His Hesed Remembered

(We are going to be reading the whole psalm and jumping around it in the sermon together, so please have it up on your phone or open in your Bible)

Text

Psalm 107 ESV

1 Oh give thanks to the Lord, for he is good, for his steadfast love endures forever! 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble 3 and gathered in from the lands, from the east and from the west, from the north and from the south. 4 Some wandered in desert wastes, finding no way to a city to dwell in; 5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them. 6 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 7 He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in. 8 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! 9 For he satisfies the longing soul, and the hungry soul he fills with good things. 10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons, 11 for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High. 12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help. 13 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart. 15 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! 16 For he shatters the doors of bronze and cuts in two the bars of iron. 17 Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction; 18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 20 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction. 21 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! 22 And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of his deeds in songs of joy! 23 Some went down to the sea in ships, doing business on the great waters; 24 they saw the deeds of the Lord, his wondrous works in the deep. 25 For he commanded and raised the stormy wind, which lifted up the waves of the sea. 26 They mounted up to heaven; they went down to the depths; their courage melted away in their evil plight; 27 they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end. 28 Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. 29 He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. 30 Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven. 31 Let them thank the Lord for his steadfast love, for his wondrous works to the children of man! 32 Let them extol him in the congregation of the people, and praise him in the assembly of the elders. 33 He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, 34 a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants. 35 He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water. 36 And there he lets the hungry dwell, and they establish a city to live in; 37 they sow fields and plant vineyards and get a fruitful yield. 38 By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish. 39 When they are diminished and brought low through oppression, evil, and sorrow, 40 he pours contempt on princes and makes them wander in trackless wastes; 41 but he raises up the needy out of affliction and makes their families like flocks. 42 The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth. 43 Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

Prayer

Heavenly Father, we so desire to do precisely this—to remember how greatly you have loved us!

Though we have broken the terms of our our covenant with you, you have not. You keep your promises. Your love remains.

We desire to know the full scope of this love, because only then will we be truly wise.

You have said, “the fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge” (and wisdom). Your word also says that “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.”

Lord, make us wise by seeing the fearful and glorious reality that the living God has loved us—even when we were still sinners.

Remind us this morning of your steadfast love.

In Jesus name, Amen.

Sermon

Introduction

We began this series with the question, “What really moves a person?”

What gets you out of bed in the morning, and motivates you to do whatever it is you do?

What is it your life is aimed at, and why? Whatever that thing is that your life is aimed at—what about it draws you in?

What moves you?

The reality is this: every single one of us has an honest answer to this question. There is something that truly moves us.

Let’s jump straight to it—Bowman Church, what is your life’s purpose?

What are you—you, individually—supposed to be doing with your life?

Each of us, at the very bottom, have the same answer: to glorify God and enjoy him forever. That’s why we were made. That’s our life’s purpose.

Understanding what that looks like, however, is one of the greatest challenges in life.

And the two greatest threats to clarity in this area are sin and suffering. These two are like termites to our faith. Sin is fire and suffering can be gasoline on the flame. It burns and consumes and generates clouds of smoke that choke and blind us.

This psalm gives us the remedy to these problems.

It gives us a vision of what we should seek to do with our lives, and how to survive and overcome all of the sin and suffering that seek to undermine that vision.

We must have, at the center of our thinking, a concentration on “where am I headed” and “what will get me there.”

Let me tell you what I mean.

The Sin Situation

You and I begin our lives in a state of spiritual death and hopelessness. When you and I were conceived, we were conceived in sin.

Psalm 51:5 ESV

5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.

This is because of the sin nature that we inherit from Adam. Every human being is descended from Adam and Eve, and, because they were our representative, when they fell, we fell. This is why we have sin in the first place.

The very common question regarding this is: “Well why am I suffering for what Adam did?”

The simple answer is this—you aren’t suffering for what Adam did, you’re suffering for what you, yourself, have done. When Adam reached for the fruit, you reached for the fruit. When Eve reached for the fruit, you did as well. They represented us well. And we all demonstrate this to be true by the sin that we freely choose in our own life.

So, here’s the first prong of life’s problems: sin.

This means that, if we are to have any hope in this life or for the next, we require redemption. We have to be rescued.

Psalm 107:2 ESV

2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, whom he has redeemed from trouble

This is what Verse 2 is talking about. We are “the redeemed.”

Now look with me at how this psalm describes it.

Psalm 107:10–11 ESV

10 Some sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, prisoners in affliction and in irons, 11 for they had rebelled against the words of God, and spurned the counsel of the Most High.

Sin is chains. Sin is a slave master. Sin locks us away in dark places. Notice that the sin that did this was not some external force in their lives. It was not chance, luck, or fortune that put them chains. It was because “they rebelled against the words of God.”

It’s been said, “you don’t break God’s law, you break yourself on God’s law.”

This is the painful truth.

Psalm 107:17–18 ESV

17 Some were fools through their sinful ways, and because of their iniquities suffered affliction; 18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.

We also see that this reality is not a bug in God’s design. It is a feature. I know it feels abstract and bizarre to talk about what is truly the most painful and sensitive part our life like this. To state plainly, it is good that God punishes sin. It is good that God afflicts his people. It is good that God, for a time, allows us to reap what we sow. He would not allow it if it was not good. If it did serve a purpose.

Psalm 107:33–34 ESV

33 He turns rivers into a desert, springs of water into thirsty ground, 34 a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.

Part of the good purpose of God’s judgment of sin is that it delivers justice. It punishes evil. It does what is right.

Do we not, all, long for the axe of God’s judgment to fall on the evil of this world? Do we not echo David as he wrote,

Psalm 139:21 ESV

21 Do I not hate those who hate you, O Lord? And do I not loathe those who rise up against you?

But do we have the same fire for justice when we are the ones who hate God? Do we have the same loathing when we rise up against him?

In plain words, do we hate our own sin as much as we should? Do we only hate the consequences of sin, and how it messes things up for us, or do we also hate how it spits in the face of God?

At the very least, do we have a healthy fear of God in realizing that he will not tolerate rebellion forever?

He turns “a fruitful land into a salty waste, because of the evil of its inhabitants.”

This is a brief picture of the geography of sin. Sin at the individual level and at the group level, all of which rightly and appropriately deserves the judgment of God.

A brief pause, here: Bowman, this is a reminder that we need. We need to be constantly sobered by the reality of how offensive sin is. It is literally a death sentence, apart from grace. It kills the one who bears it.

The Salvation

And this is why, my brothers and sisters, the fact that Jesus Christ came on Christmas to bear the sins of the world is such great news.

1 Peter 2:24 ESV

24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.

Isaiah 53:4 ESV

4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted.

God will punish every single sin. Every lie, every lust—every large and little sin will be punished by God.

The question for every human being—past, present, and future—is, “will the deathblow fall on you, or him?”

Will you choose to bear your sin, or will you give it to the Sinbearer?

The most important thing about you is not what you’ve done or not done; what you’re like or who you know. It’s, “are you redeemed?” Are you saved?

Zoom out on your life today, zoom all the way out. Zoom all the way out and imagine all of human history. God creates us and places us in the garden. We rebel against him and destroy the goodness of his world. Instead of vaporizing us, he clothes us in our nakedness and continues to care for us. Down through the ages, he continues to provide for this rebellious creation. He’s doing this because of the promise he made in Genesis 3:15.

Genesis 3:15 ESV

15 I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”

In the darkest day of history, God promised to reverse.

So, human history is this cycle of rebellion, judgment, and redemption. Grace upon grace upon grace. God’s steadfast love shown to his wayward creatures, time and time again.

Until, on Christmas morning, God breaks this cycle by coming down in the person of Jesus Christ to solve the problem forever.

What’s the catch? What do we need to do?

Believe on Jesus, and receive the free gift. Cling to Christ, and come back to your Creator, by grace through faith.

The wooden cross of Jesus Christ that stood on Calvary now divides humanity into two categories.

Those whose sins were born by Jesus on that cross, and those whose sins are terribly, and eternally, their own to bear.

Now zoom back down to your life. Go from thousands of years, to hundreds of years, to only the decades of your own life.

In which category do you fall this day? Have you bent the knee to King Jesus? Are you saved?

The Strong Arm of God

This church is a visible part of an invisible entity. All across the planet, the redeemed of God are singing his praises and listening to his word. They are remembering the steadfast love of God, which was most loudly proclaimed to all the world in the atoning death and resurrection of Christ.

Have you heard and responded to this proclamation?

This church is a visible part of an invisible entity, and the single most important thing about you is if you are a member of this invisible entity. If you are a part of God’s family. Are you a son or daughter of the God who actually exists?

[—]

If you are not, let me speak directly to you.

The fear and desperate anxiety that is killing you from within is screaming at you, “You are not safe.”

You will die. You do not know when you will die. But you do understand that you have sinned against the God who has given you this life.

This very moment, if you are outside of his grace, the blade of his judgment is aimed at you.

The strong arm of God is poised to destroy you for your sin and rejection of his beloved son.

He is not fooled by your church attendance, spirituality, or good works. He sees through the ways you have hidden yourself from him.

He has heard every blasphemy, watched every infidelity, and known every lie.

The hideousness of who you are and what you have done is so much worse than you think it is. Because you, and I, have offended the holy and perfect God of the universe.

[—]

But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loves us, even when we are dead in sins and trespasses, makes sinners alive together with Christ.

Tim Keller said, “The gospel is this: we are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.”

This is what Martin Luther called, simul justus et peccator — “at the same time righteous and sinner.”

The strong arm of God that will bear the blade of judgment is also the arm that has made a way for you.

He has given his son as substitution for you and I.

Jesus said, “Come to me all who are weary and I will give you rest.”

This is what Psalm 107 is pointing us to.

Psalm 107:5 ESV

5 hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted within them.

Psalm 107:12 ESV

12 So he bowed their hearts down with hard labor; they fell down, with none to help.

Psalm 107:18 ESV

18 they loathed any kind of food, and they drew near to the gates of death.

Psalm 107:27 ESV

27 they reeled and staggered like drunken men and were at their wits’ end.

In every instance, what did the broken sinner do?

Verses 6, 13, 19, and 28 all say:

“Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress.”

Psalm 107:7 ESV

7 He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in.

Psalm 107:14 ESV

14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and burst their bonds apart.

Psalm 107:20 ESV

20 He sent out his word and healed them, and delivered them from their destruction.

Psalm 107:29–30 ESV

29 He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. 30 Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven.

Psalm 107:35 ESV

35 He turns a desert into pools of water, a parched land into springs of water.

The kindness and faithfulness of God is shown to every single sinner who comes home.

Like the prodigal son, whether we are coming to Christ for the first time or the thousandth time, when God opens our eyes and our senses return to us, we say,

Luke 15:18–19 ESV

18 I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son. Treat me as one of your hired servants.” ’

And do you see how the prodigal son fails to understand the radical love of the Father? Do you see how he plans to come home and ask only for scraps?

Our prayer might be,

“Please, Lord, don’t send me to hell. Have mercy on me! Take this guilt and shame away!”

Luke 15:20–24 ESV

20 And he arose and came to his father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and felt compassion, and ran and embraced him and kissed him. 21 And the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his servants, ‘Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.’ And they began to celebrate.

We see the same thing in Psalm 107—God not only delivers them from destruction, but he brings them home. He brings them to a city to dwell in, to a safe harbor, their desired haven.

He restores to them the joy of life and a hope for the future.

In each instance, they are thanking and praising God in his presence.

Psalm 107:38 ESV

38 By his blessing they multiply greatly, and he does not let their livestock diminish.

And this work of God in the life of all who repent and turn to him in faith is an eternal, forever, invincible work. No one and nothing can ever snatch you out of his hand.

Psalm 107:42 ESV

42 The upright see it and are glad, and all wickedness shuts its mouth.

[—]

Conclusion: The Steadfast Love of the Lord

Psalm 107:43 ESV

43 Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.

These words are for you if you have not come to Jesus Christ. God has told you of his good news this day. The way home is open. The Father is waiting.

Your sins are as scarlet— Sinner, do not delay— Cast them on Christ Become His this very day

And understand that the Christian life is really only the continuous clinging to and working out of what happens in the moment of salvation.

To be born again is to become something new. You have entered a new life, and one that has an invincible hope. But there is still work to be done here, with the days that we have left.

And this is where we’re reminded of that second prong of life’s struggle—suffering. Sin is fire, and suffering can be like gasoline on that fire. The only antidote to the poison that suffering can be is the love of God.

And so these words are for all Christians, young and old. Mature in the faith, or brand new spiritual babies. In all the sin and suffering.

“Attend to these things;… consider the steadfast love of the Lord.”

Remember the steadfast love of God—the love that will not let you go.

Remember what God has saved you from—an eternity in a Hell of your choosing.

Remember what God has saved you to—an eternity of full joy, and pleasures forevermore.

What has God saved us “to”? What has he saved us “for”?

Listen to what we will sing in just a moment.

“When on the day the great, I Am, The faithful and the true The lamb who was for sinners slain is making all things new Behold our God shall live with us And be our steadfast light And we shall e’er his people be All glory be to Christ”