Great Deliverer

Good morning. I'm the fifth string pastor, so I'll have you turn to Psalm 34. Psalm 34, a psalm of David. I hope this psalm can all glory to Christ I've read this psalm over and over and over and again because it feeds my soul it revives me David's purposes for this psalm were to revive the people of God to praise God for his deliverance from a king that would take his life it's not a case for pleading insanity and how he just must have marveled that God had delivered him that day.

So let's read through this psalm. I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord. Let the humble hear and be glad. O magnify the Lord with me.

Let us exalt his name together. I sought the Lord, and he answered me. He delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant. Their faces shall never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.

The angels of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good. Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack. Young lions suffer want and hunger, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Come, O children, listen to me, and I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

What man is there that desires life and loves many good days, many days, that he may see good, keep your tongue from evil, and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good, and seek peace and pursue it. The eyes of the Lord are towards the righteous and his ears towards their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil and to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their trouble. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the Christian spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all. he keeps all his bones not one of them broken affliction will slay the wicked and those who hate righteousness will be condemned the lord redeems the life of his servants none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned let's pray together father we want your purpose to be shown in this psalm as it foreshadows the gospel and foreshadows the things that you have completed and that you will do.

That these promises stand forever. That your word is complete. It prepares us, guides us, keeps us. Most importantly, it teaches us of our dependence. That you are our great deliverer. Deliverer, you are the one who holds us in your hands.

So we ask your blessing on our time in Christ's name. Amen. The great Deliverer. We all know how he's delivered us from our sin. We've experienced it. It's been something that's been dramatic. it's like turning a light on in a dark room and at times in our Christian walk we lose our first love and we need reminded and we look at this psalm it foreshadows Christ but specifically the purpose that David had for the people of God were to worship and in that worship Yes, there's promises.

And also there are things we need to hear time and time again. Because we're people that need to be instructed. People that need to be guided down this narrow path. For what? We just sang it. My glory.

For Christ's glory. I will share my glory with no other. That we're a people of God that's been brought out of darkness into this glorious light. And I don't want to lose what David's proclaiming here, but I want you to set your mind back to the people of God as they sang this song. I was almost wanting to sing it. I've heard guys sing it. there's a Christian Shane and Shane it's a beautiful song because it's very instructional we need instruction do we not as God brings us together so let's just walk our way through this psalm and see it affirms things in our hearts as well as instructs us I will bless the Lord at all times His praise shall continually be in my mouth My soul makes its boast in the Lord Let the humble hear and be glad Oh, magnify the Lord with me.

Let us exalt his name together. He calls the people of God to this rejoicing that God has done, not only in David's life, but as corporately, as we think of the church and the bride of Christ, We go through things individually, but corporately we come together and say, yes, bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. And the beauty of this is that we can do this completely in Christ because he he cleanses our conscience as we confess every Sunday. and we come before Him, we remember the glorious gospel.

And we can make our boast in the Lord completely because of what He's done. We know He's humbled us. Let the humble hear. Those are the ones that God has called out. They are vessels of His grace. Even the people of God of old, as David, they sang, these are people that God set apart for His glory. he said let us let us worship together let us exalt his name together and then he goes to this this a confession i sought the lord and he answers me he delivered me from all my fears those who look to him are radiant their faces shall never be ashamed and if i can step through the each step as we go through this and make it real personal.

He hears the cry of the brokenhearted. He heard our cry. We saw the glory of Christ. He changed our heart of stone into a heart of flesh. He answered that. As we read in Isaiah, this is a promise to us, a reminder to us that He heard our cry, but this is a promise to the brokenhearted in our world.

As we minister to the lost, and maybe some of you here today are just, you know, I'm not there yet. I'm not there yet. Know that He's a God that answers that prayer as you seek and call out to Him. Those who look to Him are radiant. Their faces shall never be ashamed. That goes clear back to the fall, doesn't it?

There was shame on Adam and Eve as God said, where are you, Adam, in the garden? and he knew where he was. There's shame in any of our lives if we haven't came to Christ and realized what He does. He removed that shame. I think of Moses coming down from the mountain. He'd been in the glory of God and the radiance off of His face. What that must have looked like.

We have much more in our day, in our age, than even David had. He says, this poor man cried and the Lord heard him. He saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the Lord encamps around all those who fear him and delivers them. We all have many troubles. there's troubles each and every day in our lives some not too hard some real hard some that just devastate to a point but do we understand that he is our deliverer he's not going to remove that as we ask it it's going to do his set purposes I was thinking of 2nd Corinthians and the last of it and just stay where you're at I'll just read this because it's a reminder of how we carry this we carry this the weight of our life but God's doing something much greater we do not lose heart though our outer self is wasting away our inner self is being renewed day by day for this light momentary affliction is preparing for us eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison as we look not to the things that are seen but the things that are unseen for the things that are seen are transient but the things that are unseen are eternal there's a process that's going on people of God that is transforming us more and more in the likeness of our risen King.

And we can't see it. I think when pain hits, it's just like, uh. When tragedy hits, it's just, you're numb. We've all been there. We've lost loved ones. We've had sickness.

We have to understand this one thing, that God is in the midst of it. He orchestrates our life in ways that only He can do. Things we can understand but we know He is our deliverer That He has something much greater on the other side for us In the midst of it all how can we glorify His name Do we understand He is our Deliverer? He is the one who is going to take us through, because the perseverance of the saints is the glory of Christ. go on in verse 8 O taste and see the Lord is good blesses the man who takes refuge in him you get this what Andrew's been going through the Psalms this blessedness of the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked nor stand in the way of sinners but his delight is in the law of the Lord and on his law he meditates day and night.

He's taken the word of God and he's let it ease into his very soul that his thoughts are dictated by what he's taken in. He's humbled because God has brought him to this place. I imagine David in that. He goes, I'm going to die. I'm in the land of Philistines. I took Goliath.

I'm going to die. so he did the thing that he thought outside the box didn't he but God delivered him God had a long term plan didn't he David's going to pen these words for my glory and the people of God will sing and rejoice not just for David but that each and every one are vessels of his grace and they have tasted and savored the Lord. The blessings of the Lord. When you say taste and see the Lord is good, this is powerful.

It gets you thinking. We get this description in Ephesians 1. Turn there if you will. Ephesians 1. he brings to mind of this great love that we live in. Verse 7 in Ephesians 1 In him we have redemption through his blood the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of his grace which he lavished upon us in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of His will.

We had no clue what Christ could do before He changed our heart. And we saw this mystery of His will. And we saw His church. And there was such beauty. We saw Christ. because the bride of Christ, as imperfect as it is, is loving and faithful and steadfast. And when unfaithful, we forgive one another and we find this savoring of God's people and we go, yes, yes.

Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Blessed. we are in a blessed state brethren this should burden us I feel it doesn't burden me as much our co-workers are people we know that are outside of Christ I fear I don't fear it enough. Forgive me, but there's areas in my heart that the Lord has to continually work. We get too busy. We taste and see the Lord is good.

It should put a burden on our heart for our lost loved ones. It should put a burden on our hearts for those that we pass by. Oh, maybe we're kind and we don't step out in an act of faith and say, you know, I need to pursue them for Christ's glory. We're in our haven of blessedness. What purpose? the purposes for showing the glory of God. As the people of God sang this song, they were reminded of what God continually does.

O fear the Lord, you His saints, those who fear Him, have no lack. You'll all be provided. Young lions suffer and hunger, those who seek the Lord lack no good thing. Young lions don't know where to get their food yet. The adults in the group have to show them where the food is. We have no lack.

Or we get discontented in things because it doesn't go our way. we need deliverance from these because if we don't deal with these issues and this is where he goes on here and it almost like Solomon writing it Solomon was David son he says in the air desires life and love many days that he may see good Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit. Turn away from evil and do good. Seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the Lord are towards the righteous, his ears towards their cry. The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves the Christian spirit. Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him from them all.

Why are we shocked when trouble comes upon us? sometimes we he tells us in his word he tells us in the word if we are reminded of what we read in Romans that we are more than conquerors it doesn't look like we are conquerors does it? in the world we live in where the pride go about the proud go about and make their proclamations of foolishness and deceit. We don't think we move very fast in the things of the kingdom. But God doesn't work that way.

God works in a gentle and humble spirit, dealing with people not how they deserve, but with kindness, with words that lift up and build up and have possibility to meet them where they're at. He again affirms this near to the brokenhearted and saves the Christian spirit. What Christ is your spirit? Well, if you have the Holy Spirit, you have the desire in your heart of the blessedness that Christ said in the Sermon on the Mount, blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall be filled.

Blessed are the merciful. I've got to turn there. I can't mess up the Lord's Sermon. Amen. These things come in mind as the Scriptures all meet together, don't they? This foreshadowing of Christ, we see it in the old, the completeness we have.

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are those who mourn. They shall be comforted. see there's promise in all these lacking areas that we have and Christ speaks this in the Sermon on the Mount he's preparing the people to know that he is he is the one that has been prophesied about he's going to show them their sin he's shown them the blessed state and the blessed state is knowing I can't do it without my Deliverer.

My Deliverer, my Jesus Christ, is my Lord. I'm not pure in heart, but in Christ I am. And we'll see God. Blessed are the merciful, they shall receive mercy. Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, they shall be satisfied. All these things are completed in Christ.

So we have much more than David had. David was a type of Savior for the people of Israel. We have the complete Savior that we live in the midst of. We're all going to have trouble this week. That's encouraging. Thanks.

Thanks. There's pain, there's sickness. It's all around us. But He strengthens us for who He is. His words are secure. His promises are secure.

There's nothing going to move God's promises. Just think about that. When he says he's close to the broken heart and you're hurting, he's close to you. Well, you don't feel like it. Well, feelings isn't that. It's faith.

Faith endures. Faith looks at Christ and goes, you endured everything for worthless sinners. yeah there wasn't anything that would draw but he purchased the people that day didn't he and it's a finished work he delivers them from them all we see a glimpse of after the crucifixion he keeps all his bones not one of them broken it's a prophecy in the middle of the Psalms affliction will slay the wicked and those who hate the righteous will be condemned those who hate us will be condemned but we're still called to love them we're to love our enemy it's a powerful thing it's a supernatural thing we can't do it by our oh I'm just going to love my enemy no Christ does God the Father shows that he sends the rain on the unrighteous as well as the righteous we're not really righteous Christ makes us righteous because all of us couldn't sit in here if we wore sin on our shoulder could we We're imperfect, but God doesn't call the perfect. The proud, he says, I didn't come for the proud.

I came for the sick. And we were sick of sin, weren't we? We need to be reminded of these things. This psalm has always impermanent in me, just the glory of Christ. There's a lot of practical things that we can learn from. our blessed state what should we do we were always teaching our kids seek peace and pursue it as they're beating their brothers and sisters when you have families you're toughest on the ones you love teach your children to seek this peace and pursue it we want deliverance don't we we want deliverance it's coming it's coming but not in our timing in God's set timing as we persevere through life as we understand as David pinned this with the Holy Spirit's inspiration it's just a beautiful thing because God was giving it to us and it's for our instruction.

I love the Psalms. I wish I could sing it. I'll do it on my own. But I know there's things in our life that we need deliverance from. I know there's personal sins and those deep deep areas You know it like I know pride still in my heart I know that I need to be more loving to the unbelieving world That, you know, when I watch the news and people make no sense, I've got to realize that they're lost in their sin.

If I hold the Word of God up and it doesn't match, it should disturb us. but how can we in this area of ours there's a guy on Fox at Walters World he goes this is my world well we all have that has anybody ever seen that Jesse Walters he goes this is my world well we all have these areas in our life that that we say okay I can't do much across the world we can do things like in Jordan and support our mission but what can I do right here? What can I do right here? Well, I'm going to meet some people today, maybe business or pleasure or just relationships.

You know, I'm going to pursue that by praying, being faithful to the Lord in this and say, Lord, open the door that they would see the glory of Christ in my kindness, in my actions, in my words. May truth come through everything I do. the Lord will complete this task. You know, when we think of the consummation and we go to Revelations and we see that promise, which, you know, there'll be a new earth.

I've got to find it first. and slip us in. Then I saw a new heaven and new earth And the first heaven and the first earth had passed away The sea was no more, and I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, behold the dwelling place of God is with man and he will dwell with them and they will be his people and God himself will be with them as their God he will wipe away every tear from their eyes and death shall be no more neither shall there be mourning nor crying nor pain or any more for the former things have passed away if we can look ahead by faith and just...

We can't even imagine it. As the unexpected things come in your life these coming days and weeks, prepare yourself and guard yourself. Put that, you know, what Paul says in Ephesians, that belt of truth around you. Be ready. Be ready. Be faithful.

Be faithful to your family. Faithful to the church. And we will be a people set for His glory. Why? Because He is the one that has done it all. and He will not share His glory with any other. You think the world in all its decorations is anything We have no clue what the glory of the Lord will be like he gives us little tidbits as we taste as we savor in our communion table as we see lives transformed and baptized these are just tastes as we fellowship with one another and we know God is with us.

These are all things that should satisfy us in a way. And if they don't, we should confess, Lord, I'm cold hearted. I'm cold hearted. If I don't love the brethren, I don't love God. Guard your heart. It's a wellspring of your life.

Seek one another. Be with one another. That's the community of believers. Learn one another. If you don't know somebody in the body, learn them. Give them a call.

Say, hey, I've never really talked to you. You know? May God be ever praised. Let's pray. Father, we're thankful for Your Word that revives our soul, Father. thank you for this guiding me loving me and I see this body of Christ that you are so faithful to Father I praise you I praise you and bless you at all times because you are worthy of our praise Father you deserve so much more may we continually lift you up in all we do in Christ Jesus name Amen Thank you.