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“Search Me” Psalm 139 [Matt's Messages]

“Search Me”Lanse Evangelical Free ChurchJanuary 3, 2021 :: Psalm 139
Last week, way back in 2020, Joel Michaels said that Psalm 139 was his favorite Psalm. And that got me thinking about how appropriate Psalm 139 would be for us to focus on for the first Sunday of this new year.
Psalm 139 ends with this prayer request: 
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Isn’t that a great prayer?
So, the title for today’s message is “Search Me.” And that’s not a snide remark like, “I don’t know! Search me!” No, it’s a prayer for God to look into our hearts and to see what is truly there. It’s an invitation for God to know us as we really are and to move us to become who He wants us to be.
Do you see how that’s a great prayer to begin the new year?
“Search Me.”
How did King David get to the point where he could and would ask God to search him in that way?
So 2021 is now upon us. Who knows what this year will bring? I sure don’t.
None of us could have predicted the events of 2020, so maybe prognostication should not be our focus as the new year dawns.
I’m certain that 2021 will have more blessing in it for God’s people. And there are some key things I’m praying for–including the return to close fellowship in-person with other believers. I want shake hands and hug at church! I want to sing shoulder to shoulder with you and not worry that I’m putting you at risk. I want us all to be together and partake of the Lord’s Supper and have a big old fellowship meal in the Fellowship Hall. And I believe that may come in 2021. Lord-willing, it will.
But I’m also sure that 2021 will have more trouble in it for God’s people. Trials and difficulties, some of them bewildering, perhaps more bewildering than last year. I don’t know.
The bigger question is not what is going to happen to me in 2021, but what kind of person am I going to be before God in 2021?
Will I be faithful?Will I be trusting?Will I be obedient?Will I be loyal?
What kind of a person am I going to be before God in 2021? That’s the question.
“Search me.”
And an even greater question, more importantly still,:
“What kind of a God will God be in 2021?” 
Psalm 139 has wonderful answers to that question.

Psalm 139, verse 1.
“For the director of music. Of David. A psalm.”
We don’t know much more about the context of this prayer–many scholars believe that David has been accused by someone else of being unfaithful to the Lord, and he is seeking vindication here. I’m not sure if that’s true. 
I’m not sure at all what the historical setting was for this Psalm. As we’ve been learning in this series, sometimes, it’s better not to know those details because the application feels even more immediate to our lives now.
Regardless of the setting, it’s a psalm of Kings David meant to be sung by others like you and me and applied to our lives today.
David ends the Psalm by asking God to search him, but he begins the psalm by stating that he knows the LORD already has searched him. V.1
“O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.” Point #1 of 4 this morning.
#1. YOU KNOW ME.
David can end up asking God to search him, because he already knows that the LORD has already done so. You know me.
“O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.”
That word for “search” means “to examine.”
In our computerized world, we use the word “search” all the time these days. Often, we set a computer going to find some piece of information that we lack. We “google” things nowadays. Right? The ubiquitous “search bar.”
But this is not an impersonal search for a trivial piece of information. This is being known. This is being examined. This is a Person taking a close look at another person. It’s more like a trip to the doctor than putting a query in a Google search bar.
“God, You have checked me out. You know me.”
David is amazed at how well God knows him. V.2
“You know when I sit and when I rise;”
Up or down. You know it.
And not just what position I’m in. What I’m thinking!
“...you perceive my thoughts from afar.”
God is a mind-reader. V.3
“You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.”
Whether I get up and head out on a walk in the morning or come home and go to bed, you know all of my doings. My patterns. My ways.
And this is not just impersonal information. It’s not just that God has a database of factoids about me. He knows me. He is familiar with my ways.
Many of you have pets. Do you know the ways of your pet? If you come home and your pet is nowhere to be seen, do you have a good idea where they could be found? You know the ways of your pet. Their comings and goings and habits. It’s not just that you could look it up in an Encyclopedia. “This is what cats generally do.” You know this pet and how he or she acts. You are familiar with their ways. 
How much more is God familiar with our ways? He knows us better than we know ourselves. V.4
“Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.”
Sometimes my wife knows what I’m going to say before I do. I thought I just came up with that sentence, but Heather was way ahead of me. Not necessarily because we think alike, but because she knows me.
How much more does God know us! Do you see how personal this Psalm is?
David is saying, “You know me.” Completely. And not just as a bunch of facts but personally, intimately, deeply, truly, relationally.
You know me. V.5
“You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.”
“I just can’t grasp how much you know me, God!”
David is filled with wonder that he is known in this way.
Does that same truth fill us with wonder today?
Most people desperately want to be known. I think that’s one of the major reasons for much of what we see, for example, on social media like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter.
People are saying, “Know me! I’m putting myself out here. Know me!”
You are known! By the One that matters the most. V.6
“Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.”
#2. YOU’VE GOT ME.
That’s what David was saying in v.5 with “You hem me in–behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.”
You’ve got me. I’m trapped!
There is no escape from behind–no back door.
And there is no escape from before–you’ve arrested me. You’ve laid your hand on me.
It’s not clear whether or not David wants to escape from God. Perhaps, that feeling of being known also gives him a touch of the willies and fosters an urge to escape. Or maybe he’s just saying that even if he wanted to get away, he knows that he can’t. Either way, there is no. hiding. from the Lord. V.7
“Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence? If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea, even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”
There is no getting away from God. He is everywhere.
If verses 1-6 were about God’s omniscience, verses 7- 12 are about God’s omnipresence.
But it’s not just that God is there and standing around like some absent-minded professor.
“Oh yes, he’s here, but he’s not all here.”
No, this is saying that God is present. He is relationally with David wherever David would run to.
The sky? Check.The ocean floor? Check.Flying at the speed of light? He’s there.On the other side of the world? He’s there, too.
You can’t get away from God.
You can run, but you can’t hide.
Not even the darkest place. V.11
“If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will hide me and the light become night around me,’ even the darkness will not be dark to you; the night will shine like the day, for darkness is as light to you.”
For the God who is light, there is no place that is dark.
What’s the upshot of that?
Well, at first, it might not seem like good news. Who wants inescapable supervision? Somebody watching you all of the time? Kind of sounds like prison.
But David knows that it is good news. V.10 again.
Wherever I am, “...even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.”
“Hold me fast.” I’ll tell you wants inescapable supervision: sheep do. Or at least if they don’t want it, they need it. Sheep need a shepherd.
You and I are needy people, and we need a good shepherd to keep a guiding hand on us all of the time.
It’s so good to be able to say, “You’ve got me.”
Start your prayers in 2021 off with that phrase.
“Lord, you’ve got me. I know that I can’t get away from you, and that’s  such a good thing! I’m yours.”
Because...
#3. YOU MADE ME. V.13
“For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb. I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made; your works are wonderful, I know that full well.”
This is how deep this relationship goes: David knows that he is the Lord’s creation.
God is not just omniscient and omnipresent. He is the Creator. The Maker. God didn’t just come to know David over time. He has known David all along, from the beginning. Because He made him!
This is the verse that we quote every January around Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. And that’s right. It’s all about that. It’s all about how God is intimately involved in making us. He designed us. He designed each of us personally, and that bestows a heaping measure of dignity to every human life.
But David is saying something even more profound. He’s saying that in making us, God knows us and has every right over us. V.15
“My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place [the womb]. When I was woven together in the depths of the earth, your eyes saw my unformed body. All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.”
I think that David uses the image of “the depths of the earth” to describe the most hidden place that he can think of. The womb was, for David, the most hidden place a person could be live on earth. But God saw into the womb. God was there, and God was directing that new life.
“All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be. How precious to me are your thoughts, O God! How vast is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand. When I awake, I am still with you.”
David just lives in amazement.
He can’t hardly believe how fearfully and wonderfully he is made, and he can’t hardly believe how sovereign God is over his life, and he can’t hardly believe how deep and long and wide are the thoughts of God.
Thoughts that make and create. Thoughts that are so awesome they cannot be numbered!
Now, scholars are divided over what that last sentence in verse 18 means.
“When I awake, I am still with you.”
Does that mean that David has been exhausted by these innumerable thoughts and then wakes up at that point? Or does it go back to the first section and mean that even in the mornings when David gets up, there is God? Some scholars even think it means awakening from resurrection. Even when we come back from the sleep of death.
Any way about it, the point is “I am still with you.”
There He is! There God is. God is not absent. God is present.
And I am with Him.
Now, how “with Him” am I?
How with God am I? He’s all here, but am I all his?
I think that’s the point of the next four verses. For many of us, these four verses feel like an intrusion. Like they don’t fit. But they flowed very naturally for King David. V.19
“If only you would slay the wicked, O God! Away from me, you bloodthirsty men! They speak of you with evil intent; your adversaries misuse your name. Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD, and abhor those who rise up against you? I have nothing but hatred for them; I count them my enemies.”
Now, we tend to stumble over these verses because they can seem so far from our Lord Jesus’ command to love our enemies.
And there is something new about our Lord’s command that at least modifies what is going on here in these verses.
But the emphasis here is not on personal hatred of those who are our enemies. The emphasis is on loyalty to God over against those who are His enemies. David is saying that he does not side with those who side against God.
“Do I not hate those who hate you, O LORD, and abhor those who rise up against you?” 
Another way of saying it would be to say, “I am not on Satan’s side. Not one bit.”
I’m on the LORD’s side!I’m on Yahweh’s side.I don’t identify with the enemies of God. I hate them.
Do you see how that works?
It’s not saying that we shouldn’t love our enemies. God loves His own enemies! But there is a right way to love our enemies and even a right way to hate them.
If the choice is between loving them and their ways or loving God and His, then we side with God every time.
In other words, David is saying:
#4. YOU CAN COUNT ON ME.
How’s that for a declaration for 2021? I’m going to be on the Lord’s side!
“You can count on me, Lord. You know which side of the battle You will find me on.”
I know that you know me.I know that you’ve got me.I know that you made me.
And so...I’m yours. I’m completely yours..
So, yes, go ahead–search me. V.23
“Search me, O God, and know my heart; test me and know my anxious thoughts. See if there is any offensive way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
Go ahead, Lord.
I know. that you already know. what you’ll find.
Search me. Know my heart.Test me. Examine me.Listen to my thoughts.
Some of them, I admit, are very anxious. Not just anxious in general, but anxious about 2021. 
And if I’m really honest? Yes, I’m anxious about You, too, God. 
Lord, sometimes You worry me. Sometimes, I feel like I want to escape, to hide, to get out of Your gaze.
But I know there is nowhere to go. And when I think about it the right way, I know that there is no place I’d rather be than. with. You.
Make this your prayer as you step into the new year:
“Search me. Lord, You can see for Yourself that I love you and am loyal to you. I am on your side. In 2021, you can count on me. “See if there is any offensive way in me...” and if there is, I turn away from it right now. Point it out to me. And change me. Lead me in the way everlasting. Put me on the path of righteousness that you have marked out for me."
"Search me.”

***
People with exceptionally long memories might remember when I preached Psalm 139 on the cusp of 2014 with the same title and many of the exact same words.  I'm thankful that it's all just as, if not more, true and relevant today.
***
Fortifying Truth - Psalms - Fall 2020 / Winter 2021

01. Majestic and Mindful - Psalm 8
02. All Our Days - Psalm 90
03. "The LORD on High Is Mighty!" - Psalm 93
04. "The LORD Is My Shepherd" - Psalm 23
05. "Praise the LORD, O My Soul!" - Psalm 103
06. "The Blessing of Aaron's Oily Beard" - Psalm 133
07. "A Dying Thirst for the Living God" - Psalm 42
08. "Our Fortress" - Psalm 46
09. Unrestless - Psalm 131
10. "Sun and Shield" - Psalm 84
11. "With Songs of Joy" - Psalm 126
12. "His Love Endures Forever" - Psalm 136
13. "How Many Are Your Works, O LORD!" - Psalm 104
14. "My Soul Waits for the Lord" - Psalm 130
15. "Remember David" - Psalm 132
16. "My Son" - Psalm 2

My New Year's Theme Song: Melanie Penn's "You're Not Absent"

Books I Read in 2020

Matt’s Books Completed* in 2020:

1. A Big Gospel in Small Places by Stephen Witmer [Most Affirming of 2020]
2. Recursion by Blake Crouch
3. Willful Behavior by Donna Leon
4. Plum Pie by P.G. Wodehouse
5. Sex, Dating, and Relationships by Gerald Hiestand and Jay Thomas
6. How Much Is a Girl Worth? by Rachael Denhollander [Most Haunting of 2020]
7. Confronting Christianity by Rebecca McLaughlin [Completed a second time with my small group from church. So good I wrote a Small Group Discussion Guide and posted it online.]
8. Not Saying Goodbye by Boris Akunin
9. Doctored Evidence by Donna Leon
10. The Memory of Old Jack by Wendell Berry
11. Single, Dating, Engaged, Married by Ben Stuart
12. Respect the Image by Timothy Shorey [A new friend! Interview here.]
13. Light from Distant Stars by Shawn Smucker
14. The Fool and the Heretic by Todd Charles Wood and Darrel R. Falk
15. Created to Draw Near by Edward Welch [Most Intriguing of 2020]
16. “He Descended to the Dead” by Matthew Emerson
17. Blood from a Stone by Donna Leon
18. Why Does God Care Who I Sleep With? by Sam Allberry [Most Accessible of 2020]
19. Remember Death by Matthew J. McCullough [Most Sobering of 2020]
20. Born Again This Way by Rachel Gilson [Most Counter-Cultural of 2020]
21. Younique by Will Mancini, Dave Rhodes, and Cory Hartman 
22. Relationslips by Jason Drapeau
23. Earthly Remains by Donna Leon
24. Where Is God in a Coronavirus World? by John Lennox
25. Coronavirus and Christ by John Piper
26. The Final Days of Jesus by Andreas Kostenberger & Justin Taylor
27. Matthew (IVPNTC) by Craig Keener
28. Matthew (EBC) by D.A. Carson
29. Matthew: All Authority in Heaven and Earth (PWC) by Douglas O’Donnell
30. Matthew (ZECNT) by Grant Osborne
31. Raven Black by Ann Cleeves
32. The Possibility of Prayer by John Starke
33. Beartown by Fredrik Backman
34. Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals by Gavin Ortlund [Read twice! Most Constructive of 2020]
35. Death to the Landlords by Ellis Peters
36. Master and Commander by Patrick O’Brian
37. The Rock, the Road, and the Rabbi by Kathie Lee Gifford and Jason Sobel
38. Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund [Most Heart-Strengthening of 2020]
39. Post Captain by Patrick O’Brian
40. Loving Your Community by Stephen Viars
41. Suffer the Little Children by Donna Leon
42. Can Science Explain Everything? by John Lennox
43. Am I Just My Brain? by Sharon Dircx
44. H.M.S. Surprise by Patrick O’Brian
45. The Mauritius Command by Patrick O’Brian
46. Us Against You by Fredrik Backman
47. Unto Us a Son is Given by Donna Leon
48. A Small Book for the Anxious Heart by Edward Welch
49. City of Gold and Shadows by Ellis Peters
50. The Temptation of Forgiveness by Donna Leon
51. God In Himself by Steven Duby [Most Mind-Stretching of 2020]
52. Desolation Island by Patrick O’Brian
53. Philippians (BECNT, 2nd Edition) by Moises Silva
54. The Fortune of War by Patrick O’Brian
55. Basics for Believers by D.A. Carson
56. Retrieving Eternal Generation edited by Fred Sanders & Scott Swain
57. Why Is My Teenager Feeling Like This? by David Murray
58. The Surgeon’s Mate by Patrick O’Brian
59. Compassion & Conviction by Justin Giboney, Michael Wear, and Chris Butler [Most Hopeful of 2020]
60. The Ionian Mission by Patrick O’Brian
61. The Girl of His Dreams by Donna Leon
62. Free at Last? by Carl Ellis, Jr.
63. Jack by Marilynne Robinson
64. Treason’s Harbour by Patrick O’Brian
65. Before You Vote by David Platt
66. About Face by Donna Leon
67. The Great Brain by John D. Fitzgerald
68. No Day Wasted: The Adam Settle Story by Susan Stallings
69. The Far Side of the World by Patrick O’Brian
70. The Reverse of the Medal by Patrick O’Brian
71. The Letter of Marque by Patrick O’Brian
72. The House of Silk by Anthony Horowitz
73. Reading While Black by Esau McCaulley
74. The Ascension of Christ by Patrick Schreiner
75. Is Jesus History? by John Dickson
76. The Gospel by Raymond C. Ortlund, Jr.
77. For the Love of God, Vol. 1 by D.A. Carson
78. Christian Standard Bible, Mc’Cheyene Bible Reading Plan

***

* As in previous years, these are books I finished reading (or had read to me in Audible) in 2020, not the ones I started or the ones I didn't get done. That list would be a LOT longer! I read a bunch of them for escapist fun, a few for/with my family, and a lot of them just to learn and grow. They aren't listed (perfectly) in the order I read them. Some of them I am reading for a second or third time (or more!).

As I say each and every year--I'm not endorsing these books just because they are listed here. Some of them are really good and some are really bad. Most are somewhere in between. Read with discernment.

Here's the article where I explain why I post these.


Lists from previous years:
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
2014
2013
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008 (first half, second half)
2007 (first half, second half)
2006 (first half, second half)
2005 (first half, second half)

My Top Books of 2020

Reading whole books, like most things in 2020, was a real struggle for me. For many weeks, especially from March to August, I had bad brainfog with “too many tabs open in the browser of my mind.” Concentration was at a premium and the pure pleasure of reading was a casualty.
But the bright side of reading in 2020 was that I had wonderful books to struggle with! My pile was simply brimming with scintillating reads. And, in fact, disciplining myself to read–even if just for a few pages or even a few paragraphs–is one of the key practices that helped me get through the brainfog that threatened to take over the last nine months. (And I also learned, in the process, that I need low-powered reading glasses which also helped to mitigate my concentration problems.)
My "Top" Books
Last year, I didn’t have a chance to do a “Top Books of 2019" post. I was too wrapped up in leading the search for the next Allegheny District Superintendent to produce one. But I had been doing them the six previous years [2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018]. As I’ve said before, this list is not necessarily the best books that were published that particular year or the most enjoyable either. I intend it to be a list of the fairly new Christian nonfiction books I read:
- that had the most personal impact on me, my thinking, my heart.- that I was the most consistently enthusiastic about.- that I kept coming back to again and again.- that I couldn't help recommending to others (and recommend without reservations and significant caveats).
This year, when I was telling Heather about it, she asked if I had a favourite (yes, with the British “u”), and I said that I did have favorites (yes, with the American spelling) in various categories. In fact, as I reflected on it further, I realized I had 10 favorites that were the best or “the most” in some way. So here they are, then, in no particular order.
"The Most" Books of 2020
Most Affirming:
A Big Gospel in Small Places by Stephen Witmer
Witmer’s book was the most affirming of God’s call upon my own life for pastoral ministry in a what he terms a “small place.” I've been pastoring Lanse Free Church, a rural church parked along the interstate, now for going on 23 years. I'm in it for the long haul, and it's because of the bigness of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Witmer does a stellar job of developing a clear-eyed theological vision of ministry in small places. In my opinion, A Big Gospel in Small Places should be required reading for seminarians in their last year before the pastorate and for those 10 years into a small place ministry (with booster shots every 10 years afterwards). 
Bonus: After you read it, check out this related symposium at the Henry Center at Trinity: Remembering the Rural Church.

Most Intriguing:
Created to Draw Near by Edward Welch 
Ed has a unique knack for seeing intriguing things that have always been there and nobody else has noticed. He is also singularly gifted at boiling ideas down to their simple essence and then deploying them right back into everyday life.
You and I, if we belong to Christ, are royal priests. I knew that biblical truth, and I have had about 5 thoughts about what that means for my life. Ed has 200 pages of simple (but not simplistic) thoughts about what that means for our lives.
Bonus: I also read Ed's tiny-page-sized devotional, A Small Book for the Anxious Heart at just the right moment--April 2020. I heartily recommend it, not so much for intriguing ideas but for short, fresh, fear-defeating insights for your heart.

Most Sobering:
Remember Death by Matthew J. McCullough 
I had planned to read McCullough's reflections on mortality long before COVID-19 showed up on the scene, but in God's providence I was opening it just as the novel coronavirus started to spread across our country. 
McCullough's thesis is that honest death-awareness allows a believer to live the life they have to the fullest. 
It turns out that taxes are not inevitable, but death is. The sooner we embrace that truth, the sooner we can actually live the life we are called to.

Most Counter-Cultural:
Born Again This Way by Rachel Gilson
As I read Gilson's instructive memoir, I found a quotable quote for sharing on my social media feed on every other page! 
Gilson combines the power of personal story and counter-cultural biblical truth. Her unexpected discoveries in life tell a very different narrative than the world's which she details in cheerful, perceptive, readable prose. 
I expect to hand out Born Again This Way to many, and I'm looking forward to reading her contribution the upcoming book, Before You Lose Your Faith.

Most Accessible:
Why Does God Care Who I Sleep With? by Sam Allberry
Ok. I'm cheating here on this one. It might be just as counter-cultural as Gilson's book (and Allberry wrote the foreword for hers). It has the same message but less from a personal testimony approach andmore from an accessible introductory teaching treatment of the topic.
Ok. That last paragraph was a lot of words to say, "I would hand this book to anyone who wants to understand the basic Christian sexual ethic. Get it. Read it. Give it."
Ok. I want everyone to read, not only this accessible book, but all of the books in this new Questioning Faith series from the Good Book Company. This is how apologetics should be done.

Most Constructive:
Theological Retrieval for Evangelicals  by Gavin Ortlund
In the last few years, I've been doing a lot of reading and thinking about theological method. It seems to me that how you go about solving a problem will often shape if not determine what kind of an answer you will get.
"Retrieval" is historical theology tool in the theologian's toolbox that is increasingly being discussed. Gavin Ortlund's book is an introduction to this idea, an argument for its use by theological evangelicals, and an very instructive exemplar of its practice. I was already sold on the basic idea of retrieval, but the four case studies were so helpful, I actually read the entire book a second time already this year!
In this same vein, I also read and highly recommend:
Retrieving Eternal Generation edited by Fred Sanders & Scott Swain “He Descended to the Dead” by Matthew Emerson The Ascension of Christ by Patrick Schreiner

Most Mind-Stretching:
God In Himself by Steven Duby
Duby's book is actually a little bit above my paygrade, but I'm glad I read it. 
The basic idea (if I understand even that) is that we can know God truly if not comprehensively, and that our analogical language (creaturely comparisons) does provide that true knowledge.
I think I actually understand it better than I can explain, but being able to explain something is the true mark of understanding it. This work challenged my brain and even kept my brain alive during a really difficult time.
For Christmas, Heather bought me Duby's book on the doctrine of simplicity (which is surprisingly complex!) so I expect to have my mind-stretched again in 2021.

Most Heart-Strengthening:
Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund 
There’s a reason this one is on everybody’s list this year:
It’s just that good.
Because Jesus is just that good.
And Dane Ortlund has found some carefully chosen words to capture and give that goodness to readers. This book is golden.

Most Haunting:
What Is a Girl Worth?  by Rachael Denhollander
I wish I didn't have to read this story, but I wish even more that Mrs. Denhollander did not have to live it. 
I'm also thankful that she broke her silence and has had the courage to tell her story, over and over again.
I listened to What Is a Girl Worth as an audiobook which made it even more vivid. I pray that I learn lessons in courage and truth-telling from her example.

Most Hopeful:
Compassion & Conviction by Justin Giboney, Michael Wear, and Chris Butler
You might not have noticed, but 2020 was an election year. In fact, it was a particularly brutal election season that tempted me to a kind of despair. One of the hardest things right now is develop a public theology--how Christian faith intersects with politics and public policy. I admit to being stymied and confused about how to think through these issues well. I have much to learn.
One bright spot for me was reading Compassion & Conviction by the leaders of the AND Campaign. It's just an introduction, but the idea is that we don't have to choose either compassion or conviction in our approach to public life--in fact, we better not! 
By the way, I was also greatly helped in this area by listening to Russell Moore's Signposts podcast this year and by reading  Before You Vote by David Platt which I would recommend every American Christian absorb. Platt doesn't tell you how to vote, but helps you think about how to decide.
I know that I'm blessed to have a book budget and the ability to read--even when my brain is foggy. I'm looking forward to turning back the covers of a new set of books in 2021. Tolle Reading Glasses and Tolle Lege!

"What the Angel Said" by Joel Michaels [LEFC Sermon Notes]

"What the Angel Said"Joel MichaelsLuke 2:8-20
A simple message with big meaning!
Read with me Luke 2:8-20.
We just read, what I hope, is a very familiar story.  It was a portion of Luke's gospel telling us about the birth of Christ.  The Christmas story.  I want to focus on just a small portion dealing with the shepherds and the angel, what that discussion was and what it means.  We have two participants, the shepherds and an angel of the Lord.  We know what a shepherd is, but what about an angel.  The word angel simply means “messenger” in this case it's just not a messenger but a messenger from the Lord. An angelic being with something to say.
I want to focus on verses 8-11 especially verses 10 and 11 and the massive implications of what the angel is saying.
“But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people.  Today in the town  of David a Savior has been born to you:  he is Christ the Lord.”  (NIV)

Lets start with verse 10.
The shepherds are scared but the angel has some good news.  Not just good news but good news of great joy.  It's 2020 sometimes good news is hard to come by.  You know what, I bet these shepherds needed some good news too.  They are people and people have problems and stress and anxiety.  They needed this good news of great joy.  But, what I want us to notice is who exactly it was for.  Who was it for? “all people”.  Who are all people?  Shepherds in a field outside Bethlehem? Jerusalem maybe? Yes, but for all people.  Israel, Chad, New Guinea, Mexico, United States, State College, Lanse.  People in every corner of the earth.  Also, for all time.  It is for shepherds 2,000 years ago and  for you and your great, great grand kids and their kids.  The good news of great joy is eternal for all people, it doesn't diminish or fade.  Past, present, or future.
I guess we better find out what this great news is and what this angel of the Lord had to say.
Let's read verse 11 again.
“Today in the town of David” a baby has been born. A town called Bethlehem “the house of bread” is what that means if you want the origin,  also known as Ephrathah, the town where David was born.  This part should sound familiar.  Pastor Matt taught about this a couple of weeks ago in Psalm 132.  If you missed it go check it out on the church website.  It will help you start putting this Christmas story and this good news together.
Anyway, the angel says a baby has been born.  Not just a baby, but what? A Savior.
Let me stop.  This is what I want us to get, these next three things mentioned in verse 11.  This is what the angel was saying, the point of this great and wonderful message sent to the shepherds and to us.
So first thing a Savior. “ A Savior has been born”.
What is a savior? If you want to define the word you could say a deliverer, a healer, and a rescuer.  Somebody who saves you.
If you are in Luke 2 look over in Luke 1: 68-75.  This is Zechariah's song.  John the Baptist's dad had something to say about this Savior.  You see words like redeemed, salvation, mercy and rescue.  Those are things a savior does.  Zechariah is talking about this same person the angel is.  Jesus.  A  rescuer from enemies.  A deliverer, not only does he rescue us from our enemies, he delivers us from ourselves our own sins.  We see the redemption and mercy.  And we see the promise to Abraham to do these things.  Look at verse 74 this savior will enable us to serve him without fear in holiness and righteousness.
Who is this Savior for?  All people.  That's what the angel said. The opportunity of being rescued, redeemed and delivered is for all people.    How does this baby in Bethlehem do this?  Look at the end of this Gospel of Luke you find the cross, resurrection and ascension of Jesus.  Look at the end of your Bible.  What do you find? Revelation.  The Revelation of Jesus Christ.  Don't miss the point of Revelation, it is about Jesus.  It is part of this same proclamation, Jesus' saving work continues for his people.  
A Savior is something these shepherds needed and so do we.  Our family needs it, our friends need it,  the total stranger needs this Savior.
The second thing we want to look at is, the angel reports is he is the Christ (Christos) in the Greek or Messiah in the Hebrew.
What does Christ mean?  In a general sense it means an anointed one, or a consecrated one,  somebody who has been declared sacred.  Along with that it gives you a sense of a job, a purpose.  The person anointed  has something to do.  This Child announced to the shepherds has an anointing and a  purpose.
Let's back up a little for some context and precedent.  
There were 3 main groups anointed or consecrated with oil in the Old Testament. Prophets, kings and priests.  If you want a few examples try 1 Kings 19:16 and Exodus 40:12-14.  Each had a God given job and a purpose.  
Now we have the angel proclaiming this child is Christ.  Capital C.  The Christ.  It is a simple word, Christ, but it has meaning.  This is what the the Old Testament was trying to tell us.  This is the promise made to those Old Testament guys, remember David.  Psalm 2 from last week with Pastor Matt.
Lets think about this a minute.
Jesus is the anointed prophet.  Prophets proclaim the Word of God.  Prophets and their words have to be true if they are not true then you are not a prophet.  Jesus' words are true and he backs it up with his life.  Jesus himself proclaims “ I am the way, the truth, and the life.” in John 14:6.  I said a prophet proclaims the Word of God.  Jesus takes this a step further.  Look at John 1:14.  This is John's Christmas story.  Maybe you didn't know the Gospel of John had a Christmas story but here it is.  “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.”  There it is, John's Christmas story.  What does it say?  Jesus is not only proclaiming the Word of God, he is the Word of God and he has come. Jesus is a prophet on a level the world has never seen.
Jesus is the anointed priest.  If you want to find out about Jesus as the great high priest, Hebrews is the place to go.  Hebrews 4:14 says Jesus is the great high priest.  Hebrews 4:16 says “ Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”  In the Old Testament the priests were the only ones who did sacrifices and entered the holy places.  Now through Christ (Jesus) we have access to God.  We can have confidence, to receive mercy and grace because of the Anointed One. It's almost unbelievable that we can approach God but we can and he wants us too.
 Jesus is the anointed king.  Just like the Old Testament kings, Jesus is anointed king.  The one on the throne who rules.  Sorry to disappoint but there are no election cycles, voting or politics when Jesus rules.  He has the say and final decision.  He is a king.  Look at Rev. 19:11-16 “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS”.  No questioning those words, that is a statement that has power that is unimaginable.  Jesus is everything earthly kings aren't because of their falleness and sin.  He is righteous, true, good, kind, loving.  Don't miss the righteous part.  Like a good king he does not tolerate evil.
What was the angel telling the shepherds to go see?  Christ.  The Prophet, The Priest, The King not anointed by man with oil, but by the Holy Spirit (check out Acts10:34-38).   It was Jesus the baby in Bethlehem 2000 years ago.  If you are reading or watching this today it is the same Christ, the same Jesus.
One more for you.
The angel says he is the Lord.  He is the one who is supreme, who is overall, total authority, the creator.  This little baby the shepherds are to go see, the good news of great joy the angel is proclaiming is the Lord.  These shepherds will see the Creator who created them.  They get to look at the one who knitted them together.  The Alpha and Omega.  Pastor Matt has been leading us through the Psalms, and I want to give you a portion of my favorite Psalm.  Psalm 139:13-16. Jesus was there when we were put together.  This child is God, John 1:1 “The Word was God.”  KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.  “ In the beginning GOD” That was the message the angel was bringing.
That is a lot in the few words the angel spoke.  “Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.”  Remember those words were for all people.
2020 by most accounts was not a great year and we have no idea about 2021 or 22 or beyondbut...
We have a Savior.
We have the Christ.
We have the Lord.
That sounds like hope to me and a bright future.  Listen to what the angel said.
We have Jesus.
Merry Christmas and a hope filled New Year!

Christ Candle: Let Earth Receive Her King!

 
“Let Earth Receive Her King!”Christ Candle Lighting :: Christmas Eve
December 24, 2020 :: Psalm 98

“Advent” means “coming.” Christmas is coming–tomorrow! Jesus has come and is coming again.

During this unique Advent season, our Advent readings have explored Psalm 98, the biblical inspiration for Isaac Watts’ beloved Christmas carol, “Joy to the World.”

You probably know already that “Joy to the World” is my all time favorite Christmas carol. When I was little boy, I loved the echo part on the chorus:

“And heav’n and nature sing!
And heav’n and nature sing!

Repeat the sounding joy!
Repeat the sounding joy!

Far as the curse is found!
Far as the curse is found!

And wonders, and wonders, and wonders of His love!”

Well, when Isaac Watts was writing those glorious words 300 years ago, he was deliberately riffing on Psalm 98 which is an Old Testament victory song that joyfully celebrates the marvelous things that the Lord has done in the past and will do in the future when Christ comes again.

[LIGHT FIRST CANDLE AGAIN.]

While I’d rather we were all together, it’s been fun to visit the homes of some of our church families on these Advent Videos.

On the first Sunday of Advent, our newest married couple, Matt and Amy, lit our first candle and told us that it was a candle of preparation.

Listen to the first three verses of Psalm 98.

[READ PSALM 98:1-3]

Psalm 98 looks back on the Lord's triumphs in Israel's history and also looks forward to the Lord's salvation which is coming to the whole world. This song prophesied the coming of the Messiah, the right hand and holy arm of the Lord, Jesus Christ. Jesus was born in Bethlehem, worked our salvation on the Cross, rose from the dead, and will soon return bringing the blessings of salvation to the ends of the earth.

Psalm 98 invites us to receive the Lord with great rejoicing. And it also raises the question, “Are we ready for Him?”

Just as we are all preparing for the coming of Christmas tomorrow, we should be preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ.

Are you ready for the return of Jesus Christ?

We don’t know when it’s going to be so, we need to get ready now.

Turn from your sins and receive the Lord Jesus Christ, trusting in what He did for you on the Cross. Don’t let this Christmas go by without knowing Jesus as your Savior and Lord.

As Isaac Watts wrote: “Let ev’ry heart prepare Him room.”

Including your own heart.

[LIGHT SECOND CANDLE AGAIN.]

On the second Sunday of Advent, Rob and Bev (playing “Joy the World” in the background in their living room!) lit the second candle and told us that it was a candle of celebration.

Listen to the Psalm 98, verses 4 through 8.

[READ PSALM 98:4-8]

Do you hear the joy words in there?

“Shout for joy.”
“Sing for joy.”
“Sing before the LORD.”

And it’s not just people who should rejoice. It’s the whole wide world.

The sea roars, the rivers clap their hands, the mountains sing for joy. All of creation participates in the festivity.

The carol says, “Fields and floods, rocks, hills, and plains repeat the sounding joy!”

As Christians expecting the blessed return of our rescuing King, we have every reason to rejoice.

I know that 2020 has been filled with a lot of depressing stuff. We all know how hard 2020 has been.

But we who know Jesus and know that He’s come and know that He’s coming again can celebrate every single day because we know how good it’s going to be when He returns.

Which leads us right up to candle number three.

[LIGHT THIRD CANDLE AGAIN.]

Which the delightful and boisterous Crumrine family lit for us and explained that it was a candle of anticipation.

When you read Psalm 98, you get a little taste of how glorious the world will be when it is no longer marred by the ravages of sin.

The psalmist sings a new song because he has just watched the LORD do marvelous things for Israel, and his song prefigures the marvelous things that Jesus will do when He arrives.

At His first Advent, Jesus won our salvation on the Cross and at the Empty Tomb. Then at His second Advent, we will watch as Jesus applies that salvation to every inch of the new creation, undoing everything that is spoiled, broken, and wrong.

The carol says, “He comes to make his blessings flow far as the curse is found.”

That’s pretty far right now. Think of everything that is not right in our world right now: COVID, Cancer, Racism, Human Trafficking, Wars.

Jesus is going to make His blessings flow as far as the curse is found.

He is going to make all things new. Just think about that!

[LIGHT FOURTH CANDLE AGAIN.]

Which leads us right into our fourth candle, a candle of reflection.

Joe and Molly and their sweet and rambunctious boys lit candle our fourth candle, and they told us that Psalm 98 invites us to reflect on the perfections of the Lord.

Think about the God described in Psalm 98. This God is absolutely righteousness and perfectly faithful in steadfast love.

The psalm says in verse 3, “He has remembered his love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel; all the ends of the earth have seen the salvation of our God.”

And the psalm ends, “He will judge the world in righteousness and the peoples with equity.”

Or as Isaac Watts said it: “He rules the world with truth and grace, and makes the nations prove the glories of his righteousness and the wonders of his love.”

“The wonders of His love.” Just sit with that tonight.

Imagine a world where everything is perfect because of a Perfect King. The Kingdom of Christ.

[LIGHT THE CHRIST CANDLE.]

That’s the Kingdom that was introduced at the first Christmas.

The King had come and was wrapped in cloths and placed in a manger.

The King had come. But the Kingdom had only come in part. But we are still waiting for the King to come again and to bring the fullness and culmination of His kingdom.

One of the reasons why “Joy to the World” is my favorite Christmas carol is that it isn’t just about Jesus’ first coming, but it’s also and even more about His second coming. His second “Advent.”

So this Christmas Eve, let’s sing of Christ and repeat the sounding joy while wait for Earth to receive her King.

Merry Christmas!

Advent Candle #4: Wonder at His Love

LEFC Family Advent Readings: Let Earth Receive Her King!Psalm 98 :: December 20, 2020Week #4: Wonder at His Love
“Advent” means “coming.” Christmas is coming. Jesus has come and is coming again.
Our Advent readings this year have explored Psalm 98, the scriptural inspiration for Isaac Watts’ beloved Christmas carol, “Joy to the World.” 
Psalm 98 is a victory song that joyfully celebrates the marvelous things that the Lord has done in the past and will do in the future when Christ comes again.
Our first candle was a candle of preparation.
[LIGHT FIRST CANDLE AGAIN.]
Just as we are all preparing for the coming of Christmas, we should be preparing room in our hearts for the coming of Christ. Psalm 98 invites us to ready ourselves for His return.                [LIGHT SECOND CANDLE AGAIN.]
Our second candle was a candle of celebration. The coming of the Messiah is worthy of the resounding exultation of the whole creation. Heaven and nature will sing!
[LIGHT THIRD CANDLE AGAIN.]
Our third candle was a candle of anticipation. Psalm 98 thrills our hearts with a glorious picture of an entire globe no longer marred by the ravages of sin and sorrow. Our Lord’s blessings will flow as far as the curse is found.
[LIGHT FOURTH CANDLE.]
Our fourth candle is a candle of reflection. Psalm 98 sings a song of salvation that stems from the Lord’s perfect love and faithfulness. Psalm 98 also sings a song of expectation of the Lord’s righteous judgment of the world. These diverse aspects of the Lord’s character exist in perfect harmony within His heart and are seen in all of His works forever.
[READ PSALM 98:2-3 and PSALM 98:9.]
Psalm 98 invites us to reflect on the perfections of the Lord. We should marvel at His absolute righteousness and His faithful, merciful, steadfast love.
“He rules the world with truth and grace,And makes the nations proveThe glories of his righteousness,And wonders of his love!”

"My Son" - Psalm 2 [Matt's Messages]

“My Son”Lanse Evangelical Free ChurchDecember 20, 2020 :: Psalm 2
Psalm 2 is one of the most important psalms in the whole Psalter and one of the most important texts in the whole Bible.
Psalm 2 is one of those texts that I call “hypertexts,” because if you click on Psalm 2 (so to speak), it takes you all kinds of other places in your Bible, especially in the New Testament.
It’s right at the front of the book of Psalms for a reason, because it orients the reader and gives you a sense of where you are at on the map. Psalm 2 gives you a sense of the Big Story of “What’s Really Going on in the World.”
And while it was originally probably a royal coronation song written by David for the installations of his sons as Israel’s kings, it is so obviously a song about the ultimate King of Kings, the Lord Jesus Christ. Great David’s Greatest Son.
We don’t often hear Psalm 2 read at Christmastime, but I don’t know why.
This song is all about Who Jesus truly is.
In 1865, William Dix wrote the searching question of Hymn #137 in our hymnals, “What Child Is This?”
“What Child is this, who, laid to rest, On Mary’s lap is sleeping?Whom angels greet with anthems sweet, While shepherd’s watch are keeping?”
“What Child Is This?”
In Psalm 2 the LORD Himself answers that question by calling Him, “My Son.”
Not just Mary’s son, but God’s. own. Son.

Psalm 2 begins with a conspiracy.
A conspiracy to commit mutiny.
A foolish conspiracy to commit mutiny against the LORD and against His Messiah.
If you have your Bibles open, look with me at Psalm 2, verse 1.
“Why do the nations conspire and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the LORD and against his Anointed One. ‘Let us break their chains,’ they say, ‘and throw off their fetters.’”
What a provocative start to this song! Have you ever a heard a song that started with a mutiny?
David says that the nations and the people and the kings of the earth and the rulers  are all getting their heads together and planning and plotting to rebel against God, against Yahweh.
And David just shakes his head. “Why?” “Why would they do that? How could they get it into their thick heads that they might succeed at this foolish plot? Their collusion is futile. They plot in vain.”
Now, we know the reason why. It’s because the world hates Him. They don’t want to be ruled by the LORD. That’s been obvious since day one, since Genesis chapter 3.
Humanity sees itself as unjustly, grossly, enslaved by God, and so there is a worldwide rebellion.
But it won’t work.
And don’t feel bad for them, but do try to see yourself in them. You and I may not be world leaders, but we have all rebelled against the LORD. We have all acted like He’s an terrible tyrant, and what we need is our freedom from Him.
(Ironically, freedom is what He actually offers us. Not freedom from Him but freedom from the world, the flesh, and the devil.)
But these rulers (and in David’s time, they were probably the neighboring vassal states that he had conquered, these rulers) wanted to throw off the rule of the LORD and (v.2) “his Anointed One.”
Who is that? Well, that’s the king. Remember when Samuel anointed David with oil? David was being marked as “The Anointed One,” the king of the people.
And we learned last week that the Hebrew for “Anointed One” is...“Messiah” and in Greek that is “Christos,” or we say, “Christ.”
The nations want to be freed from Yahweh and the Messiah, from the LORD and His Christ.
And the prospect of their rebellion totally frightens the LORD.
Just kidding!!!!
It doesn’t faze Him one bit. Verse 4.
“The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them.”
“Ha! You’ve got to be kidding me! You guys are a joke.”
Yes, this is what the Bible says. I hope you have room in your theology to think of God like this. Unfazed, even amused, and what is more, ridiculing the rebellion of the world leaders. “The Lord scoffs at them.”
“Oh, yeah? You think you guys are going to take me down? You think you can escape? You think you can destroy my Messiah or stop my promises from being fulfilled? You and what army?”
Then he lowers the boom. Verse 5.
“Then he rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, ‘I have installed my King on Zion, my holy hill.’”
This is God’s answer to their mutiny.
He Himself has installed His man to be King on Mt. Zion, in Jerusalem the capitol, His earthly headquarters. And nothing on Earth can stop him. Notice that His wrathful rebuke is simply, “Oh ho no. You aren’t getting away with anything. I have placed my King in Zion!”
Now in verse 7, the King himself speaks about himself. But he doesn’t say what he thinks of himself. He says what God says about himself. And God says that he is not just the king, he is the Son of God. Verse 7.
“I [the King] will proclaim the decree of the LORD [YHWH]: He [YHWH] said to me [THE KING], ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”
Now, one level that’s just a metaphor. It was common in the Ancient Near East for the kings to refer to themselves as sons of the deity. And in 2 Samuel 7, the LORD had promised David that He would treat David’s sons as His sons. 2 Samuel 7:14 “I will be his father, and he will be my son.” They would have a special adoptive relationship. 
And the “today” in verse 7 would naturally be the day of the king’s anointing.
So the nations need to watch out because David and his sons are on the job being God’s earthly representative rulers.
But those words also seem like too big of shoes for David and his sons to fill, don’t they?
Remember David? He didn’t live up to that level very often. And his sons sure didn’t either.
But one day, one of his sons would be born and live up to this divine decree to perfection.
And this week, we celebrate His birth.
“You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”
Psalm 2, verse 7 is obviously fulfilled in Jesus! Follow the links, and you’ll see how the New Testament authors could see it clearly. Matthew, Mark, Luke, Acts, Romans, Revelation. They all connect Psalm 2 to Jesus.
For example, in Acts chapter 4, the early church says that the crucifixion fulfilled Psalm 2. The people at the prayer meeting in Acts 4 pray, “[Sovereign Lord,] You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David: 'Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers gather together against the Lord and against his Anointed One.' Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed” (vv.24-26).
The crucifixion was the plot to overthrow the Messiah.
And they almost won.
In fact, it sure looked like they did! Because He died.
But He did not stay dead.
On the third day, He rose again.
That’s why Paul says this in Romans chapter 1 about the gospel of God. He says it’s the gospel, “regarding [God’s] Son, who as to his human nature was a descendant of David,  and who through the Spirit of holiness was declared with power to be the Son of God by his resurrection from the dead: Jesus Christ our Lord” (vv.3-4).
“You are my Son; today I have become your Father.”
This raises the question, “When is ‘today’ for Jesus in fulfilling Psalm 2, verse 7?”  [Here I follow the excellent short argument in this article by Charles Lee Irons, "The Only Begotten God" in Credo Magazine.]
We all believe that Jesus is God’s Son.
What is the “today” when it comes to Him?
We could guess from Romans 1 that it was when He was resurrected and “declared with power to be the son of God.”
But if He was anointed before that (and He obviously was because of what we saw in Acts 4), then it has to be before that. His resurrection was another time when it was declared, but not the first.
The New Testament makes it increasingly clear that Jesus was already the Son of God before anybody else knew it.
Think about what happened at His baptism and on the Mount of Transfiguration.
Remember what God said then? “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
The writer to the Hebrews indicates that He was always and eternally the Son.
He says, “[I]n these last days [God] has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. So he became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs. For to which of the angels did God ever say, [Psalm 2:7] ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father?” (Hebrews 1:2-5a).
For Jesus, it’s an eternal today.
The Son of God is God the Son, eternally begotten of the Father.
Which is a mind-blowing idea, and what else should we expect when we’re talking about God?!!
“You are my Son; today [for Jesus, eternally] I have become your Father.”
And now, the Father invites the Son to pray for the world. Verse 8.
“Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.”
If He but asks, the Son will receive the whole world from the Father.
I don’t even know what that would have meant for David and his sons. I guess the whole known world at the time. Great success against Israel’s enemies.
But the language is so big, isn’t it?
"The nations, your inheritance.The ends of the earth, your possession."
All you have to do is ask.
And, beloved, Jesus is asking!
Jesus has asked and is asking the Father for the nations, for the world.
Those nations that have been rebellion will not rebel forever.The world that is under the curse will not be cursed forever.
This is why we are involved in missions, to take the gospel to the nations, to tell the whole world that Jesus is the Messiah who was and is and is to come.
This is what’s actually going on in the world. It might not be in the headlines on the nightly news, but that’s because the world is in rebellion.
The real headline is, “The Father has promised the world to His Son.”
And He shall reign forever and ever. Verse 9.
“You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.’”
The mutiny will be put down, the conspiracy will be ended once and for all.
Verse 9 is quoted three times in the book of Revelation once in that wild vision of the birth of Christ in chapter 12, where the sun-clothed woman “gave birth to a son, a male child, who will rule all the nations with an iron scepter” (v.15).
Or as Isaac Watts said it:
“He rules the world with truth and grace,And makes the nations proveThe glories of his righteousness,And wonders of his love.”
This is going to happen!
There will be total victory for the LORD’s Messiah.
All rebellion will be put down and the whole Earth will be His inheritance and unchallenged possession.
So, how do we apply this song to our lives today?
David tells us in the last three verses of his song. I’ll try to summarize it in three points.
#1. WISE UP. V.10
“Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.”
This song has a message for the conspirators: “Stop while you can. Get out while the getting is good.”
In other words, repent.
You schemes and machinations will not succeed. They are vain and futile and destined for failure.
Give up now. Repent while you can.
And that is part of the message of Christmas.
When Jesus came the first time, He came as a little baby and He offered salvation.
But when He returns the second time, he will bring salvation to all who have turned from their sin and trusted in what He did for them on the Cross, but He will also bring condemnation to all who have not.
“Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling.”
#2. BOW DOWN.
“Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. [V.12] Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment.”
To “kiss the Son” means to pay homage to Him. It means to submit to Him.
To bow before Him in worship and obedience and proclaim your commitment to Him.
I think here of the Magi who came from the East and wanted to worship the Christ child.
Matthew chapter 2 tells us, “they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh”(v.11). And they were overjoyed (v.10).
The wise men were fulfilling Psalm 2 verse 11.
They were rejoicing with trembling. They were worshiping the Messiah.
They were kissing the Son.
Have you bowed down before Jesus Christ? Is He your Lord?
A lot of people want to claim Jesus as their teacher and many want to claim Him as their Savior.
But not as many want to live as if He is their King.
Christmas should awaken fear and awe and reverence in us.
If Christmas just gives us warm fuzzy feelings, we’re doing it wrong.
“Serve the LORD with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment.”
Not because He’s touchy, but because He’s holy.
And His longsuffering patience will eventually reach it’s end.
Don’t presume upon it. Repent and submit before the iron scepter comes down.
Wise Up.Bow Down.And Come In.
#3. COME IN.
I love how this song ends. If it sounded at all scary, that’s good because it is, but it ends with nothing but sweetness. Verse 12.
“Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”
That’s a beatitude, isn’t it?!
There is nothing but blessing if you are inside of Christ.
You’re safe.You’re saved.You’re loved.You’re cared for.You’re accepted.You’re beloved.You’re blessed.
Outside of Him, there is nothing but danger.
But inside of Him, there is nothing but blessing.
It shouldn’t be a hard choice to make.
Come in.
Come in to the Messiah.Come in to the Kingdom.Come in to the One that God the Father calls, “My Son.”
What child is this?
“This, this is Christ the King,Whom shepherds guard and angels sing:Haste, haste to bring Him laud [worship],the Babe, the Son of Mary.”
And the Son of God.
“Blessed are all who take refuge in Him.”

***

Fortifying Truth - Fall 2020

01. Majestic and Mindful - Psalm 8
02. All Our Days - Psalm 90
03. "The LORD on High Is Mighty!" - Psalm 93
04. "The LORD Is My Shepherd" - Psalm 23
05. "Praise the LORD, O My Soul!" - Psalm 103
06. "The Blessing of Aaron's Oily Beard" - Psalm 133
07. "A Dying Thirst for the Living God" - Psalm 42
08. "Our Fortress" - Psalm 46
09. Unrestless - Psalm 131
10. "Sun and Shield" - Psalm 84
11. "With Songs of Joy" - Psalm 126
12. "His Love Endures Forever" - Psalm 136
13. "How Many Are Your Works, O LORD!" - Psalm 104
14. "My Soul Waits for the Lord" - Psalm 130
15. "Remember David" - Psalm 132

Advent Candle #3: Watch the Blessings Flow!

 
LEFC Family Advent Readings: Let Earth Receive Her King!Psalm 98 :: December 13, 2020Week #3: Watch the Blessings Flow
“Advent” means “coming.” Christmas is coming. Jesus has come and is coming again.
For this year’s unique Advent season, we are focusing on Psalm 98, the biblical inspiration for Isaac Watts’ beloved Christmas carol, “Joy to the World.”
Psalm 98 is a victory song of the once and future king of the entire Earth. The psalm is a joyfully celebrates the marvelous things the Lord has done in history and will do when Christ comes again.
Our first candle was a candle of preparation.
[LIGHT FIRST CANDLE AGAIN.]
Just as we are preparing for the coming of Christmas, we should be preparing our hearts for the coming of Christ. Psalm 98 invites us to ready our hearts for His return.                [LIGHT SECOND CANDLE AGAIN.]
Our second candle was a candle of celebration. The coming of the Messiah is worthy of the resounding exultation of the whole creation. Heaven and nature will sing!
[LIGHT THIRD CANDLE.]
Our third candle is a candle of anticipation. Psalm 98 thrills our hearts with a glorious picture of an entire globe no longer marred by the ravages of sin.
[READ PSALM 98:1-3]
The psalmist sings a fresh and rapturous song because he has just watched the LORD do marvelous things for Israel, and his song prefigures the marvelous things that Jesus would do when He arrived.
At His first Advent, Jesus won our salvation on the Cross and at the Empty Tomb. At His second Advent, we will watch as Jesus applies that salvation to every inch of the new creation, undoing everything that is spoiled, broken, and wrong.
Let this candle’s light lead us to anticipate that glorious day when Jesus makes all things new.
“No more let sin and sorrow grow,Nor thorns infest the ground;He comes to make his blessings flowFar as the curse is found!”