Thursday
Evening Bible Study
January
19, 2017
Introduction
Do people see Jesus? Is the gospel
preached? Does it address the person who is: Empty, lonely, guilty, or afraid
to die? Does it speak to the broken
hearted? Does it build up the church? Milk – Meat – Manna Preach for a decision
Is the church loved? Target 3300 words
Video = 75 wpm
The English word psalm comes
from a Greek word that means “a poem sung to musical accompaniment”, or in
particular, “stringed instruments”.
The Hebrew name is tehillim,
which means “praises.”
Tonight I want to try to do what we did last week and leave room for
questions and discussion at the end of each Psalm.
The book of Psalms is the hymnbook of God’s people.
It’s also the “Him” book as well. It’s all about Jesus.
The writer of Hebrews quotes from
Psalm 40:8 when he writes,
(Hebrews 10:7 NKJV) Then I
said, ‘Behold, I have come— In the
volume of the book it is written of Me— To do Your will, O God.’ ”
The author was talking about Jesus.
We’re going to see a lot of Jesus
in the Psalms.
Soul Music
Music touches the soul. It’s
“soulish” in nature. It touches the emotions.
We’re going to find every kind of
emotion possible expressed in the Psalms.
For every sigh there is a Psalm.
For most of us, this is what makes
the Psalms so wonderful. We can identify. We can relate.
If we were honest, even darkest
most depressing Psalms describe the very things we go through day by day.
It is my prayer that as we continue
on this journey through the Psalms, we won’t just look at these songs
academically, with our mind, but that we may also grow as worshippers.
For most of us, this is what makes
the Psalms so wonderful. We can identify. We can relate.
If we were honest, even darkest
most depressing Psalms describe the very things we go through day by day.
It is my prayer that as we continue
on this journey through the Psalms, we won’t just look at these songs
academically, with our mind, but that we may also grow as worshippers.
Psalm 107 – That men would give thanks
There is a structure to this Psalm.
It will break down into five sections.
Each section (except for the very last one) has the following phrase as
the second to last verse:
(Psalm 107:8 NKJV) Oh, that men
would give thanks to the Lord for
His goodness, And for
His wonderful works to the children of men!
Then this is followed by either something that adds to this sentiment, or a
summary of the previous section.
:1-9 Section 1
:1 Oh, give thanks to the Lord,
for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.
good – towb
– good, pleasant, agreeable
mercy – checed
– goodness, kindness, faithfulness
:2 Let the redeemed of the Lord
say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
:3 And gathered out of the lands, From the east and from the west, From the
north and from the south.
:4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to
dwell in.
:5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them.
:6 Then they cried out to the Lord
in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses.
:7 And He led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a city for
a dwelling place.
:4 They wandered in the wilderness
In some of the previous Psalms, the writer gives specific, historical
examples.
This psalm is much more vague.
It could be talking about Israel wandering in the wilderness after coming
out of Egypt, but it is just vague enough that it could also be talking about
the people being scattered by the Assyrians or the Babylonians.
Instead of looking to a specific historical moment, the psalmist makes you
think about your own life.
These are principles for all of us.
:8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
goodness – checed
– goodness, kindness, faithfulness
wonderful – pala’
– to be marvelous, be wonderful, be surpassing, be extraordinary, separate
by distinguishing action; to be beyond one’s power, be difficult to do
:8 that men would give thanks
Here is that “refrain” or “chorus” that repeats near the end of each
section.
It is often followed by one more verse that either adds to the idea of
giving thanks, or summarizes the previous section and reminds us what we should
give thanks for.
:9 For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with
goodness.
:9 fills the hungry soul with goodness
Lesson
He satisfies the hungry
goodness – towb – good,
pleasant, agreeable
The word for “goodness” (towb) is
the same word translated “good” in vs. 1, “For He is good”.
When God satisfies the longing soul, the hungry soul, He satisfies them
with something better than food.
He satisfies them with Himself.
If you are looking to fill that inner craving inside you with things,
people, or experiences, you are still going to be craving for something more.
I’ve been on my diet now for almost two weeks.
On just about any diet you go on, you will experience
hunger, at least for a day or so, until your body adjusts.
You have to adjust your thinking and examine what you are
longing for.
After Jesus fed the five thousand
with just a few loaves and fish, He said,
(John 6:26–27 NKJV) —26 Jesus
answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because
you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which
endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God
the Father has set His seal on Him.”
Too often we are
looking to “food which perishes” to satisfy our cravings.
Jesus said,
(John 6:35 NKJV) And Jesus
said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger,
and he who believes in Me shall never thirst.
Just how much are you expecting Jesus to be the One that
satisfies your soul?
Illustration
Malcolm Muggeridge (1903-1990), a famous journalist who found Jesus wrote:
I may, I suppose, regard myself, or pass for being, a relatively successful
man. People occasionally stare at me in the streets—that’s fame.
I can fairly easily earn enough to qualify for admission to the higher
slopes of the Internal Revenue—that’s success.
Furnished with money and little fame even the elderly, if they care to, may
partake of trendy diversions—that’s pleasure.
It might happen once in a while that something I said or wrote was
sufficiently heeded for me to persuade myself that it represented a serious
impact on our time—that’s fulfillment.
Yet I say to you and I beg you to believe me. Multiply these tiny triumphs
by a million, add them all together, and they are nothing less than nothing; a positive
impediment measured against one draught of that living water Christ offers to
the spiritually thirsty, irrespective of who or what they are.
-- Malcolm Muggeridge, Jesus Rediscovered, p. 61.
Some people are looking to fill that emptiness inside by trying to change
their outside, so people will like them more.
I think that until we get to the point where we truly understand what it
means to let Jesus satisfy our souls, we will continue to go down unhealthy
paths.
:10-16 Section 2
:10 Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Bound in
affliction and irons—
:11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the
counsel of the Most High,
:12 Therefore He brought down their heart with labor; They fell down, and there
was none to help.
:10 Bound in affliction and irons
Some suggest this is speaking of the Babylonian captivity, but it’s vague
enough to fit much of Israel’s history.
Throughout the time of the judges, when the people strayed from God, He
would allow them to go through difficult times until they woke up and repented
and sought God’s help.
:13 Then they cried out to the Lord
in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses.
:14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke
their chains in pieces.
:15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
:16 For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two.
:16 He has broken the gates of bronze
Isaiah used this same language to speak of the day when the captives in
Babylon would be set free as King Cyrus conquered Babylon.
(Isaiah 45:2 NKJV) ‘I will go
before you And make the
crooked places straight; I will break in pieces the gates of bronze And cut the
bars of iron.
The Psalmist is telling us that God does this exact thing for His people.
Lesson
He sets captives free
One of the greatest adversaries that can put us into bondage is sin.
Paul wrote that Jesus’ death on the cross ought to impact our lives and the
bondage we can be in with sin. We can
identify with Jesus’ death in such a way that it sets us free from the slavery,
the “have to”, of sin.
(Romans 6:6 NKJV) knowing
this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin
might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.
The practical way this affects us has to do with who we “present” ourselves
to.
(Romans 6:12–13
NKJV) —12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should
obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of
unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the
dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
In a way, life is like a dance. I
don’t know anything about this movie I’m going to show you a clip of, but it
paints a picture I want you to see.
The Bible says that we are the Bride and Jesus is the
Groom…
The question is, who is your partner in the dance of life?
As the Bride of Christ, you have a Groom who loves you
very much.
Will you dance with Him, or dance with sin?
When you dance with Him, He sets captives free.
You may not know the steps, but He’ll show you.
:17-22 Section 3
:17 Fools, because of their transgression, And because of their iniquities,
were afflicted.
:18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food, And they drew near to the gates
of death.
:19 Then they cried out to the Lord
in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses.
:20 He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their
destructions.
:21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
:22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His
works with rejoicing.
:19 they cried out to the Lord
in their trouble
This is the third time the psalmist has used this phrase. He will use it once more in the next section.
Lesson
He saves sinners
Salvation isn’t just about being saved from hell, but being saved from
difficulties.
When we cry to God for help, what have we done to deserve His help?
It’s because of His great mercy that He delivers us.
It’s not because we deserve it.
One of the ways God saves us is:
(Psalm 107:20 NKJV)
He
sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions.
We see an example in the life of Jesus:
(Matthew 8:5–10
NKJV) —5 Now when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him,
pleading with Him, 6 saying, “Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully
tormented.” 7 And Jesus
said to him, “I will come and heal him.” 8 The centurion answered and said, “Lord, I am not worthy that You
should come under my roof. But only speak a word, and my servant will be
healed. 9 For I also
am a man under authority, having soldiers under me. And I say to this one,
‘Go,’ and he goes; and to another, ‘Come,’ and he comes; and to my servant, ‘Do
this,’ and he does it.” 10 When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who
followed, “Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even
in Israel!
The centurion knew that all Jesus needed to do was “speak
the word”, and the servant would be healed.
That’s all it takes from Jesus, just a word.
For God to heal a specific issue in our life, all we need
is for Him to say the word. If God is
willing, we will be healed.
Sometimes God “sends His word” through the Scriptures.
We find healing in His Word.
Sometimes we have bad stuff in our lives that need to be
removed. We need someone skilled with a
scalpel to cut away the cancerous tumors:
(Hebrews
4:12 NKJV) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than
any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of
joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
Sometimes we feel like we’re going to wither away in our difficult
time. We need refreshing. We need comfort.
(Psalm
119:50 NKJV) This is my comfort in my affliction, For Your
word has given me life.
Sometimes we need direction in our life.
(Psalm
119:105 NKJV) Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.
Ask Him to “send His word”
:23-32 Section 4
:23 Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters,
:24 They see the works of the Lord,
And His wonders in the deep.
:23 who go down to the sea in ships
Think of the ancient mariners.
Sailing the oceans in ancient times was a dangerous occupation.
Their lives were more at risk of the elements than any other profession.
:25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of
the sea.
:26 They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their
soul melts because of trouble.
:27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their
wits’ end.
:28 Then they cry out to the Lord
in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses.
:29 He calms the storm, So that its waves are still.
:30 Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their
desired haven.
:31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful
works to the children of men!
:32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him
in the company of the elders.
:29 He calms the storm
Lesson
Storm watch
Some of this language reminds me of Jonah.
Running away from God, the ship he was on hit a storm. When the sailors realized the storm was
because of Jonah, they threw him overboard, and the storm stopped.
Some of this reminds me of what Jesus would do when His disciples were out
on the Sea of Galilee and a storm came.
He came to them walking on the water.
(Matthew 14:32–33
NKJV) —32 And when they got into the boat, the wind ceased. 33 Then those
who were in the boat came and worshiped Him, saying, “Truly You are the Son of
God.”
John adds to the story at the end,
(John
6:21 NKJV) Then they willingly received Him into the boat, and immediately the
boat was at the land where they were going.
Our God is over the wind and the waves.
I like the line in the song we sing (“It Is Well”),
“The waves and wind still know His name”.
Sometimes He may calm the actual circumstances we are going through.
Sometimes He simply calms our hearts.
I think the most important thing is to be sure He’s in your boat.
:33-43 Section 5
The Psalmist now gives us a summary, wrap-up with lots of ways that God
works.
:33 He turns rivers into a wilderness, And the watersprings into dry
ground;
:34 A fruitful land into barrenness, For the wickedness of those who dwell
in it.
God can take a fruitful land and make it a desert when the people are
living in wickedness.
:35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water, And dry land into
watersprings.
:36 There He makes the hungry dwell, That they may establish a city for a
dwelling place,
:37 And sow fields and plant vineyards, That they may yield a fruitful
harvest.
:38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly; And He does not let
their cattle decrease.
God can take a desert wilderness and make it fruitful.
:39 When they are diminished and brought low Through oppression, affliction
and sorrow,
:40 He pours contempt on princes, And causes them to wander in the
wilderness where there is no way;
:41 Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction, And makes their
families like a flock.
God can work in the affairs of men to help those who are afflicted.
He can make the leaders who afflict people to wander in a wilderness.
:42 The righteous see it and rejoice, And all iniquity stops its
mouth.
:43 Whoever is wise will observe these things, And they will
understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.
:43 they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord
lovingkindness – checed – goodness,
kindness, faithfulness
This is the same word in verse 1:
(Psalm 107:1 NKJV) Oh, give
thanks to the Lord, for He is
good! For His mercy
endures forever.
Lesson
Understand mercy
This section has been different
from the others.
There’s no mention of “crying to
the Lord”
There’s no encouragement to “give
thanks”
This is the wrap up summary of everything else.
If you’re understood the first four sections, then the lesson we need to
understand is that our God is a God of mercy.
I think that understanding God’s “mercy” ought to impact the way we treat
others.
The prophet Hosea spoke for God saying,
(Hosea 6:6 NKJV) For I desire
mercy and not sacrifice, And the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings.
It’s the same word, checed.
Hosea’s line was a favorite verse with Jesus.
He used it when He was condemned by the Pharisees for
eating with sinners. He applied it to
our relationships with others.
(Matthew
9:12–13 NKJV) —12 When Jesus heard that, He said to them, “Those who are well
have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. 13 But go and
learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy and not sacrifice.’ For I
did not come to call the righteous, but sinners, to repentance.”
(see also Mat. 12:7)
He also used it
when His disciples were criticized for plucking grain to eat on the Sabbath:
(Matthew 12:7 NKJV) —7 But if you had known what this means, ‘I desire mercy
and not sacrifice,’ you would not have condemned the guiltless.
All the ways God works in our life are because of His mercy.
God’s desire is that we “learn” His mercy and share His mercy.
Discussion? Questions? Things that challenged you?
Psalm 108 Praise & Deliverance
: A Song. A Psalm of David.
A Psalm of David
What makes this psalm interesting is made up of parts of two psalms put
together.
Today we’d call that a “mashup”
Verses 1-5 are very close to being identical as Psalm 57:7-11
Psalm 57 was written when David was hiding in a cave as he ran from
Saul. This was at an earlier part of
David’s life.
Verses 6-13 are the same as Psalm 60:5-12
Psalm 60 was written during the time when David and Joab were expanding the
kingdom of Israel and dealing with the enemies at
their borders. This was later in David’s
life.
It’s kind of like a worship leader putting the verse of one song with the
chorus of another complimentary song.
108:1-5 Praise
This is the section that comes from Psalm 57:7-11
(Psalm 57:7–11 NKJV) —7 My heart
is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise. 8 Awake, my
glory! Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn. 9 I will
praise You, O Lord, among the peoples; I will
sing to You among the nations. 10 For Your
mercy reaches unto the heavens, And Your
truth unto the clouds. 11 Be
exalted, O God, above the heavens; Let Your glory be above all the earth.
:1 O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and give praise, even with my
glory.
:1 give praise, even with my glory
What does this mean?
(Psalm 108:1 The
Message) I’m ready, God, so ready, ready from head to toe.
(Psalm 108:1 ESV) …I will sing
and make melody with all my being!
(Psalm 108:1 NLT) …no wonder
I can sing your praises with all my heart!
glory – kabowd – glory,
honor, glorious, abundance
Our “glory” comes when we get attention for something, when people honor us
for something we’ve done.
When I get attention for something, I rather prefer to enjoy it for a
while. It feels good, doesn’t it?
Yet for David, he would rather take what glory people would give him and
turn it to praise God with.
:2 Awake, lute and harp! I will awaken the dawn.
David is talking about waking up early to praise God.
:3 I will praise You, O Lord,
among the peoples, And I will sing praises to You among the nations.
:4 For Your mercy is great above the heavens, And Your truth reaches
to the clouds.
:5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens, And Your glory above all the
earth;
:4 Your mercy is great above the heavens
mercy – checed – goodness,
kindness, faithfulness
This is akin to the New Testament word for “grace” (charis)
This is the reason why David can praise Yahweh among the nations (vs. 3)
108:6-13 Deliverance
This is the section that comes from Psalm 60:5-12
(Psalm 60:5–12 NKJV) —5 That Your
beloved may be delivered, Save with
Your right hand, and hear me. 6 God has
spoken in His holiness: “I will
rejoice; I will divide Shechem And measure out the Valley of Succoth. 7 Gilead is Mine, and Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is the helmet for My head; Judah is My lawgiver. 8 Moab is
My washpot; Over Edom I will cast
My shoe; Philistia, shout in
triumph because of Me.” 9 Who will
bring me to the strong city? Who will
lead me to Edom? 10 Is it not You, O God, who cast us off? And You, O God, who did not go out with our armies? 11
Give us help from trouble, For the help of man is useless. 12
Through God we will do valiantly, For it is He who shall tread down our enemies.
:6 That Your beloved may be delivered, Save with Your right hand,
and hear me.
:6 That Your beloved may be delivered
beloved – y@diyd – one
beloved, beloved.
This is related to the word that David’s name was based on. David’s name means “beloved”.
Here, the word is in the plural, talking about God’s people who are
beloved.
David is asking God to help the nation.
:7 God has spoken in His holiness: “I will rejoice; I will divide Shechem
And measure out the Valley of Succoth.
:7 I will divide Shechem … Succoth
Video: Shechem and Succoth map clip
Shechem is a city in the center of the nation of Israel.
Succoth is twenty miles east of Shechem, just across the Jordan River.
The patriarch Jacob lived in both places.
When he brought his family back from Uncle Laban’s, he lived in Succoth for
awhile after meeting with his brother Esau.
The next place he moved to was Shechem, where he bought a piece of land.
divide – chalaq – share,
allot, assign
God is not speaking about splitting up Shechem, but the idea is giving out
an inheritance, giving the land back to Israel.
Today Shechem is known as Nablus, in the West Bank territory. Succoth is in Jordan.
The idea is that these places had been lost to Israel, but God promised
David they would be given back to Israel.
Significant for today? I think so.
:8 Gilead is Mine; Manasseh is Mine; Ephraim also is
the helmet for My head; Judah is My lawgiver.
:7 Gilead … Manasseh … Ephraim
God considered all these areas to be part of the land of Israel.
Video: Gilead, Manasseh, Ephraim,
and Judah
These names aren’t cities, but areas or tribes.
Gilead is the area east of the Jordan around the Sea of Galilee.
The tribe of Manasseh had two territories on both sides of the Jordan
River.
Ephraim was in the center of the nation.
Judah was in the south of the nation.
Today, Gilead is known as the Golan Heights, currently under Israeli
control, though the world disputes it’s right to be there.
East Manasseh is under Jordanian control.
Ephraim is part of the Palestinian West Bank.
God says these are all “mine”.
:7 Judah is My lawgiver
Some translations have “scepter” instead of lawgiver here.
The scepter was what a king would rule with.
Judah was King David’s tribe.
:9 Moab is My washpot; Over Edom I will cast My shoe; Over Philistia
I will triumph.”
:9 Moab … Edom … Philistia
Here God switches from talking about His land, to talking about the enemies
of Israel that overlapped or threatened the land of Israel.
Video: Moab, Edom, and Philistia
Moab was on the eastern side of the Jordan, on the northern coast of the
Dead Sea. (modern Jordan)
Edom was further south of Moab. (modern Jordan)
The area of the Philistines was the area along the coast of the
Mediterranean. (modern Israel and Palestinian Gaza)
The language used here is simply speaking of God’s contempt for Israel’s
enemies.
:9 Moab is My washpot
The idea is that Moab is only good
for washing feet, something lowly and humiliating.
:9 Over Edom I will cast My shoe
will cast – shalak
– to throw, cast, hurl, fling
Throwing a shoe was a sign of
contempt.
It’s still used today.
Remember what happened in 2008 when
President Bush gave a news conference in Iraq?
The man didn’t throw his shoe
because he liked President Bush.
:8 Over Philistia I will triumph
The phrase is not clear. It might be the Philistines shouting out of
pain because of what God was doing, or God shouting because of victory over the
Philistines.
shout in triumph – ruwa–
to shout, raise a sound, cry out, give a blast; (Hithpolel)to shout in triumph;
to shout for joy
:10 Who will bring me into the strong city? Who will lead me to
Edom?
:11 Is it not You, O God, who cast us off? And You,
O God, who did not go out with our armies?
David had been fighting Edom, but felt like God had turned His back on
them.
:12 Give us help from trouble, For the help of man is useless.
:13 Through God we will do valiantly, For it is He who shall
tread down our enemies.
:13 Through God we will do valiantly
valiantly – chayil
– strength, might, efficiency, wealth, army
Even though circumstances look bad, we can find victory and triumph through
God.
:7 God has spoken in His holiness
It all comes back to this. David had
received a prophetic word from God saying that these lands belonged to Israel.
Lesson
Trust His Promises
We too have some promises from God.
We can choose to look at difficult circumstances and be discouraged, or we
can learn to trust what God says.
(Romans 8:35–39
NKJV) —35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall
tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or
sword? 36 As it is
written: “For Your
sake we are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter.” 37 Yet in all
these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. 38 For I am
persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor
powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other
created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
Even if we should be “killed” for His sake, we will be more than conquerors
(we shall do valiantly) because we will be safe in His love.
Song
Victory Song (Through Our God)
Bm F#
Through our God we shall do valiantly
Bm
It is He who shall tread down the enemy
F#
We'll sing and shout His victory
Bm
Christ is King
A D
For God has won the victory
Em Bm
And set His people free
A D
His Word has slain the enemy
Em F#
The earth shall stand and see that
(repeat)
Ending:
Bm F#
Through our God we shall do valiantly
Bm
It is he who shall tread down the enemy
F#
We'll sing and shout His victory
Bm F#
Bm
Christ is King, Christ is King,
F# Bm
Christ is King
Words & Music by Dale Garratt
© 1979 Universal Music/Brentwood Benson Publishing