Hearts of Unbelief
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· 7 viewsDoctrine of Total Depravity. Practical atheism of the heart.
Notes
Transcript
As we look through Psalm 14 this morning, it’s a very sobering psalm that speaks of a very important doctrinal truth, and I hope as you hear God’s Word this morning that you will be convicted by this truth; of man’s fallen sinful nature, and our need for God’s grace.
This psalm talks about how desperately sinful we are. This is a text from where we get the doctrine of human depravity from; that all men are sinful. You might look at the first line, “The fool says in his heart, ‘There is no God’” and say, that’s for the atheists, not me, but the clear and uncomfortable truth from this psalm is that it is talking about each and every one of us.
This is one of the key Old Testament texts that talks about human depravity and the fallenness of man. Paul uses this as his centerpiece when writing about the sinful nature of man in Romans 3. For all have sinned, that comes from here. Psalm 14 makes clear that at the very core of our sin problem is a rebellious heart of belief. There is some unbelief in all of us.
Romans 8:7-8 says “because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” We don’t like to think about this truth because it brings us face-to-face with our sin and the judgement of our sins. But Scripture tells us that we are hostile toward God in our hearts. You might disagree but this is what the Word of God says, and I think it will become more obvious as we go along here.
Before reading the psalm, take a look at the inscription. This is part of the inspired text. David gave this to the choir director. This was to be sung by the assembly of Israel in public, not just privately. This is a doctrinal song, not one of praise and joy, but a lament, to remember our human condition.
This was so important that there are two versions of this Psalm. Psalm 53 is almost identical, minus some minor changes in verses 5 and 6, and this psalm is addressed to Yahweh while Psalm 53 is addressed to Elohim.
Well, let’s finally get to the text, but let me give you a few more thoughts before we begin.
1) Don’t read this text and think of someone else. That’s not how we read Scripture. Think about it in regards to yourself. And the great lesson of this psalm is that all of us, universally, are infected with an unbelieving heart.
2) Notice how it repeatedly tells us we are not good, and at the end is a cry for salvation.
3) Let yourself be convicted by what is written. Repentance is the only appropriate response, otherwise you are proving exactly what the psalmist is writing.
Psalm 14
For the choir director. A Psalm of David. The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; There is no one who does good. The Lord has looked down from heaven upon the sons of men To see if there are any who understand, Who seek after God. They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; There is no one who does good, not even one. Do all the workers of wickedness not know, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call upon the Lord? There they are in great dread, For God is with the righteous generation. You would put to shame the counsel of the afflicted, But the Lord is his refuge. Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores His captive people, Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.
Again, this psalm describes the universal corruption of humanity. Paul interprets it this way very clearly in Romans 3. He uses this psalm to prove that we are all sinful and have hearts of unbelief.
Psalm 14:1
The fool has said in his heart, “There is no God.” They are corrupt, they have committed abominable deeds; There is no one who does good.
Let’s look at the word fool here for a moment. When fool is used in Scripture, it almost always refers to moral deficiency rather than intellectual deficiency. So this is not someone who is not smart enough to determine there is a God, no, this is someone who morally does not want there to be a God.
Where is the fool making this statement? In his heart; in his heart he says, “There is no God,” the psalmist is writing about practical atheism rather than philosophical. He’s talking about people who choose to say no to God because of their desire to sin, not because they can’t figure it out intellectually. They don’t want to live under moral authority. This is a moral problem in the heart, not a problem in the head.
And when you look at the Hebrew, “There is” are supplied words. They are not there in the original language but written to help us understand the text, and they do. But the Hebrew literally reads, “The fool says in his heart, ‘No God.’” They are choosing to say no.
In my evangelism training, I was taught that you witness to the conscience, not the mind. It’s not that people can’t figure out intellectually if there is a God or not, they morally know there is a God but do not want to answer to Him.
And it’s possible to accept God with your mind but not your heart. We read that it is foolish to do this. It is foolish to say there is no God. It’s foolish to live like there is no God. It’s the most foolish of all to profess a faith in God yet live like there is no God. Yet, there are many people who claim to be religious but who say no to God in their hearts. They will say they love Him but they don’t live like it. You can claim something with your mouth, but your actions will display your true belief. If you really believe that God is God, and that all He says is true, and that He is a consuming fire, if you really believe that you would obey Him. Disobedience always has an element of unbelief to it. When we choose to disobey, we are choosing to say, “No God.”
This is a problem with the heart, with our hearts. And we see the results of this foolishness. David explains the results of those who say “No God” in verses 1-3. They are corrupt, do abominable deeds, no one does good, no one seeks God but all have turned aside, corrupt, no one does good. This is the result of unbelief; this is the result of denying God. This is what is happening in our culture all around us. People are saying no to God.
This passage is talking about everyone. We all have a problem with our hearts. Man left to himself does not seek God or ever will. Not one sinner ever seeks God on his own initiative. Paul makes this point in Romans 3:11-12.
Romans 3:11-12
There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one.”
John 6:44a
John 6:44 (NASB95)
“No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him;
The Father has to draw us. And the good news is that we have not been left to ourselves. God has revealed Himself to us through His Son Jesus Christ, through His Word, and through the working of the Holy Spirit. He does draw us to Him and then we are responsible for the choice we make, do I choose to submit to Him or do I choose to continue to say no?
Then it says that God is looking down upon men to see if there is any who seek after Him. Fools may want to forget about God but He doesn’t forget about them.
It says they have all turned aside, or no one seeks for God. How does this work? Well men left to themselves are corrupt, they don’t seek God, and do not do good. Look what man became during the time of Noah, or the tower of Babel, or the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah. They became exceedingly wicked and that everything they thought or imagined in their hearts was only evil continually (Gen. 6:5). That’s the condition of man left to himself. He loves his sin and hates God.
The evangelist Billy Sunday said this another way which helps us to understand this concept. “Sinners can’t find God for the same reason criminals can’t find policemen—they aren’t looking.”
Kind of funny but it’s true. This is what the Scriptures tell us. In our sinful fallen nature we do not desire God and want to be left alone. And many people deceive themselves into thinking they are looking for God. Look at all the religions around the world; doesn’t that prove people are searching for God? While he may be searching, he is not looking for the God of the Bible. He’s pursuing a god to suit him, one of his own imagination, that finds his way of life acceptable. He wants to worship and serve something, but not the God of the Bible who confronts you with your sin and demands repentance. Man is not looking for the God of the Bible.
God says there is no one who does good and no one who seeks Him because no one does, on their own. But, praise God He hasn’t left us to ourselves. God is constantly seeking us throughout the Scriptures. Jesus came to seek and to save the lost. So God is drawing us, Jesus is drawing us, and the Holy Spirit is convicting us. Those of us who have believed, believe because God drew us towards Him and we freely chose to accept Him. We love Him because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).
The point of this psalm is that our rebellion against God is a universal problem amongst all men. We are all guilty of sin and unbelief and it is only by God’s grace that we have been drawn to Him, and been allowed to see the foolishness of not believing in Him.
Remember that this is written about all of us. Where there is no God there is no good. Behavior is linked to belief. You can’t refuse God, have unbelief in Him, and not have corruption. It’s God’s grace that allows us to escape all of this corruption David is writing about.
Look at verse 4.
Do all the workers of wickedness not know, Who eat up my people as they eat bread, And do not call upon the Lord?
Starting here in verse 4, we see the fate of unbelievers in the world because of man’s wickedness and how God defends his people. The workers of wickedness, or those who do evil, persecute the people of God. They eat them up as bread. Bread was the main food in the diet back then. They come after believers as common as they eat a meal, with never a thought to pray to God. Instead of praying to God, they are preying on God’s people.
Look at verse 5.
There they are in great dread, For God is with the righteous generation.
Those in unbelief live in great dread, or fear. There are two types of fear we find in the Bible. One is the fear of the Lord which is the beginning of knowledge and wisdom.
“I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. “But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!
What David is talking about is those who have already rejected God and have no legitimate fear for Him. They don’t praise Him or keep His commandments. They have a cowardly fear that comes from their hatred of Him. Remember, it’s not an intellectual problem, it’s a moral one. They hate Him and how He requires them to live. They know there is a God but they suppress the truth of Him (Rom. 1) and live their lives in fear of Him.
You would put to shame the counsel of the afflicted, But the Lord is his refuge.
Those who live in unbelief mock those who do believe. They make fun of those who rely on faith and find their refuge in the Lord. They act like it’s foolish to place your trust in God but we know it’s really foolish not to.
And sometimes it seems like the enemies of God are going to triumph; that they are going to win. We can begin to despair but the truth is, this will never happen. Evil will never trump the plans of God.
Look at the cry for salvation in the last verse.
Oh, that the salvation of Israel would come out of Zion! When the Lord restores His captive people, Jacob will rejoice, Israel will be glad.
David writes this as a settled statement. When the LORD, Jacob will, Israel will. There is certainty in these words that cannot be shaken.
And if God is going to redeem His people, that means the wicked will lose, they will be defeated and punished. This is why it is foolish to say no to God.
Before concluding, let me show you how we see Jesus in this passage.
Jesus is the opposite of fallen man.
He does good, He understands, He seeks God, He has not turned aside or become corrupt. Sometimes in Scripture, it points to Jesus by looking at His opposite, and that’s what this psalm is doing. It’s pointing out who we are in relation to who Jesus is.
2. Jesus is the salvation of Israel to come out of Zion.
Isn’t this true? This is a great way of saying in the Old Testament what the New Testament says, Maranatha, Lord come quickly. This is the cry.
Summary
It’s tempting to read a passage like this and think it applies to someone else. We want to think this is talking about the worst people we know and say, “Yep, that’s talking about them. No one who does good or seeks after God.”
But the main point of this psalm is that we are all universally wicked and have hearts of unbelief. Look at verses 2 and 3 again, it says any, all, no one. Paul stresses this point in Romans chapter 3. This isn’t a point against hardcore atheism but practical atheism. We choose in our hearts to live with unbelief. Some of us would even be considered religious yet we live as if God doesn’t exist.
And there is nothing we can do to save ourselves. Our only hope is God’s grace. He is the only one that can change our hearts, give us new ones.
Turn with me to one more passage, Ezekiel 36:25-27.
“Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from all your idols. “Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. “I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.
Notice how it is God making the changes. He doesn’t tell us to change ourselves. No matter how hard you try yourself, you cannot change your heart. God is the only One Who can change it.
This is the passage Jesus is referring to Nicodemus about being born from above or born again, and He asks Nicodemus, “aren't you a teacher of Israel and you don’t understand these things?” Nicodemus should have known about the doctrine of human depravity. He should have known that it was only God who could grant a new heart.
This is where the gospel comes in. The gospel tells us how God made salvation possible. Jesus Christ died to pay the penalty of our sin and wickedness. Having lived a perfect life, flawless to the Law of God, he died the death of a sinner, not for His own sin, but for our sin. He made a way for us to be redeemed to God.
We cannot think that we can reform ourselves enough to earn the favor of God. The only hope for the person described in this psalm is the grace of God. God alone can give us a new heart and new godly desires. This is a free gift to any who will believe. Believing and acting as if there is no God will damn you, but faith will save you. Trust in Jesus alone as your savior. By grace you have been saved through faith, and not of yourselves, it is the gift of God, not of works, so that no man shall boast (Eph. 2:8-9). This is the way of salvation. This is the only hope to those with unbelieving hearts written about in this psalm. And those in hell are going to be able to say, “There is no God—here.”
Closing prayer - We confess our natural hearts are prone to unbelief. Grant us faith to believe in Your Son. Thank You for offering us this free gift of grace. Change our hearts. Give us strength to obey and desire Your righteousness. Let us abandon self-confidence and live a life believing in You. To do otherwise is foolish.