Give Thanks and Sing Praises to the God of Jacob

Berean Baptist on January 30, 2017

Psalm 75

In this week’s commentary on the Psalms, we return to the venerable Robert Hawker who had such a pleasant way of revealing Christ in his expositions. It is fitting for this Sunday’s reading that we should begin with the first verse of the 75th psalm which reads: “Unto thee, O God, do we give thanks, unto thee do we give thanks: for that thy name is near thy wondrous works declare.”

This verse follows upon the dire and desperate plea of Judah in Psalm 74. The 74th psalm was written soon after the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians. As we noticed last week, the most troubling aspect of the destruction was God’s refusal to come to their aid. There were many in Judah that thought the temple was indestructible which led them to flee there for what they thought was certain refuge. Their hopes were dashed because God would not stay the hand of chastisement due to Judah’s rejection of His prophets and their warnings of repentance. Israel was abandoned without a prophet (74:9) and their outlook was most dismal.

The end of the psalm saw increasing hope as they plead for God to arise and claim His people again (74:19-23). Thus we see the tone of Psalm 75 changes and thanks are given for God’s wonderful works. Notice particularly the change in speakers between verses 1 and 2. The first verse is the cry of the congregation. We might well compare this to the righteous in America that wonder if our cause is lost. Is it possible to save America from the inevitable destruction that looms (Ps. 9:17)? We have systematically destroyed the moral fiber of our people until the conscience is seared (1 Timothy 4:2).

In the second verse the speaker changes. Now, the one speaking is Christ who promises to restore just judgment. As Hawker notes, “Who but Christ supported the whole fabric of our nature, when sin had dissolved all its powers? Reader, is it not always blessed to look to Jesus?” Mark well the words of Robert Hawker. There is no hope for recovery in this country or any other except through Christ. Has it ever been any different? Was there any time we upheld ourselves? How could we when sin dissolved our powers? It is God that puts up one and takes down another (75:7). Left to ourselves, we would be as godless as the Communists of the Cold War. Government will never answer our problems. It is God that has always suppressed our forays into the worst of our depravity. Thus the psalmist speaks of the only righteous government—the government of Jesus Christ.

Today, we pause to give thanks that as Christians we live under the New Covenant. There has always been a covenant of grace, but never as fully understood as in this dispensation of the Christian church. We have the unequivocal promise of God’s favor. No matter what should happen, we are God’s people that shall never experience captivity again. We are citizens of His heavenly kingdom and have escaped the bondage of sin.

We gather to give thanks for temporal provision, but more importantly for the spiritual benefits of Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection. The righteous are always and only God’s people. Therefore, verse 10 says the horns of the righteous shall be exalted. What better reason to give thanks and sing praises to the God of Jacob?

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

 

 

Milestones of Depravity

Berean Baptist on January 23, 2017

They have cast fire into thy sanctuary, they have defiled by casting down the dwelling place of thy name to the ground. (Psalms 74:7)

Recently I was listening to a podcast of The Briefing, which is a daily commentary on current events by Dr. Albert Mohler the president of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Dr. Mohler reports these events from a Christian perspective and usually has some very enlightening comments. In this particular podcast, he was discussing the issue of homosexuality and how the moral viewpoint of this subject has turned completely around. My purpose in this article is not to discuss homosexuality, but rather to comment on how much has been given up in moral values in general with our new worldview.

I was reminded of this while reading Psalm 74. If the subject matter of the Psalm is difficult for you, please be aware the psalmist is writing about the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians. His lament is over the devastation of this sacred edifice, but more importantly over God’s refusal to protect Judah when the Babylonian army descended upon them. Especially important is verse 9 as he says there is no sign or prophet any longer, and none of them knew how long they would be without word from God.

What impressed me in my thoughts about this psalm was the reason that Israel had reached this point in their history. Years of immorality and idolatry were the culprits. I think it is interesting that when the Babylonians came the temple was nothing like it was during the glory days of Solomon. The magnificence of the costly articles of gold were gone having been given away through the years by kings that appeased their enemies by paying tribute from the treasures of God’s house.

This caused me to think about the slow selling off of our moral values in America. The sexual revolution has not been an immediate affair. There was much groundwork laid for many years that brought us to this point. In 1973, the Supreme Court blasted a hole through our moral compass when it decreed abortion rights in the Roe v. Wade decision. We can hardly believe that a seared conscience has not been the ultimate result of that decision. If human life itself is not sacred, then anything you do with that life must be fair game. There are no boundaries for how low we can go if we decide the lives of the most innocent are worthless.

One by one the cognizant moral values that separate men from animals is disappearing. Since men are rational beings, we can actually sink lower than animals because we have the ability to choose to go lower. An animal cannot be sub-natural, but humans can. Rather, we might say that humans can explore the depths of their depravity and it seems we will not stop until we find bottom. Unfortunately, for those who choose to explore, there is no bottom. So, we descend past the value of human life and as we go we pass the depth markers of pornography, pedophilia, child abuse, homosexuality—and deeper and deeper we go.

One day we will turn around and discover the Babylonians have destroyed the temple. There is no preacher here and God’s help is nowhere to be found. When this time comes, we can look back and see how we slowly gave it all away. The country will be gone with no one to blame but us.

 

Pastor V. Mark Smith

Count Your Blessings

Berean Baptist on January 9, 2017

 

Psalm 73

Psalm 73 expresses what I am sure are the sentiments of every Christian. This psalm was written by Asaph who makes an affirmative statement of the goodness of God in verse one, but very quickly confesses that he sees a great disparity between the physical, financial, and material character of God’s people and the world.

Who among us has not felt some kind of inequity when thinking about how well off are many unbelievers while we as Christians often face the hardships of life? There are some who see this disparity and they try to compensate for it with a theology that says God intends for all His people to live in financial prosperity and never suffer the physical ailments that are common to man. In other words, God has provided something more in His atonement than their salvation from sin and the effects of the curse. They are determined that all the benefits of the atonement should be immediately realized. They postulate the reason we do not receive them is because of lack of faith in God’s intention.

I do not have the time or space to argue the intricacies of the atonement, but I will say this psalm certainly rejects the idea Christians should be free from suffering because of it. The psalmist may very well lament the difficulties of life, but he overlooks them in favor of the rich spiritual blessings we possess in Christ. God promised to rid us of all inequities in another time while those who enjoy the pleasures of the world now will lose out forever in the world to come.

The feeling of being shortchanged in the present life is at times common to us all. I feel it at times as I travel. I love to travel but I do not have the resources to do it often nor to travel in luxury. I wait to board an airplane with the cattle call with great feelings of inferiority as I enviously pass through first class and its soft seats looking at those who board first. On my last trip, I took my place in the last row next to the restrooms where I sat for 5 ½ hours in a seat that would not recline.

I took the flight magazine out of the seat pocket and began reading an article about how increasingly common it is for Americans to have second homes in places like the Hawaiian Islands. This particular article told of a family that had a vacation home in a community with 180 degree views of the ocean. They were in a planned housing development where the lots start at five to ten million dollars. The article stated it like this, “Why don’t you own at least two of these?”

I am the guy sitting in coach with my knees under my chin, so why let me read something that makes me feel like a total loser? I refinanced my house four times just to keep up. So, I put the magazine away and took out my Bible. I read Psalm 73 and relived the agony of the psalmist. But then I came to the last part. By far the majority of the extremely wealthy know nothing of life and peace with God. The Psalmist said these people are far from God and they will perish. Jesus said, “What will a man give in exchange for his soul?” I decided a $10 million lot in Hawaii is nowhere near worth what I have in Christ. So, I sat in coach and counted my blessings. After all, I could have spent my vacation in Bakersfield.

Pastor V. Mark Smith

The Kingdom Is Real!

Berean Baptist on January 2, 2017

 

Psalm 72

It is remarkable to read the psalms and see how the hope of the Kingdom of Christ continues to be a major topic. We can scarcely believe the Kingdom is a myth or that it is purely mystical or that the references to it are simply metaphors for spiritual blessings. It is readily apparent that both the authors of the psalms and the prophets fully expected God would do precisely as He said and establish a kingdom on earth in which the coming Christ would be its glorious monarch. A most enlightening proof of the literal reality of this kingdom is found in verses 5 and 17 of the 72nd psalm: “They shall fear thee as long as the sun and moon endure, throughout all generations…His name shall endure forever: his name shall be continued as long as the sun: and men shall be blessed in him: all nations shall call him blessed.” The first phrase of verse 17 says, “His name shall endure forever,” while the second says, “His name shall be continued as long as the sun.” These two phrases cannot speak of the same manifestation of God’s kingdom since one is eternal and the other temporal.

The first phase of God’s kingdom is earthly. It is a time sensitive rule which lasts only as long as the current universe exists. We know the cursed creation has a short shelf life as God intends to destroy it and begin anew. Second Peter tells us, “The heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works therein shall be burned up” (2 Peter 3:10). This will, of course, end the existence of the sun and all other heavenly bodies.

We can see how this corresponds to the end of the Millennial Kingdom. It will last until this great cataclysmic event occurs, and at this point Christ’s kingdom on earth will end. However, this is not the end of the kingdom altogether. It is only the end of the temporal form as the kingdom will be transitioned into its eternal form. Thus, the first and second phrases of verse 17 are both wondrously true.

In addition to this noteworthy proof, there are references in the psalm to the dominion of Christ, the servitude of all nations, the righteous character of the government, the economic prosperity, and the abundant provision of food. Each of these are repeated promises in multiple passages of scripture. In none of these is any indication they are purely symbolic.

The last verse of the psalm says, “The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.” This psalm must have been written near the end of David’s life, as the beginning of the psalm says it was written for Solomon. David was relying on the promise God gave him years before that his throne would be established as an everlasting throne. David knew Solomon’s rule would not be everlasting, so we see how the psalm quickly moves from Solomon to another King who has the power of endless life. The final King is the Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ.

The kingdom of Christ on earth is a real unmistakable event. Its focus is Israel as the fulfillment of the promise made to them. However, it is also a promise for Christians today. We will rule with Christ in this kingdom. The church is not a replacement for Israel—we do not take over their promises. Instead, we will stand side by side with her and praise the glorious King forever and ever!

Pastor V. Mark Smith