Wawasee Bible Podcast

Tom Speicher preaches from Psalm 103. Psalm 103 is a call to worship with three parts: 1) An internal call to worship. 2) An external call to worship. 3) A universal call to worship.

In Psalm 100 we see that we're not to be a half full or half empty person, but totally full! It's a Psalm of joy in Christ, tell us what to do and why to do it. Will you choose joy?

Sunday, July 23, 2023

Jesus: My God in the Psalms | Part 5: It's All About Jesus, My Shepherd (Psalm 23:4-6)

Psalm 23 is among the most known and loved of all Bible passages. Pastor Dave preaches through the second half of Psalm 23 this week, verses 4 though 6. Valleys & Shadows? Keep walking, for you are never alone. Jesus saves you now, Jesus saves you forever.

Psalm 62 is a song written by David. David had numerous times where he found himself in danger, even surrounded by enemies who sought to destroy him. We're not sure which event he's writing about here, but we do see his unwavering trust in God alone to protect and save him. David waits in silence (quietly, still) for God to speak and act, repeatedly emphasizing that God alone is able to save. He alone is who we should wait on, trust, and seek. God ALONE is our refuge and fortress. On this side of the cross we know that the one who is our refuge, fortress, and salvation is Jesus. Rely on God alone, every other refuge will fail, but his power and love endure forever!

Psalm 24 is a song of praise and celebration that acknowledges God's kingship and authority over all creation. "The earth is the Lord's"…"the earth and all who dwell therein." Everything belongs to God, he created it all—including us! We should be his also. "Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?" David asks. The answer is those who are righteous, and that only comes through faith in Jesus Christ. The end of the Psalm asks who the King of glory is—and the New Testament answers that it's Jesus! "The earth is the Lord's"—so we should be his also, and give him glory!

Psalm 146 reminds us of the unwavering faithfulness and goodness of God and all it motivates us to do. First it motivates us to praise him. We need to remind each other to praise God, and even to remind our own souls to praise him. There's days we may not feel like it, and we encourage one another with our praises. Second we're motivated to wholeheartedly trust Jesus, rather than in human beings, institutions, worldly circumstances, our own abilities. Jesus alone can save! Last we're motivated to make Jesus alone our hope. Psalm 146 lists 12 characteristics of God (which parallel descriptions of Jesus in Isaiah 61:1-3 and Luke 4:18-19; 7:22-23). These give us reasons to make Jesus our hope, trust him, and praise him!

Psalm 23 is among the most known and loved of all Bible passages. This message will cover the first 3 verses. Psalm 23 begins with "The Lord is My Shepherd...." and reveals the deep personal connection between us and the Lord. He will never leave us or forsake us. He is the performer of his promises and the life-giver and will never fail us. We want to return his love and faithfulness by listening to his voice, following him, obeying him, and trusting him. He will always provide. He restores our souls. No one knows or understands your soul as Jesus does. We want to "return" our souls to Jesus as He alone ultimately is the one who repairs and restores our soul. The Lord makes clears there are only two paths in life and everyone is on one or the other, so by God's grace we follow Jesus who keeps us and guides us on the paths of righteousness for his glory and our good.

After returning from his first journey with Barnabas, Paul learned of legalism creeping into the newly formed churches in Galatia. He was angry at whoever brought it upon those churches, but also frustrated with how quickly the people there had turned away from the Gospel of grace. We learn all of this from the letter Paul wrote to those churches, the New Testament book of Galatians (which he likely wrote sometime in between chapters 14 and 15 of Acts). This week we dip out of Acts to give an overview of the letter Paul wrote to the churches of Galatia. He was clear that we are saved by faith alone in Christ alone all of God's grace alone! We're free from the law and religion. But saving faith never stays alone. The Holy Spirit produces fruit in the lives of believers as the walk in step with the Spirit.

Acts 15 marks a pivotal moment where it is affirmed that Gentiles do not need to become Jewish or adhere to the rituals of the Law in order to be a Christian. Acts 15 teaches us that there is a danger of adding to the gospel 
to preserve our cultural identity. The Gospel is for all! In fact, the Gospel should be contextualized to the cultures it is brought to. Never adding to or taking away from the truth of the Gospel which would result in a false gospel. As we follow Jesus' mission, we must together seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit and be rooted in the Word of God. Furthermore, as Christians we must loving give up our own preferences for the advancement of the Gospel and the unity of the Church. At Wawasee we express this in our fifth core value and our commitment to have No Sacred Cows. Dr. Brett Gleason of the EFCA Great Lakes District is our guest this week.

Acts 14 records the heart of Paul and Barnabas's first journey to spread the Gospel. After being run out of Antioch, they head to Iconium where once again there is fruitfulness as they share the Gospel along with opposition to it. When a plan to mistreat and stone them surfaces, they move on to Lystra. In Lystra a crippled man is healed at Paul's word. After witnessing the miracle, the crowds believe Barnabas and Paul to be Zeus and Hermes. When Paul and Barnabas insist they are not gods but mere men chaos ensues. Paul is stoned and dragged out of the city, assumed dead. After the disciples gather around him he rises, reenters the city then heads to Derbe the following day. Paul and Barnabas were ministering in a culture deeply divided, chaotic, and often opposed to the Gospel—not unlike our own. When the world is full of chaos, opposition, & division, our job is to be faithful and point people to Jesus, leaving the results to God. Pastor Josh also gave a helpful paradigm of "Receive, Reject, Redeem" for us to use as Christians as we interact with our culture.