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Good morning, everybody. How are you this morning? Good. Everything's alright? Good.
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Fantastic. Well, if you would stand with us, I'm gonna invite Scott up here and we're gonna get underway. Judy's picked some good songs this morning. Victory in Jesus just to lead off. Sing it like you mean it, alright?
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Can you do that? If you don't, when we get to the sermon, you're going be ashamed, alright? So, go ahead, sing it like you mean it, alright? Amen. Thank you.
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That was real funny, Judy. Speaking of higher ground. I'm pressing on the upward way. Alright, thank you. We're going to sing this hymn number five forty nine.
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If you want to find your part in any optional choir endings. Keep grinning. Keep grinning. Keep on grinning.
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I'm pressing on the upward way new heights I'm king everyday
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Thank you. I have a few announcements. Y'all can have a seat and we have Monday nights at First B. That's happening tomorrow night. Carl says that there will be food.
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Meal music and a message every Monday night. He didn't know what it would be yet but it will be good, alright? And if if nobody shows up with food, we'll order pizza or fried chicken. That's right. Okay.
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Now, we'll have food. Meal, music, and a message every Monday night. It'll be more songs and Psalms. Psalms. Which has been fantastic for me.
6:55
We're going go into a Psalm this morning actually in this service but tomorrow evening, 06:00, meal music and message in the fellowship hall. That is after Vacation Bible School. Tomorrow morning, nine to twelve noon is Vacation Bible School here. If you have kids or grandkids that you want to get into this, it's still time. You can register to get em in 09:00 to twelve tomorrow and every day this week.
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So, Monday through Friday, nine to twelve. Jesus saves the world, miraculous mission and if you came in yesterday and saw them decorating, they have this place kind of fixed up. You see a few decorations right here right now but it'll be even more. Tomorrow, so here it is. Vacation Bible School is happening.
7:39
There is a patriotic five ks color run. Do y'all know what that is? I didn't know what that is either. I figured everybody put on your your American patriotic stuff and come out and run. It is somewhat like that except for they blast patriotic colored powder at you while you run.
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Doesn't that sound fun? So, if I I didn't want for you to be caught unawares if you show up but it's a patriotic color run. Young life is putting on in Jackson. It starts June 29. That is next Saturday, 10:07AM at the Jackson Hole High School Stadium.
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That'll be fun. It's a lot of fun. Five K race. There's some people who are serious and there's some people that are not as serious. So, it's it it's good for everybody.
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Immigrant Hope is still collecting shoes as evidence by the pile of shoes in our church office but they are coming and collecting and bringing them back. Their goal is 25, zero pairs and they are well on their way but bring em. We are still looking for volunteers to go on a stateside mission trip, July the tenth through the thirteenth. If you can go and you would like to go, we would like for you to go. So, we're going to take the church van and any other vehicles that we need to go with us to get everybody up there.
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July tenth through the thirteenth, it's in Gillette. Scott Eichen who was the associate pastor here for several years is rebooting, replanting a church up in Gillette and they have a building. It just needs some I have the list actually of repairs. I know exactly what it needs. We have a punch Tom Stanfield went up and made the punch list, took pictures.
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I know exactly what we're expecting now. So, if you want to know what that is, you can see me afterwards or see Gary Geek and we'll get you a spot reserve to go with us on that. It'll be fun. The same time as that, now, the eleventh, 07/11/2019 at 05:30. This is the Turning Points Annual Fundraising Gala and Melissa Odin is going to be the speaker this year.
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Supposed to be really really good. It'll be at the Gill's Ranch down in Shooting Iron Ranches. That ought to be great. If you want to be a part of that, you can call an RSVP by July 1. That's coming pretty quick too And there's a phone number.
9:50
That's in your bulletin too, though. If you've got a bulletin, that should be in there. Directory updates.
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Yes. Hey, everybody. Hey. Just like last week, we're passing around the directories. If you just update your information, that'd be great.
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If you're new, why don't you just find an empty space in there, write in your information for us. This is just so we can contact you if something comes up, if we need to who knows what? You know? We use it or if we need to identify you because there are times where somebody will reference somebody, and I have no idea who they're talking about. So if we can get a photo of you too, that'd be great.
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We don't use it for anything nefarious. So just give give us a call. I've been saving that word. So we're gonna pass one we're gonna pass one down this aisle and one down this aisle. If you just keep it going all the way back until it ends up at the sound booth, that'd be great.
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So thank you so much.
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Thank you, Nick. Appreciate it. And so all of y'all that are looking this way, you don't look at each other's faces very much, but I see all of your faces. It's real it is really nice to know and be able to keep up with folks. If you miss a message, they're available on the Internet.
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First B Jackson dot org or we have a Facebook under First Baptist of Jackson, Wyoming. Connect Hour is still happening. That's a place to make a connection. I actually told him this morning. This is a true confessions from the pastor right here.
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That shocking picture right there reminded me of every time we do communion in here, as sacred an occasion as it is, something about this carpet and me, when I touch that plate, I think I need a picture of it that it gives me every time. I brace myself for it. There's a connection that happens during the connect hour and it's keeping this service and the first service as one church rather than two separate entities to come and connect with some of those folks who are coming to the earlier service. We serve the same God and we're one body, one faith, one baptism but we exist in three services, two on Sunday, one on Monday, right? So, if there is anything else, prayer request, anything else, announcements that I have forgotten, you can check your bulletin.
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I did have one more from this morning that I want to mention. Y'all may or may not know Shane and Michelle, Basie. We prayed for them them this morning as they are heading out. They're moving away from Jackson to Sheridan and as they're leaving, I just wanted to acknowledge Shane Basie has been doing a jail ministry here on Sunday evenings at 08:00 for a long long time and there's another fellow in town who goes to a different church that has been helping him for a long time. I ended up doing a funeral for the other guy's mother this week and that's a that's a tough, tough, tough ministry that he's been doing basically without any acknowledgement from the populace as a whole but I don't ever want to overlook the ministries that y'all are doing.
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I I've known that Shane's doing that and I've talked to him about it but if there's anything that you're doing for the Lord, I love to know about it. Just so we can help if we can and pray a blessing for you for God to bless through you. So, Shane and Michelle, if you think of them this week, just pray for em as they move because moving is never fun. And moving away from here is always always bittersweet even when you know it's the right move. So, anything else you can check your bulletin for and I'm going ask you if you'll stand up and greet one another.
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We will bring you back together with a song.
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Change my heart oh God my heart oh God change my heart oh God
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Amen. How about sanctuary? Y'all know this? It's it is a chorus. We're going to sing it.
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Hymn number 65 in your book. Y'all can have a seat. I'm going to invite the frontline team to come forward but I'm also want to pray for this time of offering. So, lord, I thank you for Your bounteous grace keeps ringing in my ears that you just keep on giving, lord. Unmerited favor.
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You keep on extending it to us and lord, we want to be like you as one of these songs says, we want to be like you. So, would you allow us that kind of grace lord that we'd be extending towards others so that may they may see our good deeds and glorify our father in heaven that they may receive the word, lord. We pray that you would advance your good gospel and your word through everything that we put into these plates lord that it would advance your kingdom. Your reign on this earth. May it be lord as in heaven.
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We ask you that you would bless this and multiply it to do your kingdom's work. You bless gift and giver but in Jesus name, lord, we ask to be a blessing and that you would bless others through us. In Jesus name, amen. That's great. Thank you very much.
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I'm going ask Carl. There's a lot of music this morning, right? So, Carl has for the last couple of sermons that he's preached on Monday night. He's been in a series called Songs and Psalms which he's going to continue tomorrow night. Songs and Psalms.
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So, we might throw an extra song in here and there. I love that. Just a closer walk with thee. Beautiful but this morning, when I got here, the text for today's sermon is Psalm 34 and yesterday, I was in a wedding and Ben, Walter, and Sarah Rock got married. It's a great, great, great matrimony there and this the the wedding was up at the Chapel Of The Sacred Heart.
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They did an Old Testament reading, Song of Solomon, Anna Rose did a great job with that and then when they got to the Psalm, it was Psalm 34 which one of Ben's brothers had put to music and one of the teachers at the classical school sang. I asked her to come this morning. She couldn't but when I got here this morning, Carl had Psalm 34 on the list to be sung this morning. So, it keeps on coming at us and in every one of those occasions, I actually did a funeral earlier in the week and I couldn't get it out of my head during the funeral because it's always appropriate. So, if you would listen to it sung and then I'll come back and preach on it.
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So, rub it in as pre said yesterday.
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I saw the Lord and he answered me and delivered me from every fear. Those who look on Our radiant will never be ashamed, will never be ashamed. And this poor man cried, the Lord with me. Comics are his name together. Glorify the Lord with me.
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We'll taste and see that the Lord is good. Oh, blessed is he who hides in you. And don't fear the Lord. Oh, all you sayings give you everything. He'll give you everything.
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Magnifying the Lord with me and come on his name together, glorify the Lord with me. And comings on his name forever. And let us bless the Lord every day and night, never ending praise. May our insins rise and let us bless the Lord. Every day and night,
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never
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ending praise, may our incense rise. Magnify the Lord with me.
26:20
Thank you, Carl for doing that. Judy and for Laurie too. So, We are up to Psalm 34. That doesn't sound right, does it? I've been going through a New Testament study for the last six and a half years and we finished second Peter last week.
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So, second Peter, the next book that I'm going to be presenting from the New Testament are kind of exposing, expositing from the New Testament is going to be Hebrews. The Hebrews is a full grown up portion. It's a great treaties on the faith and it's got a lot of introductory matters and details that need to be covered and so in between second Peter and let me just tell you about the week. So last Sunday, in between services, we had a little meeting downstairs and y'all can be praying about this about what God wants to do in Teton Valley, Idaho. So, we started that.
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I mentioned it last week and that's just kind of forming. We don't know what it is yet but that's happened between services. After that, we've talked to people that were on extreme celebratory highs and we've talked to people in extreme lows. I have talked to more than one person who is teetering on the edge of suicide this week and I've been a part of one of the most triumphant weddings I've ever seen. I did a funeral on Friday for a lady that I've gotten to know at the Living Center over the last two years.
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I love her son and her family. Her daughter came to church for the last two weeks while she was here with her mom and I didn't know that until the funeral when I saw her and she saw me and it was a bond immediately because we're one in the spirit In Psalm 34, this week has just been resounding. It comes back and it came back on every one of those occasions, something in the Psalm touched me and I think the reason why will become evident. It that it's good. It's good.
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It's a Psalm for every occasion but I want you to see what the Psalm says like in the attribution, the very first before verse one says this, Psalm 34, a Psalm of David when he feigned madness before Abimelech who drove him away and he departed. That's a weird time to write a Psalm, don't you think? He faked being crazy before Abimelech, which is a king, King Achish of the Philistines, Gath of the Philistines. A Psalm of David when he feigned madness before Abimelech who drove him away and he departed. You might also see the heading in your Bible.
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Mine says, the Lord, a provider and deliverer. So, that's always good, right? Looking to God as provider and deliverer. I'm going to give you context first because that's always important. So, the context behind this whole thing about him feigning madness is an interesting story.
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It's fairly short. Second, first Samuel 21 is the context if you're looking in your Bible. This is the New American Standard Version. It starts off like this and then David arose and fled that day from Saul. Okay, so why was he doing that?
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I'll summarize. Saul is king. He's the anointed king. David though has already been anointed. He will be king eventually.
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Saul is a jealous man and he has fallen in a lot of ways away from God. He's resorted to other evil ways instead of God's way and there's a little song that's going around. Songs are powerful. This is part of this this morning. So, songs are pretty powerful and there's a song that's going around and it goes something like Saul has slain his thousand but David has tens of thousands and so the big man who is the king had head and shoulders taller than the than the rest.
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Big man Saul, who is the king and has all the power that he can have within Israel. He's being put down by the people and David is being elevated and he becomes very jealous and very angry and so Saul is going to kill David if he can't. That's the whole thing and so, David arose and he fled that day from Saul to get away from him because he was going to kill him and he went to Akish, king of Gath. So, Akish is the Abimelek like in Egypt, it's a pharaoh. In Russia, it was a czar and you know, he's the ruler of the land.
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Abimelek, Akash, was king of Gath, but the servants of Akish, said to him, is this not David, the king of the land? So, they didn't have Instagram and Facebook and they didn't have all of the the directory. There was no directory that had David's picture in it, right? They might have a rough drawn sketch of the guy but it wasn't even as good as a wanted poster. Is this not David, the king of the land?
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So, they recognize him and David overhears these guys in the court of Achish that they recognize him. Is this not David, the king of the land? Did they not sing of this one as they danced saying, Saul has slain his thousands. Music spreads too. Music spread even to their enemies and they heard this and they knew about it and they said, I remember a little ditty about this guy.
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Saul has slain his thousands and David is tens of thousands. And David took these words to heart and greatly feared. Now, if you were hiding from your king, a good place to hide would be among your enemies, wouldn't it? So, that's what he was doing. He went to the Philistines.
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These are the same folks. He killed Goliath, right? So, some of us, some of them had seen him when he was a boy and now he's a man. He's a warrior. He had done a lot of battle for Israel but David took these words to heart.
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He knew his reputation had preceded him and whereas he thought he was going to seek safety and anonymity among his king's enemies. He found that they recognized him and he greatly feared Akish, king of Gath because now he's in a position where all Akish's guys could turn him into the king and he could be either killed or paraded through the streets in victory that we have this guy, right? So, David, he disguised his sanity before them. He disguised his sanity before them and he acted insanely in their hands. He scribbled on the doors of the gate and he let his saliva run down into his beard.
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Yuck. He acted like a crazy person. He was a thinking man. That's right. He was thinking, he's thinking, how am I gonna get out of this?
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And then Achish said to his servants, behold, you see the man behaving as a madman. Why would you bring this guy to me? Why would you bring this guy to me? Do I lack madmen? Are there not enough crazy people around here already?
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Do I lack madmen that you have brought this one to act the madman in my presence? Shall this one come into my house too? I've got enough crazy people I'm taking care of already. Thank you very much. Get rid of that guy.
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And David writes a Psalm. Seems like an odd time to write a Psalm to me but he got away. That's the point. He got away. He was in the hand of the enemies of his king who is also his enemy.
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So, he's got trouble on both sides. Friendly fire as it were from Saul who's going to kill him because he was jealous of him even though he had already been anointed. He's headed towards that role and Saul, God was chastising for disobedience, for ugliness, and David had been exalted and was being exalted by the people and then, he has to get away and he's by himself. He's running. He doesn't have an army with him at this point.
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He doesn't have anybody with him. He plays the madman or faints madness and he gets away and he writes this Psalm. Psalm 34 starts off like this. I will bless the Lord at all times. That's why it's appropriate.
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It's always appropriate. It doesn't matter what situation you're in. Bless the Lord. Lift him up. Bless him and his praise shall continually be in my mouth.
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I didn't say this in the first service but when we used to run the mission down in Mexico and we had teams come down and they were there to make cement, to pour cement, and to work in the hot sun. You know, it's a 100 degrees, a 100 in a row for the summer and that's the time we had teams And so in the orientation, there's one little line that my boss would say if he did the orientation. He'd say, this should be your motto for the week. They can't make it tough enough to make me complain. What a great thing to hear on Sunday before you start work on Monday and then he changed it to Ray can't make it tough enough to make me complain because I was a foreman on the job.
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If God's praises continually in your mouth, there's no room for all of that naysaying and double talk, right? I will bless the Lord at all times. I think of this a lot of other Psalms say, let everything that has breath, Praise the Lord. If he gives you the morning and you awake and you breathe in atmosphere when it comes out. Thank you, God.
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Oh, the word for spirit in the New Testament is Pneuma, P N E U M A, Pneuma and it means air or breath or that which takes up the space all around us all the time. That's that but in the Old Testament, it's raw. That's the word for it. It's the breathing out. Raw.
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I will bless the Lord whenever I'm given a breath. When I breathe out, it'll be in praise to God. He, his praise shall continually be in my mouth. Paul picks up on this. In Ephesians, while he's reminding us to speak to one another in Psalms, the song book of Israel and in hymns which we sing here and in spiritual songs which we sing to one another, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord.
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Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God. Not everything that happens is good but everything that happens can be used for good. To those who love God or call according to his purpose. Those who have his praise ever on their lips. Always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
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He uses it again in first Thessalonians in everything, give thanks. How often do you have a Bible verse that just says, this is God's will for you. When people come to me and they say, I'm I'm seeking to discern God's will. Should I take this job? Should I marry this person?
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Should I do this? And they say, what is the, what's God's will? I said, well, this is God's will for you and everything give thanks. There's another place where it says that there are only two that I know of that say it this specifically and it says, your sanctification. Oh boy.
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Good or bad stuff that's happening is for your sanctification and this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus and everything give thanks. So, David says, I will bless the Lord at all times. His praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul will make its boast in the Lord. My soul will make its boast in the Lord and the humble will hear it and rejoice.
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Now, there are those who are not humble. There are those who are proud. There are those who will hear it and they will not rejoice and they might even cuss you for it. If your soul makes its boast in the Lord, not in its own ability, not in its strength, not in its work but if your soul is making its boast in the Lord, then the humble will hear it and they will rejoice. That is going from a place of one solitary guy.
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I will bless the Lord at all times and his praise shall continually be in my mouth but when you're breathing it out, you're breathing it to other people. My soul, this as for me and my house, I'll serve the Lord. My soul will make its boast in the Lord and then, other people will hear it and the humble will rejoice. Paul picks that up in first Corinthians says, so that just as it is written, let him who boast, do so in the Lord. In Jeremiah, nine twenty four, let him who boast and this is spoken of God through his prophet Jeremiah.
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So, it's God speaking first person. Let him who boast boast of this that he understands and he knows me. Capital M. He knows me. That I am the Lord.
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I am he who exercises love and kindness. I'm he who exercises justice and righteousness on the earth for I delight in these things. God delights in loving kindness and justice and righteousness. And that comes from him. That's something that only he can do and he declares that.
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Let him who boast boast only in this that he understands and knows firsthand experientially. He knows me. For I'm the Lord. He goes on and I've said it starts individually. I will bless the Lord.
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His praise shall be in my mouth. My soul will make. The humble will hear and rejoice and then he calls out the invitation I said from the chorus of that song. Magnify the Lord with me. Come on, people join into this chorus.
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Let us exalt his name together. It's not just me telling you about what happened to me. It's me telling you so that we can tell what has happened to us as the people of God. Oh, magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together. How many of y'all here in Sandy Patty right in in your head right now?
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Magnify, oh, magnify the Lord. I'm I've got that from my childhood. Bounce around. Let us exalt his name together. It's great.
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I sought the Lord. He's going back to the individual. I sought the Lord. And he answered me. And he delivered me from all my fears.
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How did he deliver him? Just think about the case. Think about the circumstances of deliverance. I acted like a crazy person and got away. But that's it.
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I sought the Lord. I don't know what to do, God. How am I gonna get out of this one? I got the king behind me. I got this guy in front of me.
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They recognize me. I'm in a difficult spot. I'm in a tight spot. How am I gonna get out of this? God help me.
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Pretend you're nuts. And he answered me and he delivered me from all my fears. He still has in my estimation plenty to fear. He has not been exalted king yet. Psalm nine ten says this, and those who know your name, they will put their trust in you.
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For you, oh Lord, you have not forsaken those who seek you. When he says, I sought the Lord, that's very very important. If we're going through difficult times, I know some of you are. If you're going through difficult times, it is hard to go through em and it's hard to see where God is but the whole point of the Psalm is, while he was in the midst of difficulty, he was seeking after the Lord. And he was answered by the Lord.
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Y'all know Jeremiah twenty nine eleven. It's a great verse. It's one that's a bumper sticker verse or coffee mug verse and we quote
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it a lot. I know, I know, I
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know the plans that God has for me. There are plans to prosper me and not to harm me. So, we hear that a lot. It's really good if you go back before that because the context of that one is Jeremiah is from Jerusalem writing to the exiles in Babylon and they've been exiled and they're here in people, false prophets, telling them, yeah, this is short. We're going to get out of this.
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We're going to get out of this. No big deal. We're going to get out of this. In Jeremiah, speaking from the Lord, says, listen, I know you don't like where you are. It's a bad spot.
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I get that but you're going to be here for a while in the land that I have exiled you. So, the difficulty that they were walking through in twenty nine, one, two, three, four, all the way up to 11. God is going through that and saying, I'm the one who placed you where you are for my own reason, for my own glory, for your eventual good. I know you don't like it but I'm the one that exiled you here. It says, if anybody tells you that it's going be quick, they're lying.
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Put down roots here. Plan on your children getting married here. Plan on your children having a plan on having grandchildren here. Plan on this being right there where you are. This is actually the first sermon I heard as a lead pastor of this church and it was from a missionary.
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I might have mentioned that last week. It was two weeks ago, seven years. Was seven years ago. And then it gets up to this after it says, don't listen to anybody who tells you it's going to be quick. It's going to be seventy years.
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And then it says, for I know, God says, the plans that I have for you, declares the Lord. They are plans for your welfare and not for your calamity to give you a future and a hope and then, now, you're going through exile and it's a difficult spot and I know that and it's going to be a while. It's not going to just get better just like that but he says, pray for peace in the land where you dwell because in their peace, you will find your peace. Pray for them to prosper and you'll find your that you will prosper in the land where you dwell. I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord.
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Plans for welfare and not for calamity, give you hope and a future and then you will call upon me then, then, you get to the point through the difficulty where then, you will call upon me and you will come and you will pray to me and I will listen to you and you will seek me and you will find me when? When you search for me with all your heart. If you are going through a very difficult time and a difficult battle and you feel like I cannot trust God because he let this happen to me. That's the wrong mindset. What David Psalm and it's an alphabetic Psalm by the way.
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It's something you're supposed to learn from the time you're really little. They put it in ABC order so that you can remember this. It's saying, at all times, at all times, lean into God and he will deliver you from your fears. He will deliver you from your problems. Then, you will call upon me and you'll come and you'll pray to me and I'll listen to you.
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You'll seek me and you'll find me when you search for me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord and I am the one. I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and from the places where I've driven you, declares the Lord and I will bring you back to the place from where I sent you into exile and we will have a better relationship because of the difficult. David says, I sought the Lord and he answered me and it delivered me from all of my fears and they looked to him. So, he's talked about himself and he's talked about those who would hear but now he's saying, I and then he says, they, who's they?
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They looked to him, to God, and they were radiant. They looked to him and they were radiant. There were other people that I saw that were able to go through difficult times and they looked to God and I saw it on their face that they had peace. They looked to him and they were radiant and their faces will never be ashamed. They don't have anything to be ashamed of because they looked to God.
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This poor man cried. Said, this poor man cried. My favorite line in the song that Carl sang, this poor man cried. This is saying, this poor guy, this one right here, me, this poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. Now, to me, looking at him right then with Saul behind him and Achish in front of him, I'm thinking, he still got troubles.
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But David's sense of peace and God was so great that he said, he's delivered me. I got away. I'm I dodged a bullet on this one. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all of his troubles. I'm drawn to the Psalms anytime I visit the hospital because it's the hymn book of Israel and all of its emotions.
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And I love the Psalms that say, lord, we call out to you because you answer and this is one of those. This poor man cried and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of lord encamps around those who fear him. And he rescues them. Now, you might have an objection right here and go but my aunt so and so died or but my spouse died or my child died and this is not true because he did fear God and he still died.
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Well, as Paul says, which is better? To be here going through the difficulty or to be present with the Lord. God does rescue those who call upon him and look to his anointed messiah. The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him and he rescues them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good.
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Taste and see. The Lord is good. Amen. You don't have to take my word for it. Try it.
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That's what he's saying. Just try it. Taste and see and if you taste and see, you'll see that the Lord is good. How blessed is the one who takes his refuge in him? Oh, fear the Lord.
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Fear is to revere. A holy reverence for God because he is all powerful. That should be a bit scary. What he holds in his hand. Oh, fear the Lord.
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You, his saints, so these are the ones that God has already made holy. Fear and revere the Lord. For to those who fear him, there is no want. If you get it all in the proper perspective and you fear the Lord, you'll find that you are content. Blake, you want to throw that slide up that was from Philippians.
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This is Paul. This is way he said it. So, I'm not saying this because I'm in need. If you think Philippians is just a a prayer letter for missionary support. Paul says, I'm not saying this because I'm in need for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances.
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I know what it is to be in need. I get that. And I know what it is to have plenty. I get that too. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.
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I will bless the Lord at all times. Whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want, I can do all of this through him who gives me strength. Thank you, Blake. That's fine. This is really close.
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That's it right there, think. Fear the Lord, you as saints for to those who fear him, there is no want. You'll find your contentment in God. The young lions, what would be better at catching and getting prey than a young lion, right? They can go for it.
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They're fast, they're strong, the young lions though do lack and they do suffer hunger but they who seek the Lord shall not be in want of any good things. Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added unto you. Even those who are fighting and scrapping are strong or powerful will suffer. Not so for those who seek the Lord. This is the exact center of this.
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If you're looking in there seven minutes left, the rest of it goes fast. Come you children and listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord. Again, this is an alphabet Psalm. This is something that is to be taught to kids and people young in the faith and get this grounding that it's always a good thing to bless God.
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It's always a good thing to lean into him. It's always a good thing to praise him. Come you children and listen to me. I will teach you the fear of the Lord. He's doing that right now in this very verse.
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This is the middle of this alphabet Psalm. Typically, the middle was reserved for a very very strong point and this is like, get this kids and put it in your memory banks. Psalms and poems were designed so that we'd be able to remember them. So, when we're going through hard times, it says, this is a hard time but I will bless the Lord. I'll bless the Lord and be thankful.
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Who is the man who desires life and who loves length of days that he may see good? Who is the man who desires life? Well, I think everybody wants to keep on going forward, right? Almost everybody and loves length of days that he may see good. I think that the that he say may see good is important there too because I get a lot of people saying, oh, when is this ever going to end?
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It's just misery, one misery after another. Every day seems to be worse than the last. I say, do you watch the news? Yes, quit watching the news. Read the Psalms for crying out loud.
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Yeah, it's bad but who is the man who desires life and loves length of days that he may see good. That's the thing. We will love more days if we're looking for the good. So, be looking for the good. Be looking for it.
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It's there. Try to find what you can be grateful for in every circumstance. Then he says, who is the man who desires life? Excuse me. He is a man who desires life and loves length of days that he may see good.
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Who is this? If you're that, then keep your tongue from evil. It's really easy to divide and tear down, rudder of a ship, right? A little spark, your tongue can get you in a whole lot of excess trouble. Keep your tongue from evil and keep your lips from speaking deceit.
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Tell the truth. If you tell the truth and you talk about God, you'll be saying good things. Depart from evil and do good. Okay? Depart from evil.
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Run from it. Flee it and do good. Seek peace and pursue it. There's a lot of seeking in this Psalm. It I'm seeking the Lord and he answered me.
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I'm seeking peace and I'm pursuing peace. I'm going after peace. And if you're doing that, the eyes of the Lord are seeing it. It says, the eyes of lord toward the righteous. Now, there's only one way to be made righteous and that's through his son, Jesus Christ.
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In the Old Testament, when David was writing this, spirit of God upon him, he was pointing towards Jesus and he had to trust in him beforehand just like we have to look back to him, right? The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous. If I change that to a capital R, some people say, that's a reference to Messiah. I think it is too but it's also to those who are found in him, union with Christ. Small R is fine for now.
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The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears are open to their cry even if it feels like he's not hearing right now. Your exile may be longer than you had hoped but it brings you into a deeper and greater abiding relationship with him. The face of the Lord is against evildoers to cut off the memory of them from the earth. He does not want for evil to triumph and he would rather it just go away from the earth. Separation from God that hell brings wipes away the memory that no tears in heaven.
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Oh my goodness. What this is pointing towards is the same thing that second Peter was pointing towards is there is a judgment and there are two ways and there are only two ways and there's either eternal punishment, separation from God or there's eternal bliss being in his presence. In the eyes of the Lord toward the righteous, his ears are open to their cry. Face of the Lord is against evildoers to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry and the Lord hears.
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The humility that he spoke of in the very first part of this, the humble will hear and rejoice. If you accept that God is all powerful and God is good and he's made a way, you will cry out and the Lord will hear and he will deliver them out of all their troubles. It's David's first hand experience that he delivered him from the troubles and he's saying, this is true across the board. When you cry out to God, he will deliver you. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.
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Blessed are those who are poor in spirit. Blessed are those who mourn for they shall be comforted. David is not Pollyanna. Everything's going to be fine. Big smile.
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It is hard and everything is going to be fine. He doesn't downplay the difficulty. The Lord is near to the brokenhearted and he saves those who are crushed in spirit. Many, in fact, are the afflictions of the righteous. That's a small R.
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So, that's talking about Christians, talking about people who have trusted in God's one and only way. Many are the afflictions of the righteous but a capital R fits there too. This is a messianic Psalm. Many are the afflictions of the Christ. Would you agree with that?
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When he started teaching, people started opposing him. His very first sermon recorded scripture, they tried to throw him off a Nazareth Ridge.
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Many are the afflictions of
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the righteous. That's not even the impassion weak but the Lord delivers him out of them all. Now, Christ did die. He did go into the grave but he also came out. The Lord delivered him from them all.
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This one's definitely a messianic reference to Jesus. He keeps all his bones, thousand years ahead of time. I write this down. He keeps all his bones and not one of them is broken. On the cross, when there are three up there, Jesus and the two thieves and they come around after they got bored of watching this extra long, excruciating.
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That's where the word comes from. Excruciating. After they had watched for a long time, they would go around and they'd break the bones of the legs so that they would drop and it would kill em faster on the cross and when they came to Jesus, he had already given up his spirit voluntarily, willfully on behalf of all who would believe. They did not need to break his bones. He keeps all his bones.
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Not one of them is broken. Last two verses here, they're perfect mirror parallel. Evil shall slay the wicked. Evil shall slay the wicked. And those who hate the righteous will be condemned.
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That could be those who hate Jesus will be found wanting. Those who hate the righteous one. It's also those who hate you for following after Christ will be found wanting. And will be condemned, found guilty but the Lord redeems. He pays for the soul of his servants and none of those who take their refuge in him will be condemned Amen That's the end of that Psalm.
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He pays the way for the soul of those who look to him, for those who call out to him, for those who trust in him He redeems the soul of his servants. If he is your lord, I mean, if he is your savior, he will be your lord. None of those who take refuge in him will be condemned. When we're saying, lord, prepare me to be a sanctuary. That's that refuge that we're talking about.
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May we be that sanctuary where people find refuge because our breath out is continually blessing God and bringing people into the family because at any point, one who has here to fore been evil has the option of letting go of their pride, humbling themselves before God, and accepting Christ and then, they move from the upper camp. Verse 21 to the other camp, 22, the Lord redeems the soul of his servants and none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned. Amen. So, what we have for an invitation hymn today is I surrender all. Judy, would you come forward?
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Scott, would you mind coming on up too? Consider it. Consider your words. Consider your way and consider this this week and think about, is God's praise ever on your lips? Is that what you're thinking?
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Is his goodness flowing out of you? Jesus said, whatever fills your heart out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks and so if God's goodness is what's in your heart, that's what's going to come out of your mouth. I have heard stories this week of incredibly difficult times but in most cases, at least one that I'm thinking of right now. It was an incredibly painful experience but it was said that God delivered me from em all. Does that make sense?
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So, it's okay to tell your story. We need to be telling our story. It helps other people to get through but always, this calamity came upon me and I think being a madman. No, this calamity came upon me and then, God got me out of it. I surrender all.
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Would you stand and sing with us? Closing hymn five ninety six. If you want to come forward to pray, the altar is open. If you want to talk to me, Scott will sing God, I thank you for this gathering this morning for those who are gathered in your name. Lord, if there be any here among us, I pray that they would see themselves in the Psalms and they know exactly where they stand before you, lord and I pray that they would take David's advice that they take David's words of blessing and his words of warning that they would come together with him and with you lord and that they would surrender themselves before you.
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Looking to your Messiah, Jesus. In Jesus name, lord, we pray. Amen. Got one more. Benediction, it's the same.
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It precedes the other part of that I read from Paul earlier and it says, be anxious for nothing but in everything, in every circumstance, in every situation, in everything by prayer and by supplication with thanksgiving, let your request be made known to God. Call out to him because he answers and the peace of God which surpasses all understanding will guard your hearts and your minds through Christ Jesus. Lord, may it be so this week in us but also may it be so through us. Amen.
