My sermon notes from Sunday 28 August 2011 on Psalm 62
The Psalmist gives us wonderful advice in Psalm 62 verse 8 “trust in the Lord at all times.” We do not know what befalls us whether good or bad. What about you? Can you say like Nehemiah as he built the walls around Jerusalem, when his enemies wanted him to stop he told them “I am doing a great work, I cannot stop at this moment.”(Nehemiah 6 verse 3) Am I doing a great work today? Are we involved in a work of God? How are you to cope in this ever increasing distressing financial time? The Psalmist says “trust in the Lord at all times.”
A trust that is expressive. Some people’s relationship with God is based on faith not on works. When Paul writes to the Ephesians he says “for by grace are ye saved through faith.”(Ephesians 2 verse 8) When you come to the Lord you are exercising faith. He doesn’t take you because you are a good person. It is simply as a sinner that needs to be saved. The moment you leave your sins at the cross and in your heart say “I have sinned, I have come short of your glory, I don’t deserve a relationship with you”. What does God do? He takes us in faith and trust in the living God not because we are belonging to any church. In Hebrews 11 many of the great characters of God were known for their exploits for God. Everyone had failings and faults. They were not perfect by any means but they demonstrated their faith. It says repeatedly “by faith”. Nothing is done without faith. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”(Hebrews 11 verse 6) We need our faith exercised in the finished work of Calvary to praise God. We are trusting him to keep us in this position. Without faith it is impossible to please God. James says “even so faith if it hath not works is dead.”(James 2 verse 17) Faith must be seen. It was said of Abraham in Romans 4 “he staggered not at the promise of God.”(Romans 4 verse 20) Has God given you a promise lately? Is it a promise that will never be achieved in your lifetime? Abraham was told “I will give you a son” and he was a 100 years of age and yet he staggered not at that promise. That is the position that God wants us to be in. The Psalmist as a young lad minding his father’s sheep told him to go down and take some food to his brothers who were fighting the enemy. As David came he heard the giant crying out. David expressed his faith in God of heaven. He trusted in the God of heaven. He loved the God of heaven. He trusted in the living God. Are we expressing our faith today? The widow woman in the Old Testament had only enough food in her house to feed her son and herself for another day. Elijah landed at her door and asked her to help sustain him for the next couple of months. She explained her situation and Elijah told her to do as she had planned but first give him something to eat. The woman did as she was told. God promised her that the barrel would not cease nor the oil stop until rain came again to the land.(1 Kings 17 verse 16) Every day she got up and proved that. Are we trusting the Lord today?
A trust that is exclusive. “trust in him at all times.” God was speaking to the nation of Israel, a nation that had turned away from God. He tells them to trust in him at all times. Sometimes we can overlook the things we do trust in. Ultimately we are to look to the God of heaven. It is good to have someone you can sit down with and chat with, knowing you can depend on them. God warned the nation of Israel not to put faith in surrounding nations. It might have been handy for them to trust in people they could see rather than a God they couldn’t see but that is what God says we are to do. Moses at the shoreline of the Red Sea could see the great enemy coming behind him. God told Moses to stand still and see the salvation of God.(Exodus 14 verse 13) At that moment the sea divided and Moses stepped into it. Are you trusting God today? The Psalmist says in verse 10 don’t trust in riches “if riches increase set not your heart upon them”. The rich farmer in the gospels hadn’t enough barns to put the crop into so decided to pull them down and build bigger ones. 1 Kings 22 Jehoshaphat was a great king who ruled in the south of Israel. Ahab was ruling in the north and asked Jehoshaphat to enter a pact to fight in a battle together. Jehoshaphat asked Ahab if he had a word from God that this was the right way to proceed. He realised that Ahab was not trusting in God and the battle was not theirs to fight. David went in to meet Goliath with the equipment Saul had given him. With all that armour David knew he was trusting in it to help him but he wanted to stand as a warrior before God. Is there a problem or difficulty you have? Something you cannot face today? How are you going to face it without trusting in the Lord?
A trust that is enduring – “at all times”. Not just for the big things. It is easy to trust God for the big things but what about the small things too? No-one had more experience than David to offer this advice. David was pursued like an animal. Saul threatened to kill him. He sought him in the wilderness, in the desert and in caves. He only wanted one thing – to get rid of David but David trusted in God at all times. He knew what it was to lie out under the skies at night. When his family would turn against him and Absalom his own son turned half of the nation against Israel. David knew what problems were. No-one can give better advice than David. He knew what it was like to trust in the God of heaven through those times. Remember when his servants came down and said “your son is dead”. They didn’t know how to tell him that news. They thought it would put him over the edge. David said “he cannot come to me but I can go to him.” Why? Because he was trusting in the God of heaven. Where is our trust today? Paul and Silas preached the word at Philippi. They saw a tremendous work done but the next thing they were lying in a prison house. Were they feeling down trodden or defeated? Not a bit of it. At midnight they lifted up their voices and sang praises to God of heaven. Is that what you are doing today? Is that the context today? Not in your own ability. Not in someone else? Just the God of heaven to take you through the dark time?
A trust that is expressive. Some people’s relationship with God is based on faith not on works. When Paul writes to the Ephesians he says “for by grace are ye saved through faith.”(Ephesians 2 verse 8) When you come to the Lord you are exercising faith. He doesn’t take you because you are a good person. It is simply as a sinner that needs to be saved. The moment you leave your sins at the cross and in your heart say “I have sinned, I have come short of your glory, I don’t deserve a relationship with you”. What does God do? He takes us in faith and trust in the living God not because we are belonging to any church. In Hebrews 11 many of the great characters of God were known for their exploits for God. Everyone had failings and faults. They were not perfect by any means but they demonstrated their faith. It says repeatedly “by faith”. Nothing is done without faith. “Without faith it is impossible to please God.”(Hebrews 11 verse 6) We need our faith exercised in the finished work of Calvary to praise God. We are trusting him to keep us in this position. Without faith it is impossible to please God. James says “even so faith if it hath not works is dead.”(James 2 verse 17) Faith must be seen. It was said of Abraham in Romans 4 “he staggered not at the promise of God.”(Romans 4 verse 20) Has God given you a promise lately? Is it a promise that will never be achieved in your lifetime? Abraham was told “I will give you a son” and he was a 100 years of age and yet he staggered not at that promise. That is the position that God wants us to be in. The Psalmist as a young lad minding his father’s sheep told him to go down and take some food to his brothers who were fighting the enemy. As David came he heard the giant crying out. David expressed his faith in God of heaven. He trusted in the God of heaven. He loved the God of heaven. He trusted in the living God. Are we expressing our faith today? The widow woman in the Old Testament had only enough food in her house to feed her son and herself for another day. Elijah landed at her door and asked her to help sustain him for the next couple of months. She explained her situation and Elijah told her to do as she had planned but first give him something to eat. The woman did as she was told. God promised her that the barrel would not cease nor the oil stop until rain came again to the land.(1 Kings 17 verse 16) Every day she got up and proved that. Are we trusting the Lord today?
A trust that is exclusive. “trust in him at all times.” God was speaking to the nation of Israel, a nation that had turned away from God. He tells them to trust in him at all times. Sometimes we can overlook the things we do trust in. Ultimately we are to look to the God of heaven. It is good to have someone you can sit down with and chat with, knowing you can depend on them. God warned the nation of Israel not to put faith in surrounding nations. It might have been handy for them to trust in people they could see rather than a God they couldn’t see but that is what God says we are to do. Moses at the shoreline of the Red Sea could see the great enemy coming behind him. God told Moses to stand still and see the salvation of God.(Exodus 14 verse 13) At that moment the sea divided and Moses stepped into it. Are you trusting God today? The Psalmist says in verse 10 don’t trust in riches “if riches increase set not your heart upon them”. The rich farmer in the gospels hadn’t enough barns to put the crop into so decided to pull them down and build bigger ones. 1 Kings 22 Jehoshaphat was a great king who ruled in the south of Israel. Ahab was ruling in the north and asked Jehoshaphat to enter a pact to fight in a battle together. Jehoshaphat asked Ahab if he had a word from God that this was the right way to proceed. He realised that Ahab was not trusting in God and the battle was not theirs to fight. David went in to meet Goliath with the equipment Saul had given him. With all that armour David knew he was trusting in it to help him but he wanted to stand as a warrior before God. Is there a problem or difficulty you have? Something you cannot face today? How are you going to face it without trusting in the Lord?
A trust that is enduring – “at all times”. Not just for the big things. It is easy to trust God for the big things but what about the small things too? No-one had more experience than David to offer this advice. David was pursued like an animal. Saul threatened to kill him. He sought him in the wilderness, in the desert and in caves. He only wanted one thing – to get rid of David but David trusted in God at all times. He knew what it was to lie out under the skies at night. When his family would turn against him and Absalom his own son turned half of the nation against Israel. David knew what problems were. No-one can give better advice than David. He knew what it was like to trust in the God of heaven through those times. Remember when his servants came down and said “your son is dead”. They didn’t know how to tell him that news. They thought it would put him over the edge. David said “he cannot come to me but I can go to him.” Why? Because he was trusting in the God of heaven. Where is our trust today? Paul and Silas preached the word at Philippi. They saw a tremendous work done but the next thing they were lying in a prison house. Were they feeling down trodden or defeated? Not a bit of it. At midnight they lifted up their voices and sang praises to God of heaven. Is that what you are doing today? Is that the context today? Not in your own ability. Not in someone else? Just the God of heaven to take you through the dark time?
