The unmistakeable love of God

Introduction

Last week we looked at the Prayer of prayers as I called it in Psalm 17, It showed us a bit of the Nature of God toward His children, those who are committed to seeking God and pursuing a relationship with Him. The things that David revealed in his psalm is that God is not a passive God, some cosmic force, or divine being that has set things in motion and left us to our own devices, but rather David revealed that God is very much involved in our lives. even though sometimes we may not feel it, recognize it, or sometimes even want it. God is there in the lives of His children and His creation. For the believer David reminded us that God is… God is a God who Sees, God is a God who hears, and God is a God who visits.

These facts about God should bring you comfort, encouragement, and hope especially when you are facing tough decisions and hardships. It should bring peace in your life as you realize you are never alone. This is also a means of ministering to others. Now that you are aware of these facts you are equipped to share these with others who may be in need of comfort and hope. With these concepts these 3 simple concepts you become a minister and counselor to others, which is your calling as a Christ follower. As I mentioned, these facts about God nature is empowering and encouraging, Throughout this psalm however David fleshes out these concepts even in a more personal and warmer way giving us a deeper and warmer view of God. And today we are going to look at these beautiful images of God and the importance of knowing these precepts about God...

Lets turn to Psalm 17 again and lets read

Now last week we stopped at verse 6, today we be looking at 7- 15 and seeing how David shows us certainties about God and His relationship with His people, The ones who believe and obey His word.

I. God shows His Love - vs 6-7 So often even at a very young age we are taught that Love is a feeling. However we are taught wrongly, or in the very least we are taught a half truth. Love is not feeling, there may be some feeling or emotion involved, love is not feeling though it cannot be verbalized (just saying I love you is not sufficient) . Love is action based that may be emotional and may be verbalized to some extent, however true love is shown, it is displayed which is so much more powerful

By saving Him God is savior - Zeph 3:17 “The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” 1 John 4:10 “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” Eph 2:4-5 “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—” Rom 10:13 “For “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.””

By caring enough to attend to him - 1John 4:16 “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” John 15:13 “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay down his life for his friends.” Eph 3:17-19 “so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.”

Love is showed it is displayed, it is manifested not only to David but to us all Rom 5:8 “but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

another certainty that we know about God toward His children is that

II. God Fathers us - vs 8-9 now this does not come as a shock to anyone here in fact we discuss this all the time. I try to remind us that God is our heavenly father, because this should help us in the way we act, obey, treat others, and conduct ourselves. I remember growing up and hearing the dreaded words, “wait till your father comes home” those words straighten us up right. However being a father and being fatherly is different. Yes a father demands respect and obedience, but being fatherly also comes with a special tender care. as we see in these verses.

“keep me as the apple of your eye” this is an interesting term in the English means extreme fondness for someone one, which exactly what this means however in the Hebrew it goes deeper. The Hebrew word for eye here is not the entire eye but rather the pupil the most center part the most important part the part that focuses. the center of ones vision. The Apple of ones eye literally means the “daughter” or more specifically the adopted daughter. Have you ever witnessed a way a father looks at his daughter, have you ever witnessed a father look at his adopted daughter, protects cares coddles her. David has witnessed this and uses it to describe His relation with God. Just imagine for a moment if you know a father of a daughter, picture her in his arms. now picture someone who would try to do harm to her...

That is how God fathers us

He hides us - Ps 91:1-4 “He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.”

he protects us - Isa 54:17 “no weapon that is fashioned against you shall succeed, and you shall refute every tongue that rises against you in judgment. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord and their vindication from me, declares the Lord.”” 2 Thes 3:3 “But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.” 2 Sam 22:3-4 “my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge, my savior; you save me from violence. I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I am saved from my enemies.”

He shades us - Deut 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not fear or be in dread of them, for it is the Lord your God who goes with you. He will not leave you or forsake you.”” Ps 32:7 “You are a hiding place for me; you preserve me from trouble; you surround me with shouts of deliverance. Selah” Ps 119:114 “You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in your word.”

III. He is our Defender - vs 13-14 we dont often think of God as being a God of war but He is. Not only is He our shield He is our sword. Now we are benefactors of who He is and He does not do these things because of us our who we are but because of who He is and for His glory.

God will confront - Ex 14:14 “The Lord will fight for you, and you have only to be silent.””

God will subdue - Rom 1:18 “For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth.” Ezekiel 25:17 “I will execute great vengeance on them with wrathful rebukes. Then they will know that I am the Lord, when I lay my vengeance upon them.”” Nah 1:2-6 “The Lord is a jealous and avenging God; the Lord is avenging and wrathful; the Lord takes vengeance on his adversaries and keeps wrath for his enemies. The Lord is slow to anger and great in power, and the Lord will by no means clear the guilty. His way is in whirlwind and storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet. He rebukes the sea and makes it dry; he dries up all the rivers; Bashan and Carmel wither; the bloom of Lebanon withers. The mountains quake before him; the hills melt; the earth heaves before him, the world and all who dwell in it. Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and the rocks are broken into pieces by him.”

Cast them down - Cause to bend the knee (reveal He is the true king) Isa 26:21 “For behold, the Lord is coming out from his place to punish the inhabitants of the earth for their iniquity, and the earth will disclose the blood shed on it, and will no more cover its slain.” Rev 19:11-14 “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses.” Heb 10:26-28 “For if we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has set aside the law of Moses dies without mercy on the evidence of two or three witnesses.”

Phil 2:9-11 “Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Acts 4:12 “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.””

The first half of the psalm reveals who God is and the second part reveals what He does… So your relationship

The contrast we see here in the text is a comparison of the wicked (Violence, arrogant, no compassion) and the Righteous (humble, dependent, lips that are clean, hearts bent on God and His work, compassionate, contented) of course both sides are overshadowed by God’s Glory and power… Who do you follow today? I mean who do you really follow?