Week 10 -- Worship And Prophecy -- Psalm 19
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RIVER OF LIFE CHURCH – CHRYSTAL F. Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms
Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19 1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. 2 Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, 5 which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 6 Its rising is from one end of heaven, and its circuit to the other end; and there is nothing hidden from its heat. (Ps. 19:1-6) I.
AN UNENDING WITNESS A.
We can divide Psalm 19 into three distinct parts. This first section in the psalm (verses 1-6) point out how God reveals Himself to our hearts through the greatness of His creation. In our pursuit of God, we face the temptation to become divided in our thinking and forget that the natural world and the supernatural world interact.
B.
Our society values analysis, critical thinking, and logic, and to dismiss anything that does not seem to fall into these categories. What we cannot explain away, we simply do not accept. One pertinent example of this is Charles Darwin’s “scientific” theory of evolution—a Greek thinker/philosopher named Anaximander had already laid the foundation for Darwinism years before. In short, our society values the visible over the unseen, and that often leads us to the assumption that God is not interested in our natural bodies and natural world.
C.
David’s position in the first section of Psalm 19 shows us that the purpose of the natural has always been to point to the supernatural. We fail miserably when we begin to worship the creation rather than the Creator, looking to astrology or sun worship to give purpose and meanings to our lives. Our physical world exists as a shadow of the Creator, just as prophecy is always a shadow that finds its fulfillment in the person of Jesus. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse (Rom. 1:20) By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (Heb. 11:3)
D.
The irony of putting our trust solely in what we can see with which we can tangibly interact is that the foundation of our visible evidence was nothing—a fact we can only accept by faith. We can believe in an unseen God when we understand that everything we see originated from the unseen when the word of God spoke the world into existence.
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 2
E.
We see the beauty of who God is through the characteristics of His creation, just as we understand His thoughts and emotions through our own. For example, the brightness of the heavens reminds us that God is light (1 Jn. 1:5; Rev. 21:23).
F.
The vastness of the sky reminds us that He is great and greatly to be praised (Ex. 18:11; Deut. 3:24; 10:17; 2 Chr. 2:5; Job 33:12), and that He is high and lifted up above all the earth (Ex. 15:1; Psa. 97:9; Phil 2:9).
G.
And the influence that the sun, moon and stars have on the earth (our seasons, weather, etc.) remind us that only God has sovereign dominion over all things (Job. 25:2; Eph. 1:20-21).
H.
David’s depiction of the sun foreshadows the coming of Jesus when He returns to the earth shining in glory as a bridegroom and judge. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. (Jn. 3:28-29) 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son . . . (Mat. 22:2) 1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. (Mat. 25:1) 22 For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. (Mk. 4:22)
I.
The beauty of the world around us exists to point back to the beauty of the Creator. God’s attention to detail in the beauty and perfection of what He made is an expression of love to us. 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. (Ps. 19:7-11)
II.
A WRITTEN TESTIMONY
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 3
A.
Similarly, God has revealed His goodness to us through His prophetic revelation. David began with a look at how we can see the glory of God in what He made. He then turns to the greatness of what the Father has said, and how it relates to us.
B.
David observes that God’s laws are perfect—that they cause our souls to turn back to God. When we study the Old Testament, we must not look at the laws and sacrifices simply as a burden too heavy for us to bear.
C.
God’s grace to us fulfilled the law so that we no longer have to offer animal sacrifices or go through ritual cleansings to be purified; however, God’s motivation in setting up the law of the Old Testament was not to find excuses to punish His children.
D.
The law shows us two things: 1) that it is impossible for man in his own strength to measure up to God’s standard; and 2) the greatness of Jesus’ sacrifice for us, and the fullness of God’s grace directed toward us. When we look at the law and see the beauty of grace, it leads us to repentance and to accepting God’s gift of love directed toward us, allowing us to be transformed and become like Jesus.
E.
God’s testimony is faithful. We can depend upon what He says about us and to us. When we receive wisdom and prophetic revelation from the Father that is based upon His word, we can know that He is faithful to what He has spoken and will do what He said He will do. There is wisdom in trusting/believing what He says.
F.
God’s statutes (another word for laws) are right—even when we don’t always understand them, and they don’t seem to make sense. When we come to an understanding that God’s ways are right regardless of our own opinions, it leads us to rejoicing.
G.
God’s commandments are pure. We don’t have to second-guess His motives when He tells us to do something. Our Father is always motivated out of love for us, and His instructions to us will always bring light to things that don’t seem to make sense at the end of everything.
H.
This does not mean that we will always understand His ways in the middle of our circumstances. God doesn’t always show us the big picture because He desires that we trust Him and follow His direction. However, when we walk with Him, we walk in light. God desires that we walk in light so that we can be united as a people who love each other and love Him. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1Jn 1:7) 12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (Jn. 8:12) Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 4
I.
David had to follow the written law in his desire for spiritual light. Because Jesus came and fulfilled the law as the living Word of God (Jn. 1:1-2, 14), following after Him and seeking to live our lives based on the pattern He set brings the same enlightenment to our souls.
J.
The fear of the Lord does not mean being afraid to come to God. “Fear” here means respect and awe. We are to view God with respect and with honor for the greatness of who He is, but we also need to understand that Jesus was the most humble man who ever lived. God does not exalt Himself to the point where He is unreachable. He is always willing and ready for us to come to Him, and be cleansed from our sins.
K.
God’s judgments are right and just. There is not “court of appeals” to come against what He has said. What He decides is what is right, and He is always fair.
L.
David acknowledges that God has given us the written Word to draw us into intimacy with Him. As we discussed in Psalm 63, meditating on what God has said day and night transforms us and makes us like Him—it is our food and our drink, and more valuable to us than money.
M.
In the uncertain economic times that come along with the “birth pains” (Matt. 24:8; Mk. 13:8) that Jesus told us would lead up to His return, our possessions are temporary. Most of us live from paycheck to paycheck. There is comfort in the Word that will last us through the ups and downs that accompany life. 12 Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. 13 Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer. (Ps. 19:12-14)
III.
GRACE A.
In spite of God’s goodness in revealing Himself and His ways to us through His creation and His law, we are still frail and imperfect people who don’t always “get Him.” God’s ways are so much higher than ours, that the sad truth is we don’t always know it when we behave in a way that’s contrary to His laws.
B.
David’s desire for God was so great that he prayed that God would not only wash him from the sins about which he was aware, but that God would also cleanse him from the ones that he didn’t realize he had committed.
C.
In the same way, in order to receive prophetic revelation, and to have the authority of the Word in our hearts and mouths, we should seek to bring every thought and feeling under the authority of Jesus. We do this in His strength and power.
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 5
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Cor. 10:4-6)
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19 1 The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament shows His handiwork. 2 Day unto day utters speech, and night unto night reveals knowledge. 3 There is no speech nor language where their voice is not heard. 4 Their line has gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun, 5 which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber, and rejoices like a strong man to run its race. 6 Its rising is from one end of heaven, and its circuit to the other end; and there is nothing hidden from its heat. (Ps. 19:1-6) I.
AN UNENDING WITNESS A.
We can divide Psalm 19 into three distinct parts. This first section in the psalm (verses 1-6) point out how God reveals Himself to our hearts through the greatness of His creation. In our pursuit of God, we face the temptation to become divided in our thinking and forget that the natural world and the supernatural world interact.
B.
Our society values analysis, critical thinking, and logic, and to dismiss anything that does not seem to fall into these categories. What we cannot explain away, we simply do not accept. One pertinent example of this is Charles Darwin’s “scientific” theory of evolution—a Greek thinker/philosopher named Anaximander had already laid the foundation for Darwinism years before. In short, our society values the visible over the unseen, and that often leads us to the assumption that God is not interested in our natural bodies and natural world.
C.
David’s position in the first section of Psalm 19 shows us that the purpose of the natural has always been to point to the supernatural. We fail miserably when we begin to worship the creation rather than the Creator, looking to astrology or sun worship to give purpose and meanings to our lives. Our physical world exists as a shadow of the Creator, just as prophecy is always a shadow that finds its fulfillment in the person of Jesus. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse (Rom. 1:20) By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible. (Heb. 11:3)
D.
The irony of putting our trust solely in what we can see with which we can tangibly interact is that the foundation of our visible evidence was nothing—a fact we can only accept by faith. We can believe in an unseen God when we understand that everything we see originated from the unseen when the word of God spoke the world into existence.
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 2
E.
We see the beauty of who God is through the characteristics of His creation, just as we understand His thoughts and emotions through our own. For example, the brightness of the heavens reminds us that God is light (1 Jn. 1:5; Rev. 21:23).
F.
The vastness of the sky reminds us that He is great and greatly to be praised (Ex. 18:11; Deut. 3:24; 10:17; 2 Chr. 2:5; Job 33:12), and that He is high and lifted up above all the earth (Ex. 15:1; Psa. 97:9; Phil 2:9).
G.
And the influence that the sun, moon and stars have on the earth (our seasons, weather, etc.) remind us that only God has sovereign dominion over all things (Job. 25:2; Eph. 1:20-21).
H.
David’s depiction of the sun foreshadows the coming of Jesus when He returns to the earth shining in glory as a bridegroom and judge. 28 You yourselves bear me witness, that I said, ‘I am not the Christ,’ but, ‘I have been sent before Him.’ 29 He who has the bride is the bridegroom; but the friend of the bridegroom, who stands and hears him, rejoices greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice. Therefore this joy of mine is fulfilled. (Jn. 3:28-29) 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son . . . (Mat. 22:2) 1 “Then the kingdom of heaven shall be likened to ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. (Mat. 25:1) 22 For there is nothing hidden which will not be revealed, nor has anything been kept secret but that it should come to light. (Mk. 4:22)
I.
The beauty of the world around us exists to point back to the beauty of the Creator. God’s attention to detail in the beauty and perfection of what He made is an expression of love to us. 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple; 8 The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes; 9 The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; the judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb. 11 Moreover by them Your servant is warned, and in keeping them there is great reward. (Ps. 19:7-11)
II.
A WRITTEN TESTIMONY
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 3
A.
Similarly, God has revealed His goodness to us through His prophetic revelation. David began with a look at how we can see the glory of God in what He made. He then turns to the greatness of what the Father has said, and how it relates to us.
B.
David observes that God’s laws are perfect—that they cause our souls to turn back to God. When we study the Old Testament, we must not look at the laws and sacrifices simply as a burden too heavy for us to bear.
C.
God’s grace to us fulfilled the law so that we no longer have to offer animal sacrifices or go through ritual cleansings to be purified; however, God’s motivation in setting up the law of the Old Testament was not to find excuses to punish His children.
D.
The law shows us two things: 1) that it is impossible for man in his own strength to measure up to God’s standard; and 2) the greatness of Jesus’ sacrifice for us, and the fullness of God’s grace directed toward us. When we look at the law and see the beauty of grace, it leads us to repentance and to accepting God’s gift of love directed toward us, allowing us to be transformed and become like Jesus.
E.
God’s testimony is faithful. We can depend upon what He says about us and to us. When we receive wisdom and prophetic revelation from the Father that is based upon His word, we can know that He is faithful to what He has spoken and will do what He said He will do. There is wisdom in trusting/believing what He says.
F.
God’s statutes (another word for laws) are right—even when we don’t always understand them, and they don’t seem to make sense. When we come to an understanding that God’s ways are right regardless of our own opinions, it leads us to rejoicing.
G.
God’s commandments are pure. We don’t have to second-guess His motives when He tells us to do something. Our Father is always motivated out of love for us, and His instructions to us will always bring light to things that don’t seem to make sense at the end of everything.
H.
This does not mean that we will always understand His ways in the middle of our circumstances. God doesn’t always show us the big picture because He desires that we trust Him and follow His direction. However, when we walk with Him, we walk in light. God desires that we walk in light so that we can be united as a people who love each other and love Him. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. (1Jn 1:7) 12 Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, "I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." (Jn. 8:12) Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 4
I.
David had to follow the written law in his desire for spiritual light. Because Jesus came and fulfilled the law as the living Word of God (Jn. 1:1-2, 14), following after Him and seeking to live our lives based on the pattern He set brings the same enlightenment to our souls.
J.
The fear of the Lord does not mean being afraid to come to God. “Fear” here means respect and awe. We are to view God with respect and with honor for the greatness of who He is, but we also need to understand that Jesus was the most humble man who ever lived. God does not exalt Himself to the point where He is unreachable. He is always willing and ready for us to come to Him, and be cleansed from our sins.
K.
God’s judgments are right and just. There is not “court of appeals” to come against what He has said. What He decides is what is right, and He is always fair.
L.
David acknowledges that God has given us the written Word to draw us into intimacy with Him. As we discussed in Psalm 63, meditating on what God has said day and night transforms us and makes us like Him—it is our food and our drink, and more valuable to us than money.
M.
In the uncertain economic times that come along with the “birth pains” (Matt. 24:8; Mk. 13:8) that Jesus told us would lead up to His return, our possessions are temporary. Most of us live from paycheck to paycheck. There is comfort in the Word that will last us through the ups and downs that accompany life. 12 Who can understand his errors? Cleanse me from secret faults. 13 Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and I shall be innocent of great transgression. 14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in Your sight, O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer. (Ps. 19:12-14)
III.
GRACE A.
In spite of God’s goodness in revealing Himself and His ways to us through His creation and His law, we are still frail and imperfect people who don’t always “get Him.” God’s ways are so much higher than ours, that the sad truth is we don’t always know it when we behave in a way that’s contrary to His laws.
B.
David’s desire for God was so great that he prayed that God would not only wash him from the sins about which he was aware, but that God would also cleanse him from the ones that he didn’t realize he had committed.
C.
In the same way, in order to receive prophetic revelation, and to have the authority of the Word in our hearts and mouths, we should seek to bring every thought and feeling under the authority of Jesus. We do this in His strength and power.
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
Worship and Prophecy Through the Psalms – CHRYSTAL F. Session 10 Seeing the Invisible – Psalm 19
PAGE 5
4 For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds, 5 casting down arguments and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ, 6 and being ready to punish all disobedience when your obedience is fulfilled. (2 Cor. 10:4-6)
Download at http://chrystalf.blogspot.com
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