Psalms 19 Message
Last week I talked about putting our eyes on God and keeping them there. This week we’ll focus on hearing God’s voice.
We fellowship in a Holy Ghost church. The Holy Spirit is a welcomed guest in our worship, in our preaching and teaching, in our prayer… It is not unusual to hear a prophet say that “the Lord had revealed”, or “the Lord was saying”… Pastor will be speaking and stop to acknowledge “yes, Lord, thank you for that”. Or ask “did anyone have anything to share?” We are used to hearing form God, because we actively listen for his voice.
Scripture tells us in John 10
14 “I am the good shepherd; I know my sheep and my sheep know me— 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father—and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 I have other sheep that are not of this sheep pen. I must bring them also. They too will listen to my voice, and there shall be one flock and one shepherd.
But not everyone listens for God’s voice. In fact most people have no desire to hear what God has to say. They believe he will tell them to do something they don’t want to do. OR to stop doing something they are doing. Some are afraid to hear what He has to say. They think He will condemn them for their sins.
The bottom line is whether people want to hear from God or not, He still has a message for all of us. This morning’s lesson is not new revelation. You already know what I’m going to share. The reason we’re devoting 40 minutes to this topic is so that by the time we are finished, you will know what to say the next time someone says “oh, yeah right, you heard from God”, you will be able to say, “yes, and you can too.” Here’s how…
God speaks to us in 3 ways.
Turn with me to Psalms 19
1. God reveals himself in creation
1 The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they display knowledge.
It doesn’t matter whether it is day or night. God’s creation is speaking to us. It says there is a Creator. Life is not an accident. There is an order in design.
3 There is no speech or language
where their voice is not heard.
4 Their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
It doesn’t matter where you are. Creation surrounds you. No one can say they didn’t know there was a God.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun,
Now remember that when David wrote this he did not have the scientific knowledge of the cosmos that we have today. We know that there are stars bigger than the sun and that really doesn’t change the fact that for us here on planet earth, the sun is the most dominant part of creation. And yet the Creator still controls it.
5 [the sun] which is like a bridegroom coming forth
from his pavilion,
like a champion rejoicing to run his course.
6 It rises at one end of the heavens
and makes its circuit to the other;
nothing is hidden from its heat.
2. God speaks to us in Scripture. When you see the word “law”, I want you to think, “word of God”. The two are interchangeable.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
Perfect meaning flawless. There are no errors in the Bible. When you follow God’s word, you walk in his order. We look at the dietary restrictions listed in Leviticus and we think their unreasonable. No pork, no lobster, no shrimp. Those are some of my favorite foods. But they didn’t have refrigeration or FedEx. Nor did they have antibiotics. If you didn’t practice the sanitation rules as set forth in the Law, you got sick.
7 The law of the Lord is perfect,
reviving the soul.
The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,
making wise the simple.
There is wisdom in the word of the Lord. When we read about the trials people faced in Biblical times, we can learn from their mistakes. We don’t have to go through the same hardships they did.
Flip over to Deuteronomy 30
15 See, I set before you today life and prosperity, death and destruction. 16 For I command you today to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commands, decrees and laws; then you will live and increase, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land you are entering to possess.
17 But if your heart turns away and you are not obedient, and if you are drawn away to bow down to other gods and worship them, 18 I declare to you this day that you will certainly be destroyed. You will not live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to enter and possess.
19 This day I call heaven and earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20 and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Back to Psalms 19
8 The precepts of the Lord
Another word for precepts is teachings. Every time Jesus opened his mouth he taught something.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
God’s word is right. There is nothing in this book that would lead a person into sin. On the contrary, meditating on the word of the Lord brings joy to your heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
When someone has light in their eyes, they are excited about the future. They have hope and expectation.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever.
The ordinances of the Lord are sure
and altogether righteous.
To fear God means to have respect for Him. When we obey what the words says, we show God and those around us that we respect [fear] God.
Ordinances are laws. We have laws to help us do what is right. What does it mean when you see a diamond shaped yellow sign with 2 children on it? School zone. What about a sign with a red octagon on it? Stop. Both are warning signs. When you enter a school zone, you reduce speed because children are nearby. Small children aren’t always as cautious as they should be. The speed zone protects them.
The word of God is like that. It warns us about the tricks the enemy uses. When we follow God’s laws and teach them to our children, we walk under the protection of the Almighty.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
You can’t but the peace of mind that the Bible gives us.
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the comb.
Honey is sweet and gives instant energy to the body. When your spirits are low, or you’re worried about something, there is comfort and assurance in God’s word. It satisfies your soul.
11 By them is your servant warned;
in keeping them there is great reward.
Studying and keeping God’s Law leads us away from temptation & sin.
Where is the reward? The reward comes in keeping the Word, not for keeping it. Would you rather have a gold watch when you retire or find favor with your bosses throughout your career?
3. God speaks to our hearts.
12 Who can discern his errors?
It is very difficult to be impartial when we are evaluating ourselves and our motives. Jeremiah said, “No person can understand his own heart”. (17:9) We need a standard of comparison to evaluate how true we really are. The Word of God is our measuring stick.
David asked God to…
Forgive my hidden faults.
Sins I wasn’t aware of committing
13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;
Both sins I did willfully, and sins of omissions: where I didn’t do what God told me to do.
may they not rule over me.
Sin makes you its slave. You tell one lie and then you have to tell another lie to support the first. When we allow the Word of God to control our lives that we get victory over sin.
Then will I be blameless,
innocent of great transgression.
We know the only way to be truly blameless is through salvation in Jesus Christ. Believers who confess their sins immediately are covered by the atoning blood of Jesus who already paid for that sin 2000 years ago.
So how is that God speaking to our hearts?
Keep your finger in Psalms 19 and turn over to Romans 10
9 That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.
Back to Psalms 19
14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight,
O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Sound familiar? Its one of my favorite prayer verses.
What we put into our heart controls the words that come out of our mouth
“Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks”.
Meditation is to the heart what digestion is to the body; When we meditate on the Word of God and it becomes a part of the inner being. As the heart and mind think on the Word all day long, the Spirit guides the life. Our lives are founded on the rock, the foundation of the word, and Jesus the one who redeemed us from sin and death.