Trust God’s Plan for You

Trust God’s Plan for You Psalm 33:1–22 (NIV84) 1 Sing joyfully to the Lord, you righteous; it is fitting for the upright to praise him. 2 Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to him on the ten-stringed lyre. 3 Sing to him a new song; play skilfully, and shout for joy. 4 For the word of the Lord is right and true; he is faithful in all he does. 5 The Lord loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of his unfailing love. 6 By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of his mouth. 7 He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; he puts the deep into storehouses. 8 Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere him. 9 For he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood firm. 10 The Lord foils the plans of the nations; he thwarts the purposes of the peoples. 11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. 12 Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. 13 From heaven the Lord looks down and sees all mankind; 14 from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth— 15 he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do. 16 The size of his army saves no king; no warrior escapes by his great strength. 17 A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great power, it cannot save. 18 But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love, 19 to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine. 20 We wait in hope for the Lord; he is our help and our shield. 21 In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name. 22 May your unfailing love rest upon us, O Lord, even as we put our hope in you. Let’s pretend that there is life in outer space. What do you think the man on the moon or somebody from Mars would’ve experienced as the hottest topic or the most discussed event if they turned up on earth this week? Would it still be the fever pitch Russia collusion conspiracy that has dominated the news for the past two years? Would it by any chance be the birth of Archie Harrison – Harry and Megan’s firstborn? Would it be the death of Warren Wiersbe – for those of you who don’t know who he was – Warren Wiersbe was a pastor who wrote more than 150 popular Christian books? Would it be the Australian Federal Election fever? Or would it be the preparations for Mother’s Day that people from more than 100 nations celebrate early every second Sunday in May? I’m not sure whether we’ll ever know. One thing I’m sure of though is that it wouldn’t have been the thing that David was most excited about in Psalm 33. In this Psalm, David encouraged the people of Israel to rejoice – to sing joyfully – Why? Because of what God has done. He told all who are willing to listen to praise God for who He is and what He does! Praise the Lord with the harp; make music to Him on the ten-stringed lyre. Sing to Him a new song; play skilfully, and shout for joy. Friends, it seems to me that David reminds us of this great truth: when we focus on God everything changes. But maybe the most crucial difference is our focus. You see, as a rule, humankind is very inward looking. More than anything else we focus as a rule on our own circumstances, our individual needs, our concerns, our health, or our own lives. However, once we become aware of God, it is like a thick fog has lifted from our lives. Insular thinking is often fearful thinking – where we focus not so much on what is right but on what might be harmful or what might go wrong. For instance, if I need to have an operation, I think that everything will be ok – no, I think about what might go wrong. When I invite people over for a meal, I don’t think about the delightful fellowship we’re going to experience – no, I think about what they might think of the meal. Will they enjoy the desert? On Mother’s Day, we don’t focus on expressing our thankfulness for what mum has done in my life – no, we wonder: will she be happy with what I’ve bought for her for Mother’s Day! Or will she be unhappy because I didn’t buy her anything for Mother’s Day! In the hustle and bustle of life, we often forget what really matters or Who we really should focus on. In Psalm 33 David tries to change this. He is telling Israel (and us) that God should be the focus of life. He should always be the centre of our attention. Why? Listen to David’s arguments: • For the word of the Lord is right and true; • He is faithful in all He does. • The Lord loves righteousness and justice; • The earth is full of His unfailing love. • By the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth. • He gathers the waters of the sea into jars; • He puts the deep into storehouses. • Let all the earth fear the Lord; let all the people of the world revere Him. • For He spoke, and it came to be; • He commanded, and it stood firm. Friends, David reminds us that God should be the centre of our attention because He is the centre of the universe. And the more He becomes the centre of our lives, the more our lives are filled with joyful praises. • Our hearts are filled with praises because the word of the Lord is right and true; • We sing songs of joy because He is faithful in all He does. • We rejoice because the Lord loves righteousness and justice; • We enjoy life on earth because the earth is full of His unfailing love. • We look at the heavens filled with awe and humble respect because by the word of the Lord were the heavens made, their starry host by the breath of His mouth. • When we drive along the coast, we are glad because we know that He gathers the waters of the sea into jars and puts the deep into storehouses. • Yes, we shout it out with jubilation: let all the people of the world revere Him because He spoke, and the world came to be; because He commanded, and it stood firm. When our focus shifts from ourselves to God we, filled with awe, will rejoice with Stuart Keene: O Lord, my God when I in awesome wonder consider all the works Your Hands have made. I see the stars. I hear the rolling thunder. Your power throughout the universe displayed. Then sings my soul, my Saviour God to You: How great You are. When our focus shifts from me to Him we cannot help but to sing like never before with Matt Redman. He sings about the10,000 reasons why he worships God: Because You’re rich in love; and You’re slow to anger; (because)Your name is great, and Your heart is kind; For all your goodness I will keep on singing: ten thousand reasons for my heart to find! So, friends, when we shift our focus away from us to make God the centre pivot of our universe the character of God cause us to rejoice. We rejoice because we see God’s character reflected in everything He says and does. The earth overflows with His steadfast love. The more we study creation around us, the more clearly, we see God’s character displayed. The order in the universe exhibits the structure of God’s character. The beauty in the world presents the goodness of God’s heart; He could have made the world an ugly place in which to live, but He made it beautiful for us to enjoy. When we focus on self, the earth is filled with endless terrors. But when we learn to make God the centre of our attention, we realise that He has filled it generously with grace. Then we come to see that humankind lives in the ocean of God’s goodness like a fish lives in the water. Many don’t see it! Everyone, believer and non-believer, should come to see it and worship this God. Friends, like King David, Chris Tomlin rejoices about the splendour of a King, clothed in majesty. He calls all the Earth to celebrate when they come to know the Godhead – Three in One – Father, Spirit Son – yes, to sing how great is our God, for when we do all will see how great our God is. And if we do it right one day, the whole world will sing: “How great is our God!” But there is one more thought I’d like to parse with you. In verses 10-11 David says: The Lord foils the plans of the nations; He thwarts the purposes of the peoples. 11 But the plans of the Lord stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. In Psalm 2 David asked: 1 Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? 2 The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers gather together against the Lord and his Anointed One. 3 “Let us break their chains,” they say, “and throw off their fetters.” 4 The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. Psalm 2:1–4 (NIV84) Friends, in Proverbs 19:21 we are told: “Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.” And in Proverbs 21:30 we are told: “There is no wisdom, no insight, no plan that can succeed against the LORD.” So, we rejoice, and we praise Him! With Jeremiah in Lamentations 3:37 we acknowledge the truth: “Who can speak and have it happen, if the Lord has not decreed it?” No-one. All our dreams, all our schemes, all our plotting and all our planning, comes to nothing If God hasn’t decreed it. This is the consistent message from Scripture. Listen with me to 4 snippets from Isaiah: • Isaiah 14:24 The LORD Almighty has sworn, “Surely, as I have planned, so it will be, and as I have purposed so that it will stand.” • Isaiah 14:27 For the LORD Almighty has purposed, and who can thwart him? His hand is stretched out, and who can turn it back? • Isaiah 46:9–10 Remember the former things, those of long ago; I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me. I make known the end from the beginning, from ancient times, what is still to come. I say: My purpose will stand, and I will do all that I please.” • Isaiah 55:8–9 “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the LORD. “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.” Friends, God’s will is terrific news for God’s people. To us, it means salvation in Jesus! God’s eternal plan is to submit all nations to His rule. Jesus came to inaugurate that rule. And we are blessed because we are in Christ. Can you see, when God becomes the centre of our attention life becomes a blessing? I understand that it’s easy to feel small in a world of over seven billion people. I know that it is easy to feel as if our day-to-day lives are not worth much, especially when we are struggling with issues, lousy health, illness, old age, loneliness, However, this morning I’d like to call you up to praise God because He has a purpose and a plan for every one of us. Male or female; young or old, married or single, widow or spinster, rich or poor, sick or healthy, retired or still at work, we all should rejoice because God in His rich diversity has a plan our lives, a role for us to play in the carrying out His will. And friends, His plans are always bigger, bolder, and better than anything we could ever imagine. When you start to feel small, uncertain or even fearful for what lies ahead of you, remember the call to change your focus. Learn to look away from yourself and your circumstances and to make God the centre of your attention. We can do this because like Jeremiah we know we can trust the God who tells us: “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” Jeremiah 29:11. Like Ester, you and I can rejoice because according to God’s plan, that nobody can thwart, we were born for a time and a life like this. Esther 4:14. Yes, dear friend, with Paul we can rejoice because we know at for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28. Therefore, regardless of what tomorrow might bring, when we make God the centre of our attention, we rejoice because we know that we can trust Him. Charles Spurgeon once said, “Beloved friends, may we continue to praise God, for our God continues to give us causes for praise!” Each day we are given a chance to praise Him; to honour all He will do. And each night we can reflect on what He has done; giving Him honour for it. “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your understanding; 6 in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight.” Proverbs 3:5–6 (NIV84) Amen.