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Psalm, Chapter 76

The Victorious Power of the God of Jacob.

For the choir director; on stringed instruments. A Psalm of Asaph, a Song.

76 God is known in Judah;
 His name is great in Israel.

-          The title of this message is the victorious power of the God of Jacob

-          note that it's the victorious power – the power that ends in victory!

-          Note that belongs to the God of Jacob (Jehovah alone has this power)

-          For the choir director (so its meant to be song, that would be memorized and practiced so the people would not forget this lesson.

-          On stringed instruments

o   This means instruments were to be included

o   This would take time to create, practice and get right

o   This means this song or this message is important enough to write music too!

-          A Psalm of Asaph

o   Asaph means “collector or gatherer”

-          The victorious power of the God of Jacob is sufficient to deliver on the promise God made to Abraham and his children hence Isaac, then to Jacob and so on – unto us!

o   This power to deliver His people from this world and safely bring them to heaven is worth singing about!

-          God is known in Judah

o   Judah means praise

-          His name is great in Israel

o   His name is the only the name whereby a man or woman can be saved

o   So how great is His name?

 2 His [a]tabernacle is in Salem;
His dwelling place also is in Zion.

-          His tabernacle is the place He is

-          Salem means “perfect peace”

o   There is perfect peace in God’s presence where He lives

-          His dwelling place also is in Zion

o   Zion means Highest Point

o   This is a reference to heaven but also where the new Jerusalem will be during the millennial reign

-          The most peaceful place in heaven or earth is with God

-          The closer you get to Him, the better off you are

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Psalm, Chapter 75

God Abases the Proud, but Exalts the Righteous.

For the choir director; set to [a]Al-tashheth. A Psalm of Asaph, a Song.

75 We give thanks to You, O God, we give thanks,
 For Your name is near;
 Men declare Your wondrous works.

-          The title of this message is God abases the proud, but exalts the righteous

-          these are polar opposites so that we can see the difference

o   God abases is the proud means he lowers them in rank; degrade; belittle within public view

o   But God Exalts the Righteous which means: to raise in rank, power or character; elevate rank in public view

-          A Psalm Asaph which means “gatherer or collector”

-          There is a time coming when God is going to gather everyone together and he is going to separate the wheat from the chaff or in this case you may say the proud versus the righteous.  and all we see the proud debased in rank publicly and the righteous promoted in rank publicly (the oppositive of what we see now!)

-          We give thanks to you oh God we give thanks

o   giving God thanks is repeated in the first half of this verse

§  it must be important to remember to give God thanks

-          for your name is near

o   when God's name is near it means it's on your lips; it's in your mouth

o   aren't you glad that you can call out to God in Jesus name at any moment?

-          men declare your wondrous works

o   notice that men will be declaring God's wondrous works because He is wonderful!

o   in the context he is going to right every wrong and make everything fully correct!

 2 “When I select an appointed time,
 It is I who judge with equity.

-          When I select an appointed time

o   this means the appointed time by God when he is good and ready (His perfect time)

-          it is I who judge with equity

o   God is saying that there is a specific date and time that he has pre established and when that time comes he will be the judge and his judgments will be with equity which means fully fair fully correct, spot on!

o   those who have done evil and those who are proud will be rewarded accordingly

o   those are humble and made righteous by faith in Jesus Christ will also be rewarded accordingly

 3 “The earth and all who dwell in it [b]melt;
It is I who have firmly set its pillars. [c]Selah.

-          the earth and all who dwell in it melt

o   the core of the earth is extremely hot; so as hell

o   if God doesn't keep it together it'll all melt (it's called atomic glue)

-          it is I who have firmly set its pillars. Selah

o   pillars are used to hold up weight

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Psalm, Chapter 74
 An Appeal against the Devastation of the Land by the Enemy.
A [a]Maskil of Asaph.

74 O God, why have You rejected us forever?
Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your [b]pasture?

-          The title of this message is an appeal against the devastation of the land by the enemy

o   an appeal is when you go to the court and you ask them to change the ruling of a lower court.

o   Israel was being destroyed by enemies and God was seemingly letting it happen

o   Asaph wants God to reconsider their case

-          A Maskil of Aspah

o   A maskil is Jewish wisdom learned by studying the old testament but then practicing God’s word long enough to know its 100% true every time.

§  You might say its Godly wisdom applied & understoon

-          Of Asaph, which means “gatherer, Collector”

o   This is what God will do at the great judgement seat

§  He will gather the wheat and tares together and separate them judging evil from good and sending them to their final destination

-          In short, Asaph wants God to judge evil from good now and burn up the chaff and save the wheat from the acts of evil men because it’s what God promised to the Jews in the Word of God

-          O God, why have You rejected us forever?

o   Asaph seems exasperated as he says these words; its been too long of a fight

o   Asaph seems aware that the present troubles were a result of God no longer inventing on their behalf so he wonders if its forever…

o   So too, sometimes we think that we've been in some fight against evil for an extended period of time and we wonder if it's going to go on forever as well.

o   you might say we get sick and tired of being sick and tired of evil people seemingly winning against the God’s chosen people

-          Why does your anger smoke against the sheep of your pasture

o   we've got us so angry and it's smoking; it's a major problem

o   not just smoke in the air but smoke against the sheep of His pasture

o   this implies that God is angry against His chosen people which are called sheep

§  sheep are very dumb animals; they cannot defend themselves; they will eat grass until it no longer grows and starve to death; they will not leave to find water they will just become dehydrated and get sick and die; unless the shepherd leads them to green pastures where they can continue to eat and by still waters where they can drink without drowning.

§  Asaph is merely reminding God that his sheep are helpless and they're going to die without His help

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What does God say about Prayer?

Let us look at the foundational scriptures for prayer:

Philippians 4:4-7

4 Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice! 5 Let your gentle spirit be known to all men. The Lord is near. 6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. 7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

-          This verse is foundational because it gives us the right attitude and lifestyle which leads to a life of prayer and the key to unlock the power of prayer to get answers and ultimately peace!

-          We begin by learning to rejoice in the Lord always

o   Some sometimes; always (even when you don’t feel like it)

o   Again I say rejoice because you didn’t listen the first time and you need to be reminded (all of us)

o   In order for you to rejoice in the Lord always you must be believe in Him and that He loves you, saved you and cares about you and has a good plan for your life.

§  If you really believed this, you would be rejoicing

-          Next we are to let our gentle spirit be known to all men.  The Lord is near

o   This explains the attitude of our heart which should be on display for others to see

o   We should have a gentle spirit and all men should see it and feel it

§  How does this happen?

§  If you believe the Lord is near and hears your prayers and is actively helping you and everyone else you pray for; you could have a gentle spirit because you would not be worried or afraid or anxious about anything

-          These are the foundation you must establish if you want to build a strong prayer life

-          Now God will teach us how to pray and what to pray for!

-          Be anxious for nothing , but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

o   These are very specific instruction; let’s unpack this list together

§  First, we must not be anxious for anything

·         You must catch yourself doing it and stop it

·         You must acknowledge that anxiety and worry are not from God

§  Second, you must learn to pivot on the word “but” which means in contrast to being anxious, this is what you should do instead:

·         In everything by prayer (this means pray about everything)

·         And supplication (this means urgent prayers 911)

§  Third, you must learn what it means to pray “with thanksgiving”

·         With thanksgiving (this means to thank God for hearing your prayer request and thank Him in advance that He will answer your prayer and do what you have asked (as if you already received it)

§  Fourth, you should understand the end result of practicing the first three instruction in this list

·         The peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus

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Psalm, Chapter 73
The End of the Wicked Contrasted with That of the Righteous.
A Psalm of Asaph.

73 Surely God is good to Israel,
 To those who are pure in heart!

-          The title of this message is the end of the wicked contrasted with that of the righteous

-          This means we are going to compare and contrast the end result

-          A Psalm of Asaph

o   Asaph means “gatherer, collector”

o   And the end we will all be gathered together and God will separate the wheat from the chaff

-          Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart!

o   God is good to Israel because He promised He would be

o   God cannot break His promises

o   To those who are pure in heart (this is a condition)

§  To be pure in heart means your heart has been washed in the blood of the lamb, the sacrifice of God Himself to save His people from their sins

 2 But as for me, my feet came close to stumbling,
 My steps [a]had almost slipped.

-          But As for me, my feet came close to stumbling

o   this is very interesting because it seems he was on the right path that leads to heaven but he almost stumbled and fell and gave into sin in such a way that it would prevent him from going into heaven (this is very scary)

-          my steps had almost slipped

o   you are in control of where you step or where you walk

o   you can choose to go where you are not supposed to and be judged accordingly

o    or you can choose to God’s way and end up in Heaven

o   Never forget it’s a choice

3 For I was envious of the [b]arrogant
As I saw the prosperity of the wicked.

 -          This is the reason Asaph almost fell

-          He was envious of the arrogant, and the prosperity of the wicked

-          Prideful man wants to feel superior to others and wealthier than others

o   Christians can be tempted by this still today

o   It seems like the arrogant have the best seats and the most power & prosperity

§  But the truth it; they are poor spiritually speaking (they end poorly)

4 For there are no pains in their death,
 And their [c]body is fat.

-          Asaph saw arrogant wicked men die in their sleep or without much trouble

-          Asaph could only see or hear about what happened this side of eternity

-          I wonder what Asaph would have seen if he could look beyond the curtain

-          And their body if fat

o   A fat body is a result of eating much rich food

Again, man looks on the outside; God looks at the inside; what happens next is a greater reality than what we can see because its for eternity 

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Psalm, Chapter 72

The Reign of the Righteous King.

A Psalm of Solomon.

72 Give the king Your judgments, O God,
 And Your righteousness to the king’s son.

-          The reign of the righteous king

o   the only righteous king is Jesus Christ

o    and he will reign forever and ever

-          A Psalm of Solomon

o   Solomon means “recompense; to be or make whole or complete; completeness; peace”

o   When Jesus Christ reigns He will recompense everyone fully complete and there will be real peace!

-          Give the king Your judgements, O God

o   This means the power to Judge as God

-          And Your righteousness to the king’s son

o   This means the same righteousness as God because He is

 2 [a]May [b]he judge Your people with righteousness
And [c]Your afflicted with justice.

-          May he judge Your people with righteousness

o   Notice who’s people they are – they are His

o   To judge with righteousness is to judge wisely and fully correct

-          And Your afflicted with justice

o   Notice who’s the afflicted are “His”

o   They are going get repaid all that the locus had eaten (recompensed)

o   This is when justice will be evident

 3 [d]Let the mountains bring [e]peace to the people,
And the hills, in righteousness.

-          Let the mountains bring peace to the people

o   The mountains are a reference to Jerusalem where God’s Himself will rule & reign

-          And the hills, in righteousness

 4 [f]May he vindicate the [g]afflicted of the people,
Save the children of the needy
And crush the oppressor.

-          Three great things He will do

o   1 – vindicate the afflicted

§  This means they won’t be afflicted anymore & they get repaid for their previous affliction (rewarded; repaid; recompensed)

o   2 – save the children of the needy

§  This means they get food, water, shelter, love, school, learning & blessing

§  Everything they were previously depraved of

o   And crush the oppressor

§  Those who previously oppressed the children will be crushed

§  The devil and all his followers including wicked teachers and perverts, etc.

§  They will no longer remain as they get crushed (into dirt)

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Psalm, Chapter 71

Prayer of an Old Man for Deliverance.

71 In You, O Lord, I have taken refuge;
 Let me never be ashamed.

-          The title of this message is prayer of an old man for deliverance

o   first of all notice guides grace in that the man lived to be old

o   Second notice that your need to pray and ask God for deliverance doesn't go away even when you're older

o   Finally note that the older you get and the more prayers that you have made certainly the more you can trust God that he will deliver you again!

-          and You, oh Lord, I have taken refuge; let me never be ashamed

o   To take refuge in the Lord means it's the place that you run to

o   even though David is an older man he still runs to God regularly because he knows that's his safe place

o   let me never be ashamed (this means don't let me down God continue to save me even as you have before)

§  notice the duration is never (this means keep protecting me forever and ever)

 2 In Your righteousness deliver me and rescue me;
 Incline Your ear to me and save me.

-          In your righteousness deliver me and rescue me

o   notice that David doesn't pray in his own righteousness but in God's righteousness

o   David could ask Jesus to deliver him because of the righteousness that was in Christ alone

-          incline your ear to me and save me

o   I like that David ask God to incline his ear to him that means he wants God's attention and he expects God to give it to him

o   and save me (this means that David also expects God to answer his prayer request in the affirmative)

o   are you bold enough to ask God to bend his ear and listen to you?

o   is your faith strong enough that you absolutely believe that he will listen and that he will help you and answer you in the affirmative like David did?

 3 Be to me a rock of habitation to which I may continually come;
 You have given commandment to save me,
 For You are my [a]rock and my fortress.

-          Be to me rock of habitation to which I may continually come

o   a rock of habitation seems to imply that you spend so much time on this rock it's almost like you live there

o   Jesus Christ will be your rock, your strong foundation, all your life, and He will never leave you or forsake you

-          You have given commandment to save me, for you are my rock and my fortress

o   David knows that God gave a commandment to save David who is a Sinner

o   David knows if God made a commandment then it's going to be kept

o   David expects God to keep his promises, do you?

-          for you are my rock and my fortress

o   again this speaks volumes about the personal relationship between Jesus and David

o   David sees Jesus as his rock; a firm foundation on which he can build his life in confidence and trust

o   and my fortress (this speaks of God hedge of protection like a fortress wall all around every side and for all his years)

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Psalm, Chapter 70

Prayer for Help against Persecutors.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David; for a memorial.

70 O God, hasten to deliver me;
O Lord, hasten to my help!

-          Prayer for Help against persecutors

o   This title shows that even David had to pray for help

o   Do you need to pray for help today against persecutors (other people trying to cause you harm?)

-          This was written for the choir director

o   This means its was meant to be song so we would remember this

o   It was a Psalm of David; for a memorial (to remember something or someone)

-          O God, has o delivery me

o   This means hurry up God – it’s urgent; 911 God

-          O Lord, hasten to my Help!

o   Notice the first request was to God the father; the second was to the Lord

o   When you ask God the Father in Jesus name, anything is possible!

o   Because of Jesus Christ’s blood on the cross; God will help you & I

o   You can be certain of this

 2 Let those be ashamed and humiliated
 Who seek my [a]life;
Let those be turned back and dishonored
Who delight [b]in my hurt.

-          Let those be ashamed and humiliated who seek my life

o   Notice David is not praying for himself but for his enemies

o   He wants God to make them ashamed and humiliated

o   Don’t worry; God will do it!

-          Let those be turned back and dishonored who delight in my hurt

o   To be turned back means sent back from their mission  a total failure

o   The plans of evil men always fail when their against God’s children

o   They will be sent back in dishonor (the opposite of what they expected)

 3 Let those be [c]turned back because of their shame
Who say, “Aha, aha!”

-          People who say “Aha, aha!” are seeking an opportunity to cause harm

-          They will be turned back to report they failed as well

-          They just can’t keep a good godly man down

-          They scheme and plot but all their plans fails because God is protecting His people

-          They evil are fighting against God (a worthless and foolish pursuit)

4 Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You;
 And let those who love Your salvation say continually,
 “Let God be magnified.”

-          Let all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You

o   First let consider the condition “all who seek you”

o   Are you seeking the Lord and His will; His plans; His vision for your future?

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Psalm, Chapter 69

For the director of music. To the tune of “Lilies.” Of David.

1 Save me, O God,
    for the waters have come up to my neck.
 2 I sink in the miry depths,
    where there is no foothold.

-          This chapter was for the music director meaning it was to be a song

o   One that would learned, practiced, sang, memorized & repeated

o   This is because God’s wants us to remember what we learn

o   Songs make it wasy

-          Save me O God for the waters have come up to nick

o   Sometimes we struggle and we watch waters reach all the way up to our neck

o   We wonder, why God, why have you allowed this difficulty to go on so long to the point where I now think I may die

-          I sink the miry depths, where there is no foothold

o   This speaks of mud or quicksand that wants to swallow us up

 I have come into the deep waters;
    the floods engulf me.
 3 I am worn out calling for help;
    my throat is parched.

-          I have come into deep waters (not shallow but deep)

o   Rutrow, I am big trouble (so it seems)

-          The floods engulf me (I think its all over)

-          I am worn out calling for help; my throat is parched

o   This is the point that man is at the end of his rope

o   He cannot seem to go further in his own power

 My eyes fail,
    looking for my God.
 4 Those who hate me without reason
    outnumber the hairs of my head;
 many are my enemies without cause,
    those who seek to destroy me.

-          My eyes fail looking for God (because you can’t seem to find Him)

-          Those who hate me without reason outnumber the  hairs of my head

o   In other words you have so many difficulties you can’t even count them anymore

-          Many are my enemies without cause, those who seek to destroy me

o   It seems the whole world is against us sometimes

o   For no reason

 I am forced to restore
    what I did not steal.

-          This means required to pay for something that you didn’t do or deserve

-          It’s totally unfair

5 You, God, know my folly;
    my guilt is not hidden from you.

-          God knew David’s folly (his sin) and He knows ours too

-          My guilt is not hidden from you; neither is our own

-          God knows and sees everything we have all done

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Psalm, Chapter 68

The God of Sinai and of the Sanctuary.

For the choir director. A Psalm of David. A Song.

68 [a]Let God arise, [b]let His enemies be scattered,
And [c]let those who hate Him flee before Him.

-          The God of Sinai and of the Sanctuary

o   The title of this message is interesting because

§  The God Sinai likely refers to Mt. Sinai where God gave Moses the ten commandments (man is now accountable to God laws)

§  And of the Sanctuary likely refers to the church; a place of safety (man is now forgiven for breaking those laws)

-          Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered

o   David wants God’s to arise, get up from His throne and take action

o   The specific action he wants is for God to scatter his enemies (the fun is over)

-          And let those who hate Him flee before Him

o   Some people hate God because He makes good and evil plainly seen

o   They want to continue in their sin and they get mad when they can’t

o   When God gets up from His throne and visits the earth, those people will flee (Run) before Him

 2 As smoke is driven away, so drive them away;
As wax melts before the fire,
So let the wicked perish before God.

-          As smoke is driven away, so drive them away

o   Smoke is driven away fast (poof); God’s enemies will flee quick too

-          As wax melts before the fire

o   Wax can’t stand the heat (neither can sin)

-          So let the wicked perish before God

o   They will be consumed by Fire like wax

 3 But let the righteous be glad; let them exult before God;
 Yes, let them rejoice with gladness.

-          But (in contrast to what happens to the evil)

-          Let the righteous be glad; let them exult before God

o   We are going to glad when God visits the earth

o   We will exult (elation; jubilation) before God - YES

4 Sing to God, sing praises to His name;
[d]Lift up a song for Him who rides through the deserts,
Whose name is [e]the Lord, and exult before Him.

-          Sing to God, sing praises to His name

o   Its always about His name because His name saved us!

o   It’s not the unknown God; it Jesus Christ, the Lord!

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