SPEAKER_00: Good morning.
SPEAKER_00: Today's passage is from Psalm chapter 123, so you can turn there now.
SPEAKER_00: Me too.
SPEAKER_00: My name is Christine Oswald, and it's my privilege to read scripture with you today in the service.
SPEAKER_00: I also serve in kids and lead in a small group with my husband.
SPEAKER_00: So again, today's passage is Psalm 123.
SPEAKER_00: To you I lift up my eyes.
SPEAKER_00: O you who are enthroned in the heavens.
SPEAKER_00: Behold, as the eyes of servants look to the hand of their master, as the eyes of a maidservant to the hand of her mistress, so our eyes look to the Lord our God, till he has mercy upon us.
SPEAKER_00: Have mercy upon us, O Lord, have mercy upon us.
SPEAKER_00: For we have had more than enough of contempt.
SPEAKER_00: Our soul has had more than enough of the scorn of those who are at ease, of the contempt of the proud.
SPEAKER_00: This is the word of the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Thanks, Christine.
SPEAKER_01: Well, good morning, Harbor.
SPEAKER_01: My name's Ryan.
SPEAKER_01: I serve as one of our pastors here.
SPEAKER_01: It's my joy to be opening God's word with you.
SPEAKER_01: Hey, we got four verses today, and they are dense, they are beautiful, and I really believe they are good news for us.
SPEAKER_01: But before we jump in, will you join me in praying again?
SPEAKER_01: Let's pray.
SPEAKER_01: Merciful, good, generous, loving Father.
SPEAKER_01: Thanks for your word.
SPEAKER_01: We're children who need instruction.
SPEAKER_01: We're children who need grace.
SPEAKER_01: We're children who need your love.
SPEAKER_01: No one's here by accident.
SPEAKER_01: We're all here on purpose by your will.
SPEAKER_01: Pray that you would go before me, you'd allow me to get out of my own way, and your Holy Spirit would carry our gathering, and that you would actually awaken sleepy and maybe uh tired souls and even bodies to make us alert, to focus on you, and to lift our gaze to you and your word this morning.
SPEAKER_01: In Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.
SPEAKER_01: Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt me.
SPEAKER_01: Many of us are familiar with this phrase, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like it sounds great, but it's not true, is it?
SPEAKER_01: No, it's not.
SPEAKER_01: Like words hurt.
SPEAKER_01: Like comments hurt.
SPEAKER_01: Being misunderstood hurt.
SPEAKER_01: Like being misunderstood, it hurts.
SPEAKER_01: And this is a reality for us as Christians, right?
SPEAKER_01: Some of you know this actually personally sometimes.
SPEAKER_01: Some of you are the only Christian in your family, or maybe the only believer in your workplace.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe you've kind of just heard the comments from time to time as you leave, like, oh, careful, they're religious, or wait, here comes the sermon, or hey, they can't do that, or they can't watch that.
SPEAKER_01: Like, if you're like me, you kind of laugh it off, you smile, uh, but after a while, it kind of just starts to like wear you down or get you down.
SPEAKER_01: And that's exactly where Psalm 123 is for us this morning.
SPEAKER_01: See, that's the problem in the Psalm.
SPEAKER_01: If you just keep reading in the Psalm, verse 3 tells us what's going on.
SPEAKER_01: It says, more than enough.
SPEAKER_01: And I wonder, have you ever felt that?
SPEAKER_01: Like, have you ever felt just saying, like, man, I've had enough?
SPEAKER_01: Enough criticism, enough rejection, or enough disappointment, or enough of just being misunderstood, enough of maybe trying to fake it till you make it, or just saying, like, hey, I'm okay.
SPEAKER_01: Psalm 123 gives us language for that this morning.
SPEAKER_01: Uh, Eugene Peterson, quoting a church father, kind of, Athanasius, uh, said that a lot of scriptures speak to us, but the Psalms, they speak for us.
SPEAKER_01: I find that so worshipful and beautiful and helpful because Psalm 23 is gonna actually speak on behalf of weary pilgrims.
SPEAKER_01: Psalm 123 is one of the songs of ascents, and as you know, we're kind of journeying through uh several of these songs this summer in the summer of the Psalms with us here at Harbor.
SPEAKER_01: And these Psalms are they're given essentially for Israel making their journey to Jerusalem to experience worship feasts.
SPEAKER_01: Think of them of like road trip songs, but they didn't have a car uh or a caravan, they actually probably just are like walking, so they need a lot of songs, and they you can imagine it gets repeated over and over.
SPEAKER_01: And they're designed to be memorized and internalized for them for the journey of the Christian life.
SPEAKER_01: And when I say journey, think like slow cooker or smoker, not microwave Christianity.
SPEAKER_01: And these were songs for travelers that were actually not immersed in their homeland, but they were sojourners and exiles, and so they were immersed among the world.
SPEAKER_01: They were immersed among people who look down upon them for their journey of faith.
SPEAKER_01: People like us.
SPEAKER_01: See, uh, we're living in times that it's actually no longer probably socially advantageous for you to be a Christian.
SPEAKER_01: It's not like 30 or 50 years ago, uh, where honestly it might actually be detrimental to your career, to your social status to follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: And between kind of morals changing and progressive agendas, Christianity is sometimes treated like a pastime tradition or without much credibility or attraction.
SPEAKER_01: And I guarantee, if you if you have followed Jesus for long enough, I bet you felt this.
SPEAKER_01: I bet you've probably felt feeling worn down.
SPEAKER_01: Primarily worn down by being looked down at.
SPEAKER_01: And this isn't part of what it means to just be part of God's people.
SPEAKER_01: I just want to comfort you.
SPEAKER_01: Like, we're not actually given the historical situation of this psalm.
SPEAKER_01: Uh, and in some ways that's actually really freeing.
SPEAKER_01: It actually helps us map on to all periods of our life, but also just the Christian journey and story.
SPEAKER_01: You you could probably think about this.
SPEAKER_01: Well, this was helpful for the slaves in Egypt or those who experienced oppression in exile, or any people experiencing kind of just being ostracized or under like dictating or foreign powers.
SPEAKER_01: See, it's not locked into one moment, but it gives us language to the normal everyday experience of God's people in a proud world.
SPEAKER_01: And so that's our big idea this morning.
SPEAKER_01: Uh, when the world looks down on you, look up to the Lord for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: When the world looks down on you, look up to the Lord for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Now, when I say the world, I don't mean like every quote unquote non-Christian.
SPEAKER_01: Here at Harvard, we're like, we love our neighbors, we love Sarpee County, we love Omaha, but Psalm 123 is talking specifically about the scripture about the world, the proud, the self-sufficient, those who resist God's rule in their life and maybe look down upon those who have God's rule in their life.
SPEAKER_01: And the question isn't like whether this will happen.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus actually promised that we'd have trouble in the world.
SPEAKER_01: The question is, what do faithful pilgrims do when it happens?
SPEAKER_01: And Psalm 123 just gives us two answers.
SPEAKER_01: Guys, we only got two points today.
SPEAKER_01: All right, here you go.
SPEAKER_01: Two points.
SPEAKER_01: Uh the first one is our posture, and the second is our petition.
SPEAKER_01: Our posture and our petition.
SPEAKER_01: So if you got your Bibles, join me or you can follow along on the screen.
SPEAKER_01: First one is our posture.
SPEAKER_01: Verse one.
SPEAKER_01: To you I lift up my eyes, O you who are enthroned in the heavens.
SPEAKER_01: Like immediately notice where this psalm goes.
SPEAKER_01: Not with enemies, not to the contempt, not to what he's experienced, the pain or what they've said.
SPEAKER_01: Where does it go?
SPEAKER_01: It goes directly to God.
SPEAKER_01: It's intentional.
SPEAKER_01: You could say that this is actually theocentric before it's therapeutic.
SPEAKER_01: Before God actually addresses the problem for the psalmist or his circumstances, what he's gonna do is he's actually gonna like redirect his gaze upward.
SPEAKER_01: And notice also when you look at the text, like, where is God?
SPEAKER_01: It says enthroned in the heavens.
SPEAKER_01: This isn't geography, it's authority.
SPEAKER_01: Like the biblical writers weren't trying to just teach us autonomy here.
SPEAKER_01: They weren't proclaiming God's uh sovereignty.
SPEAKER_01: They were proclaiming God's sovereignty and authority, not astrology.
SPEAKER_01: See, God is above the scorn, he's above the contempt, he's above their proud comments, and he's above their circumstances.
SPEAKER_01: And what he's saying is like the proud could look down on the psalmist, but they don't reign over him.
SPEAKER_01: God does.
SPEAKER_01: Have you ever thought about how interesting it is?
SPEAKER_01: Like your parents or your coach or whoever, who whatever it is, always tells you to like mind your posture.
SPEAKER_01: Like, pay attention, pay attention to your posture.
SPEAKER_01: I don't know, in elementary school, this was huge for us.
SPEAKER_01: Like they were like, keep your head up, like sit up straight, shoulders back, head back.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Well, because posture affects everything, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like it affects how you breathe, how you feel, how you move, even how long your body can actually go unnecessarily long without strain.
SPEAKER_01: And Psalm 123 says something is true of that spiritually.
SPEAKER_01: Like before the psalmist actually teaches us what to say, he teaches us where to look.
SPEAKER_01: Before our petition becomes our posture.
SPEAKER_01: And isn't it interesting to just think about like how have you ever wondered this, like how your posture actually affects how you pray?
SPEAKER_01: Like, think about it.
SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't pray the exact same way when I go on a prayer walk versus like on my knees by my bed.
SPEAKER_01: I don't pray the same when I'm like driving uh through Sarpee County versus like where I'm just like uh sitting back in my chair.
SPEAKER_01: I don't pray the same when I'm actually like just buried in my phone versus if I pause and actually just look up to where the Lord actually is and hears.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Well, because God has actually made us as embodied beings, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like our bodies and hearts aren't disconnected.
SPEAKER_01: See, what we do with our bodies actually shapes and what helps what's happening in our hearts.
SPEAKER_01: And whether we realize it or not, we actually live in a culture that actually believes and communicates that we just need to believe or know one more thing in order to change.
SPEAKER_01: But see, scripture knows we're more than just like brains on sticks.
SPEAKER_01: Like, like sometimes changing your perspective actually needs to begin with changing your posture.
SPEAKER_01: So, just very humbly, but like encouragely, can I just invite you to change something up this week?
SPEAKER_01: Like with something very practical.
SPEAKER_01: If you feel anxious or you just feel like you've had enough, or if you're carrying contempt or criticism, like maybe change it up.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe go for a walk, get off the couch, maybe turn off your phone, kneel beside your bed, open your hands, and lift your eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Now, I'm not saying, hear me, I'm not saying like God hears those prayers more than others.
SPEAKER_01: What I am saying is sometimes our bodies, they actually help our hearts remember who God is.
SPEAKER_01: Sometimes changing your posture actually helps change or shape your perspective.
SPEAKER_01: Let's keep going.
SPEAKER_01: Before, notice, before the psalmist ever addresses the people looking down on him, he actually lifts his eyes to the God who reigns over them.
SPEAKER_01: Look at verse 2.
SPEAKER_01: It's gonna deepen this picture for us.
SPEAKER_01: It says, Behold, as the eyes of the servants look to the hand of their master.
SPEAKER_01: Now, for our, let's just be let's just be real, for our ears, uh, that word master and that word servant, that can kind of sound a little bit offensive, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like we immediately think like abuse or oppression or someone who uh has no dignity.
SPEAKER_01: But but wait with me, don't flatten the image here.
SPEAKER_01: Like throughout history, there's actually been like highly trusted household servants, stewards, and butlers who have actually held tremendous positions of honor and servitude and responsibility.
SPEAKER_01: In fact, Trevor and I actually used to know a guy that actually left his post as a lead manager in a company to go serve overseas as a distinguished butler.
SPEAKER_01: I'm not kidding you.
SPEAKER_01: Like uh it was an interesting idea and proposition, and he was excited about it.
SPEAKER_01: Like he didn't see it as a step down.
SPEAKER_01: To him, it was a coveted position.
SPEAKER_01: He wasn't embarrassed, he was honored to be serving in a respected household.
SPEAKER_01: So, Psalm 123 isn't like glorifying slavery or servanthood here.
SPEAKER_01: It's highlighting trust and dependence and attentiveness.
SPEAKER_01: And in many great households, back in the day, particularly, trusted servants, they didn't need like long conversations with their master.
SPEAKER_01: Actually, they didn't even need to hear his voice.
SPEAKER_01: Like often just a simple gesture of the hand would communicate his needs and his heart.
SPEAKER_01: So they would actually, like these servants, what they would do is like they would study his hands, his movement.
SPEAKER_01: They would they would learn his patterns, they knew his character, they anticipated his desires.
SPEAKER_01: You could almost say that the master's hand became a window into his will.
SPEAKER_01: See, this psalm is showing us dependence.
SPEAKER_01: And no one is more dependent than a servant.
SPEAKER_01: Like he watches the hand because the hand directs everything.
SPEAKER_01: It's for provision, direction, it's for correction and mercy.
SPEAKER_01: See, this is exactly what the psalmist is saying.
SPEAKER_01: He's saying this is how we should look to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: We're watching, we're waiting, we're trusting, we're depending, we're attentive.
SPEAKER_01: And not because like God is an abusive master, no, but because he's actually like the only perfectly good master.
SPEAKER_01: He's not a helper we can occasionally consult, or he's not Santa Claus, like tallying rights and wrongs in the sky for you.
SPEAKER_01: He gives direction because actually his direction is perfect and good.
SPEAKER_01: And he gives commands because his commands actually promise life and freedom.
SPEAKER_01: Like the book of James has a great uh word for this.
SPEAKER_01: It just says like the perfect law, and then it says the law of liberty.
SPEAKER_01: We celebrate liberty this weekend, like 4th of July.
SPEAKER_01: How perfect, the 4th of July weekend.
SPEAKER_01: We celebrate freedom, religious freedom, political freedom.
SPEAKER_01: It's a gift.
SPEAKER_01: But biblically, it actually shows us that like freedom is not the absence of authority.
SPEAKER_01: See, freedom isn't nobody telling me what to do.
SPEAKER_01: You got kids, that's just chaos.
SPEAKER_01: Like, think about it.
SPEAKER_01: Like a fish isn't free on the shore, or a train is not free off the tracks, or a kid is not free without good parenting or good guide.
SPEAKER_01: See, the human soul, apart from its creator, is not free.
SPEAKER_01: It's lost.
SPEAKER_01: See, true freedom is found under the right master.
SPEAKER_01: And Psalm 123 reminds us the master of the universe is the master of mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Look with me at how verse 2 ends.
SPEAKER_01: It says, So our eyes look to the Lord our God till he has mercy upon us.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you saw that little word in there.
SPEAKER_01: I love that little word, till.
SPEAKER_01: Verse 2, till he has mercy upon us.
SPEAKER_01: See, the psalmist isn't making like a nervous wager here.
SPEAKER_01: Uh he isn't anxiously wondering if like God is gonna be merciful or if he'll welcome him.
SPEAKER_01: He knows God's character, but he doesn't know God's timing.
SPEAKER_01: So he just waits.
SPEAKER_01: See, that's long-haul discipleship.
SPEAKER_01: It's I don't know when mercy is gonna come, but I know where mercy is coming from.
SPEAKER_01: Let me say that again.
SPEAKER_01: I don't know when mercy is coming, but it's knowing where mercy will come from.
SPEAKER_01: See, I hope you notice this, even as they as Christine read this passage to us.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you heard over and over the word eyes.
SPEAKER_01: If you just catch it, it's there over and over and over again.
SPEAKER_01: Verse one says, I lift up my eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Verse two says, the eyes of the servants.
SPEAKER_01: Verse three again, or verse two it says, the eyes of the maidservant.
SPEAKER_01: And then again, our eyes look to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: This is a psalm about like spiritual attention.
SPEAKER_01: Because think about it.
SPEAKER_01: Where your eyes go, your heart follows.
SPEAKER_01: Like I used to play baseball, I know that's probably hard to believe, but uh I used to play baseball, and uh one of my baseball coaches would like tell us all the time, he would actually scream this all the time at us, but he'd be like, eyes up, head up, eyes up! He'd just be yelling that, and then like that would catch on, and you'd just be saying that over and over again to the whole infield and outfield, eyes up.
SPEAKER_01: Why?
SPEAKER_01: Because when your head drops, your focus goes with it, right?
SPEAKER_01: You lose awareness, you lose confidence, you actually lose sight of the field before you.
SPEAKER_01: And see, guys, the enemy knows that's true spiritually.
SPEAKER_01: If he can steal your gaze, he can shape your heart.
SPEAKER_01: Like if he keeps your eyes focused on that criticism, like he's gonna grow bitterness.
SPEAKER_01: If he can keep your eyes on your reputation, he's gonna grow your anxiety.
SPEAKER_01: If he can keep your eyes on your suffering without seeing God, he's going to grow despair.
SPEAKER_01: See, Psalm 123 says, Lift your eyes.
SPEAKER_01: So, Harbor, like we have to develop the spiritual reflex of just eyes up.
SPEAKER_01: Like before contempt comes, before the family gathering or work gets awkward, or before you actually are about to experience ridicule or uh scorn or something proud.
SPEAKER_01: You need to lift your eyes to the Lord so that your soul knows exactly where to look when it happens.
SPEAKER_01: See, and don't miss this one final detail.
SPEAKER_01: Look at verse one again.
SPEAKER_01: It says, I lift up my eyes.
SPEAKER_01: And then I hope you see this subtle change.
SPEAKER_01: Verse 2, it says, Our eyes look to the Lord, our God.
SPEAKER_01: See, personal faith is gonna become corporate prayer here.
SPEAKER_01: See, see, this isn't merely like some quiet time psalm for you in the morning.
SPEAKER_01: It can be that, but it's also a church-wide psalm in prayer, which means if you're not experiencing contempt right now, somebody else is.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe somebody in your harbor group, maybe somebody in your family, someone in this room is experiencing this right now.
SPEAKER_01: Someone in our church is weary from being the only Christian in their family.
SPEAKER_01: Someone in our church is weary from being the only guy on the job site that's following Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Someone is quietly carrying just rejection that no one else kind of sees.
SPEAKER_01: And we're called throughout the scriptures like to bear one another's burdens.
SPEAKER_01: And see, part of what Christian maturity is, is actually learning to actually get your eyes up so you stop looking at it just yourself and you see others experiencing contempt so you can bear their burdens and pray on their behalf.
SPEAKER_01: And so, guys, what we're encouraged to do is actually pray for one another, carry one another's burdens, because that's what pilgrims do.
SPEAKER_01: That's our posture.
SPEAKER_01: We look to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Uh but Psalm 123 doesn't just teach us where to look, it also gives us specific words to pray.
SPEAKER_01: If you don't know how to pray, this is why the Psalms are given to us, just to actually give us language.
SPEAKER_01: When the world is starting to look down on you, you can look to the Lord for mercy, and that happens first and foremost through your posture.
SPEAKER_01: But then it gives us words in our petition.
SPEAKER_01: Look with me at verse 3, our petition.
SPEAKER_01: Have mercy upon us, O Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Have mercy upon us, for we have had more than enough contempt.
SPEAKER_01: Man, like now the psalmist finally tells us like why he's looking up, why his eyes are lifted.
SPEAKER_01: And he's starting to like name the pain.
SPEAKER_01: He's exposing the problems.
SPEAKER_01: Three times he's gonna cry for mercy in this psalm.
SPEAKER_01: Not because the psalmist just like forgot what he just prayed.
SPEAKER_01: You ever done that?
SPEAKER_01: I've done that, you know.
SPEAKER_01: You just pray the same thing over and over.
SPEAKER_01: Why is he doing that?
SPEAKER_01: He's doing it because he's desperate, and desperate people repeat themselves.
SPEAKER_01: See, sometimes the holiest prayer is not the longest prayer.
SPEAKER_01: Some of you need to hear that.
SPEAKER_01: I've been in your groups.
SPEAKER_01: No, I'm just sure.
SPEAKER_01: Some of you are like, my kids sit there, like, Dad, we're done, you know.
SPEAKER_01: Like sometimes the holiest prayer is the long is not the longest prayer.
SPEAKER_01: It's simply just like, Lord, have mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Like when you run out of words, when you're emotionally exhausted, when you don't know what else to pray, those three words, they're enough.
SPEAKER_01: Richard Sibbs, an old reformer, uh, is famous kind of for saying, uh, he used to say, There's more mercy in Christ than there is sin in us.
SPEAKER_01: I love that.
SPEAKER_01: There's more mercy in Christ than there is sin in us.
SPEAKER_01: See, we look at our sin a lot, especially in this reformed tradition, but we need to look at Christ's mercy even more.
SPEAKER_01: And see, I love this because Psalm 123 almost actually invites us then to add there's actually more mercy in God than there is contempt in the world.
SPEAKER_01: See, contempt is real, but God's mercy is more real.
SPEAKER_01: It's deeper, it's more profound.
SPEAKER_01: See, the scorn may be loud, but mercy has the final word.
SPEAKER_01: Notice why they ask for mercy then again.
SPEAKER_01: Look at verse 3.
SPEAKER_01: It says, Our soul has had more than enough.
SPEAKER_01: That phrase, just more than enough, more than enough, just a clue, and there's no bold faced words in the scripture.
SPEAKER_01: I wish that as a publicly educated kid.
SPEAKER_01: Like when things are actually like repeated, we need to pay attention.
SPEAKER_01: It says, more than enough.
SPEAKER_01: This is the emotional center of the psalm.
SPEAKER_01: Picture this guy.
SPEAKER_01: He's like weary, he's tired, he's got his hands up and he's like, dude, I've had enough.
SPEAKER_01: Like I've reached capacity.
SPEAKER_01: The idea in Hebrew isn't just like Mild irritation.
SPEAKER_01: This is a souling, a soul saying, like, I don't know how much longer I can go.
SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't know how much longer I can stay in the game.
SPEAKER_01: And what does warn them down?
SPEAKER_01: It's contempt.
SPEAKER_01: It's scorn.
SPEAKER_01: It's not just merely disagreement.
SPEAKER_01: See, contempt is when somebody's actually like looking down on you.
SPEAKER_01: It's making somebody feel small.
SPEAKER_01: It's despair.
SPEAKER_01: It's disdain.
SPEAKER_01: It's dismissal.
SPEAKER_01: And sometimes it is very loud and outright.
SPEAKER_01: But a lot of times it's very subtle and passive.
SPEAKER_01: It's an eye roll or a sarcastic joke or a jab at the Thanksgiving table, or maybe a family member who sits quietly but then later gossips or dismissing your convictions.
SPEAKER_01: It's little lacerations over time, over time, until your soul just says, I've had enough.
SPEAKER_01: And so for some of you, I've sat with you, like following Jesus has like made you strange to people you deeply love.
SPEAKER_01: Like you carry a burden for them.
SPEAKER_01: You love them.
SPEAKER_01: You want them to know Christ.
SPEAKER_01: But every family gathering that you leave just leaves you exhausted and depleted and looking around.
SPEAKER_01: But Psalm 123 says, bring that exhaustion to the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: Look up.
SPEAKER_01: We also got to talk about like what here's there's something dangerous about contempt as well.
SPEAKER_01: There's always two ditches, right?
SPEAKER_01: So when contempt comes, we can err in one of two directions.
SPEAKER_01: The first, our first temptation is compromise.
SPEAKER_01: Like when you experience scorn or ridicule, maybe you're tempted to like soften in your convictions.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe if I just stop talking about Jesus as much, or maybe if I just kind of like blend in or change a little.
SPEAKER_01: The other temptation is resentment.
SPEAKER_01: Like we become cynical or bitter or defensive.
SPEAKER_01: This is kind of like my first camp.
SPEAKER_01: I'm like, I want to like fight, not flight.
SPEAKER_01: But see, the psalmist does neither.
SPEAKER_01: He doesn't compromise, he doesn't retaliate.
SPEAKER_01: He petitions.
SPEAKER_01: See, that word is really important.
SPEAKER_01: We don't use this word often unless it's like some guy outside the library doing something.
SPEAKER_01: But this word is important.
SPEAKER_01: It's petitioning.
SPEAKER_01: See, a petition isn't just like venting or getting people to sign something.
SPEAKER_01: It isn't complaining.
SPEAKER_01: It isn't simply unloading your emotions.
SPEAKER_01: A petition is an intentional appeal to the master of mercy.
SPEAKER_01: It's faith moving toward him.
SPEAKER_01: It's refusing to let pain actually have the last word.
SPEAKER_01: It's Lord.
SPEAKER_01: It's saying, Lord, like, you're the father of mercy.
SPEAKER_01: I'm still looking to you.
SPEAKER_01: Just have mercy.
SPEAKER_01: It's the tax collector beating his chest.
SPEAKER_01: Most of us can probably remember somebody we knew growing up, maybe it was you who got picked on.
SPEAKER_01: Right?
SPEAKER_01: Like maybe it was a kid in your neighborhood, maybe it was a kid in your family or your sports team or in school.
SPEAKER_01: Maybe it was because of the clothes they wore, or maybe the family they were from, or the way they talked.
SPEAKER_01: Like at first, like when they get picked on, they laugh it off, or they actually even make a joke, self-deprecating themselves.
SPEAKER_01: But eventually something happens, right?
SPEAKER_01: Something changes.
SPEAKER_01: You can actually see it in their body language.
SPEAKER_01: Their shoulders kind of stoop, their head looks down, their eyes drop, and their confidence just disappears.
SPEAKER_01: Because repeated contempt just eventually reaches the soul.
SPEAKER_01: And see, this is what Psalm 123 is talking about.
SPEAKER_01: It's describing this.
SPEAKER_01: And let's be honest.
SPEAKER_01: Like this is weary for experiencing, but it's also really hard to watch people who don't follow Jesus not experience contempt or scorn or ridicule, or maybe even what looks like blessing.
SPEAKER_01: Like they get promoted, you get passed over.
SPEAKER_01: Like they're compromising and you hold strong to your convictions and try to obey.
SPEAKER_01: They mock your convictions, but their life seems smoother.
SPEAKER_01: They seem at ease and you feel worn out.
SPEAKER_01: Now, sometimes like suffering just comes when we follow Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Sometimes it comes just because we actually live east of Eden, like a result of the fall.
SPEAKER_01: Like the world is broken, bodies get sick, we lose jobs, families fracture, marriages struggle, like life is disorienting.
SPEAKER_01: And I just want to say, like, like I do not know why the couple who doesn't follow Jesus next door is in perfect health and all of a sudden your husband gets sick.
SPEAKER_01: I do not know why that stingy, uh, wealthy guy at the gym that you've been working next to for the last few years is able to retire early and you're not.
SPEAKER_01: I don't know that.
SPEAKER_01: But either way, I want to tell you that God actually gives us and actually invites us to have permission to pray honestly.
SPEAKER_01: And to actually pray these words.
SPEAKER_01: I feel like I've had enough.
SPEAKER_01: See, God never asks you to pretend.
SPEAKER_01: And when you're not.
SPEAKER_01: And he actually just gives you a whole songbook to just be honest, to just give you words when you don't have words, when your soul is tired.
SPEAKER_01: So, some of you, you need to stop polishing your prayers.
SPEAKER_01: Like you think every prayer needs to be neat and tidy.
SPEAKER_01: And it actually probably is what keeps you from praying, maybe in public, but also primarily in private.
SPEAKER_01: But I hope you see that like uh Psalm 123 does not do that.
SPEAKER_01: It doesn't even end with the enemies doing anything, like apologizing or the circumstances changing.
SPEAKER_01: It doesn't end with like a pretty bow tied on the end.
SPEAKER_01: It simply leaves the request resting before the Father of mercy in God's hands.
SPEAKER_01: See, that's faith.
SPEAKER_01: Faith is not pretending it's okay, faith is not stuffing it and not thinking about it.
SPEAKER_01: Faith is like leaving everything in your master's hands.
SPEAKER_01: So some of you, like your natural reaction is like grit your teeth, or to choose the gospel promise or the, or not the gospel promise, that one promise of like God's gonna give you everything you desire, or God's gonna actually have a plan in a future and prosper you.
SPEAKER_01: That is true.
SPEAKER_01: But it actually sometimes dislocates us from actually true communion with the Lord.
SPEAKER_01: So don't pretend it doesn't hurt.
SPEAKER_01: Don't baptize emotional and avoid avoidance and like call it maturity.
SPEAKER_01: I I want to encourage you guys, like, would you just, would you pray honestly this week?
SPEAKER_01: Would you pray honestly this month?
SPEAKER_01: And so some of you just start to learn to pray prayers of like, Lord, have mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, I'm tired.
SPEAKER_01: God, this hurts.
SPEAKER_01: Like, Lord, I don't know how much longer I can go.
SPEAKER_01: Lord, have mercy.
SPEAKER_01: See, as servants, we can leave it all to the Master.
SPEAKER_01: That is an unbelief.
SPEAKER_01: That's exactly what this psalm teaches us to pray.
SPEAKER_01: One more application for you.
SPEAKER_01: I want you to ask yourself honestly if I never experience any resisting for following Jesus, is it because God has given me a peaceful season?
SPEAKER_01: Or because nobody actually knows I follow him?
SPEAKER_01: Like, it could be that you're actually not a Christian.
SPEAKER_01: I say that very honestly, but very gently.
SPEAKER_01: Like maybe you believe the facts about him, you believe Jesus got out of the grave, but you actually haven't bowed the knee to King Jesus and surrendered to him as King.
SPEAKER_01: And if that's true, like the world wouldn't find much to oppose in you because your life doesn't look much different than theirs.
SPEAKER_01: Or maybe, like as a Christian, like your life has just become way too comfortable.
SPEAKER_01: Like God has called us to make disciples.
SPEAKER_01: And if we rarely have meaningful or crossover in any relationships or conversations with non-Christians, like people who don't know Christ, it's hard to actually bear witness to him.
SPEAKER_01: And so we can't expect opposition if we're actually never living on mission.
SPEAKER_01: Let me say that again.
SPEAKER_01: We can't expect opposition if we're never living on mission.
SPEAKER_01: But there's also another possibility, too.
SPEAKER_01: It may simply be the season that God actually has you in.
SPEAKER_01: Like some of you are in a peaceful season and you should just praise God for that.
SPEAKER_01: That's God's kindness.
SPEAKER_01: But I do encourage you, like it's worth asking.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus told us that like faithful discipleship would cost us something.
SPEAKER_01: In 2 Timothy, I was reminded this week, it says this in 2 Timothy 3.12.
SPEAKER_01: It says, indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.
SPEAKER_01: None of you are wearing that shirt.
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
SPEAKER_01: Like that's not at Hobby Lobby, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like, put that above the doorway, you know?
SPEAKER_01: Like, uh, but it's true, and it's actually encouraging in some way, right?
SPEAKER_01: Like, oh, like I'm not, this is normal.
SPEAKER_01: That doesn't mean though, like for some of you, like you you love that verse.
SPEAKER_01: Like, that does not mean you should just be obnoxious.
SPEAKER_01: Sometimes Christians are not being persecuted, you're just being weird.
SPEAKER_01: Can I say that?
SPEAKER_01: Like, I just said that, so I can't take that back, I guess.
SPEAKER_01: But uh and not like good weird, but like not wholly weird, just like annoyingly weird.
SPEAKER_01: Uh yeah, you can say that, that's good.
SPEAKER_01: But if we follow Jesus, there will be some kind of cost, some kind of misunderstanding, some kind of contempt.
SPEAKER_01: And when that happens, Psalm 123 teaches us what to do.
SPEAKER_01: Don't answer with contempt, don't grow bitter, don't grow resentful, don't chase their approval.
SPEAKER_01: Take your pain, go vertically, petition the Lord, look to Him and ask for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Now, if we end it here, uh it would simply be really good advice.
SPEAKER_01: It'd be true advice.
SPEAKER_01: Like it would be like, look up, trust God, pray for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: That'd be good advice.
SPEAKER_01: But like, can I tell you something?
SPEAKER_01: Good advice never saves a weary soul.
SPEAKER_01: So it actually starts to beg the question then.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you saw this when we were reading, like, it should beg the question like, how can sinners actually approach and enthrone God and ask him for mercy?
SPEAKER_01: Or maybe to say it a little bit differently, like, how can we actually have the posture of a servant before a holy God?
SPEAKER_01: The answer is Jesus.
SPEAKER_01: Like, all scripture is just gospel-packed, either participate or anticipate.
SPEAKER_01: There's just this momentum of Jesus Christ.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you know this and can see this in your Bible.
SPEAKER_01: And so I want you just to like watch this or listen to this.
SPEAKER_01: Like you can take notes, but I want to just unpack the gospel for you real quick, real fast.
SPEAKER_01: I hope it's really worshipful for you this morning.
SPEAKER_01: It was really worshipful for me in our study this morning.
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna just drop a bunch of text on you, and I want you to actually just to wash away contempt for you so that you would experience God's mercy.
SPEAKER_01: See, Psalm 123 pictures servants looking to their master.
SPEAKER_01: But see, the gospel completely surprises us.
SPEAKER_01: See, the master is the one that actually becomes the servant.
SPEAKER_01: Philippians 2 tells us that Jesus was in the form of God.
SPEAKER_01: He actually emptied himself, taking the form of the servant.
SPEAKER_01: Think about that.
SPEAKER_01: The one seated on the throne steps down off his throne and comes into our world.
SPEAKER_01: The master took the place of the servant.
SPEAKER_01: Mark 10 and 45 goes on to say that the Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.
SPEAKER_01: Do you see what that means?
SPEAKER_01: Like you can gladly bow the knee to King Jesus, his the master, because Jesus bowed beneath the father and gave his will to his father as a servant.
SPEAKER_01: Like, so how can you actually take the posture of a servant?
SPEAKER_01: Because Christ first took that posture for you.
SPEAKER_01: You can look up because Jesus came down.
SPEAKER_01: He didn't just simply live a perfect life of servanthood, though.
SPEAKER_01: See, this is where the gospel is just getting started.
SPEAKER_01: See, he died the death that our rebellion deserved.
SPEAKER_01: Every moment that you insisted on being your own master, every single time that you rebelled or refused his rule, every moment that we lived with our eyes fixed on something else, Jesus bore the judgment for it.
SPEAKER_01: See, and then God did something even more astonishing.
SPEAKER_01: He credits to you Christ's perfect righteousness.
SPEAKER_01: He gives the credit for his perfect service given to the unworthy servant you.
SPEAKER_01: And he's given that to you.
SPEAKER_01: It's called imputed righteousness.
SPEAKER_01: See, this is why we can actually approach the throne or his presence in mercy and his presence with grace.
SPEAKER_01: Not because you serve perfectly, but because Christ served perfectly.
SPEAKER_01: But see again, the story doesn't end at the cross.
SPEAKER_01: Philippians is going to go on to say that actually Jesus Christ, therefore, God has highly exalted him.
SPEAKER_01: What does that mean?
SPEAKER_01: See, Jesus rose from the grave, but then 40 days later he ascends.
SPEAKER_01: And he says he's seated at the right hand of the Father.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you see this.
SPEAKER_01: That's exactly verse 1.
SPEAKER_01: It says, now he's exactly where Psalm 123 tells us to look.
SPEAKER_01: Verse 1 says, To you I lift up my eyes, oh you who are enthroned in the heavens.
SPEAKER_01: The servant is now the enthroned king.
SPEAKER_01: See, here is what's even more amazing.
SPEAKER_01: This really ministered to me this week.
SPEAKER_01: Jesus isn't just seated on the throne.
SPEAKER_01: If you keep reading scripture, he he he it says in Romans 8 34, he's actually serving us as well.
SPEAKER_01: It says Christ Jesus is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
SPEAKER_01: And Hebrews 7 goes on to say actually this is that he always lives to make intercessions for his saints.
SPEAKER_01: Think about that.
SPEAKER_01: The reason you can make petitions to the Lord is because Jesus is petitioning the Father on your behalf.
SPEAKER_01: The reason you can ask for mercy is because Jesus is already before the Father pleading your case.
SPEAKER_01: Which means we don't approach a throne wondering if God is gonna be welcoming us, like nervously biting our nails.
SPEAKER_01: Like, no, Hebrews 4 tells us exactly what kind of throne it is.
SPEAKER_01: I hope you caught that in our assurance of pardon.
SPEAKER_01: It says, let us then with confidence draw near to a throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace in our help in time of need.
SPEAKER_01: Not a throne of condemnation, a throne of grace.
SPEAKER_01: Not because we deserve it, but because Jesus does.
SPEAKER_01: We can look up because Jesus came down.
SPEAKER_01: We're not done.
SPEAKER_01: Isn't there even more comfort?
SPEAKER_01: Think with me.
SPEAKER_01: I just want you to dwell on who Jesus is here.
SPEAKER_01: Isn't there even more deep comfort knowing that Jesus understands every single part of your contempt?
SPEAKER_01: Like he was mocked, he was spit upon.
SPEAKER_01: A crown of thorns was laid on his head, he was stripped, he was rejected, he was laughed at, he was persecuted, he was looked down upon.
SPEAKER_01: He knew what it was like to be misunderstood, he knew what it was like to feel the scorn and the shame of those eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Yet Peter tells us in 1 Peter 2, he says, when he was reviled, he did not revile in return, but when he suffered, he did not threaten, but he continued entrusting himself to the one who judges justly.
SPEAKER_01: Don't you see?
SPEAKER_01: Jesus is the perfect fulfillment of Psalm 123.
SPEAKER_01: When the world looked down on him, he looked to his father, and he did it for you.
SPEAKER_01: So if you're here today and you're not yet a Christian, I want you to hear me clearly.
SPEAKER_01: Like everyone looks somewhere for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: You may not call it that, but that's actually what you're doing.
SPEAKER_01: Uh some people look to success, some people look to money, approval, uh, relationships, control, achievement.
SPEAKER_01: None of those, none of those things can actually forgive you of your sin.
SPEAKER_01: None of those things can carry the weight of your soul, and none of those things will hold you when your soul has actually just had more than enough.
SPEAKER_01: Only Jesus can.
SPEAKER_01: So I just want to encourage you, would you stop looking down?
SPEAKER_01: Stop looking around.
SPEAKER_01: Would you actually look up?
SPEAKER_01: Would you bow the knee to King Jesus?
SPEAKER_01: Would you receive his mercy?
SPEAKER_01: Would you repent of your sin and trust him by faith?
SPEAKER_01: Christians.
SPEAKER_01: Some of you have spent this whole week kind of analyzing and replaying the contempt you've experienced, staring at it, replaying the conversations, like wondering what they meant or obsessing over what they think.
SPEAKER_01: And your soul's exhausted.
SPEAKER_01: The Lord isn't shaming you today, though.
SPEAKER_01: The Lord never shames.
SPEAKER_01: He actually invites you in honor and in mercy and in grace, and he's inviting you to lift your eyes.
SPEAKER_01: Not because you've mastered your posture, but because Christ has.
SPEAKER_01: Not because you've prayed perfectly, but because Jesus is actually praying for you on your behalf right now.
SPEAKER_01: Not because you've earned mercy, but because Christ earned and gave you his mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Harbor, when the world looks down on you, look to him for mercy.
SPEAKER_01: Because the one who is actually enthroned in heaven, he's also the servant who died for you, and he's also the savior that still now intercedes for you.
SPEAKER_01: So Harbor, eyes up.
SPEAKER_01: Let's pray.
SPEAKER_01: Father, we thank you that we can have our eyes up.
SPEAKER_01: That by grace we can enter into presence with you, but we can also enter into just a communion with you, fellowship with you.
SPEAKER_01: Not because of what we've done, but because of what you have done.
SPEAKER_01: And so, Father, we I just humbly ask you to be continually working.
SPEAKER_01: I'm thankful that your word promises that when the word is opened and more than two or three are gathered, you're present in a particular way.
SPEAKER_01: And so, Father, I just pray on this holiday weekend that uh we be reminded of what's most important.
SPEAKER_01: That we be reminded uh of when we experience the eyes of the world looking down on us, that we actually weren't made for this world, we were made for a different world, and that we should experience those things.
SPEAKER_01: So help us to live faithfully, but help us this morning to respond faithfully.
SPEAKER_01: Help us not to just walk out of here unchanged, unbothered, unencouraged.
SPEAKER_01: I pray that you would empower and encourage and stir.
SPEAKER_01: And I pray that you would apply that Spirit's work is to apply Christ's redemption to the hearts of your children.
SPEAKER_01: So, Father, I pray that people who become children of God this morning they aren't.
SPEAKER_01: That maybe they've been attending family gatherings, but they are not actually in the family.
SPEAKER_01: Would they know that it's not by their attendance or their approval or their perfection, but rather it's in their submission.
SPEAKER_01: So, Father, we come to you as our Master, your good and perfect, and loving and gentle Master, and we give you all the praise.
SPEAKER_01: In Jesus' name.
SPEAKER_01: Amen.