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Psalms 68-72
Skip Heitzig

Psalms 68 (NKJV™)
1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. A Song. Let God arise, Let His enemies be scattered; Let those also who hate Him flee before Him.
2 As smoke is driven away, So drive them away; As wax melts before the fire, So let the wicked perish at the presence of God.
3 But let the righteous be glad; Let them rejoice before God; Yes, let them rejoice exceedingly.
4 Sing to God, sing praises to His name; Extol Him who rides on the clouds, By His name YAH, And rejoice before Him.
5 A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, Is God in His holy habitation.
6 God sets the solitary in families; He brings out those who are bound into prosperity; But the rebellious dwell in a dry land.
7 O God, when You went out before Your people, When You marched through the wilderness, Selah
8 The earth shook; The heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God; Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.
9 You, O God, sent a plentiful rain, Whereby You confirmed Your inheritance, When it was weary.
10 Your congregation dwelt in it; You, O God, provided from Your goodness for the poor.
11 The Lord gave the word; Great was the company of those who proclaimed it:
12 "Kings of armies flee, they flee, And she who remains at home divides the spoil.
13 Though you lie down among the sheepfolds, You will be like the wings of a dove covered with silver, And her feathers with yellow gold."
14 When the Almighty scattered kings in it, It was white as snow in Zalmon.
15 A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; A mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan.
16 Why do you fume with envy, you mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in; Yes, the LORD will dwell in it forever.
17 The chariots of God are twenty thousand, Even thousands of thousands; The Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy Place.
18 You have ascended on high, You have led captivity captive; You have received gifts among men, Even from the rebellious, That the LORD God might dwell there.
19 Blessed be the Lord, Who daily loads us with benefits, The God of our salvation! Selah
20 Our God is the God of salvation; And to GOD the Lord belong escapes from death.
21 But God will wound the head of His enemies, The hairy scalp of the one who still goes on in His trespasses.
22 The Lord said, "I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea,
23 That your foot may crush them in blood, And the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies."
24 They have seen Your procession, O God, The procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary.
25 The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after; Among them were the maidens playing timbrels.
26 Bless God in the congregations, The Lord, from the fountain of Israel.
27 There is little Benjamin, their leader, The princes of Judah and their company, The princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.
28 Your God has commanded your strength; Strengthen, O God, what You have done for us.
29 Because of Your temple at Jerusalem, Kings will bring presents to You.
30 Rebuke the beasts of the reeds, The herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples, Till everyone submits himself with pieces of silver. Scatter the peoples who delight in war.
31 Envoys will come out of Egypt; Ethiopia will quickly stretch out her hands to God.
32 Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth; Oh, sing praises to the Lord, Selah
33 To Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old! Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice.
34 Ascribe strength to God; His excellence is over Israel, And His strength is in the clouds.
35 O God, You are more awesome than Your holy places. The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God!
Psalms 69 (NKJV™)
1 To the Chief Musician. Set the 'The Lilies.' A Psalm of David. Save me, O God! For the waters have come up to my neck.
2 I sink in deep mire, Where there is no standing; I have come into deep waters, Where the floods overflow me.
3 I am weary with my crying; My throat is dry; My eyes fail while I wait for my God.
4 Those who hate me without a cause Are more than the hairs of my head; They are mighty who would destroy me, Being my enemies wrongfully; Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.
5 O God, You know my foolishness; And my sins are not hidden from You.
6 Let not those who wait for You, O Lord GOD of hosts, be ashamed because of me; Let not those who seek You be confounded because of me, O God of Israel.
7 Because for Your sake I have borne reproach; Shame has covered my face.
8 I have become a stranger to my brothers, And an alien to my mother's children;
9 Because zeal for Your house has eaten me up, And the reproaches of those who reproach You have fallen on me.
10 When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting, That became my reproach.
11 I also made sackcloth my garment; I became a byword to them.
12 Those who sit in the gate speak against me, And I am the song of the drunkards.
13 But as for me, my prayer is to You, O LORD, in the acceptable time; O God, in the multitude of Your mercy, Hear me in the truth of Your salvation.
14 Deliver me out of the mire, And let me not sink; Let me be delivered from those who hate me, And out of the deep waters.
15 Let not the floodwater overflow me, Nor let the deep swallow me up; And let not the pit shut its mouth on me.
16 Hear me, O LORD, for Your lovingkindness is good; Turn to me according to the multitude of Your tender mercies.
17 And do not hide Your face from Your servant, For I am in trouble; Hear me speedily.
18 Draw near to my soul, and redeem it; Deliver me because of my enemies.
19 You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor; My adversaries are all before You.
20 Reproach has broken my heart, And I am full of heaviness; I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none; And for comforters, but I found none.
21 They also gave me gall for my food, And for my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.
22 Let their table become a snare before them, And their well-being a trap.
23 Let their eyes be darkened, so that they do not see; And make their loins shake continually.
24 Pour out Your indignation upon them, And let Your wrathful anger take hold of them.
25 Let their dwelling place be desolate; Let no one live in their tents.
26 For they persecute the ones You have struck, And talk of the grief of those You have wounded.
27 Add iniquity to their iniquity, And let them not come into Your righteousness.
28 Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, And not be written with the righteous.
29 But I am poor and sorrowful; Let Your salvation, O God, set me up on high.
30 I will praise the name of God with a song, And will magnify Him with thanksgiving.
31 This also shall please the LORD better than an ox or bull, Which has horns and hooves.
32 The humble shall see this and be glad; And you who seek God, your hearts shall live.
33 For the LORD hears the poor, And does not despise His prisoners.
34 Let heaven and earth praise Him, The seas and everything that moves in them.
35 For God will save Zion And build the cities of Judah, That they may dwell there and possess it.
36 Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, And those who love His name shall dwell in it.
Psalms 70 (NKJV™)
1 To the Chief Musician. A Psalm of David. To bring to remembrance. Make haste, O God, to deliver me! Make haste to help me, O LORD!
2 Let them be ashamed and confounded Who seek my life; Let them be turned back and confused Who desire my hurt.
3 Let them be turned back because of their shame, Who say, "Aha, aha!"
4 Let all those who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; And let those who love Your salvation say continually, "Let God be magnified!"
5 But I am poor and needy; Make haste to me, O God! You are my help and my deliverer; O LORD, do not delay.
Psalms 71 (NKJV™)
1 In You, O LORD, I put my trust; Let me never be put to shame.
2 Deliver me in Your righteousness, and cause me to escape; Incline Your ear to me, and save me.
3 Be my strong refuge, To which I may resort continually; You have given the commandment to save me, For You are my rock and my fortress.
4 Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, Out of the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man.
5 For You are my hope, O Lord GOD; You are my trust from my youth.
6 By You I have been upheld from birth; You are He who took me out of my mother's womb. My praise shall be continually of You.
7 I have become as a wonder to many, But You are my strong refuge.
8 Let my mouth be filled with Your praise And with Your glory all the day.
9 Do not cast me off in the time of old age; Do not forsake me when my strength fails.
10 For my enemies speak against me; And those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together,
11 Saying, "God has forsaken him; Pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him."
12 O God, do not be far from me; O my God, make haste to help me!
13 Let them be confounded and consumed Who are adversaries of my life; Let them be covered with reproach and dishonor Who seek my hurt.
14 But I will hope continually, And will praise You yet more and more.
15 My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness And Your salvation all the day, For I do not know their limits.
16 I will go in the strength of the Lord GOD; I will make mention of Your righteousness, of Yours only.
17 O God, You have taught me from my youth; And to this day I declare Your wondrous works.
18 Now also when I am old and grayheaded, O God, do not forsake me, Until I declare Your strength to this generation, Your power to everyone who is to come.
19 Also Your righteousness, O God, is very high, You who have done great things; O God, who is like You?
20 You, who have shown me great and severe troubles, Shall revive me again, And bring me up again from the depths of the earth.
21 You shall increase my greatness, And comfort me on every side.
22 Also with the lute I will praise you--And Your faithfulness, O my God! To You I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel.
23 My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You, And my soul, which You have redeemed.
24 My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long; For they are confounded, For they are brought to shame Who seek my hurt.
Psalms 72 (NKJV™)
1 A Psalm of Solomon. Give the king Your judgments, O God, And Your righteousness to the king's Son.
2 He will judge Your people with righteousness, And Your poor with justice.
3 The mountains will bring peace to the people, And the little hills, by righteousness.
4 He will bring justice to the poor of the people; He will save the children of the needy, And will break in pieces the oppressor.
5 They shall fear You As long as the sun and moon endure, Throughout all generations.
6 He shall come down like rain upon the grass before mowing, Like showers that water the earth.
7 In His days the righteous shall flourish, And abundance of peace, Until the moon is no more.
8 He shall have dominion also from sea to sea, And from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 Those who dwell in the wilderness will bow before Him, And His enemies will lick the dust.
10 The kings of Tarshish and of the isles Will bring presents; The kings of Sheba and Seba Will offer gifts.
11 Yes, all kings shall fall down before Him; All nations shall serve Him.
12 For He will deliver the needy when he cries, The poor also, and him who has no helper.
13 He will spare the poor and needy, And will save the souls of the needy.
14 He will redeem their life from oppression and violence; And precious shall be their blood in His sight.
15 And He shall live; And the gold of Sheba will be given to Him; Prayer also will be made for Him continually, And daily He shall be praised.
16 There will be an abundance of grain in the earth, On the top of the mountains; Its fruit shall wave like Lebanon; And those of the city shall flourish like grass of the earth.
17 His name shall endure forever; His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in Him; All nations shall call Him blessed.
18 Blessed be the LORD God, the God of Israel, Who only does wondrous things!
19 And blessed be His glorious name forever! And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen.
20 The prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended.

New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982, Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.

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19 Psalms - 1988

The Psalms were the songbook for worship for the ancient nation of Israel. Pastor Skip Heitzig examines these beautiful expressions of praise, supplication, and worship of God.

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You know, Peter, in his Second Epistle, admonishes the Christians to have a hunger and a thirst after the word of God because he says "As His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him, having escaped the corruption that is in the world through lust, whereby are given to us exceeding great and precious promises by which we have been made partakers of His divine nature. Therefore, giving all diligence add to your faith, virtue and to virtue, knowledge, and to knowledge, self-control." In other words, God has given it all to you here. Don't stop growing, but keep adding.

I feel sorry for the Christians who have the attitude, well, you know, I've read through the Psalms once. I've gone through the Gospel of John already. I don't need Bible study. We want to show. I feel sorry because the Bible says in the last days that people will come. There will be those who will have itching ears desiring to heap to themselves teachers who will give them just what they want. They will not endure sound doctrine.

How I thank God to be able to come to fellowship with a group of people who hunger and thirst after God's word and who can endure teaching. It's rare. You're a rare breed.

Psalms 68. To the chief musician, a psalm of David. Let God arise. Let his enemies be scattered. Let those also who hate him flee before Him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away. As wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God, but let the righteous be glad. Let them rejoice before God. Yes, let them rejoice exceedingly.

Now, as you know, it always helps to know the background of any particular portion of Scripture, so I'm going to give it to you. This Psalm probably centers around the return of the Ark of the Covenant to Jerusalem years after it was taken by the Philistines. Remember that event?

The Ark of the Covenant is a fascinating study in and of itself. It's one of my pet peeves. Anytime there comes out something on the possibility of discovering the Ark of the Covenant, my ears go up and I read all the literature I can.

Now, it's never been found, and it's not what Spielberg says it was-- found in Egypt. It's not there. Every now and then people will come and say they found it, and it's a fluke. They haven't.

But the Ark has an important history. Of course, it was that which God commanded the children of Israel to build, and they took it through the wilderness wanderings for 40 years, and they brought it into the land. But there came a period when it became nothing more than a relic, and because it became a relic, God let it be captured. Here's the history.

There was an important battle of the children of Israel-- excuse me-- and the Philistines at Aphek. And the Philistines encamped around the children of Israel, and the Israelites decided to strike the Philistines, but the first battle they lost. 4,000 Israelites got wiped out. And so the children of Israel said, hey, why don't we bring the Ark into the camp, because surely, just because we have the presence of the Ark, we'll be able to defeat the Philistines.

And so the children of Israel brought the Ark into the camp, and as soon as it came in, everybody said, all right! Hooray! We're going to beat them. The Philistines heard the noise that was going on in the Philistine camp, and they said, man, what's going on? They're all excited. We just beat them. They said, yeah, but they've got the Ark of the Covenant now in their camp.

And the Philistines said, ooh, we've heard about the Ark of the Covenant. We've heard all that happened in the wilderness and how they crossed the Jordan and defeated the people of Jericho, and they started getting really petrified. One of the leaders of the Philistines said, hey, come on, act like men. Let's go and fight them again.

This time, the children of Israel and the Philistines came together again for a second battle, and the children of Israel lost again, but by a more severe defeat. 30,000 troops were slaughtered because they looked to the Ark as simply a little good luck relic they could stick in their pocket like a Saint Christopher medal.

As it happened, the Philistines captured the Ark of the Covenant and brought it to one of their principal cities, the city of Ashdod. And they stuck it in their temple-- the temple of Dagon. So they stuck the Ark in front of the statue of Dagon, but the next morning, when they woke up and entered the temple, the statue of Dagon had fallen over on its face as if it was worshipping the Ark. The Philistines picked it up, dusted their false god off, put it back in its place.

And the next morning, as they came into the temple, the statue of Dagon had fallen down. Its head fell off, and its arms fell off. It was decapitated and armless. All that was left was the torso. And so they closed down the temple, and they said, let's get rid of this thing.

Not only did their statue fall down, but it says that God blighted them with tumors all of the people in the city started getting tumors. Now, one of the translations says hemorrhoids. In fact, the Berkeley translation-- now, that's a curse, folks, when God does it to a whole city.

[CHUCKLING]

The Philistines were so-- they didn't know what to do, so they shipped it off to another city, the city of Gad. The same thing happened. God smiled them with the same disease. They said, get rid of this thing! So they shipped it to another Philistine city, the city of Ekron. The Ekronites heard about it and said no, forget it. Don't even bring it near us. Get it out of here.

And so they decided to get rid of the Ark of the Covenant. And they put it on a cart, and they had two cows pulling it, and they pulled it up to Bet Shemesh. Now, those who have been to Israel with us, especially this last time on our tour, do you remember our first touring day, where we stepped up on that little cement platform overlooking the Valley of Elah? Beautiful, green little hills-- that's Bet Shemesh.

And so the Ark was going up to Bet Shemesh, and all the people said, look, the Ark of the Covenant has been returned! And they all clapped. But they looked into the Ark, which was forbidden by God, and 50,000 people died that day.

Finally, they took the Ark and put it down at a little city called Kiriath-Jearim in the House of Abinadab and they just left it. They said, look, nobody touched this thing. Get rid of it. But it happened that David decided to bring the Ark of the Covenant later on up to Jerusalem, and you remember how he did it. They took a new cart, they took new oxen, and they started this procession up into Jerusalem. The band was playing. The cymbals were crashing. People were dancing.

And as it was passing one of the threshing floors, one of the oxen began to lose his step and his footing, and the Ark looked like it was going to fall over. So one of the Israelites, Uzzah, put out his hand to steady the Ark, and he touched it, and he died.

Now, David got perturbed at God. He said, I can't believe it. Why, God, would you allow one of your own people to die when he was just trying to do you a favor?

But God was trying to teach him a lesson-- that you can do something that you think is right, but do it in the wrong, unprescribed manner. Worship of God must always be done in the way He directs. Don't think that you have the right to apply your own system and methods to the way unless God has given instruction. God was teaching him that lesson.

So finally, David said, you know what? Through all of its history, I've learned my lesson. And they kept it at the house of a guy named Obed Edam for three months.

During that time, David was established on the throne of Israel firmly. As soon as he was established, the Philistines said, look, we don't want Israel to become a strong power, so let's attack David in Jerusalem because now he's the king. Now, David heard that the Philistines wanted to attack him, so he prays. He goes, God, should I go to battle against the Philistines? And God said, go for it. You'll win.

David attacked the Philistines, and he won. Later on, the Philistines regathered, re-camped, and started another attack against David. David asked again, Lord, should I attack them?

God said, David, this time, I don't want you to attack the Philistines. What I want you to do is to circle the camp of the Philistines 'til you get to the mulberry trees, and when you get to the mulberry trees, you just wait. And when you hear the sound of the rushing of horses and chariots in the mulberry trees, then go up and attack them because I'm going to route them. I'm going to use some sound effects, and I'm going to scare them a little bit. And once I've done the preliminary, you just go up and clean it." So he did, and God gave David the victory that day.

And so after the victory again over the Philistines, David decided it was now safe to bring the Ark to Jerusalem. And as he did, this is one of the psalms that he was singing because of the victory over their enemies. And so now it makes sense.

Let God arise. Let his enemies be scattered. Let those also who hate him flee before him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away. As wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.

But let the righteous be glad. Let them rejoice before God. Yes, let them rejoice exceedingly. Sing to God. Sing praises to His name. Extol Him who rides on the clouds. By His name, YH, which is a contraction of that tetragrammaton, YHWH, and rejoice before Him. And I love these next two verses. A father of the fatherless, a defender of the widows is God in His holy habitation.

It seems, as you read the scriptures, that God takes up the case of the underdog, the helpless. I don't know where this idea came from, and the people say, well, you know, the Bible says God helps those who help themselves. Baloney. The Bible doesn't ever say that.

The Bible says God helps the helpless, the people who really lean upon him and need help and cry out to God. It's people who come to an end of themselves. That's what repentance is all about. That's what salvation is all about.

Jesus said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me because He has anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted." And God always has a concern for the brokenhearted, the poor, the fatherless, the widow.

Verse 6-- God sets the solitary in families. Now, I have marked that verse as being one of my favorite. God sets the solitary in families. He brings out those who are bound into prosperity, but the rebellious dwell in a dry land. It is God's intention to bring people into close, secure relationships with one another, and when he finds a person who is alone, solitary, it is His desire to bring them a family.

It is never God's intention that a person become independent totally, but interdependent, so that relationships can be built within the body of Christ, a beautiful interdependence upon one another. In fact, one of the curses of many church people is that they become so independent. I don't need anybody, just me and God. And I'll just go out to the woods and I'll worship God my own way, and I'll do my own thing. And I don't need any human being or group of people for my strength and stability.

What a tragedy, and what a false notion. It's God's desire to set those who are solitary and bring them into families, and that's the reason we supply kinships-- so that you can have a family within the large family, so that you can grow, individually, members one of another.

About a year ago or so, we did a study on a series on questions that people had within the body, and most of the questions dealt with relationships-- dating, singleness, loneliness, marriage, divorce, remarriage. Most of them dealt with how to get along with other people.

And I found that there was an underlying feeling, in reading between the lines and how the questions were being asked, of loneliness within the Church. Now, I'm not talking about the single person necessarily. I'm not talking about the people who don't have husbands and wives or boyfriends and girlfriends. I'm talking about married couples. In the midst of relationships, they felt so alone, so isolated.

Some of the loneliest people I've met have been people who have been married and have children. At the edge of their bed every night, they say, oh, God, will it ever get any better? I feel so alone. I feel so isolated. They never are able to enjoy and extract all that God has for them in relationships. They've never learned how to build relationships.

I spoke to someone this morning, and she said, no, no one really knows who I really am. I've never let anyone get that close. She told me, "I've built up walls all this time." Boy, that's sad. It's why people aren't able-- we haven't developed skills to break down the walls and let people know us for who we are and love us that way.

God's intention is to put the solitary, alone person in a family, so you have no excuse. If you come from a broken family and oh, I have this problem and that problem because my father and my mother and my aunt and my uncle-- God's desire and design is to put you in a loving, caring group of people. That's what he does. And if you're a Christian and you're not in one, it's not God's fault. It's your own fault. You've built up walls.

God sets the solitary in families, but the rebellious at the end of verse 6 dwell in a dry land. Oh, God, when you went out before your people, when you marched through the wilderness, the Earth shook. The heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God. Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.

You, oh God, sent a plentiful rain. Boy, we could say amen to that one lately around here. Last night, it was a plentiful rain Whereby you confirmed your inheritance. When it was weary, your congregation dwelt in it. You, oh God, provided from your goodness for the poor.

Now he is becoming a historian in these few verses, going back to the deliverance from Egypt and God sustaining them for 40 years in the wilderness wanderings. That's what he's speaking about, and he's talking about the abundant provision of God and how it rained, even there in the Sinai Peninsula, when you have less than-- average rainfall of less than an inch per year.

This guy-- God just abundantly blessed us. That's why I love to see-- you know, it's so green around here lately. Usually it's a desert here. Even the weeds are green. It's wonderful. As it was raining last night-- I just put a palm tree in my front yard a couple of weeks ago, and I think, Lord, just let it live here. And it rained so much it's sprouting three new leaves, so this Psalm is very, very personal to me.

The Lord gave the word. Great was the company of those who proclaimed it. Kings of armies flee. They flee, and she who remains at home divides the spoil. Though you lie down among the sheepfolds, yet you will be like the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold. When the almighty scattered, kings-- when the almighty scattered kings in it and it was white as snow in Zalmon-- speaking of Mount Hermon.

Now, I think that David is referring to the period of the judges. He goes back in the history, and he reviews briefly the period of God sustaining the children of Israel through the desert years. Then he goes to the period of judges, when under Deborah and Barak, children of Israel defeated the Canaanites, Sisera and Jabin.

A mountain of God-- verse 15-- is the mountain of Bashan. A mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan. Why do you fume with envy, you peaks of many-- or you mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in. Yes, the Lord will dwell in it forever.

The chariots of God are 20,000. Even thousands of thousands, the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place. You have ascended on high. You have led captivity captive. You received gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the Lord might dwell there.

David, in poetic language, is picturing the Lord leading a victory procession after a battle. After a battle in those days, the king would march through his hometown, leading a procession. The soldiers would be there. They would have their spears and their shields, and the people would clap and they would cheer.

But in the procession, they would have ropes, and they would tie their captives to the ropes, and they would lead the captives through the city in a victory march. And they would have a wagons full of the spoils, the goods, the gold that they have taken plunder as they went out to battle. So they would have the captives. They would have the plunder.

So poetically, David is speaking of the Lord who gave them victory over the Philistines, and he's ascribing all of the results to God. However, this has a prophetic implication because Paul in Ephesians refers to this scripture as Jesus Christ ascending into heaven. And so Paul says, "Now He that ascended is He who first of all descended into the lower parts of the Earth and set the captives free from their captivity."

And then he quotes this scripture-- "For you have ascended on high, and you have led captivity captive." Then it says, "You have received gifts among men, even among the rebellious, that the Lord might dwell there. Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits."

I love that. The Lord daily loads us with benefits. David in another Psalm said, "What shall I render unto the Lord for all of his benefits toward me? I will drink the cup of salvation." He said, I will just blast the Lord and thank him. The God of our salvation-- our God is the God of salvation, and to God, the Lord belongs, escapes from death.

As I look back on my life, there were times when I think I escaped just by the skin of my teeth. I think I was 13 years old and we were taking a vacation up to Oregon, and we happened to go through Reno, Nevada. On our way out of Reno, Nevada, we were going on the freeway, and the speed limit was then 65, as it is now. My dad was driving his car, going 65.

And we didn't see it, but there was a fellow who had fallen asleep at the wheel who was in the other lane, but we were going around a curve. We were turning to the right around a mountain curve, and we had not noticed-- you couldn't see. We didn't see that the guy was doing about 85, had fallen asleep, and had somehow gotten into the other side of the freeway and was coming head-on. Now, because it was around a curve, we didn't have time enough to see it, and all I remember was the impact. It was a head-on collision.

When I came to-- my dad was in the front. My mom was in the front. Her head was through the windshield. They thought she was dead. In fact, the news that night said she was dead. And both of them were slumped over. They weren't saying a thing. I got out of the car, and I went over to look at the other fellow to see if he was OK.

After I found out that my mom and dad were breathing, I went over to see. And the guy who had fallen asleep-- he was actually on drugs. He'd fallen asleep, came that night after gambling, and his engine of the car landed in his front seat, and he was decapitated.

My mom's hip was pushed through her acetabulum. She was in rehabilitation for about a year, and my dad broke both of his ankles, his jaw, cut his tongue, his shoulder. Both hospitalized. I walked out of it with a bloody nose. That was it. Broke nothing. Didn't even break my nose. I wasn't a Christian then. Been so easy for me to just been killed-- and I am certain God had His hand on my life.

Now, I'm not going to sit here and tell war stories, but it's certain that God has put His hand on my life many times. And today, even the way I drive, I know that--

[CHUCKLING]

He's got double guardian angels wherever I go. Soon as I take out the car keys, God says, OK, you guys. Hit it. [INAUDIBLE] down. They're getting in his car. Dispatch. One Adam 12.

[CHUCKLING]

To God belong escapes from death. But God will wound the head of his enemies, the hairy scalp of the one who still goes on in his trespasses. The Lord said, I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea that your foot may crush them in blood, and the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.

They have seen your procession, O God, the procession of my God, my King into the sanctuary. The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after. Among them were the maidens playing timbrels. Bless God and the congregations, the Lord from the foundation of Israel. There is little Benjamin, their leader, the princes of Judah and their company, the princes of Zebulon and the princes of Naphtali. Your God has commanded your strength.

Strengthen, O God, what you have done for us because of your temple at Jerusalem. Kings will bring presents to you. Rebuke the beast of the reeds, the herd of bulls with the calves of the people. 'Til everyone submits himself with pieces of silver, scatter the peoples who delight in war. Envoys will come out of Egypt. Ethiopia will quickly stretch out her hands to God.

Now, David is speaking of the future restoration of Israel in a beautiful poetic language, saying her enemies will be defeated and God will reign among her. Sing to God, you kingdoms of the Earth. O, sing praises to the Lord, to Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old. Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice. Ascribe strength to God. His excellence is over Israel, and His strength is in the clouds. O God, you are more awesome than your holy places.

David, speaking of the temple, now focuses his attention on the person of God. And as much as he loved going into the temple and watching the smoke arise and watching the people bring sacrifices and the awesomeness of being in the temple of Jerusalem, he says, this is neat, but God, you are more awesome than even the holy places.

Every year, we take a group of people to Israel. And when we go to Israel, we try to stay away as much as we can from the holy places because to be frank with you, they're just a bore. My opinion, if you go inside one church in Israel, you have seen probably all of them. They all look pretty much the same.

You got walls. They have a ceiling. They have ground. They have stained glass windows. They have ancient architecture from the times of the Crusaders, and you can look at the Crusader arch and see how they built them. There's not much difference from one to the other except one faces east. One faces north. One faces south. And I think to go to Israel-- so you spend that much money to see the land and to just be locked inside holy places all the time is a real-- well, it's just not fair.

And every time I go into those holy places and I see, for instance, in the Garden of Gethsemane, the Church of all Nations, that has those alabaster windows, and it's beautiful. I go in there and say, "Neat." I walk out and I think, Lord, you are more awesome than that. Now, on one hand, I'm thankful for some of these places. They have preserved the place so that you know-- in very few cases, but in some-- where the original place, wherever it was, happened to be located.

But on the other hand, those places, in my opinion, detract from the glory of God because no picture, no cathedral can ever capture the total essence of God. And so to look at a picture or a statue or a window, which can never totally and completely capture God-- it robs Him of His true glory because God in His nature transcends any icon or picture or holy place. And so God is never truly, adequately represented because He's much better than any representation. That's why God said don't make any images and use them in your worship.

And so I feel that many of the holy places actually detract from God. And so you can go to the Mount of Olives, and you can see the place where Jesus ascended into heaven. Depending on which church you believe, there are three authentic places from which Jesus ascended into heaven. You can take your pick.

You can say, well, I believe in that particular denomination or this one or that one. Three or four of them tell you, well, this is the real, authentic place. One of the churches even has the footprint Jesus left in the rock as he ascended up into heaven. They say, oh, it's the authentic footprint.

The funny thing about all of those holy places is that they didn't read the Scripture, because it says that he went up to the Mount of Olives as far as Bethany, which is a whole other hill about a mile away. And that's where he ascended into heaven. And so none of them have really captured it.

And I see a lot of people spending $1,700 to go over there and check out the authentic places, and they never really saw them. That's why we go out to the shepherds' fields and the mountains overlooking Galilee and have Bible studies and just worship the Lord in the setting, in the place. It's great.

And that's why I think that the Ark of the Covenant hasn't been found. If the Ark of the Covenant was found, they would put it in a shrine in some church somewhere, and people would start kissing stones where it's located. They take their shirt and rub it on the Ark, and they'd say, well, I'll never wash this shirt.

People have a propensity toward worshipping things that are not God, just symbols or relics, statues, pictures. When God is transcendent, He commanded you will have no forms or images of those things to aid you in your worship. The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God. Psalm 69. I did it, Jim.

[CHUCKLING]

Strawberry, man. Strawberry. Save me, O God, for the waters have come up to my neck. I sink in deep mire, where there is no standing. I have come into the deep waters, where the floods overflow me. I am weary with my crying. My throat is dry. My eyes fail while I wait for my God.

Now, David is not saying, God, I've had sort of a bad day. He's saying, God, I am in distress. I'm at my limit. He's in a crisis, and the crisis is the rebellion of his son, Absalom. And so many psalms have that theme. We're not going to describe the background.

How do you pray when you're in that kind of a crisis? The Psalms tells you. You be honest. Those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head. They are mighty who would destroy me. Bring my enemies-- or being my enemies wrongfully. Though I have stolen nothing, I still must restore it.

O God, you know my foolishness, and my sins are not hidden from you. Let not those who wait for you, O Lord God of Hosts, be ashamed because of me. Let not those who seek you be confounded because of me, O God of Israel, because for your sake, I have borne reproach. Shame has covered my face. I have become a stranger to my brothers and an alien to my mother's children.

Now, you remember several weeks ago we told you about typical predictive prophecy, and we talked about messianic psalms. This song is considered a messianic psalm. Some of the verses apply principally to David, but there are some verses that cannot apply to David. They're out of the scope and realm of being fulfilled by a human being.

And some of the verses apply to both-- to David's situation, and they are predictive of Jesus Christ, the Messiah. This is one of those verses, where it says, "Because for your sake, I've born reproach. Shame has covered my face. I've become a stranger to my brothers, an alien to my mother's children." That's quoted in the New Testament as being fulfilled by Jesus Christ.

Now, in John's gospel, it records that Jesus' own brothers did not believe in him. They said, hey, Jesus, why don't you go to Jerusalem? How come you're doing things in a hidden fashion? Do it in the open. Jesus said, "My time is not yet come. Your time is always ready. I'll go. You go ahead of me." It says, "For his own brothers did not believe in him"-- his own flesh and blood brothers.

In the Gospel of Mark, when Jesus went home to Nazareth, they said, hey, isn't this the carpenter's son? And aren't these his brothers and his sisters who live among us? How is it that he speaks with such wisdom? And it says they were offended at him. Therefore, Jesus could do no mighty miracle there because of their unbelief.

Verse 9. Because zeal for your house has eaten me up, and reproaches of those who reproach you have fallen on me-- now, this is also predictive of Jesus. In the Gospel of John-- I believe it's chapter 2. The first time Jesus purged the temple and he took a weapon and he started telling people, "You've turned my father's house into a house of merchandise."

It says the disciples remembered the scripture, "Zeal for your house has eaten me up or consumed me," referring to the fact that Jesus would be filled with concern for the fact that they made merchandise in the temple. So it's fulfilled in Jesus.

When I wept and chastened my soul with fasting, that became my reproach. I also made sackcloth my garment. I became a byword to them. Those who sit in the gates speak against me, and I am the song of the drunkards. But as for me, my prayers to you. O Lord, in the acceptable time, O God, in the multitude of your mercy, hear me in the truth of your salvation.

Deliver me out of the mire, and let me not sink. Let me be delivered from those who hate me and out of the deep waters. Let not the flood water overflow me, nor let the deep swallow me up, and let not the pit shut its mouth on me.

Hear me, O Lord, for your loving kindness is good. Turn to me, according to the multitude of your tender mercies. Do not hide your face from your servant, for I am in trouble. Hear me speedily. Draw near to my soul and redeem it. Deliver me because of my enemies.

Now, there's a lot of times when I just don't know how to pray, and in those times, when I'm so overwhelmed, I will often turn to the psalms, and I will read the way David prayed when he was neck-up in trouble. And I'll read it, and I'll go, whew, that says it just like I feel it. Many times I'll incorporate the same kind of prayers when I feel distressed.

You know my reproach, my shame, and my dishonor. My adversaries are all before you. Reproach has broken my heart, and I am full of heaviness. I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none. They also gave me gall for my food, and for my thirst, they gave me vinegar to drink.

Now, what is that in reference to? The cross. When Jesus was on the cross and the soldier came by and he took a sponge, a reed that was dipped in vinegar-- gall-- and they gave it to Him to drink-- and so this is typical predictive prophecy.

This did not refer to David. He is speaking poetically of his reproaches, but this was fulfilled later on in the greater son of David, the Messiah, when he was upon the cross. And it's interesting. He said, "I looked for someone to take pity, but there was none, and for comforters, but I found none."

Do you remember when Jesus was in the Garden of Gethsemane and He went to His disciples? And He said, "I am in great agony. Pray with me. Couldn't you wait one hour?" And they were over sawing logs. There was no one there. They wouldn't support him in prayer, so Jesus said, go ahead. Crash. Sleep on. The hour is coming.

But even before that in this verse, it says reproach has broken my heart. I think that's interesting. When the soldiers came to the cross of Jesus, they didn't break His legs, but they took a spear and they thrust it in His side where his Heart was, and out flowed blood mixed with water.

According to medical science-- and there have been several medical reports based on the Gospel accounts-- when blood mixed with water flows out of a heart when it has been pierced, at least in the case of Jesus, it is a sign that the pericardium, the sack around the heart, has been filled with fluid and burst. And according to many medical specialists-- I've got reports on it in my office-- Jesus died from a ruptured-- or if you will, broken-- heart. That was the cause of His death at the moment He expired, when He gave up His spirit and He said, "Father, into your hands commend or commit my spirit." And Jesus gave up His spirit. And according to the best medical records, the pericardium filled with fluid, rupturing the heart, so Jesus died literally of a broken heart.

Let their table become a snare for them and their well-being a trap. Let their eyes be darkened that they do not see, and make their loins shake continually. Pour out your indignation upon them. Let your wrathful anger take hold of them. Let their habitation be desolate.

Do you remember what that's in reference to? The disciples quoted this concerning Judas after he hung himself, and they needed somebody to take his place. And they saw that the Scripture had its fulfillment in Judas being absent by saying, let their habitation be desolate, and let no one dwell in their tents, for they persecute him whom you have struck and talk of the grief of those you have wounded.

Add iniquity to their iniquity, and let them not come into your righteousness. Let them be blotted out of the book of the living and be not written with the righteous. But I am poor and sorrowful. Let your salvation, O God, set me up on high. I will praise the name of God with a song and will magnify Him with thanksgiving. This also shall please the Lord better than an ox or a bull, which is born-- or which has horns and hoofs. I'm sorry. My mind and my mouth aren't working together.

The humble shall see this and be glad. And you who seek God, your hearts shall live for the Lord hears the poor, and he does not despise His prisoners. Let heaven and Earth praise Him, the seas and everything that moves in them, for God will save Zion and build up the cities of Judah, that they may dwell there and possess it. Also, the descendants of His servants shall inherit it, and those who love His name shall dwell in it.

Now, Psalm 70 has five verses. And if you've read Psalm 40 before-- and I know most of you have-- Psalm 70 is actually a copy of the last portion of Psalm 40. Now you say, well, why is David bringing it up again if it's already in Psalm 40? I don't know. But as you know, probably by now as we read it, you've probably already forgotten it. So it's probably good that he reminded us of it again, knowing the human nature to forget. I guess the Holy Spirit thought it was important.

Make haste, O God, to deliver me. Make haste to help me, O Lord. In other words, God, I need help, and hurry up. It's true. Let them be ashamed to confound it who seek my life. Let them be turned back and confused who desire my hurt.

Let them be turned back because of their shame who say a-ha, a-ha. That was like cussing somebody out in those days. To say those words, David often refers to this phrase as if it's a phrase of reproach and shame. I told you so. You trusted in God. A-ha. A-ha. David said, man, I can't handle that.

Let all those who seek you rejoice and be glad in you. Let those who love your salvation continually say, let God be magnified. So that should be part of your Christianese, I suppose. But I am poor and needy. Make haste to me, O God. You are my help and my deliverer. O Lord, do not delay.

Psalm 71. In you, O Lord, I put my trust. Never let me put to shame. Deliver me in your righteousness and cause me to escape. Incline your ear to me and save me. This Psalm has been called the Psalm for the Senior Citizen because David refers to aging in this Psalm, and probably, he wrote it when he was an older fellow, and he looks back over his youth. He's done this a couple of times in the Psalms.

And he expresses his confidence on one hand in the Lord, and his prayer that he will not slip from the commitment he made when he was younger. Many times, unfortunately, a person starts out with a true, on-fire commitment to the Lord, but as he grows older, he becomes a professional Christian. He knows the ropes. He knows the phraseology. He's not burning with zeal anymore for the Lord. It's old hat. It's lost its zip, its excitement.

And so the commitment isn't that fresh, vibrant commitment that a person once had, and David is afraid of that. And David is actually praying against that-- that he won't lose that firm footing that he's always had walking with the Lord.

This is a great Psalm, especially for those in our midst who are getting gray a little bit, getting a little sore when they get up in the morning, experiencing the heartaches of age, asking some of the questions people ask when they get older. You know, aging happens. You can't stop it.

It's funny to me to watch people try to find a fountain of youth and preserve the youthful look. It's such a tragedy when a new line appears in their face, but aging happens. I don't care how many face lifts, tummy tucks, dyed hair, creams and lotions-- you're going to get old. It's inevitable.

Now, some people try when they're 70 to look 40. And on one hand, I think it's kind of sad because if you're 70 and you look 40, if you die in your 70s, everybody's going to say, man, he died so young. He had so many years ahead of him. He shouldn't have died this early.

Have you found that it's human nature to be discontented with wherever you're at? When you're a young person, you want to be with the in crowd. You want to seem older, more mature, so a 10-year-old will smoke a cigarette so he'll look 11.

[CHUCKLING]

And a 16-year-old wants to be seen with an 18-year-old. Then you get to a certain point where that process and that thinking gets reversed. You don't want to be old anymore or older or be older, seem older. You want to be younger now.

And nobody's satisfied with just being who you are and where you are. People if they have straight hair want curly hair. If they have curly hair, want straight hair. If they have black hair, want blond hair. If they have blond hair, want black hair. If they're 15, they want to be 30. If they're 30, they want to be 15.

Someone once said you know you're getting old if when you dream it's all reruns. Seen them all before. And you know you're getting old if on an airplane they turn to you and they say, coffee, tea, or milk of magnesia, sir?

[CHUCKLING]

David said, be my strong habitation to which I may resort continually. You have given the commandment to save me, for You are my rock and my fortress. Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked, out of the hand of the righteous and cruel man for You are my hope, Oh, Lord God. You are my trust from my youth. By You I have been upheld from my birth. You are He who took me out of my mother's womb. My praise shall be continually of You. I have become a wonder to many, but You are my strong refuge. Let my mouth be filled with Your praise and with Your glory all the day. Do not cast me off in the time of old age. Do not forsake me when my strength fails, for my enemies speak against me, and those who lie in wait for my life take counsel together saying, God has forsaken him, pursue and take him, for there is none to deliver him."

Now, he is praying that God would not cast him off. He's afraid of losing his footing. When a person gets older-- and I mean really older. I'm not just talking over 40, over 50. When a person gets to where he is more feeble, often there is a feeling of uselessness that sets in. Especially a person who's been very active and very innovative. He starts feeling like, now what good am I? People have passed me by. I feel like I can't contribute.

There's a feeling of uselessness and there are fears associated with that. There's the fear of losing control, there's a fear of losing your mate, fear of losing your health. David experienced those fears and he counteracts many of those fears and that feeling of uselessness with prayer.

I've often found that when a person gets old, that there is a feeling of guilt. They say, man, if I could do it all over again, I'd do it so differently. Oh, I really blew it. I raised my kids. Boy, I really blew it in setting those priorities in working so hard and not spending time with my family.

Notice some of these things in Psalms, and especially in this Psalm that can counteract that. "Oh, God. Do not be far from me." In other words, Lord, I need that close relationship with you. I need to know that you care. "Oh, my God, make haste to help me. Let them be confounded and consumed who are adversaries of my life." In other words, Lord, you be my defense.

You know? An old person will often feel fear because the possibility of them becoming a victim. A lot of people are victimized in crimes because they are feeble, people snatch their wallets or their purse, they break in their homes.

David is praying "Oh, Lord, let them be confounded and consumed." The adversaries. "Let them be covered up with reproach, dishonor who seek my hurt. But I will hope continually--" it's his affirmation, "--and will praise You yet more and more. My mouth shall tell of Your righteousness and Your salvation all the day. For I do not know their limits. I will go in the strength of the Lord God. I will make mention of Your righteousness and of Yours only. O God, you have taught me from my youth. And to this day, I declare Your wondrous works. Now when I am old and gray headed, O God do not forsake me until I declare Your strength to this generation. Your power to everyone who is to come."

Please notice that, especially those of you who are tempted to say, well, I'm getting old, now time for me to retire. Find a rocking chair, get in mothballs, not be active. Notice what he says. "O God, do not forsake me until I declare Your strength to this generation. Your power to everyone who is to come."

He's saying, in effect, I ain't through yet. I am not retiring. I am going to give my strength to the Lord to my last breath. I'm not ready to throw in the towel. As a Christian, we never retire. You might retire from your job, but you'll never retire from serving the Lord. And David said, I've declared it in times past, give me strength to do it to this generation.

I'd like you to turn to a portion of Scripture for just a moment. This is probably going to be our last Psalm. In the book of Joshua, chapter 14, because it is one of my favorite stories of a person who is considered by most of us old, but he felt so young. And if I can be like this guy when I'm old, great, let it come.

His name is Caleb. He's 85 years old. In fact, that day might have been his birthday. And the children of Israel have just entered the land and are given out portions of land, all of the tribes. And as they're going through all of the tribes and Joshua said, OK, you guys, this is your portion and you guys move over here, Caleb steps out of the crowd and says, [CLEARS THROAT] excuse me, Josh, I got something to say. Listen to what he says. Verse 6.

"The children of Judah came to Joshua in Gilgal. And Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, the Kenezite, said to him, you know the word which the Lord said to Moses, the man of God, concerning you and me in Kadeshbarnea. I was 40 years old when Moses, the servant of the Lord, sent me from Kadeshbarnea to espy out the land. And I brought backward to him as was in my heart."

Now, I can picture the scene. Here's all these young tribal leaders and this 85-year-old man steps in the crowd and goes, excuse me, now, I remember when I was 40 years old. And all these young guys are going, oh, no, here goes another long story. I walked 50 miles to school every day in 30 feet of snow.

[AUDIENCE LAUGHS]

And as they're just going, oh, Caleb, come off, he brings up a promise that Moses gave to him. And he remembers it verbatim. Talk about memory. He had quick wit.

He says-- verse 8-- "Nevertheless, my brethren who went up with me made the heart of the people melt, but I wholly follow the Lord my God. So Moses swore to me that day saying, surely the land where your foot has trodden shall be your inheritance and your children's forever because you have wholly followed the Lord my God. And now, behold, the Lord has kept me alive, as he has said, these 45 years, ever since the Lord spoke this word to Moses while in Israel, or while Israel wandered in the wilderness. And now, here I am this day, 85 years young."

He says "old", but he felt young. Now, listen to him. "As yet, I am as strong this day as I was on the day that Moses sent me. Just as my strength was then, so now is my strength for war, both for going out and for coming in." He is saying, man, I haven't even started yet. I'm as fit as a fiddle. I'm strong, I'm 85 years old, but I'm ready to fight.

Guy came to town a couple of years ago and I got to know him. Some of you guys still remember him. His name was George Simmons. Two years ago he was 95. I took him out to lunch for Chinese food. As he was eating, his muscles and his chin were a little droopy and he was drooling from the edge of his mouth. He says, have to excuse me, the house is all the faucet is leaking.

[AUDIENCE LAUGHS]

He says, you know? I'm 95 years old, Skip, but my legs don't know that I'm 95. He says, I can walk, I can keep going. I can keep preaching the gospel. I'm ready to continue to minister for the Lord, I do guest speaking all around the country.

Some of your greatest accomplishments can be when you're older. You don't have to say, well, I'm ready to retire. You guys owe me something, you younger folks. You know? You don't have to live on war stories of the past. Oh, I remember way back when I served God. Let me tell you how God used me in my life. Never speak about your relationship with God past tense. And I'm not saying it out of disrespect.

I know I'm a young whippersnapper, but listen, older people, now you have a beautiful opportunity to serve the Lord just like anybody else. Age is no excuse. Some of your greatest accomplishments can be now. Don't live on old war stories. Be active now and watch God, like Caleb, move through your life.

Notice how Caleb views his life and how David viewed his life. He didn't say, oh, I'm sort of useless, I can't do anything. He says, I am as capable and competent as ever, and I've got a place.

And notice verse 12. "Now, therefore, give me this mountain of which the Lord spoke in that day. For you have heard in that day how the Anakim were there--" that's the giants. "--and the cities were great and fortified. It may be that the Lord will be with me. And I shall be able to drive them out as the Lord said. And Joshua blessed him, and gave Hebron to Caleb, the son of Jephunneh as an inheritance. Hebron therefore became the inheritance of Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, the Kenezite, to this day because he wholly followed the Lord God of Israel."

Turn to the next chapter. Look at verse 13. "Now, Caleb, the son of Jephunneh, he gave a portion among the children of Judah according to the commandment of the Lord to Joshua, namely Kirjatharba, which is Hebron. Caleb drove out-- listen to what he did-- the three sons of Anak, from there, Sheshai, Ahiman, and Talmai, the children of Anak."

Look at that old guy go. 85 years old and he's chasing giants out of the mountain towns, giving them a run for their money. So beautiful, just like David. He'd follow the Lord when he was a youth, he's following the Lord when he's old, and his strength for the Lord, his commitment to the Lord had not diminished. There's a lesson in that.

Now back to our chapter. Verse 19. "Also your righteousness, O God, is very high. You have done great things. O God, who is like you? You have shown me great and severe troubles. Shall revive me again and bring me up again from the depths of the earth. You shall increase my greatness and comfort me on every side. Also with the loot I will praise You and Your faithfulness, O God. To you I will sing with the harp, O Holy One of Israel. My lips shall greatly rejoice when I sing to You in my soul, which you have redeemed. My tongue also shall talk of Your righteousness all the day long, for they are confounded, for they are brought to shame who seek my hurt."

Now, we're going to end tonight with Psalm 72. I think. Yeah, we can finish it. Only 20 verses. And we're really going at a good clip tonight. It says, a Psalm of Solomon. Now, this is the last Psalm of the second Book of Psalms.

"Give the King your judgments, O God, and your righteousness to the King's son. He will judge your people with righteousness and your poor with justice. The mountains will bring peace to the peoples and the little hills by righteousness. He will bring justice to the poor of the people. He will save the children of the needy, and He will break in pieces the oppressor."

The ancient Jews looked at this Psalm as referring to the Messiah. Even before Jesus came. The Jewish people said, this has got to refer to the reign of the Messiah. These are some of the things the Messiah will accomplish when he comes.

And so this Psalm is also typically predictive of Jesus Christ, who will set up what is called the Kingdom Age, or the Millennium. I encourage you to be familiar with what is called eschatology, or the doctrine of the last days. Jesus Christ in His first coming did not set up his Kingdom Age. When He comes again, He will set up what is called the Millennium. That is the reign of Jesus Christ upon the earth for 1,000 years.

You can read Revelation chapter 20 on your own. And it speaks about a period of 1,000 years where there will be a reign of righteousness. This is before God reigns in eternity with the new heavens and new earth. But there will be 1,000 years of God reigning upon the earth, Jesus Christ.

When Jesus came the first time, the Jews were anticipating that if this is the Messiah, he's going to set up a kingdom and it's going to be the Millennium, because that's what the Jews thought the Messiah would do. Now, Jesus didn't do that. He died for the sins of the world, accomplish their salvation, and ascended up into Heaven. When He comes the second time, He will set up His Kingdom Age upon the earth.

Isaiah 65, Isaiah 66, Isaiah chapter 11 describe a time of universal peace. Satan will be bound for 1,000 years. He will not be able to deceive people. Even the animal kingdom will be tamed. It says the lamb will lie down with the lion. A children-- a child can play near a cobra's nest and put his hand down in the hole and he won't get bitten. There will be longevity. It says a child, if he dies at 100 years of age, it will be considered an untimely death. There is a beautiful description of the desert blossoming like a rose. Universal righteousness. And so this Psalm typically predicts that.

"They shall fear You as long as the sun and the moon endure throughout all generations. He shall come down like rain upon the mown grass, like showers that water the earth. In His days, the righteous shall flourish in abundance of peace until the moon is no more. He shall have dominion from sea to sea, from the river to the ends of the earth. And those who dwell on the wilderness will bow before Him and His enemies will lick the dust. The kings of Tarshish and the Isles will bring presents. The kings of Sheba and Saba will offer gifts. Yes, all the kings will fall down before Him. All nations shall serve Him."

This is Solomon's way of saying that he will be the king of kings because even the kings of the earth will worship him. "For he will deliver the needy when He cries. The poor, also. And Him who has no helper. He will spare the poor and needy. He will save the souls of the needy. He will redeem their life from oppression and violence. And precious shall be their blood in His sight. And He shall live. And the gold of Sheba will be given to him. Prayer also will be made for him continually and daily he shall be praised. There will be an abundance of grain in the earth. On the top of the mountains, its fruit shall wave like Lebanon and those of the cities shall flourish like grass of the earth. His name shall endure forever. His name shall continue as long as the sun. And men shall be blessed in him. All nations shall call him blessed.

Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, who only does wondrous things. And blessed be His glorious name forever. And let the whole earth be filled with His glory. Amen and Amen."

Now, any time you read that in the Psalms, it is coming to a close of one of the five volumes of the book. Psalms is divided into five portions, just like you have the five Books of Moses. Now we've just finished two books. And Psalm 72 ends the second Book of Psalms. Psalm 73 begins the third. And so there is this "amen and amen." And it says, verse 20, "The prayers of David, the son of Jesse, are ended."

Now we get into some of the Psalms of Asaph, a choir leader of ancient Israel. We'll get into his writings next week. And you'll see how they differ from David's and they have a whole different theme.

But I'm excited at Psalm 72 because I look forward to a time of total righteousness. When God will reign, when He will establish his theocracy upon the earth. And every time there is a voting year, every four years, I long more and more for the kingdom to come. And I think my prayers become more oriented toward the coming kingdom.

I'm not down on voting and I hope that all of us will vote. I hope all of us will get involved. It is just tough often when you have the two choices set in front of you to make the right choice.

And, you know, I am bent politically toward one certain platform, but I see the platform that the candidates offer and I just think, oh, man, Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth as it is in Heaven.

We live in crucial times. The Bible says things are not going to get better, but think are going to get worse. We live in a period of extreme darkness. Hopelessness for most people, despair for many Americans. I talked to somebody today on the phone about someone who is contemplating suicide. 14 years old. The answers of society aren't cutting it. People are in despair, they're looking for answers, they're groping in darkness.

You and I have an unprecedented opportunity because the darker it gets, the brighter our light can shine. The thing that keeps me going many times, when I hear of all the garbage that goes on in our world, is thoughts of the coming kingdom. Thoughts that the Lord will someday soon return, purge the earth and then set up His kingdom.

You say, well, isn't that a little bit escapist attitude? Can't you be so heavenly-minded you're no earthly good? Always thinking about the rapture and the coming of the Lord and God's going to take you and sweep you away to heaven? You'll live happily ever after. I mean, isn't that a rotten attitude to have? No, I think it's a wonderful attitude to have. It is one of the most purifying attitudes you can have as a Christian. That's what the writer of the Book of John says.

In speaking of the coming and the return of the Lord, John says, everyone who has this hope within him purifies himself. Even as he is pure. I'll tell you why. Knowing that the Lord could come back and interrupt our history at any moment, the Bible says that he's going to do that. Knowing that the Lord can come back, take us away, and usher in what is called the tribulation period after the rapture of the Church, makes me want to just go for it because I see a lot of people who don't know the Lord. I see a dark world.

Doesn't make me want to sit back and just sit on my roof and twiddle my thumbs till the rapture comes. Makes me want to just serve the Lord and pull out all the stops and go for it because I know that soon there will be no more chances. And I want to be able to be a vessel to as many people as I can, because soon, God's going to establish his kingdom. Before He does, His hand of mercy is outstretched to the world.

So I don't sit back in a comfortable position just saying, come on, Lord, get it over. Let's just have pie in the sky, sweet bye and bye. But it is a real impetus to pure living because any time you're tempted, you're tempted to be involved in certain things. Ask yourself, if the Lord came back right now, would I be embarrassed if he saw what I was doing? Would I be ashamed at His coming?

And that kind of hope, of the soon return of Jesus Christ and the setting up of His kingdom is one of the most purifying things that you can have in your life. So I encourage you, pray your kingdom come.

When God showed John in the Book of Revelation all of the things that he was going to set up after the tribulation period, John at the end is kind of sat back and flipped out. He said, even so, come quickly, Lord Jesus. Let's do it. Let's see it.

And so, Lord, knowing that You will soon come and set up Your kingdom upon the earth, we look forward to that day and we pray Your kingdom come. And until that day, Your will be done, Lord, in our lives. It's done perfectly in heaven. We pray that it would be done in us.

Father, we confess that many times we are concerned with building up our own little kingdoms. And for that, we confess, we turn from it, and we ask for Your grace, enabling us to seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness, and letting all these things be added to us.

Father, I pray that You would spark within our hearts a fresh awareness of your soon return, so that we would be motivated toward holy, pure, godly living. And we look forward to the day. And we say hasten the day. In Jesus' name. Amen.

Additional Messages in this Series

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2/28/1988
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Psalms 1-8
Psalms 1-8
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3/13/1988
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Psalms 9-18
Psalms 9-18
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3/20/1988
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Psalms 20-26
Psalms 20-26
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3/27/1988
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Psalms 27-32
Psalms 27-32
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5/1/1988
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Psalms 33-35
Psalms 33-35
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5/8/1988
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Psalms 36-39
Psalms 36-39
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5/15/1988
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Psalms 40-45
Psalms 40-45
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5/22/1988
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Psalms 46-51
Psalms 46-51
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5/29/1988
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Psalms 52-55
Psalms 52-55
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6/5/1988
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Psalms 56-59
Psalms 56-59
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6/19/1988
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Psalms 60-65
Psalms 60-65
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7/3/1988
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Psalms 66-67
Psalms 66-67
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7/17/1988
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Psalms 73-76
Psalms 73-76
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7/24/1988
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Psalms 77-80
Psalms 77-80
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8/7/1988
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Psalms 81-84
Psalms 81-84
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8/14/1988
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Psalms 85-89
Psalms 85-89
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8/28/1988
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Psalms 90-92
Psalms 90-92
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9/4/1988
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Psalms 93-95
Psalms 93-95
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9/11/1988
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Psalms 96-102
Psalms 96-102
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9/18/1988
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Psalms 103-105
Psalms 103-105
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10/2/1988
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Psalms 106-108
Psalms 106-108
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10/9/1988
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Psalms 109-114
Psalms 109-114
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10/16/1988
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Psalms 115-118
Psalms 115-118
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10/23/1988
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Psalm 119
Psalm 119
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10/30/1988
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Psalms 120-127
Psalms 120-127
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11/13/1988
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Psalms 128-133
Psalms 128-133
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12/4/1988
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Psalms 134-138
Psalms 134-138
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12/11/1988
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Psalms 139-141
Psalms 139-141
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12/18/1988
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Psalms 142-150
Psalms 142-150
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There are 29 additional messages in this series.
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