Many have expressed how much they appreciate the testimonies that have been shared in our gatherings. > In hearing the way others have experienced God. we find common process and can gain insight and inspiration…
> It’s with that dynamic of gaining insight & inspiration that this morning we begin a series from the Book of Psalms.
In particular, we come to the Psalms to learn what it means to have our souls centered in God.
Psalms provide a testimony and inspiration for centering one’s soul in God.
“At the core of the theology of the Psalter is the conviction that the gravitational center of life (of right human understanding, trust, hope, service, morality, adoration), but also of history and of the whole creation (heaven and earth), is God (Yahweh, ‘the Lord’).”
“We understand the psalms best when we “stand under” them and allow them to flow over us like a rain shower. We may turn to Psalms looking for something, but sooner or later we will meet Someone. As we read and memorize the psalms, we will gradually discover how much they are already part of us. They put into words our deepest hurts, longings, thoughts, and prayers. They gently push us toward being what God designed us to be—people loving and living for him.”
It shouldn’t surprise us that Jesus, who lived the ultimate life centered in God… quoted the Psalms often… showing they had been a central part of his life.
For those less familiar with the Psalms… few pieces of background about WHAT the Psalms are.
This word means, as does psalm in Greek, either song or instrumental music, or perhaps song with instrumental accompaniment. More than a hundred psalms are prefixed with inscriptions that give a number of identifying particulars: directions to the musician, name of the author or instrument, the style of the music or poetry, and the subject or occasion of the psalm.
The book of Psalms contains 150 independent compositions… written by a number of authors.
Seventy-three of the psalms have been attributed to David. Other authors that are named in the superscriptions are Asaph (Psalm 50; Psalm 73-83), the sons of Korah (Psalm 42-49; Psalm 84; Psalm 85; Psalm 87; Psalm 88), Solomon (Psalm 72; Psalm 127), Heman (Psalm 88), Ethan (Psalm 89), and Moses (Psalm 90).
The psalms were written over a long period, beginning with Moses (Psalm 90) and ending sometime in the exilic period (Psalm 137). Psalm writing has a very ancient history in Israel and throughout the ancient Near East.
But the golden age of psalm writing in Israel was the period of monarchy, between David’s reign and the Babylonian exile. King David, who also organized the temple service (including musicians), made the psalm an integral part of Israel’s worship at the temple.
The Psalms became Israel’s hymnal, containing hymns that praise God for personal and national salvation. The book of Psalms preserves a poetic record of the ups and downs of personal and national experience.
Using Psalm 116 as an example, I believe the Lord can speak to our spiritual lives this morning.
Psalm 116:1-19 [NIV]
I love the Lord, for he heard my voice;
he heard my cry for mercy.
[2] Because he turned his ear to me,
I will call on him as long as I live.
[3] The cords of death entangled me,
the anguish of the grave came upon me;
I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.
[4] Then I called on the name of the Lord:
"O Lord, save me!"
[5] The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is full of compassion.
[6] The Lord protects the simplehearted;
when I was in great need, he saved me.
[7] Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
[8] For you, O Lord, have delivered my soul from death,
my eyes from tears,
my feet from stumbling,
[9] that I may walk before the Lord
in the land of the living.
[10] I believed; therefore I said,
"I am greatly afflicted."
[11] And in my dismay I said,
"All men are liars."
[12] How can I repay the Lord
for all his goodness to me?
[13] I will lift up the cup of salvation
and call on the name of the Lord.
[14] I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
…[19] in the courts of the house of the Lord--
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
Praise the Lord.
This Psalm… characterized as a Psalm of thanksgiving… for deliverece.
Begins with those moving words “I love the Lord.”
= a passion …. we may sing more than we sense.
Yet this kind of love is what Jesus said was to be the priority of life… the greatest command..
What gives the Psalmist his passion with God ?… what allows such a vibrancy in his life with God?
I want to share FOUR qualities which I find throughout the Psalms which I believe are KEYS to a passionate spiritual life and a vibrant with God.
The Psalms provide an inspired model of spirituality which includes…
1. Freedom to process feelings with God (vv. 3-4, 10-11)
[3] The cords of death entangled me,
the anguish of the grave came upon me;
I was overcome by trouble and sorrow.
[4] Then I called on the name of the Lord:
"O Lord, save me!"
The Psalmist had no trouble expressing his problems and pain to God.
Here he simply expresses his deep fears…
Just a part of what we find…. Elsewhere he expresses his deep doubts…. Cries for justice…. Feelings of abandonment (“Why are you silent..?”)
At times the Psalmist can almost offend our sense of reverence.
> But God welcomes an honest heart. (as David is referred to as a man after God’s own heart..)
It’s what keeps one’s passion for God alive.
- “Come, let us contend together”
- “Cast all your cares upon him”
> Because it’s the core of true RELATIONSHIP.
EMOTIONAL FREEDOM OF JESUS VERSES PHARISEES
In the pharisee is the false religious face. In contrast, Jesus lifts up the child which represents the true self… without pretensions. The child represents my authentic self and the pharisee the unauthentic.
The inner child is aware of his feelings and uninhibited in their expression; the pharisee edits feelings and makes a stereotyped response to life situations.
My children ask all sorts of question… including the infamous “Why”
On Jacqueline Kennedy’s first visit to the Vatican, Pope John XXIII asked his secretary of state, Giuseppi Cardinal Montini what was the proper way to greet the visiting dignitary, wife of the U.S. president. Montini replied, "It would be proper to say ’madame’ or Mrs. Kennedy." The secretary left and a few minutes later, the first lady stood in the doorway. The pope’s eyes lit up. He trundled over, threw his arms around her, and cried, "Jacqueline!"
The child spontaneously expresses emotions; the pharisee carefully represses them. The question is not whether I am an introvert or an extrovert, a sanguine or a subdued personality. The issue is whether I express or repress my genuine feelings.
John Powell once said with sadness that as an epitaph for his parents’ tombstone he would have been compelled to write: "Here lie two people who never knew one another.”
> The same can be true of our relationship with God.
"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom" (2 Corinthians 3:17).
To ignore, repress, or dismiss our feelings is to fail to listen to the stirrings of the Spirit within our emotional life.
In the book of Matthew we see that His anger erupted: "Hypocrites! It was you Isaiah meant when he prophesied: This people honors me only with lip-service, while their hearts are far from me. The worship they offer me is worthless" (15:7-9).
Personal –
· Suffering in the world > Prayer for healing
· Bldg
Cry of a child won’t always receive what they want… they aren’t the parent.
> Reverence is not reflected in repressing our feelings, but in submitting them to God.
Perhaps many of us have tried to bury our issues with God… and with it, buried our passion… our love.
2. The necessity of directing one’s soul (v. 7)
[7] Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
One of the qualities we find in the Psalms is the art of counseling one’s soul.
The Psalmist understands our soul’s need guiding.
Our souls are our inner disposition.. begin with certain thoughts / conscious or unconscious… and feed how we feel.. as they tell us what matters, what’s at hand, etc.
The disposition of our souls is vulnerable… as we all know our souls can get lost looking for satisfaction in all the wrong places… lost in feelings that will misguide us.
The truth is we all talk to ourselves…often… the issue is what we talk about.
> The Psalmist simply models counseling his souls about the truth of God.
Examples are found throughout the Psalms… esp David..
Psalm 103:1-2 (Of David)
Praise the Lord, O my soul;
all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
Praise the Lord, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits--
Goes on to rehearse all God does in his love for him / us.
If you want to explore… use Psalm 103… try personalizing as a way to enter the reality of the Psalmist… as it’s often hard to apply such truths to ourselves.
3. A calling to both personal and corporate expression (vv. 18-19)
Today… there’s a tendency to have our spirituality become either too personal or too public.
If too public, it looses genuineness… if too personal, it’s cut off from the very of purpose of God in making his goodness and glory known to all.
[14] I will fulfill my vows to the Lord
in the presence of all his people.
…[19] in the courts of the house of the Lord--
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
I believe those baptized last week grew from realizing their life with God isn’t simply their own… it’s God working in them… His heart for the whole world
> Bring your life into the community… into the world around you.
4. Recognizes the ultimate goodness of God. (vv. 5-7, 12)
[5] The Lord is gracious and righteous;
our God is full of compassion.
[6] The Lord protects the simple hearted;
when I was in great need, he saved me.
[7] Be at rest once more, O my soul,
for the Lord has been good to you.
The Psalmist is affirming the fundamental goodness of God.
He is “gracious” (hannun) in his forgiveness and in sustaining his children (cf. 103:8; 111:4).
He is “righteous” (saddiq) in keeping the covenant and all the promises.
He is “full of compassion” (merahem; cf. Exod 34:6: rahum) in his tenderness and understanding of the limits of his children (cf. 103:13-14).
This affirmation of the character of God is the reason for his thanksgiving, as the Lord is reliable and faithful.
The goodness of God is at the center of the Psalms as it’s central to the Psalmists soul.
Consider…
Psalm 34:8
Taste and see that the Lord is good;
blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
Psalm 84:11
For the Lord God is a sun and shield;
the Lord bestows favor and honor;
no good thing does he withhold
from those whose walk is blameless.
Psalm 118:1
Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever.
Psalm 119:68
You are good, and what you do is good;
teach me your decrees.
Here lies the power of the Psalms…. Honesty that can still see the ultimate truth of who God is.
It will not let it’s soul sink into repression (false self), nor rebellion, by forming a case to justify itself from God and keeping at a safe distance.
The fundamental question beneath any relationship is not, ‘Does this person always tell me what I want?’ … but ‘Are they for me?’ That’s what every partner in marriage desires… every friendship seeks.
> The Psalmist was grounded in the goodness of God.
Come and contend with God… Come and counsel your soul. Come and discover that God… your God… is good.
Closing story…
As an infantry company commander in Vietman in 1967, I saw Viet Cong soldiers surrender many times.
As they were placed in custody, marched away, and briefly interrogated, their body language and facial expressions always caught my attention. Most hung their heads in shame, staring at the ground, unwilling to look their captors in the eye. But some stood erect, staring defiantly at those around them, resisting any attempt by our men to control them. They had surrendered physically but not mentally.
On one occasion after the enemy had withdrawn, I came upon several soldiers surrounding a wounded Viet Cong. Shot through the lower leg, he was hostile and frightened, yet helpless. He threw mud and kicked with his one good leg when anyone came near him. When I joined the circle around the wounded enemy, one soldier asked me, "Sir, what do we do? He’s losing blood fast and needs medical attention." I looked down at the struggling Viet Cong and saw the face of a 16- or 17-year old boy.
I unbuckled my pistol belt and hand grenades so he could not grab them. Then, speaking gently, I moved toward him. He stared fearfully at me as I knelt down, but he allowed me to slide my arms under him and pick him up.
As I walked with him toward a waiting helicopter, he began to cry and hold me tight. He kept looking at me and squeezing me tighter. We climbed into the helicopter and took off.
During the ride, our young captive sat on the floor, clinging to my leg. Never having ridden in a helicopter, he looked out with panic as we gained altitude and flew over the trees. He fixed his eyes back on me, and I smiled reassuringly and put my hand on his shoulder.
After landing, I picked him up and walked toward the medical tent. As we crossed the field, I felt the tenseness leave his body and his tight grasp loosen. His eyes softened, and his head leaned against my chest. The fear and resistance were gone-he had finally surrendered.
The God to whom we surrender is not our enemy. He heals and cares for everyone he takes captive. -Paul Stanley
