Psalm 130

4. Let's read.

Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive

to my cry for mercy. If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness, therefore you are feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul

waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait

for the morning, more than the watchmen wait for the morning. O Israel, put your hope in

the Lord. For with the Lord is unfailing love, and with him is full redemption. He himself

will redeem Israel from all their sins.

Well, I'm going to ask Michael. He's going to come up now and preach this morning.

Well, before we look at this psalm, let's pray together. Lord, we thank you that you've

given us your word. We thank you for the words of the psalmist all those years ago. We pray,

O Lord, that you will speak to each one of us as individuals and corporately as we look

together at these ancient words, that they might become relevant to our own lives, to our

own experience. And we pray, O Father God, that if we are in the depths this morning as the psalmist

was, so we will put our hope in the Lord. Lord, help us to this end, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.

Amen. Well, Psalm 130 is a psalm we're looking at, and I'm told that it was Luther's, one of Luther's

favorite psalms. He liked this psalm very much. He was prone to despair with all the things that

were going on at the time of the Reformation and all the battles he had to fight. And so he often

found himself in the depths. Another writer has spoken about this psalm as being like steps to heaven.

He likens the psalm to a spiritual barometer. You know, before we had the internet and we could look

up the five-day forecast, you had the barometer and it marked the pressures that were going on and

what the weather was likely to be over the coming days. Well, certainly the psalmist begins right in

the depths. Spiritually, things are very, very low. It's as though, spiritually speaking, the clouds are

touching the ground. And out of those depths, he cries to the Lord. He cries to his God.

But you also notice, as you look at this psalm, that there is not just that spiritual barometer,

but there is also the progression in the psalm. Because as the psalmist comes to the end of this

short psalm, he is in heaven, as it were, as he looks for that full redemption that the Lord will

redeem Israel from all their sins. So he has come through the darkness of the first verse

to the unfailing love of the Lord and the full redemption that is promised to all God's people

in the glory of heaven. It's a song of ascent.

You know, these were psalms that were sung as the pilgrims made their way up to Jerusalem.

There's a number of them here, all linked together, a song of ascent.

They were sung by the pilgrims as they made their way up to Jerusalem at the various festivals,

at Passover, for example. This was a psalm that would have been sung by Jesus himself as he made his way

up to the temple. He also would have been singing along with David of old and the other psalmists

who penned these psalms. And it is a song of progression. It is a song of ascent. There's a

rising note in it. Out of the depths I cry. And then the redemption of Israel. And I thought of the

Lord Jesus singing this psalm and how he would have thought about it. He would cry out of the depths.

If there be any other way, let this cup pass from me, we're told. And his sweat was like drops of

blood falling to the ground. Out of the depths he cried. Not because of sin, but for your sins and for

my sins he cried out. And he knew that through his death there would be that full redemption. He would

redeem Israel from all their sins. So it's a psalm of ascent. It's a psalm that rises. And I trust as we

go through it, we too will rise, as it were, with wings like eagles. And we shall run and not be weary

and walk and not faint. So let's divide the psalm. And we're going to divide it into four parts. And they

divide easily for us into two verses each. The first part is desiring. And we have that in verses

one and two. And I think we have here the desire of true prayer to God. Well, what was happening to the

psalmist as he penned these words? Well, we can't be absolutely certain, but certainly there was a trial of

one sort or another. Perhaps he was surrounded by enemies. Perhaps death stared him in the face. Perhaps there was a

pressure of family life. Perhaps there was illness. Perhaps there were national difficulties if David is the

psalmist. All of these were the psalmist. All of these were reasons for him to cry out to God. But I think the

emphasis lies in another direction. I think in some way or another he had failed the Lord. There was sin in his

life. I think there was something that had happened, something that he had done that caused him to cry out from the

depths of his being in true prayer as he desires God to intervene because of this sin that was in his life.

And as he prays, we learn something of what it means to cry out to God as we sin and as we fail him.

Notice that his prayer here is fervent. I cry to you. He desires God. His desire is directed to God, to you, O Lord.

Now we have the slogans, don't we? Prayer changes things. We hear about the power of prayer.

But so often when faith is weak, particularly when we are in the depths,

we find it perhaps difficult to pray. And sometimes at that particular time the Spirit intercedes for us

with groanings that can't be uttered. But the Lord knows our hearts. And he knows there is this desire

to seek him to seek him to you, O Lord. It's not our prayers that will change the situation. It is God who

changes situation. It is God who intervenes on our behalf when we are in the depths. He's desiring God to do it.

As he comes, he sees who God is. He is the Lord. He is Jehovah. He is the Creator. He is the One of Almighty

power. And as he cries, he says, O Lord, hear my voice. And he's absolutely dependent.

He needs mercy. And only the Lord can provide that mercy. So we have, first of all, the desire of true

prayer. But then there's this desire that I want to emphasize to be heard. He wants to be heard above

everything else. He's a little bit like that blind man that we read of in Luke chapter 18 and verses 35 to 43.

Luke 18 · chapter mention

He has heard about Jesus. People were speaking about Jesus. And he desires the Lord Jesus because he is

passing by. And he cries out because he wants to see. But others are saying, be quiet. Don't disturb him.

Don't make this fuss. But he cries out all the more. He won't be silent because he's desperate.

And that's the psalmist in the depths. Oh, Lord, hear my voice. Let your ear be attentive to my cry for mercy.

He wants to be heard above everything else. Spurgeon has a little remark in his commentary on this psalm by saying this.

It is all we ask. It is all we ask. And nothing less will content us. If the Lord will but hear us,

we will leave it to his superior wisdom to decide whether he answers us or no. It is better for our prayer to be heard

than answered. Have you ever thought of that? Sometimes we can ask for all the wrong reasons, can't we? And when we're in the depths,

the Lord is teaching us. And he may not always bring us out of the depths. But in those depths, he is teaching us.

And he allows us to go through these difficulties, these trials that we might learn of him. But he is hearing us.

And if he is saying no to our requests, it is because of his superior wisdom.

So the psalmist's desire is that he might be heard. And notice too, in these verses, it's a desire that continues.

Now in our NIVs, his prayers are in the singular.

Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.

If you have the ESV in front of you, it says this.

Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy.

And if you have the authorized version, it says,

Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications.

In other words, it's not just one fleeting prayer.

In the depths, he is crying out. And he's crying out again.

And he's crying out the more.

That the Lord will hear him.

That the Lord will come to his aid.

It is, if you like, the asking and the seeking and the knocking of prayer.

Nothing will satisfy him apart from the Lord.

He knows, even though he is in the depths, that God is gracious.

That God is merciful.

That his mercies are new every day.

And he desires that mercy.

How it will be shown.

Well, he's content to leave that with God.

But he keeps on calling out.

How great is our desire for God.

Are we a people that cast our cares upon the Lord?

Do we long to be heard?

And how consistent is our praying?

Do we cry to him in the depths?

Do we desire him?

And if we're correct,

that this is a psalm that was written

because of some sin on his part,

do we see the seriousness of sin

that will want us to call out to him

that we might know his forgiveness

because we have sinned against him.

And perhaps we don't call out sometimes like the psalmist

because we have failed to see the seriousness of sin.

David elsewhere says,

Against thee, you only have I sinned.

So there's a desiring of prayer

in verses 1 and 2.

Secondly, we have him reflecting

in verses 3 and 4.

To you, O Lord,

if you, O Lord, kept a record of sins,

O Lord, who could stand?

But with you there is forgiveness,

therefore you are feared.

He's in the depths,

almost certainly because of sin.

The temptation, of course,

would be for him to despair.

God will never listen to me.

But the psalmist does know

something of the grace of God

and he reflects upon that in verse 3.

If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins,

O Lord, who can stand?

And he knows the answer to that question.

He answers, in effect,

that nobody could stand.

He's conscious, you see, of his own sins.

He's in the depths because of them.

And he's also aware of God's holiness

and his own unrighteousness.

How can he come before God?

How can he stand

before the Lord God Almighty?

You see, it's not just his present sins,

whatever they were.

They're all his past sins.

And the list is long.

He could go back and think of his childhood

and how he'd failed the Lord in his childhood.

He could look at his adolescence.

And he could see the depth of his sins,

how far he had gone.

And as an adult,

he had failed the Lord again and again.

O Lord, if you kept a record of my sins,

O Lord, who could stand?

The list is long.

No one could stand.

But there's no one that does good,

not even one.

Not one sin.

A past the eye of God.

For he is the omniscient one.

He sees all and knows all.

What hope does he have of God hearing his voice?

If every time he cried to God,

God took out his book

and recited his sins and his failures.

And the same would be true

of every one of us here this morning.

What hope would we have?

Who could stand?

No, we're all guilty.

We've all fallen short.

But there's the grace of God

and he reflects upon this.

You see, he's not coming

to plead his righteousness,

his own righteousness,

for he has none.

He's not come pleading his own good works.

His hope

is in the graciousness of Jehovah,

his God.

The one who wipes the slate

completely clean.

The psalmist

would have thought of the sacrifices

that were made.

Perhaps he would think of the Day of Atonement

and the priest

laying his hand on the scapegoat

and that scapegoat

being released into the wilderness.

Perhaps he would think of

a personal sacrifice

that he had taken

to the temple.

And his sins

had been laid upon that bullock.

And the bullock

had been slaughtered

in his place.

Yes, God was a God of grace

and the sacrificial system

pointed to that.

But again and again

the psalmists, of course,

look forward to the coming

of the Messiah.

Messiah.

As Psalm 22

they pierced his hands

and his feet.

And it is on this basis

that we can come.

And as the psalmist

look forward

to the coming of Christ

so we look back

and see that Christ has come.

That grace might be given

to you and me.

And that the slate

can be wiped clean.

So that even when we sin

and fail

after we become Christians

there is forgiveness

for us.

Oh that we might reflect

upon God's graciousness.

That we might marvel

to this morning

that he is ready

to hear our cries

from the depths.

Oh that we might marvel

that we can come

before him

in the righteousness

of the Lord

Jesus Christ.

Conscious yes

of our sin

but conscious

also of the fact

that the Lord

is there for us.

You see

as he meditates

upon these things

as he reflects

on God's graciousness

he also sees

wonderfully

the forgiveness

of God.

For with you

he says

in verse 4

there is forgiveness

therefore

you

are

feared.

He plumbed

the depths

of sin

but God

is gracious

and because

he is gracious

he forgives

utterly

and completely.

he reflects

that this forgiveness

is there

to be had

and he needed it.

And because

God was gracious

he was ready

to give it.

Does that mean

that he is blasé

about this forgiveness?

No

on the contrary

there is a sense

of all

there is forgiveness

therefore

you

are

feared.

The fear

of God

is sensible

as he reflects

on God's grace

so there is

this sensible

this reverence

that the Lord

of heaven

and earth

should be ready

to hear his cry

from the depths

he marvels

and he wonders

and he

worships.

Have you ever

reflected

upon the grace

of God

in your life?

Have you

meditated

on the wonder

of forgiveness?

That an all

holy God

should love you

in Christ

and should be

ready to forgive

you utterly

and completely?

Does this

cause you

to be happy?

yes it does

I'm sure

but does it

conjure up

this sense

of awe

and worship

that God

should love

sinners

like

ourselves?

Oh

that the

spirit of God

would work

in our lives

that we

might desire

this God

more

and that we

might reflect

more and more

upon his

grace

and the

wonder of

his

forgiveness

but thirdly

there's the

waiting

verses 5

and 6

I

wait

for the

Lord

my soul

waits

and in his

word

I put

my hope

my soul

waits

for the

Lord

more than

watchmen

wait for

the morning

more than

watchmen

wait

for

the

morning

he's

waiting

in hope

verse 5

I

wait

for the

Lord

my soul

waits

and in

his

word

I

put

my

hope

you

see

the

progress

he's

making

he's

going

forward

he's

no longer

in the

depths

because

he sees

something

of the

grace

and the

forgiveness

of God

now

he's

waiting

upon

the

Lord

but

this

is

not

an

idle

waiting

he's

not

twiddling

his

thumbs

waiting

for

something

that

might

or

might

not

happen

he's

waiting

in

confidence

he's

waiting

in

faith

and

you

notice

how

his

whole

soul

is

involved

in

this

waiting

I

wait

he

says

my

soul

waits

and

that's

repeated

in

verse

6

my

soul

waits

if you

like

he's

waiting

with

the

whole

of

his

being

he's

waiting

with

the

involvement

of

his

whole

heart

for

God

to

come

to

him

to

intervene

in

his

life

and

in

his

personal

experience

and

how

can

he

do

this

with

such

confidence

how

can

he

wait

in

hope

well

the

latter

part

of

verse

5

tells

us

in

his

word

I

put

my

hope

in

other

words

he's

looking

at

scripture

he

would

have

had

the

law

available

for

him

and

he

would

have

read

the

law

and

I

would

suggest

to

you

that

he's

looking

at

some

verses

that

are

found

in

Deuteronomy

30

they're

not just

found

there

but

they're

found

elsewhere

in

the

law

they're

those

verses

that

speak

to

us

of

the

fact

that

God

is

ready

to

forgive

his

people

when

they

fail

remember

God

said

that

if

you

come

into

the

land

and

you

walk

with

me

then

I

will

bless

you

with

an

abundance

I

will

be

with

you

I

will

watch

over

you

but

if

you

fail

then

curses

will

come

upon

you

now

what's

your

hope

then

well

there

is

no

hope

except

the

Lord

continues

to

be

gracious

he

goes

on

to

say

when

you

are

driven

away

into

a

far

country

when

things

get

difficult

when

you

have

turned

away

from

me

if

you

turn

back

to

me

with

all

your

heart

and

if

you

seek

to

follow

my

ways

and

walk

as

I

would

have

you

walk

then

I

will

bless

you

again

so

what's

the

psalmist

doing

he's

waiting

in

hope

because

of

God's

word

gives

him

hope

and

God's

word

gives

each

of us

hope

as

well

we

have

much

more

than

the

psalmist

remember

those

words

in

1

John

if

we

sin

if

we

fail

well

if

we

confess

our

sins

he

is

faithful

and

just

to

forgive

us

our

sins

and

to

cleanse

us

from

all

unrighteousness

if

the

devil

whispers

into

your

ear

you're

a

Christian

you

failed

and

you

failed

miserably

don't

wash

over

your

sin

but

come

to

him

realizing

the

seriousness

of

your

sin

but

know

also

that

there

is

forgiveness

with

him

his

word

tells

us

and

the

blood

of

Christ

will

never

lose

its

power

till

all

the

ransomed

church

of

God

be

saved

to

sin

no

more

in

his

word

we

may

put

our

hope

because

his

word

is

true

so

he's

waiting

he's

waiting

in

hope

and

he's

waiting

in

anticipation

verse

six

he

uses

the

illustration

of

a

watchman

can

you

imagine

an

old

watchman

in

the

psalmist

day

he's

tired

he's

weary

yet

he has

to keep

alert

he has

to keep

a lookout

for the

enemy

may

come

at

any

time

what's

he

looking

forward

to

well

he's

looking

forward

to

his

breakfast

he's

looking

forward

to

the

warmth

of

his

barracks

he's

looking

forward

to

a bit

of

shut

eye

he

wants

his

rest

so

you

can

see

him

waiting

with

anticipation

for the

morning

for the

dawn

of a

new

day

perhaps

you know

what it's

like to

be like

that

washman

some of

you I

know will

have sat

by the

side

of a

bed

of someone

you love

who is

near death

and the

night

goes by

and you

hear the

breathing

and it

seems to

be getting

weaker

what you're

doing

you're

longing

for the

morning

time

can't

go by

quick

enough

it's a

difficult

time

well the

psalmist

would

understand

the feelings

of somebody

who's been

at that

particular

position

but then

the psalmist

takes us

up to a

new level

my soul

longs

waits for

the lord

more

than

watchman

for the

morning

and then

in case you

haven't heard

him correctly

he says

I know

what I'm

saying

I know

the watchman

waits for

the morning

and longs

for the

morning

and anticipates

the morning

I am

longing

even more

than that

my soul

waits for

the lord

more than

watchmen

wait for

the morning

repeating

himself

emphasizing

that he's

waiting for

the lord

to intervene

on his

behalf

we think

of those

old testament

saints

how they

were waiting

and longing

for the

messiah

to come

I think

of old

simeon

as he

was waiting

for the

messiah

he saw

israel

in their

condition

in their

helplessness

and in

their

hopelessness

but he

was waiting

in hope

he was

waiting

with

anticipation

he was

longing

because the

lord

had told

him

that he

would not

see death

before he

had seen

the lord's

christ

but then

the morning

came

now let

your servant

depart in

peace

for mine

eyes have

seen

your

salvation

way back

in the

old testament

isaiah

was also

waiting for

the lord

and this

is what

he says

in isaiah

40

and verse

31

those who

hope

or those

who wait

in the

lord

will renew

their strength

they will

soar on

wings like

eagles

they will

run

and not

be weary

they will

walk

and not

be faint

a friend

of mine

was

preaching

on this

particular

verse

and he

was thinking

of the

depths

of which

we can

sink

and when

we are

in the

depths

we cry

out to

god

and we

meditate

upon his

grace

and we

wait upon

him

and as

we wait

upon him

and trust

in him

and the

wonder of

his

forgiveness

we mount

up with

wings as

eagles

and what's

a mountain

to an

eagle

it's

nothing

is it

and the

lord lifts

us up

in his

grace

and in

his

goodness

so there's

the desiring

of the

psalmist

there's

the reflecting

of the

psalmist

there's

the waiting

of the

psalmist

and finally

there's

the exhorting

of the

psalmist

in verses

7

and 8

oh

Israel

put your

hope

in the

lord

for with

the lord

is unfailing

love

and with

him

is full

redemption

he himself

will redeem

Israel

from all

their sins

first

first of all

in this

exhortation

it's a

call to

Israel

and you

notice how

the emphasis

changes here

he's been

saying through

the psalm

I cry

my voice

I wait

my soul

he's

concentrating

on himself

and his

personal needs

and desires

and it's

understandable

because he

has been

in the

depths

as he's

poured out

his soul

he's conscious

of the

lord's help

and now

he wants

others to

know that

the lord

is good

that he

has put

his hope

in the

lord

and he's

not

disappointed

and he

calls upon

them to

do the

same

oh

Israel

he says

put

your

hope

in

the

lord

and as

I bring

this message

to a

close

I say

to the

folks

of

Cargillide

put

your

hope

in

the

lord

and I

can do

that

as

for the

same

reason

that the

psalmist

did it

you notice

that his

exhortation

is based

on the

very

character

of god

why

can they

put their

trust

in the

lord

why can

they put

their

hope

in the

lord

well

because

of his

unfailing

love

they knew

their

history

did

Israel

they knew

the story

of Abraham

being brought

out of

Ur of the

Chaldees

they know

how god

had watched

over

Abraham

they know

how god

had watched

over them

as they

found

themselves

in

Egypt

how he

had watched

over them

and sent

Joseph ahead

that they

might have

something

to eat

god

had been

with them

god

had loved

them

and even

though they

had failed

him again

and again

he had

not failed

them

read through

the book

of judges

they sinned

and they

failed

but god

had shown

his unfailing

love

by raising

up a

judge

god

had been

faithful

even when

they had

failed to

be faithful

themselves

his love

had been

constant

put your

hope

in the

lord

for with

the lord

is

unfailing

love

but it

wasn't

just an

unfailing

love

was it

it was

a redeeming

love

they had

the sacrifices

they knew

about the

passover

where god

had delivered

them

under blood

from

captivity

in

Egypt

and all

of this

sacrificial

system

pointed

to

god

as being

a

redeemer

god

but to

the eye

of faith

that was

looking forward

to the

coming of

another

redeemer

the lord

jesus christ

one who

was born

of a

virgin

born to

redeem

those

who were

under

the law

so put

your hope

in this

god

this god

of unfailing

love

this

redeeming

this

redeemer

god

and he

can exhort

them with

confidence

he

himself

will

redeem

israel

from all

their

sins

it

will

happen

he's

looked at

his own

sins

and he

knows

that god

has

come

to him

and god

has

redeemed

him

that god

has

blessed

him

and perhaps

he's looking

forward as

well

to the

coming of

one

who would

give his

life a

ransom

for many

the one

of whom

the apostle

paul

wrote

in

ephesians

Ephesians 5 · chapter mention

chapter 5

who

loved

the church

and gave

himself

for her

the lord

will

redeem

his

people

and you

and i

who so

often sin

and fail

against him

the day

will come

and have

every confidence

in saying it

because the word

says it

when we

will be

presented

thoughtless

without

spot

without

blemish

absolutely

perfect

it will

happen

he himself

will redeem

his

spiritual

Israel

from all

their

sins

so where

are we

today

in that

spiritual

barometer

perhaps

we're in

the depths

will cry

out to

god

desire

him

above

everything

else

reflect

upon

the

wonders

of his

grace

wait

upon

him

and there

is a sense

in what i

want to say

is wait

no longer

look

to christ

for with

him

is full

redemption

just over

ten years

ago

i had the

opportunity

of going up

to the

north of

norway

it was in

the month

of june

and some

of you know

that that's

the land

of the

midnight

sun

and we

were coming

back

we were

coming from

the airport

as we just

arrived there

and it was a

bit of a dull

evening we

couldn't see

the midnight

sun though it

was about

eleven o'clock

at night

it was quite

overcast

and rosemary

asked our

host

where's the

best place

to see the

midnight sun

he gave me

some wise

gave her some

wise words

he said i

think the

best place

to see the

midnight sun

he says

is to

pull the

curtains

you see

where we

were staying

face

out into

the sun

so at

midnight

we

pulled the

curtains

and the

sun shined

on upon

us

at

midnight

in the

depths

my

friends

pull the

curtains

of this

psalm

and let

the sunshine

of god's

love

shine upon

you all

amen

let's pray

father

sometimes we

do indeed

find ourselves

in the

depths

not just

because of

sin

but for a

number of

different

reasons

oh lord

we pray

that you

will grant

us all

the grace

that we

need

to pull

aside the

curtains of

unbelief

and to

see you

in all

your

glorious

grace

to see

you in

the person

of our

saviour

the lord

jesus

christ

and know

that his

blood

has not

only cleansed

us from

past sin

but also

of present

sin and

future sin

and help

us to know

beyond a

shadow of

doubt

that the

day will

come when

we will be

presented

faultless

thank you

heavenly father

for loving

us

in christ

amen

and