Psalm 19 - Can God Be Known? Series

Summer in the Psalms

Psalm 19

Pastor Jefferson M. Williams

Chenoa Baptist Church?06-23-2024

Brats

On June 10th, 1985, David Blum published an article in “New York” magazine entitled “Hollywood’s Brat Pack.” He was making a pun on the rat pack that included Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Peter Lawford, and Joey Bishop, and Samy Davis Jr. (Did you know that technically there were six - Angie Dickinson?)

Blum invited several young, very popular actors (Emilio Estevez, Rob Lowe, and Judd Nelson) to hang out with him at the Hard Rock Cafe and after that experience coined the “Brat Pack.”

If you came of age in the 1980s, you know these actors and each of the movies. If you want to know who is in the Brat Pack, add the cast of “The Breakfast Club” and “St. Elmos’s Fire.”

The article was mean-spirited and cast these actors in a negative light, implying they were spoiled by the success they didn’t earn and that they were, indeed, brats.

Andrew McCarthy, a member of the Brat Pack, recently made a documentary about their experience after the article came out.

He talked to many of the actors included in the Brat Pack and he even sat down with David Blum and asked him if he regretted writing the article, which he said no.

Andrew McCarthy’s frustration with the label is that David Blum didn’t know them. How could he know any of them after one night at the Hard Rock Cafe?

He has spent the last 30 years having problems letting people get to know him because of this article.

If you just read the article that Blum wrote, does that mean you know Andrew, or Rob, or Molly? No. You would need a relationship with them to know them truly.

Here’s a question? Can God be known? And if you can, how?

We continue our “Summer in the Psalms” series by studying Psalm 19.

Psalm, 19 was written by David and he wrote it for the “chief musician.”

This was meant to be a song sung by the singers in the Temple and Jesus would have learned this song as a young boy.

Please turn with me to Psalm 19.

Prayer

Background of Psalm 19

Psalm 19 has been called one of the noblest examples of Hebrew poetry in existence. C.S. Lewis called Psalm 19 “the greatest poem in the Bible and the greatest song ever written.”

David wrote this psalm in the wilderness running from King Saul. The Hebrew is graphic and stunning, showing David’s deep love for God and His creation.

Only God Can Reveal God

God can only be known as He makes Himself known. Most religions of the world are about a man reaching up to try to find God. Christianity is a religion in which God reached down to us. God revealed Himself to man.

“Reveal” means “unveiling, disclosing something previously hidden.” God chose to unveil His glory and splendor to humans. But does this mean we can ever fully understand God?

As one of my seminary professors used to say, “The more you know about God the more you realize you don’t know about God.” How can a finite mind understand an infinite God? Job put it this way:

"Can you fathom the mysteries of God? Can you probe the limits of the Almighty? They are higher than the heavens-what can you do? They are deeper than the depths of the grave-what can you know?” (Job 11:7-8)

The Apostle Paul wrote that, other than His revelation to us, God is not only unknowable but unapproachable:

“God, the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who alone is immortal and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see. To him be honor and might forever. Amen.” (I Timothy 6:15-16)

I am thankful that God chose to reveal Himself in a way that we can not only apprehend Him but also have a relationship with Him.

In Psalm 19, David speaks of three types of revelations.

In verses 1-6, God makes Himself known through what theologians call “natural revelation.” He makes Himself known through the world. We see this when we look up,

In verses 7-11, God unveils Himself through “special revelation.” He makes himself known through the Word. We have seen this when we look down at the Bible.

And in verses 11-13, we see the response of the worshipper as we look inside at our heart.

The last verse has a Messianic hint of God’s ultimate revelation – the Incarnation.

Let Heaven and Nature Sing!

David, who grew up in the pastureland of Palestine, was accustomed to having the most magnificent view of God’s celestial handiwork.

There were no city lights, no pollution, or buildings to block his view. He would lean back, prop his head up on a rock, and watch the stars, moon, constellations, and planets do their nightly dance.