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Pastor David Mitchell
Greg if you give me just a little light up here, we'll turn to Psalm 24 this morning. We've taken a little pilgrimage through Psalm 22 23 and now to Psalm 24 if you remember. Psalm 22 Shows where the power comes from the cross of Christ and then his great testimony of God's deliverance after the cross after the resurrection and.
Then Psalm 23 shows the provision of Christ the Great Shepherd backed by the power of the cross and now Psalm 24 we move into a foreview of his kingdom and. So let's have a word of prayer and we'll begin with Psalm 24 verse 1.
Lord thank you for the beautiful music for each person both in the congregation and in the singing group that You've gifted with voices and ability to play instruments and to sing and all of us to To cry out and praise to you because of Jesus Christ in our hearts if you placing him there at our salvation because of your presence within our hearts because of the marvelous things we reminded ourselves of in Sunday school that Inheritance indestructible.
It cannot be defiled that fadeth not away. And the spiritual things that we saw that far override the physical sufferings that we go through in this life. We must always remind ourselves. We are called to go through this suffering just as the Lord Jesus Christ our Lord and the captain of our salvation.
Suffered we too will suffer. For we must all enter the kingdom of heaven through suffering. But we thank you father that with these great Psalms. You've taught us That you are the Great Shepherd. You walk in front of us with your staff.
You're always with us. You're always taking us to the places to rest by still waters green pastures. Through it all and thank you for reminding us that it's all merely a shadow of death. For you told us that whosoever liveth and believeth shall never die.
Thank you for your words. Thank you for your word. And may you teach us things this morning that will make us to be Even more secure at the side of the Shepherd and we ask it in Jesus name. Amen. Follow along in Psalm 24.
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. The world and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods. Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in his holy place?
He that hath clean hands and a pure heart. Who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity and sworn deceitfully? Do you realize that probably you've read that thought that that's you after salvation, but that's Jesus.
That's a reference to Jesus when it asks the question who will ascend into the hill of the Lord. There is only one who will see the father face to face and that is his son Jesus. For there is only one who truly had clean hands and a pure heart and who hath not ever Lifted up his soul unto vanity.
Nor sworn deceitfully. Yes, we are saved and we have had our sins removed but it cannot be said of any one of us with that. We have not ever lifted up our soul into vanity, but this one the Lord Jesus Christ it can be said of him.
Though he was tempted in all points even as ye yet He was without sin yet he maintained clean hands and a pure heart and never looked at vanity his entire life on this earth and He is now ascended into the hill of the Lord and is seated at his right hand.
He shall receive the blessing from the Lord and righteousness from God and his salvation the God of his salvation remember Psalm 22. Jesus speaks as a man on the cross. Totally filled with the Holy Spirit his entire life and yet as a man on this cross.
And he understood the deliverance the sass the Old Testament word for the salvation of God. Does not mean that Jesus got born again or saved like we do but it does use the word salvation here. Speaking of his deliverance the deliverance of his precious soul from the dogs.
From the lion if you remember Psalm 22 and 23. This is the generation of them that seek him. That seek thy face begins to speak of us now for sure. Lift up your heads. Oh ye gates and be ye lift up Ye everlasting doors and the king of glory shall come in and guess who will be with him.
We will. Who is the king of glory? The Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in battle. Lift up your heads. Oh ye gates even lift them up you everlasting doors and the king of glory shall come in. Who is this king of glory the Lord of hosts?
He is the king of glory. This expands or spans I should say through years of time. From the days of the Old Testament a thousand years before Jesus came to his coming. To his cross to his sufferings to his Victory to his resurrection to his ascension to his session for 2 ,000 years and now looking forward beyond that to the time of his second coming and the setting up of his kingdom and Before all of that the Lord prepares us for this time with verse 1.
So let's look at verse 1 a psalm of David. The Earth is the Lord's. The earth is the Lord's. That is a message that modern man in America needs to hear. That is a message that the modern Christian In America needs to hear.
Because we've been raised in a country where we call no man Lord. We have no sovereign. The government of ours is supposed to be of the people and for the people. Not to the people so to speak. It may be that in our lifetime We will learn how to serve a government since our government is becoming less that way.
And it begins to feel as if our government thinks it is a king sometimes but The truth is we don't understand sovereignty very much except from what we learn as God teaches us from the scriptures as we study Other peoples and other times even in church even in Bible history.
Certainly in the history of the world, but especially as we study under the leadership and teaching of the Holy Spirit of the Position and the relationship that we have with our father. We have a unique relationship in the New Testament times on this side of the cross for we are in fact servants but we are servants as.
If a father has a family business and his son works for him in that business. Yes, the son is a servant. But he is a son servant and That's what we are. What an amazing amazing Relationship with God we have that even the Old Testament Saints could not own but yet even as sons is important for us to understand that the earth is the Lord's and The fullness thereof it is not ours.
It is his. The earth is his this word earth. Eretz in the Hebrew means to be firm. So it literally is speaking of the globe the earth. I want to take you to Isaiah chapter 40 verse 28 and read a little bit about this earth.
This one who owns the earth. Isaiah 40 28. Has thou not known you see man has to be reminded of this. Man is born with an inbred sin of pride. Man is born with the everlasting thought that he is in control of all things God.
Much of what we studied in Sunday school this morning about suffering. Much of what we see in this passage Scripture today in the sermon much of what we've experienced in life in the last month with the loss of loved ones of ours.
Teaches us and reminds us that we have to be reminded that the earth is God's. And the fullness thereof hast thou not known. Do you not remember? Do you need to be reminded? Has thou not heard that the everlasting God the Lord?
The creator of the ends of the earth fainteth not. Neither is weary. There is no searching of his understanding. He giveth power to the faint and to them that have no might he increases strength. But even the youth shall faint and be weary and the young man shall utterly fall.
But They that will wait upon the Lord shall renew Their strength. They shall mount up with wings as eagles. They shall run and not be weary. Miss B. And they shall walk and not faint. Miss Charlotte and miss Anne and the loss of your sweet grandmother.
You see we have to be reminded that God is The owner of the earth and everything we have to do with and us. Lest we fall in pride. This verse in Isaiah 40 this parallel passage that gives us more detail to the first verse in Psalm 24 Begins by speaking of the creator of the ends of the earth who fainted not.
Who never grows weary. It begins by speaking of an awesome God? But it moves on very quickly into the very next verse of speaking of an intimate God. The awesome God of the creator of the universe in our way of thinking is almost contradictory to a God who Intimately gives power to the faint and increases strength to the weary.
It almost seems Opposing that the same one who can speak the worlds into existence with that kind of power can be intimate and tender enough. To walk with his own and give us strength and to care about the little details of our lives.
So I see two things in that little passage of the awesomeness of God and yet the intimacy of God, but I see a third thing here. But they that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strengths. Do you know that God directs attention to himself?
By arriving at just the right time rather than early. Have you ever noticed that? We began to fidget and we began to fret. We began to worry. But we won't call it worry because that's a sin. So we just say we're concerned.
We're taking care of business. We men especially aren't we? We're taking care of business. Keeping the finances going. It's easy to run a household in it ladies. You're still listening I can tell. And we each have our concerns.
Don't we and we can so quickly and so easily fall into the state of the prideful state of Worrying about it because we think we're controlling it running it and responsible for it. Now. We do have a sense of responsibility.
We're commanded to take care of the families gentlemen, but only under Christ you see our wives are supposed to take care of the home, but only under the husband and. Yet we gentlemen we forget that it doesn't stop there.
In fact, we kind of cherish that part. And we forget that there's another level that as we are supposed to take care of business only under the Lord. Only under his leadership and care and direction and timing.
Isn't it interesting that it says those that wait on the Lord are the ones that will have renewed strength. Those that wait on the Lord are the ones that will mount up with Eagles wings. Those that wait on the Lord are the ones that can run and not be weary and walk and not faint.
And why did what does it mean? And why does it mention so many hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of times in the Old Testament and in the new to wait? I say upon the Lord. Because he just shows up at the right time and we think it's late.
The human viewpoint is God's always late. Martha and Mary had that same problem. Lord, if you'd have gotten here sooner, my brother would not have died. She said Lord was late. That's the human viewpoint.
The divine viewpoint is we're early because we didn't wait on God and Then we began to fret when we arrived there and he has not done What he is going to do yet, and we began to think he's not going to do it.
And then we lose strength and then we grow weary and then we faint. But you know what then we also are forced to do what? Wait. He tells us to wait and we don't so he forces us to wait and as we wait.
Our attention is drawn to him Him. I was sitting out there this morning on the back pew. I looked at Greg and he was in his place and I looked at Russell and he was up here in his place and I saw brother Otis over there in his place and I saw Bill sitting in his place there and I looked around I saw everybody was in their place and I Said this is whole thing is amazing.
We get up. I'll speak from my viewpoint in Mahea an hour behind time already five children and a wife who does everything she can to get us all in the car and Me trying to make sure I don't forget my sermon papers or my music as I did the first day we ever played showed up and Brother Archie looked around and said, where's your music?
I said, I don't have it. I don't know where I put it and I thought about myself and I thought about Jesus and I thought now if he were sitting back here on this back pew What would his day have been like already before he got here this morning?
Would there have been any fuss? Would there have been any? Concerns would there have been any worries that everything would go off. Well Would there be any Thing like that going on and I thought no, there'd just be peace just be sitting there.
He would be sitting there in total peace waiting on the father to do something or to move him to do something or to move us all to do something and We need to be more like that. This little passage speaks of the fact let's go back into Psalm 24 1.
The earth is the Lord's. Yes. He delegates. Yes. Yes. He holds us responsible for duties for stewardship over his things and we Need not rest so much that we are lazy with concern to our stewardship. But at the same time we need to understand it's all his.
And we are his and sometimes we really do try to get ahead of him and do it ourselves. And at that time I believe he always puts the brakes on for us and brings us to a place of waiting where we have to Stop and remember who he is and who we are.
It says the Lord the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof. This word fullness is Melo in the Hebrew and it means all that there is. We think of fullness meaning something filled up. The Hebrew word means everything that there is.
It's just a word that means everything that exists every physical thing that ever Came forth from God every physical thing that he spoke into existence every spiritual being that he created. All that there is is the Lord's.
The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof and all that there is Thereof is the Lord's and then he says not only is the earth the Lord's the world is the Lord's. And this is a different Hebrew word is table which table which means the earth as a moist and therefore inhabited planet and therefore it carries the connotation of the inhabited earth, which brings forth the connotation of the people and The earth all or his and he moves right into this and he says the earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof the world and they That dwell therein They is the people.
So all that there is and the people and the earth and the world all is the Lord's. Verse 2 says for he hath founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods. It's interesting let's look at the second word established first.
This word established is coon in the Hebrew. It means literally to erect something To cause it to be or to set it up so it shows us that the Lord is the erector of The earth and the world but then it also says he hath Founded all of this and the word founded is the word y 'all sod.
Which is a very interesting word that I really didn't learn until this past couple of years. But y 'all sod in the Hebrew means literally to found something but carried within the definition of the word itself in the Hebrew means to sit down together and Found something or to sit down together and settle something.
It's translated other places in the Old Testament to take counsel to establish to ordain To set something. So we see that the Lord was not only the erector or the builder of it all. He was the planner of it all and we go all the way back to the great counsel of God that happened before time began on this planet anyway.
Apparently sequence had begun in the what we call eternity past because the Lord Jesus had come forth from the father. He always existed but there was a place in the time where he came forth from the father and sat across from him if you will we speak as a man and planning took place With the Son of God and so Jesus was there where his name wasn't Jesus yet, but he was there.
He was there at the very planning stage. And then he was there in Genesis 1 1 at the erecting stage the building stage where it was spoken into existence and all things were made by him and for him and So we see that he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the floods.
The seas the yawn Means to roar and it carries the meaning of the ocean as the surf comes in the floods. On the other hand is a Hebrew Word no har which means to sparkle to be cheerful. Hence, it means the sheen of a running stream and it speaks of the waters that flowed beneath the surface of the earth before the great flood.
So you see he not only owns the earth and the world and the people but he established it and He planned it In both the waters of the ocean the waters under the earth and he set the earth in the midst of the waters.
Isaiah 43 15 Says I am the Lord your Holy One the creator of Israel your King. Thus saith the Lord which maketh a way in the sea in a path in the mighty waters. Which bringeth forth the chariot and horse the army and the power they shall lie down together.
They shall not rise. They are extinct this same God this same Lord Who created everything that is and spoken into existence and placed the land and the earth in the midst of the waters? This same God has the ability to part the waters and So we see again this awesomeness of God hand in hand with the intimacy of God.
Caring for the details of his people as he parts the water. We see the awesomeness of God as he parts the Red Sea and holds back the waters and they walk through on dry ground. We see the intimacy of God caring for every little detail, but let me ask you a question.
Did they have to wait on? The banks of that water. Did they have a long night the night before with the enemy approaching? They could see the dust from the chariots of the mightiest army. That was the United States of that day.
They were the ones that had the cruise missiles and the smart bombs and the things of their day and here they came after this little clan. But this clan had to be God's people. But God's people had to wait through that night with that enemy approaching and right on their heels and the next morning was probably worse than the night because they still Were in the predicament they thought.
But you know what they weren't. They were not in a predicament. They were being forced to wait Upon the Lord and then the same God that placed the earth in the midst of the seas parted the seas and His people passed through on dry ground first.
Peter 4 19 says. Wherefore let them that suffer according to the will of God. Commit the keeping of their souls to him in well-doing as into a faithful Creator in times of suffering we must commit our souls to him because he is faithful.
Just as the Lord Jesus as a man on the cross. He said my God my God. Why have you forsaken me and yet in the same breath? He begins to say for all of 2 ,000 years of coming history I'm going to testify in every church that has a born-again child of God in it of the deliverance of God.
He committed his soul he said it looks at this point that my body is going to be Taken by these Lions and these dogs, but he said but my precious darling. That was himself. That was his soul. He asked God not to allow them to touch that he trusted the faithful creator with his soul.
In times of suffering we must commit our souls to him for he is faithful God's sovereignty, which is what this passage is all about. The sovereignty of God is established firmly in Psalm 24 and verse 1 before we're ever allowed to move on towards the kingdom.
God's sovereignty is inseparably linked to the doctrine of eternal security. Those today these modern Baptists who I would call our minions. Who want to believe and once saved always saved but don't want to believe in the sovereignty of God.
They want to believe man is in control doing this and doing that. They are about like a man who says he believes that a 747 can fly but he doesn't believe in the air. That holds it up. He's like a man that says he believes in the ability of a plant to create food and energy through photosynthesis.
But he doesn't believe in the Sun. You cannot have eternal security Without God being in control because if God is not in control we are and we would throw away our salvation in a day's time. If it were left in our hands, and that's why first Peter chapter 1.
Verse 1 through 3 says that we are kept by the power of God. Not our own power. So the sovereignty of God is established here and it is linked with eternal security and deliverance from death and hell and sin.
Sovereignty of God is also linked and just as importantly maybe more practically to obedience. Because obedience is linked to a proper fear of God and a proper fear of God. Only comes when we understand his awesomeness.
So it all comes back to the fact that the earth is his. When we forget that we can begin to doubt we can begin to lose assurance can't lose eternal security. But you can lose assurance. We begin to lose our obedient walk.
When we forget that the earth is his. We begin to wander around and grope as as if not saved. So God then makes us wait on him. We then remember without him we can do nothing. We then are brought back to a place of brilliant light and Peace because he's in control and we're sitting there just waiting for him.
We're just waiting. That's the safest mode when we get to that place. We finally just sit and say it's gonna take care of itself. It's beyond what I can do. I'm just gonna sit and wait. We're very close to God at that point in in fellowship.
And before we are ready to even begin to think about the second coming as the end of chapter 24 does and Even begin to think about the glories of the kingdom of God that we will be involved with. Before we ever even begin to be ready for that.
We must learn a proper all of the King the Sovereign Lord Jesus Christ. Turn with me to Deuteronomy chapter 4 in verse 9. Only take heed to thyself. And keep thy soul diligently. Lest thou forget the things which thine eyes have seen.
Unless they depart from thy heart all the days of thine life. But teach them thy sons and thy sons sons were held accountable to remember. We're held accountable to teach. We cannot teach if we do not remember.
We're held accountable to remember the things that God has done. The very creation of all things the very breathing of life into Adam the bringing forth of Eve the preparation of the animal skins in the shedding of blood that the father did himself on the part of Adam and Eve after they had sinned and the redemption promise that Adam was given the parting of the Red Sea that the great deliverance that going into the promised land and the battling with the enemy there.
But it was always the Lord's fight. All these things were commanded and exhorted to remember. In fact, it says take heed the Hebrew word for take heed. Shomar means to hedge about and guard something.
We are supposed to guard ourselves and Keep our souls diligently lest we forget the things which we have seen and depart. Allow them to part from our hearts, but not only that. We're supposed to teach these things to our children and our grandchildren.
So that it goes on into the next generation. What things? The beginning of Psalm 24. This earth. All of the physical things that you see this world all of the people that you see the spiritual things of the heavenlies all that is belongs to the Lord Jesus Christ.
He said it in the midst of the waters. With the waters beneath and yet he can part the waters. He is awesome, but he is intimate. Little children you need to realize that the awesome God of this universe Is able to reach down and care about your problems.
About the things that worry you the things that you're afraid of. The same God who create everything that is is right there with you he's intimate. He is awesome is intimate and he's always right on time.
Let's stand and have prayer together. Father we thank you for your word. It is So powerful when the Holy Spirit quickens it in our hearts when you speak and we see your mind and the sense of your heart.
Father we Thank you that you use it to Remind us of your great faithfulness. To teach us of yourself. To reveal yourself to us because we couldn't tell these things just from the creation. We could see the creation and know you created it, but we couldn't see it and know you were intimate with us.
So we thank you for your word. Lord, may you encourage our hearts and times of suffering? May you remind us that we walk through the mere shadow of the valley of death. At the side of the Shepherd the Great Shepherd who gave his life for the sheep and that You have prepared all things for us as if a table in the midst of the enemy.
Lord we love you and we thank you and we've had a glimpse of you this morning and we Know we must wait for one other thing and that is to see you face to face. But we shall someday. And we thank you for that.
Hope is well in Jesus name Amen.