Sermon Tone Analysis

Our Goal Is Godly Children

Psalm 78:1-39 (Initial Reading vs. 1-8)

Sermon by Rick Crandall

Grayson Baptist Church - June 22, 2014

*The greatest happiness in the life of a Christian parent is to see their child receive Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

The greatest heartache is to see their child reject the Lord.

Nothing in life is more important for us than to raise godly children.

That's true for us as Christian parents.

And it's true for us as a church.

In this Psalm, God helps us see how to do it.

1.

And first of all, the Lord calls us to listen.

*We see this truth twice in vs. 1, where God says: "Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth."

God calls us to stop and listen to Him.

This truth is the main theme for our VBS tomorrow evening.

And it always amazes me to stop and consider that the God of the whole universe is willing to speak to us.

But He is!

By His Word and by His Holy Spirit, God will certainly speak to us.

*And the most important thing God speaks about is His Son Jesus Christ.

In fact, vs. 2 is speaking about Jesus when it says: "I will open my mouth in a parable; I will utter dark sayings of old."

This verse is a prophecy about how the Lord would teach, and it was written a thousand years before Jesus was born!

*God can speak through prophecies like this, because He is bigger than time!

God Almighty is big enough to see the whole scope of history at once, so He can reveal the future to us in His Word, and He has! That's why in Isaiah 46, God gives us this command:

9. Remember the former things of old, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me,

10.

Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, 'My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.'"

*Verse 2 is just one of many prophecies God gave us about His Son Jesus Christ.

And the New Testament explains that this prophecy was fulfilled when Jesus began to teach with parables.

Matthew 13:35 says that Jesus taught in parables, "That it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, saying: 'I will open My mouth in parables; I will utter things which have been kept secret from the foundation of the world.'"

*A skeptic could say that doesn't prove anything about Jesus, because anyone could fulfill this prophecy about telling parables.

But Jesus fulfilled over 300 prophecies during the 33 years of His life on earth.

On just the day of Jesus' crucifixion, 35 different prophecies were fulfilled.

No wonder Jon Allen said, "The biography of Christ was written centuries before He was born."

*So for example, in the Old Testament we read that:

-He would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).

-He would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14).

-He would be betrayed by a friend (Psalm 41:9)

-The price of betrayal would be 30 pieces of silver (Zechariah 11:12-13).

-His hands and feet would be nailed (Psalm 22:16).

-None of His bones would be broken (Psalm 34:20).

-His side would be pierced (Zechariah 12:10).

-He would be buried with the rich (Isaiah 53:9).

-And that He would rise from the dead!

(Psalm 16:10).

*Could over 300 prophecies about Jesus coming true be just a coincidence?

Mathematician Peter Stoner calculated that the odds of even 8 of these prophecies coming true would have been one in a hundred-million-billion! Then to help us understand that staggering figure, Peter gave an illustration using that gigantic number.

*Dr.

Stoner said, "Suppose we take a hundred-million-billion silver dollars, and lay them out over the state of Texas.

Those silver dollars will cover the whole state of Texas two feet deep!

Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state.

Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes anywhere in the state, but he must pick up the silver dollar that was marked.

*What chance would he have of getting the right one?

The same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these 8 prophecies, and having them all come true in any one man!" (1)

*Church: We can be absolutely sure that Jesus Christ is the Lord God Almighty and the only Savior of the world who was prophesied to come.

We can be absolutely sure that God speaks to us in this Book.

And He wants to speak to us, so again in vs. 1, He says: "Give ear, O my people, to my law; Incline your ears to the words of my mouth."

*God wants us to listen to His Word, especially what He says about His Son Jesus Christ.

God wants us to listen to the truth about Jesus' birth, His death on the cross, and his resurrection from the dead.

God calls us to listen, and it's one of the keys for raising godly children.

2. But God also calls us to learn.

*Verse 3 talks about the things of God "which we have heard and known."

[1] God wants us to know.

He surely wants us to know His magnificent works.

*He wants us to learn about the wonderful things that He has done.

God wants us to know all of the Old Testament stories: Like Adam & Eve in the Garden of Eden, Noah and the Ark, David and Goliath, Daniel in the lion's den.

*And here in Psalm 78, God wants us to learn about Moses and the Children of Israel.

The tragic news was that so many people in that generation stubbornly rebelled against God.

And why did they rebel?

Verse 11 shows us one of the main reasons: They "forgot His works And His wonders that He had shown them."

*May we never do that!

May God help us to learn and remember His great works!

-- Works like we see starting in vs. 12:

12. Marvelous things He did in the sight of their fathers, In the land of Egypt, in the field of Zoan.

13.

He divided the sea and caused them to pass through; And He made the waters stand up like a heap.

14.

In the daytime also He led them with the cloud, And all the night with a light of fire.

15.

He split the rocks in the wilderness, And gave them drink in abundance like the depths.

16.

He also brought streams out of the rock, And caused waters to run down like rivers.

*We see more of God's great works in vs. 23-25.

There:

23. . .

He had commanded the clouds above, And opened the doors of heaven,

24.

Had rained down manna on them to eat, And given them of the bread of heaven.

25.

Men ate angels' food; He sent them food to the full.

*We must never forget the great works of our God.

We need to learn them so well that we constantly carry His works in our hearts.

Then they will influence the decisions we make, and the way we live our lives.

*God wants us all to know about His works, especially the wonderful works of Jesus.

He healed the sick and raised the dead.

He walked on water and calmed the storms.

He even died on the cross, and rose again from the dead!

[2] God wants us to learn about His magnificent works.

-- He also wants us to learn about His merciful ways.

*The Holy Spirit helps us understand God's mercy starting down in vs. 36.

There the rebellious Children of Israel:

36. . .

lied to Him with their tongue;

37.

For their heart was not steadfast with Him, Nor were they faithful in His covenant.

38.

But He, being full of compassion, forgave their iniquity, And did not destroy them.

Yes, many a time He turned His anger away, And did not stir up all His wrath;

39.

For He remembered that they were but flesh, A breath that passes away and does not come again.

*Our God is a compassionate, merciful God, and we see this best in the cross of Jesus Christ.

In His merciful love, God the Father sent God the Son into this world to die on the cross for us.

Jesus took all of our punishment for our sins.

Then He rose again from the dead, because He did not deserve to die.