Thankful for God - Pastor Tom Loghry
While we are certainly grateful for all that God does for us, Pastor Tom challenges us to simply be grateful for who God is in this season of Thanksgiving.
There is an issue with the first 8 minutes of audio that was able to be resolved; apologies for the early distortion.
Transcript:
When a stranger holds the door for us as we enter a restaurant, we say, thank you; we're thankful for their kind act. But our relationship with that person ends as, as quickly as it began, each of us moving on in our own direction, with their own lives.
Now, I want you to think about a day like Mother's Day or Father's Day. If you're blessed with a good mother and father, you might express your thankfulness for them in a card. Yes, you, you're thankful for their countless acts of love, for changing your diapers, and teaching you to tie your shoes, and taking you to all those sports, and all of that. It's not the mere actions themselves you are thankful for. You are thankful for them as people, for who they are, the spring from which all their actions flow. You are thankful they are your parents, that you know them, that your life is shared with their life.
Now I want you to think about God. Yes, we can thank him for countless blessings, countless particular blessings. This is good, it's good to be thankful for his gifts. But there's something even better -- to be thankful for the Giver himself. That he's our God, that we are his children, and that our life is shared with his life. And so in today's sermon as we look to Psalm 138, what I want to invite you to do is to meditate upon God himself and give thanks for him.
So first we look at verse one, Psalm 138, it says, of David, this is a Psalm by David. I'll praise you, Lord, with all my heart; before the "gods" I will sing your praise.
Now, what's interesting here in the NIV, it's translated, I will praise you, Lord. Other translations will say, I will give thanks to you, Lord, it's all the same word. It's coming from the word Yada in Hebrew. So it means to give praise, to give thanks to God. And what is the kind of Thanksgiving, what is the kind of praise that David is offering here? It is not the sort that is just mere lip service. And we can remember maybe sometimes as kids or as raising our own kids where maybe we kind of were compelled or compelled our children to say, say thank you, and we went through the motion of saying thank you. That's not the sort of thanks and praise that David is offering to God. It's not a half-hearted sort of Thanksgiving. It's with his entire heart that David is praising God. Do we offer that kind of praise to God? Does it come from the depths of our heart or does it just come from our lips while our mind and our hearts are in different places?
I think as we begin to contemplate God more, when we consider who he is and what he has done, we are drawn to that place of truly worshiping him with our whole hearts. You see, part of our problem as, as human beings is that we take our existence for granted, and so often we've lost our sense of awe and wonder. We're just so familiar with everything, with kind of the mundane lives that we so often live. And as I kind of picture it, I just, I think sometimes we live lives with kind of low ceilings, and life feels boring, really, cause we've made it boring, cause we've, we've contained our minds within the box of our own busy lives without stepping back to consider with awe and wonder this creation in which we're living in. When we step back and consider the depths of the universe that we find ourselves in, on a small little planet, and how this is just a mere shadow of the greatness of God, of who he is and what he's done, and what he's capable of.
As we begin to contemplate who God is, our hearts are drawn to worship him with all of our heart. Now, David says here, he says, I'll praise you, Lord, with all my heart; before the "gods" I will sing your praise. That's interesting. The NIV chooses here to put gods in quotes. Now, that does not appear in the original Hebrew. That's a choice of the NIV translators. The reason why they're doing that though is because they want you to understand that the gods that David is speaking of here are not other deities. They're not even false idols or false, false gods, although it may include spiritual beings that would try to deceive human beings into thinking that they are gods. What David is talking about here is in fact testifying before all of heaven, the goodness and greatness of God. If we look across the different translations, and when you're in your Bibles and if you come up against something where you're like, I don't really understand what this means, I encourage you, I mean, we've got so much technology available to us. Look at different translations. It can so often help your understanding. We'll notice in the King James version, it says, before the gods, no quotes, and the Christian Standard Bible says before the heavenly beings. In the New English translation, it says before the heavenly assembly.
And if we go back to the Septuagent, which was the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, around third century bc, second century bc, you'll see it says enantion angelon, which means, before the angels, angleon, angel. So what we're talking about is those spiritual beings that occupy the heavenly realm. And this just pulls us back into contemplating once again the great mystery that we're caught up in, in which our reality is in interconnected with that reality.
We see this pointed out in other parts of scripture, particularly in the New Testament in, in Ephesians three, verses 10 through 11.
Paul says his intent, that is, God's, was that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known to the rulers and authorities in the heavenly realms, according to his eternal purpose that he accomplished in Christ Jesus, Christ Jesus our Lord. In 1st Peter one verses 10 through 12, Peter says, concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was to come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the spirit of Christ in them was pointing when he predicted the sufferings of the Messiah and the glories that would follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you, when they spoke of the things that have now been told you by those who have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
So notice what Paul and Peter are saying here, is that what God is doing here on Earth is actually an act of revelation. So we think about how God has given us the Bible and revealed things to us about himself and about the heavenly realm so that we might understand him and know him and come to put our faith in Christ. Well, God's actions here in the created universe are an act of revelation to all those who occupy the heavenly realm. He is showing them who he is in his work of creation, and we testify to who God is by our praise, by our Thanksgiving. So when we worship God, it doesn't just sound off here on Earth, it, it goes into the heavenly realm.
Now, David says in verse two, I'll bow down towards your holy temple and will praise your name for your unfailing love and your faithfulness, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it surpasses your fame.
Now you might say, think to yourself, well, this seems a little weird. Why is David saying that he's going to bow down to God's holy temple? Is that something we need to do today? No. For starters, there is no physical temple existent any longer in Jerusalem. Secondly, we as the church, as the people of God, have become the temple of God. Why? Because the Holy Spirit has come and dwelt within us. But at this time and place, that is where God was manifesting his presence. Not that he was contained within the structure of the temple, but that's where he met his people. And so when David says that he's bowing toward God's holy temple, he's saying, I'm seeking your face, I'm seeking your presence. I'm in longing that you would, you would hear me. When the, when the temple is dedicated, now there was, we can think of the temple as a tent, but eventually it was made of actual stone, and so when it was actually made of stone and a solid structure in 1 Kings 8: 29, we see David's son Solomon offering up this prayer. He says, may your eyes be open toward this temple night and day, this place of which you said, My Name shall be there, so that you will hear the prayer your servant prays toward this place.
David is turning himself to God because he knows that God will hear him and that he is a God that answers. We see there in verse two, he says, he will praise your name. Why? Because of God's unfailing love and his faithfulness, his unfailing love and his faithfulness. Now, if you're familiar with other parts of scripture, you'll know from 1 John 4 that God is love. So it's not just simply that God is loving when, when David is talking about God's unfailing love, he is in fact simply talking about who God is. That God is love. And when we speak of God's faithfulness, we're talking about who God is, that he is a God who keeps His word. Now, the praise that David is offering to God here flows from his understanding, his knowledge of the decree which God has made.
He says, for you have so exalted your solemn decree that it, it surpasses your, your fame. Now, another way this could be said, as it's said in the English Standard Version, it says, you have exalted above all things your name and your word. David is reveling in this reality that what God says, goes, no matter what spiritual powers may resist him, no matter what human powers may try to resist him. It does not matter. God always accomplishes his plan and purpose.
And so in verse three, he says, when I called, you answered me; you, you greatly emboldened me. David takes courage and joy knowing that as he's called to God, he has heard the answer from God. Now, the answer that he received from God is in accordance with God's own decree. What, what David isn't talking about here is that God is like some giant vending machine where we say, okay, I want this, that, and the other thing. No. But that as David has called upon God in accordance with his will and his decree, God is, is bringing that to pass.
And we see how, the specifics here though, as it applies to David, and how it ultimately applies to Jesus, and how our interest is in fact contained in this as well, that God fulfills his word and decree to David in Second Samuel seven verses eight through nine.
And the word that was to be given to David says, now then, tell my servant David, this is what the Lord Almighty says: I took you from the pasture, from tending the flock, and appointed you ruler over my people. I've been with you wherever you've gone, I have cut off all your enemies from before you. Now I'll make your name great, like the names of the greatest men on Earth.
And then you jump down to verse 16. God says, your house and your kingdom will endure forever before me. Your throne will be established forever.
Now we wonder how is that, how does God keep his word there? David dies. His sons who come after him are variously obedient and disobedient to God, and eventually Israel is dispossessed, sent into exile, and by the time we get to Jesus, they are under the thumb of the Roman empire.
But God does keep his word. He keeps his word in Jesus because Jesus is the promised Messiah of the line and lineage of of David, Jesus is the one who brings to pass the further prophecy, which was given in Daniel two verse 44. God revealed to Daniel this, is, he says, in the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another people. It'll crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it will itself endure forever. Now, Daniel here was interpreting a dream by God's power that King Nebuchadnezzar had had. And so he's telling this pagan king, this foreign king, that God is going to establish a king, a kingdom that is going to bring to an end all other kingdoms, but that will endure forever.
And what kingdom is he talking about? He's talking about the kingdom of God, the kingdom which Jesus introduced. Jesus talks about the kingdom all the time, that's, that was the main message that he brought in his earthly ministry, saying, behold, the kingdom of God has come near to you, and it's come near to you because Jesus is the king of that kingdom and he has already begun to rule in reign.
And yes, there is more to come. But see how king Jesus and his kingdom manifest here on earth, in the people of the church; have overcome the Roman Empire, they've overcome communism, they've overcome all sorts of opposition, and the gates of hell will not overcome. This is how God is keeping his word to David. He keeps his word to his son, Jesus Christ. He dies on the cross but is raised three days later, and he's keeping his word to us because God will not fail us. He'll bring every promise to pass so that our persecution, our suffering, will ultimately give way to glory.
And so David says, in light of this, verses four through five, he says, may all the kings of the earth praise you, Lord, when they hear what you have decreed. May they sing of the ways of the Lord, for the glory of the Lord is great. Now, of course, we can imagine that some kings might not be all that keen on God's plan. We, and we see how the rulers of this earth. Stand in opposition to God at various times. But the point here is, is that they must give way. Ultimately, they, they, they're compelled to give praise to God for his all surpassing wisdom and power, which undo his opposition completely in order that his decree might be brought to fulfillment.
You see, God, the story that God writes is different than the story that we ourselves would write. And when we think about glory as human beings, as people who live in this world, we, we tend to think of it as that our lives are working together for my personal glory or, or maybe for the glory of another man or woman, in which case we probably are a little bit grudgeful about that. But in fact, what's going on here on the face of this earth is that God is composing, he's weaving together our lives unto his own glory. All the glory belongs not to us, but to him, because he is deserving of all glory, because of who he is, as, as David is testifying here. He is worthy of all the glory, he is deserving. Instead, what we often, so often do as human beings is we try to steal that glory for ourselves, to ascribe credit to our own selves for our successes. For all the things that we have, for our strengths, for our comforts. We like to give ourselves a pat on the back, and this is why I'd say I, I give kudos to athletes when they give praise to God. Now, sometimes when you hear them do that, you say, okay, you know, do you really need to do that? Isn't that kind of just, obvious? Does it have to be said? Yes, it does. It has to be said because we are so thick headed in being determined and thinking that, well, it's really me who did all this, and what they understand is this, is that we could not take a single step if it was not for our God. We could not take a single breath if it was not for our God. And so when, when we understand the magnitude of who God is and of, and of his goodness, and of all that he has done, this leads us to give praise to him and praise abounds all the more when we learn the depths of his ways. So what is the way of the Lord?
David tells us here, he tells us what the way of the Lord is. Continue on verse six. This is the way of the Lord, though the Lord is exalted, he looks kindly on the lowly; though lofty, he sees them from afar. Though I walk in the midst of trouble, you preserve my life. You stretch out your hand against the anger of my foes; with your right hand, you save me.
God's eye is upon the lowly. His his eye is upon the weak. His eye is upon those that the world ignores and says they don't really matter. You see, every person, however small he or she may seem, can be dignified by God because he invites each one of us to participate in his glory, those who have been called by his name, and this is the true and only glory that is really available to us. Fame, riches, power, all of this is mud pies. We get so excited about our mud pie, and maybe we even give thanks for our mud pies. We're so thankful that I have my mud pie here, but these things are not what really matters. What matters is what God is about, which is revealing his glory before all the heavens and all the earth. You see, there can be no true story of significant significance, no true glory apart from God's own telling. We like to create our own stories of significance as human beings saying, this is what really matters. It's not our telling that matters. It's God's telling that matters. And so as we go through this world, as we live our lives, we might at various points feel demoralized, especially as we compare the story of our own individual lives against the story of other people's lives. But we should take courage, 'cause we, we as individuals, our individual stories are caught up into his larger, greater story, which is the true story of life that reveals his glory. We are taken up into that glory.
Now we're not promised a trouble free life. Notice David says that, says, though I walk in the midst of trouble, David faced trouble. We will face trouble. But our promise and assurance is this, is that God will bring us through. We've been doing a series through Exodus and what have we seen again and again but God assuring Moses and the people of Israel, I'm going to bring you through. Unto what end? Unto the end of the glory of God.
In Psalm 71: 20, we read, though you have made me see troubles, many and bitter, you will restore my life again; from the depths of the earth you'll again bring me up. Now that even has a hint of death there to it, we're gonna face trouble and eventually that trouble's gonna drag us down to death, but God is going to bring us up again.
We are not abandoned. God did not abandon David. He did not abandon Christ to death. He's not going to abandon us. He's with us and his right hand delivers us.
And so in verse eight, David says, the Lord will vindicate me; your love, Lord endures forever. Do not abandon the work of your hand. Notice how assured David is here says, God will vindicate me. Even if things don't seem like they're going my way, God will vindicate me. Why does he know this? Because he knows God loves him. And God loves you. God loves each one of us, and that's why we give him praise. This is why we give him Thanksgiving, because he's the God who loves and who does not abandon us.
And, and so this last line here, it might seem like maybe David has a little doubt. He says, do not abandon the work of your hands. But I don't read it that way. I don't, I don't think David is doubting here at all. I see it as a cry of childlike dependence, whether as a child or maybe as a, as a parent, maybe you've, you've been in a place that was kind of scary for you as a child or for one of your children, maybe a dark place. It's because your child knows your love for them and trusts in you that they cry out, don't leave me, hold my hand. Don't let my hand go. It's not 'cause they really think you're going to leave them, but they're just, they are so dependent upon you. They are so assured that as long as you are with them, everything will be fine.
That's the sort of confession of faith that David is making. And it's the reason why we can give thanks, that we can know that as long as God is with us, as long as he doesn't let us go, everything's gonna be fine.
The apostle Peter expresses this praise, this Thanksgiving, in the revealed key of Christ, when he exclaims in 1 Peter one verses three through five, praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil, or fade.
This inheritance is kept in heaven for you, who through faith are shielded by God's power until the coming of the salvation that is ready to be revealed in the last time. We're completely secure in God. We are shielded by God's power until the end.
For this salvation, we are thankful. But even more basic than this, I think we can say that we are simply thankful for God. We are thankful for God. We are thankful that He is who he is. His decree, his promise-keeping, his acts, have revealed who he is. He's glorious, an awesome mystery of wisdom, power, and love. He is good to us, beyond what we deserve, he carries us through trouble and hardship so that we might sit in the light of his glory and drink from the River of the Water of Life. So don't mumble your praise, don't offer a half-hearted thanks. With your whole heart, worship him, adore him, give thanks to him, praise him. He is worthy. Let us pray.
Dear Father, we give you thanks for your unfailing love, for your steadfast faithfulness, for the surety of your word, oh God. That no matter what's going on around us, no matter what the devil might scheme, no matter what the great and mighty in this world might conspire, your plan is immovable, your hand is sure. And we've seen this revealed, father, in your son, Jesus Christ, and we are assured by his victory. And so Father, help us to rest in you to have that sort of confidence that David did, that everything's okay as long as you're holding onto our hands.
But in, in the end, father, what we're really seeking here is that you would help us. You would help us to be better worshipers of you, that we would contemplate the depths of who you are and that we would give thanks to you, for you, with our whole hearts, that we will not be people who just go through the motions, but that we would revel in this joy that we have life in you and we have life with you.
We give you praise, father, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, amen.
Hey there, Pastor Tom here. I hope you enjoyed this sermon I offered to Rockland Community Church. Rockland Community Church is located at 212 Rockland Road in North Scituate, Rhode Island, just around the bend from the Scituate Public High School. We invite you to join us in person or virtually this Sunday as we worship God and hear the preaching of his word. It's our joy to welcome you into our community
Intro/Outro Song
Title: River Meditation
Artist: Jason Shaw
Source:http://freemusicarchive.org/music/Jason_Shaw/Audionautix_Acoustic/RIVER_MEDITATION___________2-58
License:(CC BY 3.0 US)