Psalm 37

Acrostic

Wisdom literature like very much like proverbs

Wisdom Principles, not guarantees

Psalm 37 ESV

Of David. 1 Fret not yourself because of evildoers; be not envious of wrongdoers! 2 For they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. 3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness. 4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. 5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act. 6 He will bring forth your righteousness as the light, and your justice as the noonday. 7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices! 8 Refrain from anger, and forsake wrath! Fret not yourself; it tends only to evil. 9 For the evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait for the Lord shall inherit the land. 10 In just a little while, the wicked will be no more; though you look carefully at his place, he will not be there. 11 But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace. 12 The wicked plots against the righteous and gnashes his teeth at him, 13 but the Lord laughs at the wicked, for he sees that his day is coming. 14 The wicked draw the sword and bend their bows to bring down the poor and needy, to slay those whose way is upright; 15 their sword shall enter their own heart, and their bows shall be broken. 16 Better is the little that the righteous has than the abundance of many wicked. 17 For the arms of the wicked shall be broken, but the Lord upholds the righteous. 18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever; 19 they are not put to shame in evil times; in the days of famine they have abundance. 20 But the wicked will perish; the enemies of the Lord are like the glory of the pastures; they vanish—like smoke they vanish away. 21 The wicked borrows but does not pay back, but the righteous is generous and gives; 22 for those blessed by the Lord shall inherit the land, but those cursed by him shall be cut off. 23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; 24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand. 25 I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread. 26 He is ever lending generously, and his children become a blessing. 27 Turn away from evil and do good; so shall you dwell forever. 28 For the Lord loves justice; he will not forsake his saints. They are preserved forever, but the children of the wicked shall be cut off. 29 The righteous shall inherit the land and dwell upon it forever. 30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, and his tongue speaks justice. 31 The law of his God is in his heart; his steps do not slip. 32 The wicked watches for the righteous and seeks to put him to death. 33 The Lord will not abandon him to his power or let him be condemned when he is brought to trial. 34 Wait for the Lord and keep his way, and he will exalt you to inherit the land; you will look on when the wicked are cut off. 35 I have seen a wicked, ruthless man, spreading himself like a green laurel tree. 36 But he passed away, and behold, he was no more; though I sought him, he could not be found. 37 Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace. 38 But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the future of the wicked shall be cut off. 39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. 40 The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.

Why would we be envious of Evil doers?

We see people who disobey God seem to have happiness and success while we experience hardship.

Envy :

Baker Encyclopedia of Psychology and Counseling Envy

A bad feeling stirred up because of the presence of something good in another person but lacking in oneself.

God created us to understand right and wrong to seek goodness and value justice

Sin twists those good wirings and when we see something good happening to someone who we precieve to not deserve it, envy crops up and THEN that settles in to bitterness and unbelief

You may think “I believed in Jesus. I have been trying to be different. I come to church, i read my Bible….sometimes”

God must not be faithful.

God must not be good.

These pastors and parents must not know what they are talking about.

I must not be worthy

I need to do more to earn God’s favor

What does this psalm tell us instead?

Trust in the Lord

Psalm 37:3 ESV

3 Trust in the Lord, and do good; dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness.

How do we build trust? :

Learn as much about God as possible. Who he is. What he is like. What he has Done. What he has promised.

Time. trust takes time to build and strengthen.

Step back and gain perspective on your situation. Remember you see through a sin, and human frailty fogged lens.

Delight yourself in the Lord

Psalm 37:4 ESV

4 Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Reorient yourself. Why don’t I have the desires of my heart?

Where am you looking for delight?

Are the desires of your heart aligned with God? If you are commited to finding satisfaction in the Lord and doing things His way, you will find delight. (it may not come in the way you think or in the time frame you would prefer)

What are the delights that God has designed?

Psalm 37:11 ESV

11 But the meek shall inherit the land and delight themselves in abundant peace.

Psalm 37:18–19 ESV

18 The Lord knows the days of the blameless, and their heritage will remain forever; 19 they are not put to shame in evil times; in the days of famine they have abundance.

Psalm 37:23–24 ESV

23 The steps of a man are established by the Lord, when he delights in his way; 24 though he fall, he shall not be cast headlong, for the Lord upholds his hand.

Good food

Being together with family and friends

Romance/ sex/ intimacy

physical exertion

Building/making/designing

Don’t discount the delight that comes from:

Being at peace with God and the people in your life and home.

Being free from guilt

Commit your way to the Lord

Psalm 37:5 ESV

5 Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him, and he will act.

Have you tried Obeying? I mean REALLY tried obeying.

Scary but also freeing.

Matthew 6:33 ESV

33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.

Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him

Psalm 37:7 ESV

7 Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!

Why is it so hard to wait? we live in a society that waits for nothing

Am I successful? Who’s opinion of me do I care about? The wicked?

I should care about my testimony.

Matthew 5:16 ESV

16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.

I should care about how God sees me

Romans 12:1 ESV

1 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.

I should care about how men of God see me

Psalm 119:74 ESV

74 Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word.

So What?

Are you discontent and frustrated with where you are in life today? Why?

Are you frustrated with God for not giving you what you want in the way you want it?

Are you frustrated with yourself for failing

Are you frustrated because of other people

Are you tired of waiting?

Do you need to learn to trust God?

Do you need to learn to delight in God?

Do you need to REALLY commit to submitting to God?

Do you need to be still, rest, and wait?

2. The Clock is Ticking. Do you know the end of your story?

If you have not believed in Jesus as your savior and are living for yourself and this temporal world your end is sure. Cut off. Altogether destroyed. Perish. Vanish. Will be no more

You might be very successful but what is the significance of your success? What if you are the richest man in erie county or the most respected, accomplished or educated woman in sandusky, what if you have achieved the American Dream, what if you have as much pleasure and amusement as one person can handle and you walk out of this place today and get hit by a car coming way to fast off of warren onto finch street?

What if you lost your health? What if you lost your home? What if your family or friends or partner betrays and rejects you? Where would you be? What hope would you have?

Psalm 37:39–40 ESV

39 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; he is their stronghold in the time of trouble. 40 The Lord helps them and delivers them; he delivers them from the wicked and saves them, because they take refuge in him.

How do you take refuge in him?

Acts 16:31 ESV

31 And they said, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Believe you are a sinner who needs a savior

Believe that God sent God the son, Jesus, to pay the price for sinners with his death as a truly innocent man on the cross.

AND that he did not stay dead in the grave but he TRUELY and supernaturally rose from the grave to defeat death and make it possible for us to walk in the newness of life.