Rejoice With Trembling

The book of Psalms, do you remember how many psalms there are?

150 psalms written over a span of how many years?

That's right, at least a thousand years span.

So really covering the entire history of God's revelation.

Psalm chapter 2 today.

Psalms 2 · chapter mention

I want to share a couple of things for you to keep in mind as we read through the entire psalm.

My dear friend, Matthew Henry, a Puritan commentator, said the first psalm is law, showing us our duty.

This psalm, Psalm 2, is evangelical, showing us our Savior.

So look for the Savior in Psalm 2.

The Savior is called the Lord's anointed in verse 2.

He's the Lord's established king in verse 6, and he's the begotten son of Jehovah in verses 7 and 12.

We saw last week how Psalm 1 taught us that it is spiritually fatal to be directed by the world.

Instead, we should be directed by the law of God.

Now, Psalm 2 teaches us that it's also spiritually fatal to go through life on this earth being intimidated of the world,

a world that rejects God's law.

That's also spiritually fatal.

So listen, as we read Psalm 2, the contrast is set.

The blessed way and the way that perishes.

Now in Psalm 2, we will see that though it's hard to walk the blessed way,

we have reason to rejoice with trembling.

As I read Psalm 2, you follow along.

Remember, this is God's inspired, inerrant, infallible, clear, insufficient word.

This is God's very own word for you, His people.

When I'm done reading, I'll say, this is the word of the Lord.

We'll respond by saying, thanks be to God.

All right, Psalm 2.

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?

The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed,

saying, verse 3,

Let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us.

Verse 4,

He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh.

The Lord shall have them in derision.

Then shall He speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure.

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.

I will declare the decree.

Verse 7,

The Lord has said unto me,

Thou art my son.

This day have I begotten thee.

Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance.

And the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.

Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron.

Thou shalt dash them into pieces like a potter's vessel.

Be wise now, therefore, O ye kings.

Be instructed, ye judges of the earth.

Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling.

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way.

When His wrath is kindled but a little.

Blessed are all they that put their trust in Him.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

You may be seated.

We're told in Isaiah 40 that the grass withers,

and the flower fades,

but the word of the Lord endures forever.

Would you pray with me?

O anointed King,

declare to us the divine decree once again today.

Cause us by the power of your Holy Spirit in us and with us as a body.

Cause us to rejoice with trembling at the sight of you

when we behold you seated on your throne, we ask.

For Christ's sake, amen.

Well, beloved congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ,

how do you have hope and happiness

in a world that rages against God?

Do I need to make the case that this world rages against God,

or are you there?

You're with me.

The world rages against God,

and yet how do we, as pilgrims, as sojourners,

how do we have hope and happiness

as we walk this earth?

I want to give you my one point.

The one point of the sermon is this.

Psalm 2 teaches us to rejoice with trembling at the Holy King.

Rejoice with trembling at the Holy King

and take refuge in Him.

Look at verse 11.

How should you live in this world?

How can you have hope and happiness?

Rejoice with trembling at the Holy King

and take refuge in Him.

That's your source of hope and happiness in this world.

We're going to walk through verse by verse

this glorious, majestic psalm.

And that's been my prayer all week long,

simply that this psalm will elevate our thoughts of God

and cause us to behold Him on His holy hill

and to rejoice with trembling.

History runs red, wrote Pastor Dale Ralph Davis,

with the blood of Messiah's members.

And he quotes from a pastor,

a Christian in China named Brother Yun.

Brother Yun wrote his book

based on what he witnessed in his town of Nanyang,

in 1949 when the Communist Party took over

and made Christianity illegal.

I think this is okay for children to hear.

This is what our brothers and sisters around the world

have suffered for the faith.

He saw Christians, like you and like me,

crucified on the walls of their churches

for refusing to deny Jesus.

He saw other Christians bound up in chains

and that chains attached to the saddle of horses

and they were drug publicly in the streets

at a fast pace until they were drug to death.

One pastor was hoisted up on a makeshift crane

and dropped to the ground.

It didn't kill him.

They hoisted him up again publicly,

dropped him again to his death.

Pastor Davis writes,

This is sadly par for the course

and our current century is already awash

in such brutality.

Hatred for the Messiah spills over

on Messiah's people.

Didn't you see that in Acts 4?

We read Acts 4.

Hatred for God's people.

It's hatred for the Messiah.

Make him stop talking about him.

The world rages against God

and it spills over onto his people.

That's why the psalmist starts in verse 1

by asking the question,

Why?

How can the Christian,

how can the believer,

how can the psalmist have hope

and happiness in a world

that rages against God?

Now look at what the Holy Spirit teaches

the psalmist,

opening his eyes to behold the heavenly realm.

The effect it has on the psalmist

is rejoice with trembling at the Holy King

and take refuge in him.

Now Psalm 2 is very symmetrical.

12 verses.

Each pairing of three verses

is one scene.

So 12 verses,

four scenes,

three verses each scene.

Let's look first at scene number one.

To set the stage here,

if this were a stage

and you're in ancient Israel

and you're getting to now imagine

what these words describe,

the orchestra would swell up.

It would be noisy, clangy, concophony.

The psalmist desires to walk the blessed way

like you saw in Psalm 1,

but is overwhelmed by the wickedness

of this way that perishes,

that's overwhelming

and pushing in on the narrow way

of the blessed.

So scene one is this.

It's the sin-loving world,

loud,

clamoring together,

conspiring,

hating God

and hating the law of his kingdom.

That's verses one, two, and three.

So the psalmist prays.

And as he prays,

God answers his question,

why?

By telling him it's vain.

Look at verse one.

The psalmist is in dismay.

Why do the nations rage?

And the heathen peoples,

these godless peoples of the nations,

why do they plot a vain thing?

Verse two,

the kings of the earth set themselves

and the rulers take counsel together

against the Lord

and against his anointed,

saying,

let us break their bands asunder

and cast away their cords from us.

You'll see in verse two,

this is the kings of the earth,

the rulers from all the world.

It feels to him like a great conspiracy.

They're all against this king

whose kingdom of heaven

is intruding on earth.

They take counsel together

against the Lord.

See, these are all enemies

and vying for power,

but they have one common enemy,

and that's the king of heaven.

They're vying together

in their power against him now.

Now we get this Trinitarian insight.

It's against the Lord.

The word is Jehovah.

That's the name of God

in covenant to sinners,

the covenant-keeping Lord

and his anointed.

So as the New Testament believers

would have read Psalm 2

in the Greek translation,

the Septuagint,

it would have said

against the Lord and Christ.

You know what?

Christ means anointed.

They're vying against Jehovah,

the covenant-keeping God

of the old covenant,

and his Christ,

and his anointed.

And what is it that they hate

about God and his anointed?

The nations of the world

view themselves

as being bound with cords,

and these bands

are tying them up,

and they're saying,

we are all bound by these cords.

Let's burst them.

And not only burst them

and get free and run away,

let's throw the cords asunder.

Let's throw them away.

Let's be done with this God

who binds us once and for all.

It's a mutiny.

It's the pirates wanting to

topple over the kingdom of heaven.

What are the bonds

that tie and restrain

the kings of the earth?

God declares,

I alone am the Lord.

You shall worship me alone.

And the nations

and the rulers of this world

want to say,

no,

we will make our own little

lowercase g's

in our own image

and worship whoever we want

and have our identity

bound up in those idols

that we have created.

God says,

I claim this day as mine.

I set all of creation in order.

And they rebel.

They say,

we will do whatever we want

on any day that we want.

God says,

in my kingdom,

there is no murder.

Murder is punished.

There are no lies.

There's no envy,

no coveting.

And they say,

we will do whatever we want

and we'll celebrate

those who do it.

And this is the same world

that very quickly,

if left unrestrained,

will self-destroy,

will bring so much wickedness

and violence

that a holy God

can't sit there any longer.

He washed away the world

once with a flood.

So why is it that this world

still has good hospitals,

good schools,

you know,

the arts,

beautiful creative expressions?

It's only by God's

preserving kindness.

That's the only reason.

And yet that moral law,

that moral law of God

which restrains the evil powers,

is what they view as the cause

that they want to rebel against.

If God said it,

their evil hearts are distorted

and they want to rebel against it.

So would a king,

would a loving king

bring this starving lion,

this predator,

into his living room

where his children are,

where his family lives,

and turn the chains loose

and just release the bonds

off of this lion

around his own family?

A good king would never do that.

But that's how the wicked rulers

view God.

He's keeping us back.

Let us go wherever we want

and devour.

We hate your rule, God,

they say.

We love our sin.

They would kill God

if they could.

But the psalmist recognizes

this is in vain.

These men are so darkened

in their thinking.

Isaiah 57, verse 20 says,

Isaiah 57:20

The wicked are like the tossing sea

that cannot be quiet.

It's tossed up.

The mire and the dirt

swirling all around in it.

There is no peace,

says my God,

for the wicked.

That's how the raging world is.

The world that loves its sin

hates God

and hates the law

of God's kingdom.

Do you get that first scene

in your mind,

verses 1, 2, and 3?

All right.

Well, if you desire

to walk in the way

that is blessed,

you're like the psalmist.

You're like me.

You're feeling overwhelmed

in such a world.

But learn the example

from the psalmist

is ask God the question,

Lord, why?

It's so hard.

Why?

Why is it overwhelming

to be in this world?

You cry out to God.

You don't tremble

at the wicked kings

and the rulers of the world.

You don't fear man.

Because instead,

you see God

exalted above all.

You see that

no matter what they come up with,

it's in vain.

You tremble at God

and then you rejoice

by taking refuge in Him,

the unshakable rock.

Now, scene 2,

verses 4, 5, and 6.

Scene 1,

the psalmist is in

this physical realm

overwhelmed by the foolishness

of the perishing way.

Now, scene 2,

I believe the Holy Spirit

opens the eyes

of the psalmist

to behold the spiritual realm,

which we only see

through the eyes of faith.

So scene 2 is

the sin-hating Lord

enthroned over His kingdom.

Scene 1 was

the sin-loving world

hating God

and the law of His kingdom.

But scene 2 now

is the sin-hating Lord

enthroned on His hill,

His holy kingdom,

over this fallen earth.

Verse 4,

He that sits

in the heaven

shall laugh.

The Lord shall have

these wicked rulers

in derision.

It's like,

it's like these wicked rulers

are bungee jumpers

with spiky rocks

at the bottom

that they're jumping to

and they're saying,

cut these cords off.

Let us,

let us be free

once for all.

And the Lord

holds them in derision.

Romans 2, 14 says,

when the Gentiles

who do not have the law,

referring to the Mosaic law,

but by nature

they do what the law requires,

they are a law

to themselves,

even though they do not

have the law.

Do you know those

who mock the Lord?

Stand-up comedians

or men like

Friedrich Nietzsche

or Stephen Hawking?

They say,

cut off these bungee cords.

Let us plunge to our death.

And the Lord

in His long-suffering kindness

and forbearance,

He's binding them,

holding them

from what will be

their soon destruction.

And those who don't say,

Lord, Your will be done,

He will say,

have it Your way.

He mocks them to scorn.

It's like God says,

do you think I,

the Creator of all,

won't rule over

my own creation?

And His mocking

or just seeing the pettiness,

the vanity of it,

it turns to wrath.

You think God doesn't care

about sin?

You think God

lets the world go

as however it wants to

and doesn't care?

The Lord cares.

He hates sin.

He sees sin

and it turns to wrath.

Look at verse 5.

Then shall He speak unto them

in His wrath

and vex them

in His sore displeasure.

Don't think for a moment

that the Lord is pleased

by sin.

The Lord hates sin.

He is the sin-hating Lord

who is enthroned

over His holy kingdom.

Now look at verse 6.

He says,

I set my king

upon my holy hill

of Zion.

That's how God

responds to the sinful world.

He hates the sin so much,

what does He do?

He sets His Son

to rule over the world.

He makes His hatred of sin

so clear,

not only in the conscience

of every created being,

not only by the law

that was given through Moses

contained in His Word,

but now with Jesus Christ Himself

taking the throne,

the throne over all the nations.

See, the Holy Spirit

throughout all the Old Covenant

was whispering

and hinting

and allowing glimpses

of Christ enthroned.

Isaiah got this glimpse.

He said in Isaiah 66,

1,

Of God,

heaven is my throne,

the earth is my footstool.

The psalmist here in Psalm 2

gets a glimpse of heaven.

There sits the Lord

and His anointed.

On the throne of heaven,

the spiritual realm

puts His feet.

It's like the king

stomping down on the earth.

It's His footstool.

He does whatever He pleases.

So how do you have hope?

How do you have hope

in a world that rages against God?

You behold God

on His throne,

the throne of heaven,

and you behold

His anointed one,

His Son,

set by God

on that holy hill.

By elevating your thoughts

off of man

and the brokenness

of this world,

you behold God,

you rejoice

with trembling,

and you take refuge

in Him.

All right,

scene three,

verses seven,

eight,

and nine.

The Holy Spirit

shows the psalmist

what the Creator God

decrees.

The Father,

Son,

promise here.

And this is the chief end

of the whole world.

This is so glorious.

So scene three is,

the world-loving Son

promised

to inherit

the uttermost parts

of the earth.

Yes,

God hates the world,

but the Son

shows the love

of God

for sinners

to the uttermost parts

of this sinful world.

And He receives them

as part of His kingdom.

Look at verse seven.

I will declare

the decree.

So what does the Son do?

He preaches.

He declares.

What does He declare?

He declares the decree.

What's a decree?

A decree is

what the sovereign,

eternal King

has determined,

sovereignly willed,

that will come to pass.

That's what a King

makes a decree.

This will come to pass

in my kingdom.

So verse seven,

I will declare

the decree.

What is the decree?

The Lord

hath said unto me,

Thou art my Son.

This day

have I begotten Thee.

So,

there are only two categories.

It's creation

or the Creator.

The Son is not created.

The Son is Creator.

So,

the same essence

of God,

the very God,

of very God,

the begotten Son,

the eternally generated

Son.

Now,

it's a mystery to us,

but this is so important.

The Son was not created.

The Son,

eternally,

is revealing now

to the created world

the decree

of the loving Father.

So,

Father,

Son,

now where's the Holy Spirit?

Well,

remember,

He's called the Anointed.

This is the Anointed Son

that the Father

has set on His hill.

John Calvin,

during the Reformation,

pointed out

there are three offices

in the Old Testament

that are anointed.

It's prophet,

priest,

and king.

You've heard those terms.

Where do we get

prophet,

priest,

and king from?

It's because in the Old Testament,

those are the offices

that were anointed.

They're anointed either by oil,

by the Holy Spirit,

or both.

So,

the Son of God,

the eternally generated,

begotten Son of God,

is the anointed one,

anointed by the Holy Spirit.

In the New Testament,

we see this at the baptism.

You see the same words.

The Father says,

this is my son

with whom I am well pleased.

And the Spirit descends upon him.

So you can picture with Aaron,

Moses pouring oil

over Aaron's head and beard.

That was anointing Aaron

for the office of priest.

You can picture David,

that sunburnt shepherd boy,

coming to Samuel,

Samuel anointing him with oil.

There's the king and the priest.

And then the prophets

were anointed by the Holy Spirit,

and they declared

the counsel of God.

So here you see,

it's God himself,

anointed by God for creation.

Three times anointed,

prophet, priest, and king.

Revealing to the world

who this God is.

And notice the promise

between the Father and the Son

in verse 8.

Ask of me,

and I shall give thee the heathen,

the pagan nations,

for thine inheritance,

and the uttermost parts

parts of the earth

for thy possession.

They will be yours.

So are you telling me

that the Father

promised to the Son

this eternal decree

that would come to pass,

that the Son would inherit

and have as his possession

souls from the ends of the earth?

Is that only just found in Psalm 2?

And where do we get

such a rich teaching?

Isaiah 49.6 is one other

glorious place of many more.

Isaiah 49.6 says,

It is a light thing

that thou should be my servant

and raise up to the tribes of Jacob

and to restore and preserve Israel.

See, the Father says to the Son,

Yes,

you will be my servant,

my suffering servant,

and I'll give you restored Israel.

But that's too light of a thing.

That's too small.

The Father promises the Son

in Isaiah 49,

I will also give thee

for a light to the Gentiles

that you may be my salvation

unto the ends of the earth.

That's what the Father promises the Son.

Isn't this glorious?

This is one of my favorite doctrines

in all the Bible.

So this is what has been called

or tried to be understood

as the covenant of redemption

or the counsel of peace,

the eternal decree of God

outside of time.

that the world would have souls

belonging to Jesus

from every nation, tribe, and tongue.

The covenant of redemption.

Okay, well, what's a covenant?

My favorite definition of a covenant

is by Nehemiah Cox,

one of the signers

of the Second London Confession.

Nehemiah Cox says,

It's God's oath-bound promise

declaring the benefits

that God will bestow upon people,

the communion they will have with Him,

the way, the method,

or the means of grace

by which these blessings

will be enjoyed by the people

according to God's sovereign pleasure.

Covenant of redemption.

It's God establishing,

here's how I will bless sinners.

Here's how I will create a way

for those who are banished in darkness

to come and fellowship with me.

And it will be through Israel

because from Israel

I'll raise up my anointed.

But it will be for the ends

of the earth.

Now verse 9,

when a king is established,

he also has to deal with his enemies.

He has to deal with his borders.

Look at verse 9.

Thou shalt break them

with a rod of iron

and thou shalt dash them

into pieces

like a potter's vessel.

The image here is of power

and complete dominion.

So you picture a king,

especially a king like David

who's a man of war,

a man, you know,

covered in blood.

And he holds now

from the throne a rod.

And this rod he will use

to lift up like a scepter.

And this rod he can strike,

you know,

like a shepherd would strike away

the wolves coming to get his lambs.

And he says,

when he strikes you with this rod,

it's a rod of iron.

It will crush

whatever is in its way.

It's stronger than

all the other metals

of the Middle East.

In this time period,

it's of iron.

Nothing breaks

the rod of this king.

And you picture

taking some, you know,

handmade pottery

and just smashing it down

on a rock.

That's the image

of the enemies

of this anointed king.

And that's the decree

of the father

promising to the son.

So do you see now

on this holy hill

the world loving son

being promised

the uttermost parts

of the earth

as his possession,

his inheritance.

Let that be your comfort.

Let that be your comfort

that his church

will prevail.

It's the church militant

marching forward.

And yes,

the world rages against God

and the world

is full of injustice.

But we continue trusting

in this God

who is powerful

and he's caring

and he hates sin

and one day

he will make

all things right.

Hear over and over

this decree,

this promise

and trust

that God spoke it

and it will happen.

So that's why

we can rejoice

with trembling

if we take refuge

in him.

Be sure to be found

inside his kingdom.

All right,

well what about

the fourth scene now?

Verses 10, 11, and 12.

I believe what happens

in this fourth scene

is,

if I get this right,

otherwise tell me later,

it's called

breaking the fourth wall.

So you picture like

on the stage,

you don't want to have

four walls up, right?

Because then the audience

can't peek into the room.

So that fourth wall

is when someone

on the stage

turns directly

to the audience

and addresses them.

I think that's what happens

in verses 10, 11, and 12.

The psalmist declares

as God's prophet

to all nations,

rulers, and individuals

the only wise way

to respond

to the reality

of God's kingdom.

See what the Holy Spirit

has shown the psalmist,

now he takes

what he is seeing

and he declares it

to the world,

to all the rulers

of all the nations

directly.

So in scene four,

there is no refuge

from heaven's king

but blessed

are those

who take refuge

in him.

There is no refuge

from him.

Take refuge

in him.

Verse 10,

Be wise now,

therefore,

O ye kings,

be instructed,

ye judges

of the earth.

He says,

this is God's creation.

God rules

all nations.

They're all

under his law.

Verse 11,

Serve the Lord

with fear

and rejoice

with trembling.

Serve the Lord.

Lord,

learn from his law.

Learn from his people

how to worship him.

Learn from other safe sinners

what it means

to bend your knee,

to submit to his terms

and to find peace.

Verse 12,

Kiss the Son,

lest he be angry

and you perish

from the way

when his wrath

is kindled

but a little.

Kiss the Son.

Until even recent times,

an ambassador

to another country

would have to come

and ceremonially

bow down

and kiss the foot

of the king.

Then they could go

with that king's authority.

First,

that submission

to the great king.

Then on behalf

of that king,

go out

to declare

and to rule

on his behalf.

Kiss the king,

lest he be angry

and you perish

from the way

when his wrath

is kindled

but a little.

See,

there is a time

where his wrath

will be kindled fully.

There is a time

of coming judgment.

His kingdom

is advancing

and his kingdom

advances

spiritually now.

One day

it will advance

and be here

consummately,

fully and forever.

And we long

for that day,

don't we?

But his kingdom

is advancing.

He hates sin.

No more let sins

and sorrows grow

nor thorns

infest the ground.

He comes to make

his blessings flow

far as the curse

is found.

He will restore

all nations

to the ends

of the earth.

Don't fear the wicked,

the psalmist says.

Their pride,

it's in vain.

It's empty.

Their plans

are foolish.

But instead,

hear God's

holy decree.

The psalmist

looks you in the eye.

He says,

kiss the sun.

Rejoice with trembling.

Serve the Lord.

Rejoice with trembling

at the holy king

and take refuge

in him

for there is

no refuge

from him.

And that's how

this psalm ends.

Now, we've looked

at the four scenes

of this psalm.

I wrestled

just as much

with the significance

of this psalm

as I did with

getting the scenes

correct.

I believe there are

many layers

of significance here.

I just want to walk you

through a few conclusions

I've come to.

The first is

the significance

of Psalm 2

in its immediate context

for life in the land,

life in the kingdom

of God.

He says,

I have set my king

upon the holy hill

of Zion.

So the immediate audience

would have pictured

David

and the Davidic dynasty

sitting on the throne

in Jerusalem.

The first reference

in the Bible

to Zion

is in 2 Samuel 5-7.

We're told that

the stronghold of Zion

was taken over

by David.

It belonged previously

to the Jebusites.

Dale Ralph Davis

pointed out

that Zion

was a puny

11 acres

of real estate

on the southeastern ridge

of Jerusalem

and God's visible kingdom

in this world

was to begin

on this tiny

banana-shaped hill

in a provincial backwater

that David took

from the Jebusites.

But that term,

Zion,

this hill of Zion,

it takes on rich

biblical theological meaning

throughout the revelation

of Scripture.

So the immediate audience

would have found hope

that even though

these other nations

are coming against us,

God will raise up

a nobody like David

and put him on the throne

and give us peace.

That would have been

their immediate way

of reading Psalm 2.

Did this happen?

Because if God

can't even deliver

a yes

to that original promise

on that small scale,

why should we have

hope in anything further?

Yes,

God fulfilled His promise.

1 Chronicles 18.11

says,

The Lord gave David

victory

everywhere he went.

And David conquered

the gold and silver

from all these other nations,

brought them back to Zion

and presented them

as an offering

to the Lord,

set aside

for the construction

of the Lord's temple.

What were the nations

that he conquered?

It was Edom,

Moab,

the Ammonites,

the Philistines,

and the Amalek.

Any one of those

in previous times

would have dominated Israel.

Now the Lord,

through David,

brought peace

on all edges

of the border.

This continues on.

I believe that David

was a level one

fulfillment of this promise

and David is also

a shadow of Christ

in his suffering,

coming to be

the bloody warrior shepherd.

Now Solomon

is paired with David.

Scripture comes in pairs.

You got Elijah, Elisha.

And so David came

as the bloody one.

And now Solomon

comes as like

the ascended Lord

coming to dominate

in the time of peace,

his second coming,

and also his spiritual kingdom.

1 Kings 4.21 says,

During his reign,

Solomon,

the son of David,

controlled the trade routes

coming out of Edom,

Arabia,

India,

Africa,

and Judea.

So yes,

did the Lord fulfill this

to their immediate context?

He did.

With David,

with Solomon,

all of their borders

were fortified.

God raised them up,

brought them peace.

He ruled and crushed

their neighbors

to demonstrate his power.

God kept his word.

However,

all of the promises

that are put on this

anointed one

that will sit on Zion's hill,

they're not fully met

and fully fulfilled

by David and Solomon

yet either,

are they?

We know that

from world history,

Solomon,

though he constructed

a temple

and he built this

web of alliances

through a lot of marriages

to different princesses

and concubines.

He also introduced

into the promised land,

into this kingdom

of God on earth,

insurrections,

dissent,

division.

He allowed idols

from all these pagan nations

to come in

to corrupt the integrity

of God's people.

They turned away

from the Lord

and from his law

and it was all downhill

after Solomon.

David's divinic dynasty,

it ended

with the conquering

of Jerusalem

by Babylon

in the year 586 B.C.

So that fulfillment

leaves the rest

of redemptive history

asking,

where is this promise

going to happen?

Think of those

living in Jerusalem

like Daniel

and his friends.

They would have been asking,

how will Psalm 2

be fulfilled?

They would have been able

to turn to Isaiah 28, 16

and read,

Behold,

I am laying in Zion

a stone of stumbling,

a rock of offense.

Whoever believes in him

will not be put to shame.

And they would have held

to hold on to that.

God will put a king

back in Zion

and whoever puts their hope

in my promise

through that Davidic king

will not be put to shame.

So the next significance

of Psalm 2

would be for those

carried away

from Jerusalem and Israel

into exile.

It would have been sung

for them as a song

of hope

while in exile,

while they were sojourners

and pilgrims

without a land.

God's wrath

is still against

those wicked rulers

who mock their God,

who view their God

as weak and defeated.

They would have had

to sing Psalm 2

with that promise

that no,

our God does rule

over these rulers,

even Nebuchadnezzar,

even great Assyria.

They would have said,

we need to continue

serving the Lord.

You hear that from Daniel

when he preaches

to Nebuchadnezzar,

he says,

serve the Lord.

He sets his king

on his holy hill.

He will one day

do this again.

We will see him

in power.

Listen to how Daniel

wrote in Daniel 2.35.

Daniel described

how the kingdoms

of the earth

that were together

built up into

this great statue

were then altogether

broken in pieces

and became like

the chaff

of the summer

threshing floors

and the wind

carried them away

so that not a trace

of them could be found,

but the stone

that struck

the image,

this great statue

became a mountain,

a great mountain

filled the whole earth.

Do you hear Psalm 1

and Psalm 2

and David's prophecy

while they're still

in exile?

He says,

lift up your eyes,

people of God.

Continue in hope.

He will set his king

on his holy hill

once again.

Rejoice with trembling,

not at Nebuchadnezzar

or Assyria.

Rejoice in trembling

that God's decree

will come to pass.

They could have sung

that Christmas song

that we sing now,

O come, O come,

Emmanuel,

and ransom captive Israel

that mourns

in lonely exile here

until the Son of God

appear.

Then we can rejoice,

rejoice,

Emmanuel shall come

to thee,

O Israel.

Rejoice with trembling

and have hope

while you're still

in exile.

Well, the third

significance then

from Psalm 2

is for life

in Christ's

inaugurated kingdom.

What do I mean by that?

We're told

in the Gospels

that all power

and all authority

have been given

to Jesus Christ.

He already has

all power

and all authority.

But then we read

in a lot of places

like Hebrews chapter 4,

Hebrews 4 · chapter mention

there still remains

a rest

that is yet to come.

It's not fully here yet.

So the term we use

is His kingdom.

It's already

but not yet.

It's already inaugurated

but not yet

consummated.

So we are in that

stage now,

the same stage

as the church

in the book of Acts

that we read

just a moment ago.

Jesus said

in John

John 12:15

chapter 12

verse 15,

Fear not,

daughter of Zion.

Behold,

your king is coming

sitting on a donkey's colt.

He promised them

be ready,

be ready,

daughters of Zion.

Be ready,

people of God's holy hill.

Your king is coming.

And when Jesus

entered Jerusalem,

He was fulfilling

this inaugurated kingdom.

But He entered Jerusalem

to lay down His life.

He went to Zion

to lay down

the blood of the Savior

to ransom captive

not only Israel

but all the ends

of the earth.

And this brings us

then to the early church.

God pours out

the Holy Spirit

on His church

in Acts 2.

And we read in Acts 4

like we saw today

that Peter and John

had a display

of God's power

in the early church

and for that disruption

they were arrested.

Here's the rulers

of the earth

mounting in power

against the church,

against the anointed

and His people.

And while they were arrested

and they come back

and they tell of

this great deliverance,

notice what happens.

It's the church

gathers all together

and they pray.

They pray what we read earlier

and they pray

through Psalm chapter 2.

Psalms 2 · chapter mention

See how we're to pray

the Psalms?

Did you catch that

when we read that?

This is from Acts chapter 4.

Acts 4 · chapter mention

They read,

Acts 4 goes on to say,

For truly in this city

there were gathered together

against your holy servant Jesus

whom you anointed.

Acts 4 interprets Psalm 2 for us.

For Jesus now

while they're being persecuted

and as they pray,

in church,

we need to pray more.

When we come back together

in August,

that needs to be

the heartbeat of what we do.

They prayed together

in one accord

through Psalm 2

and we're told

there was an earthquake.

That's how much it rattled

the kingdom of heaven

right here.

This little church,

they're praying.

The earth shook.

God comforted them.

He says,

I am with you.

Both Herod and Pontius Pilate

along with the Gentiles

and the people of Israel,

they may do whatever.

All they do,

it's only whatever your hand

and your plan

had predestined

to take place.

That's what the church

prays in Acts 4.

So now Lord,

look upon their threats

and grant to your servants

to continue to speak

your word with boldness.

Do you see the application

of Psalm 2 for the church?

While we are in His

spiritually inaugurated kingdom,

longing for His consummate kingdom,

Israel had the promise.

We now, the church

with the Holy Spirit,

we have the fulfillment.

Israel had David and Solomon.

We church,

we have Jesus Christ,

God Himself.

Israel had earthly Zion.

We have heavenly Zion.

Christ is ascended.

He is enthroned.

He is raised from the dead

in His glorified body

and He rules over the earth.

We sing,

Mine are days here

as a stranger,

pilgrim on the narrow way.

One with Christ,

I will encounter harm

and hatred for His name.

But,

Mine is armor for this battle,

strong enough to last the war.

And He has said,

He will deliver safely

to the golden shore.

Jesus Christ reigns.

We are His militant,

persecuted church on earth,

but our King reigns from heaven.

1 Corinthians 15, 25 says,

Christ must rule

until He puts all enemies

under His control.

Do you see that?

Christ must rule

until He puts all His enemies

under His control.

He is ruling,

but yet He is putting His enemies

under His control.

That's how you can have hope

and happiness

in a world that rages against God.

You look again and again

to His Holy Son

on the hill of Zion in heaven,

His anointed King,

and you heed His warning.

Rejoice with trembling.

The Holy King reigns.

Take refuge in Him.

Well, the fourth significance here

from Psalm 2

is the coming of Christ's

consummate kingdom.

Jesus tells the parable

in Luke 19, 12,

that can be hard to understand,

but listen to this

in light of Psalm 2.

This is Luke 19, verse 12.

Luke 19:12

A nobleman went into

a far country

to receive for himself

a kingdom

and then return.

This is Jesus' parable.

But His citizens hated Him

and sent a delegation after Him

saying,

we do not want this man

to reign over us.

There's scene one.

When He returned,

having received the kingdom,

He ordered these servants

to give account

and to pay their dues.

Verse 10 of Psalm 2.

Be wise now,

therefore,

O ye kings,

be instructed,

ye judges of the earth.

There is a day of reckoning

that's coming.

Psalm 2, verse 9.

Psalms 2:9

He will break them

with a rod of iron.

He will dash them

into pieces

like a potter's vessel.

There is no refuge

from Him.

Be wise.

Serve the Lord.

In his final sermon

of his life,

the medical doctor

turned preacher,

Martin Lloyd-Jones

in London,

this was the sermon text

he preached

up in Scotland.

Many still remember

and were moved to tears.

This is this old man

calling all

to serve the Lord,

rejoice with trembling,

kiss the sun.

And that's how he made sense

of the Great Depression,

the two world wars,

the misery of billions of people.

This is but the wrath of God

kindled but a little.

The world hangs

like on that bungee,

the spiky rocks down below.

The Lord is preserving

this world

but for how much longer?

Take refuge in Him now.

His consummate kingdom

is coming.

Romans 2, 5 says,

Because of your hard

and impenitent heart,

you are storing up

wrath for yourself

on the day of wrath

when God's righteous judgment

will be revealed.

You'll either get

eternal life

or you'll get the wrath

and fury

of a holy God

who will set

all things right.

There will be tribulation

and distress

for every person

who does evil,

says Romans 2.

So how does Christ do this?

How does His kingdom

come on earth?

One of our catechisms

answers it this way.

How does Christ execute

the office of king?

Christ executes

the office of king

in subduing us

to Himself,

in ruling

and defending us,

and in restraining

and conquering

all of our enemies?

What type of king

is Jesus

as He reigns now

from heaven?

What is promised to us

about this king?

Psalm 110, verse 3 says,

Psalms 110:3

Your people,

Your people

will offer themselves

freely

on the day of Your power

in holy garments.

His people stand

washed by His blood

in holy garments

before Him

as free,

grateful offerings.

It's their reasonable

service to Him.

That's the significance

of Psalm 2

for us today, church.

The psalmist urges you,

Rejoice with trembling.

Be wise.

Be warned.

Serve the Lord with fear.

Serve the Lord,

captain of the sports team.

Serve the Lord, teachers.

Serve the Lord, mom and dads.

Serve the Lord, managers.

Be wise.

Fear the Lord.

A day of reckoning is coming.

Serve the Lord, older siblings.

Serve the Lord, grandparents.

You will give account one day.

Serve the Lord, deacons and pastors.

Rejoice with trembling.

Kiss the Son,

lest He be angry

and you perish by the way.

Revelation 4, 2

gives us one other

apostle's view

of the heavenly realm.

Here's how the apostle John

describes Christ

seated on His throne.

He says,

Behold, a throne stood in heaven

with one seated on the throne.

From the throne

came flashes of lightning,

rumblings,

peals of thunder.

And there's the heavenly court

and a countless host

before the King of Kings

declaring,

Holy, holy, holy

is the Lord God Almighty

who was

and is

and is

to come.

And that's our cry.

Christ exalted

is our song.

And we do this together.

This journey ours together

into that great forever.

We're almost home.

What song

anew we'll sing

round that happy throne.

Come, faint of heart,

we are almost home.

There was a very wealthy man

who collected classical paintings

worth millions,

every painting,

and his mansion

was filled with them.

His son had gotten

caught off to war

and one of the men

in the trenches

drew a sketch of his son,

his friend there aboard

and he respected him.

He had mailed

that little sketch,

that little portrait

back to the father,

this wealthy man

with the mansion.

When the man

and his wife died,

he had a very simple will.

Everyone came,

the wealthiest people,

you know,

from all the corners

of the earth

to try to bid

on each one of these pieces,

these paintings.

The first one

was this simple

little hand-drawn portrait

of the wealthy man's son.

No one wanted

to take a bid.

$50,

we'll drop it down,

$25.

$1,

anyone?

Finally,

someone took it.

Get things going.

And then the auctioneer,

let them know,

it's over,

auction's over.

The will simply says,

whoever takes the son

takes it all.

Blessed are all

who put their trust

in him.

Rejoice with trembling.

The Lion of Heaven

mounted the hill of Zion

as the bloody Lamb of God.

While we were yet

his enemies,

Christ died for us.

Rejoice with trembling.

It was the will of God

to crush him

like pottery.

He took the wrath of God,

the iron judgment

of the holy God

in your place.

Rejoice with trembling.

His mission

was to bless you,

to give you peace

with God.

Rejoice with trembling.

Blessed is anyone,

anyone,

anyone,

from any nation,

from the ends

of the earth

who takes refuge

in God's anointed,

the King

who sits on God's

holy throne,

His only begotten

Son.

Rejoice with trembling.

Take refuge in him.

Let's pray.

This is from

An Orthodox Catechism,

question 143.

Our Father in Heaven,

hallowed be your name.

Your kingdom come.

Rule us by your word

and spirit

in such a way

that more and more

we submit to you.

Keep your church strong

and add to it.

Destroy the devil's work.

Destroy every force

which revolts against you

and every conspiracy

against your word.

Do this until your kingdom

is so complete

and perfect

that in it

you are all

and all.

Amen.