Psalm 125 - Harvest Morning Service
Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
3 The sceptre of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel.
INTRODUCTION
This morning we are celebrating the festival of Harvest Thanksgiving
We have travelled here this morning to give thanks to the Lord, for all his provision in our lives.
And as we do so, we are following the example of the Israelites in these Psalms of Ascent.
When the Israelites want to celebrate a festival,
They would have to leave home and travel to Jerusalem,
And as we have had special songs of thanksgiving this morning,
So the Israelites had these Psalms of Ascent to sing along the way and give thanks to God,
And remember His provision.
And as we study this Psalm this morning,
We are reminded how God surrounds us and looks after us.
God Surrounds Us
So let us give thanks for the Harvest this morning,
And let us thank God that He Surrounds Us.
Sometimes, if we are surrounded it can be a bad thing.
If enemies surround then there is no way out,
There is no escape.
But here it is a good thing.
We are surrounded by a God who loves us,
Who cares for us,
Who protects us.
And the picture of this that the Psalmist uses is the one that everyone is looking at on this journey.
They are on their way to Jerusalem,
And the city of Jerusalem is not only raised up.
So that the people are Ascending on their journey,
But Jerusalem is also surrounded by mountains.
And this provides security all around.
The army can position themselves on the heights and see the enemy coming.
They can launch a counter attack and keep the city safe.
And when we trust in the Lord, this is the security that he offers us.
Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
Psalm 125:1-2
Sometimes we can view the Christian life, as being very precarious.
We almost look at it like walking a tightrope.
One slight little wobble along the way and we are in trouble.
One foot in the wrong place and we go crashing down,
Injured unable to pick ourselves up.
But being a Christian is much more secure than that.
We live our lives in a fortress that the evil one cannot penetrate.
We are surrounded by the Lord and he offers us security.
He provides for us.
It is security that comes from the Lord.
And even as the mountains offer security to Jerusalem,
The security that the Lord provides is even more secure than mountains.
Even if the mountains were to fall apart,
The one who is trusting in the Lord is still secure
It is explained for us in Psalm 46,
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever- present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Psalm 46:1-3
We thank God for His provision.
We thank Him for the Harvest,
But even if the Harvest were to fail, we are still secure.
Our trust in God is not dependant on what God gives us.
It is dependant on who God is.
God Protects Us
God not only surrounds us,
But we see from verse 3 of this Psalm, that God protects us.
He protects us from the evil of this world.
And as we look back over this past year, we can see how God has extended his protection to us.
In surrounding us, stops the attacks of the evil one against us,
And in Protecting us, God stops us being corrupted and becoming evil ourselves.
When there is evil all around, it is very easy to be tempted.
It does not take long for us to become accustomed to the sin.
We begin to accept it little by little.
When everyone around us is sinning, our disgust and abhorrence at the sin, is slowly chipped away, until we accept it.
But God is here to protect us.
As the Psalmist sings -
The sceptre of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
Psalm 125:3
We can be led astray,
But if we trust in God then he will protect us.
The danger is that we are naturally attracted to the sin around us.
And when we delight in sin, then we do not believe the truth of God’s word.
Is there sin that you enjoy, that is holding you back from being fully committed to God.
The warning is given in 2 Thessalonians -
all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
2 Thessalonians 2:12
God protects us from the rule of evil.
He protects us from the influence of the evil one.
He does not want us to use our hands to do evil.
God Judges Us
And finally this morning as we celebrate this Harvest Festival.
As we approach the Almighty God to worship Him.
As we travel to meet with God.
We see that God Judges us.
This is a service of Thanksgiving, so why are we thanking God, for judgment?
Because He will do what is right.
Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel.
Psalm 125:4,5
The choice will be made between the upright in heart and those who follow crooked ways.
The problem being that you and I naturally walk along the crooked ways.
That is our preferred route through life.
And on this journey to meet with God, we must choose our footsteps carefully.
The only way to be upright in heart, is not through our own actions, because they are flawed.
The only way is to accept Jesus into our lives, to allow Him to transform our hearts.
To take away the old heart of sin,
And replace it with His heart that is upright.
And this is what we celebrate more than anything else this morning.
We are celebrating God’s provision in the harvest.
But it is an illustration of the spiritual harvest,
God the Father has provided us with riches much greater than the vegetables and flowers that we see around us.
He has provided us with forgiveness from sin
He has promised us the removal of guilt.
He has shown us how He can take away shame.
We have so much to thank Him for.
And when he comes to judge,
We do not worry about when He will come.
We don’t think, I hope God does not catch me on a bad day.
If he comes on the day that I have an argument, or I tell a lie, then I am sunk.
No when he comes, he does not see our sin and our failings,
Instead he sees the righteousness that is ours through Jesus.
He sees the sinless one, instead of us.
And he does good to those who are good.
CONCLUSION
Today then we thank God for the Harvest.
We thank Him that He surrounds us, like the mountains surround Jerusalem,
He Protects us from doing evil like all those around us.
And He Judges us, not based on our actions but on what Jesus has done for us.
Let us give thanks to Him,
This morning, this evening and every day
Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
3 The sceptre of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
4 Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel.
INTRODUCTION
This morning we are celebrating the festival of Harvest Thanksgiving
We have travelled here this morning to give thanks to the Lord, for all his provision in our lives.
And as we do so, we are following the example of the Israelites in these Psalms of Ascent.
When the Israelites want to celebrate a festival,
They would have to leave home and travel to Jerusalem,
And as we have had special songs of thanksgiving this morning,
So the Israelites had these Psalms of Ascent to sing along the way and give thanks to God,
And remember His provision.
And as we study this Psalm this morning,
We are reminded how God surrounds us and looks after us.
God Surrounds Us
So let us give thanks for the Harvest this morning,
And let us thank God that He Surrounds Us.
Sometimes, if we are surrounded it can be a bad thing.
If enemies surround then there is no way out,
There is no escape.
But here it is a good thing.
We are surrounded by a God who loves us,
Who cares for us,
Who protects us.
And the picture of this that the Psalmist uses is the one that everyone is looking at on this journey.
They are on their way to Jerusalem,
And the city of Jerusalem is not only raised up.
So that the people are Ascending on their journey,
But Jerusalem is also surrounded by mountains.
And this provides security all around.
The army can position themselves on the heights and see the enemy coming.
They can launch a counter attack and keep the city safe.
And when we trust in the Lord, this is the security that he offers us.
Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion,
which cannot be shaken but endures forever.
2 As the mountains surround Jerusalem,
so the Lord surrounds his people
both now and forevermore.
Psalm 125:1-2
Sometimes we can view the Christian life, as being very precarious.
We almost look at it like walking a tightrope.
One slight little wobble along the way and we are in trouble.
One foot in the wrong place and we go crashing down,
Injured unable to pick ourselves up.
But being a Christian is much more secure than that.
We live our lives in a fortress that the evil one cannot penetrate.
We are surrounded by the Lord and he offers us security.
He provides for us.
It is security that comes from the Lord.
And even as the mountains offer security to Jerusalem,
The security that the Lord provides is even more secure than mountains.
Even if the mountains were to fall apart,
The one who is trusting in the Lord is still secure
It is explained for us in Psalm 46,
God is our refuge and strength,
an ever- present help in trouble.
2 Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way
and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea,
3 though its waters roar and foam
and the mountains quake with their surging.
Psalm 46:1-3
We thank God for His provision.
We thank Him for the Harvest,
But even if the Harvest were to fail, we are still secure.
Our trust in God is not dependant on what God gives us.
It is dependant on who God is.
God Protects Us
God not only surrounds us,
But we see from verse 3 of this Psalm, that God protects us.
He protects us from the evil of this world.
And as we look back over this past year, we can see how God has extended his protection to us.
In surrounding us, stops the attacks of the evil one against us,
And in Protecting us, God stops us being corrupted and becoming evil ourselves.
When there is evil all around, it is very easy to be tempted.
It does not take long for us to become accustomed to the sin.
We begin to accept it little by little.
When everyone around us is sinning, our disgust and abhorrence at the sin, is slowly chipped away, until we accept it.
But God is here to protect us.
As the Psalmist sings -
The sceptre of the wicked will not remain
over the land allotted to the righteous,
for then the righteous might use
their hands to do evil.
Psalm 125:3
We can be led astray,
But if we trust in God then he will protect us.
The danger is that we are naturally attracted to the sin around us.
And when we delight in sin, then we do not believe the truth of God’s word.
Is there sin that you enjoy, that is holding you back from being fully committed to God.
The warning is given in 2 Thessalonians -
all will be condemned who have not believed the truth but have delighted in wickedness.
2 Thessalonians 2:12
God protects us from the rule of evil.
He protects us from the influence of the evil one.
He does not want us to use our hands to do evil.
God Judges Us
And finally this morning as we celebrate this Harvest Festival.
As we approach the Almighty God to worship Him.
As we travel to meet with God.
We see that God Judges us.
This is a service of Thanksgiving, so why are we thanking God, for judgment?
Because He will do what is right.
Do good, O Lord, to those who are good,
to those who are upright in heart.
5 But those who turn to crooked ways
the Lord will banish with the evildoers.
Peace be upon Israel.
Psalm 125:4,5
The choice will be made between the upright in heart and those who follow crooked ways.
The problem being that you and I naturally walk along the crooked ways.
That is our preferred route through life.
And on this journey to meet with God, we must choose our footsteps carefully.
The only way to be upright in heart, is not through our own actions, because they are flawed.
The only way is to accept Jesus into our lives, to allow Him to transform our hearts.
To take away the old heart of sin,
And replace it with His heart that is upright.
And this is what we celebrate more than anything else this morning.
We are celebrating God’s provision in the harvest.
But it is an illustration of the spiritual harvest,
God the Father has provided us with riches much greater than the vegetables and flowers that we see around us.
He has provided us with forgiveness from sin
He has promised us the removal of guilt.
He has shown us how He can take away shame.
We have so much to thank Him for.
And when he comes to judge,
We do not worry about when He will come.
We don’t think, I hope God does not catch me on a bad day.
If he comes on the day that I have an argument, or I tell a lie, then I am sunk.
No when he comes, he does not see our sin and our failings,
Instead he sees the righteousness that is ours through Jesus.
He sees the sinless one, instead of us.
And he does good to those who are good.
CONCLUSION
Today then we thank God for the Harvest.
We thank Him that He surrounds us, like the mountains surround Jerusalem,
He Protects us from doing evil like all those around us.
And He Judges us, not based on our actions but on what Jesus has done for us.
Let us give thanks to Him,
This morning, this evening and every day
RSS Feed
