The NXR Podcast - SUNDAY SERMON - Responding To Injustice ｜ Psalm 37

00:00:00.000 Hey guys, real quick before we get started, I have a small request.

00:00:03.360 If you've been blessed by our content and you like this show,

00:00:06.440 would you take just a brief moment and leave us a five-star review?

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00:00:18.100 Today's text is Psalm chapter 37 verses 1 through 7. Again, that is Psalm chapter 37 verses 1 through 7.

00:00:26.140 Would you join me in standing for the reading of God's Word?

00:00:30.000 I'll read our text for us in its entirety.

00:00:32.400 When I finish reading the text, I'll say this is the word of the Lord,

00:00:35.720 at which point I would appreciate if you would respond by saying, thanks be to God.

00:00:40.340 One final time, our text for today is Psalm chapter 37, verses 1 through 7.

00:00:45.840 The Bible says this,

00:00:47.340 Fret not yourself because of evildoers.

00:00:50.220 Be not envious of wrongdoers, for they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb.

00:00:57.420 Trust in the Lord and do good.

00:00:59.060 dwell in the land and befriend faithfulness delight yourself in the lord and he will give

00:01:04.180 you the desires of your heart commit your way to the lord trust in him and he will act he will bring

00:01:10.640 forth your righteousness as the light and your justice as the noon day be still before the lord

00:01:17.080 and wait patiently for him fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way over the man who

00:01:23.220 carries out evil devices. This is the word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. All right, please be seated

00:01:30.000 and join me as I pray once more. Father, I pray that you would empower me by your spirit to preach

00:01:36.200 your word faithfully today. And Lord, I pray that you would empower not only me to preach

00:01:42.180 expositionally, but everyone in this room to be an expositional listener of your preached word

00:01:48.200 this morning. Father, I pray that indeed through the preaching of your word that your people would

00:01:53.300 arrive at a more accurate, more faithful, more biblical knowledge of who you are, of what you've

00:01:59.920 done, and what it is that you require from us as a right response. Father, we pray that this

00:02:06.620 knowledge of who you are and what you've done and what you require would not merely be an end in

00:02:13.060 itself, but rather it would serve as the necessary means of propelling your people from knowledge

00:02:18.260 to love. That as you fill our minds with your truth, that you would fuel our hearts with love

00:02:26.420 and adoration. The heart cannot love what the mind does not know. And so today, Lord, we diligently

00:02:35.020 feast our minds on the substance of your word so that our hearts might be fueled with right

00:02:42.620 passion right love right adoration all lending ultimately towards obedience your word is clear

00:02:50.560 we love because you first loved us no man in and of himself chooses to love you and somehow elicits

00:02:58.580 your response rather we love because you first loved us first john chapter 4 verse 19 you have

00:03:06.280 loved us in the beloved in the savior in your son jesus christ and as you by your spirit have

00:03:16.100 opened our eyes given us spiritual eyes see your salvific love in christ we cannot help

00:03:22.400 but respond with love for you but then the very next question is what do we do in love for you

00:03:31.140 How do we display genuine love for you?

00:03:36.520 Your son Jesus said, those who love you, obey you.

00:03:41.340 The church in so many instances has this completely backwards.

00:03:46.140 We teach people that if we could work hard enough to obey God,

00:03:50.240 then we might be able to prove to you that we love God.

00:03:54.060 And if we love God, we might be able to elicit a response from you

00:03:58.420 that you might love us.

00:04:00.480 But your word teaches precisely the opposite.

00:04:03.600 It's not that we obey to prove that we love you

00:04:05.800 and that by loving you, we might receive your love for us.

00:04:09.800 Rather, it's that you first loved us.

00:04:12.760 Therefore, we cannot help but love you back.

00:04:15.640 And in love for you, we cannot help but obey.

00:04:20.500 Lord, we pray that that would be the order

00:04:22.860 in our lives, in our hearts,

00:04:26.460 that we'd be so overwhelmed by your love

00:04:29.620 for us that we would so clearly see your love through Christ for us in your word even this

00:04:36.080 morning that we would be aroused with a holy affection a greater degree of love for you

00:04:43.760 and that as we come to love you more we would trust you more and as we trust you we would obey

00:04:50.520 you we pray all this ultimately that you might be glorified in all the earth but we also pray this

00:04:56.440 for the good of those people that you're saving across the globe, in our city, and perhaps if you

00:05:01.860 would be so kind, even in this very room, especially among our children. We pray these

00:05:07.700 things in Jesus' name. Amen. All right, let's dive right in. Verse one of our text says this,

00:05:14.480 fret not yourself because of evildoers. See, it's permissible to grieve due to the evil that is done

00:05:22.280 towards us by the wicked. It's permissible to be grieved. It's permissible to be sad. It's

00:05:27.900 permissible to even be depressed to a degree, perhaps for a time, so long as our grieving is

00:05:34.820 righteous. It's even permissible to be angry in some instances, assuming that in your anger you

00:05:40.720 do not sin. Ephesians chapter 4 verse 26 says, in your anger do not sin. It is possible to be angry

00:05:47.960 in a righteous way. Jesus was angry in his earthly ministry. He demonstrated holy anger,

00:05:54.620 righteous indignation. And we want to emulate all of Christ, all of Christ for all of life.

00:06:01.900 There are too many Christians today that are constantly imploring the people of God to emulate

00:06:07.180 Christ in certain aspects of his character, to emulate Christ in his kindness, to emulate Christ

00:06:14.900 and his love, to emulate Christ and his generosity. But virtually no Christians today even attempt to

00:06:23.400 emulate Christ and his anger. One of the reasons why you and I still sin is because there are

00:06:29.400 certain things that God loves that we don't love nearly enough. But it's also because there are

00:06:34.980 certain things that God hates that we don't hate nearly enough. Our problem is misordered loves.

00:06:42.220 That's what St. Augustine said.

00:06:44.320 But it's also misordered hatred.

00:06:48.160 Now, ultimately, that's more of an indirect cause from love.

00:06:52.300 Hatred stems ultimately from love.

00:06:54.740 The things that we get angry about ultimately stem from what we love when it's being threatened or when it's utterly destroyed.

00:07:03.540 When you get angry in traffic, it's because you love convenience.

00:07:09.400 or it could be perhaps that you love your self-image perhaps you're on your way to meet

00:07:15.520 with someone and you love and esteem what you deem as a pivotal characteristic of your person

00:07:24.860 that you're organized that you're prompt that you're responsible and well put together

00:07:30.940 and this is threatening this traffic is threatening your good name your reputation your image

00:07:39.140 And so you're angry.

00:07:41.820 I mean, really angry.

00:07:43.580 It's one thing to be annoyed,

00:07:45.200 but there are times, sadly,

00:07:48.460 that Christians are more angry about traffic at 5 p.m.

00:07:51.540 than we are about the sex slave trade.

00:07:55.100 Why?

00:07:55.740 Because one of those things

00:07:57.020 is threatening something that we love more than the other.

00:08:02.380 So do we love the protection,

00:08:05.620 the safety, the beauty?

00:08:08.340 of women yeah but we really love our image and convenience perhaps a little bit more that's why

00:08:16.980 we're angrier over this than that so anger ultimately stems from love and see the reality

00:08:24.480 is that that in order to be completely void of anger which is again what most christians teach

00:08:31.140 that you should have no anger to be a void completely void of anger is ultimately a

00:08:37.180 reflection of being completely void of love. See, the Lord, he's not absent of anger. What does the

00:08:46.280 Bible teach? It doesn't teach that God has no anger, and it doesn't teach that God has rash,

00:08:54.000 quick anger. It's that God has slow anger, meaning that God feels appropriate degrees of anger for

00:09:04.120 the right things at the right time. It's anger for the right things at the right time in the right

00:09:11.340 measure. Those are the three big aspects that you need to consider when you think of, am I right to

00:09:17.780 be angry? Remember, that's what God asked Jonah in the book of Jonah. When Jonah says, I'm so angry,

00:09:25.440 angry enough to die? And God asked him, are you right to be angry? Which is really a rhetorical

00:09:34.680 question in the case of Jonah, because the answer is a resounding no. What was Jonah angry over?

00:09:41.440 Well, in one instance, what he's angry over is a plant.

00:09:46.980 Now, I think a lot of people perhaps in Oregon could really connect with that.

00:09:50.680 man a plant died and god killed it god sent a worm to to kill this plant overnight

00:09:58.020 i'm furious all right there's even what was it the the the university i think it was union

00:10:06.200 seminary union theological seminary that had a day where they brought plants in and had all the

00:10:11.540 students repent to the plants like that's the biggest need right now in america i mean when i

00:10:18.280 think of like the sins that are just completely offending God I think of the way we've treated

00:10:22.680 plants it's the first one that comes to mind so Jonah's angry about a plant the point is it's not

00:10:29.340 righteous it's not valid he's not he's not vindicated in that anger right because the only

00:10:38.920 reason he's there is because he's sitting in the wilderness on a hillside overlooking Nineveh

00:10:44.780 waiting for the fireworks, waiting for God to destroy the Ninevites. He could have gone back

00:10:50.840 home. By this point of the story, he's already done what the Lord set him out to do. He's already

00:10:55.180 gone to the city and preached the message that God gave him. It's time to pack it up, but he doesn't

00:11:01.160 want to miss the grand finale. Jonah's bitter. He hates the Ninevites. Nineveh was the capital

00:11:09.780 city of Assyria. And Assyria was located at the northern region of Israel. Jonah lived in Geth

00:11:16.660 Hafer, which was one of the northernmost villages in the northern part of the kingdom of Israel,

00:11:22.220 meaning Assyria was right next door. And Assyria was one of the most violent and barbaric nations

00:11:27.860 that was already ramping up its pre-invasion attacks on Israel, which means that Jonah very

00:11:34.080 likely had experienced the capture or perhaps even the brutal murder of people that he knew

00:11:40.280 personally, perhaps friends, perhaps even family members. See, people misunderstand the story of

00:11:46.780 Jonah. They think that Jonah chose to flee to Tarshish because he was afraid that the Ninevites

00:11:52.820 wouldn't listen to his message, his sermon that God gave him to preach, and that they would turn

00:11:58.500 on him and kill him. That's not true. Jonah was deciding to rebel against God and flee,

00:12:06.600 not because he was afraid that Nineveh would not listen. He was afraid that Nineveh would listen.

00:12:13.500 That's what Jonah, again, chapter four says. He says, is this not why, speaking to the Lord in

00:12:19.120 prayer, is this not why I chose to flee to Tarshish? For I knew that the Ninevites were barbaric,

00:12:27.300 wouldn't listen to my message of repentance

00:12:28.880 and would turn on me and kill me.

00:12:30.460 No.

00:12:31.240 For I knew that you are a gracious God,

00:12:35.320 relenting from sending disaster.

00:12:38.040 This is why I rebelled against you.

00:12:40.360 This is why I deliberately chose to disobey.

00:12:43.940 Why?

00:12:44.380 Because I was afraid that this prophetic message might fail

00:12:48.780 and that great harm might be done to me?

00:12:52.860 No.

00:12:54.020 Because I was afraid that it might work.

00:12:55.980 that the preaching of repentance might actually be efficacious

00:13:00.340 and I know your character God

00:13:02.500 you're a sucker for repentance

00:13:04.920 you're way too merciful

00:13:08.800 way too gracious

00:13:11.000 and even when you prophesy

00:13:14.520 and pronounce judgment

00:13:16.460 if people will repent

00:13:18.860 and turn to you in prayer

00:13:21.480 you will forgive them of their sin and heal their land

00:13:25.340 and I don't want to see my enemies forgiven.

00:13:28.760 I want to see them judged.

00:13:32.020 Jonah's angry, but he's angry about the wrong thing.

00:13:35.960 So he has this much anger

00:13:37.160 for something that he shouldn't be angry about at all.

00:13:42.080 And then he has this much anger for a plant.

00:13:48.260 It's kind of like our anger in traffic.

00:13:50.560 I think they'd be somewhat equivalent.

00:13:52.000 it we need to have the appropriate anger at the right time for the right things anger for the

00:13:58.680 right things at the right time in the right measure and all of this in terms of anger really

00:14:03.880 is just the effect of love if you want to see what you love see what you get angry about

00:14:12.540 our anger reveals our affection our love

00:14:18.920 so it's permissible when evildoers do wrong toward us to be angry at the right time

00:14:29.660 for the right things in the right measure and in our anger not to sin

00:14:36.840 it's permissible to grieve to be mad and to be sad but there's one thing that our text says

00:14:45.940 is never permissible.

00:14:49.700 And that's to be afraid.

00:14:52.980 Fret not yourself because of evildoers.

00:14:56.680 Fear not.

00:14:58.680 Fear not, little children.

00:15:02.220 Don't be afraid.

00:15:05.520 The one thing that we are incapable of justifying

00:15:11.180 as believers in the Lord Jesus Christ

00:15:14.420 is worry.

00:15:15.940 There is no biblical theological case to be made ever for worry, for fear.

00:15:26.120 Anger, in some cases, in some measure.

00:15:31.920 Grief, in some cases, in some measure.

00:15:36.200 But worry, never.

00:15:39.420 Why?

00:15:41.160 Because worry says something about God.

00:15:45.940 When we worry, we're making a statement about God.

00:15:51.000 To say it a little bit stronger, when we worry, we're making an accusation toward God.

00:15:58.140 We're saying that he's not reliable.

00:16:01.300 He's not credible.

00:16:03.900 There's something in his character that's not to be trusted.

00:16:09.300 That he can't be counted on.

00:16:12.480 And that ultimately he's a liar.

00:16:14.700 that he promises certain things

00:16:17.520 but can't be trusted to deliver.

00:16:22.420 Your worry makes a statement about God.

00:16:26.060 Your fear is an accusation toward God.

00:16:31.560 But it's a baseless accusation.

00:16:35.980 It can't be substantiated.

00:16:38.020 It can't be defended.

00:16:39.000 It can't be justified.

00:16:40.880 For there has never been a single time

00:16:43.920 in the history of humanity

00:16:45.860 or in the history of your personal life

00:16:48.500 that the Lord God has ever failed you?

00:16:54.080 Why do we doubt him?

00:16:56.860 It's not fair.

00:16:59.100 It's not fair.

00:17:00.660 It's not fair to him

00:17:01.900 that he's been so faithful

00:17:03.840 and so kind

00:17:05.160 and so good

00:17:06.600 again and again and again

00:17:08.000 without ever failing us

00:17:10.200 and we still struggle to trust him.

00:17:13.920 put yourself in his shoes for a moment.

00:17:19.560 Think of marriage or think of perhaps a close friendship.

00:17:24.340 If your spouse or your friend,

00:17:27.580 you had stood up for them again and again,

00:17:30.040 you had protected them, defended them.

00:17:32.280 When they were in need, you provided for them

00:17:34.360 and were generous toward them.

00:17:36.960 And yet you could constantly sense a palpable distrust

00:17:41.860 trust emanating from them, that they were always hesitant in

00:17:46.980 the relations towards you, always reserved, always treating

00:17:51.040 you and speaking towards you as though you had some kind of

00:17:55.260 ill motive, some kind of angle, that you were eventually going

00:18:00.400 to betray them. Would you not be offended? Would you not be

00:18:06.480 hurt. And so it is when it comes to our worry and how it affects God. But verse one of our

00:18:19.700 text goes on and says, fret not yourself because of evildoers, be not envious of wrongdoings.

00:18:27.780 So there are actually two prohibitions in this first verse. It may be appropriate to

00:18:35.580 be angry. It may be appropriate to grieve. It is never appropriate to fear, and it is never

00:18:43.180 appropriate to envy. Now, the question that I think is begged by the first verse of our text

00:18:51.900 is this. What is it about those who do evil, those who do wrong, that would tempt us to fear them

00:19:03.800 and or to envy them.

00:19:08.620 I'll tell you what it is.

00:19:11.100 We fear those who do evil

00:19:13.560 because those who do evil may do evil towards us.

00:19:20.580 And we have seen both in scripture

00:19:23.440 as we've worked our way through the Psalms

00:19:26.120 and we each see in life by way of experience

00:19:30.080 that those who do evil towards us

00:19:33.100 are at times successful.

00:19:38.400 Being a child of God does not produce immunity from evil.

00:19:45.680 Being a child of God does not make you immune

00:19:48.820 or invulnerable, invincible towards the evil of the wicked.

00:19:57.200 If they set out to do you wrong,

00:19:59.860 Well, it may prove to be successful.

00:20:04.220 It may hurt.

00:20:06.080 It may harm.

00:20:07.960 It may seemingly destroy everything that you love and hold dear.

00:20:15.460 We are sheep.

00:20:18.600 We're not titans.

00:20:22.040 We're not bears or lions or warriors or giants.

00:20:27.280 the imagery that the scripture uses to refer to the people of God

00:20:32.140 again and again is sheep

00:20:34.340 if it rains we're in trouble

00:20:39.180 that's how vulnerable we are

00:20:42.160 I'm sending you out like sheep among wolves

00:20:46.700 Jesus said to the apostles

00:20:48.600 and we're a far cry from them

00:20:51.880 we're weak

00:20:54.680 we're vulnerable

00:20:57.100 and God has sent us out in a dangerous world

00:21:01.320 with enemies that surround us.

00:21:04.580 People who hate us ultimately because they hate God.

00:21:07.860 Is that not what Jesus said?

00:21:10.100 A student is not beyond his teacher.

00:21:12.100 The slave is not above the master.

00:21:13.920 If they hated me, they'll hate you.

00:21:16.420 The only way to escape persecution in this life

00:21:19.260 is to look nothing like Jesus.

00:21:22.360 The world hates Jesus.

00:21:24.060 there are some who have come to love jesus but it's because they have twisted the son of god

00:21:30.560 they've taken jesus and and made him out to be something that he's actually not but the real

00:21:39.400 jesus the biblical jesus is offensive to those who don't know him and likewise as much as we

00:21:49.940 are conformed further and further into the image of Christ,

00:21:53.420 we too are offensive to those who don't know Christ.

00:22:01.800 We're like a thorn in their shoe.

00:22:07.240 A pebble constantly rubbing them the wrong way,

00:22:12.240 causing irritation.

00:22:14.820 For those who have no desire to submit to the Lordship of Christ,

00:22:19.940 the people of Christ are a constant nuisance.

00:22:25.180 And in many cases, if they are to see clearly,

00:22:28.860 even for a moment, not only are we a nuisance, but a threat.

00:22:33.940 We're a threat to their rule, their power, their fame.

00:22:39.860 That's what Herod experienced.

00:22:43.820 He heard from the three wise men, the magi,

00:22:46.840 coming from the east, that there was a king

00:22:49.500 who had just been born.

00:22:52.840 If they had said a savior,

00:22:54.480 Herod wouldn't have cared.

00:22:56.240 That's just religion.

00:22:58.020 It's just religion.

00:22:58.900 It's fine.

00:22:59.920 It doesn't matter.

00:23:00.860 It doesn't interrupt or intervene

00:23:02.940 or threaten what I'm doing.

00:23:06.540 But no, the one who was born

00:23:08.040 is not just the Messiah,

00:23:09.240 not just the savior,

00:23:10.260 not just the son of God,

00:23:11.900 but a king

00:23:12.620 who threatens the kingship

00:23:15.200 of all other kings.

00:23:16.380 what does politics have to do with religion everything the most political statement that

00:23:23.260 has ever been made in the history of humanity is this jesus is lord on him has been bestowed

00:23:32.200 the name above all other names do you know what the name above all other names is it's not jesus

00:23:37.520 jesus comes from yeshua joshua there are other people named jesus now what that text actually

00:23:45.040 He says, the name above all of the names

00:23:46.900 that was bestowed upon Jesus is the name Lord.

00:23:53.620 He's the Lord, the King of all kings,

00:23:57.620 the Lord of all lords.

00:23:59.920 And he is a threat to anyone who is seeking

00:24:02.760 to gain their own autonomous power.

00:24:11.080 The message of Christ is a message of salvation.

00:24:14.220 It's a message of justice.

00:24:16.340 It's a message of holiness.

00:24:18.300 But it's also the message of a king who rules and reigns, who conquers.

00:24:29.120 And the only safety and joy and peace that can be found is in submission to his rule.

00:24:37.940 He's not a threat to anyone who welcomes with joy his kingship.

00:24:45.120 For all those who delight in his rule and reign and majesty,

00:24:51.600 the message that Christ is king, that Jesus is Lord, is what?

00:24:57.580 Good news.

00:25:01.480 But for all who desire to be the master of their own destiny,

00:25:07.000 the ruler of their own fate,

00:25:10.760 the message of the gospel is not good news, but a terror.

00:25:16.960 And so those who do evil,

00:25:18.900 they are a threat to the people of God.

00:25:22.760 They hate us because they hate Christ.

00:25:25.520 They hate who he is.

00:25:27.720 They hate what he's promised to do.

00:25:30.880 They hate what he represents.

00:25:35.220 He's the Lord.

00:25:37.920 And they want to be Lord.

00:25:40.300 And we, as ambassadors of Christ,

00:25:43.280 are going throughout all the world

00:25:44.920 as we seek to fulfill the great commission

00:25:47.240 of making disciples of all nations

00:25:48.880 and baptizing them into the name of our triune God

00:25:51.760 and teaching them to obey all of King Jesus' commands.

00:25:56.720 We, as his ambassadors, are simply a reminder

00:26:00.140 to a world that is living in a delusion of autonomous rule.

00:26:06.200 we are a constant reminder that they have a king and it's not them.

00:26:13.720 And so they may seek to do wrong.

00:26:18.020 Fret not.

00:26:20.320 Why would we be tempted to fret, to fear, to worry?

00:26:24.420 Because they're not just evildoers somewhere out there doing this abstract, theoretical evil that doesn't affect anyone.

00:26:32.020 No, they're evildoers next door.

00:26:34.280 They're evildoers in your workplace, in your job, in your family, who want to do evil towards you.

00:26:42.580 Who do evil towards you.

00:26:46.460 And you are like sheep among wolves.

00:26:50.740 Vulnerable, weak, susceptible.

00:26:54.180 And their evil at times is efficacious.

00:26:58.360 It's powerful.

00:27:00.540 It's effective.

00:27:01.300 that's why we're tempted to fear

00:27:04.740 and that's why our text commands us

00:27:08.380 not to fear

00:27:09.920 but it also says not to be envious

00:27:13.780 so why would you be afraid?

00:27:16.480 because evildoers want to do evil towards you

00:27:18.900 and sometimes it works

00:27:20.560 why would you be tempted to be envious?

00:27:27.080 because are there not thousands of instances

00:27:29.840 that we could list and name of those who do evil

00:27:33.620 and it actually benefits them?

00:27:39.160 That's why we're commanded not to be envious.

00:27:41.240 We're only commanded not to do the things

00:27:43.660 that we might actually be tempted to do.

00:27:48.180 We're being commanded not to fear, not to be envious,

00:27:51.340 not to fear, not to envy.

00:27:52.980 Why?

00:27:53.520 Because we're tempted to be afraid

00:27:55.580 because they not only do evil, but they do it towards us

00:27:58.660 And it works at times, it hurts, it harms, and we're commanded not to envy because those who do wrong, those who do evil, not only can it harm us, but it benefits them.

00:28:14.020 Do you understand?

00:28:15.240 We're tempted to envy the evil, the wicked, because their evil acts can harm us and benefit them.

00:28:26.560 Evil works.

00:28:27.760 That's my point. That's the text point. Evil is successful. It is. And we don't need to be so

00:28:36.500 naive with such rose colored glasses that we pretend that it's not. It is effective. Evil

00:28:44.520 works. It works in both regards. It can hurt you and it can benefit them. It can hurt you,

00:28:54.580 which is why you might fret.

00:28:56.860 And it benefits them, which is why you might envy.

00:29:01.160 And yet we're commanded not to.

00:29:03.740 Why?

00:29:05.640 So we've seen why we might be tempted to fear

00:29:07.880 and why we might be tempted to envy

00:29:09.380 and how evil works in both regards,

00:29:12.860 its harm toward us

00:29:14.260 and its benefit towards the wrongdoer.

00:29:17.880 We've seen that, but why are we commanded

00:29:20.140 not to envy and not to fear?

00:29:24.160 first and foremost, because it's wrong.

00:29:30.240 It's a contradiction to the righteousness

00:29:32.320 and the holiness and the character of God.

00:29:36.380 As I've already said, our worry makes an accusation

00:29:39.620 against God and his character.

00:29:41.680 And envy of the wicked likewise makes an accusation

00:29:45.020 of God and his character.

00:29:46.280 It says that God is not being good to you.

00:29:49.240 See, to fret, the accusation it makes

00:29:51.600 about the character of God is this.

00:29:52.920 God might not be good to me.

00:29:56.000 To envy, in many ways, is even worse

00:29:57.960 because it says God is not being good to me.

00:30:01.500 He's being better to them.

00:30:06.240 He's providing more.

00:30:08.860 He's benefiting more.

00:30:10.400 He's blessing more.

00:30:12.780 And not only that, God's being better to them

00:30:14.840 than he is to me,

00:30:15.900 but in the case of the evildoer,

00:30:17.780 in being the evildoer,

00:30:19.400 you're saying that God,

00:30:20.720 not only is he being better to them than to me,

00:30:22.920 But you're also saying God's a liar because he says that blessing comes by obedience, but he lied.

00:30:30.240 Because the reality is what I see, what my eyes witness is that blessing comes by disobedience and rebellion.

00:30:38.180 That I'd be better off if I stopped being faithful to Christ.

00:30:44.560 That this whole Christian thing has been a joke, a lie.

00:30:51.540 that I've wasted so many years

00:30:54.800 striving to be obedient to Christ

00:30:57.040 and obedience doesn't pay.

00:31:01.860 Disobedience does.

00:31:04.160 Lying pays off.

00:31:06.060 Cheating pays off.

00:31:07.900 Stealing pays off.

00:31:10.820 It's the evil that constantly get ahead in life.

00:31:16.120 See, that's the statement that your envy makes.

00:31:19.540 So why is it wrong?

00:31:20.660 Why are we being commanded not to fear and not to envy?

00:31:24.420 Because your fear makes a statement about the character of God, an accusation.

00:31:28.960 And your envy makes a statement about the character of God, an accusation.

00:31:34.220 It's wrong.

00:31:35.600 It's offensive to God.

00:31:37.620 It lies and maligns his character.

00:31:42.060 But also, not only is it wrong, we're not only commanded not to fear and not to envy,

00:31:47.820 because fear and envy are wrong but because they also are bad. What I mean by that is they're

00:31:57.480 wrong. It is wrong to fear and envy aka it is right not to fear and not to envy. Well it's not

00:32:03.780 only right not to fear and not to envy, it's good not to fear and not to envy because the reality

00:32:11.240 is God is not a liar, and that evil does not pay, and that faithfulness and obedience does bring

00:32:23.560 blessing, just not always right away. See, verse 2 of our text tells us precisely why.

00:32:32.120 We see in exact terms why we should not fear those who do evil, even though they may do evil

00:32:38.840 towards us, and it may be successful, and not to envy those who do evil, even though we might be

00:32:44.600 tempted to join them in their evil because it seems to benefit them. Why? Because at the end

00:32:51.040 of the day, evil works, but only for a moment. It's temporary. Verse 2 says, for they will soon

00:32:59.960 fade like the grass and wither like the herb. See, the reason why we should not foster fear and envy

00:33:07.840 towards the wicked is because their success in this life is temporary. Psalm chapter 37 verse

00:33:14.560 2, for they will soon fade like the grass and wither like the green herb. In other words, the

00:33:19.200 wicked prosper and flourish for a while, but their happiness is short-lived. Another reason we should

00:33:24.960 not fear or envy the wicked is because fear and envy distract us from receiving the Lord's

00:33:30.940 discipline. Now, this is not explicit in our text, but it is clearly a biblical principle

00:33:38.440 throughout the whole of the scripture, and I believe it's implicitly in our text. The first

00:33:44.680 reason we shouldn't fear the wicked, we shouldn't envy the wicked, is because although evil works,

00:33:51.800 it only works temporarily. But not only that, that's not the only reason we shouldn't fear envy.

00:33:59.940 We also shouldn't fear envy because worry and jealousy distract from what the Lord may be trying to teach us in the moment.

00:34:13.000 Job chapter 12 verse 6 says this, the tents of the destroyer prosper.

00:34:18.740 He's saying evil works.

00:34:20.880 The destroyer, the wrongdoer, the evildoer, his tent is overflowing with material blessing and goods.

00:34:28.840 He's prospering.

00:34:30.080 His evil is working.

00:34:33.060 And those who provoke God, not only the people of God,

00:34:35.800 but they're provoking God, are secure.

00:34:39.280 Not only are they prosperous, they're secure, stable, and safe.

00:34:45.820 Whom God brings, notice this, into their power.

00:34:50.080 That last phrase is what I want you to focus on.

00:34:55.320 The destroyer, his tents prosper.

00:34:58.480 The provoker of God, he remains secure.

00:35:03.600 The destroyer and the provoker, the evildoer, the wrongdoer, bringing it back to our text,

00:35:10.020 has been brought into their power by God.

00:35:15.880 So at a higher plane, at a 30,000 foot view, in terms of the providence of God,

00:35:22.680 in terms of his sovereignty over all things, including evil,

00:35:26.680 those who do evil prosper gain power because evil works also those who gain power prestige

00:35:37.380 wealth by doing evil it's not just that evil at a lower plane at a horizontal level that evil

00:35:44.320 actually works that it proves to be successful in gaining power prestige and wealth but also

00:35:51.340 they find themselves often in high positions by doing evil because God and his sovereignty places

00:35:57.140 them. He places them there. Why? Why? Why would God exalt the wrongdoer? Doesn't the scripture say

00:36:08.880 that God exalts the humble? Yeah, in the proper time. Before season, God promotes

00:36:19.520 god exalts the wicked and when i say for a season just to be clear as a disclaimer here

00:36:29.320 because i don't want you to have a false hope i don't want you to have a false hope of relief

00:36:35.140 and vindication in this life when i say that evil works temporarily that temporary moment

00:36:45.100 might be 50, 60, 70, 80 years.

00:36:49.240 It might be that wicked person's entire life,

00:36:52.180 which is still a moment.

00:36:55.160 Why?

00:36:55.860 Because the scripture says elsewhere

00:36:57.240 that our lives are but a vapor, a mist.

00:37:00.740 It's like the dew of the grass,

00:37:02.580 not just here today and gone tomorrow,

00:37:04.700 here today and gone by lunch.

00:37:08.980 But that doesn't mean that things will get better next week.

00:37:12.220 No, that just means that in the mind of God,

00:37:15.100 with an eternal perspective, which we should have.

00:37:19.380 God has set eternity into the minds of men,

00:37:22.120 is what the scripture says.

00:37:23.700 See, so long as we're thinking eternally,

00:37:26.120 it is just a moment.

00:37:28.060 This life is just a moment.

00:37:30.380 But so long as we're enraptured

00:37:33.840 and captivated by this life and not the life to come,

00:37:39.420 evil seems as though it endures forever.

00:37:41.420 it doesn't seem temporary at all but when we have an eternal mindset we recognize it that even the

00:37:49.640 most powerful malicious dictators throughout human history their terror their reign of tyranny and

00:37:56.420 terror was just a moment now it worked and there are people who've killed millions

00:38:06.500 Hitler, Mussolini, Mao, Stalin.

00:38:14.420 It worked.

00:38:16.680 Their evil was effective.

00:38:19.080 It killed millions.

00:38:22.060 But it ultimately, in the big scheme of things, not to minimize any suffering or pain, but in terms of time, it was a vapor.

00:38:31.960 It was a blip on the timeline.

00:38:35.520 Just a moment.

00:38:37.620 Here and then gone.

00:38:40.840 So we don't envy those who do evil.

00:38:43.900 We don't fear those who do evil

00:38:45.840 because it's temporary.

00:38:48.320 It's just a moment.

00:38:50.560 And we are creatures made by God

00:38:53.960 who will live forever.

00:38:55.840 And that's all people.

00:38:58.300 Both the righteous and the wicked.

00:39:01.760 In the final day, the resurrection,

00:39:03.580 both the righteous and the wicked,

00:39:05.600 will be raised bodily.

00:39:08.240 The righteous unto salvation.

00:39:11.220 The wicked unto damnation.

00:39:14.720 Every single human being is made in the image of God,

00:39:17.460 given an eternal soul.

00:39:18.860 They will live forever.

00:39:21.700 This life counts forever.

00:39:25.820 And if we're living with a forever mindset,

00:39:28.820 then evil is just a moment.

00:39:30.420 but if we're obsessed with this life if we make good things idols

00:39:39.140 what does jesus say if anyone loses his life for my sake he will find him but if anybody is

00:39:48.400 is clawing to keep their life if any man tries to keep his life he makes an idol out of this world

00:39:55.360 this life himself, he'll lose it. When we make an idol of this life, we're constantly worrying.

00:40:08.740 But if we count our life as little, that's what the apostle Paul said, I counted my life as

00:40:15.260 nothing significant, as little, something expendable to be poured out. Even now I'm

00:40:20.940 being poured out as a drink offering, he writes to Timothy. My life is expendable. It's insignificant.

00:40:27.320 It is only here. It only exists to be poured out as a drink offering that it might bring glory to God.

00:40:36.340 A person who lives like that, who thinks like that, who believes like that has no fear and no envy.

00:40:45.680 So we do not fear the wicked. We do not envy the wicked because it's temporary.

00:40:49.480 And we must have an eternal mindset to combat that fear and envy.

00:40:54.660 But we also don't want to fear or envy the wicked because we might miss out on what the Lord is teaching us, his discipline.

00:41:01.300 Because the evil find themselves in high positions not only because evil at a horizontal level, in a practical sense, is successful in accumulating power and prestige and wealth.

00:41:16.960 but also in a sovereign vertical perspective God sovereignly appoints kings and rulers

00:41:24.860 and officials. God sovereignly brings the evil into positions of power for a reason

00:41:33.160 so that he might be further justified on that final day when he judges the wicked

00:41:39.540 and also so that he might use those who do evil

00:41:44.320 in positions of power as his rod

00:41:48.820 to discipline the righteous.

00:41:52.280 If the evil were insignificant,

00:41:54.460 if evil never worked, if it never paid off,

00:41:57.960 if those who were unbelievers, who were rebels,

00:42:01.540 who were wicked in this life,

00:42:03.160 were the lowest of status,

00:42:05.840 the most insignificant in society,

00:42:08.060 they would not be positioned to afflict us.

00:42:13.000 But through affliction, we grow.

00:42:16.860 They would not be positioned,

00:42:18.620 they would not possess the power,

00:42:21.160 the ability to harm us, to hurt us.

00:42:29.620 But it's those things, when we're persecuted,

00:42:33.780 when we're afflicted,

00:42:34.480 it is those very things that develop character.

00:42:38.060 that refine our faith purer than gold.

00:42:43.200 The Lord uses the wicked.

00:42:47.220 Lamentations chapter one, verses five says this,

00:42:50.420 her foes, speaking of Judah,

00:42:52.980 her foes have become the head.

00:42:55.500 Her enemies prosper because the Lord,

00:42:59.740 not just because the enemy,

00:43:00.900 no, because the Lord through the agency

00:43:03.220 of this human enemy has afflicted Judah.

00:43:06.640 God's doing this.

00:43:08.060 For the multitude of her transgressions, her children have gone away, captives before the foe.

00:43:17.420 When injustice is done toward you, here's a couple biblical thoughts you should have.

00:43:24.440 One, am I afraid?

00:43:28.040 And if I am, what does my fear say about God?

00:43:31.700 How does it malign his character?

00:43:33.560 then repent of your worry

00:43:35.120 and remind yourself of the goodness of God

00:43:38.360 that he's never failed you,

00:43:39.620 that he'll never leave you or forsake you

00:43:41.020 and ask him to set eternity into your mind.

00:43:45.020 Another question, do I envy?

00:43:47.540 Do I envy this person or group of people

00:43:50.120 who have committed this act of injustice against me?

00:43:52.960 I see them prospering and I see myself fading.

00:43:56.680 Remind yourself again of the character of God.

00:43:59.720 Repent of your accusation that your envy is

00:44:02.420 an accusation against God and his character

00:44:04.820 and once more ask him to set eternity into your mind.

00:44:09.580 But then the next question that you should ask is this.

00:44:13.100 Even though this person in this situation

00:44:15.700 is the evildoer, committing acts of injustice against me,

00:44:20.440 they may be the oppressor,

00:44:24.420 but I am not innocent.

00:44:28.820 They may be the person who is clearly

00:44:30.940 in this conflict, the evildoer, the person who is the actual offender, the person who is actually

00:44:39.140 in the wrong. But the one that they are offending, the one that they're seeking to harm, the one that

00:44:45.380 they're committing injustice against is not innocent. I'm not innocent. Now, Job and even

00:44:54.040 David, they say in the scripture at times, I'm blameless. And it's a true statement.

00:45:00.940 It's not sin. It's not deceptive. It's not filled with guile when they say these things.

00:45:06.560 Job said it before the Lord. I'm blameless. Search me. I'm blameless.

00:45:10.800 What David and Job meant in those instances, it is appropriate at times, if it's true,

00:45:15.720 for Christians to use this kind of language referring to themselves.

00:45:18.880 Blameless. Innocent. What that meant was, I am innocent in this regard.

00:45:24.400 In this situation, I'm the one who is being offended.

00:45:27.360 I'm the one who injustice is being committed against.

00:45:30.040 I did not provoke it. I have not retaliated. I am blameless in this situation. It is not a claim

00:45:36.700 of overall sinlessness. Job never claimed to be without sin, period. Job was not making a

00:45:44.740 theological claim of not having a sin nature, if that makes sense. He's simply saying that in this

00:45:52.100 instance, I'm innocent. I'm innocent. I'm not the one at

00:45:59.440 fault. You know one expression that I hate? It takes two to

00:46:03.800 tango. No, it doesn't. The crucifixion of Christ proves

00:46:10.200 that it doesn't. That was quite the conflict. Bunch of people

00:46:15.740 didn't like him. But it takes two to tango. You know, I mean,

00:46:20.140 they had a bad attitude and they bear, you know,

00:46:22.180 were bearing false witness and, you know,

00:46:24.080 did some things wrong, but, you know,

00:46:25.340 but Jesus, Jesus probably had some sin too.

00:46:28.980 Blasphemy.

00:46:30.800 No.

00:46:32.320 Jesus was perfect and people were still mad.

00:46:36.100 So it doesn't take two to tango.

00:46:37.840 Jesus is proof of that.

00:46:40.000 You can have a conflict and actually not have sin

00:46:44.060 on both sides.

00:46:45.940 Sometimes there's a conflict because one person

00:46:47.900 is sinful enough for the both of you.

00:46:50.140 it may take two to tango in a sense of like two bodies but they don't both have to be alive

00:46:57.640 you can pick up a corpse off the floor and start to do the tango but that doesn't mean that both

00:47:02.220 parties are responsible there's two people dancing but one of them is alive doing the

00:47:06.740 dancing and the other one is limp they haven't committed any wrong they haven't engaged they're

00:47:12.600 not responsible. They're not contributing to the conflict. It is possible to say, even before the

00:47:20.560 Lord, with truthfulness and an upright heart, I'm blameless. Not entirely blameless, not a sinless

00:47:28.460 person. Christ alone is the sinless one, but to say, I am blameless in this situation, in this

00:47:35.120 conflict between these two parties them and me and that may be true but in that moment don't allow

00:47:45.060 your innocence and anger and frustration or fear and envy to blind you from what the lord might be

00:47:52.580 teaching you the lord is the one who exalts and brings low and he does this not only in the case

00:47:59.620 of the humble and the righteous, but in the case of all men, there is no one in any position that

00:48:05.260 the Lord has not sovereignly appointed. And if the evil find prominence in this life and use that

00:48:13.220 power and prestige to harm you, and even if you may be in this particular instance, blameless

00:48:20.860 before the Lord, the Lord may still be using this party, this person as his rod to discipline you

00:48:29.400 for something else.

00:48:32.640 You may not be sinful in this instance,

00:48:35.060 but you are sinful, brothers and sisters.

00:48:37.840 So what other sin may you have committed

00:48:41.280 that the Lord is attempting to uproot from your heart?

00:48:47.740 What other weakness exists,

00:48:50.960 what other idolatry exists in your heart

00:48:54.280 that the Lord is using this offender

00:48:59.420 to refine and remove.

00:49:04.060 Don't miss that opportunity.

00:49:06.520 Verses three and five of our text say this,

00:49:08.780 trust in the Lord and do good.

00:49:10.460 Rather than harboring fear and envy towards the wicked,

00:49:13.580 the righteous are commanded to trust in the Lord and do good.

00:49:17.120 So we've been told in verse one what not to do.

00:49:19.840 Don't fear, don't envy.

00:49:21.220 We've been told why?

00:49:22.280 Because it's temporary.

00:49:23.200 That's the explicit reason, and the implicit reason that I've provided is because we might distract ourselves from something the Lord is teaching us.

00:49:30.760 Now, verse 3 and 5, no longer the prohibition, but the commandment of what we should do.

00:49:36.160 Don't fear, don't envy.

00:49:38.380 What should you do?

00:49:39.780 Trust and do good.

00:49:43.300 Trust the Lord and do good, which is really just one and the same.

00:49:47.940 see trusting the lord is the root and the fruit of a heart that trusts the lord

00:49:54.960 is a life that does good it's just like salvation we're not saved by works

00:50:00.800 we're saved by faith alone but as the reformers taught we're saved by faith alone but true saving

00:50:08.940 faith is never alone so we're saved by faith alone but if it's real faith it will always

00:50:14.900 manifest itself result in be evidenced by good works a heart that truly trusts the lord

00:50:23.900 will be demonstrated by a life that does good rather than harboring fear and envy toward the

00:50:31.340 wicked the righteous are commanded to trust the lord and do good those who truly trust in the

00:50:36.300 lord will do good as the fruit of their faith in god another command that we see now verse five

00:50:41.980 that was verse 3 but now in verse 5 another command for the righteous is this commit your

00:50:47.100 way to the lord and he will act see it's true that the righteous will wait upon the lord we talked

00:50:54.400 about waiting upon the lord in psalm 25 that connor preached beautifully a few weeks ago we talked

00:50:59.720 about waiting on the lord last lord's day was psalm 33 and once more we see the principle

00:51:05.460 the significance the importance of waiting upon the lord but but this is the beauty of verse five

00:51:13.400 commit your way to the lord wait on the lord that's that's what's here and we'll see it explicitly

00:51:18.340 in verse seven where it says be still before the lord and wait patiently for him but in verse five

00:51:23.280 we're getting kind of a we're getting a glimpse of what we'll see clearly in verse seven committing

00:51:28.560 your way to the lord and trusting in him is to wait on the lord and to be patient patient for

00:51:34.900 him, and what does God promise to do in return, in response? If you commit your way to the Lord

00:51:42.860 and trust in him, which is synonymous with being still before the Lord, beginning of verse 7,

00:51:48.820 and waiting patiently for him, what happens? End of verse 5, he will act.

00:51:56.680 and that's such a wonderful peace giving promise because the whole point again the theme reading

00:52:07.960 all these verses within the context that we began with the theme is our response to the wicked

00:52:14.720 what do we do in the midst of the wicked when they benefit by their evil and when they harm

00:52:22.640 us by doing evil towards us. What is our posture? What is our attitude? What is our response? What

00:52:28.960 actions should we emulate? Wait. Another way of saying that is this, don't act.

00:52:39.160 When evil is done towards you, doesn't everything in you want to do something back?

00:52:46.520 Somebody accuses you, maligns you, slanders you privately with a group of people or perhaps

00:52:52.400 publicly? Don't you want to give a public response? Don't you want to record a podcast and just

00:52:59.900 completely decimate the one who hurt you? But our text says, wait. But here's the beauty. See,

00:53:10.560 everything in you wants to act, but you're commanded to wait. But in being commanded to wait,

00:53:18.660 it doesn't mean that no one will act.

00:53:21.780 It means that the Lord will act on your behalf.

00:53:26.200 See, you're commanded not to act.

00:53:28.080 You want to act.

00:53:29.460 Something has been done towards you,

00:53:30.860 something wrong, some kind of injustice.

00:53:32.780 You want to retaliate.

00:53:34.140 You want to act.

00:53:35.180 And God commands you to wait patiently

00:53:37.680 for he will act.

00:53:40.560 Commit your way to the Lord.

00:53:42.060 Trust in him and he will act.

00:53:45.040 That's verse five.

00:53:48.660 so then what should we be doing as we wait we looked at this last week we looked at a few

00:53:56.500 different ways i believe four different ways to wait upon the lord how we should wait upon the

00:54:01.240 lord we should wait courageously i said we should wait humbly but another way that we should wait

00:54:07.380 upon the lord is obediently and we saw that last week but i want to remind you of it again because

00:54:12.480 that's what's clearest in verse 5 of our text. Commit your way to the Lord. When the Bible says

00:54:19.640 your way, when it uses that kind of language, that terminology, it's speaking of the overall

00:54:24.560 manner of a person's life. All their affairs, their family, their business, their actions,

00:54:33.480 their dealings. Commit your way to the Lord, which means what? Align your manner of life,

00:54:39.540 The whole thing.

00:54:41.580 Align every aspect of your life with what?

00:54:46.400 Commit it to the Lord?

00:54:47.920 Align it with his law.

00:54:51.180 Obey.

00:54:52.340 Commit it to the Lord means

00:54:53.280 commit it to what the Lord says is right.

00:54:56.660 What the Lord teaches is good.

00:55:00.300 Commit your overall manner of life

00:55:02.800 in words, in speech, in thought,

00:55:07.000 in heart, in conviction, in virtue,

00:55:09.540 in action, in deed, in every way.

00:55:13.140 Commit your life, your way to the Lord.

00:55:18.220 Meaning, strive diligently by grace to be obedient.

00:55:25.140 When the wicked do evil towards you, do not act.

00:55:29.980 Wait for the Lord, he will act.

00:55:31.840 But as you wait, this is not a waiting that is defined by apathy.

00:55:43.500 See, even though we're not acting, the Lord will act.

00:55:46.160 We wait.

00:55:46.820 We don't act.

00:55:47.480 We wait.

00:55:48.160 He'll act.

00:55:49.080 Well, what kind of action are we supposed to not commit?

00:55:53.840 I think that what's implicitly in the text, what's being said is don't act.

00:55:58.060 You wait.

00:55:58.740 Don't act.

00:55:59.260 Let God act.

00:56:00.340 Well, the act that we're supposed to not do so that God might do it is the act of retaliation.

00:56:07.800 But we're not supposed to act in that light.

00:56:11.420 But the text does not mean that we're not supposed to act at all.

00:56:14.860 Because the beginning of verse 5 says what?

00:56:17.420 It gives us an action.

00:56:19.280 Commit your way to the Lord.

00:56:21.420 So we're supposed to be active.

00:56:23.740 My point is, it is an active waiting.

00:56:26.980 And what is the premier action?

00:56:29.300 in our waiting? How do we wait? Actively. Actively in what regard? Obedience.

00:56:37.420 Wait obedience. Actively seeking to commit your life, your way to the Lord.

00:56:46.560 Galatians chapter 6 verse 7 through 10 says this, do not be deceived, God is not mocked.

00:56:52.080 Again, this has to do with God's vengeance. Vengeance is mine, says the Lord. It has to do

00:56:57.420 with God being the one who vindicates the righteous.

00:57:01.340 Do not be deceived.

00:57:02.360 God is not mocked.

00:57:03.920 It's not just God is good and faithful to you

00:57:05.900 and he won't allow injustice to be done towards you

00:57:08.420 because he cares for you.

00:57:09.740 All that's true.

00:57:11.140 But it's more than that.

00:57:12.700 No, God won't let it slide

00:57:14.180 because God's reputation is on the line.

00:57:17.080 It's not just about you.

00:57:19.200 It's not just vindicating you.

00:57:20.580 It's God vindicating himself.

00:57:23.500 When people do wrong toward you

00:57:25.980 And it is truly wrong, not just by your own standard, but by God's standard, God's reputation, God's justice, God's holiness is on the line.

00:57:36.840 And he will not be mocked.

00:57:41.800 Whatever someone sows, that he will also reap.

00:57:46.200 For the one who sows to his flesh, from the flesh will reap corruption.

00:57:51.140 But the one who sows to the spirit will from the spirit reap eternal life.

00:57:55.940 And let us, here it is.

00:57:57.840 So this is the same thing that we're seeing in verse 5.

00:58:00.340 Right?

00:58:00.620 The beginning of verse 5, first half of the verse, commit your way to the Lord.

00:58:04.300 Trust him.

00:58:05.560 And so what we're seeing in the beginning, first half of this text in Galatians chapter 6 is,

00:58:11.100 don't worry.

00:58:13.040 Don't worry.

00:58:14.240 Don't fret.

00:58:14.860 Be still.

00:58:15.560 Why?

00:58:16.000 Because God's reputation is on the line.

00:58:18.140 God will act.

00:58:19.160 He won't allow his character to be maligned.

00:58:21.280 He won't be mocked.

00:58:22.700 He'll repay.

00:58:24.300 Vengeance is mine, says the Lord.

00:58:25.860 He'll repay.

00:58:26.460 So wait.

00:58:27.920 And as you wait, how do you wait?

00:58:30.300 Obediently.

00:58:31.080 See verse 9.

00:58:32.700 Don't let us grow weary of doing good.

00:58:35.060 For in due season, in the same way that those who do evil,

00:58:38.200 eventually that evil will be repaid by the Lord.

00:58:41.580 Likewise, for the righteous, don't grow weary in doing good.

00:58:45.960 For in due season, eventually we will reap.

00:58:49.940 If there's a condition.

00:58:51.380 if we don't give up.

00:58:54.760 So then, as we have opportunity,

00:58:56.560 so what kind of good?

00:58:57.340 Give us an example, scripture, of doing good.

00:59:00.520 Here it is.

00:59:02.200 As we have opportunity, let us do good to people.

00:59:07.680 Let us do good to everyone,

00:59:10.080 but especially, that is, prioritize

00:59:12.340 because we're finite beings with finite resources.

00:59:14.680 We can only be so generous.

00:59:16.240 We can only be so kind,

00:59:17.480 And therefore, we should prioritize the household of faith.

00:59:23.200 Our love for brothers and sisters in Christ comes first.

00:59:27.800 However, so long as we're taking care of the household of God, the household of faith,

00:59:32.940 brothers and sisters in Christ, our local church is where we should start.

00:59:38.340 So long as we're doing that, what is another people group that we might have opportunity to do good to

00:59:44.920 as we wait for God to vindicate his own name and us?

00:59:49.500 Well, we could do good to the very one

00:59:51.120 who's doing evil towards us.

00:59:53.420 Romans chapter 12, verse 19 through 21 says,

00:59:56.180 Beloved, never avenge yourselves,

00:59:57.640 but leave it to the wrath of God.

00:59:59.420 For it is written, vengeance is mine,

01:00:01.140 I will repay, says the Lord.

01:00:02.720 To the contrary, if your enemy is hungry, feed him.

01:00:05.840 If he is thirsty, give him something to drink.

01:00:08.220 For by doing so, you will heap burning coals on his head.

01:00:11.160 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil.

01:00:14.920 with good.

01:00:17.260 That's how we wait.

01:00:19.720 We don't do good,

01:00:20.900 just as a disclaimer,

01:00:21.700 we don't do good

01:00:22.440 to those who do evil towards us

01:00:23.960 at the expense

01:00:25.020 of meeting the needs

01:00:26.080 of the household of faith.

01:00:29.420 But so long

01:00:30.460 as we're doing our part,

01:00:32.680 our responsibility

01:00:33.420 to care for brothers

01:00:34.480 and sisters in Christ

01:00:35.560 in a practical sense,

01:00:37.260 first and foremost,

01:00:38.020 in our local church,

01:00:39.760 and we have more opportunity

01:00:41.800 and someone has wronged us,

01:00:44.060 let them be the very next person that we select

01:00:47.380 to pour our kindness upon,

01:00:50.600 knowing that it pleases the Lord

01:00:52.660 and knowing that it will also be

01:00:55.160 as burning coals upon their head.

01:00:59.420 Delight in the Lord

01:01:00.360 and you'll desire what he desires.

01:01:04.980 Almost done.

01:01:05.780 Verse four, a second commandment.

01:01:08.100 So we've seen verse three and verse five.

01:01:09.640 Now let's go right in between.

01:01:11.300 A second commandment for the righteous is found

01:01:13.220 verse four of our text, delight yourself in the Lord. We got to deal with this verse because it's

01:01:17.300 very popular and very misinterpreted. Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the

01:01:22.180 desires of your heart. See, those who make God their delight, right? We skipped to the second

01:01:28.720 half. He'll give you the desires of your heart. No, but the first half is delight yourself in the

01:01:34.120 Lord. You know why the Lord doesn't always give people the desires of their heart? Because he is

01:01:40.800 not the desire of their heart the first half of the verse is delight yourself in the lord in other

01:01:45.920 words it can be said like this make god your desire and you'll get god desire god and he'll

01:01:54.240 give you himself that's what the verse is saying delight in the lord above all else seek first the

01:02:01.620 kingdom of heaven and his righteousness and all these other things will be added unto you again

01:02:06.000 It's that prioritization, the ordering of loves.

01:02:10.580 What do we love most?

01:02:12.680 Who do we love most?

01:02:14.680 If we delight ourselves first and foremost in God,

01:02:18.360 not just what God gives, but the giver himself,

01:02:21.620 loving him, adoring him, cherishing him,

01:02:24.640 trusting him above all other things

01:02:26.600 and above all other persons,

01:02:28.400 then we cannot help but receive the desires of our heart

01:02:31.720 because God will reward us with himself.

01:02:36.000 Hebrews says that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.

01:02:42.060 There is no man, woman, or child who has ever truly and diligently sought for the Lord and has come up dry.

01:02:51.440 He's just. He's faithful. He's fair.

01:02:56.540 Those who seek for him by grace and with diligence will find him.

01:03:02.000 Ask, it will be given. Knock, and the door will be opened.

01:03:06.000 Did you know those aren't scriptures to unbelievers?

01:03:08.900 People use those scriptures all the time

01:03:10.260 to say that Calvinism is false.

01:03:12.360 Right, right here, knock.

01:03:14.620 So unbelievers are being commanded, knock,

01:03:16.220 and then Jesus will open the door.

01:03:17.340 So they seek him first, and then Jesus responds

01:03:19.580 by welcoming them in.

01:03:21.740 Ask, and then Jesus responds by giving him.

01:03:25.220 Seek, right?

01:03:26.000 There are seekers.

01:03:27.220 People are seeking for God.

01:03:28.480 Unbelievers are seeking for God.

01:03:30.360 You seek, and if they seek hard enough

01:03:32.100 or in the right ways, they'll find him.

01:03:34.340 No.

01:03:35.380 No, that's Jesus' words to his disciples.

01:03:38.940 Now, there is only one seeker.

01:03:40.280 The Puritans called him the hound of heaven.

01:03:43.440 And it is no man.

01:03:45.400 It's God.

01:03:47.240 And he relentlessly seeks the souls of those who he has chosen.

01:03:54.080 But once you've been born again, well, now it's different.

01:03:59.260 You've been made new.

01:04:00.160 for the one who's been born again for the regenerate for the christian now we are commanded

01:04:06.520 in and not for our justification not for our justification but in our life of sanctification

01:04:12.200 to earnestly pursue the lord to diligently seek him to knock relentlessly like the persistent widow

01:04:18.840 who goes to the unrighteous judge 10 times and bangs on his door while he's in his nightgown in

01:04:24.020 his bed and says give me justice and he says he responds by saying though i neither fear god nor

01:04:29.720 men, he admits, I'm a wicked judge. I'm going to give this woman what she wants so she'll leave me

01:04:35.200 alone. And how much more for those who persistently and diligently seek God and his kingdom and his

01:04:41.920 righteousness, will it not be granted to us? But those who seek are those who have first been

01:04:46.960 sought. That's the only seeker there is. The only true seeker is God himself. And the only human

01:04:52.660 seekers are those who have first been sought and bought by Christ. See, when we begin to long

01:05:03.820 for what God longs for, then the desires of our heart will be met. When we begin to think as God

01:05:11.980 thinks, then the desires of our heart will be met. Insofar as we're further and further conformed

01:05:17.500 into the image of Christ, sanctified by his grace,

01:05:22.280 insofar as we with greater and greater degree

01:05:25.720 delight ourselves not in what God provides,

01:05:28.580 but God himself,

01:05:31.480 then our desire will be met.

01:05:35.000 Psalm chapter 37, verse 34 says this,

01:05:38.120 wait for the Lord and keep his way

01:05:40.380 and he will exalt you to inherit the land.

01:05:45.640 you will look on while the wicked are cut off.

01:05:50.280 This is the last thing.

01:05:51.140 I'm going to have to leave it here.

01:05:53.180 The last thing that I want you to see is this.

01:05:56.320 One of the desires, right?

01:05:57.840 Because it almost feels random.

01:05:59.480 Our whole text has been about the wicked

01:06:01.460 and how the righteous should act, right?

01:06:03.800 How they should behave themselves

01:06:05.020 in the midst of injustice.

01:06:07.400 And then you have verse four.

01:06:09.180 And verse four is always stripped from its context,

01:06:11.500 you know, delight in the Lord

01:06:12.800 and he'll give you the desires of your heart.

01:06:14.600 But if we place it in its context, as we have this morning, the whole context is about the Christian and his temptation and the commandments of God in the midst of being wronged.

01:06:29.840 So what might the Christian be desiring?

01:06:36.080 Vengeance.

01:06:37.920 Vindication.

01:06:39.040 Exoneration.

01:06:40.380 Justification.

01:06:40.940 What he's desiring is that his enemies who have done him wrong would be punished.

01:06:50.080 Well, that doesn't sound Christ-like.

01:06:54.720 See, if we were to skip ahead in this same chapter, verse 34, it says, wait for the Lord.

01:07:00.840 Everything that we've been talking about so far, it picks back up in verse 34.

01:07:03.980 A lot of verses in between we don't have time to get to.

01:07:06.160 But what we've looked at, verses one through seven, that same theme is picked back up in verse 34, waiting on the Lord, keep his way, right?

01:07:14.540 That's commit your way unto the Lord, wait obediently.

01:07:18.580 And what will he do?

01:07:20.440 He'll exalt you.

01:07:21.800 He'll exonerate you.

01:07:24.840 But not just that.

01:07:26.920 He'll also position you in the land to look on while he cuts off the wicked.

01:07:34.060 what's the reward for waiting on the lord and waiting obediently committing your way to him

01:07:40.120 trusting that he will act rather than taking vengeance into your own hands the benefit the

01:07:47.060 promise is twofold one he'll exonerate the righteous two the righteous will get to watch

01:07:52.980 him destroy the wicked you get to watch and it's a wonderful thing the death penalty is a biblical

01:08:01.100 thing. And you know who gets to watch when it's carried out? The victim's family.

01:08:09.840 They get to watch. It's biblical, it's righteous, and it pleases the Lord. That if you have a family

01:08:16.880 member who's brutally murdered, that you sit there and you watch that perpetrator lose his life.

01:08:24.420 That's Genesis chapter 9, the Noahic covenant. If any man takes the blood of another man,

01:08:30.540 his blood will be demanded of him.

01:08:32.700 Life for a life.

01:08:34.960 This isn't because God makes light of human life,

01:08:37.860 but because he esteems it so highly.

01:08:40.500 It's the sanctity of life.

01:08:42.220 Human life is so precious in the sight of God.

01:08:44.320 The only just consequence for taking human life

01:08:48.400 is that your life too will be taken.

01:08:51.820 And if you take the life of a loved one,

01:08:54.600 that family, they get to watch your life be taken from you.

01:08:58.720 they get the satisfaction of witnessing justice.

01:09:06.660 They get to experience the vindication.

01:09:12.120 Revelation chapter 6, verse 9 through 11.

01:09:14.460 It's the same principle.

01:09:16.220 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those

01:09:19.580 who had been slain for the word of God and for the witness that they had borne.

01:09:25.860 These are martyrs.

01:09:27.480 Those who had borne witness, they were missionaries, they were evangelists,

01:09:30.520 but they had been slain by the world, by the enemies of God,

01:09:34.060 for bearing witness about God, for preaching the gospel.

01:09:37.280 And they now in heaven, now in heaven, surrounding the throne of God,

01:09:40.960 they cry out with a loud voice.

01:09:42.700 And what do they cry out for?

01:09:43.760 Oh, sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you will judge and avenge our blood?

01:09:50.540 Not just avenge your character.

01:09:53.300 That's part of it.

01:09:54.200 That's the biggest part of it.

01:09:56.300 Right?

01:09:56.620 The biggest cry of our heart, the biggest desire, back to verse 4,

01:10:00.300 the biggest thing we should desire when people do evil towards us

01:10:02.840 is that God would vindicate his own name.

01:10:06.180 Because anyone who does evil towards you,

01:10:08.480 ultimately it is an offense and an assault on God.

01:10:12.680 So the greatest desire of your heart should be first and foremost,

01:10:15.760 his kingdom, his righteousness, his glory, his reputation.

01:10:20.160 That God would justify, that God would, I'm sorry, vindicate himself.

01:10:25.440 by punishing those who do evil towards you.

01:10:28.460 Because ultimately, their evil towards you

01:10:30.520 in the larger picture is ultimately their assault on God.

01:10:34.860 And so the first desire of our heart

01:10:36.160 is that God would vindicate himself,

01:10:37.860 but it is righteous, brothers and sisters,

01:10:40.080 to also desire that God would avenge

01:10:42.140 not only his name, but our blood.

01:10:45.560 If it was not righteous, then this text would be a lie.

01:10:50.000 Revelation 6, these aren't just people on earth.

01:10:52.000 These are martyrs, people slain

01:10:54.380 for bearing testimony to the name of Christ,

01:10:56.860 people who are evangelists preaching the gospel,

01:10:59.020 and they're dead.

01:11:00.680 Meaning they're in heaven before the throne of God.

01:11:03.740 There is no sin in heaven.

01:11:05.820 There's no sin in heaven,

01:11:07.460 and certainly not before the throne of God.

01:11:09.580 And yet there's not one ounce of reservation,

01:11:12.680 not an ounce of guilt or shame.

01:11:15.400 I don't know if I should desire this.

01:11:17.020 I don't know if I should voice this.

01:11:18.280 It might be sinful.

01:11:19.180 It might be wrong.

01:11:20.100 No, with a clear conscience,

01:11:22.320 clothed in the righteousness of Christ,

01:11:24.100 these individuals cry out for God to avenge not only his character, but them. Avenge our blood

01:11:32.060 on those who dwell on the earth. Then they were each given a white robe. Not only, they weren't

01:11:38.620 chastised. They weren't corrected. God didn't say, hey, hey, you forgot the 11th commandment,

01:11:43.080 thou shalt be nice. No, they're not chastised by a commandment that doesn't actually even exist

01:11:48.160 in scripture. No, they're actually rewarded. They cry out for vengeance. God responds by giving them

01:11:55.800 a white robe and told them to wait just a little bit longer until the full number of their fellow

01:12:02.920 servants is collected and their brothers should be complete who were killed as they themselves

01:12:10.880 had been. The Lord is slow to anger. And the primary reason why, the primary reason why the

01:12:18.660 Lord is slow to anger is not his toleration of the wicked, but it is his love and mercy for the

01:12:25.980 righteous. The only reason the Lord tarries in bringing judgment upon the wicked is because

01:12:31.100 there are more righteous who he has saved and made righteous by his grace that he wants to bring in

01:12:38.420 to fellowship with himself.

01:12:41.700 That's why.

01:12:43.460 The only reason God is not acting

01:12:45.660 in the way that you want him to act

01:12:47.060 is you trust and commit your way to him

01:12:48.600 and vindicating you

01:12:50.340 and doing justice to those who offended you,

01:12:55.400 who committed injustice towards you.

01:12:57.280 The only reason why God is seemingly taking longer

01:13:00.220 than you would want him to take

01:13:01.500 is not because God tolerates those who wrong you

01:13:04.540 and ultimately have maligned him.

01:13:07.220 No, it's because God, not because he's tolerating the wicked,

01:13:10.280 but because God is patient toward the righteous.

01:13:14.420 If it were not for the fact that there were still souls to be saved,

01:13:18.900 that God, before the foundations of the world had been laid,

01:13:21.680 had chosen and ordained in the councils of eternity

01:13:24.220 to save by grace alone, through faith alone, and Christ alone,

01:13:27.240 if that were not a reality,

01:13:29.000 if there were not still people that God was intent on saving,

01:13:32.900 then the wicked would be punished right here, right now.

01:13:36.760 That's what it means, that you're the salt of the earth.

01:13:39.620 You know what salt's good for?

01:13:41.160 It's good for taking a meal that otherwise would be bland and distasteful.

01:13:46.480 It's good for making that meal tolerable.

01:13:49.720 What do you do with a yucky meal?

01:13:52.780 You throw it in the trash or you get some Tonys.

01:13:57.280 Those are your only options, at least in my house, at least with my taste.

01:14:01.840 If a meal's not that great, I don't want to eat it unless I can doctor it up.

01:14:06.760 you're light you're salt light you're preaching the word it's it's it's emulating it's going out

01:14:15.000 you're salt part of being salt is not just your effect in evangelism on unbelievers and bringing

01:14:20.820 them to salvation no part of being salt is you are being used by God to help him tolerate the

01:14:27.380 wicked this world is like a nasty meal in the sight of God Genesis chapter 6 the days of Noah

01:14:35.520 He looked and every intention of every heart was constantly evil continually.

01:14:42.080 And he wiped it out.

01:14:44.320 He flooded the whole world.

01:14:46.240 What is holding God back?

01:14:47.560 Yes, his covenant.

01:14:48.440 Yes, his bow in the sky, his promise to Noah.

01:14:50.780 But one of the things that is holding God back from utterly destroying all the wicked right now as we live and breathe is that this nasty meal is sprinkled with salt.

01:15:02.940 it's like what Abraham prayed with Sodom if there were just 10 righteous would you spare the city

01:15:09.600 God says yes unfortunately in that case Lot should have had more kids if he had only had eight

01:15:18.040 could have saved Sodom that's a joke but kind of serious so the point is this God held back

01:15:27.240 his wrath because or God is holding back his wrath towards the wicked he won't do it indefinitely

01:15:32.880 not eternally but for now he is tolerating the wicked on behalf of the righteous that's one of

01:15:38.700 the things that you're doing as a christian you're doing a great service to the unbeliever

01:15:43.800 you're offending me you're bothering me with your preaching of the gospel the way you live

01:15:48.940 your life you're being judgmental hey listen friend no no no right now i'm actively being

01:15:54.140 used by god to keep him from utterly destroying you the bible's clear god hates sinners the bible

01:16:01.400 says it. He hates sinners, but his love for his people is greater than his hatred of the wicked.

01:16:08.320 And for the sake of the righteous, he holds back his judgment.

01:16:13.800 But one day he will judge and he will be right when he does. It will be first and foremost to

01:16:19.000 vindicate his name, but it will also be to avenge you. And those who are righteous will get to look

01:16:25.220 on, not with envy, not with malice, but with a holy anger. And that anger will be satisfied,

01:16:35.900 not just by God being good to you, but by God punishing those who have done evil.

01:16:41.180 In the meantime, we wait upon the Lord. Let's pray. Father, thank you for your words. We pray

01:16:47.360 that you would bless it to your people. I pray, Lord, that by your grace and by your spirit that

01:16:52.660 i preached your word faithfully today if there was any error i pray lord that it would be soon

01:16:58.020 forgotten in the minds of your people but everything that was true that it would remain

01:17:02.640 i pray this in jesus name amen oh hi i didn't see you there thanks for sticking around i've

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01:17:15.060 2023, May 5th, 6th, and 7th,

01:17:18.500 Friday, Saturday, and Sunday,

01:17:20.820 Theonomy and Postmillennialism.

01:17:22.740 We've got the speakers that we've already had lined up.

01:17:24.880 That's Dr. James White, Dr. Joseph Boot,

01:17:27.380 Dr. Gary DeMar, non-doctor, Pastor Joel Webin.

01:17:29.900 But we also have a bonus speaker,

01:17:32.280 and that is Dale Partridge from Real Christianity.

01:17:35.420 Perhaps you've heard of him.

01:17:36.360 If not, you should start listening to his podcast.

01:17:38.700 It's fantastic.

01:17:40.200 Dale Partridge is going to be joining our team.

01:17:42.760 We're going to have live panels on Friday night and Saturday night where you'll be able to write

01:17:47.360 in questions and get them answered. We're also going to have a catered barbecue, Texas-style

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01:18:03.900 Again, that's rightresponseconference.com. God bless.

The NXR Podcast - October 23, 2022

SUNDAY SERMON - Responding To Injustice ｜ Psalm 37

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