He's Got the Whole World in His Hand

- NRSV 1 The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world, and those who live in it; 2 for he has founded it on the seas, and established it on the rivers. 3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully. 5 They will receive blessing from the Lord, and vindication from the God of their salvation. 6 Such is the company of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob. Selah 7 Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is the King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle. 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah

4 He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

5 He shall receive the blessing from the Lord, and righteousness from the God of his salvation.

3 Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place? 4 Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully. 5 They will receive blessing from the Lord, and vindication from the God of their salvation. 6 Such is the company of those who seek him, who seek the face of the God of Jacob.[a]Selah

6 This is the generation of them that seek him, that seek thy face, O Jacob. Selah.

7 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.

8 Who is this King of glory? The Lord strong and mighty, the Lord mighty in battle.

7 Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. 8 Who is the King of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle. 9 Lift up your heads, O gates! and be lifted up, O ancient doors! that the King of glory may come in. 10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory.Selah

9 Lift up your heads, O ye gates; even lift them up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.

10 Who is this King of glory? The Lord of hosts, he is the King of glory. Selah.

There was a story about a little boy who went to a country store with his mother. When they got to the register to check out, there was a jar of candy sitting on the counter. The little boy looked at the jar of candy and the store owner said, young man it’s free reach in and grab yourself a handful, the boy looked at his mother. The store owner again said, son it’s free, reach in and grab yourself a handful. And the boy just stood there and looked up at his mother. Finally, the store owner reached in and grabbed a handful of candy and gave it to the little boy, the little boy said thank you and he and his mother left the store. When they got outside, the mother asked her son, Son why didn’t you reach in and get some candy when the man said it was free? To which the boy, with a big smile on his face, responded, “Because mommy, his hands were bigger than mine.”

For a message title this morning: He’s Got the Whole World In His Hands.

For those of you who are juggling this and that; dealing with this trial and that one; you’re standing on your toes yet, the waters are rising around you, they’re up to your nose and you feel like you’re about to drown; for those of you who feel like you’re in a pit and there is no way out, I’ve come this morning to encourage you, I’ve come to tell you, to stand there. Just, stand there and look up. Stand there and look up; wait and recognize, God’s hands are bigger than yours, he’s got the whole world in His hands and that includes you and whatever you find yourself dealing with right now, knowing that what you’re dealing with now is temporary, but heaven is eternal.

David is the author of this 24th division of the Psalm and it reflects David’s joyous attitude as a result of capturing the city of Zion and moving the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem. There are six things we’re going to see in this Psalm that is classified as a hymn; they are 1) creation, 2) God, 3) character, 4) blessing, 5) glory, and 6) power.

He begins with creation, The earth. The earth is what God fashioned on the first day of creation. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. There was God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, then God the Father spoke and the earth was formed. He formed it, founded it, and fitted it for man’s use, but it’s still His.

He begins with creation, The earth. The earth is what God created on the first day of creation. In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. There was God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit, then God the Father spoke and the earth was formed. He formed it, founded it, and fitted it for man’s use, but it’s still His.

Next, David establishes that its owner is God --“The earth is the Lord’s”, God created it and it belongs to Him. No matter what you see, hear, feel, experience, or what anyone says, it doesn’t change the fact, God created it and it belongs to Him.

Not only is the earth the Lord’s, but everything and everyone in it. From the worst to the best, from the least to the greatest, it and they are all His. Man would try to have us believe that he discovered, created, manufactured, founded, invented, and built on the earth; but the truth is we are all just here temporarily, everything that’s made still comes from God. God placed it all here, we’re just finding new uses for what He gave us.

Not only is the earth the Lord’s, but everything and everyone in it. From the worst to the best, from the least to the greatest, it and they are all His. Man would try to have us believe that he discovered, created, manufactured, founded, invented, and built on the earth; but the truth is we are all just here temporarily, everything that’s made still comes from God. God placed it all here, we’re just finding new uses for what He gave us.

Man is constantly looking for the latest and greatest, the newest and best, but in the end everything man makes will eventually return to its original state. For some things it may take hundreds of years to biodegrade but it will eventually erode, or expose it to the right conditions and everything will break down. We are all just passing through and nothing remains ours. All we acquire here will pass on to the next generation and hopefully we’ll teach them to be good stewards over what he’s given through our example. Build your treasures in heaven where moths and rust can’t destroy it because naked we came into this world and naked we shall go out.

Even we are not our own, our bodies and our souls belong to God, because not only did He create the world he created mankind in his own image, he created us perfect and gave us freewill to choose.

Even we our not our own, our bodies and our souls belong to God, because not only did He create the world he created mankind in his own image, he created us perfect and gave us freewill to chose.

He founded it, he laid the foundation on the seas and fixed it or set it on the rivers.

He laid the foundation on the seas and fixed it or set it on the oceans.

And then David talks about character, he asks the question, “Who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? And who shall stand in his holy place?” And he doesn’t leave us guessing. In verse four he tells the reader, “Those who have clean hands and pure hearts, who do not lift up their souls to what is false, and do not swear deceitfully”

So let me ask you something, how’s your character? Have you consider your nature? Are you growing, or are you standing still? Have you gotten stagnate and satisfied with just good enough and stop desiring the best God has for you. Have you been told no, you’re not good enough, you don’t know enough so long you’ve stopped seeking God for more? What is your nature?

Have you put any thought into your origin? Do you know where you come from? Are you subscribing to the evolutionists that would tell you, you evolved from the apes? Is your nature to listen to what others say about you or is it to delve into the Word of God for yourself and see what God says about you? Because we fail to find out what God says about us, who He says we are, we battle low self esteem and depression and live beneath where we should be living, and poverty and sickness and disease. So let me put a pin right here and tell you this. In our Thursday morning intercessory prayer group, in our book, Prayers that Avail Much by Germaine Copeland, there is one prayer in particular that deals with overcoming rejection and for those who don’t know who they are let me tell what the Word of God says about you.

Now I’m going to read it as it is written and say I, but you speak this over yourself, at some point you have to learn to declare the Word of God over yourself, for yourself. I’m not available 24/7, Pastor Ed is not available 24/7, your husband, wife, or friend are not available 24/7 and even if they were, they don’t have all the answers, none of us have all the resources you may need, so you need to learn how to speak into your own life. Amen? Now, the prayer says…

In spite of the rejection I have experienced, and you can add, in spite of what I see, in spite of what has happened to me, in spite of… I declare that everything You say about me in Your Word is true:

I am blessed with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ ().

I am chosen by You, my Father ().

I am holy and without blame ().

I am Your child according to the good pleasure of Your will ().

I am accepted in the Beloved ().

I am redeemed through the blood of Jesus ().

I am a person of wisdom and prudence ().

I am an heir ().

I have a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Christ ().

I am saved by Your grace ().

I am seated in heavenly places in Christ Jesus ().

I am Your workmanship ().

I am near to You by the blood of Christ ().

I am a new creation ().

I am of Your household ().

I am a citizen of heaven ().

I am a partaker of Your promises in Christ ().

I am strengthened with might by Your Spirit ().

I allow Christ to dwell in my heart by faith ().

I am rooted and grounded in love ().

I speak the truth in love ().

I am renewed in the spirit of my mind ().

I am Your follower ().

I walk in love ().

I am light in You ().

I walk circumspectly ().

I am filled with the Spirit ().

I am more than a conqueror ().

I am an overcomer ().

I am Your righteousness in Christ Jesus ().

I am healed ().

I am free ( ).

I am salt ().

I am consecrated ( AMP).

I am sanctified ().

I am victorious ().

Everything You say about me is true, Lord. In Your name I pray, amen.

Now tell me again what your origin is. Come on now you have to know you descended from kings and queens, you’re royalty, your Father owns everything and your brother is the King of kings and the Lord of lords.

Not only that, once you’ve accepted Jesus as you Lord and Savior you now have immortality. You have everlasting life, knowing this life is merely a pause on your way to eternity, it’s the place we begin. But God knew you before your were formed in you mother’s womb and he called you and equipped you for service.

The question was who shall ascend the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in his holy place? This is your answer.

You have to know who you are to recognize you can be one with clean hands and a pure heart. You see it’s not you who does the cleaning and the purifier, it’s Christ. When you live a life dedicated to the service of Christ, when you sin, and you will, we know this because tells us all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, so when that happens don’t fret and fall away from the church, repent, ask God for forgiveness, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and keep it moving.

That’s what having a pure heart is all about. As hard as we may try, there will be times we’re going to offend, even those we love most, be quick to forgive and even quicker to ask for forgiveness. We’re frail, fallible people in a faulty frame, give people a break, give yourself a break. You’ve heard, especially if you’ve spent any time in a church, “If I left anyone out, please charge to my head and not my heart” and it’s usually said at a very emotional time, like a thank you speech after a presentation or the end of a program that has been months in the making. Our hearts want to love everyone, they don’t want to intentionally hurt anyone, but the reality, oftentimes our head is the place we operate from, it’s the thinking center and it doesn’t know everything and will not remember everything.

A pure heart is one that forgives, that recognizes nobody’s perfect and is willing to love their sister or brother even through the tough times.

A pure heart will stand with you when everyone else has left you.

A pure heart is the same at home with their family as they are in public with others. Their actions are not a show acted out before the public, but when they get home, they’re mean and rude and unloving toward their own family.

A pure heart is not one way at church, “hallelujah, thank you Jesus, praise the Lord, but when they get to work, their telling crude jokes and their speech is unflattering.

A pure heart recognizes that God sees them in public and in private and strives to be holy and upright in every area of their lives.

These are those who shall ascend the hill of the Lord? Is it you? Is it you? Is it you? Will you be one of the ones to stand in his holy place?

David has some other character traits of this person they don’t lift up their souls to what is false. This person is not concerned with the wealth of the world, the praise of men and they don’t delight in their senses, meaning they don’t subscribed to the if it feels good do it mentality. They don’t try to take the biggest piece or have to have all of something, they understand God’s Kingdom is infinite, I don’t have any less if I don’t have yours too.

You’ll sometimes find those who aren’t happy when you receive a blessing and they don’t, when your program goes well, when people respond when you preach or participate in your program and not theirs. They get jealous and want to nitpick and tear you down or point out what was wrong instead of what was right. They don’t take the stance of being happy for you and realizing hey, I must be in the right place and if God is blessing you I might be next. Amen, I want to be in the place where God’s people, not just people, but God’s people are experiencing blessings.

Are you familiar with the story of the woman who said even the dogs get the crumbs from the master’s table. If you’re in the right place at the right time doing the right thing for the right people, the crumbs could bless you tremendously.

Copeland, Germaine. Prayers That Avail Much Commemorative (pp. 108-109). Harrison House LLC. Kindle Edition.

The Pursuit of Happyness was a movie about a man named Chris Gardner who desired to be a stockbroker with Dean Witter. He worked hard at a non-paying internship where his job was to sign new clients. His wife left him, he kept his son, he got evicted from his apartment, they were in a shelter if they got in line early enough, they slept on the floor in a subway bathroom, he spent the night in jail for unpaid parking tickets, and on many of the calls he made trying to sign new clients, what he heard was no. But there was a one. He was a large client who a took him to a football game where his company had a box. The major client told him, look, honestly we will not move our portfolio to Dean Witter, why don’t you just enjoy the game. But from that contact there were a whole lot of crumbs that fell from that particular table. You see, there were other people in the box, they were what the business world would call small fish, but they invested with Dean Witter and Chris Garner got the one slot.

Be found doing what God has called you to do and your blessing will come. You want to experience the blessings of God?

Deal honestly with God and man

Don’t swear deceitfully, I swear I’m going to do this or that and you have no intention of doing what you said

If you make a promise, to the best of your ability, keep it - let your yea be yea and your nay be nay

Don’t violate your engagement, if you say you’re going to be somewhere, be there, on time and prepared

Don’t take a false oath.

Be honest and truthful in all your dealings, with God, with yourself and with others

Most importantly honor God’s name. You represent Christ, sometimes you may be the only Bible a person sees, what are you showing them?

Be a person of prayer. Knowing that prayer is not just talking to God and giving Him your list of what you want, prayer is also listening to, for and hearing from God.

In your conduct you can show others, the saved and unsaved, that God is who he says he is and he will do what he says he will do. You can show others rather than seeking revenge, you let God vindicate you.

This is the character of the person who shall ascend to God’s holy hill, who shall stand in his holy place. This is the person who seeks God’s face. This is why it’s so important that we stand together, that we come together in worship, that we pray together and that we encourage one another. Satan has set so many traps for us and if he can get one of us to fall, it creates a ripple in the body. And if the schism is high enough in position, it can do major damage to the body of Christ. Pray saints, pray for your leaders.

Don’t be discouraged, don’t be dismayed, Lift up your heads oh gates, this passage refers to the fathers of the household and the gates David had prepared for the entry for the Ark of the Covenant and be lifted up ancient or the KJV says “everlasting” doors, this refers to the porters opening the doors.

And why are they opening the doors? So the King of glory may come in. You see, at this time God’s dwelling place was the Ark of the Covenant. Open the doors so the Ark of the Covenant may come in. Open the doors so the King of Glory can come in.

Who is this King of glory, and finally his power is revealed in David’s answer, He’s the Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle and now we see the power of God. You don’t have to worry or fret or be afraid, the battle’s not yours it’s the Lord and He’s already won. The text is a song and so he repeats like a chorus, lift up your head oh ye gates and be lifted up oh ancient doors that the King of glory may come in.

Today the King of glory dwells in a very different tabernacle. It’s not one made by hands, it’s your heart, you are the tabernacle in which the Holy Spirit dwells. You need to open the door of your heart so He can come in and abide with you.

And finally just in case there is any doubt, David asks one more time, “Who is this King of glory?” And once again, he doesn’t leave you hanging. He is the Lord of hosts, the Lord of the heavenly hosts, He is the King of glory. Selah. Now think about it. And remember, whatever you find yourself going through, put it in God’s hand, it’s bigger than yours and He not only can hold your problem, He can fix it for you. Let Jesus fix it for you, for he knows just what to do, whenever you pray let him have his way, let Jesus fix it for you.

As you ponder this Word, what you need to know is there is only one way to experience this, there is only one way for the Holy Spirit to dwell in your heart. It’s by invitation only. But it’s not you who needs to receive the invitation you’re the one giving the invitation. Sure in a minute, I’m going to open the doors of the church and extend an invitation to you, but it’s up to you to invite Jesus into your heart.

Jesus is the way to the Father, He is the way to salvation, and everlasting life, he is the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by him. Jesu is the way for the King of glory to come in.

includes blessing, character, creation, glory, God and power.