Cleanse Me from Psalm 51:1-7

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/29/2012 9:18:36 AM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Cleanse Me

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 51:1-7

            Message of the verses:  We are looking at Psalm 51, and in yesterday’s SD we looked only at the introduction because of the importance of this psalm.  1John 1:9 says that “if we confess our sins He is faithful and just to forgive our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  I think that an honest look at Psalm 51 will help us to understand what it means to confess our sins and not only that but we will learn what it means to be restored after confessing our sins and then we will have a desire to want to serve the Lord after we are restored by Him.

            I believe that one of the truly great things that I have learned about David is when he sinned he realized it and he would be ready to confess it.  We know that David is a man after God’s own heart and it was the Lord who chose David to lead His people.  We also remember that when the people cried out for a king that God first gave them what they wanted in a king, a tall, handsome man who could lead them into battle with their enemies.  Saul was that man but one thing that we know about Saul is that he was a man who did not truly confess his sins to the Lord and he was a man that had a hard time realizing that he sinned.  When we go all the way back to the beginning of the Bible in Genesis chapter 3 when Adam and Eve sinned and so sin was brought into the human race we saw excuses from both Adam and Eve as they did not want to say like David says in Psalm 51:4 “Against You, You only, I have sinned And done what is evil in Your sight, So that You are justified when You speak And blameless when You judge.”  David realized that his sin was wrong, that it was against God, and that he deserved judgment from the Lord for his sin, David did not make excuses.  However as we look at Psalm 51:1 we read “Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions.”  David knew that he was guilty and deserved judgment but at the same time David appealed to God’s grace.  Why?  David could not appeal to the Law, and he could not appeal to God’s justice.  David knew the truth of Psalm 103:10, “He has not dealt with us according to our sins, Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.”  He also knew that truth of Psalm 130:3 If You, LORD, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?”  David had a deep sincere knowledge that whenever he sinned that that sin could cause him to burn in hell, yet he also knew that God was gracious.  I think that perhaps this could be something that believer’s today lack and when they sin they run to 1John 1:9 and quote that believing rightly that God will forgive them, but perhaps at the same time thinking lightly about their sin.  When we think about how horrible it was for Christ on the cross, the beatings, the humiliation, the spitting at Him, and all of these things were awful, but the worst part was the six hours that he spent on the cross when darkness was all around Him and at that time He became sin for us, for me and at that time He was separated from His Father because of our sin, because of my sin and at the end of that time He cried out “My God, My God, why have You forsaken me.”  The answer to that question is God is a God of love for He is love, and God is a just God, and God is a forgiving God, and God did the forsaking because of you and because of me. 

            “Cleanse Me” (vv. 1-7):  “1 For the choir director. A Psalm of David, when Nathan the prophet came to him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your lovingkindness; According to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions. 2 Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity And cleanse me from my sin. 3 For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me. 4 Against You, You only, I have sinned And done what is evil in Your sight, So that You are justified when You speak And blameless when You judge. 5 Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, And in sin my mother conceived me. 6  Behold, You desire truth in the innermost being, And in the hidden part You will make me know wisdom.7 Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.”

            When David sinned against Bathsheba, and her husband Uriah by murdering him deliberately there was no atonement in the Law for these sins.  Nathan the prophet when he confronted him told him that God had forgiven his sins.  This was truly the grace of God seen in all of this. 

            David had crossed over the line that God had drawn in the Law and we call this “transgression.”  David missed the mark that God has set for him and we call that “sin.”  David had yielded to his twisted sinful nature and we call this “iniquity.”   David asked God to “blot out” his transgressions and this refers to a debt that had to be paid, and would be paid for by the Lord Jesus Christ.  When David writes “cleanse” me he is referring to the defilement caused by touching something unclean as seen in Lev. 11:32 or cleansing from a disease as revered to in Lev. 13:1-3.

2/29/2012 10:17:30 AM        

2/29/2012 1:16:17 PM

            Now let us look at the word “wash” for this word refers to the cleansing of dirty clothing as seen in Isaiah 1:18, “"Come now, and let us reason together," Says the LORD, "Though your sins are as scarlet, They will be as white as snow; Though they are red like crimson, They will be like wool.”  I have mentioned in earlier SD’s that in the Jewish society of the day when David was living that when someone washed their clothes and put new fresh clothes on it was a sign of a new beginning.  We can see this in Genesis 35:2 and 41:14 and also in 45:22.  Let us look at 2Samuel 12:20, “So David arose from the ground, washed, anointed himself, and changed his clothes; and he came into the house of the LORD and worshiped. Then he came to his own house, and when he requested, they set food before him and he ate.”  This section from 2Samuel was after the baby died that was conceived when David committed adultery with Bathsheba. 

            We know that David’s sin was against Bathsheba and also her husband Uriah, but all sin that is committed is sin against God and David points this out in verse four.  In verse five we see David admitting that not only was he a sinner by choice but also by nature and this is very important to realize for as Paul writes in Romans 3:23 we have all sinned and come short of the glory of God.  When Adam and Eve sinned God told them that they would die and they did die spiritually because of their sin, but they also died physically later on at the end of their life.  This would not have occurred if they had not sinned. The sin nature that happened to them right after they sinned is passed on to all people.  Think about this, did you ever have to teach your children to do something wrong?  I don’t think so and this is evidence of the sin nature we are all born with.

            Now let’s talk about the significance of the word “Hyssop” which is found in verse 7.  “22  "You shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and apply some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning.”  (Exodus 12:22)  Hyssop was a shrub with hairy stems and that is why it was used by the children of Israel to apply the blood to their doorposts, and it was also used for cleansing by the priests for those who needed ceremonial cleansing.  We as believers in Jesus Christ find our cleansing in the work that Jesus accomplished for us on the cross.  Hebrews 10:19-25 speaks of this:  “19 Therefore, brethren, since we have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is, His flesh, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22  let us draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for He who promised is faithful; 24 and let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, 25 not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”  I think that chapter ten of Hebrews has been called the “let us” chapter.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  The reason that I have this SD in two parts is because my daughter called and she was not feeling well and so I had to go pick up my grandson at pre-school.  I find that some of the best times of prayer are when I am in the car alone and I can talk to the Lord out loud without fear of someone else listening.  This morning my prayer was about the fact that rarely when I sin and confess my sin to the Lord that I think of what it cost my Lord to atone for those sins.  I need to remember what it cost to give me a salvation that is free.

1.     Remember the cost of God the Son and God the Father to pay for my sins.

2.     Continue to learn contentment.

2/29/2012 1:43:57 PM

Intro to Psalm 51

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/28/2012 7:38:29 AM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Introduction

Bible Reading & Meditation                                                 Reference:  Psalm 51

            Message of the verses:  It was on December 10, 2011 that we began to look at the book of Psalms and in yesterdays SD we finished the 50^th Psalm, which makes us one third the way through the book of Psalms.  In today’s SD we will look at another of the more famous psalms that is Psalm 51.  The reason that most people have heard of this psalm is because it is one of two psalms that David wrote after his sin with Bathsheba and her husband.  Psalm 32 is the other psalm that was written by David after this sin.  We will look at the introduction to this psalm today.   

“The occasion of this psalm was the sin of David with Bathsheba, signified by "going in to her"; an euphemism for "lying with her"; which sin was a very aggravated one, she being another man’s wife, and the wife of a servant and soldier of his, who was at the same time exposing his life for his king and country’s good; and David besides had many wives, and was also king of Israel, and should have set a better example to his subjects; and it was followed with other sins, as the murder of Uriah, and the death of several others; with scandal to religion, and with security and impenitence in him for a long time, until Nathan the prophet was sent to him of God, to awaken him to a sense of his sin; which he immediately acknowledged, and showed true repentance for it: upon which, either while Nathan was present, or after he was gone, he penned this psalm; that it might remain on record, as a testification of his repentance, and for the instruction of such as should fall into sin, how to behave, where to apply, and for their comfort. The history of all this may be seen in the eleventh and twelfth chapters of the second book of Samuel.”  (John Gill)

            “Though David penned this psalm upon a very particular occasion, yet, it is of as general use as any of David’s psalms; it is the most eminent of the penitential psalms, and most expressive of the cares and desires of a repenting sinner. It is a pity indeed that in our devout addresses to God we should have anything else to do than to praise God, for that is the work of heaven; but we make other work for ourselves by our own sins and follies: we must come to the throne of grace in the posture of penitents, to confess our sins and sue for the grace of God; and, if therein we would take with us words, we can nowhere find any more apposite than in this psalm, which is the record of David’s repentance for his sin in the matter of Uriah, which was the greatest blemish upon his character: all the rest of his faults were nothing to this; it is said of him (#1Ki 15:5):  ‘because David did what was right in the sight of the LORD, and had not turned aside from anything that He commanded him all the days of his life, except in the case of Uriah the Hittite.’”  (Matthew Henry)

            “Therefore not written for private meditation only, but for the public service of song.  Suitable for the loneliness of individual penitence, this matchless Psalm is equally well adapted for an assembly of the poor in spirit. A Psalm of David: It is a marvel, but nevertheless a fact, that writers have been found to deny David’s authorship of this Psalm, but their objections are frivolous, the Psalm is David like all over.  It would be far easier to imitate Milton, Shakespeare, or Tennyson, than David. His style is altogether sui generis, and it is as easily distinguished as the touch of Rafaelle or the colouring of Rubens. When Nathan the prophet came unto him, after he had gone in to Bathsheba. When the divine message had aroused his dormant conscience and made him see the greatness of his guilt, he wrote this Psalm. He had forgotten his psalmody while he was indulging his flesh, but he returned to his harp when his spiritual nature was awakened, and he poured out his song to the accompaniment of sighs and tears. The great sin of David is not to be excused, but it is well to remember that his case has an exceptional collection of specialties in it. He was a man of very strong passions, a soldier, and an Oriental monarch having despotic power; no other king of his time would have felt any compunction for having acted as he did, and hence there were not around him those restraints of custom and association which, when broken through, render the offence the more monstrous. He never hints at any form of extenuation, nor do we mention these facts in order to apologize for his sin, which was detestable to the last degree; but for the warning of others, that they reflect that the licentiousness in themselves at this day might have even a graver guilt in it than in the erring King of Israel. When we remember his sin, let us dwell most upon his penitence, and upon the long series of chastisements which rendered the after part of his life such a mournful history.”  (Charles H. Spurgeon)

            “This is the classic passage in the OT on man’s repentance and God’s forgiveness of sin.  Along with Ps. 32, it was written by David after his affair with Bathsheba and his murder of Uriah, her husband (2Sa. 11; 12).  It is one of 7 poems called penitential psalm (6, 32, 38, and 51,102,130,143).  To David’s credit, he recognized fully how horrendous his sin was against God, blamed no one but himself, and begged for divine forgiveness.”  (John MacArthur Study Bible)

            “During his lifetime, King David did what had pleased the Lord, ‘except in the case of Uriah the Hittite’ (1Kings 15:5, NASB).  This is the fourth of the Penitential Psalm (see 6) and is David’s prayer of confession after Nathan the prophet confronted him with his sins (see 32:2; 2Sam. 11-12).  This is also the first of fifteen consecutive psalms in Book II attributed to David.  In his prayer, David expressed three major requests.”  (Warren Wiersbe)

            I think that it best to just make some opening comments on Psalm 51 at this time due to time.  I have just finished watching a sermon on the internet by John MacArthur using the text of Psalm 51 that he gave before a communion service.  This would surely be an great text to use because we see in the classic text on the communion serves, 1Cor. 11, that the apostle Paul tells his readers that some of them in their congregation had actually died because of the way that they had treated the communion service.  Before we partake in the elements of the communion service we are to ask the Holy Spirit to search our hearts of any unconfessed sin in order to confess it before the Lord so that we do not eat and drink unworthily, and that is why some of the Corinthians died.

            It is good to understand who we are and how much all of us needs the salvation that only can come through Jesus Christ, for Paul says that there is none righteous, no not one, there is no one who seeks after God.  David writes in Psalm 51 that he was conceived in sin, and this does not mean that his parents were not married, rather as soon as he was conceived he was a sinner.  I had a friend where I use to work who whenever he did something wrong and I would ask him about it he would always say “I was born wrong.”  He may have been joking but what he was saying was true for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God.

            David was the King of Israel and David was a man after God’s own heart, but David was a sinner and he had troubles with women, something most men will confess that they have.  Being a king and having a the power that went along with that he could have thrown Nathan out of his house whenever Nathan spoke to him about his sin, but because David was a man after God’s own heart he would not do that because for a year he had been sick because of this sin and now he knew that the right thing to do was to confess his sin to the Lord and be free from the sin. 

            I find it interesting that the passage in 1Kings 15:5 that Bathsheba is not mentioned, but only her husband Uriah.  I think that this shows that neither Bathsheba nor David were innocent, but Uriah was innocent of all wrong in this sinful situation.  Uriah was such a faithful man that David wrote to Joab, the leader of his army, the orders that would kill Uriah. 

            I am going to look at some of the Spiritual Diaries from 2Samuel 11 and twelve and post them after I post this SD to the blog so that the background to this Psalm can be seen.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today: Sometimes being a man causes troubles and one of the ways that it causes troubles is that most men think that they can solve all of life’s problems on their own without help.  In the sermon that I watched on Psalm 51 by John MacArthur he mentioned that David knew that it was God who had to do the work in his heart to forgive his sin and I suppose that I never thought of it just like that.  Being a man I think that by confessing my sins to God that I have done all that I can do and leave it at that, but I think that one thing that I may have been missing is letting God be God and do His work in my life. 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

1.     Trust the Lord to clean me thoroughly from my sins.

2.     Trust the Holy Spirit to show me my unconfessed sins so that I may confess them to the Lord and have fellowship with Him so that He can use me for His honor and glory.

3.     Continue to learn contentment in all the circumstances of life.

2/28/2012 9:38:44 AM  

True Worship (Psalm 50:7-23)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/27/2012 8:27:45 AM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  True Worship 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 50:7-23

            Message of the verses:  In yesterday’s SD we learned that Psalm 50 is like a court scene where “God summons the court (vv. 1-6) and confronts two offenders:  the formalist, to whom worship is a ritual to follow (vv. 7-15), and the hypocrite, to whom worship is a disguise to cover sin (vv. 16-21).  The psalm closes with a call to all worshipers to be faithful to God (vv. 22-23).”

            “The Heartless Worshipers” (vv. 7-15):  “7 "Hear, O My people, and I will speak; O Israel, I will testify against you; I am God, your God. 8 “I do not reprove you for your sacrifices, And your burnt offerings are continually before Me. 9 “I shall take no young bull out of your house Nor male goats out of your folds. 10 “For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills. 11 “I know every bird of the mountains, And everything that moves in the field is Mine. 12 “If I were hungry I would not tell you, For the world is Mine, and all it contains. 13 “Shall I eat the flesh of bulls Or drink the blood of male goats? 14 “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving And pay your vows to the Most High; 15 Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I shall rescue you, and you will honor Me.’”

            This section of Psalm 50 reminds me of Mica 6:6-8, “6 With what shall I come to the LORD And bow myself before the God on high? Shall I come to Him with burnt offerings, With yearling calves? 7 Does the LORD take delight in thousands of rams, In ten thousand rivers of oil? Shall I present my firstborn for my rebellious acts, The fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? 8 He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God?” 

            The children of Israel got into the habit of offering their sacrifices to the Lord without actually living for the Lord, for their sacrifices just became a ritual to them.  Jesus told the church in Ephesus in Revelations 2:4 “you have left your first love.”  That church was doing all kinds of good things, but they were missing something very important that the Lord pointed out to them and that is to love the Lord.  When Jesus was on the earth He was asked a question about what was the greatest of the commandments and He said that we are to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts, souls and minds, and then the second command was that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves.  I have a couple of observations about these two commandments and the first is that we cannot possibility love our neighbors if we don’t love God, and we can’t possibility love God unless He first loves us.  Out of these two commandments flow the Ten Commandments, and out of the Ten Commandments flow all the other commandments in the OT.  We also see a picture of the cross in these two commandments in that as we look at the cross the vertical part is our loving the Lord and then the horizontal part is our loving our neighbors to which Jesus gave the parable of the Good Samaritan to show us who our neighbors are.

            We see in this section of Scripture that the Lord tells these “worshipers” that he owned all of the things that were on the earth, the cattle on a thousand hills belonged to the Lord, for God created all things and therefore He owns all things and we as believers are His stewards while we are here on earth.  I have a little saying on our refrigerator that says that we are not human beings going through a temporary spiritual experience, but we are spiritual beings going through a temporary human experience.  If we keep this in mind then it will affect our love and worship of the Lord.

            “The Hypocritical Sinner” (vv. 16-21):  “16 But to the wicked God says, "What right have you to tell of My statutes And to take My covenant in your mouth? 17 “For you hate discipline, And you cast My words behind you. 18 “When you see a thief, you are pleased with him, And you associate with adulterers. 19 “You let your mouth loose in evil And your tongue frames deceit. 20 “You sit and speak against your brother; You slander your own mother’s son. 21 “These things you have done and I kept silence; You thought that I was just like you; I will reprove you and state the case in order before your eyes.”

            I suppose that when you read about the “religious” people of Jesus’ day you could put many of them into the category that the psalmist is writing about in this section.  Dr. Wiersbe writes the following about the word “hate” that is found in verse 17, “To ‘hate instruction’ (KJV) means to reject an ordered way of life patterned after God’s Word, to reject a responsible life.  The Lord specifically named stealing (the 8^th commandment, Ex. 20:14) and deceitful speech and slander (the 9^th commandment Ex. 20:16).  These are not ‘old covenant sins,’ for believers today who live under the new covenant can be just as guilty of committing them.”

            God’s longsuffering is seen in verse 21 where we see that He keeps silence.  The problem is that the people did not understand that God’s silence was His longsuffering, but they though because He did not speak that He approved their worship. The phrase “You thought that I was just like you” is speaking of the fact that these people had created a god in their image and so whatever they did was okay.  They were wrong!

            “The Honest Worshiper” (vv. 22-23):  “22 “Now consider this, you who forget God, Or I will tear you in pieces, and there will be none to deliver. 23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God.’”

            Let us take a look at John 4:23-24, “23  "But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 “God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.”  This section in John’s Gospel is about the Lord speaking to the woman at the well, telling her what true worship is all about and the psalmist also does this in verses 22-23.  Worship is a matter of having our hearts right with God and the only way to begin this is to do as Jesus told Nicodemus, that is “you must be born again” or born from above.  Paul writes about this in 1Cor. 15:1-4, “1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures” This is the good news of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and in order to worship the Lord in Spirit and truth one must believe this.

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  One of the things that I do not want to become like is the Pharisees of Jesus’ day.  The things that I do in my worship of the Lord I truly want to be genuine and not something made up to show how spiritual that I am.  The passage in Micah says that we have to walk humbly before our God.  I know that whatever that I have has been given to me from the Lord including the most important thing and that is the salvation He gave to me.  So what do I have to be proud about?  Nothing!  Only Thankful for the gift of salvation!

My Steps of Faith for Today:

1.     To walk humbly before my God.

2.     To continue to trust the Lord to teach me contentment. 

3.     Rom. 12:1-2.

4.     Proverbs 3:5-6.

2/27/2012 9:30:04 AM

God the Judge (Psalm 50:1-6)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/26/2012 8:27:27 AM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  God the Judge

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 50:1-6

            Message of the verses:  “Title.  A Psalm of Asaph. This is the first of the Psalms of Asaph, but whether the production of that eminent musician, or merely dedicated to him, we cannot tell.  The titles of twelve Psalms bear his name, but it could not in all of them be meant to ascribe their authorship to him, for several of these Psalms are of too late a date to have been composed by the same writer as the others.  There was an Asaph in David’s time, who was one of David’s chief musicians, and his family appears to have continued long after in their hereditary office of temple musicians.  An Asaph is mentioned as a recorder or secretary in the days of Hezekiah #2Ki 18:18 and another was keeper of the royal forests under Artaxerxes.  That Asaph did most certainly write some of the Psalms is clear from #2Ch 29:30, where it is recorded that the Levites were commanded to "sing praises unto the Lord with the words of David, and of Asaph the seer," but that other Asaphic Psalms were not of his composition, but were only committed to his care as a musician, is equally certain from #1Ch 16:7, where David is said to have delivered a Psalm into the hand of Asaph and his brethren.  It matters little to us whether he wrote or sang, for poet and musician are near akin, and if one composes words and another sets them to music, they rejoice together before the Lord.

“Division: The Lord is represented as summoning the whole earth to hear his declaration, #Ps 50:1-6; he then declares the nature of the worship which he accepts, #Ps 50:7-15, accuses the ungodly of breaches of the precepts of the second table, #Ps 50:16-21, and closes the court with a word of threatening, #Ps 50:22, and a direction of grace, #Ps 50:23.”  (Charles H. Spurgeon)

            “Every seventh year, during the Feast of Tabernacles, the priests were obligated to read the law to the people and explain its meaning (Deut. 31:9-18; Neh. 8), and this psalm may have been written for such an occasion.  The emphasis is on the consistent godly living that should result from true spiritual worship.  Asaph was one of David’s worship leaders (see Ps. 39 introduction and 1Chron. 15:17ff and 16:4ff).  A group of eleven psalms attributed to Asaph is found in 73-83.  God the Judge summons the court (vv. 1-6) and confronts two offenders:  the formalist, to whom worship is a ritual to follow (vv.7-15), and the hypocrite, to whom worship is a disguise to cover sin (vv. 16-21).  The psalm closes with a call to all worshipers to be faithful to God (vv. 22-23).”  Warren Wiersbe

In today’s SD we will be looking at Psalm 50 and as the commentators above have mentioned this is the first psalm of Asaph, and others will follow in Book Three, chapters 73-83.  I have used introductions by Charles H. Spurgeon who was a Baptist Pastor in England in the late 1800’s.  This is what Wikipedia has to say about Spurgeon, Charles Haddon (C.H.) Spurgeon (19 June 1834 – 31 January 1892) was a British Particular Baptist preacher. Spurgeon remains highly influential among Christians of different denominations, among whom he is known as the "Prince of Preachers". He was a strong figure in the Reformed Baptist tradition, defending the Church in agreement with the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith understanding, and opposing the liberal and pragmatic theological tendencies in the Church of his day.

“In his lifetime, Spurgeon preached to around 10,000,000 people,^[1] often up to 10 times each week at different places. Spurgeon was the pastor of the congregation of the New Park Street Chapel (later the Metropolitan Tabernacle) in London for 38 years.^[2] He was part of several controversies with the Baptist Union of Great Britain and later had to leave the denomination.^[3] In 1857, he started a charity organization called Spurgeon's which now works globally. He also founded Spurgeon's College, which was named after him posthumously.

“Spurgeon was a prolific author of many types of works including sermons, an autobiography, commentaries, books on prayer, devotionals, magazines, poetry, hymns and more.^[4][5] Many sermons were transcribed as he spoke and were translated into many languages during his lifetime. Spurgeon produced powerful sermons of penetrating thought and precise exposition. His oratory skills held throngs of listeners spellbound in the Metropolitan Tabernacle and many Christians have discovered Spurgeon's messages to be among the best in Christian literature.”

There are many believers today who still look to some of the sermons and commentaries to which Spurgeon wrote and preached.  I learned that Spurgeon had given his resignation to those who were in charge of Metropolitan Tabernacle many times only to be turned down by them.  He suffered from some type of depression, perhaps Bi-Polar Mood Disorder, but God used him, and is still using him through what he preached and even wrote today.

“The Holy Judge” (vv. 1-6):  “1 Psalm of Asaph: The Mighty One, God, the LORD, has spoken, And summoned the earth from the rising of the sun to its setting. 2 Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has shone forth. 3 May our God come and not keep silence; Fire devours before Him, And it is very tempestuous around Him. 4 He summons the heavens above, And the earth, to judge His people: 5 “Gather My godly ones to Me, Those who have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice." 6 And the heavens declare His righteousness, For God Himself is judge. Selah.”

While studying the book of Job which we began on October 21, 2011 we saw that there were many times that Job wanted to go to court with God because he knew that he was innocent of the charges that his friends were charging him with, and that was that the reason he was in such a difficult situation was because of his sin.  We now see from Psalm 50 a court scene in which the Holy One of Israel is presiding over.  This is none other than Elohim, the Lord or Jehovah the Most High.  When we come into a court room and the judge enters we have to rise, but when the Lord is presiding over the court His glory is seen, the bright light of His glory.  This is not unlike what the children of Israel saw when they came to Mt. Sinai when God revealed His holiness and greatness.  Dr. Wiersbe writes, “When we forget the transcendence of God, we find it easier to sin.”

In 1 Peter 4:17 we read, “For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?”  The godly ones that is seen in verse five speaks of believers and we as believers are in need of judgment from God in order to have fellowship with Him, but Peter then states if the judgment begins with the godly ones then what kind of judgment will those who reject the Gospel of God.  These are sobering thoughts.

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  I like so much the last two verses of Psalm 139 which say, “23  Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: 24  And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”  There is a song called “Search Me” and it must have been inspired by these two verses.  Living in the world today with all of its technical advances makes it easier to study the Word of God for all we have to do is get onto the internet to find help, but technology can also be used of Satan to cause people to fall, even believers are tempted by the technology today and are in need of cleansing.  God loves His own so much that He cannot allow them to not confess their sins so that they can have fellowship with Him, something He desires very much.  As we look at these verses in Psalm 50 we need to take them to heart, to look inside ourselves and to ask the Holy Spirit to search our hearts so that we will have wonderful fellowship with the Lord.

             My Steps of Faith for Today:

1.     Psalm 139:23-24.

2.     Romans 12:1-2.

3.     Hebrews 4:12.

4.     Ephesians 6:10-18.

5.     Proverbs 3:5-6.

6.     Mark 14:38.

7.     Phil. 4:11b.

2/26/2012

Futility of Wealth (Psalm 49:5-20)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/25/2012 7:33:28 AM

My Worship Time                                                                  Focus:  Futility of Wealth

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 49:5-20

            Message of the verses:  At the end of his introduction we read in the last SD what Dr. Wiersbe writes:  “The writer gives us three reminders to help us keep our perspective in a world obsessed with wealth and the power it brings.”

            “Wealth Cannot Prevent Death (vv.5-12):  “5 Why should I fear in days of adversity, When the iniquity of my foes surrounds me, 6 Even those who trust in their wealth And boast in the abundance of their riches? 7  No man can by any means redeem his brother Or give to God a ransom for him- 8  For the redemption of his soul is costly, And he should cease trying forever- 9  That he should live on eternally, That he should not undergo decay. 10 For he sees that even wise men die; The stupid and the senseless alike perish And leave their wealth to others. 11 Their inner thought is that their houses are forever And their dwelling places to all generations; They have called their lands after their own names. 12 But man in his pomp will not endure; He is like the beasts that perish.”

            “5 Why should I fear when trouble comes, when enemies surround me? 6 They trust in their wealth and boast of great riches. 7 Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death by paying a ransom to God. 8 Redemption does not come so easily, for no one can ever pay enough 9 to live forever and never see the grave. 10 Those who are wise must finally die, just like the foolish and senseless, leaving all their wealth behind. 11 The grave is their eternal home, where they will stay forever. They may name their estates after themselves, 12 but their fame will not last.  They will die, just like animals.”  (NLT)

            I think that many people think that it is a sin to be wealthy, but that is not the case for we read in 1Timothy 6:10 “For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”  Jesus said these words in His Sermon on the Mount, “"But seek first His kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.’”  The problem is not the wealth, but that can be a problem for what wealth can do to a person when he tries to become wealthy. 

            The psalmist is saying that even those who are wealthy will die some day and wealth cannot redeem anyone.  Peter writes about what it took to purchase salvation, “18 knowing that you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, 19 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.”  We realize that the psalmist did not know that it would be Jesus Christ who would purchase salvation through his blood, but I think that it would be safe to say that he did realize that sacrifice and blood did have to do with the purchase of salvation because of the sacrifices in the OT that pictured what Christ would do.

            Dr. Wiersbe writes these words that are worth repeating, “It’s good to have things that money can buy, if we don’t lose the things money can’t buy. It’s sad when people start to confuse prices with values.  Jesus concluded a sermon on riches by saying ‘For what is highly esteemed among men is an abomination in the sight of God.’  (Luke 16:15, NKJV)

            I want to make a brief comment on the last phrase in verse 12 where we read, “They will die, just like animals.”  The psalmist is not writing about animals being on the same level as humans, but only that both face ultimate death and decay.

            “Wealth Will Not Determine Your Destiny” (vv. 13-15):  “13 This is the way of those who are foolish, And of those after them who approve their words. Selah. 14 As sheep they are appointed for Sheol; Death shall be their shepherd; And the upright shall rule over them in the morning, And their form shall be for Sheol to consume So that they have no habitation. 15 But God will redeem my soul from the power of Sheol, For He will receive me. Selah.”

            13 This is the fate of fools, though they are remembered as being wise.  Interlude 14 Like sheep, they are led to the grave, where death will be their shepherd. In the morning the godly will rule over them.  Their bodies will rot in the grave, far from their grand estates.15 But as for me, God will redeem my life.  He will snatch me from the power of the grave.  Interlude” (NLT)

            Dr. Wiersbe points out that the writer is talking about rich people here.  Jesus also spoke about how hard it would be for the rich to enter into heaven and the reason for this is because they trusted in their riches and loved the nice things that people would say about them because they were rich.  The Jewish people of Jesus’ day thought that riches were a blessing from God, and yet many of them did not have trouble getting rich by hurting others.  James speaks of this when he writes, “Jas 1:10 and the rich man is to glory in his humiliation, because like flowering grass he will pass away. Jas 1:11  For the sun rises with a scorching wind and withers the grass; and its flower falls off and the beauty of its appearance is destroyed; so too the rich man in the midst of his pursuits will fade away. Jas 2:5 Listen, my beloved brethren: did not God choose the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? Jas 2:6 But you have dishonored the poor man. Is it not the rich who oppress you and personally drag you into court? Jas 5:1 Come now, you rich, weep and howl for your miseries which are coming upon you.”  Now again we must remember that it is not a sin to be rich, however riches can cause a man to sin if he is trusting in his riches.

            Dr. Wiersbe writes of the believer’s death, “For the believer, death is only a valley of temporary shadows, and Jesus is the Shepherd (Psalm 23:4).  There is coming a ‘morning’ when the death in Christ will be raised and share the glory of the Lord (1Thes.4:13-18; see Ps. 16:10-11; Isa. 26:19; Dan. 12:3).  We can’t ransom someone who is about to die (vv. 7-8), but the Lord has already ransomed us from sin and the power of the grave (v. 15; 1Cor. 15:20ff).  When we die God will receive us to Himself (Ps. 73:24; 2Cor. 5:1-8; Gen. 5:24), and when Jesus returns, He will raise our bodies from the grave.  Decision for Christ, not the possession of great wealth, determines our eternal destiny.”  I have heard many times that when a person is about to be buried we never see a “U-Haul following the hearse. “A vehicle in which a coffin is carried to a funeral or a dead person is transported to a funeral home immediately after death.”

            “Wealth Must Not Increase Your Desires: (vv. 16-20):  “16 Do not be afraid when a man becomes rich, When the glory of his house is increased; 17 For when he dies he will carry nothing away; His glory will not descend after him. 18  Though while he lives he congratulates himself-And though men praise you when you do well for yourself- 19  He shall go to the generation of his father’s; They will never see the light. 20  Man in his pomp, yet without understanding, Is like the beasts that perish.”

            “16 So don’t be dismayed when the wicked grow rich and their homes become ever more splendid. 17 For when they die, they take nothing with them.  Their wealth will not follow them into the grave. 18 In this life they consider themselves fortunate and are applauded for their success. 19 But they will die like all before them and never again see the light of day. 20 People who boast of their wealth don’t understand; they will die, just like animals.”  (NLT)

            I have to say that this psalm sounds like Solomon’s book of Ecclesiastes.

            We see in verse 16 these words from the NLT “So don’t be dismayed” and this can apply to us when we see the wealthy buying bigger houses and cars, for all their wealth will be left behind when they die and ultimately lose it value.  I want to go back to something that I learned while studying the creation, especially the creation of planet earth.  I learned that it took God six days to create the earth just the way He wanted to for when He would create man.  The important thing to remember is when you look out and see the stars and this beautiful earth, when you look up at the moon and everything that God has created the only thing that will be left when God “un-creates the earth will be man, so all of the so called wealth will be destroyed, burned up as 2Peter 3:10 says, “But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.”  When we think about this then how important is wealth anyway, for it is more important to tell others how they can have eternal life through Jesus Christ for it is people who will live forever and not things.

            Dr. Wiersbe writes in conclusion to his commentary, “The writer penned this psalm so we would have understanding!  We need to understand that wealth cannot prevent death or determine our destiny, and that we must not become covetous when we see others prospering in this world.  It isn’t a sin to have wealth, provided we earned it honestly, spend it wisely and invest if faithfully in that which pleases the Lord.”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  This has been a wonderful study for me in that I did not become a believer until age 26 and during that time I had surely developed many bad habits that had to be death with, and one of them was thinking that money could solve all problems.  It was a good reminder and this psalm brings renewed perspective to me.

My Steps of Faith for Today:

1.     1Ti 6:6 “Yet true godliness with contentment is itself great wealth.”

2.     10  But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

3.     11 ¶  Since all these things are to be destroyed in this way, what sort of people ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness,

4.     12  looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be destroyed by burning, and the elements will melt with intense heat!

2/25/2012 9:16:37 AM

Certainty of Death-You Can’t Take it With You (PT-1 of Psalm 49)

SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR 2/24/2012 10:24:02 AM

My Worship Time                  Focus:  Certainty of Death-You Can’t Take it With You

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  Psalm 49:1-4

            Message of the verses:  In today’s SD we will begin to look at Psalm 49 and at the beginning of this psalm we will as usual look at a number of introductions by various people to help us understand what this psalm will teach us.

            “Title.  To the Chief Musician, a Psalm for the sons of Korah. This is precisely the same as on former occasions, and no remark is needed.

“Division. The poet musician sings, to the accompaniment of his harp, the despicable character of those who trust in their wealth, and so he consoles the oppressed believer.  The first four verses are a preface; from #Ps 49:5-12 all fear of great oppressors is removed by the remembrance of their end and their folly; #Ps 49:13 contains an expression of wonder at the perpetuity of folly; #Ps 49:14-15 contrast the ungodly and the righteous in their future; and from #Ps 49:16-20 the lesson from the whole is given in an admonitory form.  Note the chorus in #Ps 49:2,20, and also the two Selahs.”  (Charles H. Spurgeon)

“Psalm 49 deals with the most real thing about life—the certainty of death.  One of its major lessons is that ‘you really can’t take it with you.’  Containing these kinds of very practical lessons about life and death, it falls neatly into the category of a didactic (educational) or wisdom poem.  At places it sounds very much like portions of Job, Proverbs, and Ecclesiastes.  It contains warnings to the rich and famous and words of comfort for the poor.  These timeless OT messages undergird many NT passages, such as the accounts about the rich fool in Luke 12:13-21 or the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16.  After a fairly lengthy introduction the body of the psalm falls into two parts as indicated by the climaxing refrain in vv. 12 and 20.  The wisdom poet of Ps 49 developed his somber theme in two stages, focusing on death as the universal experience of all men.”  (John MacArthur’s Study Bible)

Now we come to the man that I have been reading most every day of my life since I began doing these Spiritual Diaries and that is Warren Wiersbe.  I have mentioned many times that it has been said of Warren Wiersbe that he puts the cookies on the shelf where you can reach them and I have had many “cookies” from Warren Wiersbe’s shelf in the fifteen or so years that I have been reading from his books and commentaries.

Warren Wiersbe states that the psalmist of Psalm 49 has a message for everybody in the world.  His message is for the important people and it is also for the nobodies.  It is for the rich and it is for the poor as we see in verses one and two:  “1 For the choir director. A Psalm of the sons of Korah. Hear this, all peoples; Give ear, all inhabitants of the world, 2 Both low and high, Rich and poor together.”   He goes on to talk about the word that is translated “world” which is seen in verse one.  The word is an unusual Hebrew word that means “the total human scene, the whole sphere of passing life.”  Let us look at two famous and wonderful verse from the pen of John the apostle which are found in his first letter, 1John: 2:15-17, “15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth forever.” (KJV)

Let’s us look now at verse three of Psalm 49 to see that the psalmist is speaking from his heart, “3 My mouth will speak wisdom, And the meditation of my heart will be understanding.”  Dr. Wiersbe writes “The wisdom and understanding that the Lord gave him, and he dealt with an enigma (riddle) that only the Lord could explain (v.4) ‘4 I will incline my ear to a proverb; I will express my riddle on the harp. 5 Why should I fear in days of adversity, When the iniquity of my foes surrounds me.’  The enigma was life itself and its puzzling relationship to the distribution of wealth and the power that wealth brings.  How should believers respond when they see the rich get richer?  Should they be afraid that the wealthy will abuse the poor?  Should they be impressed by the wealth that others possess and seek to imitate them?  The writer gives us three reminders to help us keep our perspective in a world obsessed with wealth and the power it brings.” 

We will begin to look at verses 5-20 in the next SD, but I think that the things that have been said about Psalm 49 so far are worth thinking about, for as we look back through the corridors of time we will see that wealth and power have been the reason for most of the wars that have been fought through the history of the world. 

How, as believers are we suppose to think about wealth in a personal way?  It took me a while to find where these three verses in the book of Proverbs were as I first thought they were in the book of Psalms.  “Proverbs 30:7 Two things I asked of You, Do not refuse me before I die: 8 Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, 9 That I not be full and deny You and say, "Who is the LORD?" Or that I not be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.”  These verses give an answer to the question that I asked at the beginning of this paragraph, for they give balance in the answer and if one reads the Bible for any length of time they will find balance in it in many areas.

            I am going to close this section of this SD with a something that a wonderful friend of mine said to me a few weeks ago that has to do with what the psalmist is talking about in Psalm 49.  My friend just turned 80 years old a few days ago and I went over to see him just for a casual visit.  He began to speak of how money and riches caused the downfall of some of the former Christian Colleges and Universities in the U. S.  He said something that I never would have thought about, but after I heard it believed it was true.  When the U. S. was a young country we had schools like Harvard and Yale that began as Christian schools.  He believes that there were wonderful Christian people on their boards, but in time as all schools go they needed more money and so they would find people that were not as faithful in their walk with the Lord, but had a great deal of money and put them on the board, and next these people would bring some of their rich friend on the board who were not believers at all and so you have the downfall of these schools, and as he said money was the cause of it.

            It goes back 125 years ago that D. L. Moody began a school in Chicago that is now called the “Moody Bible Institute.” Moody is still a strong Christian school and has been all of the days it has been in Chicago.  I believe the difference is that the school has always had strong believers on their board and strong believers as their presidents and strong believers as their teachers.  In 1974 I began to listen to one of Moody’s radio stations WCRF in Cleveland, Ohio.  I have learned many things from listening to that radio station and also visiting Moody on several occasions and I am thankful for Moody Bible Institute, I am thankful that it did not go the way of most schools that began as Christian schools and fell into the trap of money.  I believe that the first “Founder’s Week” at Moody I heard a sermon about money and the speaker was telling a story of a church or college that needed money and they went to the Lord in prayer claiming a verse in the Scriptures that said that God owned the cattle on a thousand hills.  It was a cattle rancher who was moved by the Holy Spirit to meet their needs.  Yes God owns all of the wealth on this earth and all of the planets we see, but sometimes we are like what James says, “1 What is the source of quarrels and conflicts among you? Is not the source your pleasures that wage war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have; so you commit murder. You are envious and cannot obtain; so you fight and quarrel. You do not have because you do not ask. 3 You ask and do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, so that you may spend it on your pleasures.”

            Spiritual meaning for my life today:  “  “Proverbs 30:7 Two things I asked of You, Do not refuse me before I die: 8  Keep deception and lies far from me, Give me neither poverty nor riches; Feed me with the food that is my portion, 9  That I not be full and deny You and say, "Who is the LORD?" Or that I not be in want and steal, And profane the name of my God.” 

My Steps of Faith for Today:

1.     Proverbs 30:7-9.

2.     Mark 14:38.

3.     Proverbs 3:5-6.

4.     Phil. 4:11b.

5.     Eph. 6:10-18.

6.     Romans 12:1-2.

2/24/2012 12:15:32 PM