[0:00] Please open your Bibles to Psalm chapter 2, Psalm 2. Before we jump right into reading that, let me remind you all what's going on.
[0:22] We're looking at a brief series on some selections from the Psalms that we hope will help to shape our worldview. And I began that last week with the intent of finishing Psalm 2, and I made it through three verses.
[0:34] That doesn't give me, maybe not you, much hope that we've got, what, nine verses left, four through 12, left to us that we'll make it through this week. That could be four more weeks.
[0:45] We'll see. But that had been my desire. It's been announced already. I'll be at the Reformed Baptist Network General Assembly this week, and our brother Paul Thompson will be preaching to us next Sunday.
[0:56] And the plan is for him to continue by doing another Psalm, and then, Lord willing, when I'm back, after that I will preach Psalm 1. I think that would be the first Sunday in October.
[1:10] And again, as I set the schedule, Lord willing, right? We know that God's sovereign over these things. Otherwise, I'd be preaching Psalm 1 right now. All right, but we're finishing up Psalm 2, so you should be looking there with me.
[1:22] I'll read the entire Psalm. Again, we're focusing on verses 4 through 12, so look there with me, Psalm 2. Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?
[1:37] The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.
[1:53] He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury, saying, as for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.
[2:11] I will tell of the decree. The Lord said to me, you are my son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession.
[2:24] You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Now, therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth.
[2:36] Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the son, lest he be angry and you perish in the way. For his wrath is quickly kindled.
[2:49] Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Let's pray. Lord, again, we ask for your help, your spirit's help as your word is opened.
[3:01] And Lord, we pray that we would be counted among those. That we see at the end of our passage that are blessed because they take refuge in you. Lord, we pray that we would do that today.
[3:15] That you would teach us from your word. That we would cling to your sovereignty and the rule of Christ. And that we would find refuge. We pray this in his name.
[3:26] Amen. Now, as I've said, we're looking at this to try to develop a Christian worldview. And one reason for that is because we live in difficult times.
[3:37] I know as we say that, we realize there's probably always been difficult times throughout history. But there are some unique struggles that we're facing today. And we need to hear God's word.
[3:48] It's God's word that can instruct us and help us in this. This past week, I read an article on the Ligonier website that stated the following. News of war in foreign lands appears on our television screens every night.
[4:04] Online, we are informed of the latest political scandal. And the opposition's jockeying to take advantage of it. In the newspapers, the headlines warn of impending economic doom.
[4:15] Or the spread of some deadly disease. Our fallen world can be a scary place. And there seems to be no end to the bad news headed our way. Such problems make us long for a wise king.
[4:26] Do they not? They make us hope for one who can address the root causes of these issues. Defeat our enemies and protect us from every danger. The Bible tells us of such a king.
[4:38] Jesus the Messiah. And I think that stated well. And I should have went back and looked at the date. Because I think this article is from something like 2008. It was an older article. But yet, the situation is still the same, isn't it?
[4:50] It may be multiplied all the more. These things that are being presented to us every day and every night. It makes us long for something. Long for a king who will rule us rightly. And Christ is that king.
[5:01] And I hope that's what we'll see this week. Let me remind you for a second what we saw last week. Briefly, just go through that. Last time we looked at verses 1 through 3. And today, like all times in human history, unbelievers are opposing God's rule and seeking to throw it off.
[5:18] That's what we saw last week. Those who are opposed to God, unbelievers, are in opposition to God and his anointed, Jesus Christ. They want to throw off his rule. They want to be their own God.
[5:30] I was reminded. Geno Cannon spoke to me after the service. And it's something I've said before, but I was greatly reminded of the fact that this isn't a new phenomenon. This is from the garden, right?
[5:42] Adam and Eve. What was the temptation that Satan tempted them with? In the day you eat of it, you will be like God, knowing good from evil. And so the temptation for men is always to be like God without being godly or godlike.
[5:55] We want to be like a God. We want to be a God. We want to make our own decisions. And the temptation to know good from evil and make those decisions for ourself, that was it for Adam. And ever since then, the ungodly have sought to throw off God's rule and make their own rule, their own decisions, be their own God.
[6:14] And so our culture promotes a host of sinful desires which God declares wrong. And we looked at Romans 1. This is verse 32. Though they know God's righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them, but they give approval to those who practice them.
[6:30] And we said, is that not the time we're living in? We know what God's decreed. The world's not doing what God decrees. And in fact, they give approval to everyone else for not doing it.
[6:41] And we talked about how there's been this reversal. What we know to be good from God's law, God's word, is declared as evil. And what we know to be evil by God's word is declared by our culture to be good.
[6:55] It's pervasive throughout our culture. And we were begging the question, how do we live in such a culture? And I said last week, first off, our conclusion from last week's sermon, as far as we got, was this.
[7:07] Christians should not be surprised at the world we're living in. This is what we should expect. Our expectation should be that the world would be opposed to God and His rule. And likewise, we can say that extends to those who bear the name of God.
[7:20] Christians. Those who follow in Christ's likeness. If they hated me, they will hate you also. And so we ought not be surprised if we're hated by the world or the world opposes God's rule.
[7:31] Our expectation ought not be the opposite. Why can't they see truth for truth? We know why. They don't want to. They suppress the truth in unrighteousness. And so then we were at the point of saying, how do we respond to this?
[7:44] How do we live in such a world? And that's about as far as I got. So today, Psalm 2 reveals to us how God responds to such a world. And my hope is, as we see how God responds to such a world, it will inform and shape how we respond to such a world.
[8:03] And so let's look at God's answer. My first point was really God's answer, verses 4 through 9. There's at least two parts to that. But verses 4 through 9, we see God's answer. Let's just read verse 4 again.
[8:15] He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds him in derision. And so there's our first answer. How does God respond to the culmination of the kings and rulers of the earth and all the ungodly unbelievers in the world, gathering together, taking counsel together against his rule and against his authority to throw off his bonds.
[8:34] How does God respond? He laughs. He holds him in derision. Now, the obvious conclusion of this, first off, is that God is not threatened by the feeble attempts of man to throw off his rule.
[8:49] God's not threatened by that. He's not phased by that. All the cumulative attempts of all the ungodly to throw off his reign does not threaten him in the least.
[9:00] I meant to go back and do a study. From my recollection, I don't remember another place where we see God laughing.
[9:13] I could be wrong. Maybe somebody will come to me later. Well, there's a sense. So if we want to get a sense of God's sense of humor, what makes God laugh? This is it. And I think what we understand is the humor in this is the arrogance of men is funny to God.
[9:32] It's funny to see men in their pomp and their arrogance in opposition to God. I want to be clear that their end is not funny.
[9:45] God's not laughing at their end. We're going to see later on it speaks of his judgment, his anger, his wrath against them. But what's funny is the arrogance of men to think that they can oppose God.
[9:58] What hope is there in that? Shilin, who's a pastor and also sings some songs. Shilin has a song in which he compares it to trying to conquer a foreign nation with water guns.
[10:15] Imagine the arrogance of some people coming in with super soakers and they're trying to conquer a nation. What hope do they have against them? There's no hope. So too, God looks on man's feeble attempts to overthrow his reign.
[10:31] And there's no threat to God. It's humorous to God. There's no harm that they can cause to him. There's no way they can thwart his plan. Our power will never supersede his.
[10:41] Not the cumulative power, not only of men, but of all spiritual forces could never conquer his rule or his reign or defeat him.
[10:52] And I think already we're getting a sense of how God responds and maybe how we should respond and part of the problem.
[11:03] In my opinion, one of the major problems for Christians today is that our response to the attempts of the world to overthrow God's reign is fear and anxiety.
[11:14] And I've already said last week, let me say again, that is what we're being fed every day. Get off of Facebook.
[11:26] Turn off the news. That's all you're hearing over and over again is fear, fear, fear. And here's God's response. He laughs. And I think how often is our response to opposition to God one of laughter?
[11:42] Because we know what it says here. That the nation's rage and the people's plot in vain. It's going nowhere. I know it seems like they're winning the cultural battle in our society.
[11:56] Okay. Again, that ought not surprise us. But the war will be decided in the end and we know who the victor is. God will win the battle.
[12:10] It's not for us to win it today. He's won it already. And so my hope is just as we begin the message even that the laughter of God should shape and refocus our attention.
[12:26] Instead of being consumed in all the opposition, let's look instead to God. How's he responding to this? Okay. We can calm down a little bit, can't we?
[12:37] We can relax a little bit. He doesn't seem threatened. You ever notice how sometimes you get in a situation and the kids will look at mom and dad. Are they scared?
[12:48] And we kind of pass on those fears. They kind of gather when dad's walking right in the middle of the bridge, he won't get anywhere near the side. And we say, come look at the view. And he's over there like on his knees crawling down the bridge.
[13:01] They get a sense he's afraid of heights. And maybe there's something I ought to be scared of too. Let's hope he won't be. But I think we ought to look to God and say, what should I be afraid of?
[13:15] What fear should I have? And when we see our Heavenly Father laughing and holding those that we fear in derision, it ought to at least change, shape, influence how we view the situation.
[13:32] And then it tells us that he will terrify them. And even that he will dash them into pieces. Look at verse 12. Judgment is coming for all those who oppose God.
[13:50] We know that that is the final end of this opposition. You remember 1 Peter 2.23 I preached on some time ago. Speaking of Jesus, it says, When he was reviled, he did not revile in return.
[14:06] When he suffered, he did not threaten. But he continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. We saw how Christ responded to opposition.
[14:17] And I think, brothers and sisters, this is how we ought to respond. We don't need to revile in return. We don't need to... Or excuse me, when we suffer, we don't need to threaten.
[14:31] Why? Because we, like Christ, can entrust ourselves to him who judges justly. Which means God will deal with all things in the right time.
[14:46] He will make all things right. There will not be a sin that will not be punished either on Christ or on the sinner. And so we can rest in his judgment.
[15:00] Again, the problem is, we think we ought to be the judge. We want to set it straight now. And it causes us great fear and anxiety. Because we can't do it.
[15:12] But here's a place of comfort and peace for us. God will make it right. God does judge justly. Even though it seems that now the ungodly prosper, God does judge justly.
[15:28] And I want you to see how he accomplishes this. So we read verse 4. He laughs. He holds them in derision. Why? He says, Then he will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury. What's terrifying to the world?
[15:39] What does God speak to them in his wrath? Look at verse 6. Quotation. Here's what God says to them. As for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill.
[15:54] So how does God answer? Now we saw his response. How does he answer the nations that are raging in opposition to him? What does he do to those who oppose him?
[16:06] Here's his answer. He seats Jesus on the throne. That's it. There's the answer.
[16:17] They oppose his rule. He seats Jesus on the throne. As king of kings and lord of lords. He rules over these kings. He rules over these lords, these masters, these rulers.
[16:28] We see in verse 7, he says, I will tell of the decree. The Lord said to me, you are my son today.
[16:39] I have begotten you. In Hebrews 1, 2 through 5, we read this. He has spoken to us by his son. He has spoken to us by his son.
[16:50] He appointed the heir of all things. Through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature. And he upholds the universe by the word of his power.
[17:04] After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high. Having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.
[17:17] For which, to which of the angels did God ever say, you are my son today I begotten you? So in Hebrews, we see a quotation of this passage. And we see the reference.
[17:28] There may be a way in which David was speaking this even of him, himself. But also we know that this is speaking of God. And we see this affirmed in Hebrews. That this is speaking of Jesus Christ.
[17:40] He is the son that has been begotten by the Father. And to none of the angels even has he ever said something as glorious as today I begotten you. You are my son.
[17:50] And so we see, first of all, that Jesus upholds the universe by the word of his power. And again, we see why is it in vain that the nations would oppose him?
[18:06] He upholds the whole universe. What do they have that they could ever oppose him? And we see as well that after making purification for sins, where is Jesus right now? Now, I've tried to reiterate this in our Gospel of Matthew.
[18:20] I hope you get this and know this because there are some who will not affirm this today. But after making purifications for sin, which was at the cross, he sat down at the right hand of the majesty on high.
[18:36] He sat down on the throne of God. He is seated. Why would he sit down? The work's finished. He's not standing. He's seated on God's throne. Having become superior to the angels, we've seen, I've already mentioned already, he's the king of kings and lord of lords.
[18:55] Here's more about Christ's ascending to the right hand of God the Father, meaning that he's sovereign over all rulers, and that his reign extends to the ends of the earth, as we see in verse 8. These things belong to God now, to Christ.
[19:12] They're his, the nations. It's part of the, Paul mentioned this earlier, it's part of the plundering of the strong man's house. What once belonged to Satan is being plundered by Christ right now in the advance of the Gospel.
[19:26] And let me clarify, I think Psalm 2 makes it clear here, that doesn't mean that we're going to win over the culture, that the unbelievers are ever going to agree to Christ's reign.
[19:37] But he's advancing in areas where it was only Satan before. And so we read in Ephesians 1, 20 through 23, that God seated Christ at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion and every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the age to come.
[19:58] And he put all things under his feet and gave him his head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. Now there are a lot of universals being used there, I hope you called.
[20:11] But God has seated Christ at his right hand in the heavenly places. What does that mean? Well, he tells us, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion.
[20:25] Again, that's cumulative of whatever kind of authority we could ever imagine. It could be the authority of the husband, the father in the home, the policeman, the school teacher, your boss at work, the president, whoever it may be.
[20:45] He's been seated above all rule and authority. There's no rule and authority that's not subject to Christ's rule and authority. And above every name that is named, if there's any name that can be named, he's above that name, which is all names.
[21:02] Not only in this age, but also in the age of... Unless you think he's talking about just right now. There will never come a name that will be more powerful than our God, than Christ on his throne. No one shall ever overthrow his reign.
[21:17] He's put all things under his feet and gave him his head over all things to the church. So, let's just clarify. What is it under God's authority?
[21:28] Nothing. I don't know what to do with you if you haven't gotten that from all the universals used in that passage. Paul's making it as clear as possible. The fact that Christ is seated on the throne means there's nothing that's not subject to him.
[21:41] That includes COVID-19. That includes presidents, whether we agree with their policy or not. He's sovereign over these things.
[21:52] That includes governors, health officials, your elders, your boss. All authority. Christ is still sovereign. That hasn't changed no matter what's happened over the last year and a half, over the last 2,000 years.
[22:07] Christ is still on his throne. And so, this is God's answer to the raging of the nations. Christ is on his throne. Brothers and sisters, that ought to comfort our hearts.
[22:20] That ought to inform how we live each day. We ought to be more impacted by that than whatever we heard on the news that morning. This is what matters.
[22:31] This is ultimate reality. Christ is on his throne. This is how God answers our fears. The nations are raging. We're scared, God. But, I have seated Christ on my throne in Zion.
[22:46] And so, Proverbs 21.1 tells us this. The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord. He turns it whatever way he will. So, stepping back even from the reign of Christ and saying, God the Father is still sovereign.
[23:01] And he's always like watering your hand. You know how you turn it this way and that way. He's sovereign over even our kings and rulers. And Jesus has been given the name that's above every name.
[23:18] Philippians 2.9-11. God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name. So that the name of Jesus, every knee should bow. In heaven and on earth and under the earth.
[23:30] And every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. To the glory of God the Father. Father, I've stated already God's rule, Jesus' rule is now. He is reigning. He is seated on the throne.
[23:41] And yet, I do believe that this reality in Philippians has not yet come to pass. That there will come a day when Jesus Christ returns. And in that day, every knee will bow. Does that change the fact that he's ruling now?
[23:53] No. Here's the present reality. This is the already not yet dilemma that we live in. Christ is already reigning. Yet, the nations still rage. But guys, understand that they plot in vain.
[24:05] And that the end will be this. Their knee will bow to Christ. Though our knee may have to bow to their rule today. In the end, every knee will bow to Christ.
[24:19] There's no question of that. Secondly, I want to look at the blessed state mentioned in the last three verses.
[24:30] Now, therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
[24:44] Kiss the son, lest he be angry. And you perish in the way. For his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. So, we see here a warning to rulers and everyone else in the world with those rulers.
[25:06] Now, therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. I want you to understand that this is also an expression of mercy by our God. It is a call to repentance.
[25:18] That he would warn them at all. It is God's mercy. That it doesn't end immediately in judgment. It is God's mercy. I know you guys can pray for me and our elders because it's difficult sometimes to know how we should pray and interact with those in authority over us.
[25:42] And there have been some in our church that have expressed to me, some who have been upset with me even, that I have not prayed imprecatory prayers against certain rulers and authorities.
[25:55] And it's hard to know. By imprecatory prayers, what I mean is that we pray judgment upon those who would oppose God and his rule. I see it in the Psalms.
[26:07] There are imprecatory prayers in the Psalms. And so, there is a time and a place that we should pray that. And I think we have to be careful about how we do that. It's never to be because they hurt my feelings.
[26:20] It's to be because we're upholding what's right and good and in line with God's cause. We're concerned for his glory. But I want you to understand as well that there's a reason why you oftentimes will hear me pray for our rulers, our leaders, our president, our governor, whatever rule we may have, our senators, congressmen.
[26:43] One way that I often or usually will pray for them is that God would work in their heart to bring them to salvation and to cause them to uphold what's true of God's word. Why? Why?
[26:53] Well, two things. One, we just looked at the fact that the heart of the king is like streams of water in God's hand. And so, is there a place for judgment?
[27:05] Well, yeah, we've already seen that, haven't we? He will break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. I believe that's coming. I believe that's inevitable. I think that whoever will stand in rule and authority against God's rule and authority will be dashed to pieces and broken.
[27:21] And yet what I see in God's word is what we see here in verse 10. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. Be wise. And so, I think for now, and you guys may disagree, it's fine.
[27:35] God's given the church in its plurality. We can pray different ways. But for now, I pray the way I do because I think this is a time of repentance. This is a time of warning. Christ has not yet returned.
[27:47] This is an opportunity for those leaders to turn. And if they would turn, what a blessing would it be for God's people? It was always a blessing for Judah when they had godly leaders who led them.
[28:02] And every time they had a leader who didn't, judgment fell upon them. And so, yes, my desire is that we would have godly leaders. That isn't first and foremost that they be, the ungodly ones be slaughtered.
[28:13] But that God actually worked to save them and change their hearts, that they would uphold what's true and what's right. And so, I believe our only hope is that God would change them in the gospel.
[28:25] The gospel ultimately is our hope. But notice the warning that he gives to them. The warning is this, serve the Lord. Again, the word is Yahweh. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
[28:41] I talked earlier about the fear that we have, the anxieties that we face. There is an appropriate place for fear and anxiety. And this is it. Fear the Lord. Now, you guys know that that doesn't just mean be scared of God.
[29:00] It also means to revere him, to honor him, to worship and praise him. That's here in this passage. But serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling.
[29:11] Notice even this juxtaposition between rejoicing and trembling. We're rejoicing about something, but it doesn't take away trembling. There's fear.
[29:23] Legitimate scaredness. But what should the rulers be scared of? What should the ungodly be scared of? What should we even as Christians be scared of?
[29:34] God has seated Christ on his throne. Jesus reigns. And one day he will judge all the nations, including you.
[29:46] You will be judged by this great God. And so rejoicing and trembling go hand in hand.
[29:58] When the nations rage, we can rejoice in God. We can rejoice because God's sovereign. We can rejoice in Christ who's seated on the throne.
[30:10] But when we tremble, it better be before a holy God and not a sinful ruler. What can man do to me?
[30:27] I love the passage it talks about that men can put us to death, but not a hair of our head will fall. God's sovereign over even the hairs of our head.
[30:44] Or for Paul in Philippians, he counts everything else in this world lost compared to knowing Christ Jesus and being found in him. And he goes on to say that I might receive a resurrection from the dead.
[30:55] I mean, his ultimate view is nothing in this world compares to it. It doesn't matter if I lose my life. Because there's one thing that cannot be taken from the Christian. Our head can be taken.
[31:08] And the biblical answer is, that's okay. Don't worry about your head. What should you worry about? Our eternal soul. What is it profit a man if he gave the whole world, but forfeit his soul?
[31:21] And Paul's hope is this. He has Christ Jesus. He's been united to Christ Jesus. He's found in Christ. And that cannot be taken from him, no matter what else can be. His home, his possessions, his head can be taken, but not Christ.
[31:36] So what do we have to lose? What do we have to be afraid of? The one thing we have to fear is God. A holy God who will judge us.
[31:47] And if we're not found in Christ, then we have much to fear. And so we read in verse 12, again, as part of the warning to the rulers and the kings of the earth, kiss the sun.
[32:09] Kiss the sun. That is a strange phrase. Even trying to translate that from the Hebrew is difficult. Read much on it this week, and it's hard to quite understand.
[32:22] Kiss the sun, I think, is a good translation, but it doesn't help us probably in English to understand much of what that means. Maybe some of you guys have seen in movies or something where someone has to kneel and maybe kiss the hand of the king.
[32:36] I think there are at least two meanings that are being carried from the Hebrew by this phrase. Number one is submit or submission. To kiss the sun means to bow your knee to his rule, his authority.
[32:51] You're submitting yourself to his reign and to his rule. And then secondly, I would argue that kissing the sun is an act of praise or worship of him. And I think both meanings are being carried here.
[33:03] So the warning to the world, to the unbelievers, to all of you in this room is this. Kiss the sun. What does that mean? It's to acknowledge Christ as Lord over your life.
[33:16] For these kings and rulers, I think as well, it's to stop in your opposition to him. Your vain pursuits to be your own master and Lord. To think you're the God of this world.
[33:28] You're not. Submit to God and his rule. Which again goes with what I've been praying. Let your rule be in line with his rule. Uphold what's true and right from God's word.
[33:41] Submit to his rule and authority. Let me bring this down on a personal level. That also has to do with our daily living. Do we not imagine ourselves to be kings when we go about sinning?
[33:54] Whatever our sin may be. God has said, do this. But we say, I know better than God. Or I'd rather do this. And so we throw off his rule, his authority, his command and say, I'm going to do what I want to do.
[34:10] And so too, I think kissing the sun is, we submit to God's rule and authority in every aspect of our lives. And then that also materializes in the fact that we worship God.
[34:21] We worship him and his rule and his authority. It's a subject to worship for us. And they're to kiss the sun lest he be angry and you perish in the way for his wrath is quickly kindled.
[34:33] And so I don't want you to miss it. Our God is a God of wrath. I know that's not popular to say today. We want to focus on that God is a God of love. But if we only focus on one aspect of God, we miss the full picture.
[34:47] And we see here that God, his anger is quickly kindled. But what angers God? What is it that brings out his wrath? God, those who won't kiss the sun.
[35:02] Those who stand in their opposition to him and won't bow the knee and think they're their own God. It says, if you don't kiss the sun, here's the reality, you will perish in the way. And I don't need to spend a large little time expounding on that.
[35:16] I think he's clearly talking about ultimate judgment when he returns on his throne. He's speaking of hell. That you will perish, not necessarily in this life, you may flourish.
[35:27] But God will judge you in the end and you will perish eternally. And then it's contrasted with the blessed state for all people who take refuge in Jesus Christ.
[35:39] Blessed are all who take refuge in him. Who's the him? It's the one who's been seated on the throne. And so, what I hope in terms of our worldview, here's where I feel like we, I'm including myself, and maybe some of you have arrived, maybe this isn't you, but for most of us in this room, where are we today in light of all the cultural events that are happening and the opposition of our culture to God?
[36:05] Where are we? I think we struggle with fear and anxiety about the world and our place as a Christian in this world. Even with the future, what's it going to look like 50 years from now?
[36:17] We've seen a moral decline over the last 50 years in opposition to Jesus and his rule. What's it going to look like for Christians 50 years from now? Will there come a day when your pastor will be arrested because he preaches against homosexuality?
[36:32] And, Lord forbid, he actually declares that a man's a man and a woman's a woman. There's coming a day that may be forbidden. So, is that not scary for us? Where do we go?
[36:46] That's where we are. Here's where I want us to be. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. I want us to move from a state of fear and anxiety to a blessed state.
[36:58] A state of blessing. And how are we going to get there? We take refuge in Jesus Christ. That's our only hope. That's the only source of comfort for us. That is the only hope of us being blessed, feeling blessed as we live in a world that is opposed to us.
[37:18] And so, our circumstances, what happens to us in all the news that we read should not determine the state of the Christian.
[37:29] What should? You guys know my biggest argument is union with Christ. That we have been united to Jesus Christ as Christians. But if I take that further, John 15 tells us abide in Christ.
[37:43] I would argue that is a New Testament interpretation of what we see here. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. What does taking refuge in Christ look like?
[37:54] We live out of union with Jesus Christ. We abide in him and his love. That's what sustains us and defines who we are. Not opposition to the world, not our circumstances, not our job, not what hurt's been done to us in the past.
[38:06] This is what defines us. And so, this is what we need if there's ever going to be a blessed state for us. And so, this is my longing for each and every one of you.
[38:18] That when the nations rage, which they will do, that you take refuge in Jesus Christ. He's the King of Kings. He's the Lord of Lords who's sovereignly reigning over whoever it is that's bringing fear in your life.
[38:34] God's over them. He hasn't lost control. There's not one aspect of his dominion or his rule that has been taken away. They're secretly gained power.
[38:44] No! Christ still reigns. So, brothers and sisters, take refuge in Jesus Christ. Now, I feel like there's a ton of application there.
[38:55] I had a few more points. I want to just drive home a few more points of application before we close the sermon. I said before, I'll repeat this, but opposition and persecution are normal and to be expected for Christians.
[39:13] The world is opposed to God and the reign of Christ and therefore, they're also opposed to his servants who support his reign and those who remind them of the reign of the king.
[39:25] If they don't want to obey God's law, they don't like those people who are subjecting themselves to God's law. It reminds them of his rule and his righteous law. John 15, 18-21 says, If the world hates you, Jesus speaking, says, Know that it has hated me before it hated you.
[39:42] If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own. But because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, therefore, the world hates you.
[39:53] Remember the word that I have said to you, A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours. Guys, that's the reality we live in.
[40:05] That should be our expectation. The world is in opposition to Christ. Secondly, I think Psalm 2 gives us the big view of things, steps back, away from the minuscule that we're focused on each day and gives us the big picture of what's happening in the world.
[40:22] It helps us to get beyond our daily circumstances and our worries. It pulls back the veil and shows us that God is still in control. The news is constantly trying to convince us he's not.
[40:36] Get the big picture. God's still in control. And so all the raging of the nations is no threat to his sovereign rule. He's not worried by it at the least. He's laughing at it.
[40:47] It's humorous that they would even think that they could overthrow his rule. It ought to be to us. And so all the things that so worry us and phase us, they don't phase the sovereign Lord at all.
[41:02] And so I hope that helps shape our worldview. I think it helps us to set our sights on God amid life's turmoils and to take refuge in Christ.
[41:12] Set us sights on things above where Christ is seated in the heavenlies, not on the things of this earth. Psalm 20 verse 7 says, Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the Lord our God.
[41:26] And I know chariots and horses wasn't probably the thing you were hoping in before you came in today, but you realize what he's saying. You're going to war and you're trusting the tank. And he's saying that all the advances in military might cannot help you.
[41:43] Victory ultimately rests with the Lord. That's true for us today too. Let's not put our hope in the president, our governor. Guys, I hope that your elders will serve you, but don't even put your hope in your elders ultimately.
[41:59] Your hope is in your Lord. He's the one who sovereignly rules and that needs to be where we're hoping and setting our sights. So we need to be reminded so that we trust in the Lord our God, that we take refuge in him.
[42:12] Finally, victory belongs to the king and not to those who are opposed to him. That ought to shape our worldview, right? I've told you this before because I always think of these victory in terms of soccer matches.
[42:28] But just imagine you're going into the soccer match and you know you're going to win the battle. I mean, you're going to win the game before it's even started. That changes how you play. Think of the fear, the anxiety, all the emotions going on in your gut beforehand.
[42:40] If you go into the game and you know you've won before you even step on the field, just take a breath, relax. The anxiety goes down. And so Christians, we need to be reminded that we're on the winning side.
[42:55] The nations are raging and they're louder, but they're not going to win. They're going to lose the battle. They've got more fans in the stand. Their cheerleaders are singing the loudest.
[43:07] But they're going to lose. So what does any of that matter? You're on the winning side. Look at verse 8. Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession.
[43:26] Do you think God, excuse me, you think Jesus has asked that of God the Father? God the Father has given the nations even to the ends of the earth, the tribes that we have yet to discover our name have been given to Christ.
[43:41] They are His. What does that mean for us? Well, I want to tie it in with something we were just looking at. The advance of the gospel through His disciples as we saw in the Great Commission.
[43:54] Remember when we looked to the Great Commission a couple of weeks ago? And Jesus came and said to them, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. There's that rule, that reign. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
[44:14] Behold, I'm with you always to the end of the age. The nations have been given to Christ. Not politically per se, but that the gospel would advance. And so again, I think far from shrinking back in fear and anxiety, we ought to be bold in the proclamation of the gospel that can actually change hearts because the ends of the earth are gods.
[44:35] They belong to Christ. Finally, I said finally, this is under my final point, I promise you. We're not waging war according to the flesh. Right?
[44:46] It'd be easy to think we're going to fight against those rulers and authorities by the way that they've established, by the ways of the world. And that's not how we fight the battle. 2 Corinthians 10, 2-4 says, For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh.
[45:02] For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but of divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God and take every thought captive to obey Christ, being ready to punish every disobedience when your obedience is complete.
[45:18] So I'm not saying that there's not a war to be waged, but understand we don't do it the same way the world does. We do it in the authority Christ has supplied and with the authority of his word. And so we ought not shrink back.
[45:31] The earth is his. We ought to be bold in the proclamation and at the end of the day, when that fear, that anxiety rises up, when for whatever reason you read that Facebook argument from that friend that always posts that stuff, or you turned on the news for a few minutes and thought, maybe I'll hear something uplifting and encouraging, and you didn't.
[45:51] Where do you go with that? Blessed are all who take refuge in Christ. Let's pray together. Amen. Dear Heavenly Father, we come to you as weak men and we acknowledge that, Lord, we struggle with fears and anxieties and, Lord, just worry about this world that we live in.
[46:15] But, Lord, we pray that you'd give us something far greater, that we would take refuge in Christ and that we would remember that he rules and that the nations are raging in vain. Lord, may our minds not be consumed with worry about things that are vanity.
[46:32] Lord, consume our minds with you, your presence, your glory, the reign of Christ, and may we take refuge in him alone. We pray this in his name.
[46:43] Amen. Amen. This Christ has overcome the world. It's been promised the nations and they were given to him as his inheritance.
[46:58] His death and resurrection secured it, but I don't want us to think of some long-haired hippie Jesus with peace and love taking care of his enemies.
[47:08] I want to point your attention to Revelation chapter 19, verse 11, the vision of John. Then I saw heaven opened and behold a white horse, the one sitting on it called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war.
[47:27] His eyes are like a flame of fire and on his head are the many diadems and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood and the name by which he is called is the word of God.
[47:43] And the armies of heaven are laid in fine linen white and pure or following him on white horses. From his mouth comes a sharp sword from which to strike down the nations and he will rule them with a rod of iron.
[47:55] He will tread the winepress with the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written King of Kings and Lord of Lords. That's your king.
[48:06] Let's stand and sing number 310 Rejoice the Lord is King. Rejoice the Lord is King the Lord and King the Lord Rejoice the grace and sing and cry of evermore Lift up your heart Lift up your voice Rejoice again I say Rejoice Through justice Savior raised The God of truth and love When he had heard He said LoreICE the Lord
[49:17] Lejoice The peace of death He holds our earth again The peace of death and hell Are to our Jesus' death Lift up your heart Lift up your voice Rejoice again, I say, rejoice He sits and does right now Till all is most aware And now to His commandment All we need is need Lift up your heart Lift up your voice Rejoice again, I say, rejoice Rejoice in glorious hope
[50:22] Our Lord, the just shall come And take His service up To their eternal home Lift up your heart Lift up your voice Rejoice again, I say, rejoice Now, serve the Lord with fear And rejoice with trembling Kiss the Son Blessed are all who take refuge in Him Amen