Psalm 90
I. Introduction
Before I read the passage let me remind you a little bit about Moses.
Moses he had a unique perspective to offer on life when he wrote this psalm.
-He was raised in the household of a king in Egypt.
-He killed a man and had to run away to live in the
desert –raising sheep.
-God came to Moses and showed him that he had a bigger
plan for his life.
-Moses returned to Egypt serving and empowered by God
to deliver The Jewish people. (who were mis-treated
slaves.)
-Just as the Jewish people were about to enter the land that God had promised to them… Moses and the people sinned against God!
-They had to wonder in the desert for 40 years and Mosses could not enter with them.
Most Scholors believe that it was neer the end of this 40 years of wondering in the desert that moses wrote this Psalm
·Because of their sins Israel had come under the wrath of God
·Because of their sins Israel had to wonder in the wilderness these 40 years
·Because of their sins neerly an entire generation of sinful Israelites had passed away.
It was neer the end of this time that moses wrote this psalm and begins to petition God for mercy.
Here is a man who had…
-Seen it all
-Experienced it all
-Lived it all
He had experienced:
-The ups and downs of life
-The poor life
-The Good life
-The life in Sin
-The life in God
Moses lived a full life….He even lived to be 120 years old!
·People still remember the great things He did even though he died thousands of years ago… People still name their children after Moses!
YOU COULD NOT LIVE A LIFE FULLER THAN MOSSES LIVED IT!
-RICHES
-POVERTY
-JOY
-PAIN
-SUCCESS
-FAILURE
-FAME
HE EXPERIENCED IT ALL!
-WITH THIS MAN NAMED MOSES IN MIND LETS READ THIS SONG THAT HE WROTE NEER THE END OF HIS LIFE.
II. READ PSM 90
1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.
2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from
everlasting to everlasting you are God.
3 You turn men back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men."
4 For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch
in the night.
5 You sweep men away in the sleep of death; they are like the new grass of the
morning--
6 though in the morning it springs up new, by evening it is dry and withered.
7 We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation.
8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan.
10 The length of our days is seventy years-- or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their
span[1] is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.
11 Who knows the power of your anger? For your wrath is as great as the fear that is
due you.
12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.
13 Relent, O LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants.
14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be
glad all our days.
15 Make us glad for as many days as you have afflicted us, for as many years as we
have seen trouble.
16 May your deeds be shown to your servants, your splendor to their children.
17 May the favor[2] of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for
us-yes, establish the work of our hands.
Moses wrote this psalm near the end of his life … It is the prayer of a wise old man of God for his people and himself.
Reading this passage of prayer gives a gimps into some of the most valuable lessons moses learned in life.
III Things Moses realized about life.
1) In verse 1 the shelter God has been.
a) God has always been a shelter for those in need of
help.
“1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place throughout all generations.”
It is important to realize that Moses starts this Psalm by decairing for himself personally and for the people of Israel that God has been their refuge in ages past!
It is a statement of faith… A statement declairing that the same God who has been their protector and provider in the past will still supply every need for life and security!
·Before Moses even begins to petition God in prayer he acknowledhes Him as his dwelling place and safety!
Moses has come to a place in his life where he is determined to dwell in the presence of God…
Even if:
- hard times
-Unexpected times
-Horrible times
-Confusing times come to our life
we must realize that it is God who has been our safety and refuge in ages past… GOD HAS NOT CHANGED HE WILL ONCE AGAIN HEAR US AND ANSWER US!
It is a wise man who stays in the shelter and care of the Lord reguardless of the situations in life!
If you have left the safety of His presence...
Today If you will turn to God He will be a safe place for you during the hard times of life.
2) In verse 2 Moses considers the power and eternity
of God.
"2 Before the mountains were born or you brought forth the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God."
A) The Power of God
Moses acknowledges That God is a mighty God.
-He is the creator of all the earth
-He brougt forth the earth by his power
Moses has experienced the mighty power of God himself in many ways.
-Miracles in Egypt
-Red Sea
-Cloths that did not wear out
And now moses identifying that Gods power is always evident around us….
-Look at the mountains
-Look at the earth and the world
* God by His power sustains all these things…. God by His power created these things!
B) The Eternal nature of God.
..from everlasting to everlasting you are God…
God has always been and He will always be forever.
In the following verses Moses will begin to compare the eternal life and nature of God to very short lifespan of men.
3)In verses 3-6 he considers the mortality of man.
A) Even a long life will quickly pass.
“3 You turn men back to dust, saying, "Return to dust, O sons of men." 4 For a thousand years in your sight are like a day that has just gone by, or like a watch in the night”
Even a long good life… Is as nothing compared to eternity!
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·If I were to walk into this building and look for the restroom… but open the wrong door and peer into a cleaning closet by mistake. I would quickly close the door and forget about my experience.
·OUR LIFE COMPARED TO ETERNITY IS LIKE LOOKING INTO THAT CLOSET IT WILL QUICKLY PASS BY.
B)He Himself was blessed with a long life:
-He lived 120 yrs.
-Most people at best lived 70-80 yrs
We see Moses reflection on how quickly live passes all through this palm .
Not only in these verses but again in verse 10 He says.
"10 The length of our days is seventy years-- or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span[1] is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away."
4) In verses 7-11 He considers the wrath of God.
"7 We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation. 8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.
9 All our days pass away under your wrath; we finish our years with a moan. 10 The length of our days is seventy years-- or eighty, if we have the strength; yet their span[1] is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away. 11 Who knows the power of your anger? For your wrath is as great as the fear that is due you."
A) You cannot fool God or win a fight with God.
(1) He speaks of how men who sin against God and speak
against Him are Consumed
“7 We are consumed by your anger and terrified by your indignation.”
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If you were to throw a piece of tissue into a raging fire it is consumed… So is the man thrown into God’s anger!
(2) He speaks of how God knows even the secret things.
“8 You have set our iniquities before you, our secret sins in the light of your presence.”
It is our sin that God hates…God hates sin.
**** We cannot hide this sin from God… Unless we repent even of our secret sins we will be under the wrath of God.
5) In verse 12 this old man of God tells us what our veiw for life should be.
“12 Teach us to number our days aright, that we may gain a heart of wisdom.”
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If you live to be 70yrs old you will live aproximately 25,567 days (Aprox… including leap years)
-If you were to buy a reasonable priced house in Southern Cal. For $100,000 the day you were born and were to pay $1 every day it would take you 4 life times to pay it off.
-If you are 40 you only have less than 11,000 days left!
-If you are 60 you only have 3652 days left!
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Lets look at it another way…
-Just supose your life is this book…
-The decisions you are making are writing your story!
-HOW MANY PAGES DO YOU HAVE LEFT???
When you life finally comes to an end the last page will not say
“To be continued…. Or time to start over” BUT
THE END-for mortal man! …. Shure well have eternal life but… This book is over!
(Show last page of the book with page that says the end!!!!)
Ovcourse we could die before we hit 70 or afterwards but when we number our days it helps us put in perspective how short our life is!
A) None of us can put an exact number of days left in
our life but we can take seriously the days we do
have!
* Moses was saying…. LORD HELP US TO REALIZE THIS LIFE IS SHORT…HELP US TO VIEW OUR LIFE FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE.
The Lord knows All our days!
B) When we realize the frailty of our life we will
begin to gain a heart of wisom!
What is a heart of wisdom?
-A heart that trust in its maker
-A heart that realizes the briefness of this life but
the leangth of eternity
-A heart that has made its peace with God
-A heart that seeks to know the Lord and walk in His
ways
-A heart that seeks to live a life free of sin and
full of grace!
A wise heart is a heart that knows Jesus (God).
When we understand how brief this life is and how weak we are and when we consider how God has always been alive and how powerful He is we will begin to gain a hear of wisdom.
-We will want to live in ways that please God.
-We will want to make decisions that please God.
-A wise heart is a heart that serves, knows and fears
God.
6) In verses 13-16 He petitions God for His mercy.
A) He realizes that God is a merciful Loving God… Who
will turn away from his wrath and give hope to
those who seek Him.
“13 Relent, O LORD! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants. 14 Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days.”
7) In verse 17 He Seeks the blessing of God
“17 May the favor[2] of the Lord our God rest upon us; establish the work of our hands for us-yes, establish the work of our hands.”
A) He realizes that true success in life comes from the blessing of God.
-Not Pleasure
-Not Money
-Not Popularity
-Not Fame
BUT FROM GOD!
If we want success and fulfillment in life and in work we must know that it comes from God.
We we must commit what we have and who we are to God for success… God establishes.
4) Closing
I don’t know what kind of life you have lived so far but let me ask you a couple questions…
·If you were to die today would you be consumed by God’s anger… or saved by his GRACE?
·God is willing to be a shelter and a help for you in your time of need… are you willing to call upon Jesus for that help and forgiveness --- Or will you live your life in continued sin only to find out that you – have lost the fight against God!
