Awaiting Peter to arrive, Cornelius, along with family and friends, were “present before God to hear all things that were commanded of God” (Acts 10:33).  They were expecting to hear the words of God!  What a joy to read of those who desire God’s truth and anticipate it from a gospel preacher.

There are those who travel to assemblies today expecting to hear the sweet sounds of the gospel.  In some instances this is what they hear, but often they are disappointed.  Yes, many preaches are not transmitting the word to truth-seeking and gospel-loving souls what they have a right to expect.  Instead, they are offering God’s audiences a diluted and revised form of what is said to be the gospel.  They hear stories and testimonials from the one who has assumed the place of a herald of God’s truth.  As a result, the truth suffers at the hands of these misguided manipulators.

Many find themselves in congregations where only an emotion-packed and feel-good message, void of any Biblical perspective and application, and very little honest exegesis of Biblical passages is all too common.  Question:  What if Cornelius and his household had received a “tickling” message devoid of spiritual substance?  Answer:  They would have not heard the truth which makes one free (John 8:32) and the obedience of which purifies the soul (1 Peter 1;22).  They would have failed to receive, as Cornelius himself puts it, “...all things that are commanded thee of God”  (Acts 10:33).

Those who propose to teach and preach God’s word have a grave responsibility (James 3:1) to preach the whole council of God (Acts 20:27), bereft of the world’s wisdom (1 Corinthians 1:18-25).  Let us be thankful for expecting audiences, “for all men have not faith” (2 Thessalonians 3:2).  But let us give them what true lovers of God’s word desire!
 
 

Psalms 104 and 105 have taken us through parts of history from the perspective of God’s actions, power, faithfulness, and love for humanity.  The poem before us now brings us back to earth by reminding us of the sinfulness of mankind as it rehearses the sins of Israel (particularly in the wilderness wanderings).  It is too long to include it in this article, so I really want to encourage you to read it as we study it, for its actual words are far more important than any comments I might make.

We are going to learn from it by noting nine points—all dealing with various sins of Israel (vv. 6-46).  But it begins with a tribute to God (as the One Who ought to be praised; vv. 1-5), and ends with a plea for salvation from punishment (vv. 47,48).

In the introduction (vv. 1-5), four things are on the mind of the poet—all of which serve to remind us of the positive things we have learned about God from the two previous psalms.  In verse 1, His goodness and mercy are mentioned to remind us of His character.  In verse 2, His actions are noted in the form of “unanswerable” questions so that we might concentrate on His power.  In verse 3, we are once again told one of the main messages of the entire Bible, “Blessed are they that do his commandments” (Revelation 22:14).  This connects with the previous verses very well, because it only makes sense that any thinking person would want to respond correctly to such a being as Jehovah!  In verses 4,5, he makes a personal plea to God for salvation and its attendant blessings.

Now there is an abrupt change in tone, for the author switches from exalting the God of heaven to nine cases of sin committed against Him.  And these sins were committed by people who had been recipients of His great love in very dramatic ways (see Psalm 105).

SIN ONE: While leaving Egypt (vv. 6-12).

In this section, the author identifies his generation with the one that left Egypt in the fifteenth century BC.  His method is by making the confession, “Their sin is our sin” (vv. 6,7).  We do not know when the author lived, but the point is one that needs to be learned by the people of God in every generation:  WE ARE NOT MUCH BETTER THAN THEY WERE, ARE WE??  Let us learn from this great psalm of history that it is also a great psalm of confession!  How pitiful we really are when we refuse to see ourselves as God sees us!  How useless we become when we fail to be repenting and confessing people!  How sad God must be when He sees us studying Psalms 105 and 106 and still not getting the point!  In verses 8-12, the poet says, “But God saved them.”  Read it for yourself—that’s what He did—He saved them anyway! And they sang His praise (v. 12).  But it did not last.

SIN TWO: Soon after leaving Egypt (vv. 13-15).

Soon after leaving, they quickly forgot His works (see 2 Peter 1:8-11; Galatians 1:6-9).  They did not wait for His counsel—and acted upon their own thinking.  This led to their lust, and their tempting God. His decision was to give them what they wanted, which resulted in “leanness” for their souls.  This condition causes a “wasting away.”

SIN THREE: In the camp (vv. 16-18).

Some of them decided to reject God’s chosen leaders.  Envy was the spirit that ruled their hearts.  Note that the word means “perhaps originally to burn or be inflamed;…applied to the mind burning with jealousy, envy, zeal, etc.” (Wilson’s Old Testament Word Studies, p.147).  God’s response was to act with great and visible miracles that demonstrated the fact that He rejected their chosen leaders!  He opened the earth so that it could swallow them!  He then defended His name and His men by His Own act of fiery “jealousy”—He burned up the wicked.

SIN FOUR: In worship (vv. 19-23).

One of the clearest and most often taught lessons in the Bible is the lesson that God hates idolatry in every form.  The golden calf incident occurred in a context that seems to be one of the least likely settings of all time.  But they did it anyway—and Jehovah was so offended by them that He was willing to destroy them and begin again with Moses as His chosen one.  We must not overlook the significance of this Bible story—God will not tolerate false worship of any kind—especially when it is directed toward a “god” that does not even exist!  They were only spared when Moses intervened and the Lord relented.

SIN FIVE: Of unbelief (vv. 24-27).

Their sin of unbelief is a sin which can also easily “beset” us (Hebrews 3:7-19; 12:1-3).  Their failure to believe in God affected everything and everyone in that generation. Note the words that are used by the poet to describe this evil unbelief:  they “despised the pleasant land” (Canaan—God’s chosen land for them); they “murmured in their tents” (Isn’t that where murmuring almost always starts—where God and Moses “can’t see us”?); and they “would not listen” (a bit of stubbornness added to the mix).  It should come as no surprise at all that He refused to let that generation enter into “His rest.”

SIN SIX: Of immorality (vv. 28-31).

Now the inspired poet reminds us of the gross immorality (isn’t all immorality “gross”?) that took place late in the forty-year period of wandering.  Again, idolatry was involved as the people caved in to the temptation to wallow in sin.  Swift and serious steps were taken by Phinehas to stay the plague—which was counted as a righteous act by God.  The New Testament warns us often about the dangers of immorality (and that it is often connected with false religion; see Romans 1; Ephesians 4,5; Colossians 2,3; for example).

SIN SEVEN: Of Moses (vv. 32,33).

The sin of Moses in Numbers 20 is a tragic story indeed, for it shows how powerful the influence of weak people can be.  The people were a part of the reason for his failure here.  True, he was the one who was ultimately responsible for his sin—and he was the one who had to suffer the consequences—but they contributed, as usual, to the sad story.  He forfeited his right to an inheritance in the promised land.  God was not going to change His mind.  And we must learn that there is a lesson for us in this.  We must not be weak and pull others down, and we must not let the weak pull us down. We are accountable as individuals for our own sins.

SIN EIGHT: In the land (vv. 34-39).

We should not be surprised in the least that God wanted Israel to destroy the pagan nations who were in the land of Canaan.  Israel had demonstrated repeatedly that they were not strong enough to coexist with such evil forces without giving in—quickly (And we need this lesson, too!  Let us “destroy” our enemies by teaching them the gospel!).  But they did not heed the commandments of the Lord, thus allowing many of the evil influences to remain in the land.  The poet does not tell us how many years are covered in these verses, but the truth is that the situation described here was a part of the history of Israel (and Judah) until the captivities under the hands of the Assyrians and Babylonians nearly 1000 years after the Exodus.

SIN NINE: Led to captivity (vv. 40-46).

The situation described here is one that occurred often in the history of Israel.  Even as early as the period of the Judges they were punished by their enemies as a consequence of their sins against God.  And although there were times when they were at peace, the overall story of the historical books of the Old Testament is one of unfaithfulness and punishment.  The strong language of the psalm must not be overlooked—God was truly angry, disgusted, and willing to turn them over to the most vicious people in order to teach them the lessons they needed to learn.  And when they did learn, He responded with undeserving kindness.

CONCLUSION: “God, save us from our punishment!” (vv. 47,48).

It seems too much to ask that such sinners could be forgiven.  How could people who do so many iniquities so often even think that a cry for mercy would be heard by the One Who had been treated so badly?  The God of hosts Whose works of greatness and love that have been described in the two previous psalms deserves better than this from Israel, doesn’t He?

But He remained available, and He saved them again—and again—and again—when they came according to true repentance.

And He is available to you and me, too (Acts 2:37,38)

“Praise ye the LORD”:  Hallelujah!
 
 

SICK LIST: Adam Wright, Loretta Barbosa’s son, is recovering from surgery on a broken ankle.  Rita Roberts (Mary Jones’ sister) is critically ill and in hospice care at Gainesville Hospital.  Christa Figgins’ sister was in a serious car accident in which her pelvic area was crushed.  She was pregnant and suffered a miscarriage.  Let’s remember those who are ill and their families in our prayers.

PLANTATION SOUTH:  Group 3 is in charge of services today at 1:30. 

FOR THE RECORD:   
Sunday Class               154 
Sunday AM Worship   201
Sunday PM Worship   140
Wednesday Class        154
Contribution             $5200

WEEKLY LADIES’ CLASS:  The class meets Tuesday at 10:00 and is studying  the book of Joshua.  Mary Jones is the teacher.

ELDERS’ MEETING:  The elders will be meeting Sunday, November 17, at 4:00.  If you would like to talk with the elders, please see Rod Rutherford for an appointment.

BIBLE BOWL:   The quarterly Bible Bowl will be Wednesday, November 20, instead of November 27, since several  families will be away for Thanksgiving.  There will be a devotional Wednesday, November 27, instead of classes.

CHINESE CHECKERS PARTY:  Everyone is invited to stay after services Sunday evening, December 8, for Mary Jones’ 80th birthday party.  Please bring snacks and drinks—and join in the fun of good food and Chinese checkers!  (In lieu of gifts, if you would like to honor Mary on her 80th birthday, you may make a contribution to Truth for the World in her name).  If you have a Chinese checkers board, please bring it along.