Living in Light of our Eternal God - Pastor Jason Austin

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I'll commonly use this psalm in the context of a funeral, it speaks about the eternal nature of our
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God and Jason will be pressing upon us, instructing us on how we ought to live in the light of our understanding of his eternal nature.
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It's a prayer of Moses, the only psalm that we have recorded of Moses in the collection of psalms,
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Psalm 90, Lord you have been our dwelling place in all generations before the mountains were brought forth or ever you had formed the earth and the world from everlasting to everlasting you are
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God. You return man to dust and say return
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O children of man for a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past or as a watch in the night you sweep them away as with a flood they're like a dream like grass that is renewed in the morning and in the morning it flourishes and is renewed and in the evening it fades and withers.
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For we are brought to an end by your anger by your wrath we are dismayed you set our iniquities before you our secret sins in the light of your presence for all our days pass under your wrath we bring our years to an end like a sigh the years of our life are 70 or if by reason of strength 80 yet their span is but toil and trouble they are soon gone and we fly away who considers the power of your anger and your wrath according to the fear of you so teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom return
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O Lord how long have pity on your servants satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us and for as many years as we have seen evil let your work be sown to your servants and your glorious power to their children and let the favor of the
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Lord our God be upon us and establish the work of our hands upon us yes establish the work of our hands let's pray thank you father for your word we pray that you would help us our
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God to understand who you are in the light of your eternal nature help us our
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Lord to understand how we can best apply this in the way we think and the way we live out our lives each day before you and so blessed pastor
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Jason now as he comes may you help him our God's presents your word clearly forcefully to us give his ears to hear give us an understanding heart and may you conform our wills to your will for we pray in Jesus name
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Amen morning everybody it's nice to preach to a full house or rather a socially distanced full house let's go to the
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Lord in prayer Heavenly Father we thank you for this morning we thank you that we're able to gather together and proclaim your name we pray
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Lord that you would help us as we go through this passage we pray that the result would be a better understanding of who you are a better understanding of what you've done for us and how we need to live our lives in light of this truth so Lord be gracious with us now thank you in Jesus name
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Amen one of my all -time favorite authors is
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JC Ryle and he wrote the following words in the late 19th century today's subject is one which the wisest man can only take in a little at a time we have no eyes to see it fully and no mind to grasp it and yet we must not refuse to consider it there is a depth of stars in the heavens above us which the most powerful telescope cannot pierce yet it is well worth it to look into them and learn something even if we cannot learn everything there are heights and depths about this subject which mortal man will never comprehend but God has spoken of it and we have no right to turn away from it the subject to which
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Ryle is referring is eternity our God is an eternal
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God eternity is a very difficult concept for man to grasp
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God having no beginning God having no end God have no having no succession of moments in his own being
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God existing outside of time God seeing all time equally and vividly and yet God still sees events in time and acts in time
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I think one of the reasons we struggle with this concept is because we live in a temporary world in the world in which we live there is always a beginning and there is always an end in the world in which we live nothing lasts our world is ever -changing and its present form according to Paul in 1st
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Corinthians 731 is passing away landscapes will change and pass away nations will change and pass away families and relationships will change and pass away careers plans possessions all of these things are temporary and all of these things will eventually pass away in our culture today there is an unhealthy preoccupation with the temporal life is filled with the pursuit of comforts and entertainments life is filled with the pursuit of pleasures and amusements that absorb and consume our hearts and our minds pleasures and amusements that will not last beloved everything in this world is decaying everything in this world is dying everything in this world is coming to an abrupt end but our
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God our God is eternal what
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I find especially disturbing about this temporal world is that while knowing these things while that the world is passing away the focus of many
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Christians is not on the eternal things of God but on the temporal things of this world many
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Christians are so preoccupied with the temporal that they have completely lost sight of the eternal and you know what this shows in their lives it shows in their relationships in their homes as it does in the church well what's the fix how do we redirect our focus from the temporal life that is right in front of us to the eternal life that God calls us to live how do we refocus our gaze from the temporal to the eternal well we do so by directing our focus to the
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Lord God we do so by having a right concept of God a right and correct view of God will redirect our focus away from that which is passing away away from the temporal things of this world to the lasting and eternal things of the
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Lord God a W Tozer in his book knowledge of the holy which is addresses the nature and the character of God he writes the church has surrendered her once lofty concept of God and has substituted for one so low so ignoble as to be utterly unworthy of thinking worshiping men this she has done not deliberately but little little and without her knowledge and her very unawareness only makes her situation all the more tragic this low view of God entertained almost universally among Christians is the cause of a hundred lesser evils everywhere among us a whole new philosophy of Christian life has resulted from this one basic error in our religious thinking now in this statement
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Tozer really hits the nail on the head he is right on the money today's church has lost her awareness and her understanding of the splendor and the magnificence of the
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Lord God the church has lost her sense of the majestic glory of our
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Creator our King and our Father God the Lord God has been refashioned the
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Lord God has been dumbed down what is revealed about God in the scriptures has been twisted and distorted so that the
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God who is worshipped today is not the God of the scriptures but a
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God of their own making a God who has been crafted and fashioned into their own image or another way of putting it as Paul does in Romans 121 the revealed truth of God has been exchanged for a lie and the creature is now worshipped rather than the
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Creator and today the effects of this exchange are clearly seen in our cities in our nation in the world beloved we must have a right view of God we must have an accurate view of God our view of God must conform to the scriptures the biggest responsibility of the church today the biggest responsibility of this church first Baptist Church is to exalt and magnify and lift up our concept of God to a height that is worthy of the splendor and the majesty of God and we must proclaim this truth and this is what
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I'm hoping we accomplish this morning please turn with me to the book of Psalms Psalm 90
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Psalm 90 is a very familiar Psalm yet it's a very sobering song it contrasts the brevity and miseries of human life against the eternal grandeur of our
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Lord God Psalm 90 can be broken up into four parts verses 1 and 2 the eternality of God verses 3 through 6 the frailty of man verses 7 through 11 man's sin in God's wrath and verses 12 through 17 man's need of God's grace let's read the
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Psalm again Psalm 90 verse 1 a prayer of Moses the man of God Lord you have been our dwelling place in all generations before the mountains were brought forth or ever you had formed the earth and the world from everlasting to everlasting you are
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God you return man to dust and say return
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O children of man for a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is passed or as a watch in the night you sweep them away as with a flood they are like a dream like grass that is renewed in the morning in the morning it flourishes and is renewed in the evening it fades and withers for we are brought to an end by your anger by your wrath we are dismayed you have set our iniquities before you our secret sins in the light of your presence for all of our days pass away under your wrath we bring our years to an end like a sigh the years of our life are 70 or even by reason of strength 80 yet their span is but toil and trouble they are soon gone and we fly away who considers the power of your anger and your wrath according to the fear of you so teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom return
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O Lord how long have pity on your servants satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us and for as many years as we have seen evil let your work be shown to your servants and your glorious power to their children let the favor of the
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Lord our God be upon us and establish the work of our hands upon us yes establish the work of our hands this psalm describes in beautiful detail the nature and the character of our
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God it mentions God as a faithful dwelling place as an eternal refuge it mentions his immutability
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God does not nor will not change our God is unchanging it mentions that he is just that he is angry that he is wrathful that he is all -knowing that he is all -powerful and that he is eternal our
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God is from everlasting to everlasting psalm 90 is unique in that it's the only song in the scriptures that is attributed to the
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Prophet Moses it is entitled a prayer of Moses the man of God now given his life he was certainly qualified to write such a psalm he had a very unique relationship with the
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Lord God in the book of Numbers which is the record of Israel's wilderness wanderings after their exodus from Egypt the sister and brother of Moses Miriam and Aaron were openly critical of Moses numbers 12 1 and 2
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Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married for he had married a
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Cushite woman and they said has the Lord indeed spoken only through Moses has he not spoken through us also and the
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Lord heard it the Lord God heard their criticism of Moses and the
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Lord answered their criticism in verses 6 through 8 he said hear my words if there are if there is a prophet among you
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I the Lord will make myself known to him in a vision I will speak to him in a dream not so with my servant
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Moses he is faithful in all my house with him I speak mouth -to -mouth clearly and not in riddles and he beholds the form of the
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Lord why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses the
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Lord God describes Moses as faithful he was faithful in all my house and unlike other prophets the
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Lord God spoke to Moses mouth -to -mouth not in riddles or with dark sayings but with transparent clarity in the book of Exodus we read something similar
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Exodus 33 11 thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face as a man speaks to his friend
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Moses was more than competent to write this psalm because he knew
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God intimately he conversed with God face to face and mouth -to -mouth
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I'm not sure anyone else would have had as strong a sense of the greatness and grandeur of the glory of God for Moses beheld the very form of God the historical setting of this psalm is also important to consider while there's some disagreement on the specific time in Moses life that he wrote this psalm
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I believe the setting is best understood by the in by the incidents that were recorded in numbers studying the themes of this psalm suggests that it's probably a reflection of the circumstances from psalm from numbers chapter 20 to give you a little background information on what's happening in this book the book of numbers the
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Lord God had just delivered the Israelites from Egypt and had given them the promised land the
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Israelites sent out twelve spies to view and report the land and upon their return ten of the spies brought back an evil report while two of the spies brought back a favorable report now the evil report from the twelve from the ten spies really disillusioned the people so much so that they grumbled against the
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Lord God and the consequence of their rebellion is recorded in numbers 14 but truly as I live as all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the
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Lord none of the men who have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness and yet have put me to the test these ten times and have not obeyed my voice shall see the land that I swore to give their fathers and none of those who despised me shall see it in verse 31 he says but your little ones who you said would become prey
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I will bring in and they shall know the land that you have rejected but as for you your dead bodies shall fall in this wilderness the consequence of their unbelief and their contempt and their rebellion against the
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Lord God cost them entrance into the promised land all of that generation who were miraculously brought out of Egypt by great signs and great wonders were forced to wander in the wilderness for 40 years until their bodies fell in the wilderness now this is the sobering and solemn setting of our song but it gets even worse in numbers 20 verse 1
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Miriam the sister of Moses dies and then in numbers 20 verses 2 through 13 the
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Lord God commands Moses to speak to the rock to bring forth water but Moses disobeys the
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Lord God and strikes the rock with his rod verse 12 and the
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Lord said to Moses and Aaron because you did not believe in me to uphold me as holy in the eyes of the people of Israel therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land that I had given them and in the last verse of this chapter numbers 20 29 the brother of Moses dies
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Aaron passes now think just for a moment about the setting of this song try to put yourself in the position of Moses you've been aimlessly wandering in the wilderness for 40 years because of the sin and unbelief of other people you've been waiting for a whole generation to die off and every time you break camp you leave a host of graves behind as you wander from camp to camp to camp then your sister
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Miriam dies one of the few people whom you could reminisce about your former life in Egypt Miriam's death would have been a reminder of God's impending judgment on that generation and then in one single foolish act rather than speaking to the rock you strike the rock and you're told by the
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Lord God that because of your disobedience and your unbelief you will never enter the promised land
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Moses was almost a hundred and twenty years old at this time and for 38 years he had served the
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Lord God faithfully and he looked forward to entering into the promised land but now his sin prevent his prevented his entrance into the land that he had so greatly desired and then his brother
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Aaron dies and this is the backdrop of Psalm 90 now let's dig into the details take a look at verses 1 & 2 which discusses the eternal grandeur of God a prayer of Moses the man of God Lord you have been our dwelling place in all generations before the mountains were brought forth or ever you had formed the earth and the world from everlasting to everlasting you are
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God Moses begins his prayer with an affirmation of God as Adonai as Lord the creator and ruler of the heavens and the earth he who alone is sovereign was their dwelling place in all generations even though at this time
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Moses and the Israelites were homeless they were wandering they had no country they had no permanence
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Moses recognized that their home was not in the land that was promised by God but their was in God himself
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Moses understood the difference between the temporary and the eternal
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Moses knew that life was uncertain at best so he did not fix his hope on the land but rather he fixed his hope on Adonai the
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Lord Moses knew that the Lord was the one foundation for everything and that the person who anchors himself to the
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Lord and trusts in the Lord will be secure in the midst of the desert wanderings and the rising death toll
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Moses found relief in the character of God Moses found comfort in the eternality of God in a decaying and dying and ever -changing world
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Moses recognized that the Lord God is unchanging and that the Lord God was his home and that the
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Lord God was his only refuge for himself and his people before the mountains were born before the creation of the earth from everlasting to everlasting
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God is infinite God is immutable and God is eternal well like Moses and all those throughout the history of the church we too are wanderers we too are exiles we are pilgrims we have no fixed earthly home in our lives there is no permanence there is nothing that remains unchanged in a moment of time everything we currently possess could be taken away or lost our freedom our church our homes our family our health our jobs our security our comfort our rights even our lives everything we are everything we have is subject to change everything that is earthly is fading away so like Moses take comfort in the character of God like Moses and all those throughout the history of the church be looking to the
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Lord God and for the city which has foundations whose architect and builder is
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God 2nd Corinthians 416 so we do not lose heart though our outer self is wasting away our inner self is being renewed day by day for this momentary of light affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison as we look not to the things that are seen but at the things that are unseen for the things that are seen are transient but the things that are unseen are eternal beloved do you ever reflect upon the eternality of God does the eternality of God affect your daily life does it change the way you view your present circumstances are you looking daily to the eternal or are you looking to the temporal are you looking daily at the things that are seen or at the things that are not seen are you living by sight or are you living by faith from everlasting to everlasting
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God is God from everlasting to everlasting God is
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Adonai God has created God is ruling God is working through history and God is upholding all things by the word of his power beloved never lose heart never be discouraged yes the world is passing away but our
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God is eternal yes the world is decaying and dying but our God is lasting and the purposes of our
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God will stand forever from everlasting to everlasting he is
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God in stark contrast with the eternality of God Moses now directs our attention to the frailty and the brevity of man
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Psalm 90 verses 3 through 6 you return man to dust and say return
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O children of man for a thousand years in your sight are but as yesterday when it is past or as a watch in the night you sweep them away as with a flood they are like a dream like grass that is renewed in the morning in the morning it flourishes and is renewed in the evening it fades and withers
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God is eternal man is dust
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God is eternal but man is like a passing memory that is removed from our thoughts as quickly as a watch passing in the night
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God is eternal but man is like a drop of water that is swept away by the flood of time
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God is eternal man is like a dream God is eternal but man is like a blade of grass that flourishes in the morning and then fades in the evening
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God is eternal man is not commenting on these verses
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Spurgeon writes the frailty of man is thus forcibly set forth God creates him out of the dust and back to the dust he goes at the word of his creator
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God resolves and man dissolves now here is a statistical fact the mortality rate amongst men is 100 % death is a sure thing death is a certainty the
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Lord God has placed us here on the earth and he turns us about on a circuit and when we have reached the last point he draws us back to himself in a moment we return to dust
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Moses likens our lives to a watch in the night at which time you're fast asleep at night you lay down you put your head on the pillow you fall asleep and when you awake you are barely aware that any time has passed how speedily our lives disappear as quickly as a dream in the night as quickly as a blade of grass in the hot
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Sun as a college student I had the privilege of going to Israel for a semester abroad and I also had the opportunity to take part in an archaeological dig at the site of Masada which was one of Herod the
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Great's fortresses it had been taken over by the rebellion in the 60s and 70s the last
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Jewish holdout was there and rather than surrender to the Romans these zealots killed themselves just as the
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Romans breached the walls and one night we were camping at the foot of Masada and it had rained very briefly during the night which was rare because it's a very arid spot and by the morning there were patches of green grass that was sprung up all around us but within a few hours after the
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Sun came out it looked like a desert again it was there and then it was gone and Moses is saying that human life is like that grass it's fresh and it's green in the morning but later in the evening it's faded and withered man in comparison to the eternal
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God is as brief and frail as a braid as a blade of grass in dry and arid soil with the hot
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Sun beating down upon it in fact the entire history of man is not much more than this a scorched blade of grass withers and disappears as disturbing as this truth may be the brevity and the frailty of human life is not even close to being man's greatest problem in continuing his prayer
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Moses recognizes that our greatest problem is not our brevity it's not our frailty but sin which subjects us to the just of an eternal
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God verses 7 to 11 for we are brought to an end by your anger by your wrath we are dismayed you have set our iniquities before you our secret sins in the light of your presence for all our days pass away under your wrath we bring our years to an end like a sigh the years of our life are 70 or even by reason of strength 80 yet their span is but toil and trouble they are soon gone and we fly away who considers the power of your anger and your wrath according to the fear of you it must have been a very sad and distressing sight for Moses to see the whole nation of Israel fall in the wilderness during those 40 years of wandering just imagine all of those that came out of the nation of Egypt in 40 years none of them remained every one of them was gone their deaths were not accidental their deaths were brought about by the divine anger and wrath of the
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Lord God their iniquities and their secret sins were placed before the Lord God in the light of his presence and thus his anger and wrath was provoked which resulted in their death this is a terrifying thought imagine your iniquities imagine your secret sins the sins of your heart the sins that no one else knows about visibly laid out in the presence of an almighty omniscient and thrice
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Holy God beloved this is happening right now this terrifying notion occurs every moment of every minute of every hour of every day of your life the exact same anger the exact same wrath and fury that weighed heavy upon the
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Israelites weighs heavy on sinners God hates sin sin is a constant offense to him it's a constant irritation to him it is a constant annoyance to him
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God takes notice of sin and God will punish sin
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Proverbs 521 for a man's ways are before the eyes of the
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Lord and he ponders all his paths there is no sin that is unseen by the
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Lord God Nahum 1 3 the Lord is slow to anger and great in power and the
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Lord will by no means clear the guilty his way is in the whirlwind and storm and the clouds are the dust of his feet there is no sin that will go unpunished with the
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Lord God Hebrews 927 and just as it is appointed for man to die once and after that comes judgment just as certain as death is judgment judgment is coming and you may try to live your entire life in denial of this truth but your denial will only exacerbate your guilt and it will intensify your judgment you may avoid death for many years you may live to be 70 years old you may live to be 80 years old or even more but just as the
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Israelites lived under the constant solemn cloud of God's judgment so do all men and your life will soon be gone it will fade away like a blade of grass and you will stand before the
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Lord Jesus Christ the righteous judge and you will give account as a young man
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I gave very little thought to my own mortality my whole life was ahead of me I had plenty of time but now
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I'm in my mid -40s and I think I'm just starting to realize how quickly time passes and how my time could end at any moment most people don't like to think about their own mortality and if they do consider it they think of death as being something that is very far off in the distance and the point of Psalm 90 verses 9 through 10 is that what initially appears long at the end appears very short and our lives are soon gone our flies away the span of our lives is toil and trouble the years of our lives come to an end with a sigh the cause of our grief is sin sin is the cause of our misery it's the cause of our brief yet troublesome lives sin is the cause of death what is it that brings forth death sin sin always leads to death sin leads to the death of dreams the death of hopes the death of relationships and sin will eventually lead you to your spiritual death separation from the
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Lord God forever death is the just judgment for man's sin
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Psalm 90 verse 11 who considers the power of your anger and your wrath according to the fear of you
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I find this verse to be a little more clear in the King James version it reads who knoweth the power of thine anger even according to thy fear so is thy wrath even according to thy fear so is thy wrath the power of God's anger and fury is relational to the amount of fear and reverence that we give him the wicked have no reverence for God and thus will experience the full weight of God's wrath the wicked are not children of God but children of God's wrath objects of his just and condemning judgment if you are aware of this truth then you will not treat sin lightly if you're aware of this truth then you will not mock at sin rather you will entreat the
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Lord God for his mercy for his grace and favor which is precisely what
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Moses does in verses 1 & 2 Moses exalts the eternality of God in verses 3 through 6 he contrasts the eternal
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God with temporal man in verses 7 through 11 Moses recognizes the sinfulness of man and the just and holy wrath of God and in verses 12 through 17 the only thing left for Moses to do is to appeal to God for an outpouring of his grace
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Moses recognizing that man is quickly passing away petitions the
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Lord God for three things God in light of your eternity in light of our frailty in light of our sin and in light of your anger and your fury verse 12 teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom return
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O Lord how long have pity on your servants satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days make us glad for as many days of you has as you have afflicted us and for as many years as we have seen evil let your work be shown to your servants and your glorious power to their children let the favor of the
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Lord our God be upon us and establish the work of our hands yes establish the work of our hands
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Moses was a man just like you and just like me he knew the difficulties of living in a temporary world and as Moses reflected on eternal
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God and finite man he asks for the Lord God's help
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Psalm 90 20 is a prayer that God will help the Israelites to live holy lives which is the path of true wisdom to number our days is to make every day count for God one of the most foolish things that a
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Christian can do is waste time and waste opportunity to squander one's life away in selfish living or in half -hearted service to the
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Lord God to number our days means that we will take full advantage of every opportunity to serve and glorify the
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Lord God to number our days is to take every opportunity to please
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God redeeming the time for his glory James 413 come now you who say today or tomorrow we will go into such and such a town and spend a year there and trade and make a profit yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring what is your life for you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes life is a mist life is a vapor it appears only for a brief time and then it vanishes life is as quick as a flash of lightning the blink of an eye the snap of a finger it's over before you realize it
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Jonathan Edwards was one of America's greatest theologians and over the course of his life he wrote 70 resolutions to help govern his life especially in the use of his time resolution number seven he writes resolved never to do anything which
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I should be afraid to do if it were the last hour of my life resolution 17 resolved that I will live so as I shall wish
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I had done when I come to die no regrets he wanted to live with no regrets resolution 41 resolved to ask myself at the end of every day week month and year wherein
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I could possibly in any respect have done better self -examination was a daily part of his life it needs to be a part of ours resolution 52
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I frequently hear persons in old age say how they would live if they were to live their lives over again resolve that I will live just so as I can think
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I shall wish I had done supposing I live to an old age resolution 55 resolved to endeavor to my utmost to act as I can think
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I should do if I had already seen the happiness of heaven and hell torments
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Jonathan Edwards was a man who numbered his days he was disciplined in the planning of his time he was disciplined in the use of his time it's clear from these resolutions that Ed's were
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Edwards perspective was not focused on the temporal or the temporary but on the eternal things of God his entire ministry his entire existence was to exalt to lift up and to glorify the
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Lord God beloved make every day count make every one of your days count for eternity
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Ephesians 415 look carefully then how you walk not as unwise but as wise making the best use of the time because the days are evil the days are evil so make every effort to number your days and to live them out for God's glory pray to the
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Lord God that he would give you wisdom resolve to use your time your talents your treasures all that you are and all that you have in service of King Jesus number your days that you may get a heart of wisdom the second petition verses 14 through 15
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Moses writes satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love that we may rejoice and be glad all our days make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us for as many years as we have seen evil here
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Moses is praying for satisfaction he prays for the satisfaction that only
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God can provide Moses is asking for God's steadfast love for joy for gladness because Moses knows that there is no satisfaction in the temporal there is no satisfaction in earthly pleasures there is no satisfaction apart from the
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Lord God and this is something that every one of us need to be reminded of only the eternal
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God can truly satisfy our hearts only the eternal God can give you inexpressible joy and gladness and contentment and if your life is void of such satisfaction if your life is void of joy and gladness and contentment then you must go to the
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Lord God to find it Augustine of Hippo prayed you made us for yourself and our hearts find no peace until they find rest in you
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King David prayed in Psalm 15 as for me I shall behold your face in righteousness when
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I awake I shall be satisfied with your likeness like King David our satisfaction is in seeing the face of the
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Lord God and in being like him our satisfaction our joy our gladness our contentment it should come from the same thing from knowing and seeing the face of God from having an intimate knowledge and understanding of who
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God is and what God has accomplished in a temporary and fading world in the midst of ongoing change and uncertainty nothing but delight in the
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Almighty will fill your days with lasting joy lasting gladness and lasting contentment nothing but the steadfast love of God will fill your soul petition number three verses 16 through 17 let your work be shown to your servants and your glorious power to their children let the favor of the
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Lord our God be upon us and establish the work of our hands upon us yes establish the work of our hands in closing
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Moses asks that the Lord God would display his work and his majesty to the
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Israelites and to their children he asks that God would reveal himself and that he would extend his favor to them rather than consuming them in his anger and wrath
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Moses is essentially saying let your servants and their children see the beauty of the
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Lord God in that just as you are able to punish so you are able to bless even though life is short help us to be fruitful in all our endeavors and firmly establish the work of our hands every day that the
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Lord God has given to us is a gift and as long as we are here we must live and work for the eternal not the temporal we must live and work not for our own glory and honor but for the glory and honor of God alone consider the words of Jesus Christ in the gospel of John John 6 27 do not work for the food that perishes but for the food that endures to eternal life which the
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Son of Man will give to you for on him God the Father has set his seal the food that perishes refers to the things of this world while we live these things may temporarily feed our bellies but they were they will never truly satisfy our hunger they will never satisfy our hearts and at any given moment these things can disappear as quickly as they appear
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Proverbs 23 5 says when your eyes light on it it is gone for suddenly it sprouts wings flying like an eagle toward heaven the things of this world must not be our chief care or concern rather the things of God that which will endure to eternal life must be first and foremost
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Moses petitioned the Lord God that he would help them number their days he petitioned that they would find joy and satisfaction in the
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Lord God he petitioned the Lord God for an outpouring of his grace that the favor of God would rest upon them and that their work would be established beloved our
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God is an eternal God our God is from everlasting to everlasting and while we live in a world that is temporary and passing away we are all moving towards eternal life with one of two destinations heaven or hell for those of you who know the
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Lord Jesus Christ and obey him make sure you live your life your earthly life with an eternal perspective remember your days are numbered your days are a mist of vapor here today and gone tomorrow so make the best use of your time live your life for the glory of God alone for those of you who don't know the
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Lord Jesus Christ nor obey him your iniquities and your secret sins are laid bare before him and you are living under his wrath and one day maybe soon you will give an account don't be like the foolish man of Luke 12 who tore down his barns to build up bigger ones and then he said to his soul you have many goods laid up for many years to come take your ease eat drink and be married
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God said to him you fool this very night your soul is required of you if you don't know the
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Lord Jesus Christ if you're not walking in obedience to him pray to the Lord God for his mercy pray to the
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Lord God for his grace pray for his forgiveness and redemption repent and place your trust in him my prayer for all of you is
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King David's prayer in Psalm 39 verses 4 through 7 O Lord make me know my end and what is the measure of my days let me know how fleeting I am behold you have made my days a few hand breaths and my lifetime is as nothing before you surely all mankind stands as a mere breath surely a man goes about as a shadow surely for nothing they are in turmoil man heaps up wealth and does not know who will gather and now
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O Lord for what do I wait my hope is in you beloved our hope our only hope is in an eternal
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God so live your life in light of an eternal God don't be distracted with the temporal look beyond the temporal to the eternal seek the things that are above set your mind on the things that are above for the things that are seen are transient but the things that are not seen are eternal let's pray our father we confess that many of us don't number our days we get caught up in this world we get caught up in politics we get caught up in what's happening around us and our focus our gaze is taken off of you and on to man and Lord that makes us anxious it makes us worrying makes us fearful
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Lord we confess these things to you we pray that our gaze would always be on you on your son
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Jesus Christ on his work on the gospel on your character your nature
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Lord give us a clear picture of who you are give us a clear picture of what you've done on our behalf and Lord help us live out every day of our lives to your glory and honor help us to truly mean this
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Lord if we don't mean it convict us put heavy weight upon us
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Lord break us so that we might follow you thank you Lord in Jesus name