PART 3: (Psalm 85:8-13) Why We Know God Can and Wants to Do This: Waiting for a gracious answer in full confidence and assurance of receiving God’s greatest blessings.
Assume = to take upon oneself; to pretend to have or be; to take as granted or true though not proved. An action of flesh.
Anticipate = to foresee and provide for beforehand; to look forward to.
1. He promises peace to His people, so long as they avoid folly.
a. We often sacrifice a lifetime of God’s peace for so little.
b. We have been promised that God’s peace has been given to us and our hearts do not have to be troubled. John 14:27
c. The peace of God which passes understanding has been provided to guide our hearts in time of trouble, turmoil or stress.
d. Even in the midst of uncertainty and difficulty, God has promised that we will have peace and assurance of His goodness, His protection and His presence. Our only role is to believe this is true and avoid looking to ourselves or the things of this world to make it through.
2. His salvation is near those who fear Him.
a. Salvation is more than just a one-time event. It is an ongoing journey – we are saved, we are being saved, we will be saved.
b. Maintaining a healthy reverence for God is the key to our walking out and living our salvation/Christianity.
c. A healthy fear of God that brings genuine salvation to our hearts and lives will help us to understand and realize that there is no need to fear anyone or anything else.
d. Psalm 27:1 – The Lord is my light and my salvation whom shall I fear.
3. He desires His glory to be revealed in the land.
a. God’s glory is revealed through you and me. The more people that are added to the Kingdom, the greater the manifestation of His glory on earth.
b. That which will cover the earth is the knowledge of His glory. His glory has always been here. As more people are added to the Kingdom, the knowledge of His glory will increase.
c. God longs for His glory to be realized and revealed. As He shows His goodness, it in turn reveals His glory.
4. God is righteous, faithful and good.
a. God desires to be good because that is His nature.
b. God longs to be Himself – in full manifestation.
c. It is the very nature of a creator to be good and protecting to his creation.
d. He is faithful as a direction manifestation of His unending love.
e. He grants peace as a direct manifestation of His righteousness. His peace and goodness lead to repentance and righteousness.
f. Every good thing is from above! God is good by His very nature.
5. God’s righteousness will go before Him to prepare the way for His return.
a. Every act of God is done on the premise of His righteousness. He will never contradict that.
b. The red carpet of righteousness has been rolled out before Him upon which He walks and acts.
c. God is preparing His people for His return. He is not going to return for a sick or anemic bride. The closer we get to the return of the Lord, the more His righteousness and glory will be revealed to prepare the way.
THE BOTTOM LINE FOR THIS PSALM:
1. God has been good to us.
2. We need God to be good to us once again.
3. We know that God not only wants to be good, but by His very nature He will be good to us once again.
When the people of God get to the place that they desire God to be good as much as He Himself desires to be good, something powerful is about to take place.
"I find so often when the frustration in heaven gets in line with the frustration on earth, there is a power that is released that just gets very strong." (Bill Hybels)
