Taste and See
Griffith Baptist Church – 6/22/08
P.M. Service
Text: Psalm 34
Main Verse: Psalms 34:8 - O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him.
The Introduction
How many times were you told as a little kid to taste something and see if you like it?
o Broccoli, squash, Brussels sprouts, peas (yech)
o Pizza, cotton candy, tacos, soda (yum)
o Shouldn’t the major food groups be based on taste rather than what’s good for you?
o Guilt could be forever removed
The reality is that many times we didn’t know if we would like something because we had never tried it.
Well, here is an invitation from God to give Him a test of His goodness, and He never fails to satisfy.
The Hebrew word used has to do with perceiving.
How well do you perceive God and His goodness?
God is always giving evidence of His goodness so that our faith will increase
1. Praise - 34:1-3
2. Protection - 34:4-7
3. Provision - 34:8-14
4. Proximity - 34:15-18
5. Preservation - 34:19-22
Transition Statement: First, what hinders or deteriorates our perception of God.
Body
1. What Hinders our Perception of God?
A. Pride (2 - the humble shall hear thereof . . .)
i. It is pride which has been the chief cause of misery in every nation and every family since the world began. - C. S. Lewis
ii. Our heads swell up because of:
a. Talents and accomplishments
b. Praise from others
iii. Nothing interferes worse with how we view God than self-admiration.
iv. He must increase but I must decrease (John 3:30)
v. If you are going to boast, boast about God - Jeremiah 9:24 - But let him that glorieth glory in this, that he understandeth and knoweth me, that I am the LORD which exercise lovingkindness, judgment, and righteousness, in the earth: for in these things I delight, saith the LORD.
B. Fear (4 – from all my fears)
i. As at every vaudeville performance, Olga stood quietly against a wooden background while her partner threw knives, hatchets, etc., into the wood around her. All at once, during the act, she screamed, fell over in a faint. The audience of course suspected the worst. But in her dressing room, when she had revived, Olga explained: "I suddenly felt something crawling on my leg and discovered a spider. Oh, I’m so afraid of spiders!"
ii. Fear of:
a. What people will say or think
b. Failure
c. Missed opportunities
d. Loss of control
iii. The only healthy fear is the fear of God and if we have a true, healthy fear of God we will have no room to fear anything else – 2 Timothy 1:7 - For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.
C. Worry (6 – troubles)
i. At age 20 we worry about what others think of us. At 40 we don’t care what they think of us. At 60 we discover they haven’t been thinking of us at all. Ann Landers, via Context, quoted in Signs of the Times, March, 1993, p. 6
ii. Matthew 6:25-34 (5 times Jesus mentions the idea of not worrying in the words of “take no thought”)
a. Don’t worry about your life (25), your height (27), your clothes (28), your supply (30), or your future (34)
b. Seek God first (33)
iii. Troubles will come but worrying about them won’t solve them
iv. Most of the time we are worried about affixing blame to a problem than finding a solution
v. Stop fretting altogether. It is a waste of time and energy.
D. Lack of knowledge (11 – teach you)
i. Rossini was once presented with a watch by the King of France-- of which he was justly proud. Several years after, showing it to a friend, he was told that though he had possessed it so long, he did not know its real value. "Impossible," said Rossini, whereupon the friend, taking the watch, touched a secret spring, at which an inner case flew open, disclosing a beautiful miniature painting of Rossini himself. (This is characteristic of a certain type of modern Christianity. It values its ethics and is acquainted with and appreciates much of its teaching, but it has not discovered the inner secret which gives it its supreme value. The portrait of Christ is still hidden. When the secret spring is touched and the Face of Christ is recognized, the whole attitude of mind and theory of values is changed. It is characteristic also of much avowed discipleship. "Have I been so long a time with you, and hast thou not known Me, Philip?" said Christ to one who called himself a disciple and an intimate.)
ii. Knowledge of the Holy
iii. Knowledge of the Word
iv. We sometimes get burnt out on knowledge:
a. We think we know it all
b. We think we have arrived to where our knowledge is sufficient
E. To busy to pray (15 – their cry)
i. Lee Iacocca was a busy man running the Chrysler Corporation. Even so, he knew the value of taking time off:
“I’m constantly amazed by the number of people who can’t seem to control their own schedules. Over the years, I’ve had many executives come to me and say with pride: ‘Boy, last year I worked so hard that I didn’t take any vacation. ‘ It’s nothing to be proud of. I always feel like responding: ‘You dummy. You mean to tell me that you can take responsibility for an $80 million project and you can’t plan two weeks out of the year to go off with your family and have some fun?”
Source: Iacocca, An Autobiography by Lee Iacocca & William Novak, Bantam, 1988, quoted in Lifeline, Summer, 1997
ii. We get caught up in our lives with busy:
a. Career
b. Family
c. People
d. Hobbies
e. Etc.
iii. We are to busy not to pray
Transition Statement: Now that we see how our perception can be hindered, what will help us get back on track to what is right?
2. What Helps our Perception of God?
A. Continual praise – 1-3
i. It is said that once when Michael Costa was having a rehearsal with a vast array of performers and hundreds of voices, as the mighty chorus rang out with thunder of the organ and roll of drums and ringing horns and cymbals clashing, some man who played the piccolo far away up in some corner said within himself, "In all this din it matters not what I do," and so he ceased to play. Suddenly, the great conductor stopped flung up his hands and all was still. Then he cried aloud, "Where is the piccolo!" The quick ear missed it, and all was spoiled because it failed to take its part. O my soul, do thy part with all thy might. Little thou mayest be, insignificant and hidden, and yet God seeks thy praise. He listens for it, and all the great music of His universe is made richer and sweeter because thou givest Him thanks. --Mark Guy Pearse
ii. Verbal praise from the tongue – 1
iii. Inward praise from the heart – 2
iv. Corporate praise with each other - 3
B. Effective prayer – 4-6
i. Two young boys were spending the night at their grandparents’ house the week before Christmas. At bedtime, the two boys knelt beside their beds to say their prayers. The younger one began praying at the top of his lungs: "I PRAY FOR A NEW BICYCLE..." "I PRAY FOR A NEW NINTENDO..." His older brother leaned over, nudged him and said, "Why are you shouting? God isn’t deaf." to which the little brother replied, "No, but Grandma is!"
ii. Effective prayer is personal – 4 (I sought)
iii. Effective prayers takes active participation – 4 – Matthew 7:7 - Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you:
iv. Effective prayer reinvigorates – 5
v. Effective prayer is heard - 6
C. Teachable spirit – 8-14
i. When we cease to be teachable, we cannot expect others to learn from us.
ii. The teacher always continues to learn
iii. There is so much involved in this ongoing education that we cannot afford to stop:
a. Taking God at His Word by committing yourself to action and experience – 8
b. Learning to trust God for His unending supply of all our needs – 9-10
c. Having open ears that hears eagerly what God has to say – 11
d. Having an obedient heart that responds without doubt and wavering – 12-14
D. Perpetual brokenness – 15-18
i. ’When God wants to do an impossible task, He takes an impossible man and breaks him. As the evangelist, Charles Spurgeon, said, ’We are but men, frail, feeble, and apt to faint.’
I am intrigued by the word ’broken. ’ It means, literally, ’shattered.’ My sacrifice to God, according to Psalm 51:17, is a shattered spirit and a bruised heart. It is not until the pride of our heart is shattered that we will begin to understand the deep things of God. The shattering and the bruising are so designed by God for the preparation of his spokesman. As pastors, we understand what it means to be frail. Men of Action, Spring 1996, Chuck Swindoll, What It Means To Be Broken!
ii. Brokenness is not a popular subject
iii. People would rather hear about health and wealth, or current issues in their lives that affect the here and now.
iv. What we need today is not anger, but anguish, the kind of anguish that Moses displayed when he broke the two tablets of the law and then climbed the mountain to intercede for his people, or that Jesus displayed when He cleansed the temple and then wept over the city. The difference between anger and anguish is a broken heart. It’s easy to get angry, especially at somebody else’s sins; but it’s not easy to look at sin, our own included, and weep over it. The Integrity Crisis by Warren W. Wiersbe, Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1991, pp. 75-76
v. This is a truly humble heart:
a. That gets God’s attention – 17
b. That brings God near – 18a – James 4:7-10 - 7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. 9Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. 10Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.
E. Unwavering hope – 19-22
i. FROM MY DEPARTED HUSBAND A couple from north Oklahoma decided to go to Florida for a long weekend to thaw out during one particularly icy winter. Because they both had jobs, they had difficulty coordinating their travel schedules. It was decided that the husband would fly to Florida on Thursday, and his wife would follow the next day. Upon arriving as planned, the husband checked into the motel. He decided to open his laptop and send his wife an e-mail back home. However, he accidentally left off one letter in her address, and sent the e-mail without realizing the error. In Houston, a widow had just returned from her husband’s funeral. He was a pastor of many years who had been called home to glory. The widow checked her e-mail, expecting messages from relatives and friends. Upon reading the first message, she fainted and fell to the floor. The widow’s son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read: TO: My loving wife FROM: Your departed husband SUBJECT: I’ve arrived! MESSAGE: I’ve just arrived and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. I am looking forward to seeing you then! Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was. P.S. Sure is hot down here.
ii. I have a hope that will surely endure after the passing of time. . . .
iii. Our hope is certain based upon God’s promises:
a. Our deliverance – 19
b. Our vindication – 21
c. Our redemption (both now and in the future) - 22
Conclusion:
Remember, to truly stay in touch with God, we need to praise continuously, pray effectively, be teachable, humble and hopeful.
