“It’s a Psalm 19 night!” used to be a frequent expression
amongst my youth group. I introduced it to my youth group a couple of years ago
after a conversation with my brother. It began on a beautiful starry night, my
brother and I challenged each other to read Psalm 19 on nights like that. Thus “it’s
a Psalm 19 night!” was born.
I told that story to my youth group one Wednesday night and
then a few days later I got a text from a youth group member that simply said, “it’s
a Psalm 19 night!” and I smiled! At a bonfire one fall, I turned to look up at
the vast sky filled with what seemed like a zillion stars and Zach said, “I
think Psalm 19 is my favorite passage of Scripture, it’s a Psalm 19 night!”
So tonight is a Psalm 19 night. I’m not a prophet nor the
son of a prophet, so I’m not predicting the skies to be clear and the stars
visible. I’m just stating the fact that tonight at youth group we are going to
look at Psalm 19.
Over the weekend I was at Word of Life’s Leadership
Development Conference on Spiritual Warfare. Dr. Tim White, president of
Cedarville College, was the key note speaker and he unpacked Psalm 19 in a
wonderful way. I’m not going to preach his sermon tonight, but his talk did
inspire me to take a closer look at this text. There is so much in this chapter
and a slow reading, rereading and focus on it draws out so much for us today.
Tonight we are going to focus on how our souls desperately
need regular time in the Word of God. Looking up at the stars is good. Taking a
hike in the forest is good. Getting up early to watch the sun rise is good.
Admiring the beauty of creation will conjure up and awe and wonder of God,
which is what Psalm 19:1-6 tell us.
But the Hebrew word for “God” here is “el”, which is the
most generic term for “God” in the Hebrew language (this I did steal from Dr.
White haha). Nature is a testimony to the existence of “a god” or that “God”
does exist. However, it does not tell you “who” God is.
We are in need of a special revelation, something that will
tell us who this Creator God is. Oh wait, we have something! It’s the Bible,
God’s Word. Psalm 19:7-11 tells us how God’s Word reveals to us that He is the
LORD (YHWH) and that He is trustworthy. King David tells us that spending time
in God’s Word will revive our soul, make us wise, bring joy to our heart, open
our eyes, show us what is right and true, warns us, and leads us to great
reward.
Who doesn’t want that? Read through that list again… spending
time in God’s Word will revive our soul, make us wise, bring joy to our heart,
open our eyes, show us what is right and true, warns us, and leads us to great
reward. Wow! But how do I know that’s true?
Good question! King David answered that too.
The Bible is perfect, sure, right, pure, clean, endures
forever, true, and desirable. Look, God does not lie, He is trustworthy and faithful.
His Word is perfect, inspired, alive and active. He won’t let you down, He won’t
fail you, but you need to do the work to get into His Word to learn about Him.
Last night I watched the movie “Insanity of God” which
highlights the persecuted church. I’d highly recommend it to you. How often
does a movie convict you of selfishness and fear, brings you to tears, inspires
you and brings joy to your heart? But those thoughts will have to be unpacked
later.
Watching the story of our brothers and sisters around the
world and how they cling to the Word of God as their “heart song,” reveals to
me how much we in America take the Word of God for granted. The story of a
believer locked in prison for over a decade and every time he got a scrap piece
of paper, he’d write out everything he could remember about God’s Word. It was
powerful and moving.
What if the Bible was ripped away from you? How much could
you write down? What verses, praise songs, hymns would inspire you to keep
holding on to your faith?
The movie put some things into perspective, but it’s hard
for their reality to be ours. We are so far from the persecution. We are lulled
to apathy through our prosperity and our technological distractions. But the
very same God that has empowered Daniel in the lion’s den, Demitrov in the
Russian prison, and the Somali believers who gave their lives is the God who is
at work right here in Akron, Ohio.
And He wants to meet with you every day! Not just in some
generic, general sense. No He wants a very personal meeting with you where you
learn to trust Him and surrender to Him. He won’t let you down. He is worth it.
The rest of Psalm 19 (verses 12-14) is our humble response.
It’s a prayer for God to keep us from sin, from getting caught up in this world
and that our words and thoughts would please God.
In closing, David demonstrates the results of faithful pursuit
of God through the Word. The Psalm opens with a generic “god” reference. It
then leads to the revelation of the specific God, Yahweh. It concludes with “O
LORD, my rock and my redeemer!”
Notice David’s personal encounter with the living God has
brought a relationship that is undeserved and strong. “O LORD,” the faithful covenant
keeping God, our heavenly Father. “My Rock,” the one who will not fail, He will
not stumble, He is sure and steady. “My redeemer,” the one who brings hope in
this life and the next through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross.
I know life is busy, mine is too. I know that there are
stresses, worries and anxieties that preoccupy our thoughts. I know that there
is another sports game tonight, and the latest episode is being released. I know
that there are constant snap chats and Instagram posts to keep up with. But
none of that brings life. None of that matters for eternity.
Only one book boasts that it can change both this life and
the next. That is the Word of God. Make tonight a Psalm 19 night.
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