Latest / Reformed Thinking / Not to Us, O Lord, but to Your Name Give Glory (Psalm 115) | Charles Spurgeon

Transcript

Not to Us, O Lord, but to Your Name Give Glory (Psalm 115) | Charles Spurgeon · Reformed Thinking

0:00
Imagine you're standing in the center of, well, a massive,
0:03
ancient temple. OK.
0:04
I can picture that. The air is thick with incense,
0:07
and right in front of you is this towering statue, Right.
0:11
It is crafted from gleaning silver and gold, and you know it
0:15
looks incredibly intimidating. The craftsmanship is so precise
0:19
that the figure looks like it holds the fate of the entire
0:21
world in its hands. Oh, absolutely.
0:23
The sheer scale of those things was meant to be terrifying.
0:26
Yeah, but then you step closer. You look past the shining metal
0:30
and you realize something startling.
0:31
What is that? This magnificent figure is
0:33
completely deaf, it's completely blind, and it is entirely
0:38
paralyzed. Yeah, it is basically a hollow
0:40
shell. Right.
0:41
It is an imposing, expensive shell with absolutely zero
0:44
ability to act, to think, or to save.
0:47
Welcome to reformed thinking. It is great to be here.
0:50
This audio session is designed to give you, the listener
0:53
sitting right here at the table with us, a thorough, engaging
0:56
understanding of a massive contrast.
0:58
We are talking about the absolute sovereignty of the
1:00
living God versus the other uselessness of man made idols.
1:04
And that is a huge contrast to unpack.
1:07
It really is. We are investigating Psalm 115
1:10
today, specifically through the lens of Charles Spurgeon's
1:13
classic work, The Treasury of David.
1:15
A phenomenal resource, but. You know this is not just an
1:18
ancient history lesson about metal statues.
1:21
No, not at all. We are going to dig into the
1:23
psychological mechanisms behind why humans manufacture false
1:28
God. We will look at what happens to
1:31
our minds when we give our ultimate attention to lifeless
1:34
things. Which is highly relevant for
1:35
today. Yes, and what this means for
1:37
believers living in a world of modern silent idols.
1:41
That visual of the paralyzed statue you started with?
1:45
It captures the core tension of this entire text perfectly.
1:48
I am glad you think so. Before we begin breaking down
1:51
the history and the text, we should establish the theological
1:54
framework guiding our discussion today.
1:56
Please do, that is crucial. We are approaching this text
1:59
from the perspective of Reformed theology.
2:01
Specifically, this is rooted in the teachings of the Westminster
2:05
Confession. If you look at the very first
2:07
question of the Westminster Shorter Catechism, it asks a
2:10
huge question. It asks what is the chief end of
2:13
man? And the answer is so famous.
2:15
It is. The answer provided is that
2:17
man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy Him forever.
2:21
Glorify and enjoy. Yes, I want you to keep that
2:25
central truth in your mind as we go through this text.
2:28
The entire Psalm is basically a battleground over glory.
2:32
Like who gets the credit? Yes.
2:33
Who gets the worship? Is it the Creator, or is it the
2:36
creature and the things the creature invents?
2:39
That is the big question. So we will be taking clear,
2:42
distinct turns today, speaking directly to you, the listener.
2:45
Our goal is to draw out the most vital insights from Spurgeon's
2:49
commentary and apply them to the reality you face every single
2:52
day. I love that, so let us jump
2:54
right in. The text begins with a striking
2:56
repetition in the very first verse.
2:59
It sets the stage immediately. It really does.
3:01
It sets up that battleground over glory you just mentioned.
3:04
Psalmist writes, not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy
3:08
name, give glory. Historically, this specific
3:11
Psalm was sung at the Passover. This means the Israelites were
3:16
looking back at their deliverance from slavery in
3:18
Egypt. Looking back at a massive
3:20
rescue. Yeah, but that repetition of not
3:23
unto us, well, it really catches my attention.
3:27
It makes me think of the human desire for credit.
3:30
Oh, the human ego is a powerful thing.
3:33
It is. Imagine someone working on a
3:35
huge group project at work or in school.
3:38
We have all been there, right? And this one person contributed,
3:42
you know, absolute nothing. Nothing at all.
3:44
In fact, maybe they actively made things worse by complaining
3:47
or making mistakes. Usually how it goes.
3:49
But then, when the final presentation is a massive
3:51
success and the applause starts, that person's the very first one
3:55
to step up to the microphone. They want all the credit.
3:57
They try to take all the credit. It is so ingrained in human
4:00
nature to want the spotlight. We constantly want to steal the
4:03
applause. We really do.
4:05
So I look at this ancient song and I have to ask you about it.
4:09
Is the psalmist repetition of Not Unto Us just like a bit of
4:15
poetic phrasing, or does it point to a specific catastrophic
4:19
flaw in human nature? It points directly to a
4:23
catastrophic flaw and you know, the historical analysis brings
4:26
this out brilliantly. Tell me more about that.
4:28
Well, when we look at the writings of the 17th century
4:31
Puritan minister Stephen Chardock, we get a surgical look
4:35
at the human ego. Charnock was brilliant at.
4:37
That he really was. He possessed an incredible mind
4:40
for diagnosing the specific diseases of the human heart, and
4:43
he noted that human nature has a severe tendency toward what he
4:46
calls self idolatry. Self idolatry.
4:48
Wow. Right, the psalmist is repeating
4:50
not unto us, because it is incredibly difficult to cleanse
4:54
the human heart from the desire to steal credit that belongs to
4:56
the Creator. That makes a lot of sense.
4:58
Charnick points out that whenever we sacrifice to our own
5:01
credit, praising her own wit or the dexterity of our own hands
5:04
for our success, we are actively detracting from the Creator.
5:08
We are stealing the spotlight. We are taking the crown off his
5:11
head and trying to fit it onto our own.
5:14
That is a harsh visual, but so accurate.
5:17
Another brilliant thinker from that era, Thomas Manton, adds
5:21
incredible clarity here too. He notes that self and God are
5:25
the two things that constantly come into competition.
5:27
The arrivals. Yes, Manton identifies different
5:31
variations of this rival to the creator.
5:33
He talks about the carnal self which chases physical appetites.
5:37
OK, the physical stuff. Right.
5:39
He talks about the natural self, which relies on human logic
5:42
alone. He even talks about the
5:44
spiritual self and the glorified self.
5:47
This is where people take pride in their own religious
5:49
achievements or their own perceived holiness.
5:52
Oh that is subtle one being proud of how humble or holy you
5:55
are. Yes, all of these act as direct
5:57
rivals to the Creator's glory. The Israelites in the text had
6:01
to vehemently reject any self glorifying motive.
6:04
Because they knew their own hearts.
6:05
Exactly as they ate the Passover lamb, they had to remind
6:08
themselves twice, not unto us, not unto us, because they knew
6:11
how easily that pride creeps in. They did not part the Red Sea.
6:15
They did not break the chains of Pharaoh.
6:17
If they took even a fraction of the credit, they were committing
6:20
self idolatry. That context of utter dependence
6:23
makes the pain to the second verse even sharper, I think.
6:26
How so? Well, in verse 2 the psalmist
6:28
asks, wherefore should the heathen say, where is now their
6:32
God? Yes, the taunt.
6:36
Look at the historical situation.
6:39
The Israelites had seen the Red Sea part generations ago, but
6:42
now those miraculous days seemed very distant.
6:45
They were long gone, right? Skeptics looked at the
6:47
Israelites, who were likely suffering, maybe an exile or
6:51
oppressed by surrounding nations at this time, and they mocked.
6:54
Them, the skeptics, love to point that out.
6:56
They essentially said you talk a big game about this invisible
6:59
deity who rules the universe. But look at your current
7:01
situation. You are defeated.
7:03
You are suffering. Where is he is agonizing to be
7:06
mocked like that, especially when you know the truth but
7:09
cannot produce a burning Bush or a parted sea on demand to prove
7:12
it to the critics, it forces the.
7:14
Believer into a very difficult corner.
7:16
A corner where they have to rely entirely on faith rather than
7:19
visible evidence. That agony is a universal
7:23
experience for the believer. I want you, the listener, to
7:27
consider how critics today treat the Christian faith.
7:31
It is very similar. It is that ancient mockery maps
7:34
perfectly onto modern skepticism.
7:37
When modern skeptics look at the world, with all its suffering
7:40
and chaos, they demand immediate supernatural interventions.
7:44
They want a magic trick. Yes, they want God to step out
7:47
of the clouds and perform a trick to prove His existence on
7:50
their terms. When they do not see that
7:52
immediate visible proof, they mock the existence of the
7:55
Creator and question the authority of the Gospel.
7:58
Is the exact same taught? Where is now their God?
8:01
It is Charles Spurgeon points out that this is the very sting
8:04
of trials for believers. It is seeing the veracity of the
8:08
Lord question because of their own suffering that is tough.
8:11
The skeptic uses the believer's pain as an argument against the
8:14
believer's God. But you know, Spurgeon also
8:17
provides the theological reasoning as to why the Almighty
8:20
allows this hiddenness. Oh, what is the reasoning?
8:23
Sometimes the nations are permitted to blasphemy so that
8:26
their iniquity is fully exposed. Letting them show their true
8:29
colors. Yes, God allows the skeptic to
8:31
voice their defiance, making the subsequent interposition of God
8:35
even more illustrious when he finally does act.
8:38
The hiddenness of God is not a sign of His absence, it is a
8:42
huge test of faith for the believer and a revelation of the
8:46
skeptics true heart. Since human beings naturally
8:49
seek their own glory, and skeptics constantly mock the
8:52
hiddenness of the Creator, the psalmist is forced to answer
8:56
that taunt. He has to respond.
8:58
He cannot just stay silent while the surrounding nations mock.
9:02
He has to declare precisely where God is and what He is
9:05
doing. And that leads us right into
9:07
verse 3. A fantastic verse.
9:09
The psalmist answers the skeptics with a massive
9:11
declaration. But our God is in the heavens.
9:14
He hath done whatsoever He hath, please.
9:17
Yeah. And then the text pivots and
9:19
absolutely roasts the physical idols of the surrounding
9:21
nations. It really takes them apart.
9:23
It describes them as silver and gold, having mouths but no
9:26
speech, eyes but no sight, hands that cannot handle anything.
9:32
I absolutely love this contrast. It is highly visual.
9:35
It makes me think of someone building a high tech security
9:38
robot for their home. OK, I like this analogy.
9:41
So they spend a fortune on it. They paint it to look
9:43
terrifying. They put metal spikes on the
9:45
armor. But they forget to install
9:47
cameras, microphones or. Wheels, so it is completely
9:49
useless. Right.
9:50
It looks intimidating to a trespasser for about 5 seconds
9:54
until the trespasser realizes The thing is entirely inert.
9:57
It is just in there. It cannot see you, it cannot
9:59
hear you, and it certainly cannot stop you.
10:01
It is a very expensive paperweight.
10:03
A giant metal paperweight. But if we think about the
10:06
ancient world, these idols were everywhere.
10:09
They dominated the landscape. So if these statues were so
10:12
obviously useless, why were ancient people so drawn to them?
10:16
Why dedicate massive amounts of silver, gold and time to a
10:20
statue that cannot even brush a family off its own nose?
10:23
To understand the powerful draw of idols, we first have to
10:27
understand the psalmist's definition of sovereignty,
10:30
because that is what the human heart is actually rebelling
10:33
against. OK, unpack that for.
10:35
Us John Calvin offers brilliant commentary on verse three.
10:38
He explains that placing God in the heavens does not confine him
10:43
to a specific physical location. He's not trapped in the sky.
10:46
No, the psalmist is not saying God is trapped in a box in the
10:49
clouds, rather in the heavens removes the Creator from the
10:54
limitations of fate, fortune, and human instrumentality.
10:58
Oh, I see. He is the absolute sovereign.
11:00
He does whatever He pleases. Now apply that to the human
11:03
heart. People were drawn to idols
11:05
precisely because idols lack that absolute sovereignty.
11:08
They wanted something they could handle.
11:10
Yes, an idol is highly manageable.
11:12
You can carve it to look however you want.
11:14
You can carry it from room to room.
11:16
Put it away in a closet. You can bribe it with
11:17
sacrifices, You can lock it in a temple, You cannot control the
11:21
sovereign of the heavens who does whatsoever he pleases, but
11:25
you can entirely control a statue.
11:28
That is a huge insight. We want control.
11:30
We do. This desire for a manageable
11:33
deity LED ancient societies to create elaborate, absurd systems
11:37
of idolatry, and early Christian thinkers heavily mocked this.
11:41
I bet they did. Consider the historical anecdote
11:44
of the Serapian in Alexandria as recounted by Andrew Reed.
11:48
This took place in the year 391 AD.
11:51
OK, setting the scene the. Serapian was a massive fortified
11:54
temple housing a colossal, terrifying statue of the Pagan
11:58
God Serapis. Really intimidating sight.
12:01
Very intimidating. The local pagans believed that
12:03
if anyone ever touched the statue, the sky would fall in.
12:06
The world would end. The ultimate superstition.
12:08
Right. So Bishop Theophilus ordered a
12:10
Roman soldier to strike this massive idol with an axe.
12:15
The Pagan crowd held their breath.
12:16
They were absolutely terrified that divine wrath would strike
12:19
the soldiers dead on the spot. They thought the world was
12:22
ending. They really did.
12:23
The soldier swung the axe, smashed the idols knee and then
12:26
struck off its massive head. And what happened?
12:29
The sky did not fall, the earth did not shake.
12:31
Do you know what actually happened?
12:33
Tell me. A large family of rats ran out
12:36
of the statues hollow head. You are kidding.
12:38
No, the massive, terrifying God of Alexandria was nothing more
12:42
than a rodent motel A. Rodent Odin Motel that is
12:46
incredible. The crowd burst into laughter at
12:48
the sheer absurdity of their false God.
12:51
Imagine the psychological whiplash of that crowd.
12:54
It must have been. Insane.
12:55
One second you are terrified that the universe is going to
12:58
collapse because someone disrespected your Dee Dee, and
13:02
the next second you are watching rats scurry out of its face.
13:05
It totally demystifies the entire system.
13:08
It really strips away the smoke and mirrors.
13:10
It shows you the hollow, ridiculous nature of trying to
13:13
localize the divine into a piece of carved metal.
13:17
It exposes the absolute hollow nature of it perfectly.
13:21
The Roman satirist Juvenile made a very similar point, mocking
13:24
the worship of Jupiter in his writings.
13:26
What did he say? He looked at the practices of
13:28
his own people and asked why they would offer expensive calf
13:31
livers and the white call of a hog to a marble or bronze
13:34
statue. Waste of good food.
13:36
Right, he pointed out the sheer lack of logic.
13:39
You are offering food to a block of stone that cannot even move
13:43
its lips to say thank you, let alone alter the course of your
13:46
life. It makes no sense when you think
13:47
about it. It does not.
13:49
This stark contrast between the almighty sovereign in the
13:52
heavens who does whatever he pleases and the hollow rat
13:55
infested statues on earth logically forces us to look at
13:59
the people doing the worshipping.
14:01
Which is where it gets personal. Yes, and that leads to a
14:04
terrifying psychological and spiritual reality.
14:07
If these objects of worship are nothing more than inert metal or
14:11
stone, what happens to the mind of the person who bows to them
14:15
every day? That is a chilling question, and
14:18
it brings us right to the mechanism of human worship in
14:20
verse 8. The turning point of the Psalm.
14:22
It is, the Psalmist states, a terrifying rule.
14:25
They that make them are like unto them.
14:27
So is everyone that trusteth in them.
14:29
A. Heavy statement.
14:30
We can call this the principle of assimilation.
14:32
You become what you worship. The human mind is highly
14:35
plastic. Whatever you give your ultimate
14:38
reverend attention to will eventually rewire your own soul.
14:41
It shapes you. So if you worship a deaf, dumb,
14:44
blind, paralyzed piece of metal, the psalmist is saying you
14:48
become spiritually deaf, spiritually dumb, spiritually
14:50
blind, and spiritually paralyzed.
14:51
You take on its traits. You lose your humanity by giving
14:55
your devotion to something subhuman.
14:58
Spot on. The German theologian EW
15:00
Henkstenberg noted that whoever exalts feebleness in stupid
15:04
delusion to be his God becomes feeble along with that God.
15:09
Feebleness creates feebleness. Yes, the object of your worship
15:12
sets the ceiling for your own spiritual development.
15:15
Thomas Manton reinforces this by stating that serving a base God
15:19
results in a base spirit. A base spirit.
15:21
That is a great phrase. You cannot do anything worthy,
15:24
noble, or generous if your highest affection is fixed on
15:27
something lifeless and vain. If you pour your soul into an
15:30
empty vessel, your soul becomes empty.
15:32
Wow. The mechanism here is huge.
15:34
Worship is not just singing a song, it is the total
15:36
orientation of the human heart. It is everything.
15:39
When the heart orientates itself toward an an idol that has eyes
15:43
but cannot see the truth, the worshipper loses the ability to
15:47
perceive spiritual truth. They become hardened, stubborn,
15:52
and entirely unresponsive to the living God.
15:55
Let me set up a scenario for the listener, because we need to
15:57
translate this ancient warning into our current reality.
16:01
Absolutely live in the modern world.
16:03
We do not generally walk into massive stone temples and bow
16:06
down to wooden statues. Right, that is rare today.
16:09
We do not offer calf livers to giant metal figures with rats
16:12
living in them. Thankfully.
16:14
So how does this principle of assimilation apply to the modern
16:17
learner? If we are not carving statues,
16:20
what does modern idolatry look like and how does it make us
16:22
deaf and blind today? Charles Spurgeon saw this
16:25
precise shift coming over a century ago.
16:28
He was incredibly perceptive. In his commentary, he wrote a
16:31
scathing critique of what he called the God of modern
16:33
thought. The God of modern thought.
16:36
Spurgeon realized that idolatry does not require physical metal
16:39
or wood. It only requires human
16:41
imagination. Just a thought process.
16:43
Right when modern society manufacturers A deity out of its
16:47
own muddled ideas, society is committing the exact same sin as
16:51
the ancient man carving a block of wood.
16:53
Because it is still a creation of man.
16:55
Yes, the God of modern thought is often a mere philosophical
17:00
abstraction. It might be akin to a vague
17:02
pantheism or a therapeutic deity that exists only to make people
17:06
feel good. It's like a cosmic Butler.
17:08
Yes, a cosmic Butler. This modern manufactured God
17:12
ignores justice, it ignores sin, and it requires no repentance.
17:16
It demands nothing. Spurgeon warns that when society
17:19
fashions a God like themselves out of their own intellect, they
17:23
will by degrees fashion themselves like they're false
17:26
God. They will become like.
17:27
It when a culture worships a concept that lacks moral
17:30
authority, a concept that cannot speak truth or enact justice,
17:33
that culture becomes morally hollow and spiritually deaf.
17:37
They lose the ability to distinguish right from wrong
17:40
because our God has no standard of right and wrong.
17:42
That brings it right down to the ground for you listening to this
17:45
audio session right now. It really does.
17:47
I want you to evaluate what takes up your highest
17:49
affections. It does not even have to be a
17:51
philosophical or theological abstraction.
17:54
No, it can be very practical. Think about the everyday pursuit
17:57
of wealth. If a person worships money as
18:01
their ultimate security and their highest goal, they begin
18:04
to take on the characteristics of money.
18:06
They become cold. They become cold, they become
18:09
calculated, they become metallic and entirely indifferent to
18:12
human suffering because the dollar bill does not care about
18:15
human suffering. That is a terrifying thought.
18:18
Or think about social status. If a person worships social
18:22
status, they become just like social status.
18:24
Shallow and fleeting. Yes, shallow, fleeting, anxious,
18:28
and constantly shifting with the wind of public opinion.
18:31
Chasing likes? Right.
18:33
The ancient rule holds completely true today.
18:36
You become what you worship. Your soul conforms to the shape
18:39
of your ultimate desire. It is an unavoidable law of
18:42
human nature. And since those who worship
18:44
false gods become spiritually lifeless and hollow, the
18:47
psalmist urgently pivots away from them.
18:50
He turns his attention to those who possess true spiritual life,
18:53
calling them to an active, defiant faith.
18:56
This brings us to the threefold call to trust found in verses 9
19:01
through 11. Three separate calls.
19:02
The psalmist issues a direct command.
19:05
O Israel, trust thou in the Lord.
19:07
O House of Aaron, trust in the Lord.
19:09
Ye that fear the Lord, trust in the Lord.
19:11
And there is a refrain there too.
19:13
Yes, in each of these three distinct cases, the refrain is
19:16
identical. He is their help and their
19:18
shield. We need to break down these
19:20
specific audiences to understand the scope of this call.
19:23
Please you. Israel represents the chosen
19:25
people as a whole, the entire covenant community.
19:28
The House of Aaron represents the ministers, the priests, the
19:31
leaders whose specific duty was to guide the religious life of
19:34
the nation. OK, so the leaders and the
19:36
general public? Right.
19:37
And the phrase Those who fear the Lord extends the call beyond
19:41
ethnic boundaries to all true believers, including proselytes
19:44
who join themselves to the covenant.
19:45
So it covers everyone. It is framed entirely within the
19:49
Covenant of Grace. Now, for the layperson, the
19:51
covenant of grace is essentially the promise that God secures the
19:56
salvation of His people, not based on their perfect works,
19:59
but based on his own merciful provision.
20:02
A huge comfort. Whether someone is a
20:04
high-ranking leader in the House of Aaron wearing the priestly
20:07
garments, or a common layperson who simply fears the Lord in
20:12
their daily life, their only defense is the Lord himself.
20:16
They do not trust in their status, they trust in the
20:19
sovereign of the heavens. Look at the specific structure
20:22
of the psalmist uses here. Why say the exact same thing
20:25
three times? Trust in the Lord.
20:26
Trust in the Lord, Trust in the Lord.
20:28
It is very repetitive. Is the psalmist just trying to
20:31
fill space on the parchment? I doubt it.
20:33
It makes me think of a coach on the sidelines during a high
20:36
stakes championship game. Oh, a sports analogy.
20:38
Yeah, picture it. The team is under heavy
20:40
pressure, the opposing crowd is screaming, the players are
20:44
exhausted and they are starting to lose focus.
20:46
They are panicked. The coach does not pull out a
20:49
whiteboard and give them a highly complicated, nuanced new
20:52
playbook. He grabs them by the face mask
20:55
and repeats the absolute fundamentals over and over.
20:57
Keep your eye on the ball. Keep your eye on the ball.
21:00
Keep your eye on the ball. Because that is all they can
21:02
process in the moment. Right, he repeats the core truth
21:06
until it overrides the panic in their heads.
21:08
Is that the psychological mechanism the psalmist is using
21:11
here with this threefold repetition?
21:13
That analogy of the coach repeating fundamentals under
21:16
pressure fits the historical reality perfectly.
21:20
The historical context demands this kind of forceful
21:23
repetition. They were under that much
21:24
pressure. Think about the severe
21:26
affliction these people were facing.
21:28
Many scholars believe this Psalm might have been heavily utilized
21:31
while the Israelites were in exile in Babylon.
21:33
Oh wow. Or later under severe foreign
21:36
domination. They were completely surrounded
21:38
by dominant, massive idolatrous cultures just.
21:41
Overwhelmed by it? The sneers of the adversaries
21:44
were constant. Babylon had massive gold plated
21:46
statues, towering ziggurats and immense wealth.
21:50
The Israelites were captives. That is a touch spot to be in.
21:53
It was a time of intense mockery and widespread psychological
21:57
depression. In that kind of oppressive
21:59
environment, faith naturally staggers.
22:01
Of course it does. A single polite suggestion to
22:04
trust the Creator would not cut through the noise of Babylonian
22:07
dominance. The repetition acts as a
22:10
necessary anchor for their wavering faith.
22:12
Trust in the Lord, Trust in the Lord.
22:15
As they ate the Paschal supper in a foreign land, weeping as
22:18
they remembered Zion, they needed to hear that threefold
22:22
command to shake off the dominant idolatry around them.
22:25
They needed the coach grabbing their face masks.
22:26
Yes, this act of trusting God is not a blind leap into the dark.
22:31
It is grounded in his past faithfulness.
22:34
They are remembering the Red Sea.
22:35
They're remembering the plagues of Egypt.
22:37
The track record. And that past faithfulness
22:39
guarantees a cascade of future blessings for those who fear
22:42
Him. We see that unstoppable cascade
22:45
of blessing begin to flow in verse 12.
22:47
It is a beautiful shift in the text.
22:49
The text says the Lord have been mindful of us, He will bless us.
22:54
The psalmist then repeats the phrase He will bless 4 distinct
22:57
times. More repetition, yeah.
23:00
It specifically extends this blessing to both small and
23:04
great, promising to increase them and their children.
23:07
Small and great. I want to zero in on that
23:09
specific phrase. Small and great.
23:13
If you look at human society, from the ancient Babylonians to
23:17
our modern cities, the entire structure is built on catering
23:21
to the great. Oh, absolutely.
23:23
We have VIP lines at the airport so the wealthy do not have to
23:27
wait. We have algorithms on social
23:29
media that push famous influencers to the top of your
23:32
feed while burying normal everyday people.
23:34
My. Talks.
23:35
We have exclusive clubs where your net worth dictates your
23:38
entry. Human hierarchies constantly
23:40
filter out the small. We do.
23:42
The ancient world is even worse the week we're utterly
23:45
disguised. So how does God's economy, as
23:47
laid out in this text, differ from the ruthless human
23:50
hierarchies we walk through every single day?
23:52
It differs fundamentally because of the nature of the God we are
23:54
discussing. John Cowan's commentary
23:57
highlights that God has no acceptance of persons in the way
23:59
humans do. He does not care about the VIP
24:01
line. Not at all.
24:03
He does not overlook the meanest, poorest, or most
24:06
despised individual, provided they cordially seek his aid.
24:11
Thomas Manton makes a beautiful theological point here too.
24:14
What does he say? He states that in the Covenant
24:16
of Grace, the meanest peasant has the exact same privileges,
24:19
the exact same promises, and the exact same access to the Creator
24:24
as the greatest Prince. That is leveling.
24:27
Human society filters by wealth, status and utility, but the
24:31
Almighty supplies the wants of every living thing, from the
24:34
massive leviathan swimming in the deep sea to the tiny insect
24:38
resting on a leaf. He sees it all.
24:40
He will suffer none of the godly to be forgotten, regardless of
24:43
how small their abilities are or how low their position is in the
24:46
eyes of society. The blessing is completely
24:49
independent of human merit or social standing.
24:51
That is incredibly reassuring for the listener who feels
24:54
entirely overlooked by the modern world.
24:56
It should be a huge comfort. And the blessing described here
24:59
does not just stay statics Burgeon notes on verse 14 which
25:01
says the Lord shall increase you, that this is an active
25:05
multiplying force. It grows over time.
25:07
Just as the Israelites were multiplied exceedingly while
25:10
they were enslaved and oppressed in Egypt, the Almighty promises
25:13
to multiply the spiritual seed of believers it.
25:16
Cannot be stopped. It is an overflowing fountain.
25:19
The blessing affects the listener and it spills over onto
25:22
their children and their children's children.
25:24
Generations of blessing. Having secured this immense
25:27
multi generational blessing for the believers, the Psalmist then
25:31
moves to clarify the spatial domains of this relationship.
25:35
He maps out the geography of praise, where God reigns, and
25:39
where He has placed us to fulfill our daily vocation.
25:42
We find the spatial delegation in the final verses of the
25:46
Psalm, verses 16 through 18. Let us hear them.
25:49
The text reads the heaven, even the heavens are the Lord's, but
25:52
the earth hath he given to the children of men.
25:55
The dead praise not the Lord, neither any that go down into
25:58
silence, but we will bless the Lord from this time forth and
26:02
forevermore. Wait, let me stop you right
26:04
there. OK, glad is the issue.
26:05
I have to push back hard on verse 17.
26:07
The text clearly says the dead prays, not the Lord.
26:10
Yes it does. As Protestant Christians who
26:12
adhere to the Westminster Confession, we believe in the
26:15
eternal enjoyment of God. We believe in heaven.
26:18
We believe that when believers die, their souls are made
26:21
perfect in holiness and they immediately pass into glory
26:24
where they join the angels in praising God forever.
26:28
That is basic doctrine. Doesn't this specific verse
26:31
sound like it completely contradicts the reality of the
26:33
afterlife? Is the psalmist suggesting that
26:37
death is just a silent, dark sleep where worship ceases?
26:41
Why on earth would he say the dead do not praise God?
26:44
This specific verse has troubled many readers over the centuries,
26:48
but it requires crucial theological clarity to
26:51
understand the psalmist's intent.
26:53
OK, help me out here. We draw on the insights of
26:55
theologians William Binney and Abraham Wright to resolve this
26:58
apparent contradiction. The psalmist is absolutely not
27:02
denying the afterlife or the existence of the heavenly choir.
27:05
So what is he saying? Rather, the psalmist is mourning
27:07
the loss of a visible witness here on earth.
27:10
Look at the context of the struggle we have been
27:12
discussing. The heathen are mocking the
27:14
Creator. Right.
27:15
Where's your gut? The idols are dominating the
27:18
culture. The earth is the current
27:20
battleground for God's glory. When a St. dies, their voice is
27:25
permanently removed from this earthly choir.
27:27
Oh, I see. Abraham Wright points out that
27:30
the Saints in the Old Testament, like King Hezekiah who wept
27:33
bitterly when told he would die, prayed to live longer
27:36
specifically because the harvest was great and the laborers were
27:40
few. You wanted to keep.
27:41
Working. They wanted to stay on earth, to
27:42
build the church, to instruct their children, and to publicly
27:46
vindicate God's name against the skeptics in their own
27:49
generation. Oh, I see the distinction now.
27:51
It is entirely about the geography of the prey.
27:54
Exactly. They're saying if I die, I
27:56
cannot fight for your reputation here in the streets of Babylon.
27:59
I cannot tear down the idols here among the skeptics.
28:02
That is it. The dead are praising God in
28:04
heaven, sure, but heaven does not need more defenders.
28:07
The Earth is where the battle line is drawn.
28:10
Spot on. They are joining the heavenly
28:12
chorus, yes, but their earthly usefulness in the immediate
28:15
cultural battle has ended. The theologian Arthur Priddim
28:19
frames this brilliantly. What does he say?
28:21
He states that until the regeneration of all things,
28:24
until the final resurrection, the earth is a place of graves,
28:28
It is a hostile territory. A tough place to live.
28:31
The earth was given to the children of men as a
28:33
stewardship. Therefore, the living must
28:36
urgently take up the mantle. We have to step.
28:39
Up We have to compensate for the silent voices of those who have
28:42
passed away into the grave by loudly blessing the Lord here
28:46
and now. The silence of the grave is
28:49
contrasted with the necessary vocal praise of the living
28:53
Church. I want to apply that directly to
28:55
you, the person listening right now.
28:57
Consider your current earthly life as a brief, urgent window
29:01
of opportunity. It is very brief.
29:03
The Earth was given to you as a stewardship.
29:05
You're here to establish a visible witness of the
29:08
Almighty's authority in a highly skeptical world.
29:11
A world that is watching. The Saints who came before you
29:14
have passed on. Their voices are no longer
29:16
ringing out in your city, in your workplace, or in your home.
29:19
They have run their race. They are in glory now.
29:21
It is your turn to pick up the baton.
29:24
You are the one breathing right now, which means you are the one
29:26
responsible for speaking truth into the spaces where God has
29:30
placed you. That urgency is what drives the
29:32
final triumphant verse of the Psalm.
29:34
But we will bless the Lord from this time forth and forevermore.
29:38
A powerful ending. It is a resolute, defiant
29:41
commitment against the silence of the idols and the silence of
29:44
the grave. It is the Believer saying, While
29:47
I have breath, I will use it for the glory of the sovereign.
29:50
We have covered a massive amount of ground today.
29:53
We have seen how the ancient physical idols were completely
29:56
silent and how they caused their makers to become silent and
29:59
spiritually inert. The principle of assimilation.
30:02
We have seen the absolute sovereignty of the God of the
30:05
heavens, who does whatever He pleases and who extends His
30:08
covenant blessings to the small and the great alike, entirely
30:11
bypassing human hierarchies. We have seen that the mandate
30:14
for the living is to boldly utilize our given time on earth
30:18
to advocate for the glory of the Creator.
30:20
We have a job to do. We do not shrink back when
30:23
skeptics demand a sign we trust in the hidden sovereign work of
30:28
the Almighty. Which brings me to a final
30:30
question I want you to ponder long after this audio stops.
30:32
Let us hear it. Look around at the screens, the
30:35
algorithms and the ideologies demanding your attention and
30:38
your devotion today. These are the modern silver and
30:41
gold. They really are.
30:42
Are these modern silent idols shaping you into a silent,
30:46
spiritually dormant person? Or are you utilizing your breath
30:50
right now on this earth to boldly speak the praises of the
30:54
living, sovereign God? That is the ultimate question.
30:57
Thank you for joining this audio session on Reformed Thinking.
31:00
We encourage you to take these truths, reject the silent idols
31:03
of our age, and carry a bold, vocal faith into your week.