Psalm 85 A glimpse of what God does in saving the world

Vs. 1-2a: You showed favour to your land, O LORD; you restored the fortunes of Jacob. 2 You forgave the iniquity of your people.

 This psalm gives us a glimpse of what God does in saving the world.

1.     `Favour', (Heb `Ratsah') - meaning: `making acceptable'

We seek favour of one another. How do they think of us?

Teenage years.

Adult years.

Show business awards.

Self adulation.

Approval ratings - Clinton, Blair.

Table of Bush's approval ratings.

Table of mine? Yours?

Those whose approval you seek most give you the least.

~ Rozanne Weissman

God's favour to us is that he has made us acceptable to Him.

In the end that is all that matters.

        By nature - none of us is.

I know that I am not.

All unworthy.

        Our need is for renewal and new birth.

        THAT I SHOULD BE ACCEPTABLE TO GOD IS SURELY A MIRACLE OF GRACE. 

2.     `You forgave the iniquity of your people'.

        Forgiveness - the whole human race needs to be forgiven.

3.            Favour of God includes the `land'.

Restoring Israel to the land is part of God's purposes, because God loves all peoples and lands.

        Not just human beings - but the whole of nature is

embraced by the love of God.

The whole earth is spoilt by human sin.

Rom 8 - earth groans - pollution, floods, draughts etc. waiting for revealing of God's sons at the end of the age.

A sign of this is the Biblical promise to restore the chosen people to the Promised Land.

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How does God accomplish all this?

2b&3 You `covered all their sins. You set aside all your wrath and turned from your fierce anger.'

a.     Covers up or blots out or buries all our sins.

b.     Removes His wrath.

The writer does not know how.

NT: God came among us and in the cross accomplished both.

CROSS. 2 Words:

        Expiation and Propitiation.

Expiation: Covering

Jesus took all our sin to Himself.

        Cowardice - Pilate.

        Disloyalty - Disciples

        Self-righteousness - Religious leaders.

        Cruelty - Roman soldiers.

        Indifference - Common people.

In one way or an other our sin was there too.

He took it to death and the grave and there left it - having covered it and buried it.

When we confess he covers it all up.

All that we have done wrong is now buried forever - never to be remembered again - Wonderful comfort!

Our part is merely to confess our unworthiness.

 Propitiation - removing of Wrath and anger.

        Jesus took the wrath of God.

        God is rightly angry with us for all the things we have done.

        Jesus received in our place the judgement we deserve.

        The judge pronounced us guilty - and then in love took the punishment we deserve.

CROSS -     removes our sin - expiation.

         -         removes the wrath of God - propitiation.

RESULT?

VS.4-7: Restore us again, O God our Saviour, and put away your displeasure toward us. 5 Will you be angry with us forever? Will you prolong your anger through all generations? 6 Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you? 7 Show us your unfailing love, O LORD, and grant us your salvation.

KEY WORDS - What we receive.

a.                      Restore - bring us back to where we belong.

We are not where we should be.

          Prodigal son.

          Malcolm Muggeridge - Cynical atheist.     

                   After turning to Christ he said `I               

                   Have come home'.

        b.         Revive - New Life.

          `That they may have life.'

          Dead in trespasses and sins.

          Vivid illustration - drugs - living

                   death.

        c.         Rejoice - worship God.

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KEY WORDS - What He takes from us.

        a.         Displeasure. God has been displeased with all of us but by His grace we will hear those words `Well done Thou good and faithful servant'

James Stewart said that this was the only thing that the Lord would say to him that He would contradict.

Yet by his grace the worst of us will have discovered that God has used us for far more good than we ever imagined.

        b.         Anger - already referred to this in explanation of the word `propitiation'.

        c.         Eternal Anger. `Will you be angry with us forever? The answer to this rhetorical Q is obviously No!

          Saved from hell!

vs.8-9: I will listen to what God the LORD will say; he promises peace to his people, his saints-- but let them not return to folly. 9 Surely his salvation is near those who fear him, that his glory may dwell in our land.

I will listen!

        We must give time to listen!

        To be quiet in His presence. Quiet Time each day.

        Quiet day each week.

        `Be still and know that I am God'.

Now vs.10- famous verse: `Love and faithfulness meet together; righteousness and peace kiss each other.'

        Love meets faithfulness.

        Righteousness kisses peace.

        Faithfulness means keeping promises.

        Love without faithfulness just means

          sentimentality.

          Won't last.

          Therefore marriages break up.

        Peace without righteousness cannot last -     Unrightousness leads to resentment, rebellion, etc.

Example - for 40 years Yugoslavia was ruled in peace but not in righteousness.

Unjust dictatorial government.

          Now war.

Therefore righteousness, Peace, Love. faithfulness must come together.

Further meaning: God is love.

          Therefore He wants to forgive us -

                   everyone here.

            But he is also righteous - He must also judge us for

what we have done wrong.

Imagine a headmaster who so loved

                   that he never punished any wrong.

                   He would be running a chaotic

                             school with no learning.

Do we really want heaven full of unrepentant murderers, child abusers, and thieves?

          Two Hands.

          a. Forgiveness. b. Justice.

          How to bring them together?

          Only one way.

          He bears the punishment due to us and takes our place.

          `Now is the judgement on this world.'

          `Father forgive them'

So on the cross, righteousness meets peace, AND faithfulness meets love.

For us to kneel at the foot of the cross.

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In God's kingdom heaven and earth will be re-united - not just heaven.

so vs.11 and 12: Faithfulness springs forth from the earth, and righteousness looks down from heaven. 12 The LORD will indeed give what is good, and our land will yield its harvest.

Heaven > Righteousness.

Earth  > Faith.

Heaven > Goodness.

Earth >  Harvest.

What good news that is for sinners.

Should we just bask in this good news?

vs.13: Righteousness goes before him and prepares the way for his steps.

We must live righteous lives - Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount.

We cannot bring in God's kingdom.

Church will never rule the  world..

        (The church is full of faults itself.)

What we can do is to live righteously for His kingdom.

In such a way we prepare for His coming.

That was the first message of John the Baptist - Repent and so prepare the way for the Lord.

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