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2009 Spring Conference in Stuttgart, Germany - Audio Files For access the audio files, email: info@churchinfountainvalley.org.
The Unsearchable Riches of Christ (Psalms Book Five – Psa. 135 to 150)
THE CONSUMMATION
I. Exhortation to praise and to give thanks to the LORD based on past experiences (Psalms 135-136)
A. Psalm 135 – A call to praise and to bless the LORD 1. To the servants who stand in the house of God (vv. 1-2; Psa. 134:1-2) 2. For His goodness in His sovereign election (vv. 3-4; Ephesians chapter 1; 1 Pet. 2:9-10) 3. For His greatness manifested in His creation (vv. 5-7; Psa.148:1; 96:4; 99:2; 145:3; Rom. 1:20; John 1:1-4; Col. 1:15-17) 4. For His mighty deeds (vv. 8-18) a. Saving His people out of Egypt with signs and wonders (vv. 8-9; Exo. 9:14-16) b. Smiting mighty kings and many nations – Sihon & Og (vv. 10-11; Num. 21:21-26; 33-35; Deut. 3:11; Eph. 6:10-13) c. Giving the promised land to His people as a heritage (v. 12; Col. 1:12-13; 2:6-7) d. His faithfulness, judgment, and compassion (vv. 13-14; Deut. 32) e. Eliminating all the idols (vv. 15-18) 5. Bless the LORD from Zion (vv. 19-21; Psa. 115:9-11; 118:2-4) a. The household of Israel, of Aaron, and of Levi b. The ones who fear the LORD c. The LORD, who dwells in Jerusalem
B. Psalm 136 – Thanksgiving to the LORD for His everlasting loving-kindness 1. Giving thanks to the living God who is the God of gods and the Lord of lords (vv. 1-3) 2. For His great power and wisdom manifested in His wonderful creation (vv. 4-9) 3. For redeeming His people out of Egypt into the good land (vv. 10-22; Deut. 4:34; 7: 21; 11:2-7) 4. For His mercy and compassion (23-26)
II. Maturing through experience (Psalms 137 to 139)
A. Psalm 137 – Being absolute for Zion (Psa. 69:9; Zech. 1:14; 8:2) 1. Reminiscing the negative experience of Babylon (vv. 1-3) a. The tower of Babel (Gen. 11:1-9) – signifying confusion, division, dispersion, mixture, and idolatry b. The captivity (Psa. 126; Isa. 15:7) c. Babylon the Great (Rev. 17:1-6, 9, 15,18) 2. The faithfulness to Jerusalem (vv. 4-6; Psa. 48:1-2; 132:13-14; Isa. 62:1-7) a. The choice of the Lord (Deut. 12:5; Ps. 132:13-14) b. The unique ground of oneness (Ps. 133; 1 Cor. 1:10; 12:25a; Eph. 4:3-6, 13) c. For the building up of God’s house (1. Tim. 3:15-16) d. The heavenly Jerusalem in the New Testament age (Gal. 4:21-31; Heb. 11:10; 12:22-23; Rev. Chapter 21) 3. Reminding the LORD to judge Edom and Babylon (vv. 7-9; Obadiah; Isa. Ch.13; Rev. 14:8; 16:19; Ch.17-18; 19:1-3; Psa. 74, 79) a. The sons of Edom – the descendants of Esau, the brother of Jacob (Rom. 9:13; Mal. 1:2-4; Obadiah; Isa. 34:5-10) b. The daughter of Babylon (Isa. 47:1; Rev. 14:8; 16:19b; 18:1-7, 18-24; 17:16-17)
B. Psalm 138 – Gaining confidence in the living God 1. Giving thanks with all our hearts (vv. 1-3) 2. Singing praises to God before the gods (Psa. 97:7; 136:2; 1 Sam. Ch. 5) 3. Worshipping with reverence and thanksgiving toward the holy temple a. For His loving-kindness and truth b. For magnifying His word on behalf of His name c. For answering prayers d. For His strengthening 4. Having a clear view of the coming age (vv. 4-7; Psa. 72: 7-11; Zech. 8:20-23; Isa. 60:3-5; Rev. 11:15; 21:24) a. All the kings of the earths shall praise the LORD b. They will sing of the ways of the LORD c. They will behold the glory and the exaltation of the LORD · Who regards the lowly (Psa. 10:17; 25:9; 136:23; 149:4; 1 Pet. 5:5) · Who resists the proud (Psa. 18:27; 101:5; 147:6; James 4:6) 5. Having absolute trust in the loving-kindness of the Lord (vv. 7-8) a. To save us to the uttermost from our enemies b. To perfect His work in us (Phil. 1:6)
C. Psalm 139 – Attaining to the excellence of the knowledge of the living God 1. His omniscience (vv.1-6) 2. His omnipresence (vv. 7-12) 3. His omnipotence in His creation (vv. 13-16) 4. The treasure of His divine wisdom and knowledge (vv. 17-18) 5. Being fully one with God’s judgment (vv. 19-22) 6. Being fully transparent to God (vv.23-24) 7. Walking in the everlasting way
III. Psalms 140 to 145 – Offering up incense to God through unceasing prayers (Rev. 5:8; 8:3-5; Luke 1:8-10)
A. Psalm 140 – Praying for deliverance and preservation 1. From evil, violent, wicked, and proud men (vv. 1-5) 2. Experiencing God as the strength of salvation (vv. 6-8) 3. Praying for judgment against the enemies (vv. 9-11) 4. Knowing the LORD and living in His presence
B. Psalm 141 – Offering up incense for God’s enjoyment 1. Incense – the sweet savor of Christ offered up to God (vv.1-4) a. The compound of the incense (Exo. 30:34-38) b. The golden censers – the prayers of the saints (Rev. 5:8; 8:3-5; Luke 1:8-10) c. The golden incense altar (Exo. 3:1-10; Heb. 9:3; Rev. 8:3) 2. Setting a guard over the lips and the heart (vv. 3-5; Prov. 4:23) a. From the defilement within (Matt. 12:34; Luke 6:45) b. From the evil things without c. Willingness to accept reproof d. Faithfulness to God in prayer 3. Judgment for the wicked and salvation for the faithful (vv. 6-10)
C. Psalm 142 – Experiencing the living LORD as the only help in time of trouble (a maskil)
D. Psalm 143 – Praying with a humble desire to know the living God 1. Appealing to the faithfulness and righteousness of God for deliverance (vv. 1-6) a. Not based upon our own righteousness (v. 2)Rom. 3:20; Job 15:14-16) b. The vicious attack of the enemy (vv. 3-4) c. Reminiscing the past experiences for comfort and strength (vv. 5-6) 2. Crying out to the Lord for a speedy rely (vv. 7-12) a. Desiring to hear His speaking b. Desiring to be taught by Him – to know His way and to do His will c. Desiring to be led by His Spirit d. Desiring to glorify Him
E. Psalm 144 – Blessing and worshipping the living LORD who answered the prayers 1. Subjective enjoyment of the LORD as the Almighty One (vv. 1-2; Psa. 18:2) 2. Humbling oneself before God (vv. 3-4) 3. Commanding the LORD to come down and destroy His enemies (vv. 5-8) 4. Singing a new song unto the living God for His deliverance (vv. 9-11) 5. The blessings of those, whose God is the Lord (vv. 12-15; Ps. 33:12)
F. Psalm 145 – The praises of the saints offered up as the rich incense for God’s enjoyment and glory (in alphabetical order in Hebrew, in which only the letter “נְ” is omitted) 1. His greatness and awesome acts (vv. 1-7) 2. His loving-kindness and mercy and the glory of His kingdom (vv. 8-13) 3. His righteousness and faithfulness to all of His creation (vv. 14-21)
IV. Psalms 146 to 150 – The universal and unending praise to the LORD God for the fulfillment of His eternal purpose (Rev. 4:2, 9-11; 5:11-14; 7:9-12; 11:15-18; 12:10; 14:1-3; 15:1-4; 19:1-9)
A. Psalm 146 – Praising the Lord God, Who reigns forever (Luke 1:31-33; Rom. 15:12; Rev. 11:15; 19:11-16) 1. From Zion 2. He is our only help 3. He is the faithful one 4. He will judge the wicked
B. Psalm 147 – Praising God for building up Jerusalem, the City of God (Gal. 4:25-31; Heb. 11:8-10; 12:22-24; Rev. 3:12 1. Gathering all the outcasts and the scattered ones (vv. 1-6) 2. The restoration of all things (vv. 7-11) 3. The glory of the city (vv. 12-20)
C. Psalm 148 – The whole creation praising God for the manifestation of the glory of the sons of God (Rom. 8:19-21)
D. Psalm 149 – The praises of the godly ones, reigning with the LORD over the nations (Rev. 5:10; 20:4)
E. Psalm 150 – Let everything that has breath, praise the LORD!
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