
- 28:36I can't think of anything else.
- 28:39I think I've got everything that I need.
- 28:41And just that simple way was a reminder to this Christian woman of how much she had herself in Christ.
- 28:49So much of it is like the simple things of life.
- 28:53And yet they are the blessings that Christ give to us that we so often forget.
- 28:58That they are the benefits that the Lord has given to us.
- 29:02And so our thanksgiving, our thankfulness is not on what we want as such always.
- 29:08It's more on just what we have.
- 29:11And the things that we have to give thanks for.
- 29:15And so as we come to the conclusion of this psalm,
- 29:19I want us to see that we're taking that thought with us.
- 29:23What this psalm wants us to realize and to continue to go forward in is this understanding and this knowledge to come back to this psalm again and again and think to ourselves, what are our benefits?
- 29:38Let us not forget the benefits that the Lord has given to us.
- 29:44They are more than can be numbered.
- 29:47So it's not a case of concluding our study in this psalm.
- 29:52It's hopefully just a going on in our study of this psalm.
- 29:57By coming back to it again and again, we see these benefits.
- 30:02When we sing this psalm, when we read this psalm in our own time,
- 30:05and we can do it again and again because it's so worth coming back to or listening to it being sung.
- 30:12We see these words that we can take with us day by day.
- 30:17The benefits that we are so forgetful of.
- 30:21Let us not forget these benefits.
- 30:24And what's interesting about the word, just to go back to verse 2 for a moment before we come into the benefits we're looking at this evening,
- 30:32is the word itself, benefits, that we see here in this psalm.
- 30:36Not forget all his benefits.
- 30:38It's a word that in the original language would have a root.
- 30:43I'm not going to try and show off any Hebrew because I don't have it.
- 30:47But looking into the word, you see the words have roots.
- 30:51And they would often be connected to other words.
- 30:55And when you look at the root of benefits, it's another word it's connected to is kamos.
- 31:01And you say to yourself, where's the connection there?
- 31:06Well, the connection was in just the longevity of these benefits.
- 31:11And when you think of the camel, it was the length of time the camel could sustain itself in difficult situations, in difficult conditions.
- 31:22And the Old Testament people would be very familiar with this.
- 31:26They would see it in their day to day experience.
- 31:29The camel was known as the king or the ship of the desert it was called.
- 31:38Because it could sustain long journeys without food and water in hot climates and carry great burdens on it.
- 31:49And so this ability to keep going.
- 31:52And that's the root behind this word as well.
- 31:55The benefits are the longevity of them.
- 31:58And how they carry, how they keep us and keep us going.
- 32:02They sustain us.
- 32:04And the other thing about camels was as well as being great burden bearers, if you like,
- 32:10they were also a measure of wealth.
- 32:13So that if you had many camels, your wealth was often counted in how many camels you owned.
- 32:20And so when you tie that back to the word benefits that we have here, and not forget the benefits of the Lord,
- 32:27you see these two things.
- 32:30How God is able to carry the Lord's people.
- 32:34All his benefits to us that keep us going.
- 32:38So often through life's barren deserts, it is the Lord that sustains us and takes us to glory.
- 32:45But also when we see the benefits that we have, we see just like the camel shows riches of people,
- 32:52that when we enjoy the benefits of God that we are rich beyond measure.
- 32:56So there are these things, these benefits.
- 32:59They are God's keeping of us.
- 33:02His sustaining power towards us and the riches that we have through him.
- 33:08And so we want to just go into these verses from verse 14 to the end of the psalm.
- 33:14Thinking back to the last time we looked at this psalm,
- 33:17we thought of how Charles Spurgeon had described it as a mountain top of a psalm in the midst of all the others.
- 33:25How there are psalms that we see can help us when we are down in the valley,
- 33:30when things are going hard for us.
- 33:32And we can see the other psalms are kind of lifting us up out of the valley.
- 33:37Well, this psalm is like coming to the mountain top,
- 33:40where you see it as above everything else.
- 33:42It's just a psalm looking out and seeing everything around and just praising God,
- 33:47giving praise to God for all the benefits that we have.
- 33:52And so there's four I want to look at this evening in these verses.
- 33:57The first is his knowledge of us, the benefit that we have in that.
- 34:02The second is his steadfast love.
- 34:05Then we see his kingdom rule and then finally his everlasting praise.
- 34:12So we have these four.
- 34:14First of all, we want to look at his knowledge of us.
- 34:18When you think of David, the author of the psalm,
- 34:21in his life he had much wealth and power and authority over others.
- 34:27But as he looks in this psalm, you see him almost just surveying his life in a different way.
- 34:34Not looking at his riches as money and property and all of these things,
- 34:40but the benefits that he has from the Lord.
- 34:43And what he's reflecting on is not looking at his strength,
- 34:48but we find him here in verse 14 looking more to his weakness.
- 34:53Looking to his weakness.
- 34:56And you see that when it says,
- 34:59For he knows our frame, he remembers that we are dust.
- 35:03As for man, his days are like grass.
- 35:06He flourishes like a flower in the field and then the wind passes over it and it is gone.
- 35:12It's place, it knows its place no more.
- 35:16And so you see here David kind of reflecting on how quickly life goes by.
- 35:23And how in our strength that we see so often we're actually just frail creatures.
- 35:29We all know it, I'm sure.
- 35:32We go through life.
- 35:33I guess if you're young here, you're not thinking this far ahead of not being able to do things.
- 35:39But you find that as life goes on, the older you get, the more you feel it in your bodies.
- 35:46The things that you could do so easily in the past, they become harder to do.
- 35:52Or sometimes they don't just take longer, you just can't do them.
- 35:57It's the reality of our lives.
- 36:00It's the reality of the change that we see in our bodies.
- 36:04And this is the experience of David here.
- 36:07And here he's reflecting and he's seeing we are dust.
- 36:12We are not immortal.
- 36:14We are frail creatures.
- 36:16We are just here for a short time.
- 36:19And so you say to yourself, well, where's the benefits in this, you might ask?
- 36:25How do we see this as a benefit?
- 36:28Well, it's not in what we are as we grow old in that sense that we find ourselves failing in different ways, losing our strength, losing abilities in different things.
- 36:40It's what we see at the beginning of verse 14.
- 36:44And it says, for he knows our frame.
- 36:49He knows.
- 36:51He knows everything about us.
- 36:54He knows our frailties.
- 36:56He knows we are dust.
- 36:58He knows our days are numbered.
- 37:01And yet in that, there is great benefit.
- 37:06Because the Lord is the one who is keeping us.
- 37:09The Lord is the one who has provided for us in all of these things, in all of life.
- 37:16Our days are numbered.
- 37:18They are like grass, flourish for a time.
- 37:21And then the wind passes over and they're gone.
- 37:26But that's just for this life.
- 37:29Because the Lord has a knowledge of us.
- 37:33And day by day, his knowledge of us is in this sense that he keeps us.
- 37:38He keeps us going.
- 37:41And so that day by day, we can see the Lord's hand upon us.
- 37:45When we're young, we see it in the help and the guidance that he gives us.
- 37:50We think of young people you've just gone through, times of prelims just now.
- 37:55And hope you've been praying as you've been going through them.
- 37:58And you've been prayed for as you've been going through them.
- 38:00And that you can look back and see, well, the Lord helped me.
- 38:04Maybe it was a question you were praying about that you hoped it would come up and it did.
- 38:09Or that something would come back to you in the middle of an exam.
- 38:13And you were reminded of and you were able to answer that question.
- 38:16The Lord helps us.
- 38:18And so it goes on in all of our days.
- 38:22Martin Luther once put it like this.
- 38:25He said, God's wonderful works which happen daily are so lightly esteemed.
- 38:30Not because they are not important.
- 38:33But because they happen so constantly and without interruption.
- 38:39In other words, it's these things that just happen every day.
- 38:44But we don't see them as from God.
- 38:47And he goes on to say, man is used to the miracle that God rules the world and upholds all creation.
- 38:53And because things daily run their appointed course, it seems insignificant.
- 39:00And how much do we take for granted and yet we should see it as the gracious benefits of God.
- 39:09Because he knows our frame.
- 39:12He knows our frailties.
- 39:14He knows our weaknesses.
- 39:16And yet day by day he supplies for us.
- 39:21Just think of that passage that we read in the Gospel of Luke.
- 39:26Ten lepers met with Jesus.
- 39:30And they asked for mercy.
- 39:32And Jesus said, go and present yourselves to the priests.
- 39:37And as they went, they were all healed.
- 39:40All ten.
- 39:42But only one came back.
- 39:46Only one came back to give thanks to Jesus.
- 39:51What of the rest?
- 39:53They just carried on with their lives.
- 39:57And so often that is the way it is for us.
- 40:01The little things in life that we should see from God, we forget.
- 40:05And we just carry on as if it was from ourselves.
- 40:09Somebody once wrote about that passage about the healing of the lepers.
- 40:13And as to what happened to the other nine, it's obviously speculating.
- 40:18It's not, we don't know.
- 40:19But somebody put it like this.
- 40:22One waited to see if the cure was real.
- 40:25One waited to see if it would last.
- 40:29One said he would see Jesus later.
- 40:32One decided that he had never had leprosy.
- 40:36One said he would have gotten well anyway.
- 40:39One gave glory to the priests.
- 40:41One said, well, Jesus didn't really do anything.
- 40:45One said any rabbi could have done it.
- 40:48And one said, I was already on the mend.
- 40:51Now, it's just speculating.
- 40:54But you can see it in our own attitude when things happen.
- 40:58We maybe pray and ask God for help.
- 41:01And we say, well, I could have done it myself anyway.
- 41:03It was going to happen that way anyway.
- 41:05We make our excuses.
- 41:07We forget the benefits that the Lord gives to us.
- 41:11And so, David here is reminding us, in our lives, God has a knowledge of us like no one else.
- 41:21He knows our frame.
- 41:23He knows everything that we need.
- 41:27And we have benefits beyond anything when we put our trust in God.
- 41:34In the shorter catechism, there's a number of questions in the 30 section of the shorter catechism, between 32 and 40 there.
- 41:45And it speaks about the benefits that the Lord's people have.
- 41:49And read through it in your own time at some point.
- 41:52If you don't have a catechism, ask me about it.
- 41:55I'll share one with you.
- 41:57Here's question 36.
- 41:59It says, what are the benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from justification, adoption, and sanctification?
- 42:07Now, these three things, justification, adoption, and sanctification, are us coming into a relationship with God.
- 42:15Being made right with God, being brought into a family of God, adopted, and sanctification continually being made right in the eyes of God.
- 42:26But the answer says this.
- 42:27The benefits which in this life do accompany or flow from these three are assurance of God's love, peace of conscience, joy in the Holy Ghost, increase of grace, and perseverance to the end.
- 42:44So much of that we have on a daily basis that we just take for granted.
- 43:09But let's not forget that it's because of the great knowledge that God has of us and all of our needs that he daily gives us these benefits.
- 43:21His knowledge of us.
- 43:23The second thing we see is his steadfast love.
- 43:27Love.
- 43:28Just as God has that wonderful knowledge of us and such a great benefit.
- 43:34And then we see in verse 17, it says how it starts, but.
- 43:40So again, it's connected to what's just passed there.
- 43:43He knows us and he knows our weakness, but it says the steadfast love of the Lord is from everlasting to everlasting on those who fear him.
- 43:56So again, we're reminded here of, yes, our frailties and our weaknesses, we are but dust.
- 44:03But God's love is steadfast.
- 44:07And it's from everlasting to everlasting.
- 44:10It's without end.
- 44:12And this is what we have when we trust in the Lord Jesus.
- 44:181 Corinthians 15 speaks of it in this way in verse 19.
- 44:23In Christ, we have hope in this life only.
- 44:27We are of all people most to be pitied.
- 44:30It's not just for now.
- 44:32But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead.
- 44:35The first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
- 44:38For as by man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead.
- 44:44For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all are made alive.
- 44:51And so as we think of the steadfast love of God, it's in the hope that Christ gives to us.
- 45:01That it's from everlasting to everlasting.
- 45:04Without end.
- 45:06And therefore, if we're thinking of the steadfast love of God and the benefits that we have through it, where do we have to look?
- 45:15We have to look to the steadfast love of God as we see it on the cross.
- 45:22As somebody put it, before we think of the coming King, we must first mention the death of the Lamb.
- 45:30And so yes, we're looking to the King coming ultimately.
- 45:35But before we think of that, we have to think of the Lamb who was slain.
- 45:40The Lamb where the steadfast love of God was seen completely.
- 45:45That he would give his life for us.
- 45:50That in him giving his life for us, we might have that hope of eternal life in him.
- 45:57And again, you see this in the shorter Catechism, where it speaks about the benefits that believers receive from Christ at death.
- 46:08So we have that reality of our frame is dust.
- 46:12But his steadfast love is from everlasting to everlasting.
- 46:17And how is it tied together?
- 46:20Well, it's in the hope of the resurrection.
- 46:23It's not just for this life that these benefits are.
- 46:27And the Catechism puts it like this.
- 46:30The souls of believers are at their death made perfect in holiness.
- 46:35And do immediately pass into glory.
- 46:38And their bodies, being still united to Christ, do rest in their graves till the resurrection.
- 46:45And you see there the benefits of believers who are in Christ.
- 46:49Even at death, they immediately made perfect in holiness.
- 46:54Excuse me.
- 46:58And so here we see the benefits that are ours in Christ to bore our sin on the tree.
- 47:06It's a poem by Francis Xavier.
- 47:10It's been translated into English.
- 47:13And it's wonderful words that just remind us of how we can look to the Lord Jesus.
- 47:18And he says this,
- 47:20Then why, O blessed Jesus Christ, should I not love thee well, not in the hope of winning heaven or not of escaping hell?
- 47:49Not from the hope of gaining a reward, not seeking a reward.
- 47:54But as thyself has loved me, O ever loving Lord, so would I love thee, dearest Lord.
- 48:01And in thy praise will sing, solely because thou art my God and my most loving King.
- 48:09So we see there what he has done for us on the cross.
- 48:15And it's not for any reward that we look for ourselves, but to give praise and glory to him, because he is our God.
- 48:25He is our King.
- 48:28The Lamb that was slain is ultimately the King of the world.
- 48:34And so we look forward to this King coming.
- 48:37The King who came down and gave himself will come again to establish his rule finally.
- 48:44And that's the third benefit that we're led into here.
- 48:49When we see his kingdom rule.
- 48:53We see this in verse 19.
- 48:56The Lord has established his throne in the heavens and his kingdom rules over all.
- 49:03All ages and all peoples.
- 49:18Kingdoms come and kingdoms go.
- 49:21Kingdoms rise, kingdoms fall.
- 49:23But we see in verse 19,
- 49:25the Lord has established his throne in the heavens
- 49:27and his kingdom rules over all,
- 49:31all ages and all people.
- 49:33We're reminded of that in the service here this morning,
- 49:38how the kingdom of God is coming.
- 49:41The church of God is being built
- 49:44and it's reflected in this psalm as well.
- 49:47The kingdom rules over all.
- 49:52So we're looking forward to Jesus coming.
- 49:55But we're reminded that up until then,
- 49:58his kingdom, his sovereignty is secure.
- 50:02There is no changing it.
- 50:04As we heard this morning,
- 50:05the gates of hell will not prevail against us.
- 50:10And the question could be asked,
- 50:12well, where is Jesus now?
- 50:14And it maybe sounds like a question a child might ask,
- 50:20but it's a question maybe passes our own lips.
- 50:23Where is Jesus now?
- 50:26Can we ask ourselves to understand
- 50:28the benefits that are ours through his kingdom rule over all?
- 50:33Where is he?
- 50:35Well, we are told in the word of God where he is.
- 50:38We are told, for example, in the book of Romans,
- 50:41chapter 8, that Jesus is at the right hand of God.
- 50:46And being seated at the right hand of God
- 50:48means he is at the place of highest honor.
- 50:52He has established the throne in the heavens.
- 50:56His kingdom rules over all.
- 50:59The letter to the Ephesians is something similar to say as well.
- 51:04That Jesus was raised from the dead by God,
- 51:06then seated at the right hand of God in the heavenly places,
- 51:10far above all rule and authority.
- 51:13And that God has put all these things under his feet.
- 51:19His rule is from everlasting to everlasting.
- 51:23His kingdom rule is over all.
- 51:26So the way it is, Jesus, Jesus is at the right hand of God.
- 51:31He is in charge.
- 51:33And we're reminded of that in a wonderful way
- 51:35in the book of Acts.
- 51:38And in Acts chapter 7,
- 51:41where we see Stephen.
- 51:43And as Stephen was stoned to death,
- 51:47what you read of there in verse 55 of Acts 7,
- 51:51what does Stephen see?
- 51:53Well, as he looked,
- 51:56he saw Jesus standing at the right hand of God.
- 52:02Standing.
- 52:04Welcoming Stephen into his kingdom.
- 52:07Welcoming Stephen home, as it were.
- 52:11Stephen himself saw this.
- 52:15And it's just a wonderful reminder to us
- 52:17that the kingdom rule of God
- 52:19is from everlasting to everlasting.
- 52:22He is sovereign over all things.
- 52:26Again, just to quote Charles Spurgeon,
- 52:29he put it like this,
- 52:30there is no attribute more comforting
- 52:32to his children than that of God's sovereignty.
- 52:36Under the most adverse circumstances,
- 52:38in the most severe trials,
- 52:41they believe that sovereignty
- 52:43has ordained their afflictions.
- 52:45That sovereignty overrules them
- 52:47and that sovereignty will sanctify them all.
- 52:50There is nothing for which the children
- 52:52ought to more earnestly contend to
- 52:55than the doctrine of their master
- 52:56over all creation,
- 52:58the kingship of God
- 53:01over all the works of his own hands,
- 53:04the throne of God
- 53:05and his right to sit upon the throne.
- 53:09For it is God upon the throne
- 53:11whom we trust.
- 53:13We are looking to a king,
- 53:16to a king who has authority.
- 53:20The Lord has established his kingdom
- 53:23and we have that benefit.
- 53:27The final thing we see here
- 53:31is his everlasting praise.
- 53:34And in some ways,
- 53:37we see the psalm coming full circle here.
- 53:40It begins in verse 1 with,
- 53:43Bless the Lord, O my soul.
- 53:46You can translate bless as praise.
- 53:50Praise the Lord, O my soul.
- 53:52And then verse 20 and 21, 22,
- 53:56you see that phrase repeated again and again.
- 53:59Bless the Lord.
- 54:01Bless the Lord.
- 54:02Bless the Lord.
- 54:03Bless the Lord.
- 54:04You have it again and again there.
- 54:08And that's the great benefit,
- 54:10finally, that we see here.
- 54:12That the Lord is worthy to be praised.
- 54:17That the Lord is worthy of all,
- 54:21of all our praise.
- 54:24Bless the Lord.
- 54:27The shorter catechism, again,
- 54:29no section of questions.
- 54:31It says in question 38,
- 54:34what benefits do believers receive
- 54:36from Christ at the resurrection?
- 54:39So we're looking ahead now eternally.
- 54:43And it says,
- 54:43at the resurrection,
- 54:44believers being raised up in glory
- 54:47shall be openly acknowledged
- 54:48and acquitted in the day of judgment
- 54:51and made perfectly blessed.
- 54:52And the full enjoying of God
- 54:56to all eternity.
- 55:00Full enjoying of God
- 55:02to all eternity.
- 55:05And that's where this psalm leads us.
- 55:08Our eternal benefit.
- 55:11That we can bless the Lord
- 55:13with all that we are.
- 55:15Bless the Lord,
- 55:16O my soul.
- 55:18He is worthy of our worship.
- 55:22And the question is,
- 55:24is he getting it?
- 55:26Is he getting all our praise?
- 55:31Have we forgotten his benefits to us?
- 55:35Are we forgetting them on a daily basis?
- 55:39The simple things,
- 55:41the little things that we take for granted,
- 55:43or the big things that we see in our life.
- 55:46Are we giving praise to God?
- 55:50Let us not forget his benefits.
- 55:55But let us give thanks to God
- 55:57for all his benefits to us.
- 56:01And let us especially remember
- 56:03the benefits that we have for life
- 56:06and for eternity.
- 56:09The salvation that is ours
- 56:11through Jesus Christ.
- 56:13Bless the Lord,
- 56:16O my soul.
- 56:18That's all our being.
- 56:21All that we are
- 56:22for now
- 56:23and for eternity.
- 56:26Quiz question for you
- 56:28without looking
- 56:29to the end of the book of Psalms.
- 56:32In the last psalm
- 56:34in the book of Psalms,
- 56:35Psalm 150
- 56:36and verse 6.
- 56:37What does it end with?
- 56:38It ends with these words.
- 56:43Let everything that has breath
- 56:45praise the Lord.
- 56:48Praise the Lord.
- 56:54The conclusion of everything
- 56:56is to give praise to God.
- 57:00Because we can do nothing
- 57:01apart from him.
- 57:03And so when we think
- 57:05of the benefits
- 57:07of God to us,
- 57:10what does it deserve
- 57:11from us
- 57:12but to praise
- 57:14the Lord
- 57:15now
- 57:16and eternally.
- 57:19Our praise
- 57:20will go on.
- 57:22We can look forward
- 57:23to when all these benefits
- 57:25will be complete.
- 57:27And when we will see him
- 57:29face to face.
- 57:30And when we truly
- 57:32we will worship him
- 57:33as he is worthy of.
- 57:37May we go on
- 57:38remembering
- 57:39how many
- 57:40are our benefits.
- 57:43May we go on
- 57:43remembering
- 57:44how many
- 57:45are our camels
- 57:46if you like.
- 57:48How rich
- 57:48we are.
- 57:51And how much
- 57:51we are carried
- 57:52by the grace
- 57:54of God.
- 57:55By all his benefits
- 57:57to us
- 57:57on a daily basis.
- 57:59let us not
- 58:01forget.
- 58:03And indeed
- 58:03as we think of
- 58:04in a fortnight's time
- 58:06coming to remember
- 58:08all his benefits
- 58:10to us
- 58:10in Christ.
- 58:13What better
- 58:13to do
- 58:14than to remember
- 58:15his death
- 58:16and to give thanks
- 58:18to him
- 58:18who gave his life
- 58:20that we might live
- 58:22and to come
- 58:23and obey
- 58:24his command
- 58:25and do this
- 58:27in remembrance
- 58:28of him.
- 58:30To take
- 58:30the bread
- 58:32and to take
- 58:33the wine
- 58:34and to remember
- 58:36the benefits
- 58:37that we have
- 58:38in Christ
- 58:39fully
- 58:40complete
- 58:41in him.
- 58:43May the Lord
- 58:44bless us
- 58:45and help us
- 58:45to come back
- 58:46to these benefits
- 58:47daily
- 58:48and see
- 58:49our need of them
- 58:50and the blessings
- 58:51that are ours
- 58:52through them.
- 58:53Let us pray.
- 58:54Lord our gracious
- 58:57God
- 58:58we do thank you
- 58:58for all
- 58:59the rich benefits
- 59:01that are ours
- 59:01through your grace
- 59:02towards us
- 59:03all that we have
- 59:04in Christ
- 59:05who gave himself
- 59:06for us
- 59:07all that we have
- 59:08through
- 59:09not just his death
- 59:10but his resurrection
- 59:11and all that we have
- 59:13to look forward to yet
- 59:14we thank you
- 59:16for your reign
- 59:16over us Lord
- 59:17that your kingdom
- 59:18is secure
- 59:19and that we are
- 59:21to be a people
- 59:22who praise you
- 59:24Lord you remember us
- 59:25and we bless you
- 59:26for that
- 59:27so continue with us
- 59:28Lord
- 59:28and help us
- 59:29to praise you
- 59:30with all our hearts
- 59:31as all we ask
- 59:32we ask in Jesus name
- 59:34Amen
- 59:34We're going to conclude
- 59:39by singing
- 59:40in these verses
- 59:41in Psalm 103
- 59:43in the Sing Psalms version
- 59:46page 136
- 59:50Psalm 103
- 59:53at verse 15
- 59:54to the end of the psalm
- 59:57the tune is
- 59:58before the throne
- 59:59I just want to
- 1:00:01sing these psalms
- 1:00:02in conclusion
- 1:00:02just to help us
- 1:00:03just to
- 1:00:04to sing out
- 1:00:05these words
- 1:00:06to sing them
- 1:00:07and reminding ourselves
- 1:00:08of all that the Lord
- 1:00:10has done for us
- 1:00:12each human life
- 1:00:13is like the grass
- 1:00:14and like a meadow flower
- 1:00:15it grows
- 1:00:16its place
- 1:00:17will never be recalled
- 1:00:18once over it
- 1:00:20the tempest flows
- 1:00:21but everlasting
- 1:00:22is God's love
- 1:00:24for those who fear him
- 1:00:25and their seed
- 1:00:26for those who keep
- 1:00:27his covenant
- 1:00:28and carefully
- 1:00:29his precepts heed
- 1:00:30we'll sing
- 1:00:31from verse 15
- 1:00:32to the end of the psalm
- 1:00:33to God's praise
- 1:00:35the end of the psalm
- 1:00:37and their seed
- 1:00:38is the end of the psalm
- 1:00:39and their seed
- 1:00:40will never be recalled
- 1:00:43!
- 1:00:44and like a meadow
- 1:00:48cloud it grows
- 1:00:49its wish
- 1:00:52will never be recalled
- 1:00:55once over
- 1:00:57if the tempest blows
- 1:01:01what ever lasting
- 1:01:04is God's love
- 1:01:07for those who fear him
- 1:01:11and their seed
- 1:01:13for those who keep
- 1:01:16his covenant
- 1:01:18and carefully
- 1:01:20carefully
- 1:01:21Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please, Please
- 1:01:51O praise the Lord, dear heavenly host,
- 1:01:58His servants to bear for this word.
- 1:02:04Praise God, His works to work His hell.
- 1:02:09And you, my soul, praise the Lord.
- 1:02:15And you, my soul, praise the Lord.
- 1:02:21After the benediction, I'll go to the main door.
- 1:02:24We'll close the benediction.
- 1:02:26Now may grace, mercy, and peace from God,
- 1:02:29Father, Son, and Holy Spirit rest upon
- 1:02:31and abide with you all now and forevermore.
- 1:02:35Amen.
- 1:02:52Amen.