Psalm 50

Open your bibles this morning to Psalm 50….

It is true that everyone, every human being believes in god (pause)or at least A god… Last week we talked about Psalm 23 and the necessity of the Christian to be led by God and God alone. Yet saying we believe in god without knowing which god we really believe in is far more common and far more destructive than many of us realize.

AW Towzer once said, “what comes into your mind when you think about God is the most important thing about you”… He states that

For this reason the gravest question before the Church is always God Himself, and the most portentous fact about any man is not what he at a given time may say or do, but what he in his deep heart conceives God to be like. We tend by a secret law of the soul to move toward our mental image of God. This is true not only of the individual Christian, but of the company of Christians that composes the Church. Always the most revealing thing about the Church is her idea of God, just as her most significant message is what she says about Him or leaves unsaid, for her silence is often more eloquent than her speech. ...”

It is true that everyone, everyone believes in god. The issue is, which god...

We in America have gotten really good at this… We teach our children the pledge of allegiance which says, “one nation under God”… On our money, above our court houses, on our license plates we inscribe, “In God we trust”… Those are all good things. But again we must ask, which god?

The worship of God, and the following of the one true God truly comes down to how you know Him. It is a wonderful truth that The triune God, father son and holy spirit is both transcendent and imminent. He is both far beyond what our comprehension can grasp and at the same time personal and close to us…

So as we continue to consider where we are going as a church we need to consider what we think about God. It is really easy and comfortable for everyone for me to stand up here and say, we are not taking god out of the church… Everyone is comfortable with that, Christian and non christian alike. Simply belieiving in god is safe and following god is safe, because everyone believes in god. God is safe, until we start defining him. But there are some things about god that we have believed that need to be removed from this church. And there are things about god that have been left unsaid, that need to be said.

So, this morning, I will identify the unfortunate problem of humanity and christianity in general, then give us the solution, and lastly supply us with a couple implications…

Lets read Psalm 50….

Psalm 50 ESV

A Psalm of Asaph. 1 The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. 2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God shines forth. 3 Our God comes; he does not keep silence; before him is a devouring fire, around him a mighty tempest. 4 He calls to the heavens above and to the earth, that he may judge his people: 5 “Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!” 6 The heavens declare his righteousness, for God himself is judge! Selah 7 “Hear, O my people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you. I am God, your God. 8 Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me. 9 I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds. 10 For every beast of the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand hills. 11 I know all the birds of the hills, and all that moves in the field is mine. 12 “If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the world and its fullness are mine. 13 Do I eat the flesh of bulls or drink the blood of goats? 14 Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving, and perform your vows to the Most High, 15 and call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.” 16 But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to recite my statutes or take my covenant on your lips? 17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you. 18 If you see a thief, you are pleased with him, and you keep company with adulterers. 19 “You give your mouth free rein for evil, and your tongue frames deceit. 20 You sit and speak against your brother; you slander your own mother’s son. 21 These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought that I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you. 22 “Mark this, then, you who forget God, lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver! 23 The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly I will show the salvation of God!”

We can break this psalm up into Four sections. The first one is verse 1-6, then 7-15, 16-21, and 22-23…

In this first section the Lord comes and indicts his people. The Lord almighty, summons or calls together all of the heavens and the earth to bear witness to what he is about to say to his people.

Verse two, he speaks from the place of perfection. Perfect beauty.

His power can be summarized in verse 3, as an all consuming Holy fire, shrouded in tempests, or storms.

Verse 4-6, Yahweh, the Lord almighty alone describes Himself as judge of the earth. He the judge, has called together the jury heaven and earth to witness his proceedings as the defendant, those who proclaim his name, stand for trial. We will call the defendants His “associators”, ones who associate with him.

In Verse 7-15 God speaks to the first group of his associators…

It is not for there burnt offering that they are being rebuked by the Lord. They are really faithful to sacrifice animals to God. They are really good at going to church and taking part in religious activities…

God says in verse 9 that he will not accept a bull a goat From them. This is not a statement that means he will not accept a sacrifice, but points to the reason God is rebuking them.

He Says in verse 10 that every beast of the field is his. He owns the cattle on 1000 hills. All the birds of the air are his too. He created them all, he sustains them all. He has no need of anything. He is self sustained.

But that is the problem he has with them.

Verse 12-13… The motivation of the hearts of the religious associators was that they believed God needed them to sacrifice. They believe God needed them to keep up their religious services. Their relationship with God was mechanical. We have to do this.

God tells them in verse 14, make Thanksgiving your sacrifice. Essentially he says, “you know what is better than killing a bull and offering it to me, performing your vows you have made to me.”

Meaning, you said you were not going to have any other gods, take the name of god in vain, you would keep the sabbath day holy, you would not murder, or steal, or comity adultery Etc.. The Ten Commandments. You know what is better than making sure the stained glass windows remain in prime condition? You know what is better than coming to church on Sunday? Practicing what you preach....

Now, lets move on to the second group… Verse 16-21…

This group of people are worse. The first group doesn’t seem to be immoral, at least. They have a going through the motions problem.

The second group though, they associate with God, but live like hell…

Verse 16, the fruit you bear is that you recite my statutes and take my covenant on your lips yet you hate discipline. You had the daily paideia of the God. Verse 17 God’s word has no value to them… I heard it said once some three years ago here in this room. A woman professing to be a christian once looked at me and said, since when did we get biblical. Meaning, since when did we start doing everything the bible says?

Verse 18, They were ok with thievery and injustice. They saw no problem in associating with God AND telling adulterers and the sexually immoral to keep on keeping on.

Verse 19-20, they have no control over their slanderous, and deceitful, and evil tounges.

And now, we get to the problem. We get to the root that has given way and born the fruit…

Verse 21. These things they did, but God kept silent. Any parents in here ever experienced this? There are times I will come upon my child or children doing something wrong. And as I observe I won’t announce my presence. I will simply stand and watch to bear witness to their conscience. Hoping! They will see what they are doing and stop before I have to say something…

This is the picture here. God has been patient, not rebuking, not doing anything, giving them time to repent. They knew what they were doing was wrong, they knew it, he had spoken his word and they were reciting it! Yet, they didn’t care… In fact here is the blunder.

They thought God, this God they associated with, this God they professed, they thought the I AM was like one of them… They thought, hey, I have been sleeping with someone who isn’t my wife, and god hasn’t rained down brimstone on me, so, it must be ok… They kept on sinning, thinking God, the almighty, the HOLY one, that the perfect beauty of God was ok with the disgusting stain of sin.

Here is the problem my friends. Group number one of associators thought God needed them. They thought of God in a mechanical way. Worship god here, god will get what he wants and we will get what we want and all will be hunky dorey. Group number two were hypocrites and liars... But both actions, the mechanical worship, and the two faced lifestyle came from a wrong thinking about God.

So what’s the solution? Well if I were you I would listen closely…

Verse 22 says if those who forget God don’t listen closely he will tear them apart. The judge gives the verdict but being a merciful judge He gives them the right to appeal.. Verse 23, God says the appeal or solution must be to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving. God says, the one who will see His salvation is the one who orders his way rightly! Now what does that mean. It means submit your entire life to God.

Paul follows up on this in Romans 12:1

Romans 12:1 ESV

I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.

The solution is not to get more religious, it is to make God your life. The solution is to take up your cross and follow Jesus. Jesus told his listener many times, Matthew 10:38-39

Matthew 10:38–39 ESV

And whoever does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.

To take up your cross means to consider yourself dead. You, the person as you know you to be, are dead. You don’t exist anymore. To take up your cross means that you, all of what YOU think you know, and YOU think you should do, or not do, should be put to death.

Being a good religious person will not save you. Looking like a good religious person is even worse. Jesus says, take up your cross and follow me. Follow Christ. That means that yesterday you thought what it means to be the best and fullest most excellent me is ____ Fill in the blank. And today under submission to Christ what you think to be the best and fullest you is to do the Will of God.

What is the will of God? What is it that God calls you to do? He tells the people in Psalm 50, “order your life rightly”… Paul tells the church

1 Thessalonians 4:3 ESV

For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality;

Romans 6:19 ESV

I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification.

The author of Hebrews says Hebrews 12:14

Hebrews 12:14 ESV

Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

And here is the hammer that drives the nail in Jesus said to his disciples John 14:15

John 14:15 ESV

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

God has shown us His love in this, that He sent Jesus Christ to die for the sins of the world. He loved us by raising him from he dead that we might believe. Do you believe Jesus died and rose to life? If so, there are some implications… All of which could be wrapped up in one Statement.

That you live like it… That you live as you believe…

If I can sum up Psalm 50 I would like this… There are Christian’s, and there are Christians, and then there are Christians… Not everyone who associates with Christian’s or calls themself a Christian is a Christian in the eyes of God. Richard Dawkins, leading world atheist for the last 30 years said last month that he himself was a “cultural Christian”. Which is a what God says at best those two groups in Psalm 50 are… People who have forgoten God, and put on a show as if they were follwoing him…

You see, many of us have the idea that the christian life is summed up in this.

I read some scripture from time to time, I come to church on Sunday, I give some money to the church, I give some money to the food bank, I say my prayers before I eat, and when I die I go to heaven… This is not the christian life.

The christian life is to have your mind changed about God. To be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Paul said, the will of God Is this… That you be sanctified! Many of you are doers… I thought I needed to be a better mom and get up at 5am and be the proverbs 31 woman to prove myself acceptable to God… or I thought I needed to come to more mens bible studies or mens events to prove that I am a christian… Thats not the will of God for you, the will of God for you is that you come closer to him. Remeber david?Audience of one… Psalm 50 say God is pleased when you call on him in your day of need. That you give thanks in ALL circumstances because you know he is God… He is calling you closer and closer to himself, and Jesus the good shepherd is leading you to Him. This happens by knowing more about who he is. Recall Tozer, however you think about God, your life will follow.

But knowing God is not for the sake of knowledge. This is because you want him. Not simply in a mechanical way where you can win bible trivia... But you want to know Him because you love Him and are committed to thank him and call upon him as the Lord your God.

Under the care of the elders, Providence Christian Church will seek nothing more than this. We don’t need you to be a here on Sunday to be another statistic for our attendance numbers. We don’t need your money to keep the lights on. We don’t need anyone to do more Christiany stuff. We don’t need one certain type of music, or one certain order of service, etc. We need our one Lord. The Lord Jesus Christ to be exalted above everything we do. We need to proclaim week by week that Jesus is Lord and call you to obey what He says… We need to teach you to call upon the blood of Christ for the forgivness of your sin and the purity your hearts and minds. We need to thank Jesus in the beginning, the middle and the end of every activity. We need Jesus to be seen, heard, sensed, understood, and most of all desired.

Let the mega churches have the cool lights. Let the stale and dying churches have their list of traditions to keep. Let the worldly churches, if I can call them that at all, have their “inclusions” and “acceptance” of all. We as elders say, let them have all of that… Our desire is Jesus. The word made flesh. Let us eat of him, and drink of him, and do all things to HIS glory alone.