Any of you guys need a Bible and you don't have one, you can share with people around you. Psalm 85 says "To the chief musician a Psalm of the sons of Korah." This Psalm I believe was written after the return from Babylonian captivity. Probably a good background for this Psalm would be the book of Nehemiah. Israel went into captivity for 70 years, and after 70 years returned. In their return, there were expectations that were unfulfilled.

They had the expectation that in their return God would set up a messianic kingdom. Didn't happen. In fact, only very few Jews returned from Babylon to go back to Jerusalem. Most of them stayed in Babylon. It was such a nice place, even though they were amongst enemies and not their own countrymen. They had nice homes. They had three camel garages. They had the works.

They didn't want to leave. They liked it where it was. And so few of the Jews returned. In a succession of three returns under Zerubbabel, Ezra and Nehemiah. However, when they got back to Jerusalem, they found that there were problems. The temple was in shambles. Jerusalem was in shambles. People's spirits were at a very low.

The priests and the leaders themselves were apostate. They had married pagan wives. And so when Nehemiah in the first chapter sees an emissary who just got back from Jerusalem and asks him what the condition was like, and the guy said, oh man, it's a mess back there, Nehemiah.

Jerusalem is in shambles. Nothing's been done. People are really discouraged, and there's opposition from the enemies, the Samaritans. Nehemiah began to weep. Now, this Psalm is written after the return from Babylon, after the return from the exile. And although it's sort of a Psalm of acknowledging that God had brought them back, at the same time there is the absence of joy in this Psalm.

The author recognizes that there is something wrong in the people's relationship to God. Oh yes, they're back in their land. Oh yes, they're were God wanted them to be. But there's a lack of joy, and so it's a prayer actually for revival and bringing them back into the land. And bringing them back with joy.

It says, "Lord, you have been favorable to your land. And you have brought back the captivity of Jacob. You have forgiven the iniquity of your people. You have covered all of their sin. You have taken away all your. Wrath you have turned from the fierceness of your anger. Restore us, O God of our salvation, and cause your anger toward us to cease. Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger to all generations? Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? Show us your mercy, O Lord, and grant us your salvation."

The Psalm is a prayer for revival. Let me tell you what a revival is not, first of all. A revival is not a week long series of meetings scheduled once a year. Revival this week from 7:30 to 9, Monday through Friday. We're going to line up special guest speakers, and that's a revival. That's not a revival.

Actually, when you speak of revival, it's quite an indictment because you can only have a revival if something is either dead or dying, because to revive means to bring it back to life. Now I will grant you the church in this country needs real revival, and it's happening in some places, but it's not happening in a pervasive sense all over the country.

Now there have been times where God has just poured out His spirit and revival has just burst forth. The Psalmist is acknowledging that Israel's relationship for the most part is dying. Righteousness exalts a nation and sin is a reproach to many people. And the Psalmist is wondering why on one hand, God, are we back in the land, and at the same time there's such an absence of joy in servitude toward you?

The people are really dead on the vine. Revive us. Restore us. We need to pray in this country for spiritual revival. Spiritual revival means where people come to the Lord in repentance. Now, I think it is very fine and wonderful and meaningful and upright and moral to see certain things in our country change, certain moral trends.

I think it's fine to picket against abortion and The Last Temptation of Christ and to try to enact laws. However, even if those things are done, that in and of itself is a moral revival, not necessarily a spiritual revival. That will not save our nation. And while I encourage you to be active in these things, don't see these things as an end of themselves, because you are fighting a world system.

And see, the way I look at it is I expect sinners to sin. I am really not appalled that the world can come up with movies like The Last Temptation. That doesn't really take me off guard. I'm not shocked that the world can conceive of that. They've done stuff like that. Now the church should not sit idly by. Yes, we should protest, but even if we could succeed in taking the movie out and succeed in cutting out certain maladies-- pornography.

I mean, let's really do that stuff. But that in and of itself is not a spiritual revival. That's only part of it. A person needs to come and bear his heart before the Lord and beg forgiveness of his sins and turn to Jesus Christ. That's a spiritual revival. A moral revival is not enough. An ethical revival is not enough. People's hearts need to be changed, and you know what?

You start changing people's hearts, and people start coming to know Jesus Christ, and more people start coming to know Jesus Christ, then society will begin its changes. And that's where we should really be focusing our change, is on preaching the gospel and seeing the man change from the inside out.

And perhaps the best way, by the way, to combat this movie-- I mean we've signed petitions, people are picketing, and people are drawing the attention of the world, certainly, in good ways and in very bad ways at the same time. To continue to pray, but perhaps-- and it's something that we got the idea this week from someone else who called us and said are you interested in showing at your church the movie Jesus?

While The Last Temptation of Christ is showing, we thought, you know, we should show and really pump it up big either Jesus by Campus Crusade, the film based on Luke, or Jesus of Nazareth, the film epic series, and show that at the same time, and show what the real story was like. Give people that alternative to go and hear the gospel in film.

The Psalmist is speaking of a spiritual revival. Righteousness exalts a nation. Sin is a reproach to any people. Restore us, O God of our salvation, cause your anger toward us to cease. Verse 7 says, "Show us your mercy, O Lord, and grant us your salvation. I will hear what the God, the Lord, will speak. For He will speak peace to His people and to His saints, but let them not turn back to folly. Surely His salvation is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land."

Pray that God will send revival to this country, spiritual revival. Pray that God will send revival to our hearts as a church, so that we'll take a stand and spread the good news, and see people's hearts turned toward Him. I believe the judgment is coming upon this country. Not only do I believe it, I am convinced of it without a shadow of a doubt that God will judge the United States unless there is an incredible turning back to Him and to those principles upon which this country was founded. Of which those ideals are being abolished year by year.

Actually, I think a revival would postpone the judgment of God, but I think it is certain that it will come. A lot of people ask me what's the future of the United States? It's a tough question. Now the Bible has very cleverly portrayed the future of certain nations in the n times. China, we know its future. Russia, Israel, Iraq, Iran, Egypt, Germany, but there's a strange silence when it comes to this country.

Now some people try to force an interpretation in the Old Testament concerning the young lions, saying that that refers to the United States. It does not, probably. The scripture is silent, so there's probably one of three scenarios that could happen to our country. Number one, we could be aligned with the 10 nations that will develop in the revived Roman Empire, the European common market.

We could be aligned politically and economically with them, and there's already a trend to do that called the Trilateral Commission trying to link Japan, the United States, and the European common market together. That would make us in effect an ally of the anti-christ. Scenario number two, there could be a nuclear war. We could lose.

Certainly not beyond the scope of reason in our day. Number three, there could be an incredible revival. People could be coming to know the Lord in droves, and then the Lord would return and take His people away, and there wouldn't be a significant amount of people to even make a significant nation that the Bible would record. It seems that those would be one of three options that could happen.

I don't know what the future is, but I know we'd best start praying. "Surely His salvation," verse 9, "is near to those who fear Him, that glory may dwell in our land. Mercy and truth have met together. Righteousness and peace have kissed each other." I love that. You know where that happened? The cross. Righteousness and peace. Mercy and truth have met together. Truth shall spring out of the earth. Righteousness shall look down from heaven. Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.

Righteousness will go before Him and shall make His footsteps our pathway. Revival always begins with one person. In this case, the one person is one of the sons of Korah that we read in the inscription at the beginning. I love what Gipsy Smith said when somebody came up to him and said, how do you start a revival?

He said easy. Go home, walk inside your house, kneel down on the floor, draw a chalk line around you. When revival has occurred within that chalk line, revival is on. Pray that God would revive you. Now, if you can look back to a time in your walk that was full of life and vibrance, and you don't experience that today, and that wondrous excitement of intimacy with Jesus is a pastime event, you need revival.

We need to fight against status quo in our walk. Very easy to do. Business as usual. The professionalism that comes into our walks as Christians. And if we can look back to the time as it says in the Book of Revelation, the second chapter of the Church of Ephesus, "You've left your first love."

And you remember how wonderful it used to be, and how close you used to feel, and the wonderful times of devotion you had. The quiet times with the Lord. If that's a past time experience, then you need to pray for revival. And as it says in Revelation 2, God said repent and do your first works all over again. Now, Psalm 86, I would entitle this tired but trusting.

It says, "Bow down your ear, O Lord, and hear me. This is a prayer of David, for I am poor and needy. Preserve my life, for I am holy, or I am set apart for your purposes. You are my God. Save your servant who trusts in you. Be merciful to me, O Lord. For I cry to you all day long," Psalm 86 is actually fragments of several different scriptures put together. This is David's prayer from his heart, and when he prays, he is quoting scriptures out of Exodus, scriptures out of Deuteronomy, other Psalms that have been written.

And he sort of lumps them all together in his prayer. And that gives us a secret to praying effectively. And that secret is when you pray, make your prayer a scriptural prayer. Now, that doesn't mean that you have to quote King James all the time or have all these scriptures perfectly set out in flowery language, but it certainly helps us when we pray to gain the perspective of God in our prayer life. And scripture does that, you see.

When you're in a certain circumstance and you're really not quite sure what to do, is there a scripture, a promise, or a statement about God that is pertinent to your situation? If so, recall it to the Lord in your own mind, in your prayer, and it will boost your faith. Example-- Acts chapter 4. The disciples have been beaten and persecuted by the Sanhedrin. They go away in a room and they start praying.

And as they are praying and going through their situation with the Lord, they remember that there was a scripture about this. And they include it. And so it says that they lifted their voices in one accord up toward God, and they said you are the Lord, God, who created the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them. Who by the mouth of your servant, David, said quote, "Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing? The rulers have gathered together against the Lord and against his messiah." A quotation right out of Psalm 2.

And then they said, "Indeed Pontius Pilate and Herod have collaborated together against your anointed one, the messiah. And here we are being persecuted." And so what their prayer does is it's-- they state their situation. God, we're in a jam. We're in a fix. We have enemies all around us. But we remember that you spoke about this a long time ago in Psalm 2, that people would be gathered together against you.

And so because we recall the promise, we place our confidence in you that, number one, this situation doesn't take you off guard, and number two, you're big enough to handle it. Therefore, O Lord, give us boldness to go out on the streets of Jerusalem and proclaim the gospel in power.

When they remembered that there was a promise of God and that this event had been predicted, it boosted up their faith. And that little section concludes by saying, "And the room in which they were praying was shaken. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness."

So I think it's good to know the Bible, because the more you know the scripture, the more effective prayer warrior you can become. You say, well, (SCOFFS) I don't know the Bible. I don't know the scripture that well. And I hear that as an excuse many times from people when you talk about the power of the Bible. Well, you know, I've known the Lord only a year, and I just don't know the Bible. So learn it.

You don't have to go to seminary to learn it. Just get a Bible. Read it every day. Meditate on it. Pray over the promises. Memorize the important salient points. And you will build upon that foundation, and the more you learn, you'll be able to recall it into your mind. You will say oh, yes. Oh, I remember, and as you pray and you can fill your mind and your prayer with the scripture, it will boost-- it'll turbocharge your prayers.

He says in verse 2, "Preserve my life, for I am holy. That as Lord, I am counting on you to take care of me because I have given my life to you. You control me. I have set myself apart for your glory. Because of that, Lord, I pray that you preserve me. Be merciful to me, O Lord, for I cry to you all day long. Rejoice the soul of your servant, for to you, O Lord, I lift up my soul. For you, Lord, are good and ready to forgive and abundant in mercy to all those who call upon you."

I had a young lady come up to me this morning, and she was in tears. She said pray for me. I said I'd love to pray for you. What's wrong? She said I went to a certain church. She told me the name of it. And that church told me that I could never be restored again in my walk with God.

I said tell me about your past. She says, well, I went to this church and then I backslid for a while. Now what they call backsliding of the church is that you don't attend their church for awhile. If you don't attend their church, you're backsliding. And indeed she did backslide. She wasn't really walking with the Lord, but she came back to that church seeking restoration and forgiveness, and they said you can't be forgiven. You can't be restored.

They said you can never have a meaningful relationship with God outside this fellowship. And even if you would be forgiven, you'd never be restored to a place of being able to serve the Lord like you did. She was just in tears over this. She said what do you think? I said they're out to lunch. I said that's just nuts.

And here's a scripture where He says, "You are good, ready to forgive. Abundant in mercy to all those who call upon you." Oh Skip, does that mean you believe in a second chance? No, I believe in a third and a fourth and a fifth and a sixth and a seventh-- you have zillions of chances before you die. After that, that's it.

But God doesn't say you shall be perfect, and if you blow it once I'm going to just smash your brains in.

[LAUGHTER]

In love, of course.

[LAUGHTER]

David is begging God for mercy. What's beautiful about this Psalm is that it is so filled with the Lord, and I've jotted some of these things down. The word Elohim, one of the names of God, is used five times. Yahweh is used four times. Adonai, which means the Lord, is used seven times. Almost in every verse it's filled with the Lord. Now that's important when we pray.

We often come before God's throne with a very limited perspective, that is our situation. We are going through a valley, and all we see is narrow cliffs on every side. And so we come into God's presence shaking, trembling, no faith. Saying oh God, nobody's ever gone through what I'm going through. This is the toughest thing in the world. I don't know if you can take care of this. I've got this problem and that problem.

When you bring God into your prayer, it changes. Difficulty must always be measured by the capacity of the agent doing the work. It's a phrase I once heard years ago, and I like it. Now, you take your problem to Gino. You say, Gino, you got to help me. I-- I need rent money, and I've got this problem that problem. I have no joy. I have no peace. I feel no forgiveness.

And you're going to walk away disappointed if you go see Gino.

[LAUGHTER]

Or if you see me or Richard, or anybody else on staff, to solve the problem. Because difficulty is always measured by the capacity of the agent doing the work. You bring it to us and have us solve it, you are going to be very disappointed in us, because we can't do it. And any good counselor will put you right back to the throne of God. Now, you bring us into the problem, and you might have a bigger problem.

We'll be happy to pray for you, give you counsel out of the scripture, but the ultimate counsel is bring God into it. So you've got this problem. It's so huge. OK, stick that problem next to God. You're going to look at that problem and go, I can't believe I even noticed that problem.

What is $600-- money that you need for bills this month, in comparison to the living omnipotent, all powerful God. God is not broke. God's got it in His account somewhere. God can release it through the agency of one of His children. Yeah, but I came to the church last week and asked for money, and you guys said you didn't have any left. God has a lot bigger bank account, folks, than we have. Fortunately.

You see we're relying on Him. If it doesn't come in, it doesn't happen. You bring God into the situation, you pray those scriptural prayers, you bring the name of God and the power of God-- the secret to powerful prayer. Verse 6 continues by saying, "Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer, and attend to the voice of my supplications, and the day of my trouble I will call upon you. For you will answer me." Now I love verse 7, especially as you review the previous verses where he says I've been crying to you all day long. And although he's been crying all day long to the Lord, and seemingly he hasn't received a response, verse 3, "I cry to you all day long." The Psalmist still believes in the power of prayer and bringing the request before the Lord. Because he says I'm going to do it and you will answer me. That is assured.

Now God will answer every single prayer you bring to Him. There are certain things that will preclude you from having your prayers answered, however. David said if I regard sin in my heart, that is, if you're living in a lifestyle contrary to God and you've got sin in your life-- David said the Lord will not hear me.

If you are not a child of God, God has the capacity to hear your prayers, but the scripture says, "God's hand is not short, that He can't save. Nor is His ear heavy that He cannot hear. But your sins have separated between you and your God." Now when you're a child of God and you come to Him in prayer, your heart is right.

God will answer your prayer, always. Now, that doesn't mean He'll grant every request. He won't say yes to every prayer, but He'll answer your prayer. He might say no. It might seem that God is silent, where probably God is saying wait on it. I'll be honest, I don't like when He answers me wait. I'd rather you just say no. Then I can go on.

Oh, but just wait. Just hang tight. Well, what is it? Yes or no? Just wait. (SIGHS) Oh, man.

[LAUGHTER]

All right.

[LAUGHTER]

"Among the gods there is none like you, O Lord, nor are there any works like your works. A nation whom you have made shall come and worship before you. All nations whom you have made will come and worship before you, and shall glorify your name. For you are great and do wondrous things. You alone are God." It would be interesting for you to search the concepts of God in different cultures throughout the world that have come and gone.

The God Zeus, who dwelt on Mount Olympus, was this thunderous god of lightning that the Greeks shook in fear before. The God of the Hindus, Kali, is this bloodthirsty wife of Shiva in the Hindu pantheon who demanded blood sacrifices. The god of the Aztecs, who demanded blood sacrifices. And compare that to the all merciful, all loving, all knowing, compassionate God. There is no God like our God.

Who has such a wonderful plan of salvation. Who picks you up when you fall down. Who gives you that chance. Verse 11 says, "Teach me your way, O Lord. I will walk in your truth. Unite my heart to fear your name." I love that prayer, and I think it's a prayer we should include in our repertoire of praying. Unite my heart to fear your name.

I don't think our greatest enemy is actually positively sinning and positively going astray. I think our biggest problem-- perhaps you'll agree, is having a divided heart, is becoming diverted. And not really having a single heart for the Lord, but letting other things and other interests divide our affections, so that our heart isn't burning for Jesus only.

There's a divided heart. Jesus said you can't serve two masters. You'll love one and you'll hate the other one. You can't serve both God and man. Lord, unite our hearts. I will praise you, O Lord, my God, with all my heart. I will glorify your name forevermore, for great is your mercy toward me. And you have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol. O God, the proud have risen against me and a mob of violent men have sought my life and have not set you before them.

But you, O Lord, are a god full of compassion and gracious. You're long suffering and abundant in mercy and truth. That to me is so precious. Oh turn to me and have mercy on me, give your strength to your servant and save the son of your maidservant. Show me a sign for good that those who hate me may see it and be ashamed. Because you, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

Psalm 87 is a messianic Psalm. That is, it really speaks of the future reign of Jesus Christ, the messiah. It says, "His foundation is in the holy mountains. The Lord loves the gates of Zion more than the dwellings of Jacob. Glorious things are spoken of you, a city of God." Now what is he's speaking of? What city is he's speaking about? Jerusalem. Zion. The city of the great. King.

"Beautiful for situation, the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion and the size of the north, the city of the Great King," The book of Psalms declares. Jerusalem is mentioned some 800 times or so in the scripture. In the book of Ezekiel, chapter 5, God said that he sets Jerusalem in the midst of all the nations of the world.

These days, Jerusalem is pretty much in the world news tonight. It captures our attention almost every time you turn on the boob tube. It's not Paris. It's not Rome. It's not London. It's not even New York. It's not even Washington on a consistent basis worldwide. It's Jerusalem. And as we discovered last week, as it says in the book of Zechariah, that Jerusalem will become a stumbling stone to the whole world, and that the whole world will eventually turn against Jerusalem and God will fight for her.

It says, "His foundation is in the holy mountains." Jerusalem is actually surrounded with mountains. Five principal mountains to be exact. It has a beautiful elevation of about 2,500 feet above sea level. It's filled with pine trees and nice, cool breezes sweep through there. It is surrounded with mountains for defense.

When Jerusalem was first founded, no matter where you were, no matter where you are today in Jerusalem, you can see mountains all around you. Now that's important if you're marching on foot as an army, because if you're coming down a mountain and Jerusalem is set up on another mountain, the people in that city will see you, the enemy, coming down the mountain and going up.

It's a perfect strategic location. And so Jerusalem was set on a hill with mountains all around it and walls built around that city for strategy purposes. And so you can understand the scripture that says, "As the mountains are around Jerusalem the Lord surrounds His people." It speaks of incredible defense, and so the Lord loves-- in verse 2, the gates of Zion more than the dwellings of Jacob. More than any of the cities around, God chose Jerusalem. "Glorious things are spoken of you, O City of God."

I will make mention of Rahab, which is an idiom that means Egypt, the nation of Egypt, I will make mention of Egypt and Babylon to those who know me. Behold, O Philistia, and tire with Ethiopia. This one was born there. This is actually speaking of an incredible prophecy. Babylon is today Iran and Iraq. Rahab is Egypt, and this Psalm speaks of a time when these nations, which are now hostile toward Israel and Jerusalem, will actually come to Jerusalem to worship the Lord in the kingdom age.

Those who are redeemed from all parts of the world, even those hostile nations, will come and worship the Lord geographically centered in Jerusalem. There are many, many scriptures that speak of this. Isaiah chapter 2, Isaiah chapter 4, Zechariah chapter 2, and on. In fact, look over in Isaiah chapter two and catch a glimpse of what the prophet says.

Isaiah chapter 2, verse 2, "It shall come to pass in the latter days that the mountain of the Lord's house shall be established on the top of the mountains and shall be exalted above the hills. And all nations shall flow to it. Many people shall come and say come, let us go up to the house or the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. He will teach us His ways.

And we shall walk in His paths. For out of Zion shall go forth the law and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. He shall judge between the nations, and He shall rebuke many people. They shall beat their swords into plowshares. Their spears into pruning hooks. Nation shall not lift up sword against nation. Neither shall they learn to make war any more."

God has made a covenant, actually, with the Jewish people, with the nation of Israel. And it is an everlasting covenant. It will not change. Some people misapply all of the scriptures in the Old Testament that speak of the restoration of Israel. They misapply them and say they refer to the church now, and that God will not keep His promise to Israel, because Israel forsook the messiah, crucified Jesus Christ.

Therefore, all of those promises to Israel are now for the church, and none of those things spoken to Israel will ever literally be fulfilled. That's just hogwash. And it should have ended all doubts May 14th, 1948, when after a couple of thousand years, God did indeed literally allow the rebirth of the state of Israel.

Not in righteousness yet. Oh, very much unrighteousness. The land of Israel, it's not a Holy Land, yet. It will be one day, but it's not now. But I believe that God brought them back or allowed them to rebuild their nation as of May 14th, 1948, according to the scriptures. God predicted that Israel would roam throughout the world in captivity, or actually in exile, but God would restore them back to the land.

He would begin to rebuild them as a nation. Jeremiah 31 says, this is how much I love Israel. If you could take the stars and the moon and the sun completely away, then you could take away the promises that I made to Israel. But as long as those things remain, my promises to this nation will always be in effect. God said yes, I will be done Israel and I'm done completely with the world. But as long as the stars are hanging out in the sky and the planets are revolving around the sun, I've got my promise to keep to the nation of Israel. Jeremiah 31.

Then it says in verse 5, "And of Zion will be said this one and that one were born in her, and the most high himself shall establish her. The Lord will record when He registers the people, this one will be born there. Both the sinners and the players on instruments say all my springs are in you. Looking to Jerusalem, is that place of refreshment, because God dwells in there."

And actually during the millennium, it is going to be interesting that it will be an honor to be born in Jerusalem. It will be in the registers. Someone will boast and say, hey, I was born there, as it says in the verses previous. Now Psalm 88 is like a funeral dirge. It's one of the saddest-- in fact, I think it is the saddest Psalm in the entire book of Psalms.

It is just a drag. Usually in the Psalms you'll get this doleful circumstance, and in the midst of it, the guy will say but I still praise you, O Lord. I'm still hanging on. I'm going to follow you. Things will be all right. I'm looking up.

But not in this Psalm. He begins--

(HUMMING) [MUSIC - BEETHOVEN, "5TH SYMPHONY"]

-- and he ends the same way. In total despair and darkness. "O Lord, God of my salvation. I have cried out day and night before you. Let my prayer come before you. Incline your ear to my cry. For my soul is full of troubles, and my life draws near to the grave. I am counted with those who go down to the pit. I am like a man who has no strength, adrift among the dead. Like the slain who lie in the grave. When you remember whom you remember no more and who are cut off from your hand."

There's a couple of possibilities as to what the background was of this Psalm. Number one, it could have been written by a captive who was taken captive by the Egyptians when Shishak came in to invade the land of Israel. Now, if you know the history of ancient peoples, when you would conquer a nation and you take people captive, you take them back to your own land and you kill them.

The Egyptians would march the captives through the city and everybody would applaud, and they take you outside the city and they just kill you. That was the fate of anyone who was captured. And so this person, if indeed that was the circumstance, knows that because he's been captured, his fate is dead. They don't kill him right away. The psychological impact of knowing that you're going to die and being on death row is something that the Egyptians were famous for.

And so here's this guy waiting to die, knowing he's going to die, and he has really no hope. What makes it more impacting is the inscription in the beginning that says a Psalm of the sons of Korah to the chief musicians said to Mahalath Le-- whatever. A contemplation of Heman the Ezrahite.

If you look up in the Old Testament, I think it's second chronicles, this guy mentioned Heman was one of the Kolathites. He was a priest. He was a Levite. And all he did all his life was serve God. He didn't do anything wrong. He did everything right. He was in full time ministry serving God, making sure the temple was in proper order.

And here's a guy who's been serving God all of his life, and now he's a captive facing death, which makes it even more gruesome for him. He can't figure out, Lord, why is this happening to me? I'm used to serving you, and now I am facing death. Or, the background could be that of a leper. Because he says that he has been afflicted from the days of his youth.

And so I don't know which it is, but I kind of lean toward the leprosy idea. Leprosy in those days was a very loathsome disease without a cure. It lasted between nine and 30 years of a person's life. It was dying inch by inch. At first certain nodules would begin to form on your fingers and your arms and your legs and your face.

Those nodules would begin to ulcerate and ooze a horrible smelling pus as they would break. You'd begin losing sensation in the appendages, the extremities, the fingers and the toes. You couldn't feel anymore. If you were to brush up against a fire, your whole leg or hand could be burned, and you wouldn't even know it. You've lost nerve sensation.

The muscles begin to wither away and deteriorate. The tendons contract the body. Your eyebrows fall out. Ulcers begin to develop on your vocal chords. Your throat becomes raspy. What is worst of all is not only was there not a cure, but you were banished totally from society. You couldn't worship in the temple. If you were as so much as to put your head-- pop your head inside of a house to see who's home, the whole house would be considered defiled.

Anybody who has come in your way, you had to shout out, "Unclean! Unclean!" If the wind was blowing your way and somebody was downwind, you had to be 150 feet away. That was the closest you could get to a person. If you were married, you'd never see your wife again close. You'd never see your kids again.

You were banished away from the city. You lived out in tents or in huts. They'd put food out in the wilderness, but they'd never see you. They'd never touch you. You were completely alone. And it could be that he's speaking of leprosy. You turn to the New Testament and there's such a beautiful story, because Jesus sees a leper. He goes out and as he's going into one town, he sees a man who's been afflicted with leprosy all of his life.

Now, because a man is unclean it was forbidden to touch a person. Can you imagine how refreshing it must have been when it says, "And Jesus touched the leper, and he was healed." He hadn't felt the warmth of a human hand for years, and now Jesus reaches out and touches him and he is made completely whole. And, you know, leprosy is actually a beautiful description of sin.

It starts unnoticing. It grows and grows, and it has the capacity to destroy the whole person. And so you can look at Psalm 88 as an analogy of sin. Verse 6 says, "You have laid me in the lowest pit, in darkness in the depths. Your wrath lies heavy upon me. And you have afflicted me with all of your waves. You have put away my acquaintances far from me. You have made me an abomination to them. I am shut up and I cannot get out. My eye wastes away because of affliction.

Lord, I've called daily upon you. I've stretched out my hands to you. Will you work wonders for the dead? Shall the dead arise and praise You? Shall your loving kindness be declared in the grave? Or your faithfulness in the place of destruction? Shall your wonders be known in the dark and your righteousness in the land of forgetfulness?"

In other words, hey, I've been in the temple service all my life, what good am I to you if I'm a dead man? How can I serve you on the other side of the grave? How can I praise you on the other side of the grave? What good am I to you dead, Lord? Now keep in mind that the people in the Old Testament did not have the knowledge of the Resurrection that you and I have. That is, Abraham and Isaac didn't sit around and say, well, you know, one day the messiah is going to come and die on a cross and be raised from the dead and intercede on our behalf at the throne of God.

Revelation in the scripture was progressive. Now we look back from the Old Testament back into the New Testament, looking through the lens of the Resurrection, and we have hope that once you die there is hope on the other side. You do praise God. It is wonderful, because that revelation is now made complete by the New Testament.

But in the Old Testament they did not have the same confidence that you and I have in the New Testament, because they didn't have the messiah, who had come, died for their sins, paid for their atonement, conquered death, rose from the dead. And so he says, how can the dead praise you? "But to you, I have cried out, O Lord, and in the morning my prayer comes before you. Lord, why do you cast off my soul? Why do you hide your face from me? I have been afflicted and ready to die from my youth up."

Now imagine having a loathsome disease like leprosy for up to 30 years without a cure. "I suffer your terrors. I am distraught. Your fierce wrath has gone over me. Your terrors have cut me off. They came around me all day long like water. They engulf me altogether. Loved one and friend, you have put far from me. And my acquaintances into darkness."

(HUMMING) [MUSIC - BEETHOVEN, "5TH SYMPHONY"]

That's how it ends. I'm glad that Psalm 89 follows Psalm 88. It says, "I will sing of the mercies of the Lord forever." (SIGHS) Got out of that pit. "With my mouth, I will make known your faithfulness to all generations. I have said mercy shall be built up forever. Your faithfulness you shall establish in the very heavens. I have made a covenant with my chosen. I swore to my servant, David. Your seed I will establish forever, and build up your throne to all generations."

So this person obviously lived at the time of David, and the covenant that God made in Samuel, the book of Samuel, with David has already been established. And so the guy is really excited that God has made an everlasting covenant with David. The beginning of the Psalm speaks of confidence. The end of the Psalm loses the confidence in God's promise to David, and we'll tell you why when we get there.

The heavens will praise your wonders, O Lord. Your faithfulness also in the congregation of the Saints, for who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the Saints, and to be held in reverence by all those who are around Him. O Lord, God of Hosts, who is mighty like you, O Lord?

Your faithfulness also surrounds you. You rule the raging of the sea. When its waves rise, you still them. Interesting scripture in the light of Jesus in the New Testament, who calmed the sea. Almost as if this is prophetic, of something that Jesus would do. You have broken Rahab in pieces. That is the Egyptian coalition.

As one who has slain, you have scattered your enemies with your mighty arm. The heavens are yours. The earth also is yours. The world and all of its fullness-- you have founded them. The north and the south. You have created them. Tabor and Herman rejoice in your name. Now, these are not two people. I'm not speaking, oh, Hermon, George, and Tabor. These are mountains.

Mount Tabor is in the Jezreel Valley, or you would call it, the Valley of Armageddon. If you were to stand on the ancient city of Megiddo, which is a little hill of ruins, of 20 civilizations that have been left, if you were to stand in that hill and look north, you'd see a rounded hill almost perfectly a half sphere. That's Mount Tabor.

If it was a clear day and you could look farther up north, through the mountains of Natalie, you would see in the far north Mount Hermon, or Mount Herman, depending on if you're Jewish or American. And it is about 11,500 feet. Tall mountain. There is skiing on it today. In Israel, they have a ski lift. And those two mountains were considered in the northern part of Israel to describe the beauty of the land.

Because wherever you'd look, you'd see the green valleys, and these two mountains that are jutting up. And so Tabor and Hermon rejoice in your name. You have a mighty arm, strong as your hand and high as your right hand. Righteousness and justice are the foundation of your throne. Mercy and truth go before your face. Blessed are the people who know the joyful sound. They walk, O Lord, in the light of your countenance. In your name, they rejoice all day long. Isn't it great to be around people like this? I don't care what they're going through, they have that tone of rejoicing in the midst of desolation. They're used to the joyful sound. They learned to make melody in their heart onto the Lord and trust in Him. And in your righteousness, they are exalted, for you are the glory of their strength. And in your favor our horn-- that is our strength or authority, is exalted.

For our shield belongs to the Lord, and our King to the Holy One of Israel. You spoke in a vision to your Holy One and said, I have given help to one who his mighty. I've exalted the chosen from the people. I have found my servant, David. With my holy oil I have anointed him. With whom my hands shall be established, also my arm shall strengthen him. The enemies shall not outwit him. Nor the son of wickedness afflict him.

I will beat down his foes before his face, and plague those who hate him. But my faithfulness and my mercy shall be with him, and in my name his horn shall be exalted. Also, I will set his hand over the sea and his right hand over the rivers. He shall cry to me you are my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.

I will make him. That is, I will set him as a position as my firstborn. The highest of the kings of the earth. My mercy I will keep for him forever. And my covenant shall stand firm with him. His seat also I will make to endure forever. And his throne as the days of heaven. Now this is a prophecy that is reiterated in the New Testament concerning Jesus Christ being the first born of God.

In Revelation is called the firstborn from among the dead. Colossians chapter 1, He is also called the first born. Now this is where some of the cults, especially the Jehovah Witnesses, get haywire. Because they say that since Jesus is called the firstborn, that surely must mean, He had no eternal state. He was created by God. He was born first.

And so they'll tell you if you say, well, Jesus is God. They say no. You know, the Bible says that He's the first born of God. And so they say this is what happened. God created Jesus. And Jesus created all other things. And so they will insert the word in Colossians other, which is not in the original manuscripts.

Your Bible says, "For by Him all things were created." They will say for by Him, all other things were created. Because He's the first born of God. You see, the Father created Jesus, and Jesus created the world. Except the word firstborn referred in the Old Testament not only to the guy who was born first, but it was a position of notoriety.

Ephraim and Manasseh are a good example. In one portion, God says Ephraim is my first born. In another place, it says Manasseh is my first born. You've got a problem. One of them was born first. One of them was not. How can you have two first borns? Easy. The right of the first born was given to the younger by God. Although he was born second, God gave him the position of first born.

That is, it's a position of rulership and authority. And the word-- in fact I think the NIV says God established him as first born in that verse. Is that what it says? Who has an NIV translation, anybody? Anybody? What does that verse here in verse 27 say?

[INAUDIBLE]

I will appoint him. That's a good translation. I will appoint him my firstborn. That is, prophetically speaking of Jesus, God gives him the authority over the kings of the earth in a position of the firstborn, which was a Hebrew term. "His seed," verse 29, "I will make to endure forever in his throne as the days of heaven. If his sons forsake my law and do not walk in my judgments, if they break my statutes and do not keep my commandments, then I will visit their transgression with the rod and their iniquity with stripes. Nevertheless, my loving kindness I will not utterly take from him, nor allow my faithfulness to fail.

My covenant I will not break nor alter the word that has gone out of my lips. Once I have sworn by my holiness, I will not lie to David. His seed shall endure forever. And His throne as the sun before me. It shall be established forever like the moon, even like the faithful witness in the sky." Now listen to verse 38. There's a whole change of atmosphere.

"But you have cast off and abhorred. You have been furious with your anointed. You have renounced the covenant of your servant. You have profaned the crown by casting it to the ground. You have broken down all his hedges. You have brought his strongholds to ruin. All who pass by plunder him. He is a reproach to his neighbors.

You have exalted the right hand of his adversaries. You have made all his enemies rejoice. You have also turned back the edge of the sword and have not sustained him in the battle. You have made his glory cease and cast his thrown down to the ground. The days of his youth you have shortened. You have covered him with shame. How long, O Lord, will you hide yourself forever? Will your wrath burn like fire? Remember how short my time is.

For what futility you have created, all the children of men. What man can live and not see death? Can he deliver his life from the power of the grave? Lord, where are your former loving kindnesses which you swore to David in your truth. Remember, Lord, the reproach of your servants, how I bear in my bosom the reproach of all the many peoples with which your enemy have reproached, O Lord. With which they have reproached the footsteps of your anointed."

And he ends with saying, "Blessed be the Lord forevermore, Amen and Amen." Why the change? First he says, Lord, you made a promise to David. It's supposed to be an everlasting covenant. Oh, we trust in your covenant. Then he goes Lord, have you failed us? How come you haven't kept your promises? You know why. Because this writer of the Psalms lived during the time of Solomon. And in observing the son of David, Solomon, and seeing the apostasy of Solomon and then the split of the kingdom, recognizes that Solomon did not keep the conditions of the covenant that God gave to David.

Solomon sinned. He drove the nation into apostasy, and as it eventually happened, the line of David was cut off. After Jeconiah, who was the wicked of all the wicked kings, God says I'm fed up with the throne and the lineage of David. There will never be a man from this lineage to sit upon the throne. You go, Uh-oh. Did God break his covenant?

No, because then we read in the scripture the Jesus, who came from the tribe of Judah of the lineage of King David, will sit upon the throne of God to rule in righteousness. Jesus is the greater son of David who fulfills the promises that God made to David to sit upon the throne. You say, oh, but there's still a problem. Because God told the children of Israel in the book of Jeremiah that there would never be a man after Jeconiah to succeed him, to sit upon the throne, because the wickedness of Israel had so permeated the royal throne, God says, I'm done with it.

Well, that's the purpose for the virgin birth. That's the purpose for two genealogies, because, you see, in one genealogy you have the genealogy of Mary, and the other one you have the genealogy of Joseph. The genealogy of Joseph traces Jesus' ancestry back to the royal line of David through Jeconiah, who sinned, all the way up to Solomon and on to David.

But that's OK, because Jesus really wasn't born of the seed of Joseph. But because Joseph was married to Mary, Jesus assumes the paternal legal right to the throne through the lineage of Joseph. But because Jesus was born of a virgin, virgin Mary, her genealogy is traced to David not through Solomon, but through Nathan, skipping the royal line. Showing that the bloodline is traced to David through Nathan. The bloodline is not cursed, as it is over here with Jeconiah.

And so He has the legal right to the throne, although the bloodline is cursed, Jesus' own bloodline is not cursed because He was born of a virgin. So God gets around his own curse by providing a virgin birth. Allowing the throne to be cursed, because of Jeconiah's sin, but fulfilling his promise to the Jews giving them the messiah through the royal line of King David without the blood curse.

Now I lost my train of thought here-- got so wrapped up in the virgin birth.

[LAUGHTER]

I am my covenant. I will not break or alter the words, verse 34, that have gone out of my lips. I was looking at. It says in the book of Isaiah concerning Jesus Christ, "For unto us a child is born. And unto us a son is given. And the government will be upon his shoulder. And his name should be called Wonderful. Counselor. The mighty God. The Everlasting Father. The Prince of Peace. And of the increase of his government and his peace, there will be no end. Upon the throne of David and over his kingdom, to order it and to establish it in judgment and justice from this time forth even forever more, the zeal of the Lord of Hosts will perform it."

Two chapters later, God promised that a virgin would bear a child, and He shall be called Emmanuel. God, all the while in the midst of the apostasy of Israel, even as the Psalmist looks at the apostasy of Solomon, and the subsequent lineage of Solomon, and sees that lineage come to an end. God was working providing the greater son of David the messiah.

Now that hasn't happened yet. When Jesus came the first time, He did not sit upon the throne of David. He didn't take a crown put it on his head and say, here I am. I'm going to establish the kingdom. I'm going to tear down the nations of the world, and here it starts. He came as a crucified Lord, humble, lowly, on the foal of a donkey. To provide atonement for sins, to open up the door of salvation not only to the Jews but for the Gentile.

If Jesus would have set up his kingdom then, and we would have had this gap of 2000 years, where would we be? We wouldn't be there. But God in his mercy extended his grace to the whole world, but Jesus will return again as the greater son of David. He will come to Mount Zion. First, he'll go to the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem, says in Zechariah, he'll put his foot upon it, and it will bust in two.

He'll defeat the enemies that are gathered together against Israel at the Valley of Armageddon. He'll march into Jerusalem. 144,000 Jews will have been preserved through the Great Tribulation. The judgments will take place. God will separate the sheep from the goats. And then the millennium will break forth. God will restore the earth to much like it was in the Garden of Eden.

The messiah, Jesus Christ, will set up his throne in Jerusalem, and once a year you and I will be hanging out in Jerusalem for the Feast of Tabernacles, it says in Zechariah. We're going to be going, once a year. Looking at the new Jerusalem. It's going to be a blast. Righteousness will be set up in the earth.

Then it says in the Book of Revelation after the 1,000 years were finished, that Satan, who had been put in the bottomless pit for 1,000 years, will be loosed again and will be able to go out and deceive the nations one more time. Why? I don't know. Perhaps to show man that it's not because he's a product of his environment that he does evil, but he does evil by choice. You see people say, well, I'm a product of my environment. I can't help my activity, my actions. I just can't help myself.

So there will be a millennium that will be set up, perfect environment. Perhaps showing that man is a product of his choices, not his environment. But then God will break forth upon that rebellion, and God will reign in everlasting righteousness. It says that death and Hades will be cast into outer darkness, the abuso. And we will reign forever with God in eternity.

I don't think we have that much time. It seems like such a far away event. We've heard about it since the-- well for years, depending on how long you've been a Christian. You've probably-- oh, yeah I've heard the Lord is coming back soon. Frankly, I don't see any hope for this world except interruption.

The pagan experts of our time, the economists, the scientists, the scientific community especially tells us that we don't have much time as a society left. A blue ribbon team of experts from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University was hired to discuss the possibility of nuclear warfare. Now we hear about that so often, you don't even give it a second thought. We live in the nuclear age.

Their conclusion? These experts-- not people who read comic books. I'm talking about experts--

[LAUGHTER]

-- they said we think it is inevitable that by the 1990s, sometime either at the beginning or toward the end, in the 1990s it is inevitable that there will be an all out nuclear exchange on earth. That's a pretty good educated guess. The scientists are telling us we have depleted the natural resources of our Earth to the extent that there's no turning back. There's a constant exponential depletion year by year.

The turn of our century, religious fanatics used to stand out on street corners with plaques, saying, "The end is near!" People scoffed. I mean, this is the industrial age. This is the age of inventions, you know? In the 40s and 50s especially. Oh man, we're going to make it. Now it's the experts that are telling us you ain't got much time left. If I were to simply look at the results of the expert economists and scientists, oceanographers, researchers of our day, if I were to look at their reports alone, I would look to the future with total desperation and gloom.

I'd say, man, what a drag. Who wants to be alive? Suicide's the only out. But as I look through the lens of scripture and I see the promises of God, the promise to take a person and change his life and give them abundant life and give him a purpose and meaning for life, and then give them the hope of a kingdom where indwells righteousness. You can look in the middle of the future and say even so come quickly, Lord Jesus.

And so he taught us to pray. When you pray, say, "Our Father, who art in heaven. Hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come, your will be done." That's something you ought to be praying for. That soon coming of the Kingdom of God. The return of the Lord. It's not a cop out to pray for. Jesus told you to pray for.

For every one who has this hope within himself, the scripture tells us purifies Himself even as He is pure. 1st John, chapter 3. Actually, I get kind of excited in one sense. I get sorrowful in one sense, because I see man's-- who is bent on their destruction, their apostasy. But at the other hand I see that God has it in control. And as I see the world winding down, it makes me want to go out and share the good news with everybody.

It's their only hope, and knowing what's coming down in the future, a person would have to be a fool not to trust in Jesus Christ. If a person who is a thinking person evaluates the future based on the reports of the experts, a person would have to be an absolute fool in the midst of that to say I don't want anything to do with God's plan for my life.

There's a story of a man in Missouri who was sentenced to death, the death penalty. He was sitting on death row, and I don't know exactly what his crime was. This was printed up in a magazine. It was taken to court, and they found that the man was not worthy of the death penalty. And so down the hall one day came one of the officers of the prison, and the lawyer of the man who represented him with papers in his hand.

And he came up to the prisoner's door. He had a big smile on his face, and the lawyer said I got good news for you. Today Is the day of your freedom. I have acquittal papers in my hand. You can go free. The judge has ruled that you haven't done anything worthy of the death penalty. You are still guilty of certain crimes. But you're a free man.

Much to the surprise of the lawyer, the prisoner said I refuse my pardon. I haven't done anything worthy of any kind of punishment. And if I'm not going to be totally acquitted, I refuse my acquittal. And the guy didn't know quite what to do. But you're free! I refuse.

Took it back to court, and they ruled that a man is not a free man until he accepts his freedom and his acquittal. And he went to the death penalty. You hear that and you think what a fool. I'd say I agree with you. A free pardon and he doesn't accept it. In the same vein, what a fool who does not prepare his heart to meet the Lord.

Jesus said there was a certain rich man who had a lot of bucks and he had barns and he had grain, and he approached a mid-life crisis or something in his life. He said, you know, I'm so rich and so wealthy, what shall I do now? I know what I'll do. I'll build bigger barns and get more goods.

And that night, Jesus said-- the Lord came to him and said, you fool. Tonight your soul is required of you. And then whose will these things be that you've left behind that you've spent so much time acquiring? God has given you pardon. Knowing what is going to happen in the future knowing the plan that God has for you, even Peter looking to the future in his epistle said seeing the end of these things, the certain fearful indignation and the fiery wrath that shall come upon the earth, what manner of people ought we to be in all godly living?

And so Christian, as you look to the future, look with hope. It looks pretty bleak out there as you just listen to the news. Our candidates are facing an election year that you've got some tough policies to handle. They have some tough problems. Don't expect them to solve them. Solve the deficit real quickly-- not easy to do. Solve world trade problems, national debt. Tough.

But Christians as you see it, rejoice. For Jesus said lift up your head, your redemption draws nigh. Get out and share the good news with people. If you're sitting in our midst tonight and you're an unbeliever and you don't know the Lord, all you have to do is reach out by faith and say I really want the answer that God has for my life tonight. I want to accept Jesus Christ's pardon that is free.

Knowing that he will give a plan for my life, fulfillment for my life, and a future part of his kingdom, I want to receive forgiveness of my sins. It's the smart choice. It's why God says, come, let us reason together. Sit down and think about it. It's the best choice. Heavenly Father, we pray for those of us that know you, that are your servants, that we might develop an excitement.

Although it is mingled with sadness, when we see the events around us, we have an excitement knowing that your plan will see this world through, that over all you reign. I pray, Lord, that we would be motivated not just to sit back, to become involved in issues. To change legislation were need be. To become active, Lord. But mostly to become active in spiritual change, to preach the gospel. To tell people the good news.

Not the good news about this church or that church. But the good news of Jesus Christ, a risen Savior who changes lives. And Lord, I pray also for those who are in our midst tonight who don't know you. I pray that they will reach out to you, Lord. I pray knowing the future to some degree. And knowing the plan that you have for them, pray that they will embrace you tonight as their Savior.

If that is your desire, to receive Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior tonight, to become acquainted with Him, to become embraced and loved by Him, to receive forgiveness of your sins. If that's your desire, please raise up your hand, so that I can see it and pray for you. Keep it up. God bless you in the back. God bless you over in the middle.

Anyone else? If you want to make a commitment to Jesus Christ. God bless you, up here in front. I'm talking about people who really need to make peace with God tonight. To know that their sins are forgiven. God bless you over here, thank you. You can put them down. Lord, we as a body are excited that people have raised their hands acknowledging that they need a Savior.

It's the smartest choice. I pray, Lord, that as they ask you into their hearts, you will forgive them of their sins. We know that you will. Pray, Lord, that they would experience joy at their salvation, and hope, and a real rich relationship with you in Jesus' name. Amen. Stand, please.