My Controller

Let's pray together.

Father, we thank you that as we come here to look at your words,

that we can sing that you are the God who goes before us,

the one who stands behind, the one that is by our side.

And so, Father, we pray that you will open your words to us,

that we might hear what you would have us hear from it.

We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

In our office, we have a tradition, which I think is really very good,

of us all going out on the last Friday of the month for lunch together.

I think it's really good and healthy for the team,

particularly for the directors socialising with us mere mortals.

There is, however, one thing that makes it difficult.

In a relatively small company, we have two vegans.

Now, one of them is quite pragmatic,

and will quietly find something suitable to eat without making a fuss.

The other one, however, you can guarantee,

if you're sitting near to him,

he will take it as an opportunity to try and persuade you

that he's right,

that you're wrong,

and that ultimately,

everyone will be vegan in the future,

and why are we not just getting on with the agenda?

But that's the same with all of us.

People go on and on about the things they care about.

Whether it's Nicola Sturgeon,

who can't help turning every subject

into an excuse

to promote Scottish independence,

or whether it's the guy at work

who's always going on about the quality of the ingredients

he uses in his pop-up pizza business,

or John Piper,

always returning to his catchphrase of

God is most glorified in us

when we are most satisfied in him,

or Tom Wright talking about life after life after death,

or our own Ali Jay,

who unfortunately isn't here tonight,

talking about the persecuted church in China,

or Michael Ponton

on our complete inability

to comprehend the wonder of our salvation.

The things we care about

are the things that we keep coming back to

again and again.

And so it is with the Psalms.

Many of the Psalms begin with a call to worship.

On a quick scan through,

I found 24 of them

starting with an explicit command

to praise God

in the first verse.

That's ignoring any others

that get to it later on

or are not quite so explicit.

Among all the wide-ranging subjects

and emotions

the Psalms cover,

almost one in six of them

begin in this way.

Psalm 66,

shout for joy to God,

all the earth.

Psalm 95,

come,

let us sing for joy to the Lord,

let us shout aloud

to the rock of our salvation.

Psalm 103,

praise the Lord,

O my soul,

all my inmost being,

praise his holy name.

Psalm 136,

give thanks to the Lord,

for he is good,

his love endures forever.

Psalm 149,

sing to the Lord a new song,

and so on,

on and on.

And so obviously,

to the Psalmists,

this was an important subject,

such an important subject

that they didn't think,

yeah,

I've written a song about that,

I can move on to something else now.

They keep coming back to it

again and again.

Why?

I think the answer,

shocking as it may sound,

is this,

praise doesn't come naturally.

Praise is something

that we find

really difficult.

Although,

it's the primary thing

that we were made for.

As the Catechism says,

man's chief end

is to glorify God,

yet,

in our fallen state,

this side of eternity,

praise is something

we struggle with.

Sometimes,

yes,

it naturally,

spontaneously pours out.

Sometimes,

a glimpse of God's goodness,

his glory,

his majesty,

is seen,

and we respond spontaneously.

It may be in nature,

as we've sung about,

whether something spectacular,

or just a sunny day,

rare as those are.

It may be the actions

of a fellow human,

of another bearer

of God's image.

It may be something

in our circumstances,

a new job,

the birth of a child,

or something trivial,

like a lovely meal.

It may be some piece

of art,

music,

literature,

or in my case,

architecture.

Something that just,

our heart catches on

to a glimpse

of God's glory.

And then,

sings my soul,

my saviour,

God,

to thee.

And those times

are wonderful,

whether they're days,

months,

or just minutes.

But often,

it's hard.

We forget

how good God is.

We forget

all we know

about him.

We forget

all he has done

for us.

And we have

difficulty seeing him.

For now,

we see only

a reflection

as in a mirror.

the transient,

superficial things

of this world

seem to have

so much more substance.

They cloud our eyes.

They distract

our attention.

They capture

our affections.

And also,

worse than that,

there is still

that rebellious element

in our hearts

that doesn't want

to acknowledge

that we are not

the greatest.

That he

is worthy

of all praise

and not us.

And so,

the psalmist,

knowing both

how important it is

and how difficult

we find it,

repeatedly

return to the subject,

writing psalm

after psalm,

reminding us

to praise.

In fact,

they know

the struggle

themselves.

And so,

for instance,

David in Psalm 103

addresses the psalm

to his own soul.

He's talking

to himself.

And he's exhorting

himself to praise

because he knows

exactly

how easily

he forgets.

Praise the Lord,

O my soul,

all my inmost being,

praise his holy name,

praise the Lord,

O my soul,

and forget not

all his benefits.

I know,

even as I was

writing this,

how much

I was struggling

to focus,

to concentrate,

to be excited

by something

as important

as this.

To be honest,

I feel a bit

of an imposter

standing up here

telling you

to praise God

when,

really,

I'm not feeling it.

Not for any

particular reason,

just,

I'm not.

But that's

exactly

the point

of these psalms.

That's exactly

who they're

written to.

We don't need

something telling

us to praise God

when we feel

like it.

We do it,

naturally.

We need something

to tell us to praise

God when we don't.

As one song

says,

it doesn't depend

on the circumstance,

the strength

of my arm

or my voice.

It doesn't depend

on the way

I feel

for I've

made up my mind

and I'm going

to rejoice.

And so,

in general,

we see all

these psalms

follow a similar

structure.

They start

with an exhortation

to praise

and then they

continue

by telling us

why.

By setting out

some of the

things that we

should praise

God for.

For his character,

for his deeds.

And this psalm

is exactly

the same.

We see the

first three

verses

exhort us

to praise

God.

The next

16,

4 to

19

tell us

why.

And then

the final

three tell us

how we should

respond to

this.

And so,

our psalm

here starts

with a call

to sing

for joy

to the

Lord.

Or as some

other translations

put it,

shout,

rejoice,

exult.

Which of

those is more

accurate?

I don't know,

but they

pretty much

get the same

concept.

That we

have to bring

praise

joyfully

to God.

But we

see that it's

a call

to you

righteous,

righteous,

to those

who seek

to follow

God.

Not to

those who

are perfect,

but to

those who

recognize

their weakness

and look

to God

for his

righteousness,

the righteousness

that comes

by faith.

It's

pointless

as being

in open

rebellion

against God

and singing

to him.

As

Salty,

the singing

song book

in the

Kids Praise

album that

some of

you may

remember

from your

childhood

says,

you can

sing

Christian

songs

till you're

blue in

the face,

but if

it's not

from the

heart,

it's not

praise.

But we

see also

that for

those following

God,

it's not

just possible,

but it's

fitting.

It's the

right and

proper thing

for them

to do.

It's not

just an

optional extra

for those

who like

that sort

of thing.

it's the

proper

response

of those

who are

the

righteous.

I don't

know if

there's any

particular

significance

in the

instruments

mentioned

in verse

two.

The

harp

and the

ten-stringed

lyre.

Maybe

one's a

simple folk

instrument

and one's

a more

complex

professional

instrument.

Maybe

one's a

strummed

rhythm

instrument

one's

more of

the

melodic

lead.

I don't

know,

but whatever

they are,

we're called

to use

everything we

have at

our disposal

to praise

God.

But then

verse three

tells us

three important

things about

our praise.

It should

be new,

it should

be skilful,

and it

should be

loud.

We are to

sing a new

song.

I did

wonder about

just telling

the band

that tonight

we were

singing songs

that to be

written for

tonight we

would sing

them once

and never

sing them

again,

but maybe

not.

But the

important thing

here is we're

not to be just

going through

the motions,

but we're to

have something

fresh to sing

about,

something about

what we have

learnt from

God, what we

have learnt

about God.

We should

not be just

repeating what

was once

meaningful to

us, but is

now routine.

There is

nothing wrong

with old

songs.

Many of them

are wonderful.

I love them.

I love the

deep poetry

of the words,

the anthemic

tunes, how

they speak of

great truths,

songs, but

why are we

singing them?

Are we

singing them

for yesterday's

reasons or

for today's?

Are we

singing them

to recapture

what we

felt sometime

in the past

or are we

using them

to express

the reality

of today?

But then

we're to

play skillfully.

Praising

God is

something that

we have to

do to the

best of our

ability,

however much

or little

that is.

We

shouldn't be

half-heartedly

just trying to

get away with

the bare

minimum.

Yeah, that

will do for

God.

We should be

bringing God

the first

fruits, the

best that

we have.

Here we

have a band

of skilled

musicians who

put a lot

of work into

helping us in

our worship,

and we often

take them for

granted.

We only comment

when they don't

do things quite

the way we'd

like them to

do.

But it's

right that

we should

put that

much focus

on it,

because it

is important.

Our worship

is for God,

and therefore

it matters.

But our

worship's not

just to be

skillful.

We're called

to give

loud,

joyful

shouts.

It's to be

passionate and

energetic.

it's all

too easy

to have

music

that's

skillful.

It's

perfect,

smooth,

polished,

but dead.

This is

something I

struggle with.

There is

a lot of

music that

I love to

listen to,

particularly

Renaissance

choral music,

music written

for the

worship of

God,

that's so

often performed

beautifully,

with exquisite

skill,

and lacking

any passion.

With no

sense that

the people

singing it

have any

idea what

they're singing

about.

And then

there's much

of modern

worship music

that,

quite frankly,

I don't

really like.

Often,

and I'm

sure I

sound like a

real old

fogey here,

it sounds

like noise.

But,

it's a

joyful noise

to the

Lord.

I know

what I

like,

but I

know what

should

better

worship.

And so,

why does

the psalmist

call us to

bring this

new,

skillful,

loud,

joyful song

of praise?

He gives

us the

reason in

verses 4

and 5.

In fact,

I think

most of

the rest

of the

psalm

is just

examples

of this

first reason.

The reason

is this.

He is

faithful.

He is

just.

He is

loving.

He is

righteous.

His words

are true.

He is a

good,

good God.

And

everything he

has made

is filled

with his

goodness

and love.

This is

the primary

reason that

God is

worthy of

all our

praise.

Not

because of

anything he

has done,

but because

of who he

is,

because of

his character.

But we

see that

character

displayed in

everything that

he does.

We see that

character displayed

in our

experience as

we follow

him.

both as

individuals

and as

a church.

As a

church,

see,

we're

celebrating

50 years

of God's

faithfulness.

As

individuals,

whether we've

been following

him for

80,

90 years

or a

day.

As we

sang this

morning,

through many

dangers,

toils and

snares,

I have

already

come.

Tis grace

has brought

me safe,

thus far,

and grace

will lead

me home.

And so

we can see

his faithfulness,

love,

beauty,

in so many

things.

But the

psalmist wants

us to think

of two

particular

examples.

disciples.

The first

of these

is given

in verses

6 to

9.

And it's

the same

reason that

Peter brought

to us

from Psalm

19 a

couple of

weeks ago.

we see

here that

we should

praise God

because he

is the

creator.

And

emphasis

here is

that he

created

by his

word.

He has

the power

and authority

to speak

a universe

into existence.

How crazy

is that?

And it's

repeated four

times.

By the

word of

the Lord

were the

heavens made.

A starry

host by

the breath

of his

mouth.

Verse

9.

For he

spoke and

it came

to be.

He

commanded

and it

stood

firm.

We see

here an

amazing,

awesome,

powerful God

that can

just speak

and

the

universe

becomes.

Now,

I know

in a

church like

this there

will be

many

different

and

probably

strongly

held

opinions

on

the

details

of

when

and

how,

of

how

literally,

how

poetically

we should

take the

first

chapters

of

Genesis.

And I

think these

are

very

important

questions

that

actually

display

quite a

lot of

things of

what we

think about

God.

But the

main focus

here is

that it

did not

happen as

a result

of some

impersonal

force or

some random

chance,

but at the

divine command

of God

and that

it displays

the character

and nature

of God.

When we're

interacting with

non-Christians

around us,

sometimes,

sometimes,

it may be

appropriate

to get

into some

of these

details,

as long

as we

keep the

emphasis

not on

the when

or how

question,

but on

the who

question.

What matters

is not

that they

agree with

us

about the

details,

but that they

come to

acknowledge the

one who

called the

whole universe

into being.

I know I

have been

involved in

plenty

pointless

discussions

that got

caught up

in scientific

details,

that probably

both sides of

the conversation

really were out

of our depths

and didn't

know what

we were

talking about,

and yet,

they completely

missed the

point.

They got

caught up in

the details

of creation

and missed

the creator.

And, but

then verse

eight tells

us that

when we

recognize him,

there is

only one

appropriate

response.

Let all

the earth

fear the

Lord.

Let all

the people

of the

world

revere

him.

The only

suitable

response

is reverent

fear and

worship of

our awesome

creator.

when we

recognize

that all

the glories

of the

world

around us,

not just

the nice,

romantic,

picturesque

parts of

creation,

but every

part of

it,

the air

we breathe,

our bodies,

the very

solidity of

objects,

the fact

that there

is a

sheer

existence

of anything,

that all

of that

comes from

him,

then we

must worship

him.

And so

then the

psalmist

continues

on to

the second

example of

how God's

character is

displayed,

when we

see that

God is

not just

creator,

but he

is in

control.

See this

in verses,

where are we,

verses 10

10 to

19,

basically,

it's all

on this

subject,

because God

is not an

absentee

landlord.

God is

not the

watchmaker

who created

a wonderful

watch,

wound it

up,

and left

it to run

on its

own.

God is

involved

with his

creation.

He's not

just standing

back and

looking on

disinterestedly.

And so

in verses

10 to

12,

we're told

that his

plans will

be fulfilled.

It's sheer

arrogance to

accept that

God is the

almighty

creator,

and then

think that we

can just go

ahead and make

our own

plans,

in spite of

him, in

spite of

what he

says.

Here

specifically

talks about

the futility

of nations

making

godless

plans.

Psalm 2

says,

why do

the nations

conspire,

and the

peoples plot

in vain?

The kings

of the earth

rise up,

the rulers

band together

against the

Lord and

against his

anointed,

saying,

let us

break their

chains and

throw off

their shackles.

The one

enthroned in

heaven

laughs.

the Lord

scoffs at

them.

God's

plans,

God's

purposes

will be

fulfilled,

and those

who try and

stand in

his way

will be

pushed

aside.

But if

there is a

warning to

those nations

who would

try and

stand against

God,

the reverse

is also

true.

in verse

12 we

read of

the blessing

to the

nation whose

God is

the Lord,

the people

he chose

for his

inheritance.

In the

context of

the Psalms,

the nation

in question

is Israel.

But there

are many

nations since

then who

have claimed

this position

for themselves.

Britain

certainly

thought,

it had

that

position.

And many

in the

USA today

would claim

it.

If you do

an image

search for

the nation

whose God

is the

Lord,

basically

almost

everything

that's

returned

is an

American

flag

with this

verse

emblazoned

across it.

One article

I read

states,

Psalm 33

Psalms 33:12

verse 12

may be the

most

misappropriated

verse in

the entire

Bible.

Question that

because there

are many

others that

probably could

compete for

that title,

but it

continues,

there is no

such thing

as a Christian

nation.

There is not

now,

nor has there

ever been,

a nation on

earth that

collectively

bowed its

knee to the

lordship of

Jesus Christ.

Satan,

who insisted

that Christ

might bow

the knee to

him,

is the

present ruler

of this

world.

And so,

if there is

no such

thing as a

Christian nation,

who is this

I'm talking

about?

I think 1 Peter

would bring

some light

on this,

when it

says,

you are a

chosen people,

a royal

priesthood,

a holy

nation,

God's

special

possession,

that you

may declare

the praises

of him

who called

you out of

darkness

into his

wonderful light.

Once you

were not a

people,

but now you

are the

people of

God.

Once you

had not

received

mercy,

but now

you have

received

mercy.

And further

down in

Psalm 2

that we

read earlier,

addressing

God's

chosen king,

I will

make the

nations

your

inheritance,

the ends

of the

earth your

possession.

No longer

is this

blessing,

this promise,

this inheritance

attached just

to one

earthly nation,

but to a

kingdom which

includes all

from every

language and

tribe and

people and

nation who

acknowledge that

Jesus is

Lord.

And as such,

just as the

blessing is

attached to

individuals,

so too is the

warning.

As James would

write,

now listen,

you who say

today or

tomorrow,

we'll go to

this or that

city,

spend a year

there,

carry on

business and

make money.

Why?

You do not

even know

what will

happen tomorrow.

What is

your life?

You're a

mist that

appears for

a little

while and

then vanishes.

Instead,

you ought to

say,

if it is the

Lord's will,

we will live

and do this

or that.

Just to get

this clear,

this does not

mean suffixing

our announcements

with DV or

God willing

and continuing

to make all

our plans

ignoring God.

It means

recognizing that

God's ways

are not our

ways,

that he is

the one that

is in control.

Not that we

shouldn't make

plans,

but that we

should be

seeking to

make them

according to

what we know

of God's

will,

and fully

accepting that

God may turn

around and

say,

no,

no,

that's not

what I've

planned for

you.

I've got

another plan.

You thought

this was good?

You thought

this was the

life you

wanted?

I have other

plans,

better plans.

You may not

like the sound

of them,

but trust me.

And so

carrying on

in verses

13 to 17

and verses

18 to 19,

we get two

contrasting

pictures.

Both of

them speak

of God

watching.

In verse

13,

we read,

from heaven

the Lord

looks down

and sees

all mankind.

From his

dwelling place

he watches

all who

live on

earth.

But in

verse 18,

we read,

the eyes

of the

Lord are

on those

who fear

him,

on those

whose hope

is in

his unfailing

love.

In the

first passage,

God is

watching all

of mankind.

He sees,

he knows

everything that

goes on.

Nothing can

be hidden

from him.

He knows

their hearts.

He knows

the depths

of their

hearts,

because he

made them.

as Psalm

103 says,

he knows

how we

are formed.

He remembers

we are

dust.

But in

the second

passage,

God is

watching those

who fear

him.

And we

see here

that there's

a huge

difference.

He looks

down on

mankind

and sees

the futility

of the things

they trust in

to save

them.

Verse 16,

no king

is saved

by the

size of

his army.

No warrior

escapes by

his great

strength.

A horse

is a vain

hope for

deliverance.

Despite all

its great

strength,

it cannot

save.

And

even

today,

we see

rulers

hoping to

be saved

by their

military

might.

we

recently

saw

images

of

North

Korea

parading

their

armies,

their

weapons

for all

the world

to see.

We also

saw

America

firing off

dozens of

missiles at

Syria

and dropping

the

quite arrogantly

named

mother of

all bombs

in

Afghanistan.

And while

we may

take a

certain

amount of

comfort in

our nation's

army,

I doubt

that that

really is

what most

of us are

trusting in

for our

security.

But we

may be

trusting in

equally

futile

things.

Are we

trusting in

our income,

our pension,

our family,

our friends,

our health?

are we

trusting in

our own

ability to

cope with

whatever life

throws at

us?

Are we

just gritting

our teeth

and singing

into the

storm,

I will

survive?

None of

these things

are secure.

All of

them are

good,

or maybe

good,

but none

can be

relied upon.

But for

those who

fear him,

for those

who trust

him,

for those

whose hope

is in

unfailing

love of

the Lord,

everything

is different.

Because we

read in

verse 18

and 19,

the eyes

of the

Lord are

on those

who fear

him,

on those

whose hope

is in

his unfailing

love to

deliver them

from death

and keep

them alive

in famine.

Because they

are not

trusting in

what they

have.

They are

not trusting

in their

own might.

They are

trusting in

God.

They are

trusting in

something,

in someone

that is

secure,

that can

be trusted,

that is

reliable.

One who

Psalm 62

would tell

us is

loving and

is strong.

One who

wants to

save us

from whatever

comes our

way,

but is not

just willing,

but is

able,

is powerful

to save us

completely,

is able to

take us

through the

storms of

life,

whatever they

might throw

at us,

and to

take us

safely home.

I seem

to be

quoting a

lot of

old hymns

for a

psalm that

talks about

singing a

new song,

but as we

often sing,

here I

raise my

Ebenezer,

here by

thy great

help I've

come,

and I

hope by

thy good

pleasure

safely to

arrive at

home.

we know

he is

trustworthy,

and therefore

we trust

him.

And then

in the

final few

verses,

we get

three ways

of how we

should

respond.

How we

should

respond to

this display

of God's

character,

both in

his works

of creation

and in

his ongoing

control and

care for

it.

Firstly,

in verse

20,

we wait

and hope

for the

Lord.

He is our

help and

our shield.

We wait.

We trust

him.

We rely

on him.

We put

our hope

on him.

We know

he is

faithful,

and therefore

we commit

our lives,

our plans,

our hopes,

our futures

to him.

And then

verse 21,

in him

our hearts

rejoice,

for we

trust in

his holy

name.

Because we

trust in

him,

we rejoice.

We have

learned to

know the

wonder of

his character,

and therefore

we rejoice.

And then

finally,

verse 22,

may your

unfailing

love rest

upon us,

O Lord,

even as we

put our

hope in

you.

We pray

to him.

Because we

have trusted

him,

because we

have put our

hope in

him,

we pray that

his unfailing

love will be

with us.

We wait

on him.

We sing our

praise to

him, and

while we

wait,

we ask

that he

will act

in accordance

with the

character that

he's revealed

to us.

Not that he

could ever

be unfaithful

to his

character,

but by

doing so,

we show

our dependence

on him.

We ask him

to act,

and we trust

him to do

so, not

because of

what we

want, but

because of

who he

is.

will we

listen to

the

exhortation

of the

psalmist?

Will we

be those,

the