Thoughts from the Psalms - First 12, Psalm 02

A 12 part series of 15 mins talk and music on Psalms 1 to 12  as broadcast on  Flame CCR (Christian and Community Radio) www.flameradio.org.

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SPEAKER_00 0:05

Hello, welcome to Thoughts from the Psalms, a series of meditations from the great hymn book of the Bible. In this series we're looking at Psalms 1 to 12. I'm David Fry.

SPEAKER_02 0:23

Psalm two. Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed, saying, Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us. He who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, As for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill. I will tell of the decree. The Lord said to me, You are my son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron, and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. Now therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the sun, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

SPEAKER_00 1:56

We live in frightening times. There have of course been such times in the past, but we don't live in the past, other than in the sense that some people seem to just hanker after the good old days as they recall them, perhaps in their selective memory. More to the point is that we live today and look to the future, perhaps with anxiety as to what it might hold. Threats around the world are one thing, but when those threats are nearer home and seem imminent, our insecurities and fears rise. Jesus warned of wars and rumours of wars and of famines and earthquakes in Matthew chapter twenty four, so we shouldn't be surprised when these things arise. But maybe we put them out of our minds as much as we can. We see awful TV news footage of tragedies in other parts of the world, and as a nation the British people always respond generously to emergency disaster appeals. Yet we feel at a safe distance from most of these things. The media always likes to tell us of the number of British people caught up in a tragedy overseas, and yes it's quite natural to think first of those most akin to us. Yet we must try to remember that whatever country a victim is from, they are still part of humanity and deserve equal compassion. But the big question in all of these things is who is in control of the world. It's not superpower states or their precedents, regardless of how much on the surface that might appear to be the case. Nor is it the United Nations. God may use powerful non Christians to bring about his purposes, as he did with King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon in the Old Testament Book of Daniel. Yet these godless people will themselves ultimately be cut down to size by God. So who is in control of the world? In the big global and long term picture, who really controls history? Well the answer is found here in Psalm two. We saw in a previous programme on Psalm one that that Psalm is the gateway to the whole book of Psalms, but also that Psalm two links to that as part of the gateway. The compilers of the book deliberately put these two Psalms together for a reason. We saw that Psalm one speaks of the Torah, the Jewish law, but that Psalm two speaks of the Messiah. And so we can refer to it as a Messianic Psalm, Torah and Messiah, law and gospel, written word and living word. That's the contrast between Psalms one and two. The law is not just a system or rule book which is in itself in charge. Rules help keep us in line, but they also point to our failures and so show us our need of a better way and a better person to help us. Psalm two introduces us to that person, and our people both should and actually do react to him. The Psalm has twelve verses, and we can break it down into four sections of three verses each. In verses one to three, God's enemies come against him full of vengeance. The nations rage, the people's plot in vain. Just like those who arrogantly set themselves up against the Lord and against his anointed today, I will talk shortly about who that anointed one is, so too the people of the Psalmist day came against the Lord's people, and in so doing thought they could cast God away and be free from his power. The Psalm portrays the nations working together in a conspiracy against the Lord and his anointed. Yet how wrong and foolish they were. And so too is anyone, be they an individual or a whole nation who thinks like that today. They want to throw off the shackles of God's authority as if they are a repressive and horrible thing. Yet the reason that they view God in this way is because their hearts are darkened and in rebellion. Let me ask you, what is your attitude towards God? Because your answer to that is important to God and is also important to your future. Then in verses four to six we see God's response, his reaction. Verse four tells us that he who sits in the heavens laughs. That might surprise you, he laughs. Now it's certainly not that what's going on is rather comical indeed. It's far from it. In that sense, quite rightly it is no laughing matter. It's rather that God sees this people as just so puny, so powerless, so ineffective. To say he laughs is to say that God looks on them in derision. What flows forth from God is his wrath and his fury. And then in verse six, the Lord God reveals his king, whom he has set on Zion as holy hill. But what's the identity of this king? In verses seven to nine, the identity of the king is revealed. In the original context the king on Zion got holy hill is King David. But he was just the start of a royal line, for in two Samuel chapter seven God made an everlasting covenant with David, and in verse sixteen we read this promise and your house and your kingdom shall be made sure for ever before me. Your throne shall be established for ever. But to those words we might be tempted to ask really? Surely history has shown us that the kingship in Judah came to an end. Many of the kings were indeed total failures. God's promises would never be fulfilled in any of them. The Jews were conquered by the Babylonians and taken into exile. When they returned to their land seventy years later there was no kingship reestablished. Eventually they were conquered and occupied by the Romans. So has the Bible made a mistake? Or was God lying, or not powerfully enough to be able to keep his promise? But all that is simply a human perspective. God's promises never fail. Yet God did indeed have a king to reign forever. His enemies massed their forces against him and put him to death on a cross two thousand years ago. Yet the grave could not hold him, and three days later he rose from the dead, and he still reigns today. And that is King Jesus, the Son of God, God's Messiah or anointed one, God Himself made man. Jesus is still building his kingdom in the world today. Although it appears so often that the forces of evil are winning, it will be a far worse place if God really did totally withdraw his hand. Let it be known, O evil ones, that King Jesus will break your power and dash you to pieces. One day you will be destroyed forever. And then finally, verses ten to twelve. There is only one acceptable response to the king. The powers of this world are called upon to be wise. Destruction is not inevitable. If only they will be wise and bow the knee to the King of Kings. Let them serve him with fear and rejoice with trembling, recognizing his greatness. And then the final verse, verse twelve, calls for an act of humble submission. Kiss the son lest he be angry, his wrath can flare up quickly. It's not a spiteful and uncontrollable wrath. That would not be within the character of God. Rather, as the Holy Creator God, he has the right to bring the world under his control. But now look finally at the closing line of the psalm. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. While opposing God's Son will have terrifying consequences, trusting in him will bring great and eternal blessings. There is always hope, always love for all who will come to him. If you don't yet know King Jesus, the Messiah, the anointed one of God as your Saviour, you can do so right now, this very moment, by turning from your sin and knowing to deny that you've done wrong, asking Jesus to forgive you by means of his having taken your punishment on the cross, where he died two thousand years ago at Easter, and rose again from the dead three days later, of course. In trusting in him, a place in heaven will await you one day. Jesus has promised to turn away no one who calls on him. In the Psalm there are basically two groups of people, those who are the friends of God and those who are the enemies of God. Which group are you in? That's probably the most important question you can ever be asked.