Kevin Dibbley - July 14, 2024
"The King's Treasure"
In this sermon, we are studying another great Psalm – Psalm 19. C.S. Lewis wrote: “I take this to be the greatest poem in the Psalter and one of the greatest lyrics in the world” (Reflections, 73). What makes this Psalm so beautiful is that it opens up to us God’s glory not just in creation but in His Word. Here’s the challenge that we all face: We live in a world of both glory and catastrophe. We behold the majesty of billions of stars in a northern night sky. We feel the warmth of the summer sun as it caresses our faces as it makes its way across the Minnesota sky. It is glorious! Yet, inside and all around, simultaneously, we feel deep brokenness. Injustice and corruption plague the world where we work, create, and play. Sin continually tempts us and draws us away from enjoying God’s glory. Beholding glory creates a deep ache for God’s glory to fill all the earth and all our lives for all eternity. Herman Bavinck writes, “The gravity and the vanity of life seize on us in turn. Now we are prompted to optimism, then to pessimism. Man weeping is constantly giving way to man laughing. The world stands in the sign of humor which has well been described as a laughter and a tear.” This is where God’s word becomes precious to us. It helps and guides and restores and revives us in a world of glory and catastrophe.
Scripture References: Psalms 19:1-14
From Series: "Sing to the King"
We are going to study the Psalms in a series called “Sing to the King.” The psalms are a collection of songs and prayers meant to guide Israel through the long struggle with their own sin and their experience of exile without a King to guide and to shepherd them. The Psalms invoke an eager expectation that God is sending a righteous King who will faithfully lead and shepherd His people. These deep hopes and longings are realized in the person and work of Jesus Christ. Much like Israel, we still struggle with personal sin and a world of injustice. We still groan in what sometimes seems like a long season of silence from God. But as New Testament Christians, we have a King who has come, has conquered and who now reigns. That King is also coming soon to make all things new. The psalms are meant to make us look to Jesus as the King who fulfills all the longings and needs of his people. Jesus is the King who saves us from our sins and leads us in triumphal procession. He is coming to reign over all the earth. Come and celebrate and “Sing to the King” with us this summer. It is going to be a blessing to be together and to encourage one another in the Lord.
