Psalms Week 1 Sermon: Learning to Talk with God

Intro/Welcome

What would you say is the greatest need in your life right now?

Options:

Maybe for some it’s finances —

you are in tough financial position and you really need some help

Maybe for some it’s a bout with anxiety or depression --

often it’s both

Maybe for some you are just overwhelmed with life right now —

you need some relief from work

from parenting

from relationships

form a particular situation you are having to step into.

What if I told you there was a need greater than all of these, but could speak into each of these?

My contention is that for all of us, no matter where we find ourselves, our greatest need is to hear from God.

God:

a being who has all power, all knowledge, all wisdom

can do all things

further more he is good and full of love

and wants to bless people

furthermore he desires a relationship with you

and delights to speak to you, guide you, comfort you.

If this benevolent being would speak to you, would you want to hear?

do you think he might have some things to say in your current situation?

New Series

We are starting a new series today that is about:

learning to talk with God

That is to have a conversation.

Notice conversations are two ways

We both talk and we listen

We give and we receive

This is the essence of good conversation

and good conversation leads to connection

and connection leads to intimacy

Over the next several weeks we are going to ask the question:

How can we learn to talk with God?

How to hear him, and how to speak with him.

The Bible

Of course, we all know that God has spoken to us in His Word

But as we look to what it means to talk with God there is a particular section that will be helpful:

The Psalms.

The Psalms in many ways are models for us on how to converse with God.

the record people’s words to God

and God’s words to people

and they cover a number of different circumstances and experiences.

ESVSB

It is a collection of 150 poems that express a wide variety of emotions, including:

love and adoration toward God,

sorrow over sin,

dependence on God in desperate circumstances,

the battle of fear and trust, walking with God even when the way seems dark,

thankfulness for God’s care,

devotion to the word of God,

and confidence in the eventual triumph of God’s purposes for the world.

These songs cover a wide range of experiences and emotions, and give

God’s people the words to express these emotions and to bring these experiences before God.

At the same time, the psalms do not simply express emotions: when sung in faith,

they actually shape the emotions of the godly

David: Eugene Peterson

David is the name most prominently associated with writing and praying the psalms.

His life is the most extensively narrated we have in the scriptures.

We know more about him than anyone else in our biblical records.

We know about his growing up and his dying, his friends and his enemies, his sins and salvation, his triumphs and defeats.

Nothing is held back or suppressed; the entire range of the human condition is laid out for us in the narration of David’s life.

Alongside the story we are given his prayers, the inside of the story.

For everything that happened in David’s life became prayer, became the occasion for listening to and answering God.

Nothing in David’s life was left lying around on the surface; he took everything “to heart,” interiorized it, welcomed it in God’s name for God’s work.

Therefore we are going to be looking at various psalms over the next several weeks and asking ourselves:

what does this teach me about how to talk with God?

Today

Today we are going to begin with Psalm 1.

Which in many ways is an introduction to the psalms

It is the gateway to the storehouse of the treasury of the psalms.

I invite you to go ahead and turn there in your Bibles.

Welcome

While you are going there let me introduce myself

Name — one of pastors

Welcome you on line

Invite you to connect with others at church

Pray

Isaiah 61:1–3 (CSB)

1 The Spirit of the Lord God is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives and freedom to the prisoners; 2 to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor, and the day of our God’s vengeance; to comfort all who mourn, 3 to provide for those who mourn in Zion; to give them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, festive oil instead of mourning, and splendid clothes instead of despair. And they will be called righteous trees, planted by the Lord to glorify him.

God Speaks Today

Before we jump into Psalm 1, it will be important to establish a couple things in how God speaks to us.

I. God is speaking today

The first point maybe obvious, but needs to be stated plainly.

God is speaking to us today.

II. How is God speaking today?

I think there are a number of ways that God speaks to us.

1. God speaks though His Word: The Bible, The Scriptures

This is the most certain we can ever be that it is God Speaking

In any other way we hear God speaking, it will never be in contradiction to His written Word

The Word of God is the final authority, it is of first importance, it is the foundation and it is the filter for hearing from God.

Learning Gods voice

In the Word

we learn the tone and character of God’s voice

We learn the kinds of things God says

and the ways that he might say them.

In the Person of Jesus

God is most clearly revealed in the WORD of God — Jesus Christ.

Jesus is the image of God, his exact representation.

Therefore the Gospel Accounts give us a clear picture of who God is in Jesus Christ and what he has to say to us.

But the Word of God is not the only way God speaks to us.

2. God speaks through His Spirit

The second way, and not separate from the first is the Spirit of God

1. Through the Word of God

The Holy Spirit Speaks to us through the Words of Scripture

How?

2. In the ‘inner man’ — the heart, spirit

The Holy Spirit, Jesus says, is living in side of us

John 14:17 (CSB)

17 He is the Spirit of truth. The world is unable to receive him because it doesn’t see him or know him. But you do know him, because he remains with you and will be in you.

Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will speak to us.

John 16:13 (CSB)

13 When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth. For he will not speak on his own, but he will speak whatever he hears. He will also declare to you what is to come.

Ephesians 1:17–18 (CSB)

17 I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, would give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him.

18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, what is the wealth of his glorious inheritance in the saints,

Romans 8:16 (CSB)

16 The Spirit himself testifies together with our spirit that we are God’s children,

The Still small Voice

This is often referred to as the ‘still small voice’

That God’s Spirit speaks to us in a whisper

so gentle that it is easy to ignore

so soft that many times we do not even hear it.

We often expect that God is going to speak to us in the Thundering Clouds or a Burning Bush — but often, most often I think it is through the Spirit in the inner man.

1 Kings 19:11–13 (CSB)

11 Then he said, “Go out and stand on the mountain in the Lord’s presence.”

At that moment, the Lord passed by.

A great and mighty wind was tearing at the mountains and was shattering cliffs before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind.

After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake.

12 After the earthquake there was a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire.

And after the fire there was a voice, a soft whisper.

13 When Elijah heard it, he wrapped his face in his mantle and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave. Suddenly, a voice came to him and said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?”

The voice of God in our inner man is a kind of self-authenticating voice

I hope to do a class in the Fall on how to hear the voice of God.

This leads to a third way God speaks...

3. God Speaks through His People

God often will speak to us through our brothers and sisters in Christ

You ever had that experience where someone just haphazardly says something and it rings true in your spirit?

Also, sometimes, people have just the right word for you, or the right bible verse, or pray the perfect prayer.

I think that is God speaking to us personally through his people

4. God speaks through His sovereignty over circumstance

The last way I’ll share (and there are others) is He can speak through circumstance.

We often talk about open and closed doors

Sometimes God will speak to us, guide us, through the circumstances.

If you are seeking the Lord for something in particular, here is a general rule of thumb:

The more of these that line up, the more sure you can be it is God speaking to you.

Why do I say all that?

Because we need to believe that God can, will and does speak to each of us.

I’m convinced that he speaks to each of us, much more than we even realize.

I’m wanting us to grow as a church, in hearing God and following his call on each of our lives.

So how can we be sure we’ve heard from God?

This brings me back to the main point of this series

The Word of God is the way we can know.

God will never speak to us in a way that contradicts his Word.

The Word of God is the final authority, it is of first importance, it is the foundation and it is the filter for hearing from God.

So, let’s turn to Psalm 1 now to make our point.

Psalm 1: Two Ways to Live

As I stated the psalms teach us how to talk to God (prayer)

and also teach us what God says to his people.

Let’s look at Psalm 1.

Psalm 1 is known as a wisdom Psalm — meaning it has something to teach us about how to live wisely

As I said, it is an introduction to the entire book, a gateway on how to attain its treasures.

Psalm 1:1-2 (CSB)

1 How happy [blessed] is the one who does not walk in the advice of the wicked or stand in the pathway with sinners or sit in the company of mockers!

2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.

What do we notice here?

1. Blessing/Happiness

The first word (in hebrew) is this word blessed or happy.

Psalms, Volume 1 Guilt by Association (1:1–2)

The word “blessed” conveys the idea of happiness that flows from a sense of well-being and rightness. The same term probably originally underlies the “blessed” of the Beatitudes in Matthew 5.

Isn’t this what everybody is really after?

Happiness? Blessing?

Isn’t that the American dream?

Written into our very declaration of Independence:

Declaration of Independence

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

Multiverse of Madness

Dr. Strange: “Are you happy?” I thought saving the unverse would make me happy.

The Book of Psalms opens up with this idea: it’s what we all want most

Blessed is the one who...

He’s going to tell us how to be blessed.

How do we get happiness?

Psalm 1:1-2 (CSB)

1 How happy [blessed] is the one

who does not walk in the advice of the wicked or

stand in the pathway with sinners or

sit in the company of mockers!

2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction, and he meditates on it day and night.

What not to do (negative) and then what to do (positive)

Negatively:

Psalm 1:1

Do not walk in the advice of the wicked

Do not stand in the pathway with Sinners

Do not sit in the company of mockers.

Notice the necessity of conversation to each of these

notice also a kind of progressions.

Walking in the advice of the wicked

The Wicked: the unrighteous, those are guilty of sin

Walking: you are following their advice, walking in their ways

You are standing in their pathway

Sinners: those who do not follow god’s ways, make a lifestyle of sin

Stand: to take a stand against something

Sitting in the company of mockers

Mockers — those who ridicule God’s ways and those who love it.

Sitting — even more at home

now you are enjoying their company

you have sat down at the table.

We could sum it up this way:

Happiness does not come from the ways of the world, that is those who do not know God, do not follow God, to not submit to God’s Word.

We know that by the positive command.

Here’s the alternative.

Positively

Psalm 1:2 (CSB)

2 Instead, his delight is in the Lord’s instruction [Torah], and he meditates on it day and night.

Instead — rather, as opposed to, in contrast of

Delight

His delight is in the Lord’s Torah

Torah: his instruction, His Word, His commands

Notice the Emotion: Delight — joy.

He delights in the Word of God

Meditate

Notice the action: “he meditates”

Psalms, Volume 1 Guilt by Association (1:1–2)

The verb hgh (“meditates”) is onomatopoeic in that it imitates the sound of low voices murmuring or muttering as one reads Scripture in a low undertone. It appears to have been normal practice at the time to read out loud in a low voice rather than silently. The term can also mean “ponder/reflect” by talking to oneself.

The ESV Study Bible Chapter 1

Meditates describes an active pondering, perhaps even muttering to oneself in pursuit of insight.

The word means to murmur, to speak quietly to oneself, to utter, or to make sounds. By implication, it means to must or ponder in the heart.

The path to happiness is meditating on it (God’s Word) day and night.

How do we do this with the psalms?

SLIDES: [Pause, Paraphrase, Pray]

It is more than just reading it.

Pause:

But it is reading it slowly

asking question of it

pausing on words

asking the Lord for insight

thinking on implications and applications

To marinate in it.

Paraphrase:

A good practice can be to paraphrase the bible in your own words.

this causes you to think on it

digest it

regurgitate it.

do this in Group, Family Church we do this

Pray it back to God

To speak it back to God.

This doesn’t have to take a long time.

The Result

The psalmist gives us a picture.

Psalm 1:3–4 (CSB)

3 He is like a tree planted beside flowing streams that bears its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. Whatever he does prospers.

4 The wicked are not like this; instead, they are like chaff that the wind blows away.

Psalms give us vivid imagery to think on

So, pause and imagine these things in your mind.

Don’t you want to be planted firm?

bearing fruit in seaseon

not withering?

This language is meant to illicit an emotional response to this picture

and Israel was a dry deserty place — so even more powerful is this picture.

Jer 17:7-8 adds to this picture:

Jeremiah 17:7–8 (CSB)

7 The person who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence indeed is the Lord, is blessed. 8 He will be like a tree planted by water: it sends its roots out toward a stream, it doesn’t fear when heat comes, and its foliage remains green. It will not worry in a year of drought or cease producing fruit.

The alternative is chaff — that is blown away by the wind as if it’s nothing.

[Picture of trees]

So which one do you want to be?

Pray it

At this point we can pray this psalm for ourselves.

for Example:

Oh Lord, thank you for these words

make me a tree planted by the stream of your living word

help me to bear fruit in my life

help me to prosper and make good decisions

lead me and guide me lord.

This is talking with the Lord — asking him to make this a reality in your life

This is meditating on scripture.

The End Result

But the psalmist is not done yet.

He has one final point to make.

Psalm 1:5–6 (CSB)

5 Therefore the wicked will not stand up in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. 6 For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked leads to ruin.

This could be talking about temporal judgment

and the exclusion of the wicked from the congregation of God’s people.

I think that is a valid application

But many believe, it is talking about the eschatological judgment

the great white throne judgment that comes on the Day of the Lord.

What is his point?

The Wicked’s End

those whose lifestyle is characterized by wickedness and sin — will be judged accordingly

and in the end will be excluded from the presence of God and the great multitude of his people in the age to come.

The Righteous’s End

But the righteous — those who delight in the Lord

those who meditate on his word

those who flourish like well watered trees bearing fruit in season

it says the Lord watches over them

literally is says “the Lord knows them”

And that is a personal knowing

Not a knowledge about — but a personal knowing — a relationship

that is what is conveyed with the idea of ‘watching over’

there is an oversight

there is a relationship

Talking with God

God then has a relationship with the righteous

that is, he knows them, and they know him

The basis for all relationship is communication

But sin

But the Bible clearly says, ‘none is righteous, not one’

Romans 3:10–12 (CSB)

10 as it is written: There is no one righteous, not even one. 11 There is no one who understands; there is no one who seeks God. 12 All have turned away; all alike have become worthless. There is no one who does what is good, not even one.

Psalm 14:1–3 (CSB)

1 The fool says in his heart, “There’s no God.” They are corrupt; they do vile deeds. There is no one who does good.

2 The Lord looks down from heaven on the human race to see if there is one who is wise, one who seeks God. 3 All have turned away; all alike have become corrupt. There is no one who does good, not even one.

Jesus Christ

But Jesus

This is why trusting in Jesus is so critical

Jesus was the ONE RIGHTEOUS MAN

the only one.

and when we trust in Him

his death for our sins to reconcile us back to the father

to bring us back into the family of God

Now again, at last, we can enjoy the full benefits of a relationship with God

including — a constant conversation with Him

Jesus defines eternal life as knowing God

John 17:3 (CSB)

3 This is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true God, and the one you have sent—Jesus Christ.

exactly what Psalm 1:6 says “God knows the righeous”

you and I, if we are in Christ, are Righteous

we have been restored to God the Father

We have the access of Children to a Great King

Hebrews 4:15 (CSB)

15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way as we are, yet without sin.

Hebrews 4:16 (CSB)

16 Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.

Holy Spirit

Furthermore John 14-16 as we saw says that God himself is dwelling inside of us

therefore we can converse with Him.

We have a relation to Him.

Psalms

The psalms then, will be a guide, a model for what talking with God looks like.

So we should meditate on them

engage with them

and learn how to talk with God.

Application

So what will you do?

You and I have needs:

financial needs

emotional needs

relationship needs

Don’t you want to hear from God?

Let’s learn from the psalms.

Action:

Begin reading/meditating on the psalms

Just one a day - could take 2 minutes

Read them slowly, think on them

ponder them

ask questions?

ask the Holy Spirit

Begin praying the psalms to God

just as we saw today

The psalms give us words to pray when we can’t find them

there is a psalm for every occasion

Tim Keller’s Book:

Commit to talking with God daily.

talking and hearing from Him

all throughout your day

You can bring anything to God

Talk with Him and learn his voice.

Community is crucial for this.

Getting connected to God and talking with Him is a gateway to dealing rightly with all of your others problems.

He is Alive

He is reigning

He is good

He is Sovereign

Let’s Pray

Pray