MPC
6th December 2020.December 6 - Psalm 130 - "Songs of the Season: Mercy"
MPC
6th December 2020.
Doug Wannenburgh
Introduction: ... Guilt and Forgiveness
a. Gary Ablett Snr
The Abletts are in the news. Gary Ablett Jnr retired after being on the losing side in the AFL final.
And his father spoke about what happened 20 years ago in a Melbourne Hotel room. When a young infatuated fan, Alisha Horan, died from an overdose after a 5 day bender. They'd shared 12 and a half ecstacy tablets, lines of heroin and a 'boatload of booze'.
In an interview he shared his struggle with GUILT and regret. And I quote. 'I can't tell you how much that shattered me, how much it broke me as a person. It still grieves me to this day. ... It's been a very painful experience. ... If only I could go back in time and change things I would.'
Shattered. Broken. Grieving. Painful. A man desperate for forgiveness. Mercy.
b. You and Me?
Now you and I may not be guilty of what Ablett senior is guilty of. Though the Bible teaches we're NO LESS GUILTY. We've no less need for FORGIVENESS.
And I wonder if that is a struggle for you as it is for me? Perhaps there's things in your past you keep tripping over? Perhaps anger that damaged a relationship. Cruel words which wounded and broke others down. Maybe a promise that you failed to keep. Perhaps something you're hiding away. A secret addiction.
And if guilt isn't a struggle for you, may it be that you're not being entirely honest with yourself?
We make excuses. Not my fault! An accident. A slip of the tongue.
We shift blame. 'Sorry IF I offended you.' Which blames the other person. 'Sorry you're so sensitive.' Which blames the other. 'I lost my temper but you were annoying me.'
We even try make up for it. Becoming helpful. Acting extra nice. As if our good will somehow cancel out our bad.
We should all feel some sense of shame or regret? And a desperate need for forgivenees, mercy.
That's how Israel felt? It's what's behind this psalm.
1. Israel's 'Festive' Season
a. Season: Festival
This is a song for a SEASON. Not the Christmas season. But any season to do with a FESTIVAL in ancient Israel.
The psalm identifies, in the first line, as a song of ASCENTS.
Songs sung by PILGRIMS travelling up for one of the great festivals. A season where Israelites would take a ROAD TRIP. To the TEMPLE in Jerusalem.
The temple? God's 'house', a symbol of His presence. A meeting place where SINNERS could meet with a HOLY God.
b. Season: Episode 2
Now, remember, were not Israel, and we live in a different episode. Episode 1, creation and sin's corruption. Episode 2, God covenants with Israel. Making some big promises. This psalm is episode 2. Episode 3, Jesus Christ, fulfils the promises, saves the world. Episode 4. New covenant. Where people from every nation and language make up God's people through faith in Christ. We're in epsidoe 4. Episode 5 coming. The return of Christ issuing in the new creation.
Now here in episode 2, Israel are on their way up to the temple. SINFUL people meeting with a HOLY God.
How's that possible?
Well, in episode 2, Israel, in covenant with God, are taught how to deal with sin so as to live with God. They're taught ... what to do when they mess up?
2. Cry to the Lord
The first thing the psalmist does is to CRY OUT to the LORD.
Verse 1-3 "Out of the depths [verse 1] I CRY to you, Lord; Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my CRY... "
He raises his voice. Lord, hear me. Give attention to my cry.
... Why? 'Cos he's in deep deep trouble. In the DEPTHS. Caught in a storm. Unable to clamour out the darkness. Desperate. This is a heartfelt cry of someone falling headlong to their doom.
So what are these depths? A clue is in verse 2. End of verse.
Verse 2 "... Let your ears be attentive to my cry for MERCY."
If you cry for MERCY it's 'cos; You've done something wrong. There's something in need of forgiveness.
The psalmist/Israel, are swamped, overwhelmed, by SIN. Verse 3.
Verse 3 "... If you, Lord, KEPT A RECORD OF SINS, Lord, who could stand?"
SIN is a word that's lost its meaning. In years past my favourite ice cream shop was SINFULL. The tagline: 'An innocent addiction.' Years back MAGNUM branded their ice creams as the SEVEN DEADLY SINS. The tagline: 'So many sins. So little time. Give in to it.' Sin is a tasty temptation. Naugthy, but nice. A guilty pleasure.
Back in 1972, Karl Menninger, a Christian psychiatrist, wrote a book entitled, 'Whatever became of sin?' He notes that 'personal responsibility' has been overtaken by 'collective irresponsibility', such that the cause of my poor behaviour is society, not me. I was simply born in the wrong place at the wrong time.
On the other hand, her argues some sin has been re-classified as disease. Not sin, just sickness. And thus, therapy replaces punishment. Sigmund Freud argued that a guilty complex was a symptom of mental sickness, not a symptom of mental health.
Make not mistake, ... good therapy is hugely helpful. And a wonderful service. Though we have to be aware of how some faulty therapeutic premises have dangerously impacted the way we think about SIN. Redefined as disease. Deflected as society's fault. Even marketed as ice cream.
God tells us plainly in the Bible that sin is REBELLION. It's doing WRONG against a good God. REJECTING Him as King. Choosing for ourselves how we live, relate, think, behave.
So the psalmist asks.
Verse 3 "... If you, Lord, [verse 3] KEPT A RECORD OF SINS, Lord, [how could I stand?] who could stand?"
Sin is a universal problem.
Romans 3:10 "... There is no-one righteous, not even one."
Romans 3:23 "... ALL have sinned... "
A universal problem, which means it's a personal problem. A problem we ALL have.
It's easy to find fault with others. It's harder to look in the mirror, to face up to our own sin. 'Cos ... sin is a serious problem. It casts us into the depths. Under God's judgement.
Imagine for a moment keeping a record. Every unkind word, every selfish motive, every evil deed. Our sins would fill a library, and much more.
If God kept a record, we'd be SMASHED. We'd have HELL TO PAY. Literally.
And so he cries out to the ONLY ONE who can RESCUE.
Verse 1-2 "... to YOU LORD [I cry]; LORD, hear my voice. Let YOUR ears be attentive... "
No excuses, no shifting blame, no trying to make up for it. Simply, 'Lord, have mercy.'
God is the recorder of our sin, the one offended by our sin. And yet God is also the ONLY one we can help us. We need to turn to the one we've made our enemy, and ask Him to treat us like a friend!
And so, have you done that?
Do you recognise your problem? SIN! You and me, all of us, we're SINNERS. Do we recognise how serious our problem is? We've offended God. We're His enemies. We face His rightful anger and judgement. Do you and I recognise our need? Forgiveness?
If we recognise our problem, how serious it is, and our need, we will do as the psalmist does. CRY to the LORD for MERCY.
3. With the Lord
And good news, there is mercy! That's 'cos this song tells us God keeps THREE COMPANIONS. Three things the psalm tells us are "WITH the Lord".
a. Forgiveness
The first is in verse 4. Pick it up from verse 3.
Verse 3-4 "If you, Lord, kept a record of sins, Lord, who could stand? BUT [there's hope] WITH YOU there is FORGIVENESS... "
With the LORD, FORGIVENESS.
Which is incredibly powerful. 'Cos God offers us forgiveness FREELY. No hoops to jump through, no red tape to cut through. His mercy is immense and FREE.
And yet it is is EXTREMELY COSTLY. God's Son pays the highest price. At the cross, Jesus takes our sin and God's anger at our sin upon Himself in our place. So we can be forgiven and become His friends.
Make no mistake, forgiveness is no small thing. It is a mark of God's GREATNESS. And a mark of His GRACE.
b. Unfailing Love
First. With the Lord there's forgiveness. Second companion. End of verse 7.
Verse 7 "... Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for [because] WITH the Lord is UNFAILING LOVE."
Friends abandon you. Human love lacks certainty. It's breakable. It ends.
GOD'S LOVE NEVER FAILS.
The hebrew word here is HESED. Meaning COVENANTAL love. Love promised and kept. Meaning steadfast loving kindness.
Marriage is a covenant. At a wedding one essentially promises to love another for life. Yet sadly promises are often fickle and faltering. Broken homes. Broken hearts.
Though when God enters into covenant and binds Himself to His people. He gives His word. And keeps His word. UNFAILING love.
As Sally Lloyd-Jones puts it in 'The Jesus Storybook Bible'. God loves us with a NEVER STOPPING, NEVER GIVING UP, UNBREAKING, ALWAYS and FORVER LOVE. A NEVER STOPPING, NEVER GIVING UP, UNBREAKING, ALWAYS and FORVER LOVE."
God isn't aloof. He's not distant. He is ALL POWERFUL. And His love ALL CONSUMING.
John 3:16 "For God so LOVED the world that He gave His one and only Son... "
1 John 3:16 "... This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down His life for us."
Romans 5:8 "... God [shows] His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."
That's how God shows His love. UNFAILING love.
Which means there's nothing we can do to make Him love us more. And there's nothing we can do to make Him love us less.
c. Full Redemption
God FORGIVES. God LOVES. And third companion. End of verse 7.
Verse 7 "... with the Lord is unfailing love and WITH HIM is FULL REDEMPTION."
In the first century when peoiple fell into debt they'd sell themselves into slavery as a means to service the debt. It was, in principle at least, honourable though very difficult. You were controlled or mastered by your owner.
And it could take years to pay off the debt and go free. So, when someone else, a friend or family member, came along and paid your debt, they BOUGHT YOUR FREEDOM. You were RE-DEEMED.
Our debt is SIN. We've wronged God. Deserving of His judgement. And yet, the Lord to whom we owe the debt, is the one who PAYS OUR DEBT. With His BLOOD.
1 Peter 1:18-19 "... it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed ... but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect."
Titus 2:13-14 "... our great God and Savior, Jesus
Christ, who gave himself for us to
redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for himself a
people that are his very own, eager to do what is good."
1 Corinthians 6:19-20 "... You are not your own; you were bought at a price."
No instalments. No part payment. FULL redemption.
Bought by His blood. Brought into relationship with the Lord.
And so, like the psalmist, we're to cry for mercy TO the Lord, 'cos WITH the Lord is FORGIVENESS, UNFAILING LOVE, and REDEMPTION.
4. Wait for the Lord
He CRIES to the Lord. And then WAITS for the Lord. Verse 5.
Verse 5-6 "... I wait for the Lord, my whole being waits, and in his word I put my hope. I wait for the Lord... "
He knows HE cannot deal with the guilt that torments him. So he waits for the LORD. That is, he puts his hope in HIS WORD, in the PROMISES of God.
He looks forward. With patience. With confidence. With expectation.
Verse 6 "I wait for the Lord [verse 6] more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning."
When I was in the military and I stood gaurd through the night, I LONGED for the sunrise. Not 'cos I'd be getting some sleep. But because night time was thick with danger. And the light of day brought some safety, relief. One longed for the dawn. One strained one's eyes to see the first light.
Even more so, the psalmist waits, longs for the Lord.
The psalmist waited. Though we don't need to.
The psalmist looked forward to when, verse 8.
Verse 8 "... [The Lord would] redeem Israel from all their sins."
He looked forward. We look back. 'Cos sin HAS been dealt with. Forgiveness, love, redemption are all found at the cross. They're assured and secured by the precious blood of Christ.
At the cross of Christ we see the depth of sin. How serious sin is. And yet at the cross we also see the depth and breadth of His FORGIVENESS. We see the DEEP DEEP UNFAILING LOVE of God. And we see the PRICE PAID for our redemption
The psalmist looks for and says, 'The Lord WILL.' The Christian looks back and says, 'HE HAS.'
5. Tell of the Lord
Cries to the Lord. Waits for the Lord. And finally, he TELLS of the Lord.
In the first 6 verses the psalmist addresses God. In the last 2 he speaks to Israel. He TELLS Israel OF the Lord.
Verse 7-8 "... Israel, [verse 7] put your hope in the Lord [Verse 8] He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins."
Israel. Don't doubt God. Don't trust other gods. Don't look to yourself. BUT.
Verse 7 "... PUT YOUR HOPE IN THE LORD."
Israel, trust the Lord for forgiveness. Trust the Lord to bring the dawn of a new day of redemption.
You see, if you know God and His forgiveness, you won't want to keep that to yourself. You gonna want to TELL SOMEBODY. You gonna want to SHARE the good news of God's love and forgiveness.
As the risen Lord Jesus explained to His disciples;
Luke 24:46-47 "... The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the FORGIVENESS OF SINS will be PREACHED in His name to all nations... "
6. Christmas Festive Season
And so, it's that time of the year again. The festive season. Christmas.
This psalm may not appear at first to be very 'Christmassy'. But it's message goes to the very heart of Christmas. 'Cos Jesus was born to save. He went from cradle to the cross. All so that our sin could be dealt with.
Do you recognise each of us has a SERIOUS SIN PROBLEM? Will you and I CRY TO THE LORD FOR MERCY? Will we LOOK TO THE CROSS. Putting our hope and trust in the Lord. And will we go TELL OTHERS.
Gary Ablett struggles with guilt. What's got him through? Let me quote: 'It's only been my relationship with Jesus Christ, because of his unconditional love and acceptance knowing that if I repent for what I've done, he forgives me because he's paid for it all on the cross.'
Let me wrap up with a story of a married couple having a huge fight. Yes it happens! One grabbed pen and paper, and said, 'No more talking. Let's each make a list of our complaints.' Heads down, scribbling their complaints, sometimes looking up with an angry glance, before more furious writing. Finally they stopped and thrust all their pages at each other. The wife begain reading a long list of complaint after complaint. A record of all she'd done wrong. But when he started reading, his eyes softened, his heart crumbled. 'Cos written on every line on every page were the words. 'I love you. I forgive you.'
Instead of God keeping a record of our sins, Jesus has written on every line of every page on every one of His children. 'I love you. I forgive you. I love you. I forgive you.' And his written it in BLOOD.
Which gives us, this festive season, a real reason to CELEBRATE. In the birth and death of Jesus, HOPE has DAWNED, the WAIT is over. MERCY and FORGIVENESS are ours in Christ Jesus. This Christmas, you and me, we're invited to join that celebration. Will you?