01/07/23 - What Can the Righteous Do? Psalm 11

Bible Psalm 11. I have the text appear but you might want open up your your Bibles or your your apps to that particular song. What can the righteous do?

in the Lord I take refuge. And also be a Psalm of David. Okay. Take refuge how then can you say to me flee like a bird to your Mountain for look the wicked been their bows and they set their arrows against the strings to shoot from the Shadows at the upright in heart. When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in his holy Temple. The Lord is on his Heavenly Throne. He observes everyone on Earth. His eyes examined them the Lord Lord examines the righteous with the wicked those who love violence he hates with a passion on the wicked. He will rain fiery coals Kohl's in burning sulfur a scorching wind will be their lot for the Lord is righteous. He loves Justice the uprights will see his face. So sorry this song What is what is the theme of the song It's a Psalm of trust. It is a Psalm of a confidence in the Lord. Right and verse 1 David says the Lord I take refuge and then he bookends that with the upright will see his face this confidence that David has his trust that David has in God will, Nate and his with his presence being with the Lord, right? We see that in Psalm 23, I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. So as we look at this song, I guess kind of the main point that I want you to get his this is that the righteous confidently find refuge in God when evil Rises the righteous confidently find refuge in God when evil Rises, Now the issue here and he hits it in the verse three. What's what's going on here? Okay, so why is David writing this song? And there are evil people evil is rising and I he hasn't burst to they set their arrows against the streams to shoot from the Shadows at the upright and parts or contrast between the righteous and the unrighteous here and we'll see that again in just a minute. But the problem is this is that the foundations are being destroyed. So, how are the foundations being destroyed? What does he mean by that when he says the foundations are being destroyed. What what he means is is that God's law God's word. It's Commandments are being attacked by the unrighteous. So this government is a the David is the king of his a theocracy? David is God's vice-regent. He is as keen on the Earth but is peeing he's beholden to God's law his commands. God is ultimately the King David is ruling over God's Kingdom on Earth here as his Regent. And so David is guided not by his own desires. He's not. He's not Guided by coach troll. What is the cultural is where were pop culture is going the feelings and desires of the people? That's not what he's Guided by. He's Guided by the word of God. So is we consider foundations being destroyed and we look at our context in our culture and we're not we shouldn't be surprised as we consider the government and pop culture that it's undermining the word of God that it's against that that policies are being put in place that are in direct contrast to biblical Christianity. We should be surprised by that we shouldn't be surprised by a culture that is against the word of God that shouldn't surprise us at all. We shouldn't be surprised though when people who claim to be men of God. When various churches in a come out with statements that are contrary to the word of God. If your whole organization the church is founded on the truth of God's word and you begin to speak contrary to that that should begin to raise eyebrows. And just recently Before Christmas the pope and this is you know. Euro against the pope whatever I am the pope put out a statement saying that he's okay with blessings of same-sex marriages. And and so I read the read the statement is long convoluted statement. I mean and you can find it online. I meant to bring cock at it ring copy of it. If you're interested. I'll let you know where to find it. But the the Cardinal this riding a defense of the Pope's position on this Begins by giving all these reasons all these reasons why blessings occur in the Bible in the purpose of blessings and who can be blessed and the blessings really in the Bible are for all types of people and all types of situations. The problem is is it blessing from God means that God says this is good. Okay, and and so that's where the statement really fall short and at the end of the statement basically the the Catholic Church lands to the point where priests are going to be able to in some senses bless the relationship that two people of the same sex have when they're committed to one another not calling at marriage not in the church not with the typical liturgy in the music that goes with it, but that on a private basis the priests could actually bless a same-sex Union. Okay, see my church. What does that have to do with us? Wild here's the thing. The church at large is looks at with the Catholic Church does okay broadest sense believe it or not. So well the Catholic church so many things but I don't think they're really agree with them right abortion would be one of them and he used to be the same thing of marriage was another but now that's the foundation of that is being eroded. And so whether we like it or not the church at large and Western Civilization is going to look at what the Catholic church is doing and kind of take that as a cue and we'll see what happens over the next few years or so. But even with the answer, yes.

Text Mary Lee is not the wrong like like it was that he's no he's with so he's saying that marriage is between a man and a woman marriage is this is as defined. In the Catholic church is between a man and woman. But they're saying it's okay to bless same-sex relationships. So in saying it's okay to bless same-sex relationships are not calling it send that makes sense. If you going to blast something, it's good. It's good. All right, so the problem is is that they're saying something is good that the Bible costs in. Okay, and the other Foundation is being destroyed there. Is that really what the Bible said? You're really for two thousand years. The church has had it wrong. They really didn't understand what Paul was saying when he wrote what he wrote Romans chapter 1 or 1st Corinthians chapter 6. So the foundation is being eroded. And it's been a real to me. We've seen this in the American church. We seen this. In different places, but it's also has risen in recently. The problem has arisen and the very big church north of Atlanta.

So this is a quote from the pastor of the church. I stopped using specific language. I quit saying the Bible says the Bible teaches the word of God says the word of God teaches. This was not a change in belief or theology for me. This was simply a change in approach to talking about the Bible. For the first three hundred fifty years of Christianity. No preacher teacher said the Bible says the Bible says the Bible says there was no such thing as the Bible. Obviously there was a scripture but they did not especially in the first century Bill the Christian faith on the back of a text. Only want to build it on. On what do we build our faith? Faith converges on facts

Do you read the writings of the New Testament authors of constantly quoting the Old Testament? To support what they're saying and why they're saying it. Nobody could read. Nobody owned one. What drove the first century Christians was an event. Right? And so this particular Pastor is very in the resurrection is the server Faith. Don't get me wrong. Okay, but if you begin to undercut the Bible and other places you begin to undercut the historicity. of of the Resurrection event Continuous if you will organize around reaching the Next Generation and not keep keeping the current one. If you will organize around budget round build around preach teach sing around reaching the Next Generation instead of keeping the current one your church. We better so forget about the people that God's given you forget about those who were clinging to the scriptures because they're artifacts you need to push on to reach the next Generation now, I'm not saying we should reach the next Generation. I'm not saying we shouldn't contextualize. I'm not saying we shouldn't understand generational differences. Like I need to understand Generation Z better. Like this obsession with carrying around water all the time.

Containers that I have to clean that if you drop on your toe you will fracture.

Do we need to understand the culture that were and we have to we have to be able to get in sexualize the gospel. We don't change the gospel. We don't compromise the word of God. We don't forsake the flock that God's given us or spurn them so that we can somehow seem relevant. Because that's was pushing. This doctrinal shift is wanting to remain relevant in an attic in a context where the cultural tide is just pushing so hard but time has come for us to step back into a more sure footing and I think a firmer foundation and to build our case for our congregation for our congregations in this generation Millennials on the event of the resurrection and not the authenticity or infallibility of a text. and it's not because I don't think the scriptures infallible now. He's he's double speaking there. Okay, I didn't ask for you to get to read that. Okay, so

Let me read that again, since you have left the time has come for us to step back into a more sure footing and I think a firmer Foundation to build our case for our congregations in this generation millennials. On the event of the resurrection and not the authenticity or infallibility of the text and it's not because I don't think the scriptures infallible now. I don't know any of us to it. We're having a conversation with somebody and we're trying to explain to them the beauty of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and their great need for Jesus loves them and has love them through the Gospel of Jesus Christ that we sit there and argue about the infallibility of God's word.

I didn't have that Dakota Pier but in Past couple of years Andy Stanley who has made all these statements Pastor Northpoint church. So we need our selves from the Old Testament. There's too much baggage with the Old Testament to try to reach this generation because somehow we can't make sense of what God did in the Old Testament such a way that makes Christianity appealing to them. There's all types of things wrong with that type of theology.

And so we consider statements like this, right? We see this Foundation being eroded. Did God really say and that's what's Happening Here? Did God really say? You must not eat from any tree in the garden. Because any time you been to begin to question what God's word says.

Whether or not it's true, I'm not trying to I'm not saying don't we should try to understand that everything's equally understandable. Some things are difficult. Why did God do this at this time in that way?

some some things are difficult but on the whole I teach the perspicuity of scripture that all that we need for salvation knowing our knowledge of God us send Christ Our response to repentance and Faith. It's clear in the scriptures. I certainly much of the hullabaloo this going on. involves the issue of same-sex marriage

lgbtq agenda, okay. So again, I I hesitated to bring up his name. I just wanted to put the but here's the thing scripture is clear that people are supposed to be marked out. Okay, and is a pastor you may not agree with me. It's my it's my responsibility to point things out if you're not aware of them. And so beginning of the beginning of this year. I have been mulling over this and thinking through as a church and a where do we you know what we need to focus on and I think what I want us to focus on his confidence in the word of God, that is the final Rule and Authority for our lives. Do we have to have confidence in that not begin to question it or begin to unhitch from 39 books of the Bible.

So we see this erosion of the foundation did God really say, right and then God created man in his own image mankind is image and image of God. He created them male and female. That's another point of erosion.

God bless them and said to them be fruitful and increase in number. This undermines everything about same-sex unions.

Okay, I'm not saying that you're there are obviously there's some her hermeneutical issues that that have to be given a cow be fruitful and increase and number got speaking to Adam and Eve they're trying to populate the Earth. Should we give consideration to help me how many children we have to have? I think it's something we think about okay. So there's this erosion of what God Said.

And we began to question. Did God really say that?

And it ain't you might be thinking. I'm being a little bit hard on Andy Stanley. These are tweets. This guy Ryan to Scotty was in a carp was in a meeting with Andy Stanley's are direct statements from what Andy Stanley said. Homosexuality is really a disability using the analogy that telling a gate that telling gay people that they have to stop being gay to follow Christ is like taking a wheelchair away from a guy who can't walk. No, we've had people who are gay come into our congregation in in be here with us for weeks at a time. I know that for a fact. We welcome everybody.

If somebody comes in and they're and they're gay or homosexual. My priority is not to see them be straight or headers. My ears for them to know the love of God into the Salvation through Jesus Christ Alone. That's what I want for everybody. We've had a transgender person come in here and sit down through both services. We welcome everybody. We're not going to compromise what we believe about the truth.

And so, you know this statement right here, there's all kinds of things wrong with either the being gay is a disability. That is something you can't help. I am sorry. I I was born with this desire to look at other women and and have relationships with other women. I just that's just the way I feel. That's that's what I desire. I can't get past it. I'm just that way and so I can't for you to expect me to be faithful to my wife. That's really beyond what you can expect to me because I really so how does that sound? I can't help it. It's disability. Has been stated.

more tweets Andy Stanley I don't I don't do gay weddings, but I can't say I would never do a Gateway. They got my granddaughter asked me someday, maybe I would

Next next week. We need to make room for gay men who choose to be married to each other in our churches because that's as close as they can get to New Testament framework of marriage.

And then lastly I believe in gay people. Some people are gay. They can't change.

That's the beauty of 1st Corinthians 6 such were some of you. Okay. And so I bring all this up to say that the challenge that we face is a church is erosion from the inside and it's been that way since the beginning of the church. This is nothing new right? I seen something like this before we are are in a crisis and our culture and I don't know how the church is going to get through this mess since the beginning the church has faced opposition and the church has faced false teachers who wants to who wants to pack pure Doctrine? Write the book of Jude is is is that's what the book of Jude is. I want you to condense earnestly for the faith that was once entrusted to God's holy people that if you want to reduce you can be so reductionist to say, he's only talking about God man Christ response. That is just the Gospel of Jesus Christ the Judas talking about here, then you're way off the mark There is a faith has been handed out once to the Saints. The faith is God's word in tote 66 books. And to do this, I don't I don't have it here. But I don't think I put it all here. Let me see if I did know if you if you read the entirety of Jude. Okay, Jude it is saying he we need to defend the faith once given to God's people and he talks about the false teachers there and then he goes and says their punishment will be like that of Sodom and Gomorrah because what's going on here is the false teachers are seeing sexual immorality and they're not saying anything about it. They're okay with it turning a blind eye to it. It's okay.

And here's the thing in the culture right now right now. It's it's all this doublespeak. It's like speaking in such General vagueness that nobody can pin you down.

So if somebody comes and says ask you a question is always plausible deniability because now that's not really what I said. You didn't really understand what I said. What the back to this this point here? Innjoo dear friends, although I was very eager to write you about the salvation. We share I felt compelled to write nerd you to contend for the faith. It was once and Trust bra interested to God's holy people for certain individuals whose Foundation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you their ungodly people who pervert the grace of our God into a license for a morality. and deny Jesus Christ Our Only Sovereign and Lord Romans, I urge you brothers and sisters watch out for those literally mark them out put a mark on them so you can follow them around that's the idea. You keep a close eye on them. I heard your brothers and sisters to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learnt keep away from them. For such people are not serve our Lord with their own appetites by smooth talk and flattered. They deceive the mines and is it of naive people?

This is the problem that the level of theological instruction is is so minimalistic in our churches So people are carried away by somebody who looks good. Sounds good has good programs. Smooth talk and flattery they deceive people so the problem is from within and that's what David was facing right? He was facing a problem from within evil rising up questioning in the word of God ignoring the word of God may be in direct Rebellion to the word of God the foundations were being destroyed. So so how should Christians respond to such rapid societal political judicial decline in our country? How should we respond around to those around us? Who spurn God's love love should be in there God's law of love. How do we respond when prominent pastors undermine the authority of God's word in favor of cultural shifts? And that's the issue. I want culture to like me. I want to stay relevant to the culture around me. And if I take a hard stance on this issue than people aren't going to listen to me the theologically you just throw the sovereignty of God out the window.

You stand on truth and you let God take care of the rest. If you're not going to listen or not going to listen, if they're blind and send their dead in their trespasses and sins if their minds have been darkens and they're not going to understand a part from God removing those blinders. You're somehow going to change their mind by being culturally relevant and being a a chameleon. I don't think so. Our job is to stand on the truth and to do that. We need to to pray and live with confidence. That's the first point. I'm going to move through this really quickly pray and live with confidence, right because God is still on his throne. God is still ruling and raining. The Lord is in his holy Temple. The Lord is on his Heavenly Throne. He observes everyone on Earth. His eyes examined of history is still God story. He's still working. He's not surprised by what's going on and he still listening and he still expects us to pray and ask him to change what's going on in our churches and our church in churches. And even the culture around us because we're called to pray for leaders people Authority. The first thing we should do is pray if you're going to criticize if I'm going to stand up here and criticize from the pulpit. What I see is wrong, according to the word of God that I better be praying about the situation praying for Andy Stanley praying for our church and praying for the church at Large. They remember that God is listening. He is on his throne. He is still in charge. As we do that weekend live confidently knowing that God Is Watching Over Us. We also need to live righteously we need to live righteously if if we're like the world people are going to see any difference. If you're living just like the world is going to be there's there's no contrast between the light in the Darkness. Also, so they going to church regularly. They're Christian, really?

So what do you think about such and such topic afraid to take a stand for what God's word says because you might look bad at work or with your friends with your family. First 5 says the Lord examines the righteous that word examines means proves tests. Is this real is this one legitimate? The Lord Is Watching Over Us. Are we going to hold fast to the word of God or are we going to acquiesce to the spirit of the age and compromise We Believe It is so easy to do now, right? That's your interpretation. Do we really understand what Paul meant when he wrote Romans chapter 1

we set unnatural. He really meant that there are some men who are born with a proclivity toward same-sex attraction and for them to go against that would be

City needs to be a contrast because the Lord is watching the Lord is examining the righteous. And then he makes this incredible statement here, but the wicked those who love violence. He hates with a passion now. That's a tough one to swallow. That's probably one of the reasons Andy Stanley wants to unhitch himself in the Old Testament is how do you work through that with somebody? Will you have to put your theological thinking cap on and work through the character of God and all that? He is his Justice and his Holiness and his righteousness. And yes his love right because love doesn't operate the vacuum love operates according to truth. Is it okay to love somebody who destroys everything? That is beautiful and holy.

I need a striper guide to be opposed to those things to destroy the beauty of his creation. And so God says I hate those with a passion.

The how God can send his son to die on the cross for Sinners and Rebels like us I have I mean, it's amazing. I'm overwhelmed with the love of God, but he does that. I'll let God work out his character. I don't need to defend what he says in his word other than to say this is this is what truth is.

We need to trust in God's justice, right as we consider. What's going on the road around us. It really gets upsetting right once something done. Right? I want to I want to put the right tweet out there. I want to put the right post up there. Just going to put these people in their place and show them that they're wrong for talking about us this way. We have no idea. What's a just assume that I'm a homophobic bigger than I'm a trump voter. That's what I say right some kind of crazy and I want to get back at him.

How much good is that going to do like really cuz I can do any good? If you want to tweet out the the love of Christ in the gospel and how grateful you are. The God would save such a wretched sinner like you that's great.

What is we wait in the in between right where these people of the already not yet? Like we're waiting for the return of Christ. Longing for his return longing for his kingdom longing for justice to rain. We have to wait for that.

But here it gives a clear picture of God's justice. On the wicked he will rain fiery coals and burning sulfur a scorching wind will be there a lot. What's his mind going back to their inverse 6? Sodom and Gomorrah

the Lord is righteous. His ways are always right his ways are always according to the Perfection of the beauty that is is God. The Lord is always righteous and he loves Justice his Justice cannot be denied. He always has to respond negatively to sin according to his suggested. You can't deny that.

Because of his love his Justice was meted out. His Justice was worked out on Jesus Christ on the all of our unrighteous these deserved this fight the fiery coals in the burning sulfur that's what we deserve you and I deserve the guy could not deny his righteousness his Justice and so Justice was worked out on the cross is the righteous Savior Jesus Christ took our own righteousness and God punished the righteous Son of God. So Justice was worked out.

That's the message. We need to focus on the friends. If you begin to undermine other parts of God's word you begin to undermine that message the Gospel of Jesus Christ. In the meantime, we wait for God's justice to be worked out when you have a longing for heaven a longing for heaven, right? The uprights will see his face as we set our minds on the things above not on the things of this Earth. Christ is our life. We wait for that moment when Christ is revealed and we will be revealed with them also be long for that moment. It will affect the way that we live. longing for heaven should increase the desire that we have within us to tell others about Jesus Christ. The hope that they can have in Christ.

So the upright will see his face. So what? What can the righteous do when the foundations are being destroyed? That we need to to pray. And live, so we need to live righteously. We need to let God work his Justice out and we need to look forward to his return. When Justice will be realized fully.

Sorry, I understand it when I do get in naming names and quoting quotes and kind of it can kind of be a little bit fictional there. But I think that's my job as a pastor is to okay, this is where we go. This work site is going. Would be confident even though the foundations are being eroded in the church Islam stand on the word of God. As long as you are with a body of Believers the stand on the word of God God's word says the Gates of Hell will not Prevail against God's church and God's people let's pray. Thank you so much for the truth of your word the foundation that it is for our lives father. I pray that you would draw us into your word that we would love your word that we would be confident. You're worthy will be ashamed of your word Elvis didn't know your word in such a way that we can lovingly communicate the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who desperately need to hear it. We ask this in Jesus name.