Psalm 19

Have you ever had anybody ask you, how can we know that God exists? It's an interesting question, but it's not an unreasonable one, frankly. And one of the things I like about this beginning part of Psalm 19 is it answers the question, and it's that very one. We'll put it on the screen. There's really 2 questions we're going to be asking and answering, or I should say, the Psalm is going to be answering. How can we KNOW that God exists? And the first is, How can we KNOW that God exists? And this Psalm begins by giving the answer to that question this way. Verses 1 and 2,

These are incredible verses. It would be good for us to even meditate on them. But the answer to how we can know that there is a God is seen in creation itself. And this is, we have a name for this. We have a name for everything, but the name that we refer to this as is, Natural Revelation, which is appropriate. Natural Revelation is telling us about God's glory every single day and every single night. And the more we learn about the creation, and the more we see in it, and the more we look deeper into creation, the more we see the intricate design that is so clearly given there. We're learning more about our physical bodies than we've ever known before. The kind of science that goes deep within microbiology that looks into the human cell and way below and the intricacies and the information that is involved in just a single cell. And that's looking inward at our bodies, and then taking telescopes, and looking farther out, and seeing into space, and seeing how it's expanding. And the more we see those things, the more we recognize that there is a design. And the more we understand there is a design, the tougher it gets to deny that there is a designer who is behind that. And I actually believe that God created us with an innate ability to recognize things that are designed. Have you ever stopped to think about that? I think we can tell when something has been designed and something that has not been designed. For example if you had several open cans of paint sitting on a table and somebody ran into it and they've all gotten knocked over onto the floor, you might look at that and you might say, oh, I mean, after you got done being frustrated and knowing that you have to clean it up. You might say, well, that makes an interesting design. But it's interesting, we use that word rather loosely. But the pattern of whatever splashed onto the floor is really not designed, it is the byproduct of simply gravity, and those paint cans hitting the floor, and the splashes, and all the things that it makes. We might refer to it as a design, but we know that it wasn't designed because the verb design, has a very special definition. Let me show it to you on the screen here. design •transitive verb• to create, fashion, execute, or construct according to plan Design is a transitive verb, at least when it's used in its verb form, and it means to create, to fashion, to execute, or construct according to a plan. Isn't that interesting? When we see things that are designed, we recognize that they fall under that definition. They've been created, they've been fashioned. There has been an execution of that design to make that thing whatever it is. We see it and we recognize it. We understand when something has been made with intelligent construction. I hope that makes sense. When I look at some of the old time pieces, it's beautiful. You look at some of the old watches, clocks, where you can actually see the inner workings of the clock. Whenever I would, and I remember I used to see those when I was a kid at my grandparents’ home. I knew that I was looking at something that had been crafted by an intelligent designer. I knew innately that I wasn't seeing, and even if I'd never seen a clock or a watch before, I would still know that this was something that came about through design and craftsmanship, and it wasn't the product of random circumstances. Another example, if you were to see someone carrying a box of small wooden letters from the alphabet and they tripped going down the stairs and that box spilled out over the floor. I would look at those letters on the floor and I would know that, that was a random event. Now if I happen to see those same letters sitting on the floor and I noticed that they spelled out word for word, Lincoln's Gettysburg address, I would know that there was an intelligence behind the organization of those letters to the degree that it now made sense, and there was an intelligence behind it. And the same is true of our ability, I believe, to recognize that which is random from that which is designed. And the Bible says that's how we can see the glory of God. Because when we look at that which has been created, we simply know, this is not the product of randomness or the random coming together of something. There is a design and intricacy, and a design and an intelligence behind it. And the fact that we are being told by scientists today that what we're seeing, which screams design, is in fact not designed, and the fact that many people are believing, including Christians, that, that is not created, but is rather the random working of energy and matter and so on and so forth, is very telling. And it is a denial of what I believe is innate to all of us, this inborn ability to simply recognize that which is designed because we see patterns, we see intelligence. And these things, the Bible says, are constantly speaking to us. What is creation saying, look at verse 3. It's interesting here, it says,

This communication is without actual speech and yet, even without words we're told in verse 4 as we go on, that it is heard by everyone. Look at verse 4. It says,

And by the way, the apostle Paul quoted this very verse from Psalm 19 in his letter to the Romans. But as it this goes on to illustrate here in verse 4 how universal is the declaration of creation to all of mankind. It goes on here in verse 4 to say,

Just as the heat of the sun affects all living things, so also the declaration of God's glory is heard, quote unquote, by everyone, even though it is expressed without words. This first part of this Psalm is very beautiful and as Christians, I think we need to be careful not to back down at all on this creation evolution debate thing that's going on. We're going to need to understand the facts and we're going to need to address these things on a level that is going to engage our culture. But I believe that science is on our side. I believe that the more we learn, the more it becomes undeniable that there is there is design. In fact, one of the things that's brought out in some recent videos that, that we've shown in years past is that, secular scientists will even admit. And they'll say, even though creation shows design, we need to understand that it is not designed. They actually come out and say that. I mean, they're quoted as coming out and saying that. It's actually…, if you guys have been through the truth project, which we've shown a few times, that video series. They bring out this quote, even though things look designed, we have to keep telling our self over and over again, it's not designed, it's not designed. It looks designed, but it's not designed, which is a denial of what we see. It's a denial of what is right in front of our eyes. If it looks designed, then maybe it is designed. And there is a designer behind it as well. The whole evolution creation debate, I got to be honest with you is not really about science, it's about the unwillingness to admit that there's a creator and that we might possibly be accountable to Him, frankly. And this God who cramps my style, because I want to live the way I want to live, and I don't want you or anybody else, and especially your God, telling me how I can or can't live and so therefore, I'm going to deny His existence. And what better way to say, there is no God, and by the way, everything you see around us, it just happened. It just came about. It was random. There's no intelligence. There's no design. There's no creation. It's an accident. You know what's crazy about that? You start telling teenage kids starting at well, even before they're teenagers, you start telling them, you're an accident. You're an accident. You're an accident. You're an accident. And they grew up believing they're an accident, and they grew up believing that there are no moral values. There is no absolute truth. And there's really nothing to live for except whatever fleeting physical pleasures they can dredge up in this very difficult life. And no wonder we see a hopeless generation of people.

Now as we go on to the second part of this Psalm, we're going to see another major question that is going to be covered. And we'll put this one also up on the screen. How can I know what the Creator God EXPECTS from His Creation? It's, How can I know what the Creator God EXPECTS from His creation? we've answered the question in the first few verses, how can we prove that God exists? How can we know that God exists? Well, now that we've looked at creation and we've said, undeniably there is an intelligent, that we see in creation, there's a design we see, and therefore we admit and believe that there's a designer. Now, how can we know this God? How can we know this God? Well, here's the fact of the matter, before we read these verses, let me just tell you something. Apart from His self-revelation, we can't know Him, and that's one thing we have to understand. You cannot reach up and find God. You cannot dredge up your intelligence to the degree where you finally stumble upon God. If God doesn't want to be known, then He would never be known. The fact of the matter is, God does want to be known. He reveals himself in creation, and He also reveals Himself through the written Word. And that's what we're going to see as the answer to the question that's on the screen. How can I know what this God expects of me. Look at verse 7 and following. David writes,

By the way, I've heard it said that the Word of God has one thing in common with gold and that is that we, in both cases, we must dig for its treasures. I think that's probably well said, but it says, it is to be desired even more than riches and also it's “…sweeter also than honey and drippings of the honeycomb.” Isn't it interesting in the scriptures, particularly John, when in the Book of Revelation, when John eats the scroll, remember, which has prophecies and so forth and the Word of the Lord, he says, it was sweet in my mouth like honey, but it soured my stomach. (Revelation 10:9) And of course that's because the things that was contained therein were very difficult to digest, literally. But it's interesting here that David refers to the Word of God as sweeter than honey and so forth. And then he says in verse 11.

That's one of the most wonderful aspects of the Word of God. We read the Word of God, and if we will heed its warnings, we can save ourselves so much heartache and so many issues down the road. I have to tell you that as a young man, I was the kind of person who would never listen when warnings were given. I'm still a little slow to listen when someone says, that's not the way to go, I got to be honest with you. Sue and I were driving and well, it was in a large city near where my parents live in the Midwest here a couple of years ago; 2, 3 years ago. And we were in a big mall parking lot, but they were doing this construction on this road, and I had a hankering for yogurt; frozen yogurt. And I decided, I needed to go get some frozen yogurt and I'm pulling this 25 foot trailer behind the car. And I got onto my phone and I figured out where the little frozen yogurt place was, and I started heading outside of this mall parking lot, and toward this construction. And Sue said to me, don't go that way, you can't get through there. And I said, oh, bushwa. You ever heard that word? That's one of my mom's words. Anyway, I can do it, I can get through that. I started going through and I couldn't, I got stuck, and I couldn't go forward. To add insult to injury, I made Sue get out of the car and go back and tell the other people behind us back up so I could back up my whole rig, and get out of there again. And I tell you, she got in the car after that, and I mean, it was like, (Pastor Paul makes a sizzling sound) she was hot. Anyway, it's like, I just don't listen sometimes, when I've been warned.

But the Word of God is so wonderful to warn us about the things that are a danger in our lives. And David says here in verse 11, “by them (by the Word of God) is your servant warned; (and then) in keeping them there is great reward.” Look at verse 12. “Who can discern his errors?...” And what that means is, who can figure out his own errors outside of the Word of God? Who can do that? We're pretty easy on ourselves, aren't we, when it comes to criticizing our self. We usually will soft pedal our own actions and we'll be fairly critical of the actions of other people. Or we'll soft pedal what's going on in our lives. What were our thoughts, our actions, or our words, and then we'll criticize other people. You shouldn't do that, and so forth. David writes here, “Who can discern his (own) errors?” All right. Obviously it's just a rhetorical question, but he's, remember the context here is the Word of God. And that's the answer to the question. That is how we discern our errors. If we're willing to hear the Holy Spirit when He speaks to us, and says taps on your shoulder, right? My child, that one, that's a bad decision, or that action, or that word, or that comment, whatever, was not what I would have you to do or to say, right? David goes on here in verse 12 and he says, “…Declare me innocent from hidden faults.” Meaning again, personal faults that I'm unaware of. David understands that there may even be things I'm not just willing to hear from the Lord or from His Word. Lord, please make me innocent from those things. And he says in verse 13, “Keep back your servant also from presumptuous sins;…” What is presumption? Presumption is basically defined as, the failure to know what is appropriate or permitted in a situation. Have you ever been, have you ever gone to something and you didn't know the rules? Heaven forbid you should go to another country and sit down and have a meal, with people from another culture because you just. If you don't, if you haven't studied up and learned what's appropriate at the table, things you can and can't say things, you can and can't do, how you're supposed to eat, with what, instruments and so forth. And is it considered impolite to slurp your soup and, all the different things that go on that is...

And I'm using simple examples here, but presumptuous sins is the idea or the failure to know what I ought to be doing and David is praying here, Lord, keep me from presumptuous sins from my failure to know. And I want to be kept back from sins of ignorance. And then he prays here at the end of verse 13, “…let them not have dominion over me! (or your Bible may say, let them not rule over me, and) Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.” David is basically saying that the ability to not be taken by surprise is a huge benefit. Make sure Lord that I know, reveal in me those areas, those hidden faults so that I can know it's… And don't let them, don't let me walk into these things. It's similar to what Jesus taught us to pray when He said, “lead us not into temptation.”

Can you imagine praying that prayer on a daily basis? Lord, let today as I go to work, as I spend time with my family, whatever I'm doing in my given day, may the words of my mouth be pleasing in your sight. May the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight. Ah, the meditations of our heart can be seen by the Lord. We think that's the secret place, right? But the Bible tells us God knows what's in the heart of man. He sees our hearts like you and I see through a pane of glass. And He can know exactly what's going on inside our hearts. He knows what's happening in the secret place of our minds. What do our minds think about when they're free to think whatever they will? Lord, let me be pleasing. Let my thoughts even be pleasing. And by the way, if you find that convicting, that's probably a good thing because so do I. I'm convicted by this verse because I know that my thoughts can very easily turn to very self-centered sorts of things very easily, very quickly. Lord, I want to be pleasing.

And then notice he refers to the Lord as, his Lord, my rock, he says. And that can also be translated, my strength. Because that's what a rock represents, in a sense, a place of strength on which to stand. We stand on the solid rock, not on the shifting sands. We build our lives on the rock, right? Not on the shifting sands. He is our rock, He is our strength. “Oh LORD, my rock (and my, look at this) my redeemer.” Do you know that the word, Redeemer here is the Hebrew word, Geol, which means, kinsman redeemer. Which of course we learn about elsewhere in the Old Testament. And you'll remember that the kinsman redeemer is the one who brings his relative out of slavery. He rescues him from bankruptcy and total loss. And so David is referring to the Lord as the one who redeems him from every challenging and dangerous situation. “Oh LORD, my rock,” my strength, and my deliverer from every difficult situation that I find myself falling into. Right? It's a beautiful picture of how David sees the Lord and how we ought to see the Lord as well.