PSALM 19 – GOD IS ALWAYS SPEAKING
On Sept. 27, 1998, Philip Ozersky went to a baseball game the changed his life. All it took was one swing of the bat. Lots of fans have caught home run balls before, but this one was different. This was no ordinary home run. On that day, Mark McGuire came to the plate and hit his record-breaking 70th home run. The ball flew over Philip's head, hit a wall behind him and then bounced down right into his lap. Before he knew what had happened, the 26-year-old research scientist became an instant millionaire. An anonymous bidder paid a record $2.7 million for this ball, almost 22 times the previous record.
That ball was like a nugget of gold that fell from heaven right into his lap. It changed his life. Today I want each one of us here to have that same experience. I want to see a nugget of something even more precious than gold fall from heaven into each one of our hearts.
We are continuing in our series looking at the psalms. This morning I want us to turn to another one of my own personal favourites;
Psalms 19:1-14 The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. 2 Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they display knowledge. 3 There is no speech or language where their voice is not heard. 4 Their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world. In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun, 5 which is like a bridegroom coming forth from his pavilion, like a champion rejoicing to run his course. 6 It rises at one end of the heavens and makes its circuit to the other; nothing is hidden from its heat. 7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul. The statutes of the LORD are trustworthy, making wise the simple. 8 The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. 9 The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous. 10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. 11 By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward. 12 Who can discern his errors? Forgive my hidden faults. 13 Keep your servant also from willful sins; may they not rule over me. Then will I be blameless, innocent of great transgression. 14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O LORD, my Rock and my Redeemer.
Psalm 19 is a wisdom psalm. It was written by David. In this psalm we are reminded that God loves us and loves to speak to us. God is always speaking to us. He is always ‘revealing’ Himself to us. This psalm talks about two different kinds of revelation;
1. General Revelation - God speaks to me through nature
One of the ways that God has reveals Himself to us is through His creation, the universe that He has made. We talked about this when we looked at Psalm 8. Creation tells us that God exists and in some ways even tells us what God is like.
Romans 1:18 The wrath of God is being revealed from heaven against all the godlessness and wickedness of men who suppress the truth by their wickedness, 19 since what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. 20 For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- his eternal power and divine nature -- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse.
From creation, all peoples of the earth have seen and known that there is a God. You go to the most remote culture in the most remote corner of the earth and you will find the belief in some form of a higher power.
The stars are God's fingerprints. The sun is a mere smidgen of his radiance. The moon is to remind us that he doesn't sleep at night. The vastness of space proclaims the infinity of his wisdom, while the sand pebble indicates his thoroughness with the puniest details. The lion hints at his fearlessness, the bear at his power, the hawk at his keen insight. And yet those possess only a tidbit of God's omnipotence and omnipresence. Every tree points toward heaven; every bird has a song to sing; even every moment of wind goes in some direction. There is nothing chaotic about our beautiful designed world. All creation has a message to tell. It says, "Listen, there is a God. There is a God!" -- Brent D. Earles
a. Argument of Design
Creation tells us that there is a creator that is organized. Something which has obvious design must have been designed. E.g. finding a watch on the beach. Since creation is so incredibly ordered and detailed there must have been something which put it together. To say all of this design just happened is like saying that a tornado could go through a junk yard and randomly assemble a 747 or that a chimpanzee could sit down and randomly type out the novel War and Peace.
In his book on Albert Einstein, author Walter Isaacson told of a dinner party in Berlin where everybody assumed Einstein was an atheist and he said, “No, I have a deep feeling of faith, a deep religiosity that comes from my appreciation of the way God has made the universe;” and everybody was stunned. He said “ I am like a child walking into a library, and you see the books and you know somebody must have written them, and you see them ordered and you know somebody must have ordered them, and there’s a sense of awe that’s manifest in that. There is an order underlying everything and the more you appreciate it, the more humble you become in the fact of it…” Isaacson continued: “In some ways, Einstein’s belief in God, that God had created an orderly universe, is what formed and informed his science. Because he believed in a lawgiver, he believed that underlying everything in the universe there had to be laws of how the universe functioned.”
b. Argument of Movement
Creation not only tells us that there is a creator who is organized but a creator that is powerful. Something which is moving required a mover. E.g. being hit by a rock on the beach. Energy does not just happen, it must have a source. Since the universe is in motion there must have been something which set it in motion. Even the idea of a big bang – infinite energy at zero time and space – has at it’s foundation the concept of creation. Creation is moving, so there must have been a mover.
c. Argument of Conscience
Creation is not only organized and moving, our experience in creation also tells us that there is a creator who is good. If mankind has a built-in conscience and knowledge of right and wrong that must be more than just cultural or environmental. If you say “why does God permit evil?” you are saying that evil exists, and therefore good also exists. God created us in His image and that image remains though tarnished by sin. The presence of a standard of right and wrong requires a standard maker.
2. Special Revelation - God speaks to me through Scripture
God has revealed himself to us through nature, but He has also revealed Himself to us through His word. As much as I love nature and God’s creation, general revelation is limited. It shows us that there is a God and that there is a standard of right and wrong. This however is not enough. To know only that there is a God and that we have sinned against Him leads us to despair. God chose to reveal himself in a special way to a group of people who would then act as His messengers in the world. Special revelation shows the way to a true relationship and peace with God.
Why is special revelation important? If you are in an internet chat room and ‘meet’ someone, the best way to know who the person you are speaking with is, assuming they are truthful, by what they tell you about themselves. Yes, you can make some general observations based on their grammar and spelling and perhaps location, but you can only know the specific details about them by that they tell you. God has told us about Himself in the bible. Notice how David describes scripture;
Psalm 19:10 They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb. 11 By them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
Notice that David says 3 things about scripture here;
a. God’s Word is Precious – they are more precious than gold, than much pure gold
David uses many words to describe God’s Word. It is clear that it is a very precious and dear thing to Him – and with good reason. Notice the words that are used to describe God’s word. It is perfect, trustworthy, right, radiant, pure and sure. They bring renewal, wisdom, joy and light. Without special revelation we would have no idea about what God is really like. We would have no way to know how to find peace with Him in Jesus. God did not simply speak to us through the prophets, He also came and lived with us to demonstrate His character and plan.
What is the most valuable thing you own? What would your life be like without it? Now imagine what life without faith would look like. If there was no bible, no Jesus, no hope. You can replace things, but you cannot replace faith.
The Scottish pastor and writer Thomas Cuthrie said, "The Bible is an armory of heavenly weapons, a laboratory of infallible medicines, a mine of exhaustless wealth. It is a guidebook for every road, a chart for every sea, a medicine for every malady, and a balm for every wound. Rob us of our Bible and our sky has lost its sun."
b. God’s Word is Pleasant - they are sweeter than honey, than honey from the comb
The bible is not simply valuable, it is pleasant. David describes it as being sweeter than honey.
Psalm 119:103 How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!
David did not see meditating and following God's Word as a task but as a treat. He says it is like eating honey. They did not have nearly as much sugar in their diet 3000 years ago as we have today. Back then, eating honey was a rare treat. It was something to look forward to. Do you look forward to reading the bible? Is it something that you crave?
To crave means to feel a powerful desire for something. Is there anything you are craving right now? It is often something that you do not always have. When we lived in Kuwait there was no pork allowed because it was an Islamic nation. We really missed bacon and ham. When you have easy access to something it is funny how you just take it for granted, but we really would miss bacon and ham. Occasionally someone from the military would offer to pick up a little something for us and it was always very appreciated. When we finally returned to Canada we went crazy and had it all the time.
Do you crave God’s word? Do you miss it if you go for a period of time without it? Are you hungry for it?
A man in Kansas City was severely injured in an explosion. Evangelist Robert L. Summer tells about him in his book The Wonder of the Word of God. The victim's face was badly disfigured, and he lost his eyesight as well as both hands. He was just a new Christian, and one of his greatest disappointments was that he could no longer read the Bible. Then he heard about a lady in England who read Braille with her lips. Hoping to do the same, he sent for some books of the Bible in Braille. Much to his dismay, however, he discovered that the nerve endings in his lips had been destroyed by the explosion. One day, as he brought one of the Braille pages to his lips, his tongue happened to touch a few of the raised characters and he could feel them. Like a flash he thought, I can read the Bible using my tongue. At the time Robert Sumner wrote his book, the man had "read" through the entire Bible four times
c. God’s Word is Powerful - in keeping them there is great reward
David says that by following the words of the bible that we are warned. In following and keeping them there is great reward. The bible is powerful. God through His Spirit is able to use it to transform our lives. You have probably heard the old expression “A bible that is falling apart usually belongs to a person who isn't.” That is the transformative power of the bible.
Let me conclude by sharing something written many years ago by Samuel Chadwick. "I have guided my life by the Bible for more than sixty years, and I tell you there is no book like it. It is a miracle of literature, a perennial spring of wisdom, a wonder of surprises, a revelation of mystery, an infallible guide of conduct, and an unspeakable source of comfort. Pay no attention to people who discredit it, for I tell you that they speak without knowledge. It is the infallible Word of God itself. Study it according to its own direction. Live by its principles. Believe its message. Follow its precepts. No man is uneducated who knows the Bible, and no one is wise who is ignorant of its teachings."
What makes the difference is not how many times you have been through the Bible, but how many times and how thoroughly the Bible has been through you.
We started this morning talking about Philip Ozersky and the home run baseball that fell into his lap and changed his life. Changed his life in that suddenly he had almost 3 million dollars. He could go places that before he could not go, do things that before he could not do. It opened up all kinds of new possibilities.
The bible is so much more valuable than that. There are so many stories of people that won the lottery and then spent a lot of money and wound up right back where they were before. They had fun for a season, but they were not changed by it. I have never known a person who got excited about Christ and became a student of the bible that was not changed for the good by their study of it.
Why is God’s revelation so powerful?
Isaiah 55:8-11 For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD. 9 As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts. 10 As the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and do not return to it without watering the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed for the sower and bread for the eater, 11 so is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.
God has revealed Himself to us. We can know Him somewhat through creation, but the best way to know Him is through the pages of the bible which He has given us. Make sure that you take the time to read it.
Recently that 2000 movie Castaway has been on several times. During the 2003 Superbowl FedEx ran a commercial that spoofed the movie. Tom Hanks played a FedEx worker whose company plane went down, stranding him on a deserted island for years. In the movie there was one package that he find on the beach from their plane that he does not open but returns at the end of the film. In the commercial, it shows someone playing his character that goes up to the door of a suburban home, package in hand. When the lady comes to the door, he explains that he survived five years on a deserted island, and during that whole time he kept this package in order to deliver it to her. She gives a simple, "Thank you." But he is curious about what is in the package that he has been protecting for years. He says, "If I may ask, what was in that package after all? "She opens it and shows him the contents, saying, "Oh, nothing really. Just a satellite telephone, a global positioning device, a compass, a solar charger, a water purifier, and some seeds." Like the contents in this package, the resources for growth and strength are available for every Christian who will take advantage of them.
I would like a job as tutor, teacher and advisor to your family. I will never take a vacation. I will never be out of humor. I don't drink or smoke. I won't borrow your clothes or raid your refrigerator. I will be up in the morning as early as anyone in the household and will stay up as late as anyone wishes. I will help solve any problems your children might have. I will give you the satisfaction of knowing that no question your children ask will go unanswered. For that matter, I will answer any of your own questions on subjects that range from "How we got here?" to "Where are we headed?" I will help settle bets and differences of opinion. I will give you information that will help you with your job, your family and all of your other interests. In short, I will give you the knowledge that will insure the continued success of your family. I am your Bible. Do I get the job?
When people claim that Science and Faith are at odds often point out that back in the Middle Ages the Catholic Church refused to accept Galileo’s theory that the earth revolved around the sun. (rather than the other way around.) That is true --- but the Church did not reject this theory based on the Bible. It was the teachings of Greek philosophy which held that the sun revolved around the earth, not teaching that came from scripture. Besides that, the Church was not alone in rejecting scientific theories back in the Middle Ages. Listen to what Galileo Galilei said about the University Professors of his day. In a letter to fellow-scientist, Johanas Keplar, Galileo said, “I wish, my dear Kepler, that we could have a good laugh together at the extraordinary stupidity of the mob. What do you think of the foremost philosophers of this University? In spite of my oft-repeated efforts and invitations, they have refused, with the obstinacy of a glutted adder, to look at the planets or Moon or even at my telescope.”
Like Galileo, Johanas Keplar was a Mathematician, Astronomer, and also a Christian. In 1595, he wrote this to a friend: “I wanted to be a theologian; for a long time I was unhappy. Now, behold, God is praised by my work even in astronomy”
How many of you would like to be smarter? Note this unbelievable statistic: Jewish people represent only two-tenths of 1 percent of the world’s population, but they have received 22 percent of the world’s Nobel Prizes. This is such a large variant from the norm, that it’s a statistical impossibility. The only explanation for their intelligence is the Bible. For centuries the Jews have studied their Old Testament and it’s made them smarter, as a race, than any other race on earth.
