Summer in the Psalm Part 1

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Intro:

This week I had the honor of preaching Dorie’s grandmother’s funeral
Share about Honey
Personally she was one of my biggest cheerleaders
And she immediately welcomed me into her family
One of the things that I was just so overwhelming grateful for during all of it was community.
Dorie has a big family and we are all really close
But not even just that family but our church family and friends who are more like family
The love and care we felt even in the midst of one of the toughest times is such a reflection of the grace and goodness of God in our lives
It’s such a good reminder that we were never meant to be alone
Even from the very beginning as God creates the whole world and everything in it
After each creation he looks and says that it is good
Until he creates man and looks at him isolated and alone and for the first time God utters….it is not good
It is not good for man to be alone
And that truth remains throughout human history
And God specifically make sure that His people are together
in one accord, under one name, in unity, in thought, in goal, in mission, and also physically that His people will gather
That as we come before the Lord with praise and adoration that there would be moments and places that we do that together
Right, so today that’s one of the objectives of the church, it’s designed, by God, to gather His people together, for the glory of God
In OT times it was the temple of God, His people would come from all over the world and gather in the temple to bring sacrifices and praise to Yahweh
It was a instrument gather the people of God together to worship Him together.
Now, over time, I believe that those gatherings of God’s people have become over religionized and what’s happened because of that is people feel like they must meet certain criteria, they must do certain traditions, and they must act a certain way that is untrue of them otherwise
Now, I am all for honoring the Lord, right so there is a right way to gather and a wrong way, and I am by no means advocating for dishonoring the Lord
But the effects of our over churched southern bible belt jesus believing scripture mug coffee drinking culture is that upon our gathering we must put on our masks to meet tradition so that we aren’t looked down upon by the people who should be the most gracious in the world
Following Jesus has become a competition of who can fake it the best
And because of that, here at Cornerstone, we strategically have set out to be real
Real first and foremost to the Lord but also real with one another
There’s no benefit in faking it
It’s a trap that is never ending
So, yes, behave in a way that honors the Lord, His church, and His people, but real as best you can in the process of that.
And so, one of the things that I love about the Psalms is it is designed as a virtual temple for the people of God
A place for the people of God to enter into to, to pray, sing, meditate, and worship the Lord
But it’s not just “the Lord is good because He gives me all these blessings and He provides my every need and He is so close and present at every turn.”
The Psalms are not interested in being fake
You know what else the Psalms don’t try to do
They don’t try to protect God
Here’s what I mean by that.
I think so often, the church today stays away from difficult conversations and hard to explain topics because we feel like we need to protect God’s image to people
Listen, God doesn’t need your protection, and if He did, He would not be much of a God
And so the psalmsists are just real, they just put it out there.
God where are you when I need you?
haven’t we asked that same question.
God how could you allow evil people to thrive and good people to suffer?
Haven’t we asked that question?
God I’ve searched you and sought after you and I needed you to provide and you didn’t.
Haven’t we uttered similar word?
So, if you want cookie cutter Jesus, cookie cutter gospel, cookie cutter religion, stay away from the Psalms
If you want real, then you’ll enjoy this
So, this isn’t the first time we’ve been in the Psalms and probably won’t be the last, there are 150 of them after all
All written by different authors
And upon first glance they do seem a little scattered at times but there is a purpose behind each one
There’s really 5 big sections of the Psalms and chapters 1&2 serve as the books introduction
Since we did chapter 1 last time this time we will open with chapter 2 and then skip around some as we move through the rest of them this summer
So, if you have your Bibles turn to Psalm chapter 2 (middle of you Bible)
Psalm 2 NIV
1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth rise up and the rulers band together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, 3 “Let us break their chains and throw off their shackles.” 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. 5 He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” 7 I will proclaim the Lord’s decree: He said to me, “You are my son; today I have become your father. 8 Ask me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will break them with a rod of iron; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.” 10 Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with fear and celebrate his rule with trembling. 12 Kiss his son, or he will be angry and your way will lead to your destruction, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.
So, in this Psalm we have 4 major sections
vs 1-3 you have the kings who oppose the Lord and His anointed one
Then in vs 10-12 those same kings are inited to take refuge by serving the Lord and paying homage to the Son
And in between those 2 sections two voices are heard
vs 4-6 the Lord speaks of the appointment of His Son to rule and reign
And then in vs 7-9 the Son speaks of the divine promise of world rule
So first section
The question that is essentially asked is, why is there no peace?
You know the beauty contestant answer to what do you want most in the world
World peace
But why can’t we get that?
And the psalmist foundational answer to that question is
Peace is impossible when the Lord and His anointed one are rejected
So when we look at this from a macro level, when leaders and rulers are appointed who rebel against the Lord, peace is impossible.
And that can play out in a lot of way but what we know from scripture is that Jesus is the Prince of Peace
And so when you buck up against the Prince of Peace, peace becomes out of reach
When we look at this from a micro level and we zoom in a little bit
When you rebel agains the Lord, peace is going to be impossible for you
And I’m not talking about momentary peace, I’m talking about internal and eternal peace
You will never experience that peace that surpasses understanding that Scripture promises to those who live in peace with Jesus
And again this plays out in many ways
peace in your family, peace in your marriage, peace at your job, peace in your relationships
bottom line: peace is impossible without the Prince of Peace
Next section: (4-6) The Lord does not negotiate with rebels
Nor does He adjust himself to suit their demands
In fact, what He does is He simply reaffirms His royal plan
His King is installed and that is the end of the matter
No earthly power or authority will ever thwart the heavenly kingdom and plans
So, even the greatest of rebellion does not alter divine sovereignty
Jesus is King and no other king, no other power, no other principality, no other ruler or authority can change that
And if you so choose to rebel against His kingdom just know that His judgement is terrifying
Bottom line: Jesus is King, get in line
Next Section: (7-9) The purpose and power of the Son
God makes publicly plain what had always been the case.
That “ask of me” phrase contrasts the Son and the rebellious kings
Where rebellious kings demand and command out of self and self alone
The Son is submissive to the Father
The Trinity of God works in perfect unison to conduct the work of the kingdom
And so what we see is the inheritance of the Son
What does the Son get?
The earth and the nations
It all belongs to Jesus
We may think that we have possessions and that we have this and that we have that, but here is
The bottom line: Everything belongs to Jesus, including you
Last section: (10-12) Submit to the Son
Serve Him, rejoice in Him, kiss Him, find refuge in Him
The proper response to King Jesus is our actions for His glory,
Our worship for His glory
Our adoration for His glory
Our safe place for His glory
When we begin to understand the hierarchy of the kingdom, we can respond properly
And if we don’t anger and wrath is your reward.
But if we do, we will be blessed
Bottom line: Submit to His Kingship
Psalm chapter 2
Peace is impossible without Jesus
Jesus is king
Everything belongs to Him
Submit to His Kingship
It’s an election year, and it seems like every election season things just get crazier and crazier
People begin to panic and fear sets in
The world will end if he gets that position or if she gets that position
Everything will be ruined!
I think in those moments, Scripture would challenge us to look outside of our little kingdoms
We can get so fixated on our worlds and our kingdoms that we lose sight of the power and authority of God
Listen, I know those positions are important and I want the best people in them just like you do
But at the end of the day, no elected member is going to thwart the kingdom of God
And as the church, that should bring us such hope
Imagine being the person whose world comes crumbling down because the wrong person got elected in their mind
As the church the wrong person can be elected and that’s ok because the right person sits on the throne
Jesus is King and nothing is going to change that
The only thing we get to decide is: do we want to live in rebellion of His kingdom
Or do we want to live in that kingdom
Let me real here for just a second just like the Psalms are and then we will wrap up
There is a price to pay either way
If you submit to the kingdom of God you will have to kill self
You will have to everyday wake up and decide, I do not live for myself any longer
You will have to pick up your cross and nail yourself to it
And you will have to live for Jesus because He is King
Or, you can live in rebellion and pay it’s price
The anger and wrath of king Jesus
Sometimes that is here and now
But what I can absolutely guarantee is that there’s coming a day when you breathe your last, that if you have lived in rebellion against God, you will reap the wrath of God
And I was reminded once again this week, you never know when that last breath will be
So, please! I am begging you this morning. Don’t wait until it’s too late.
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