1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:11,920 Psalm 94. 2 00:00:11,920 --> 00:00:16,920 This is a psalm that talks about God being a just judge. 3 00:00:16,920 --> 00:00:22,080 We don't really know who wrote this psalm or when they wrote this psalm, but it really 4 00:00:22,080 --> 00:00:23,680 doesn't matter too much. 5 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:26,640 We kind of can relate to what's being said here. 6 00:00:26,640 --> 00:00:31,920 It's a psalm that talks about the wicked seemingly getting away with the evil that they're doing, 7 00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:39,040 but ultimately the psalmist recognizes that God will make sure that all wicked is judged 8 00:00:39,040 --> 00:00:40,880 when the time comes. 9 00:00:40,880 --> 00:00:44,880 And so we can take some hope and rejoice in that. 10 00:00:44,880 --> 00:00:46,920 So let's pray and we'll get started. 11 00:00:46,920 --> 00:00:48,520 God, we come to you. 12 00:00:48,520 --> 00:00:50,240 I thank you for your word. 13 00:00:50,240 --> 00:00:53,740 I pray that your Holy Spirit would be with us tonight, that you would help us to know 14 00:00:53,740 --> 00:01:00,080 in our hard times to know that evil will not prevail, but that you are a just judge, dear 15 00:01:00,080 --> 00:01:05,960 Lord, and vengeance is yours and you will bring about a just sentence at the proper 16 00:01:05,960 --> 00:01:06,960 time. 17 00:01:06,960 --> 00:01:10,200 So I pray dear Lord that we would find some peace in that. 18 00:01:10,200 --> 00:01:13,320 And I pray dear Lord, you'd help us to hear our word. 19 00:01:13,320 --> 00:01:18,280 Excuse me, hear your word tonight, dear Lord, that it would work in our lives and that your 20 00:01:18,280 --> 00:01:20,520 Holy Spirit would speak to us tonight. 21 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:23,040 And I ask these things in Jesus' name. 22 00:01:23,040 --> 00:01:24,040 Amen. 23 00:01:24,040 --> 00:01:25,040 Amen. 24 00:01:25,040 --> 00:01:34,400 Psalm 94 verse 1, Lord, God of vengeance, God of vengeance appear. 25 00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:37,920 Now we'll stop there for a second. 26 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:43,240 One day God is going to bring judgment on all people, everybody. 27 00:01:43,240 --> 00:01:47,440 And the question that we have to answer is, are we going to be covered by the blood of 28 00:01:47,440 --> 00:01:53,760 Jesus Christ when we stand before God in judgment, or will we face the judgment of God? 29 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:56,160 Will we face the wrath of God? 30 00:01:56,160 --> 00:02:02,680 Will we face the punishment of God, or will we experience the eternal grace of God? 31 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:06,680 It is God is the one who is the just judge. 32 00:02:06,680 --> 00:02:11,140 It is God who is the one who will bring about vengeance. 33 00:02:11,140 --> 00:02:15,800 We are reminded about that in Romans chapter 12 verse 19. 34 00:02:15,800 --> 00:02:17,480 Vengeance is the Lord. 35 00:02:17,480 --> 00:02:19,400 He will be the one who will repay. 36 00:02:19,400 --> 00:02:24,600 That's a quotation from Deuteronomy, I think, chapter 32. 37 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:32,400 But it is a good reminder to us that there are times perhaps that we are tempted to retaliate 38 00:02:32,400 --> 00:02:34,920 because people do us wrong. 39 00:02:34,920 --> 00:02:39,920 Maybe in a real trivial way of something that's not important and we want to get back at them, 40 00:02:39,920 --> 00:02:44,680 or maybe sometimes people really hurt us in a serious way, and we want to hurt them back 41 00:02:44,680 --> 00:02:49,040 in a serious way, maybe even a physical way. 42 00:02:49,040 --> 00:02:55,720 It's important for us to remember it is not our place to take care of those type of matters. 43 00:02:55,720 --> 00:02:59,960 The Lord will take care of those matters when the time comes. 44 00:02:59,960 --> 00:03:02,080 That's what the psalmist recognizes here. 45 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,040 He knows that God is the one who is in control. 46 00:03:05,040 --> 00:03:11,200 He knows that even if evil is done, it is God who will not forget of that evil, but 47 00:03:11,200 --> 00:03:12,800 he will deal with that evil. 48 00:03:12,800 --> 00:03:20,080 I praise the Lord for all of us that God has dealt with the evil of sinfulness by sending 49 00:03:20,080 --> 00:03:23,560 Jesus Christ to die on the cross. 50 00:03:23,560 --> 00:03:24,800 There is a solution. 51 00:03:24,800 --> 00:03:25,920 There is salvation. 52 00:03:25,920 --> 00:03:31,080 There is deliverance for us in the midst of our evil and in the midst of our sins through 53 00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:37,080 Jesus Christ that we won't experience the wrath of God, but the grace of God. 54 00:03:37,080 --> 00:03:41,880 That invitation is open to everyone here and everyone listening online and anyone in this 55 00:03:41,880 --> 00:03:45,640 world who is evil, which is every one of us who's sin. 56 00:03:45,640 --> 00:03:48,360 We're evil when we do those kinds of things. 57 00:03:48,360 --> 00:03:52,600 There is hope even for those people who have done evil against us. 58 00:03:52,600 --> 00:03:54,320 This is the hard part, right? 59 00:03:54,320 --> 00:03:56,920 Because we may be tempted when people do evil. 60 00:03:56,920 --> 00:04:01,640 We say, well, I'm not going to retaliate, but oh, I can't wait for the day they stand 61 00:04:01,640 --> 00:04:03,040 before God. 62 00:04:03,040 --> 00:04:05,040 That's not really a good attitude to have either. 63 00:04:05,040 --> 00:04:09,320 Now, we want God to deal and bring justice to evil. 64 00:04:09,320 --> 00:04:17,760 God has to do that, but our desire should not be any kind of joy that we get from looking 65 00:04:17,760 --> 00:04:19,980 forward to someone being punished. 66 00:04:19,980 --> 00:04:24,920 We should in fact pray for our enemies and pray for those who persecute us that they 67 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:30,360 would experience the same joy in Christ and deliverance in Christ that we have experienced. 68 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:34,600 Just as we have come through evil and been saved, that they too would come through evil 69 00:04:34,600 --> 00:04:35,920 and be saved. 70 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:41,080 That's a real test for us to see how good our relationship with God is. 71 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:44,400 Can we muster up the strength to pray for our enemies? 72 00:04:44,400 --> 00:04:46,360 Maybe we can. 73 00:04:46,360 --> 00:04:47,920 Maybe we can't. 74 00:04:47,920 --> 00:04:49,560 Maybe we say, I don't want to pray for them. 75 00:04:49,560 --> 00:04:52,160 I want them to experience the wrath of God. 76 00:04:52,160 --> 00:04:56,280 Well, we're not in too good a shape if that's our attitude. 77 00:04:56,280 --> 00:05:01,200 Maybe our attitude is kind of tempted to be that way, but there's enough in us that tells 78 00:05:01,200 --> 00:05:03,080 us, yeah, I got to fight this. 79 00:05:03,080 --> 00:05:05,080 This isn't right. 80 00:05:05,080 --> 00:05:06,720 We need to pray that God would help us. 81 00:05:06,720 --> 00:05:11,040 We need to fight against those feelings until we get to a point that God works in our heart 82 00:05:11,040 --> 00:05:16,640 in such a way that we genuinely pray out of love and concern for those who have wronged 83 00:05:16,640 --> 00:05:22,480 us, that we can humbly go before the Lord and pray for them with all of our heart. 84 00:05:22,480 --> 00:05:26,560 When we can do that to people who have really wronged us, well, that's a pretty good sign 85 00:05:26,560 --> 00:05:30,320 that we're seeking God and we're going in the right direction. 86 00:05:30,320 --> 00:05:35,120 The psalmist here recognizes that God is the one who deals with evil. 87 00:05:35,120 --> 00:05:40,840 Verse two, rise up judge of the earth, repay the proud what they deserve. 88 00:05:40,840 --> 00:05:44,880 Lord, how long will the wicked, how long will the wicked gloat? 89 00:05:44,880 --> 00:05:46,920 They pour out arrogant words. 90 00:05:46,920 --> 00:05:48,840 All the evildoers boast. 91 00:05:48,840 --> 00:05:51,340 Lord, they crush your people. 92 00:05:51,340 --> 00:05:53,400 They afflict your heritage. 93 00:05:53,400 --> 00:05:58,100 They kill the widow and the foreigner and murder the fatherless. 94 00:05:58,100 --> 00:06:00,880 They say the Lord doesn't see it. 95 00:06:00,880 --> 00:06:04,120 The God of Jacob doesn't pay attention. 96 00:06:04,120 --> 00:06:06,200 So the scene is kind of sent for us here. 97 00:06:06,200 --> 00:06:11,360 Whoever is writing this psalm is acknowledging that there are some who are in power who are 98 00:06:11,360 --> 00:06:12,360 evil. 99 00:06:12,360 --> 00:06:17,920 There are some enemies that are coming against God's people and specifically it is listed 100 00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:22,020 the foreigner, the fatherless, the widow. 101 00:06:22,020 --> 00:06:27,720 These are the ones who are getting a lot of this attention, this evil poured out on them. 102 00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:32,360 Now this is exactly the opposite of what God said because repeatedly in the scriptures 103 00:06:32,360 --> 00:06:33,360 what do we see? 104 00:06:33,360 --> 00:06:37,840 That God says look after the foreigner, look after the widow, look after the orphans. 105 00:06:37,840 --> 00:06:40,200 And so these people are evil. 106 00:06:40,200 --> 00:06:46,080 They're doing exactly the opposite of what God says and the psalmist is calling out for 107 00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:48,280 God to bring some deliverance here. 108 00:06:48,280 --> 00:06:53,300 God don't let this evil continue but bring justice on this situation. 109 00:06:53,300 --> 00:06:58,400 These people do these things and they don't think that God's paying attention. 110 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:01,920 And maybe there are plenty of evil people in the world today that say the same thing. 111 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:04,280 Oh yeah, where's God at? 112 00:07:04,280 --> 00:07:06,200 Doing what I want to do. 113 00:07:06,200 --> 00:07:10,760 Maybe even sometimes as Christians we see evil that goes on and we may even say God 114 00:07:10,760 --> 00:07:11,760 where you at? 115 00:07:11,760 --> 00:07:13,760 Why are you allowing this to happen? 116 00:07:13,760 --> 00:07:15,200 But God doesn't forget. 117 00:07:15,200 --> 00:07:16,800 God doesn't sleep. 118 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:21,240 God is not like the God of Baal that we talked about Sunday that they kept hollering and 119 00:07:21,240 --> 00:07:22,680 hooting and cutting themselves for. 120 00:07:22,680 --> 00:07:24,080 Elijah said where's he at? 121 00:07:24,080 --> 00:07:25,080 Maybe he was asleep. 122 00:07:25,080 --> 00:07:27,840 Well we don't serve a false God who sleeps. 123 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:31,440 If God's not answering it's because it's not his time to answer. 124 00:07:31,440 --> 00:07:33,600 It's not because he doesn't hear. 125 00:07:33,600 --> 00:07:36,200 It's not because he didn't know we're calling out. 126 00:07:36,200 --> 00:07:39,120 It's because God has not chosen to answer. 127 00:07:39,120 --> 00:07:40,800 Why does God allow evils to go on? 128 00:07:40,800 --> 00:07:42,220 Well it's hard. 129 00:07:42,220 --> 00:07:45,080 We see some really evil things in this world. 130 00:07:45,080 --> 00:07:47,240 But God knows what he's doing. 131 00:07:47,240 --> 00:07:49,200 God knows everything that he's doing. 132 00:07:49,200 --> 00:07:51,960 It's like when you put a puzzle together. 133 00:07:51,960 --> 00:07:54,600 It might have a thousand pieces in that box. 134 00:07:54,600 --> 00:07:55,600 And you can look at each one. 135 00:07:55,600 --> 00:07:59,040 You can see a little bit and it don't really make sense to you. 136 00:07:59,040 --> 00:08:03,400 And so it's hard to put the puzzle together when you don't see the picture on the box. 137 00:08:03,400 --> 00:08:05,080 What's the first thing you do when you open the puzzle? 138 00:08:05,080 --> 00:08:08,400 You put the picture on the top of the box there so you can see what you're doing. 139 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:12,120 Well the thing about us as humans is we don't see the top of the box. 140 00:08:12,120 --> 00:08:13,460 We see the pieces. 141 00:08:13,460 --> 00:08:17,120 We see this piece where we say golly there's a lot of evil here and there's some evil here 142 00:08:17,120 --> 00:08:18,760 and here's something and here's something. 143 00:08:18,760 --> 00:08:23,080 And we see all these pieces and they don't make sense to us that God could do anything 144 00:08:23,080 --> 00:08:25,480 good with these pieces we see. 145 00:08:25,480 --> 00:08:26,920 But God sees the front of the box. 146 00:08:26,920 --> 00:08:28,520 He sees the big picture. 147 00:08:28,520 --> 00:08:29,520 We don't see it. 148 00:08:29,520 --> 00:08:33,540 And we just have to trust that God's going to put all the pieces in the right place. 149 00:08:33,540 --> 00:08:36,680 So these evil people, they don't think God hears them. 150 00:08:36,680 --> 00:08:40,200 They don't think that God's paying attention and acknowledging and seeing what they're 151 00:08:40,200 --> 00:08:41,400 doing. 152 00:08:41,400 --> 00:08:47,300 But the psalmist knows otherwise that God does know all the wicked that is done. 153 00:08:47,300 --> 00:08:53,040 And so he says in verse eight, pay attention you stupid people fools. 154 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:54,040 When will you be wise? 155 00:08:54,040 --> 00:08:59,600 Now that's a good verse and we're talking about these evil people here and we might 156 00:08:59,600 --> 00:09:03,760 not like to apply this verse to us, but maybe there are times in our life that we need to 157 00:09:03,760 --> 00:09:09,760 read this verse that maybe we are being foolish and maybe we need to listen to this. 158 00:09:09,760 --> 00:09:13,920 Maybe we're being stupid and maybe there are times that we need to pay attention to these 159 00:09:13,920 --> 00:09:15,120 words. 160 00:09:15,120 --> 00:09:18,400 Pay attention stupid people fools. 161 00:09:18,400 --> 00:09:20,560 When will you be wise? 162 00:09:20,560 --> 00:09:22,320 So are we living in a little foolishness? 163 00:09:22,320 --> 00:09:24,480 Are we living in a little evil? 164 00:09:24,480 --> 00:09:26,400 Like these people that the psalmist is talking about. 165 00:09:26,400 --> 00:09:28,600 Well, that's not a good place to be. 166 00:09:28,600 --> 00:09:30,460 We don't want to be stupid, foolish people. 167 00:09:30,460 --> 00:09:31,460 Maybe sometimes we are. 168 00:09:31,460 --> 00:09:37,640 We don't like to admit it, but maybe sometimes we are more than we care to say. 169 00:09:37,640 --> 00:09:43,040 Verse nine, can the one who shaped the ear, not here, the one who formed the eye, not 170 00:09:43,040 --> 00:09:50,200 here, the one who instructs nations, the one who teaches man knowledge, does he not discipline? 171 00:09:50,200 --> 00:09:52,780 The Lord knows man's thoughts. 172 00:09:52,780 --> 00:09:55,380 They are meaningless. 173 00:09:55,380 --> 00:09:56,560 So what does the psalmist say? 174 00:09:56,560 --> 00:09:58,280 Yeah, God knows what's going on. 175 00:09:58,280 --> 00:09:59,280 He made our ears. 176 00:09:59,280 --> 00:10:00,360 He made our eyes. 177 00:10:00,360 --> 00:10:04,840 So certainly he's capable of seeing and hearing and he knows what goes on and he even knows 178 00:10:04,840 --> 00:10:09,280 what goes on in our minds and in regards to the evil. 179 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:10,280 It ain't nothing. 180 00:10:10,280 --> 00:10:11,280 It's kind of meaningless. 181 00:10:11,280 --> 00:10:16,320 It ain't much going on in there, but God knows what's going on. 182 00:10:16,320 --> 00:10:17,320 God hasn't forgotten. 183 00:10:17,320 --> 00:10:20,360 God's not going to let evil go unpunished. 184 00:10:20,360 --> 00:10:21,360 Praise the Lord. 185 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:23,360 That's good news. 186 00:10:23,360 --> 00:10:26,240 And then we kind of shift gears here in verse 12. 187 00:10:26,240 --> 00:10:33,960 Lord, happy is the man you discipline and teach from your law to give him relief from 188 00:10:33,960 --> 00:10:38,160 troubled times until a pit is dug for the wicked. 189 00:10:38,160 --> 00:10:44,520 The Lord will not forsake his people or abandon his heritage for justice will again be righteous 190 00:10:44,520 --> 00:10:48,280 and all the upright in heart will follow it. 191 00:10:48,280 --> 00:10:53,520 Now we have these evil people that aren't paying any attention to the Lord and his instruction 192 00:10:53,520 --> 00:10:58,640 and his law, but then on the flip side, those who are God's people, what does it say of 193 00:10:58,640 --> 00:10:59,640 them? 194 00:10:59,640 --> 00:11:02,560 It says that happy is the man you discipline. 195 00:11:02,560 --> 00:11:04,920 Now isn't that interesting? 196 00:11:04,920 --> 00:11:09,440 We see that same type of language in Hebrews chapter 12, I think. 197 00:11:09,440 --> 00:11:13,200 The Lord disciplines the one that he loves. 198 00:11:13,200 --> 00:11:16,240 And so who are we going to be? 199 00:11:16,240 --> 00:11:20,000 Are we going to be the wicked who see and experience maybe some of the discipline of 200 00:11:20,000 --> 00:11:23,240 God and who continue on our wickedness? 201 00:11:23,240 --> 00:11:30,340 Are we going to be those who take the wickedness of God and let it teach us a lesson so that 202 00:11:30,340 --> 00:11:33,520 we will grow in the Lord and do what is right? 203 00:11:33,520 --> 00:11:35,360 Then what does it say? 204 00:11:35,360 --> 00:11:39,840 Happy is the man you discipline and teach from your law. 205 00:11:39,840 --> 00:11:44,320 So it's good for us to see the word of God, to see the instructions of God, that it would 206 00:11:44,320 --> 00:11:49,100 convict us, that it would discipline us, that we would see the areas where we're sinful 207 00:11:49,100 --> 00:11:54,840 and wicked and it might hurt in the same way that as a parent is going to discipline a 208 00:11:54,840 --> 00:12:02,040 child and give them a whooping and that's not popular in our culture, but you can usually 209 00:12:02,040 --> 00:12:06,000 see a difference between kids that are disciplined and kids that are not disciplined. 210 00:12:06,000 --> 00:12:08,320 That's just the way it is. 211 00:12:08,320 --> 00:12:12,840 And God sometimes has to discipline us to get our attention, not because he doesn't 212 00:12:12,840 --> 00:12:15,280 love us, but because he does love us. 213 00:12:15,280 --> 00:12:19,840 A parent who lets their child get away with everything and never corrects them and disciplines 214 00:12:19,840 --> 00:12:22,720 them, I don't know how much they love them. 215 00:12:22,720 --> 00:12:26,280 Now, any parent that's listening to this that says, I don't discipline my kid and I love 216 00:12:26,280 --> 00:12:29,080 him, well, maybe you do, but I don't know. 217 00:12:29,080 --> 00:12:33,400 I don't know, for any parent that lets their kids run around and do anything they want, 218 00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:37,320 that's not going to end up good for the kid in the long term. 219 00:12:37,320 --> 00:12:41,320 Kids have to have structure and they have to have discipline. 220 00:12:41,320 --> 00:12:42,920 That's true in every aspect. 221 00:12:42,920 --> 00:12:43,920 It's true in the classroom. 222 00:12:43,920 --> 00:12:46,320 I'm sure Ms. Julie could tell us that. 223 00:12:46,320 --> 00:12:49,000 Kids that aren't disciplined, they want to run wild, but once you give them a little 224 00:12:49,000 --> 00:12:53,880 discipline and get them in line, it's amazing how much better they are. 225 00:12:53,880 --> 00:12:56,080 Let's continue. 226 00:12:56,080 --> 00:12:59,200 Who stands up for me against the wicked? 227 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:02,260 Who makes a stand against evildoers? 228 00:13:02,260 --> 00:13:08,000 If the Lord had not been my helper, I would soon rest in the silence of death. 229 00:13:08,000 --> 00:13:14,000 If I say my foot is slipping, your faithful love will support me, Lord. 230 00:13:14,000 --> 00:13:18,960 Okay, so here's the problem that we are up against, just like the Psalmist, is sometimes 231 00:13:18,960 --> 00:13:20,960 we face people that come against us. 232 00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:23,400 We face evil, we face wickedness. 233 00:13:23,400 --> 00:13:25,360 And how are we going to stand? 234 00:13:25,360 --> 00:13:27,280 Who is going to stand for us? 235 00:13:27,280 --> 00:13:29,080 Well, what does the Psalmist say? 236 00:13:29,080 --> 00:13:31,560 Who stands up for me against the wicked? 237 00:13:31,560 --> 00:13:35,320 Well, it is the Lord who is our helper. 238 00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:38,240 It's the Lord who's going to help us to overcome. 239 00:13:38,240 --> 00:13:42,160 And so don't fret in those times in your life where life is difficult and there's somebody 240 00:13:42,160 --> 00:13:45,880 coming against you and things are tough and the devil's coming against you or people you 241 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:47,240 see are coming against you. 242 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:52,000 Don't fret because it's the Lord who's going to help you to stand. 243 00:13:52,000 --> 00:13:57,800 It's the Lord who is going to stand with you in the midst of your battle with the wicked. 244 00:13:57,800 --> 00:13:58,800 What does he say? 245 00:13:58,800 --> 00:14:04,440 If I say my foot is slipping, now how many times have we ever felt that way in our life? 246 00:14:04,440 --> 00:14:07,600 Like we're slipping and we can't hold on any further. 247 00:14:07,600 --> 00:14:09,280 We're at the end of our rope. 248 00:14:09,280 --> 00:14:13,680 We're just holding on and we're clinging with everything we can and we've been fighting 249 00:14:13,680 --> 00:14:17,760 and life is hard and it's difficult and we don't think we're going to make it. 250 00:14:17,760 --> 00:14:19,800 And we say, God, I'm slipping. 251 00:14:19,800 --> 00:14:22,360 Well, who's going to hold on to us? 252 00:14:22,360 --> 00:14:27,120 It says that the Lord with his faithful love will support us. 253 00:14:27,120 --> 00:14:29,040 Well that's good news. 254 00:14:29,040 --> 00:14:34,180 That when we get to the end of all we can do, that the Lord is there. 255 00:14:34,180 --> 00:14:38,280 So we fight and we trust and we seek the Lord with all that we have. 256 00:14:38,280 --> 00:14:45,000 But even when we can't stand on our own, the Lord is there for us and that is very reassuring. 257 00:14:45,000 --> 00:14:46,000 Verse 19. 258 00:14:46,000 --> 00:14:48,760 This is a good verse. 259 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:54,040 When I'm filled with cares, your comfort brings me joy. 260 00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:57,400 When I'm filled with cares, your comfort brings me joy. 261 00:14:57,400 --> 00:15:02,000 Or when my anxieties are upon me, your translations may say something like that. 262 00:15:02,000 --> 00:15:06,960 When I'm full of anxiety, God, your comfort brings me peace. 263 00:15:06,960 --> 00:15:13,240 That is a good verse because anxiety runs rampant in our society. 264 00:15:13,240 --> 00:15:17,820 I mean we are anxious because we are as a society, we just want everything. 265 00:15:17,820 --> 00:15:20,360 We're so used to everything right now and passing go, go, go, go, go. 266 00:15:20,360 --> 00:15:24,080 We never stop and we just get anxious about everything and then we get worried and we 267 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:29,040 get nervous and that anxiety just builds on us and the more anxious we get, the more anxious 268 00:15:29,040 --> 00:15:30,040 we get. 269 00:15:30,040 --> 00:15:33,680 And then we get anxious because we're anxious and we don't want to be anxious and the anxiety 270 00:15:33,680 --> 00:15:39,840 just comes and it comes and that results in a panic attack or an anxiety attack. 271 00:15:39,840 --> 00:15:42,440 And that's kind of debilitating. 272 00:15:42,440 --> 00:15:43,800 You don't want to get out. 273 00:15:43,800 --> 00:15:45,660 You don't want to be around anybody. 274 00:15:45,660 --> 00:15:48,680 And so anxiety is a real deal. 275 00:15:48,680 --> 00:15:51,880 And I would venture to say that everybody in this room has experienced that. 276 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:58,560 Maybe some more than others, but I suspect that everybody has experienced some anxiety 277 00:15:58,560 --> 00:16:00,640 or maybe the cause is what this is. 278 00:16:00,640 --> 00:16:05,520 There's some wickedness coming against us or maybe it's just stress or worry or whatever 279 00:16:05,520 --> 00:16:06,760 it is. 280 00:16:06,760 --> 00:16:10,840 There are plenty of things in our life that bring about anxiety. 281 00:16:10,840 --> 00:16:16,200 We're going through some tough life situation, whatever it is, there is anxiety sometimes 282 00:16:16,200 --> 00:16:20,520 in our life and maybe some in our life for some of you here tonight. 283 00:16:20,520 --> 00:16:25,720 And if so, then I would encourage you to remember this verse because this is a good verse. 284 00:16:25,720 --> 00:16:32,780 When I'm filled with cares, when I'm filled with anxieties, your comfort brings me joy. 285 00:16:32,780 --> 00:16:37,000 So where are we going to find comfort and joy in the midst of our anxiety? 286 00:16:37,000 --> 00:16:40,320 We're going to find it in the Lord. 287 00:16:40,320 --> 00:16:46,760 That needs to be the first place we go and they take a deep breath and we can read passages 288 00:16:46,760 --> 00:16:48,800 like this. 289 00:16:48,800 --> 00:16:54,180 And oftentimes it's probably going to bring you some, some peace almost instantly when 290 00:16:54,180 --> 00:16:58,720 you seek the Lord and you say, God, I'm in the midst of this anxiety attack. 291 00:16:58,720 --> 00:17:01,880 God, I need your peace and comfort. 292 00:17:01,880 --> 00:17:04,400 And you just cling to this word. 293 00:17:04,400 --> 00:17:08,640 And you remember Philippians chapter four, verses four through six, be anxious for nothing, 294 00:17:08,640 --> 00:17:13,360 but in everything through prayer and supplication, let your requests be made known to God and 295 00:17:13,360 --> 00:17:18,280 the peace of God, which transcends understanding will guard your hearts. 296 00:17:18,280 --> 00:17:20,300 Those are some good verses. 297 00:17:20,300 --> 00:17:26,600 Those verses in these verses are so good for anxiety and that may be good for you and they're 298 00:17:26,600 --> 00:17:28,040 going to be good for somebody else. 299 00:17:28,040 --> 00:17:29,880 You're going to encounter cause you're going to know somebody. 300 00:17:29,880 --> 00:17:32,560 You probably already do the struggles with anxiety. 301 00:17:32,560 --> 00:17:35,200 These might be good verses to share with them. 302 00:17:35,200 --> 00:17:42,920 When our anxiety overwhelms us, it is the comfort of the Lord that brings us joy. 303 00:17:42,920 --> 00:17:48,400 Verse 20, can a corrupt throne, one that creates trouble by law, become your ally. 304 00:17:48,400 --> 00:17:53,200 They band together against the life of the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. 305 00:17:53,200 --> 00:17:54,200 Okay. 306 00:17:54,200 --> 00:17:56,880 So these bad guys, they're, they're coming against God's people. 307 00:17:56,880 --> 00:18:00,520 They come against God, but they will not prevail. 308 00:18:00,520 --> 00:18:02,880 They're going to come, but they're going to be dealt with. 309 00:18:02,880 --> 00:18:05,500 The one who trusts in the Lord will prevail. 310 00:18:05,500 --> 00:18:08,760 The one who trusts in the Lord, their foot will not slip. 311 00:18:08,760 --> 00:18:13,760 The one who trusts in the Lord in the midst of the anxiety of their situation will be 312 00:18:13,760 --> 00:18:15,520 comforted by the Lord. 313 00:18:15,520 --> 00:18:20,640 And even if the wicked bring their best shot against God and God's people and God's plan, 314 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:24,720 it will not thwart God's plan. 315 00:18:24,720 --> 00:18:31,120 And he says that in verse 22, but the Lord is my refuge. 316 00:18:31,120 --> 00:18:35,080 My God is the rock of my protection. 317 00:18:35,080 --> 00:18:39,720 He will pay them back for their sins and destroy them for their evil. 318 00:18:39,720 --> 00:18:43,840 The Lord, our God will destroy them. 319 00:18:43,840 --> 00:18:48,560 What a beautiful word there in verse 22, but the Lord is my refuge. 320 00:18:48,560 --> 00:18:52,040 My God is the rock and my protection. 321 00:18:52,040 --> 00:18:55,920 And so the Psalmist knows life is hard. 322 00:18:55,920 --> 00:18:57,800 Sometimes it looks like evil. 323 00:18:57,800 --> 00:19:01,520 Evil people are getting away with evil and nothing's happening. 324 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:04,800 Like God's not paying attention or he doesn't care. 325 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:10,880 But the Psalmist says God, he is paying attention and God does care and God will not let the 326 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:18,720 evil go unpunished, but God will deliver those who trust him and make him their rock. 327 00:19:18,720 --> 00:19:25,440 There is salvation even for the evil, if they will repent, even for the wicked, if they 328 00:19:25,440 --> 00:19:26,760 would repent. 329 00:19:26,760 --> 00:19:32,920 There is deliverance if they would just stand on the rock of Jesus Christ, the same rock 330 00:19:32,920 --> 00:19:38,240 that is our comforter, that brings us joy and the midst of our anxiety as we are up 331 00:19:38,240 --> 00:19:41,600 against whatever situations we come up against. 332 00:19:41,600 --> 00:19:43,440 So God is good. 333 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:48,320 God is a deliverer to those who would seek him and God will bring punishment to those 334 00:19:48,320 --> 00:19:51,200 who will reject him. 335 00:19:51,200 --> 00:19:53,600 Let us be those who trust in Jesus Christ. 336 00:19:53,600 --> 00:19:54,600 Let's pray. 337 00:19:54,600 --> 00:19:55,600 Father God, we come to you. 338 00:19:55,600 --> 00:19:56,800 We thank you for these good words. 339 00:19:56,800 --> 00:20:00,800 I pray that we would find encouragement because dear Lord, we just live in a world that has 340 00:20:00,800 --> 00:20:06,120 got wickedness in it and it doesn't seem right, but dear Lord, you're going to make it all 341 00:20:06,120 --> 00:20:07,880 right when the time comes. 342 00:20:07,880 --> 00:20:12,080 You will deal with everyone in the way in which they need to be dealt with, dear Lord. 343 00:20:12,080 --> 00:20:16,960 So I pray God that each one of us would be those who seek you, that make you the rock 344 00:20:16,960 --> 00:20:20,120 of our life, dear Lord, that you would hold us up. 345 00:20:20,120 --> 00:20:27,200 God, maybe there are some tonight that can relate to that anxiety that we talked about. 346 00:20:27,200 --> 00:20:30,960 I pray that you'd give them that comfort and joy that only comes from you, dear Lord. 347 00:20:30,960 --> 00:20:36,000 I pray that those anxiety attacks wouldn't get the best of them, but that they would 348 00:20:36,000 --> 00:20:38,360 find strength and peace in you. 349 00:20:38,360 --> 00:20:42,640 And so I pray that you would help us to cling to that truth of that word tonight, that it 350 00:20:42,640 --> 00:20:46,720 would be a blessing to us, dear Lord. 351 00:20:46,720 --> 00:20:48,920 And I ask these things in Jesus' name. 352 00:20:48,920 --> 00:20:49,920 Amen. 353 00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:50,420 Amen.