Psalm 127 Unless the Lord Builds the House

Trusting the Lord for the Results of Our Work

Open your Bibles, please, to Psalm chapter 127. That's found on page 441 in the Bible in the seat back in front of you. So if you wanna grab that Bible out of the seat back, 441, easy to find. If you don't own a Bible, we ask that you please take that one with you that's in the seat back.

We want everybody to own a copy of the scriptures. Or even if, and I say this from time to time, even if you don't own an English Standard version of the Bible, which is the one that we use here, you can feel free to use that one.

But Psalm 127, keeping with the theme of the morning, thinking about families. So follow along as I read Psalm 127. A song of a sense of Solomon. Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.

Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil, for he gives to his beloved sleep. Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord.

The fruit of the womb, a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them. He shall not be put to shame when he speaks with his enemies in the gate.

Let's pray.

Father, as we come to your text this morning, we recognize that your word has the power to transform us and change us. And Father, I ask that things work in that direction. Because I recognize the tendency in my own heart as I come to the text to conform the text to my thoughts, to my opinions, and to bend your word to fit my preconceived notions.

And yet there is the potential for this very short psalm to rub against the culture that we live in, to actually challenge some of our thinking about godly offspring and having a family and all of those aspects of things.

And then not only that, but the way that we work, which is so clearly addressed in this psalm. So Father, I pray that you would speak to our hearts. If you are not in this message, then I am preaching in vain.

And so I ask for the presence of your spirit to convict our hearts, to transform us and to change us, because we have come into the hearing of your very words this morning. I ask this in Jesus' name, amen.

The Futility of Building and Watching Without the Lord

Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain. The word vain there is a word for futility, okay? It is futile to build the house if the Lord isn't in it. Unless the Lord watches the walls, the watchman stay awake in vain.

It is futile for them to watch and to stand guard. They might as well be asleep is what the text is saying. This psalm is ultimately all about trusting the Lord for the results of the work that we do.

And there is no accident that the context of this psalm is family. And we'll see how that plays out. There really is nothing that has stretched me more than striving to raise my children in godliness.

Can any of you that are parents here in the room relate to that, do you agree with that? That that has stretched you significantly?

No one?

Okay, seven of you, seven of you, that's stretched you a little bit. Verse one directly states that all of our efforts are in vain if the Lord is not in them. We can work hard to build, we can intently watch to protect the city, but God is the one who determines the results to the toil and the work that we do.

You agree with that?

God is, if God is in it, then it is successful. Verse two then goes on to speak of the vanity or futility of anxious toil. Getting up early and working into the night are not the end all of life. Now some of you feel that way right now, right?

Like that's what your employer seems to be. And in our current economy, is that kind of what businesses are driving towards? You can kind of start to feel in this economy like man, my job might be on the line if I'm not there first thing in the morning and somebody else is gonna put in more hours than me so I better work hard and this is gonna cut against the grain of that a little bit.

Again, I find it ironic that this passage, that that statement about rising early and going to work and staying to work late is again in the context of family. I picture it like as if Solomon had a forward, like a window into the future and was able to step into 2012 and see right where we live right now.

And to actually see how torn men are in general in our culture to work long hours and then bring home a paycheck and believe that that is sufficient for their family. To bring home the bacon, to bring home the money and then say, you know what, I've done my job now.

I've got a paycheck here. Can you relate to how our culture sees things that way? That that's the man's responsibility or that's a major part of what it means to be a man is you go and you make money and that's it.

But we all know that our families need more from us than just a paycheck, right? Do our families need more than that? From just logging time at the daily grind. The end of verse two describes a life that trusts in God and if you go ahead and look down at the text at the end of verse two, it says, "'For he gives to his beloved sleep.'".

Well, what is that about? "'The life that trusts in God rests well.'". And anxiety, I'm convinced, comes from believing that the results are up to me. Can any of you relate to that type of thinking in life where you're like, it's all on my shoulders.

If I don't get it done, nobody's gonna get it done so I have to work hard at it. Have you been there before? You've been to that stage in life? Do you have anxiety when you take that on your shoulders?

When you believe it's all up to you? Yes, we tend towards anxiety when that happens. But this Psalm is saying, "'Rest in peace' comes from trusting in a good God "'who loves me and will work things out "'ultimately for his glory.'".

I do think it's important to point out that the Psalm does not say sit back, do nothing, and God will give you everything that you want and need. It doesn't say that here, does it? You can look for it, but it's not there.

Solomon speaks against anxious toil, but he's not in this text speaking against toil. He's not saying don't work. He's saying don't anxiously work. Don't allow anxiety to be a part of that. If you trust solely in your ability, you will live a life of anxiety.

But if you trust ultimately in the Almighty, you will live a more peaceful life. Do you understand that axiom? Do you understand that principle? That as we trust in God for the results, we will live a more peaceful life.

He gives rest to those he loves. And in verse three, I think we find possibly the most counter-cultural comment in the entire Psalm. It says, children are a heritage from the Lord. The fruit of the womb is a reward.

How does that gel with our culture's view of children? How does that gel with the reality that raising children is a significant amount of work? Some of you here don't have children, but you've had a chance to see and watch how much work it is.

Some of you have had a chance to scratch the surface. You've babysat, you've done some different things, and believe me, that really is just scratching the surface. But some of you are parents who know firsthand how much effort goes into raising children, and then some of you are on the front lines as a single parent or as a stay-at-home mom, and you are, that is your job, that is what you do, and that is your toil, that is your work.

But what did our culture tell us about children? A nuisance? I heard somebody say it. That's what our culture says, isn't it? A nuisance, an inconvenience, optional, a wet blanket on the relationship, right?

All different kinds of things that our culture says about children. But let's be sure, as I prayed, that we let God's word change our culture and not our culture twist God's word. And I think that when we get to passages like this, we can kind of start to squirm a little bit because I think, I dare say that the majority of us, myself included, have some skewed notions of family and children, and this psalm stands to correct most of us in our thinking.

Would you agree with that? It can be kind of intense, but we ought to let it change us and not the other way around. By the way, this passage has the potential to sound hurtful to those who have struggled with infertility, there may be some here, I don't know if you have, but let me clearly say that although the text says that children are a blessing, children are a reward, there is nothing in the text to indicate that a lack of children is a curse from God, and yet, I think that people can read the opposite, and the text does not say the opposite.

It says children are a reward, but it does not say those without children are cursed, and I know that maybe even my saying that does not provide a significant level of assurance or comfort, the pain and the struggle is still there for some of you, and yet, I wanna make sure that people don't read more into this text than what it actually says here, and I also wanna make abundantly clear that I'm available to talk through those things, and I recognize what a struggle this can be in a marital relationship between two people who are struggling with infertility, and I would love to walk through that with you and talk with that, and then particularly, I know what a struggle it can be between you and God, so if that's where you're at today, please let me know, come and talk with me.

I would love to maybe sit down and counsel with you a little bit and work through that, but the reality is that verses like this and texts like this can be difficult for those who are struggling with that.

Children as Arrows and the Responsibility to Shape Their Trajectory

Verse four uses the analogy of arrows in the hand of a warrior, and as I did my study this week, and I was working through and reading a couple of commentaries, all different kinds of notions, like you can ask yourself, when you see a figure of speech, are children literally arrows?

You're gonna get a big bow and shoot your kids out? No, obviously, it's a figure of speech, and so when you see a figure of speech, you gotta figure out what is it about arrows that kids are like? Are they sharp?

Are they dangerous? Are they weapons? All of the above?

So do you see what I'm saying?

You have to ask yourself when you see a figure of speech in scripture, like what component, what aspect? Well, all kinds of commentaries just slung out, all different kinds of ideas, there are dozens to choose from.

There were two that kind of stood out to me that I thought kind of made sense in the context of their culture, like where these people live. Now, you gotta understand, I mean, when we talk about arrows in the hands of a warrior, how many warriors do you know that carry arrows around?

Okay, that's not really where we live, that's not our culture, so we have to just kind of understand how would they have viewed arrows and what was important. Now, what you need to understand is an arrow that has any crookedness, an arrow that is poorly manufactured and poorly constructed doesn't go where you send it, right?

So there's something here that some of the commentaries were clearly pointing out that kind of struck with me that there's this notion of fashioning them, of guiding them and directing them and making them straight, so to speak.

How many of you know that they didn't have a lot of precision equipment back then? Okay, these things are not manufactured on lathes, you know, you didn't have electricity. I mean, to actually make a straight arrow was a lot of work in that time and in that era.

Are you getting it, are you getting me?

So to make a straight arrow that's gonna function correctly, how many of you know if a warrior in the middle of battle pulls an arrow out and it's crooked and he shoots it, it's not going where he wants it to go and it's pointless, should've never even shot it, it doesn't make sense.

So this idea of meticulously and carefully and cautiously forming our children. When we are older, I'm convinced, and you see that in the text, it talks about children of one's youth. The picture there is of an older man looking back at his children and the experiences.

I'm convinced when we look back, we will see the way that our children have been formed by some of our decisions.

Do you agree with that?

Some of you are here and you're already down that road to some degree and you're able to take that look back. Some of us are in the process right now. And I'm sure that all of us will look back and some decisions will have formed them for good and some will have formed them for bad.

And that's the reality of the human condition. That's why unless the Lord builds the house, doesn't mean we don't toil, doesn't mean we don't fashion them, it doesn't mean we're not trying to sharpen them, but at the same time, recognizing that the results are up to God.

Also, the second thing about arrows that I noticed is that the arrow is sent out. In a battle, in that day and age, in that era, again, we're talking about metaphorical battle, think about the battle of life or whatever, but in a battle, a guy with a sword has a limited geographical scope in the battlefield, right?

As far as the sword can reach. That's all the extent of his usefulness in battle is how his proximity. But with an archer, archers would be a distinct advantage in warfare in that time, right? Kind of like the Air Force is and the ability to launch cruise missiles and things like that is for us.

So you look at that and you just can see how the arrows would be sent out beyond the capacity of a warrior, something that is sent out. They are aimed at a target and let loose. And we are to be intentionally guiding our children on to the target, metaphorically speaking.

And so my question to all of us today is to consider what trajectory are the children in our church heading towards? And when I say that, I think of the parents and their responsibility, but I think of us as a church that's developing even a church culture, that as we interact with one another, the kids are watching, they're seeing the way that we interact with one another.

Just picture in your mind for a minute the dad who the only time his kids ever see him enthusiastic, the only time he ever displays emotion is watching the basketball game. Are we setting our kids on a trajectory by that?

If all our kids ever see us enthusiastic and excited about our sports, what are they gonna value? What kind of a pathway is that putting that child on? Or what about the way that we handle finances or the way that we talk with our spouse, the way that we talk with their mom or their dad?

How does that set a trajectory for them in understanding what a marriage looks like, in understanding what place does money have in your family? And do you realize that your kids are listening? Every once in a while, my wife and I have been having a conversation as if the kids are not in the backseat listening.

And then you're like, oh, well, hold on. Okay, what are we communicating right now? What are they hearing? Any of you ever been there, by the way? That's a scary place, isn't it? You're like, or they just repeat it later, and you're like, whoa, all right, you were listening.

But do you understand the principle of trajectory, that we are launching our kids in a direction? And there is gonna come a point where the string is gonna be loosed, and they are no longer under your control.

You've aimed them, you've launched them, and they're out. You getting what I'm saying? And I think that's all part of the illustration of them being arrows, launched, out, and sent. And then the last thing that we see in verse five is that the man is blessed who fills his quiver with children.

Find it interesting. Again, a little bit counter-cultural for us in our understanding. I think if this was written in America in 2012, it might say, blessed is the woman whose quiver is full. Because what is our mindset, that the realm of the family or the realm of children is women, right?

Is that, I mean, would you agree with me that that's a predominant thought in our culture? Men, are you being honest? It is, that's a predominant thought. And yet it says, blessed is the man. It doesn't say, blessed is the grandma, blessed is the mother-in-law, blessed is the mom.

It says, blessed is the man whose quiver is full. Men, do you delight in your children? Or do you delight in children in general? Think about that. Too often I've heard the tongue-in-cheek comment. Sure, scripture tells you to fill your quiver, I just happen to have a small one, right?

Or, my quiver is already full. Like, have you heard that? Any of you ever heard that phrase before? Okay, some of you that have run around the church for a while might have heard that. I've heard it tongue-in-cheek, but I think often that comment betrays an unbelief in verse five, that blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them.

Does that mean that every, does that mean that I'm up here gonna preach that every family needs to fill their quiver with 12 to 15 children? Well, I don't know. You have to work through that as a family yourself.

Does it mean that every family should have as many children as they possibly can? I don't think so, but it is saying that the man who has many children will be blessed.

Will be blessed.

And that is what I don't think we believe as a culture. I do not think we accept that. I think we reject scripture on this point. I don't think that we believe that if I had 12 children, I would be more happy, right?

No, I'm being serious.

Are you hearing me? Scripture says it. Scripture says I would be. And I'm not sure I believe it. And I'm standing here as your pastor saying, wow, this is what scripture is telling me this week. My quiver should be full and I will be more happy the more children I have.

Really?

This has been a challenge to me this week in preparing this. And I tell you, it was interesting. I send out my sermon to a couple of people to just kind of hear how it hits them. The director of Orphan Justice Mission is here and he said, why don't you put in a plug for adoption at this point?

And there's a reality to that. Some of you have already had procedures and you're going, well, whew, I'm out of that. Okay, well, my quiver is full because I can't even biologically have any more children.

No, you can have more children. You're not off the hook on that one. Consider it, think about it. Really pray through that. What does it mean to have a full quiver of children? And the notion, it might begin in your life with just believing what God's word says.

Believing that it's true that you would be happy with more children.

Wow.

I've heard people say something that's very inconsistent here. And maybe some of us are guilty of thinking this way on this passage. I can hear someone ask the question, but haven't times changed? Okay, in that day and in that era, there was a more agricultural society.

Anybody's mind go there? So more children is beneficial because you have to work the land. Anybody's mind there? Okay, let's think about how inconsistent that is. I've just asked you if your mind is there and then I'm gonna call you inconsistent.

That doesn't seem very fair,.

But just bear with me here for just a second. So let's think this through. Subsistence farming means I live, I take the food out of the ground and I put it in my mouth, okay? I don't have discretionary income.

In that day and age when Solomon is writing, there was no such thing as discretionary income. There was not discretionary anything. How many of us would admit to having some discretionary income? You get to decide what you're going to do with some of your stuff and some of your money, okay?

So we're gonna say that somehow it made more sense for them in that time, which of course children are a blessing.

Because you have to,.

How many years do you have to feed a child before they're useful on the farm? Okay, you getting where I'm going with this? But we want to say it was more convenient for them, but inconvenient for us to have more children?

Are we being consistent or inconsistent on that? Does that make sense? You're hearing, who's tracking with my logic on that? Okay, most of you are getting that. I think we're inconsistent in the way that we think about children.

That's what I'm getting at. So let's bring this all together and come in for a landing. There is a lesson in here for all of us and some of you are here and it would be potential for you to tune out. You don't have children, you're like, he's not saying anything to me.

So please pay attention here for just a minute at least. Some of you who don't have children, this is a lesson for you and it's here in this text and this text is speaking to you as well. Trust in God for the outcomes in your life.

Work, but don't work anxiously. It says to you here in the text, unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the Lord watches the city, they stay awake in vain. Unless the Lord blesses the portfolio, they invest in vain.

Unless the Lord blesses the body, they exercise in vain. And you could go on with list upon list of things. If we work at it and we toil at it and the Lord isn't in it, that's not gonna fly. So work hard, but trust in God with the results.

And the same principle applies to parents, obviously. That's what I think the psalm is driving for. So for those of you here with children, think about this, unless the Lord blesses the children, we parent in vain.

And now that can sound like fatalism. Does that have a ring of a bit of a downer to some of you? I mean, unless the Lord is in it, I'm just wasting my time is kind of what it sounds like. But let me suggest to you that this mindset on parenting, unless the Lord is in it, unless the Lord is in my family, then everything is in vain, everything is futile.

That has had a massive major impact and led me to believe that there is something more significant than anything else I can do for my family. As a matter of fact, maybe the most significant thing that I can do in life regarding my ministry or anything is to pray.

Is to pray and to invite God and ask him to be a part of this family. To ask him to be here among us in ministry,.

To be with us.

Do you see how that elevates prayer? Asking God to be a part of your plans and part of the work that you're doing, inviting him to be in your day, in the activities and the things that you are doing. Prayer is very vitally, because I don't think that anything quite shows trust in him and trusting in him for the results of things than praying about them.

But what are we so prone to do? Go it alone first and then if that doesn't work, all else fails, pray, right? Rather than starting with prayer and asking God to be in these things. You see, so I pray that God would raise my children to love him despite my example, despite my sin, despite my shortcomings.

Because how many of you know if your kids only follow your example, they're not gonna get beyond you, right? If they follow your example, are they gonna be just right where you're at? Is that what you want for them?

So my only hope is that the Lord builds my house. And that is my prayer for all of us, that the Lord builds us up in him through the gospel of Jesus Christ. And every week we remember the good news of the sacrifice of Jesus through taking communion together.

Jesus and his death on the cross is our only hope. It is our only hope. Without his sacrifice on the cross, we would have no way to be reconciled with God. He's the hope of the church, he is the hope of families, and he is the only hope for our children.

So I want you to take time to consider the great sacrifice that Jesus made on our behalf as we come to communion. If you're here and you've decided to follow Jesus, you've acknowledged him as Lord, you've said you're king over all and worthy of following, and then in turn asked him to save you.

I believe that those, by the way, are the two primary components that we need to grab ahold of in order to be saved, in order to be guaranteed of eternal life, is to recognize Jesus Christ is Lord, he is king, he rose from the dead, he's alive, and he reigns at the Father's right hand.

And second of all, you've asked him, you've humbled yourself and said, I need you to save me. And then on the basis of the work that he did on the cross, you can be saved. If you've done that, then I'd welcome you to join us in communion.

If you're here and you're kind of rustling through that and you're unsure and you're kind of like, I don't really know what Jesus had, Jesus, 2 ,000 years ago, this dude lived, and I don't know what he has to do with me here in 2012, then I'd ask that you just kind of pass that by, take in this song and think about this message, and then come and talk with me at the end of the service.

I would love to chat with you further about maybe what it would look like for your journey to grow in faith and how Recast could maybe help you with that. But let's pray before we come to communion. Father, I wanna thank you again just for the opportunity as we have a chance to let your word sharpen us, to change us, to transform us.

Father, I do pray that our thinking would change, particularly for those who are parenting, to give their trust over to you in regard to their children, to work hard at raising godly children, but to not let anxiety be a part of that, but to leave the results up to you in your goodness and in your grace.

Father, as we come to communion and we remember the blood of Jesus that was shed for us on the cross, in our place where we deserve to be on the cross, he took that for us, and then his body was crushed for us, the scourging that he went through and the pain and the suffering, all as a sacrifice, all as a substitute for us, that we could be made in a right relationship with you, Father.

So Father, I pray that you would go before us, allow this to be a memorial service, our remembrance of the great sacrifice of Jesus Christ, and then allow your word to transform us throughout this week, that this great gospel that you have given to us would not be held to ourselves, but we would go out and share this because you have loved us so much that we are filled with joy and we can't help but share that with others.

I ask this in Jesus' name.