New Hope
The Psalms • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Intro
What does hope mean to you? What does it look like? What is it that gives you hope? There are many people in the world living without hope. You have but to look to the world around you to see this. Look to modern secular music as an example. There are many artists that sing about how they have no hope, the world is hopeless, everything around them is hopeless.
I was listening to a popular Christian Rapper named Lecrae’s testimony about How he found hope. He grew up being abused by people in and out of the family. Surrounded by guns and drugs growing up. Even once jumping out in front of a car with a gun just to seek power and scare people. He became addicted to drugs and alcohol, trying to find hope in something and failing. He was in a dark place, without hope and depressed. A friend one day reached and and invited Him to a concert. He met ex-gang members and thugs who found hope in Jesus. The pastor presented the message of the gospel and who Jesus was and what He did for us. It suddenly became real to Him. He realized that Jesus bought Him with a price, to give those who believe in Him eternal life. He went back to drinking and sleeping around but now suddenly He felt convicted of what He was doing. As He was driving one day He reached out to God to help Him and shortly after got into a bad accident. It was then that He prayed that God would make himself real to Lecrae and He truly committed His life to Jesus.
New Hope is only found in Jesus. Adversity may come, but only living true hope can be found in our savior. This has been seen since the beginning. We see hope written throughout the scriptures, in the OT it was hope in the messiah that was to come and the remnant.
In the NT it is hope in the second coming of the messiah. But Hope will one day be turned to despair if we do not turn our lives to Jesus and live for Him. Where is your hope found? think of this as we go through this Psalm.
The Kings of the earth - 1-3
This particular inspired poem is split into four Stanzas which is how we are going to go through it today. The first and the last one focus on the kings of the earth, the middle 2 focus on our eternal King and savior.
I find it amazing that we can read through the Ot and see Jesus. It may not be that easy to spot, but you will see. Let us see how this works.
Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain?
We start out with an exclamation of surprise as to why the nations would think to rage against God. Although an exclamation of surprise, Essentially what is being said here is though the nations rage against God and His anointed one, the question could be more like why do they bother.
Kings and nations are still going against God the same way they did back then. And the question remains the same, it is a vain pursuit, why do they even bother.
it is vain to plot against the God of the universe, why do people bother. This is quoted in the book of Acts as the apostles are praying for boldenss to speak the message of Jesus to the nations. Why do people bother, yet the continue this futile effort of raging against God.
2 The kings of the earth take their stand, and the rulers conspire together against the Lord and his Anointed One: 3 “Let’s tear off their chains and throw their ropes off of us.”
The kings of the earth and the officials under them where trying to take a stand against God and His anointed one.
We have already been told that the nations rage and scheme against God but they had no need to bother to do it because it was a vain pursuit but the continued anyways. Outright rejection of God and the ruler He has set over them s what we see here.
One thing we need to go over here as well is who the anointed one that is mentioned here?
one of the hard things about trying to interpret scripture is that there are sometimes multiple layers. there can be a few different fulfillments of prophecy. Something that happened back then, referring to a time around when it was written but also referring to something that is going to happen or is yet to happen. sometimes we may not figure it out till we see Jesus again.
the annionted one first of all is in reference to king David. the term used in the OT is usually in reference to the kings of Israel. In this Psalm in particular, it is in reference to a Davidic king.
but the royal term also looks forward to the Hope we have in the coming messiah who we know as Jesus. He is the one that they where to look forward to in Hope.
quoted from the Gospel Coalition: Historically the predominant position has been to understand YHWH’s anointed in Psalm 2 in a messianic-eschatological sense; in other words, Christologically. Indeed, arguably it was not until the eleventh century that a non-messianic reading of Psalm 2 was documented, and even then there was allowance made for a messianic reading.
That being said the kings and rulers and many people plot and scheme and rage against the Lord God. And even now it is still in Vain. people are told that the can only find hope in God, yet they rebel. But what we need to learn is that it is a vain pursuit to rage against the Lord.
The Messiah is the one true king our only source of hope. the goal of rebellion is to make ourselves Lord and king of our lives but hope is only in Jesus.
The divine king in heaven - 4-6
4 The one enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord ridicules them.
we move from the kings of the earth to the divine king or kings. It does not seem to bother God that the rulers of the earth plot and scheme against Him. While He prefer it didn't happen that way it does not affect God much. We are told He laughs and ridicules them for thinking that they can come against the Lord God and dethrone Him.
His laughter and ridicule is because though they think they will affect their own fate the Lord knows their end. Our hope can come from this as well. We do not have to worry, the Lord God has it under control, He knows the end and though the kings of the earth plot against the children of God, in the end they will lose.
5 Then he speaks to them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath: 6 “I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.”
God’s king, the messiah is the one chosen to rule, and one day He will establish His kingdom and all the rulers of the earth will see that what they did had no real bearing on anyone.
This all has made me think about our own time and country. There was a bill passed that made it a criminal offence to change or encourage people to change their gender identity to a biblically based way of thinking. We are not ourselves changing their gender identity, but what we are doing is telling people what a biblicaly based way of thinking about it is. That they need Jesus and to live a life for Him. So I guess we are teaching that they need to change.
It is becoming harder and harder to live a life for God and to preach the gospel, though we still have it really easy. But that being said the rulers of the earth plot against the Lord God and His children and it is becoming hard.
But we can have hope no matter what happens because the Lord God scorns their vain attempts to shut Him down for we Jesus has been installed as the king of Kings. That is our hope!
The davidic king in Zion - 7-9
7 I will declare the Lord’s decree. He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.
our hope, is also seen in this decree that was given to the davidic king through the Lord God.
This is an interesting decree with multiple layers. In reference to King David it gives us meaning. King David is by birth promised to be the son of God.
13 He is the one who will build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. 14 I will be his father, and he will be my son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with a rod of men and blows from mortals.
The covenant the Lord God made with King David was one of a father and a son. The decree is an act of adopting David as the Son of God and also an expectation. The king must respond to the desires and the will of His father and also represent the will of His father to the people.
But this is ultimately in reference to Jesus, who was in the line of David, who was the fulfillment of this prophecy.
What this means is the same thing for Jesus. He represented the will of God to the people and we are to follow Him.
Jesus is our ultimate hope in whom we can trust knowing that unlike an earthly king, He will never lead us astray.
8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will break them with an iron scepter; you will shatter them like pottery.”
Again, the king was to be the ruler of all, the whole earth was His inheritance. Jesus as the son of God has the whole earth as His kingdom.
Do you trust in the Lord as your God and King. This means giving up control to God in all we do. It means trusting in Him. It means that we have no other intermediary besides Jesus. Jesus is our king, the whole earth will be His kingdom. This is why the Lord laughs and scoffs at the world and those that would pretend to think they are in control. Because one day Jesus is going to return.
Are you ready?
The kings are warned 10-11
We end the same way that we began. The earthly kings are warned.
10 So now, kings, be wise; receive instruction, you judges of the earth. 11 Serve the Lord with reverential awe and rejoice with trembling. 12 Pay homage to the Son or he will be angry and you will perish in your rebellion, for his anger may ignite at any moment. All who take refuge in him are happy.
Take a look at your life we are told. earthly kings it is written to but the call should go out to all of us.
first of all the call is to be wise and receive instruction. To seek Godly wisdom is what this is for, and to recieve instruction from the Lord.
the next thing we are told to do is to serve the Lord reverently with awe and rejoicing.
The Lord is Patient, or is being patient with us not wishing any would perish but that all would turn to Him. But the sad reality is that is not always the way that it is going to be.
Be wise, be warned, serve the Lord and bow down before Him. The Lord laughs at our petty attempts to think that we are better then Him, or are somehow the masters of our own fate.
submission is the only good response to the Lord God in all that we do. For the Lord’s patience will not last forever. His wrath will one day come, but our hope is in taking refuge in Him.
So What?
We started with a story of a man who was living without hope and who found new hope, true hope in Jesus. The Psalm here tells a story of Hope and futility. Hope found in Jesus and the futile efforts of trying to live a life without Jesus. With that in mind we need to remember a few things.
Jesus is the King of Kings
Jesus is the King of Kings
Jesus is the one true king and all authority has been given to Him. But we need to remember that God is being patient with us right now. We are given a short time here on earth to turn our lives to the one true King.
It used to be that there was a prophet, a priest and a king. But Jesus serves all of those roles for us. He is the one true King and the world has been given to Him to rule and one day He will return. Have you found your Hope in Him? Which leads to our second point.
Jesus is the King of Kings. Our one true Hope.
Jesus is the King of Kings. Our one true Hope.
This is the reason why our one true hope, our new hope is in Jesus alone. Because the world will pass away, we spend our time toiling towards death then what do we have to show for it?
We think we are in control of our own life but we fail. I am here to tell you today There is so much peace in putting your hope in Jesus and not yourself or the world. The end is written, the Kingdom will belong to Jesus. Put your hope in Him.
You may not think that this is true. But we need to remember this time of so called peace we have now is temporary. The Lord is patient and giving you a chance to turn to Him. But that is not going to last forever.
Our response is one of submission, of serving. The Lord’s anger and wrath at any minute will be poured out on those who will not take refuge in Him. But He is Our New Hope and all who put their lives in His hands find peace, find rest, find Joy, find the only hope worth having.