How Can We Know God?

You may be seated. This morning we're looking at Psalm 19. Psalm 19, as we continue in our

series through the Psalms this fall, looking at these ancient songs and prayers of the people

of Israel that have helped the people of Israel and the church for centuries, for millennia,

to pray. I'm going to read Psalm 19. Let me read these words to us.

The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork.

Day to day pours out speech, and night to night reveals knowledge. There is no speech,

nor are there words, whose voice is not heard. Their voice goes out through all the earth,

and their words to the end of the world. In them he has set a tent for the sun,

which comes out like a bridegroom leaving his chamber, and like a strong man runs its course

with joy. Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them,

and there is nothing hidden from its heat. The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul.

The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple. The precepts of the Lord are right,

rejoicing the heart. The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes. The fear of the Lord

is clean, enduring forever. The rules of the Lord are true and righteous altogether. More to be desired

are they than gold, even much fine gold. Sweeter also than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb.

Moreover, by them is your servant warned. In keeping them there is great reward.

Who can discern his errors? Declare me innocent from hidden faults. Keep back your servant also

from presumptuous sins. Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless and innocent of

great transgression. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight,

O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. Is there a God? And if so, how can we know God? For centuries,

human beings have looked around and asked this question, whether it's farmers in rural areas,

hikers in the wilderness, or remote tribes gazing up at the night sky in wonder, or college students

hashing out the meaning of life until 4 a.m. in their dorm rooms, or scientists marveling at the

vastness of the universe and the complexity of microscopic life, or philosophers crafting

treatises about the epistemology of religion, how can we know things, or children who ask as they grow up,

how did I get here? How did this whole world get here? Throughout human history, across all different

times and cultures and places, human beings have continued to ask this question, is there a God?

And if so, how can we know? Now, by definition, if God is really out there, we can only know God if God

chooses to show himself to us. It's like a game of hide and seek. If God is infinite and we are finite,

he can always find somewhere to hide that we would never find him on our own. He could leave us in the

dark and we would be wandering and uncertain forever. We'll only find an infinite God if that God has

chosen to show himself to us in one way or another. And the good news of the Bible is that the one true

and living God has chosen to do just that. And that's what this psalm celebrates, that God has revealed

himself and that we can know him. Now, this psalm is not a philosophical argument attempting to prove

the existence of God. There's a place for philosophical arguments, but that's not what we're dealing with

here. We're looking at a poem, a song, celebrating how the one true and living God has revealed himself

to the world. Now, the first way that this psalm tells us that God has revealed himself is in

verses 1 through 6, is through the heavens. The heavens declare the glory of God. The sky above

proclaims his handiwork. Day to day pours out speech and night to night reveals knowledge. This is grand,

majestic, exuberant language. Notice the verbs in verses 1 and 2. Declare, proclaim, pour out,

reveal these powerful communicative verbs. It's saying the heavens bear witness to God continually,

abundantly, and everywhere. Continually, day to day, night to night. Even the verb tenses express

a sort of ongoing, never-ending action. Abundantly pouring forth like a stream of water and everywhere.

Verse 4 talks about it going into all the earth, to the ends of the world.

Romans chapter 1 verse 20, which we read earlier, says that God's eternal power and his divine nature

Romans 1:20

have been clearly seen in what has been made. John Calvin wrote that the universe is a theater

of the glory of God. In other words, an ongoing display of his power and wisdom and beauty and

vastness. Immanuel Kant wrote, two things fill the mind with ever-increasing admiration and awe.

The starry heavens above and the moral law within. Have you felt that sense of ever-increasing

admiration and awe? Perhaps looking up at the stars on a clear night away from the city lights or

watching the sun as it rises or sets, bathing the sky and the earth in brilliant color.

David poetically describes the sun in verses 5 and 6. He compares it to a bridegroom leaving his

chamber, emerging from his tent. You know, both then and now, Jewish weddings traditionally took

place under a tent where the bride and groom would make their vows to one another, and they would come

forth, sort of like a married couple would process out down the center aisle of a church or of the

wedding venue, beaming with pride and joy. Either way, this is an image of youthful energy and joyful

anticipation. The sun is also compared to a strong man, to a valiant soldier, fearlessly rushing into

battle, triumphantly sweeping from one end of the heavens to the other, burning away fog and clouds

and shining upon the world. It says there's nothing hidden from its heat. Especially those who lived in

the desert would have felt that unrelenting heat of the sun. One commentator says the sun is penetrating,

warming, warming, and life-giving to the world while also searching, testing, and purifying.

Now, some of you might say, well, that's a nice poem from the ancient world, but, you know, I'm a modern

person, and I believe in science. You know, back in the day, ancient people didn't really understand how

the world worked, and so they were inclined to attribute everything they didn't understand to a god

or gods. But today we know a lot more than they did. I mean, sure, the sun is beautiful, it keeps us alive,

you know, it's nice to sit in the sun on a cool day like today, but we know now that the sun is

basically a ball of fire that formed billions of years ago when a cloud of dust and gas collapsed in

on itself as the universe continued expanding. I mean, that's really what it is, after all.

But, you know, it's not just ancient people, pre-scientific people, who have expressed awe

and wonder at the heavens above. You know, in the early 20th century, and actually for some time

before that, the prevailing theory of the universe was called the steady state theory. And basically

what that theory said is that the universe, the physical universe that we live in, has been around

forever, pretty much as it is today. Maybe fluctuating a little bit here and there. But basically the

universe is here, and it's always been here, and so it doesn't really need any further explanation.

And so non-religious scientists were very comfortable with that theory. But then in the mid-20th century,

that theory began to be seriously questioned by scientists. Astrophysicists began measuring cosmic

background radiation and found that the universe was gradually expanding and concluded that the

universe that we live in today has not been around forever, just like it is now, but rather it had a

definite beginning long ago. And that finding deeply troubled many scientists who are convinced

atheists. And some of them desperately tried to rescue the steady state theory and find sort of

workarounds and ways to compensate for this new evidence that was coming forward. But those attempts

have been soundly rejected. You see, what troubled them is if this universe of ours had a definite

beginning, then it doesn't just explain itself so easily. If it all started with a big bang, well,

who or what caused that beginning? And why is there something rather than nothing if the something

that is here can't justify itself and hasn't always been here the way it is now?

Another question that you could ask is, why are we able to do scientific research at all?

Why are we able to study the world that we live in and identify meaningful patterns and how it operates?

I mean, the whole of modern science assumes three things. It assumes that the universe is orderly

and not completely chaotic. It assumes that the universe is intelligible to human beings, that we

can understand something about how it works. It's not complete gibberish to us and that it's contingent.

That means it doesn't have to be the way that it is. It could be some other way. That's why we have to do

experiments rather than just reason it out from deductive principles. You see, if the world wasn't this way,

if the world was completely chaotic or unintelligible to humans, or if it had to be the way it is, then scientific

experiments wouldn't make any sense. We wouldn't be able to discern any patterns or regularities.

Or, which, but here's the thing. Without a creator God, there is no reason that we should expect the

physical universe to be orderly, intelligible, and contingent.

And yet, that's exactly how the Bible describes the physical universe that we live in.

That it's orderly because God made it. That it's intelligible to human beings, partly because God has

made us in his image and made the universe so that we can explore and understand it better.

And that it's contingent rather than necessary because God could have made it a different way.

So the biblical worldview makes sense, or science makes sense within the biblical worldview.

The 17th century chemist Robert Boyle said,

God would not have made the universe as it is unless he intended for us to understand it.

You see, faith and science are not enemies. They are friends.

In other words, standing in awe of the works of God, looking at the heavens,

and saying they declare the glory of God goes hand in hand with exploring and understanding

how it all works.

The pioneering astronomer Nicholas Copernicus wrote about 500 years ago, he wrote this,

to know the mighty works of God.

To comprehend his wisdom and majesty and power, to appreciate in degree the wonderful workings of his laws.

Surely all this must be a pleasing and acceptable mode of worship.

The contemporary biologist Francis Collins wrote,

the God of the Bible is also the God of the genome.

He can be worshipped in the cathedral or in the laboratory.

So that's the first way that God has revealed himself to the world,

is through his creation, through the heavens.

But the psalm goes on to speak of another way that God has revealed himself in verses 7 through 11.

And that is through the scriptures.

Ever since the early church, theologians have talked about God's revelation coming to us

in two volumes, or two books.

The book of nature, which is described in verses 1 through 6,

and the book of scripture, described in verses 7 through 11.

So Tertullian put it this way,

we conclude that God is known first by nature in his works,

but then he says more particularly,

God is known by the teaching of his revealed word.

Now what we see in verses 7 through 11,

is that while God's revelation in nature is broadcast widely

to the ends of the world, right?

Everybody can see it, whether or not they've ever had access to the Bible.

God's revelation in scripture penetrates more deeply.

It penetrates to the depths of the human soul.

The word for God, in verse 1,

is the general word for the divine being

that was used not only among the people of Israel,

but also by the surrounding nations.

It's a word that sort of means

the creator of everything,

or the high God.

But the word in verses 7 through 9,

that's repeated six times,

is the Lord.

And in most Bibles,

it's written in small capitals.

And that means it's the word Yahweh.

It's the personal name

by which God revealed himself

specifically to Moses

and to the people of Israel

and said,

I am your Lord.

I'm not just the God way out there,

way out there.

I'm your God,

your Lord.

You see, when we look at nature,

we can see a God of glory,

terrifying power,

matchless beauty,

inscrutable wisdom,

all those things you can see

in the created order.

But you know,

if you just look at nature,

it doesn't tell you

whether that God

is a personal being

who would want to interact

with his creation.

And it doesn't give you

clear moral guidance for living.

I mean, you look at nature,

there's some pretty terrifying things.

It doesn't give you a clear sense

of what's right and wrong

or if there is a God

who cares about right and wrong.

But the scripture does

clearly show us that.

When God revealed himself to Moses,

he said,

the Lord,

the Lord,

a God merciful and gracious,

slow to anger

and abounding in steadfast love

and faithfulness,

forgiving iniquity

and transgression

and sin,

but who will by no means

clear the guilty.

In other words,

God is saying,

I am the Lord of mercy

and justice.

Not only the God of glory,

but the Lord of mercy

and justice.

You see,

looking at beautiful sunsets,

going for long walks

in the woods,

gazing up at the night sky,

studying astronomy

and biology

and physics and chemistry,

you may see the glory of God.

You may be filled

with admiration and awe,

but those things alone

will not save your soul.

Those things alone

will not transform you

personally from the inside out.

They will not bring you

into personal communion

with the living God

and they will not give you

clear moral guidance

for living in a deeply broken world.

But the word of God

can do all of those things.

Look at what the word of God does

in verses 7 and 8.

First it says,

the word of God

can revive the soul.

In other words,

God's word brings us to life.

That verb revive

can also be translated return

or bring back.

In other words,

God's word brings us back

from our wandering

and disobedience

to a place of repentance

and to the path of life.

And you know,

every follower of Jesus Christ

has experienced

this reviving power

of God's word.

You know,

it happens in various ways.

Maybe it was through

hearing a sermon.

Maybe it was through

reading the Bible for yourself.

Maybe it was through

a friend or a parent

who told you about Jesus.

But one way or another,

if you are a follower

of Christ today,

you have encountered

God's word

and your heart

has been brought to life.

That's one reason

why we love to

invite people

to share some of their stories,

some of their testimony,

as Jeff and Nicole did earlier,

of how God has brought them to life

through his word,

through the word

of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

But God's word

doesn't stop there.

It brings us to life,

but it also helps us grow up.

It says it makes wise

the simple.

Now,

a simple person

in the Bible,

the word simple means

somebody who is immature

or naive

or gullible.

Occasionally,

the word's used

in a positive sense

for someone who's sincere

or teachable

or open-minded.

But either way,

God's word helps

simple people

grow up into mature people,

people with spiritual

understanding

and discernment

who can navigate

the temptations

and distractions

of a fallen world

and keep their focus.

John Bunyan

wrote,

speaking of the Bible,

this book

will keep you

from sin

or sin

will keep you

from this book.

In other words,

God's word

makes wise

the simple.

But God's word

doesn't stop there.

It brings us to life,

it helps us grow up,

and it also sustains

and energizes us

throughout

our life.

It gives joy

to our heart,

rejoicing the heart

and enlightening the eyes.

In that way,

God's word

is like the sun,

penetrating,

warming,

and life-giving,

but also searching,

testing,

and purifying.

And while the sun

does that

to our physical bodies

and to the earth,

God's word

penetrates it

to our hearts,

it illuminates

our minds,

it renews

our perspective,

it energizes

our whole being.

Hebrews 4 says,

the word of God

is living

and active,

sharper than any

two-edged sword,

discerning the thoughts

and intentions

of the heart,

and nothing is hidden

from God's sight.

God's word

penetrates

into the depths

of our soul,

bringing us to life,

helping us grow up,

sustaining

and energizing us,

and it can do

all those things

because of what it is

by its very nature.

Look at the nouns

at the beginning

of the sentences

in verses 7-9.

There are several terms

used.

God's law,

that is his teaching

or instruction,

God's testimonies,

that is his statements

or reminders,

God's precepts,

that is his orders

or his commandment,

his rules

or verdicts.

These are all words

that carry a sense

of authority.

They're not just referring

to the laws in the Bible

like the Ten Commandments,

but they're indicating

that all of Scripture

carries God's authority.

It is God's authoritative

message to us.

And it's not just authoritative,

it's also reliable.

Look at the adjectives

at the end

of the phrases,

again,

in verses 7-9.

There are these

symmetrical phrases,

right,

with a noun,

an adjective,

and then an action,

right?

But if you look

at the adjectives,

perfect.

It's a word that means

complete or whole,

sure.

It means trustworthy,

right.

It's a word that means

level or straight,

not crooked

or deceptive.

Pure,

clean,

true,

and righteous

altogether.

All those words

are saying God's word

is reliable.

It's not just authoritative,

it's reliable

and trustworthy.

And finally,

verse 10 shows us

it's desirable.

More to be desired

than gold.

It's inherently valuable

and precious.

It's sweeter than honey

and drippings

of the honeycomb.

It's experientially satisfying.

Have you experienced

the word of God

in that way?

Some verse

in the Bible

or story in the Bible

or message from the Bible

that has been sweet

to your soul

that you have found

precious

and that you've held,

that you can hold on to

and that's sustained you

or warned you

or corrected you

or guided you.

Verse 11,

the psalmist says,

begins to talk about

the effect

of the word of God,

that it warns us

and also that it rewards us.

You see,

the invitation

of these verses

is to receive

and treasure

God's revelation

in the scriptures.

Several years ago,

John Lennox,

who is an emeritus professor

from Oxford University

in England,

a mathematician,

he came to speak here

in New Haven

and he came to preach

at our church.

And you can find

his sermon on the,

if you go into

the sermon archive

on our website,

it was a great sermon,

but he gave a specific

challenge to the students

in our congregation.

He said,

think about

how much time

and energy

and money

and brain power

you are investing

or you have invested

in your studies,

studying in your field.

And of course,

he's saying this

as someone who has been

a professor

for probably 30,

40 years,

right?

He's written all these books

and he's an expert

on all kinds of things.

But he says,

think about all the energy

that we've all put into this,

gaining knowledge,

asking questions,

considering implications,

evaluating theories,

writing papers,

reading papers,

conducting experiments,

putting into practice

all that you've learned.

He says,

the Bible is worth

that and much more

of your energy

and ambition

and diligent study.

He said,

think about

all that motivates you

to study

in your field

and apply

that same energy

and diligence

to your study

of God's word.

It will be worth it.

The Apostle Paul said,

let the word of Christ

dwell in you richly.

So, so far,

we've seen God's revelation

through the heavens,

through his creation,

God's revelation

through the scriptures,

through his written word.

And third,

in verses 12 through 14,

we see the response

of God's servant,

an honest and humble prayer.

You see,

until verse 11,

the psalmist has talked

about things outside himself,

the heavens above

and the scriptures.

But then starting

in verse 11

and for the rest

of the psalm,

it gets much more personal.

He begins to speak

in the first person.

He's personally responding

to this God

who has revealed himself.

And that's what

the scriptures

are intended to do.

Not just to fill our,

not just to increase

our knowledge,

not just to fill our mind

with grand ideas

or fill our heart

with grand feelings,

but to lead us to pray

with honesty

and humility.

Look at how David prays

in verses 12 through 14.

Verse 12,

who can discern

his errors?

Declare me innocent

from hidden faults.

David faces his flaws

and prays for forgiveness.

You see,

in the pure light

of God's word,

David sees more clearly

his own propensity

to error.

It's sort of like

if you get dressed

in a dark room

and then you go out

into the light of day

and you see that

your shirt is on backwards

and your pants are stained.

And you think,

ah!

Right?

The verse is saying

we're all prone

to fall short,

to mess up,

to go off track,

to get out of line

even without realizing it,

even without intending to.

Often our own faults

are hidden from us

because they're so deeply

ingrained in our personality

or in the way

we were raised

or in our habitual

ways of thinking.

That's why David says

who can discern

his own errors?

The only way

we can become aware

of our errors

and hidden faults

is by getting

help from the outside.

Now sometimes

we get this help

through other people.

If you're growing up

in a family

and you have parents

or brothers and sisters,

sometimes your parents

or your siblings

can identify

some of your flaws

as well as

some of your strengths

better than you can.

If you're married,

your spouse

can probably identify

some of your flaws

as well as your strengths

better than you can.

Have they ever done that?

It's a good thing.

Proverbs says

that a good friend

will do the same.

Will help us see

both our own flaws

and weaknesses

that we're blind to

as well as our strengths

and gifts

that we might neglect

or be ashamed of.

God has put other people

in our lives

to help us see

our strengths and gifts

as well as our errors

and hidden faults

more clearly.

But you know,

more than anyone

or anything else

because you know what,

other people can have

their own opinions

that are influenced

by their own hidden faults.

more than anyone

or anything else,

the pure light

of God's word

brings us face to face

with our errors

and hidden faults

and leads us

to cry out to God

for forgiveness

as the psalmist does.

Declare me

innocent Lord.

Forgive me.

So David faces his flaws

and prays for forgiveness.

But second,

in verse 13,

he faces his temptations

and prays for freedom.

Keep back your servant

also from presumptuous sins.

Let them not have dominion

over me.

Then I shall be blameless

and innocent

of great transgression.

You see,

in verse 12,

David knows

that he needs forgiveness

for unintentional sins,

errors,

hidden faults

that he's blind to.

But he also prays

that God would preserve him

from even greater

spiritual dangers,

what he calls

presumptuous sins

or what we might call

willful sins

or great transgressions,

expressions of hard-hearted

rebellion against God.

You know,

every once in a while

we hear about

a Christian leader

who gets caught

doing something horrible,

something shameful,

something deeply destructive,

blatantly hypocritical.

And you know,

it can be tempting

to look at people

like that

and say,

well,

I would never be like that.

How terrible.

But what this psalm

invites us to do,

rather,

is to pray,

Lord,

keep us.

Lord,

keep me.

Because I'm a sinner too,

and I could get there

even if,

even if it seems like

the temptation

that's far away

at the moment.

Jesus taught us to pray,

lead us not into temptation,

but deliver us from evil.

And David goes on to say,

then I shall be blameless.

As a forgiven

and free person,

he prays

that he would be blameless.

And that word translated

blameless

in verse 13

is the same word

translated perfect

in verse 7.

It's a word that means

complete and whole,

healthy and sound,

without blemish.

David's prayer

is that by God's grace,

he would become

as pure

and complete

and whole

as the word

of the Lord itself.

Isn't that an amazing prayer?

That our lives

would be

as pure

and complete

and unblemished

as God's very word.

That should be

our prayer too.

The Apostle Paul

prayed

for the Thessalonian Christians,

may your spirit

and soul

and body

be kept blameless

at the coming

of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus has died

to grant us forgiveness

from our sin

and freedom

from the power of sin.

And so,

and he has called us

to be holy

and blameless

in God's sight.

So David faces

his flaws

and prays

for forgiveness.

He praises

his temptations

and prays

for freedom.

And finally,

verse 14,

he prays

that he might

join in the chorus

of praise.

Let the words

of my mouth

and the meditation

of my heart

be acceptable

in your sight,

O Lord,

my rock

and my redeemer.

You see,

in one sense,

this last section

of the psalm

shows us

the proper human response

to God's revelation

in the heavens

and in the scriptures.

But it's more

than that.

We're not only

responding to God's revelation,

we're also joining in

and giving testimony

to who the real God is.

The heavens are declaring

God's power and glory

and the scriptures testify

to the Lord's mercy

and justice,

but in verse 14,

a third voice

chimes in the chorus

and joins in the song,

the voice of a forgiven sinner

who is now

the Lord's servant

who calls upon

my rock,

my redeemer.

Now our voices

can join

with the proclamation

of the heavens

and with the testimony

of the scriptures

declaring the praises

of God

who has called us

out of darkness

and into his marvelous light.

And we can say

he is our rock,

our unchanging source

of stability.

He's our redeemer

who has come

to rescue us

when we were lost

and helpless

and who has paid the price

to set us free

from our sin

and has taken hold of us

and promised to never leave us

and always love us.

Perhaps you're asking

the question

we started with,

is there a God?

If so,

how can I know him?

This psalm tells you

look to the heavens

where the power

and glory of God

is displayed.

Consider the scriptures

where the mercy

and justice of God

has revealed

and listen to the honest

and humble prayers

of those of us

who have found him

to be our rock,

our redeemer.

This psalm

is an invitation to you

to join in the song.

Let's pray.

God, we praise you

for the witness

of the created order,

the beauty

and power

and wisdom

that we see

reflected

in the skies above.

We praise you

for the clear testimony

of your scriptures

to your mercy

and your justice

and your desire

to have relationship

with us.

Oh, Lord,

we pray that we might

know you

and treasure you

and proclaim

and bear witness

to you

as our rock

and our redeemer.

we thank you,

Jesus,

for all that you

have accomplished

on our behalf.

We pray that

our voices

would join in

to give you praise

in your name.

Amen.

Amen.