0:01 Welcome once again to Words of Life. In our study through the scriptures, we have now reached the book of Psalms. And if you have read the Psalms, you know they are on a variety of different topics. There are 150 Psalms. 0:26 And this book is quoted more often in the New Testament than any other Old Testament book. There are 50 quotations from the Psalms in the New Testament. Jesus himself quoted often from the 0:49 Psalms. So obviously, this is a very important book. All the Psalms were not written by David. Only about 70 of them were written by David. 1:06 Some were written by Asaph, who was a song leader. Some by Korah, the sons of Korah. One by Solomon and one by Moses. And one or two lesser-known people. 1:28 And some authors are completely unknown. The book of Psalms is divided into five books. The first book is from Psalm 1 to 41. The second is from 42 to 72. 1:53 The third from 73 to 89. The fourth from 90 to 106. And the fifth from 107 to 150. There are many, many subjects covered in 2:12 these books. There are some Bible students who compare these five books of Psalms to the first five books of Moses. And while it's not exactly true, there's 2:32 quite a lot of similarity. In many of the Psalms, there's a contrast between the righteous and the wicked. And one of the most frequent themes found in a number of David's Psalms 2:50 anyway is asking God to deliver him from his enemies. In fact, nearly half the Psalms, 72 of them, have some reference to the enemies of the psalmist. Now, in the 3:15 three or four sessions that we study the Psalms, we obviously won't be able to go into it in detail. We'll look at only some of the important Psalms. First of all, Psalm 1 with which the book of Psalms begins. This is a very good introduction to the 3:36 book of Psalms. It's contrasting the man who's blessed by God with the wicked man. And the characteristic of the godly man is that he avoids sinners and scoffers and wicked people 3:54 and their paths completely. He doesn't just avoid evil. The heart that's cleansed of evil must be filled with God's word. This is the mistake a lot of young people make. 4:14 They had a lot of dirty thoughts and dirty habits in the past. And they get rid of that. But they keep their mind empty now. Fill it with God's word. Then their old habits come back again. So, here it says he gives up that, but 4:33 he spends his time now in the meditating on God's laws. Now, it's not enough to read God's word. Here it speaks about meditation in God's word. Now, we may spend only a short time reading God's word. But we can meditate on that word 4:56 throughout the whole day. So, it's not a question of how much you read. It's not a question of how much you eat. How much is digested? Psalm 2 is a Messianic Psalm which 5:15 speaks about the reign of Christ. Psalm 3 is asking God to protect him, David, from his enemies. In this case, because Absalom, his son, who was his enemy. Many of these Psalms were written in 5:38 times of pressure. Inspired scripture came out of times of pressure. God David did not write most of his Psalms when he was in the palace. He was mostly in caves. Teaching us that many of the greatest 5:58 lessons in life we learn when we are under pressure. Psalm 5 is also a Psalm asking for protection from enemies. Let's turn to Psalm 8. 6:16 Psalm 8 is a very wonderful Psalm because it's also quoted by Jesus. The Pharisees told Jesus to tell the children to be silent. He quoted it from here in Psalm 8 verse 6:39 2. He said, "Haven't you read? It says that from the mouth of infants and babes, thou hast established strength." Whereas Jesus quoted it as praise. He replaced that word strength with 6:58 praise. Since Jesus used it like that in Matthew 21, we can do the same thing. Matthew 21:16 is a quotation from Psalm 8:2. If you praise God, you can make the 7:21 enemy stop. So, that's the way to stop the enemy. There's one thing the devil doesn't like, that's praise. So, that's what um that's a good lesson we can learn from here. And verse 4, we see is referring to 7:43 Jesus when it's quoted in Hebrews chapter 2. Psalm 12 is another very wonderful Psalm. It says, "Help, Lord, for the godly man ceases." In fact, this is a Psalm about the use 8:05 of our tongue. There's a whole chapter on the tongue in James chapter 3 in the New Testament. This is the chapter about the tongue in the Old Testament. And he says it starts by saying, "Godly 8:23 men are very few now." And the primary mark of a godly man is the graciousness of his speech. From the abundance of his heart, the mouth speaks. But the ungodly man, and the ungodly 8:43 man, he says in verse 4, "Our lips are our own. Who's to tell us what to speak?" James says the one who can control his tongue is a perfect man. So, this person doesn't understand that. Even the ungodly man. And then contrast the words of the Lord, 9:04 which are pure words, verse 6. Like silver tried in a furnace seven times. So, what I get from that is this. Before you speak something, before you write something, 9:22 it's good to throw back that uh those words into our mind and think about it. Is that the best way to say it? Seven times. If you're writing a letter and you're not sure how to write it, rewrite it, rewrite it, rewrite 9:45 And seven times you think about saying something or and you'll come out as a much better than if you just say whatever comes to your mind. Another important Psalm is Psalm 16. He says here in verse three, "As for the 10:04 saints who are in the earth, my soul delights in them. They are the majestic ones." That's a good attitude to have towards all of God's people. And look at this statement of satisfaction. "The Lord is the portion 10:23 of my cup." Verse five. "And the lines have fallen to me in pleasant places." And yet it is quoted about Jesus in Acts 2. I set the Lord always before me. 10:41 That's the way we should live. The Lord always before me. And he is at my right hand and therefore I will not be shaken. Another wonderful verse is verse 11. In God's presence there are there is fullness of joy. How do you know whether you're in God's 11:05 presence or not? Whether you're setting the Lord always before you. Always be full of joy. When joy goes away from your life, it means you're not in the presence of God. And Psalm 18 is a Psalm of deliverance. 11:29 And Psalm 19 is a is a Psalm that glorifies the word of God. And the works of God. And God's word. And then we come to Psalm 22, which is a 11:48 the Psalm of the crucifixion. I'm just picking out some of the important Psalms because we don't have time to look through all of them. Psalm 22 begins with these words. 12:05 "My God, my have you forsaken Jesus. Act This is a prophecy of what Jesus would say on the cross. And he says about himself in verse six. "I am a worm and not a man." 12:26 That's the position Jesus took when he died on the cross. Position of a worm. You know the difference between a worm and a serpent. You stamp on a worm, it just curls up and keeps quiet. But if you put on put on a serpent, 12:46 it stings back. Jesus took the position of a worm. And here we see how finally at the end at the end of Psalm 22 he says about the resurrection. 13:05 It says here that it will be told in verse 30 of the Lord to the coming generation. They'll come and declare to a people who will be born who has performed it. In the resurrection, Jesus got brothers. 13:26 That's what he says in verse 22. "I will tell of my name to my brethren." It's when he was raised from the dead that he said, "Go and tell my brothers." That's the first time he called his disciples his brothers. In the Psalm of the crucifixion, there's 13:48 a reference to the resurrection, too. And also expressions of praise. Psalm 22, "I will praise in the assembly." Verse 25, "From thee comes my praise." 14:11 Verse 26. Psalm 23 is about the good shepherd. We can say that Psalm 22, 23, and 24 are like a three Psalms together. One speaking about the past, the cross. 14:35 And 23 talking about the present, the Lord leading us. Psalm 24 of the king of glory coming back. In Psalm 23, the emphasis is on what the Lord does. It's not what I do. 14:54 He makes me lie down. He restores my soul. He guides me. That is also for his name's sake. He prepares a table for me. He anoints my head with oil. And because he does all these things, I have no fear. 15:12 I have everything I need. And goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord. And that another good Psalm we could look at is Psalm 32. In Psalm 32, we read about the blessed 15:32 man whose sins are forgiven. Whose sin is covered, it says. In the Old Testament, sin could only be covered. It's like covering with a sheet your sin. But you lift that sheet, it's there. 15:57 Blood of bulls and goats could only cover sin. The New Testament, there's no covering of sin. The blood of Jesus cleanses away sin. There's nothing there. It's gone forever. But this is the best in the Old 16:14 Testament. Psalm 34 is another wonderful Psalm. How the Lord is a provider. Helper of the needy. And so in this Psalm, David says of the time when it was before he became king. When Abimelech the king drove him away. 16:39 I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise will always be in my mouth. This is where he says, "Oh, taste and see." Verse eight. "The Lord is good." Verse five, "They looked to him and their faces were radiant." And verse 18. 16:56 This is how you can have the Lord near you always. The Lord is near the brokenhearted. Psalm 37 is another very good Psalm. Blessedness of the righteous and the destruction of the wicked. Who is a righteous person? 17:17 Psalm 37. The one who delights in the Lord. Verse four. Not the one who is righteous on the outside. Not the one who is righteous on the outside. And such a good man, it says even his steps are ordered by the Lord. The steps of a good man. Verse 23 and 17:38 24. Even when he falls, the Lord will hold him. Psalm 40. Speaks of the wonderful things God does for his servants. Here we read 17:57 in verse six to eight, quoted which is quoted in Hebrews 10. Where it's a prophecy of Jesus. Verse seven, "I come." Verse seven in Psalm 40, verse eight, "I delight to do thy will, oh God." But if you go to the New Testament, 18:19 Hebrews 10. There's a difference. What difference it could There he doesn't say I delight to do thy will, oh God. There it's quoted as, "I have come to do thy will, oh God." See, in the Old Testament, they could only delight to do his will. 18:38 They couldn't do it. They didn't have the Holy Spirit. The same verse when it's quoted in Hebrews 10, it's a constant higher. That's the new covenant. I have come to to do your will now. That's where Jesus has given us an 18:55 example. Psalm 42, we begin the second book of Psalms. Psalm 42 In the Psalm book, the second part we are beginning. And here, the first eight Psalms, 42 to 49, were written by the sons of Korah. We are familiar with Psalm 46, a very 19:16 good Psalm. "Be still and know that I am God." Verse 10. And when you read it in the context of the earth opening up and swallowing up this man's father, Korah, you'll understand it a little better. 19:39 Psalm 45 is a bridal Psalm referring to Jesus as the bridegroom and we as the bride. And then of course, Psalm 50 is a very good Psalm. Verse 15, call upon me in the day of 19:56 trouble and I will deliver you. And Psalm 51, very well known Psalm of confession. It's the prayer of a repentant sinner asking for mercy. And David acknowledges his sin. 20:17 He pleads that God will make him whiter than snow. And Lord, don't take the Holy Spirit away from me. Psalm 55 is another Psalm which is a very good 20:36 one. Where we read here in verse 22 especially. Cast your burden upon the Lord and he will sustain you. Very good verse. He will never allow the righteous person to be shaken. And then we move on to Psalm 62. 21:01 Where we read of David expressing his confidence in God as a refuge that can be trusted. He only is my My soul wait in silence. Verse one, for him is my salvation. My soul, verse five, wait in silence. My 21:24 hope is only in him. Verse 11 Once God has spoken, twice I have heard this that power belongs to God. Psalm 63 is the place where we get that verse we sing in our songs, verse three, 21:44 thy loving kindness is better than life. And Psalm 66 We have a very good verse. Verse 18 If I regard wickedness in my heart, the 22:01 Lord will not hear me. It's a very important verse. A lot of people pray but God doesn't hear them. Another important passage is verses 10 to 12. Where 22:19 it tells us how God brings us to a place of abundance. It tests us. He refines us like silver. He brings us into a net. He puts a burden on our loins. 22:36 He makes men to ride over our heads. He takes us through the fire. And then puts us in cold water after that. In the fire again. And again the cold water. And finally when we have gone through all this testing 22:54 through suffering and trial he brings us to a place of abundance. And then he says that rivers of living water flow out from us. Our cup overflows. Psalm 69 is another Psalm which has got 23:13 partially some reference to the cross. See for example he says in verse four, those who hate me without a cause are more than the hairs of my head. Jesus quoted that. Those they hate me without a cause. Yeah, and that's I mean he quoted that 23:37 in John 15. That they hate me without a reason. This is what Jesus did on the cross. Last part of verse four What I did not steal, I have to restore. And verse 20, reproaches broken my 23:57 heart. I looked for sympathy but there's no one there. And Psalm 72 is a Psalm that David wrote for Solomon his son. Some say it's the Psalm of Solomon but I 24:16 think it's a Psalm that David wrote for Solomon. Give the king Solomon your judgments, oh God. And give the righteousness to the king's son. He's praying for himself and for his 24:33 son. And then finally at the end of that Psalm he says in verse 20, the prayers of David the son of Jesse are ended. Now even though they I saw David prayed all this for Solomon. Solomon didn't become the type of king 24:57 that David prayed for him. You won't necessarily become like the type of person other people pray you should become. You have to respond to that. Let's take the exhortations that come 25:20 from these Psalms. God bless you. Welcome once again to Words of Life. In our study through the Bible we have come to the book of Psalms. We mentioned that the book of Psalms is 25:38 divided into five books. And we quickly looked through the first two of those books. The first book of Psalm 1 to 41. The second is from 42 to 72. 26:00 We got a quick look at both those books in our last session. There are some Psalms in this which are very important. Particularly Psalm 1 which refers to the blessed man. I thought we could look at that a little 26:21 more before we continue into books three and four. Because this is like an introduction to all the books. Notice what it says here that you can be like a tree which is whose leaf never 26:39 withers. Psalm 1 verse three. And whatever you do will prosper. You know, I have longed for many years in my life that that should be my life. I will never be dry. 26:58 And whatever I do will prosper. If that means in my ministry whatever God has called me to do in that area I want to prosper. If God has not called me to be an evangelist then that's not where I'm going to prosper. If God has called you to be an 27:19 evangelist, you'll prosper in that area. I'm not saying to prosper in a sphere where God hasn't called me. But in the place where God has planted me a particular function in the body of Christ my testimony in the end of my life 27:40 should be whatever I did prospered. And you know, you should have that desire also. a particular function in the body of Christ and in that in that area whatever you do must 27:59 prosper. And if you want to live like that you have to make sure that you stay away from wrong company. Your fellowship must not be with sinners. You can be a friend of sinners like 28:18 Jesus if you're pulling them into God's kingdom. But if they are influencing you follow what it says in Psalm 1. Don't mingle with them. 28:36 But spend your time studying God's word. I want to say to all of you young people. If you want your way to prosper in your younger days meditate on God's word. You don't have to go to a Bible school to do that. 28:55 Go to your room and meditate on God's word. And it says the wicked will not be like that. The wicked will be driven away. In the day they will not be able to stand in the day of judgment. And freshness mentioned in verse three 29:11 is another thing that we should have in our life. Everything may be barren around us. This tree has got its roots going into a river. That's the Holy Spirit. 29:30 So what we see in Psalm 1 is a combination of God's word in verse two and the Holy Spirit in verse three. If you have both you will never be dry at a single day of the year. day of the year. whatever you do will 29:49 prosper. This is very, very important. Then I want to turn again to Psalm 23, which is another very important Psalm in this section. Where 30:08 it's not only an example of what the Lord is to us. But I also want to apply it like this. If you are a shepherd of God's people, many of you who listen may be pastors 30:25 and shepherds of God's people. What should you do for your flock? You must meet all their spiritual needs so that they lack nothing spiritually. You must bring them to rest. 30:45 That's the meaning of making them lie down in the green pastures of God's word. Pastures are God's word. The quiet waters of the ministry of the Holy Spirit. Restoring our soul means 31:04 that the soul which is in the image of Adam gets changed into the image of Christ. You're a shepherd of God's people, that's how you should That's your ministry. Your people become more and more like 31:22 Christ. You need to guide your people in the paths of righteousness. Not for your glory, but for his name's sake. And many of God's people live in fear. You need to deliver them from fear. 31:41 The rod and staff mentioned in verse 4, that refers to God's discipline of us. And God's driving away the foxes and wolves that come to eat up the lambs. When it says God prepares a table before 32:03 us in the presence of our enemies, that means the enemies are still there. They're not defeated. But we're not disturbed by them. Instead of preparing guns to fight them, we sit at the table and have breakfast with the Lord. 32:27 First of all, we don't have any human enemies. Our spiritual enemies are defeated. And as we fellowship with the Lord at the table, let the enemies be there. We're not afraid of them. God will deal with them. Here again, it speaks about the 32:48 anointing of the Holy Spirit. So that the cup overflows to bless other people. What flows from us? Verse 6, goodness and loving kindness. This is our calling as shepherds of God's people also. That we can lead people to 33:10 have a permanent home in God's house. And let me just turn now to Psalm 51 once again. These are three of the perhaps most important Psalms in this section. One of the wonderful things we see about 33:31 David was that when he acknowledged his sin, he didn't try to hide anything. This is one of the most important Psalms in the second book. Notice one thing he says here. 33:50 Lord, I'm not blaming anybody else. I have sinned. I take the blame completely. I'm not blaming Bathsheba for not being more careful in having a bath in the presence of others. I'm 34:11 I'm not blaming anybody. So different from Adam. You want God to forgive your sin. You are justified when you judge me. I have sinned. I don't blame anybody 34:31 else. Sin is right within me. Verse 6, You desire truth in the innermost being. And Lord, I don't have it. I want you to do that in me. You know the first thing God requires from you is honesty. If you're honest, 34:54 God will lead you step by step further. And as I said last time, his great longing is that he might never lose the Holy Spirit. And he recognizes that it's not a question of offering bulls and goats for his sin. The sacrifices of God, verse 17, are a 35:17 broken and a contrite heart. And because he repented so thoroughly, and he says, "Lord, please restore to me, verse 12, the joy of your salvation." We see that he came back into a 35:38 ministry. I want to show you also verse in Psalm 68. There are many single people among God's in God's house. And here is a lovely verse in verse 6. 36:00 And it says, "God makes a home for the lonely." Isn't that a wonderful promise? That those who are lonely, instead of saying nobody cares caring for me, say, "Lord, you care for me. 36:19 You will make a home for the lonely. You will give me a family. Claim that promise. Here is a word for old people in Psalm 71, in verse 9. "Oh God, don't cast me off in time of 36:38 old age. Do not forsake me when my strength fails. Now I'm an old man. Verse 17, from my youth you have taught me. I will still declare your wondrous works. And when I'm old and 37:01 do not forsake me until I can teach your truths to this generation. Manifest your power to all who are to come. That's a very important responsibility older people have. Share what God has taught them with the 37:22 next new generation. So there are a few wonderful verses like this. Now we come to book three. In book three, the first 11 Psalms were written by 37:42 Asaph. He's one of David's singers. Who wrote Psalm 50 also. But Psalm 73 is a wonderful Psalm. It deals with the question that many 37:59 people have asked through the centuries. Why do wicked people prosper? And why do the righteous suffer? That's a big question many, many people have. Jeremiah asked that question. 38:18 And many godly people have asked that question. Habakkuk had a somewhat similar question. And here is what the psalmist says. He first gives the conclusion before he describes his struggle. 38:36 This is the conclusion I finally came to. Let me tell you that. God is a good God. Especially if you're pure in heart. But he says, "When I looked at the prosperity of 38:55 wicked people, verse 3, my feet were still too almost slipped." That means he says I almost lost my faith in God. And he almost said, "What is the use keeping my heart clean? And he says in verse 13, "It's a waste 39:18 of time my keeping my heart pure. I'm keeping my hand innocent if nothing comes out of it." He says, "I saw the wicked people prospering." Today there are many people who preach that if you're righteous, you'll 39:37 prosper. It's an old covenant promise. Here in the Here in the old covenant itself, we see wicked people prospering and the righteous suffering. He says these wicked people, they have 39:57 everything they want and they speak against God. And they live in sin and they say in verse 11, "How does God know?" Verse 12, "They're always at ease and they've increased in wealth." Even in the old covenant, there were 40:18 wicked people who were prospering. But he says, "What about me? I cleansed my heart, kept my heart pure." Verse 13. And what is the result? "Whole day," verse 14, "I'm disciplined and chastened." Why does the Lord discipline us? 40:40 Because we are his children. We don't discipline other people's children. And Hebrews 12 says, "If you are without discipline, then you're not one of God's children." And now look at the wisdom of the psalmist. And the singer of the song and 40:58 all that he says, "If I had shared all these thoughts with other people, I would have stumbled a lot of people. So, I kept quiet. I'll give you a little bit of advice. If you have a lot of doubts, don't share that with a lot of young 41:13 believers. You'll just stumble them. Go and discuss it with a godly older person. And he says, "When I tried to understand this, it was very difficult. Listen to this. 41:32 I finally found the answer when I came into the sanctuary of God. Then I realized everything is like a dream." Verse 20. "The whole world is like a dream. And we wake up, 41:51 we see reality. The wicked are destroyed. And the righteous prosper. Now, tell me. Supposing you saw in a dream you yourself suffering and the wicked prospering. Would it bother you? It's only a dream. 42:12 And that's what he says. Everything in this world is like a dream. Reality is still going to come. But I didn't realize that in the beginning. And then I behaved verse 22 like the animals. But I've given up all that now, Lord. 42:29 And now you took hold of my right hand. You took hold of my right hand. You guide me verse 24 and through you receive You know what decision he took in the sanctuary of God? He said in verse 25, 42:48 "Heaven I desire and no one but you. And on earth, I desire nothing but you. No one prosperity. I don't want help. I want you. And God is That is what it means to have a pure heart. A pure heart in verse one is a person 43:08 who says in verse 25, "I don't want anything but you." In Psalm 74, just one more verse in Psalm 73 before I go on and that is in verse 26. Good verse for those who are afraid of 43:31 heart failure. "My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart." Psalm 74 is a cry of concern for the ruined condition of God's people. Psalm 78 is a 43:55 historical psalm that looks back at the way God led his people from the olden days. It says verse 34, "When he killed them, then they sought him. But they flattered him verse 36 with 44:16 lies. Yet again, God forgave them repeatedly. And finally, he gave them a shepherd verse 70 to 72 to guide them. Psalm 84 is a very beautiful psalm of 44:40 worship. He says, "Just like the bird has found a place for it to lay its nest on the altars. Verse three. I have found a place in your temple. Always be praising you." Verse four. 45:04 "When I live like that, verse six, even if I pass through the valley of weeping, I will turn it into a spring of praise." And he says in verse 10, "I'd rather spend one day in your court than a thousand in any other place, even in a 45:23 palace somewhere else." "I would rather stand at be a doorkeeper in the house of God than dwell in the tents of wickedness." Remember, this is a psalm of the sons of 45:42 Korah. And you know what they're saying? "I would rather be a doorkeeper with Moses in God's house than dwell in the tents with my father, Korah." And verse 11, 46:08 "The Lord God is a sun and a shield. No good thing will he withhold from those who walk uprightly." That's a wonderful song. A wonderful word. That if you walk uprightly, 46:27 nothing good will ever be withheld from you in your "Oh, blessed is the man who trusts in you." Psalm 86 is another prayer for help. Psalm 87 is rejoicing that we are 46:46 members of Zion, the church. Psalm 88 is a prayer for deliverance from death. And Psalm 89 is a song of praise for God's faithfulness to his covenant. This is the third book of Psalms, which 47:10 ends here. A number of psalms by Asaph and by Korah. And we see here the same theme that goes through many of the psalms. Contrast of the wicked and 47:27 the righteous. God abases proud people and exalts the righteous. Notice one verse like that in Psalm 75. And verse six and seven. 47:47 "Promotion does not come from the east or the west, but it comes from God. He is the judge who puts down one and exalts another." In one translation, it says promotion. Many people are looking for promotion 48:07 from man. And here it says it doesn't come from east or west. Promotion comes from God. He is the one who puts down one, exalts another. I don't have to seek to please men in 48:25 order to get a promotion in my job. My aim in life was only be to please God. I have to please God. I will not ever lose what God has planned for me. Another 48:45 thing in this section I want to point out is Psalm 74. Psalm 74 When God forsakes his people, one mark of it is there is no longer any prophet like it says in Psalm 74 verse nine. There will not be any more prophet. 49:10 God sends a prophet to his people. God sends his people a prophet. That is a mark that he has not forsaken them. The most important requirement in a church is a prophetic voice. These are 49:29 verses that bring out certain truths which are not found anywhere else in scripture. And then there yeah, of the Psalm you will find a verse like that. And as we meditate on them and 49:48 apply these truths in our own lives we can get the benefit of the experience that these Psalmists went through. But that's more than that because we can apply it in a in a new covenant sense all these experiences. May God help us.
