DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
What do verses 1-6 teach us about God?
How would you address the problem being addressed in verses 7-15? How does this apply to us today?
How would you summarize the problem being addressed in verses 16-21? How does this apply to us today?
Why is it important to see that, even when God addresses the sins of his people, he still offers grace?
SERMON MANUSCRIPT:
“A Psalm of Asaph.”
Who is Asaph? Asaph was a Levite whom David assigned as a worship leader in the Tabernacle choir. Unlike myself, who can’t clap and sing simultaneously, Asaph was an excellent musician—the Michael Jackson, John Mayer, and Lenny Kravitz of David’s generation. He served as the chief of ministers, and his duties were to lead God’s people to give thanks and praise to the LORD (1 Chronicles 16).
In 2 Chronicles 29:30, he is also described as “Asaph the seer,” a term of prophecy. God had gifted this man with the ability to see and speak of events that would happen in the future. You can see this demonstrated through the handful of psalms that he conducts. Psalm 50 has strong prophetic undertones that are laced with immediate relevance. In a captivating fashion, God, through Asaph, calls his people to obedience because judgment is coming.
Let's dive in,
“[1] The Mighty One, God the LORD,
speaks and summons the earth
from the rising of the sun to its setting.
[2] Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty,
God shines forth.”
[3] Our God comes; he does not keep silence;
before him is a devouring fire,
around him a mighty tempest.
[4] He calls to the heavens above
and to the earth, that he may judge his people:
[5] “Gather to me my faithful ones,
who made a covenant with me by sacrifice!”
[6] The heavens declare his righteousness,
for God himself is judge! Selah”
GOD IS GREAT
The scene has been set here, beginning with the main character, God. Here, we see God as mighty, glorious, and beautiful, and he is rounding up (summoning) his creation to judge his people.
Look at the language used here to describe God’s presence:
Out of his dwelling place, Zion, which is the perfection of the beauty, God shines forth (v.2).
His glory cannot be tamed like a mighty tempest (a tremendous storm-like manifestation) (v.3);
Before him is a devouring fire that cannot be tamed (v.3).
The heavens declare his righteousness, shouting, “God himself is judge (v.6)!”
God’s presence is magnificent, beautiful, bright, and terrifying. This teaches us that God is greater than we could ever imagine.
The more we read the Bible, the more we encounter God’s glory. The more we encounter God’s glory, the more we see God for who he is. The more we see God for who he is, the more we see ourselves for who we are. God is big; we are small. God is majestic; we are insignificant. God is mighty; we are weak.
So, the language used in passages like Psalm 50 is intended to raise our eyebrows. It’s intended to increase our heart rate. God is far greater than we could ever imagine. His presence is like a mighty storm; before him is a devouring fire. He is not someone we should take lightly.
The language used here also echoes that used in Exodus 19 during the mosaic covenant.
In Exodus 19, the LORD says to Israel, “You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now, therefore, if you will indeed obey my voice and keep my covenant, you shall be my treasured possession among all peoples, for all the earth is mine; and you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”
In response, God’s people said, “All that the LORD has spoken, we will do.”
The LORD then says he will come to them in a thick cloud and speak to them. So, for three days, Israel was to consecrate themselves and prepare for this meeting. On the morning of the third day, lightning and thunder struck, and a thick cloud covered the mountain. This was followed by a loud trumpet blast, which caused all the people in the camp to tremble. It says the mountain was covered in smoke because the LORD had descended on it in fire, and it trembled greatly.
The LORD then gave Israel the law and the commandments. After the LORD gave Israel the law and the commandments, Israel shouted together (again), “All the words that the LORD has spoken we will do.”
Early the following day, God’s people made sacrifices to the LORD and said again, “All that the LORD has spoken we will do, and we will be obedient.”
Moses took the blood of the sacrifices, threw it on the people, and said, “Behold, the blood of the covenant that the LORD has made with you in accordance with all these words.”
So, I believe the language used here at the start of Psalm 50 was intended to (1) communicate the greatness of God and (2) draw our attention back to Mount Sinai, where God’s people made a covenant with their God.
God is speaking to his covenanted people.
Verse 3, “Our God comes…”
Verse 4, “He calls… that he may judge his people…”
Verse 5, “Gather to me my faithful ones, who made a covenant with me by sacrifice.”
God is great and personal. It is their God who summons them. God has gathered his faithful ones who belong to him by covenant.
The Hebrew word for “faithful” is ḥāsîḏ, which signifies steadfast love, loyalty, kindness, or holiness. These are men and women who have not forgotten the LORD and are committed to upholding their covenantal relationship with God. These are men and women who are devoted to God’s service.
Here, the almighty God speaks directly to his faithful ones, those who belong to him by covenant, and this is what he has to say,
“[7] Hear, O my people, and I will speak;
O Israel, I will testify against you.
I am God, your God.
[8] Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you;
your burnt offerings are continually before me.
[9] I will not accept a bull from your house
or goats from your folds.
[10] For every beast of the forest is mine,
the cattle on a thousand hills.
[11] I know all the birds of the hills,
and all that moves in the field is mine.
[12] “If I were hungry, I would not tell you,
for the world and its fullness are mine.
[13] Do I eat the flesh of bulls
or drink the blood of goats?
[14] Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and perform your vows to the Most High,
[15] and call upon me in the day of trouble;
I will deliver you, and you shall glorify me.”
OFFER RIGHT SACRIFICES
So, the LORD has gathered his people to testify against his people. His faithful ones need correcting. But what has God's people done to earn such a rebuke?
Well, we can safely conclude that their shortcomings center around making sacrifices. In fact, one thing they’re seemingly doing well is offering sacrifices to the LORD. God says in verse 8, “Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me.” So, God’s people are not failing in the offerings department. They’re keeping up with the sacrificial system portion of the law. But, despite the abundance of offerings, there was still something wrong with their sacrifices because the LORD said, “I will not accept a bull from your house or goats from your folds.”
So, why? Why did the LORD reject their sacrifices?
Well, it seems that there is something fundamentally wrong with their motives in offering sacrifices. In verse 14, God says, “Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving.” This assumes God’s people were giving sacrifices to the LORD without a thankful heart.
John Piper comments on this passage, “We are fundamentally receivers.” God is the giver of good gifts, not us. So, thankfulness assumes dependence. A thankful heart flows out of a proper view of God.
But look at what God says in verses 10-13 before he calls his people to offer sacrifices of thanksgiving. In these verses, he highlights his independence from creation. Every deer in the woods, every cow on your farm, every dog on the prairie, and every tiny little canary, every living thing belongs to God. Therefore, there’s nothing that anyone could offer him that he doesn’t already own.
During this time, neighboring nations believed sacrifices were intended to feed the gods. But God is saying, “I’m not hungry and in need. I don’t eat bulls' flesh or drink goats' blood. Your sacrifices do nothing for me.” God is unlike the neighboring gods; he doesn’t depend on his people's sacrifices. God existed before the foundation of the world, and he exists outside of creation. There’s nothing on this planet that we can offer that God needs.
Their theology of God impacted how they worshipped God, and their view of God impacted how they lived. In the words of James Hamilton, “God rebukes Israel not for failing to offer sacrifices, but for their mistaken assumptions about those sacrifices.” Therefore, God corrected their theology, reminding them that He doesn’t depend on their offerings. Instead, he desires a "sacrifice of thanksgiving."
This tells us that, when it comes to the Christian faith, the why is equally important as the what. The motive is just as important as the action. True worship requires the heart. It’s possible to do the right thing with the wrong motives and be the wrong thing.
Their sacrifices had become empty rituals rather than sincere acts of devotion. True worship is not about the ritual but a relationship with God, and a relationship with God should be characterized by a thankful heart.
SERVE WITH THANKFUL HEARTS
How does this apply to us today as a church?
For starters, we are part of a new covenant. The Mosaic Covenant was ushered in on Mount Sinai through Moses. The New Covenant was ushered in on Golgotha through Jesus. Unlike the Mosaic covenant, which was based on their obedience to the law and animal sacrifices, we are part of a new covenant with God that was established through Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross, which atones for our sins once and for all. We have entered the covenant through faith, and Jesus's blood has covered us. The Holy Spirit has moved into our hearts, and we have been covered with grace and forgiveness.
So, as a church in this new covenant, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that you are serving people. At Harbor, there are many ways to serve on Sunday mornings (childcare, security, tech, hospitality, worship, etc.). And if you are an active member of Harbor, chances are you’re serving in more than one area. Your burnt offerings of service are ever before the LORD.
But, as we serve, let this passage remind you of a couple of things:
First, God does not need you. You are a member of the church, so you are essential. But you are not the cornerstone of the church—Jesus is. You are not the lifeblood of the church—Jesus is. God has gifted each of us uniquely, and we are to use those gifts to build up the body of Christ. But God does not need your gifts. There’s nothing you can offer God today that he doesn’t already have. As Gerald Wilson puts it, “Right worship consists in acknowledging that we have nothing to bring to the creator of the universe that is not already his.”
Second, God cares just as much about your heart as he does your actions. God wasn’t telling Israel to stop offering sacrifices to him. No! He was telling Israel to start offering sacrifices with a thankful heart. In the same way, God isn’t telling us to stop serving the church. No! He’s telling us to start serving the church with a thankful heart.
When you prepare to teach our little kids in the back, you say, “Lord, thank you for allowing me to teach these little kids about you. I know you don’t need me, but please bless my efforts so you might be glorified!”
When you show up early to serve on the security team, you say, “Lord, thank you for allowing me to serve today. I know you don’t need my service, but please bless my efforts so that you may be glorified!”
When you write a check and drop it in the joy box in the back or give online, you say, “Lord, thank you for blessing me with a job. I know you don’t need this money, but I give it back to you with a thankful heart. I ask that you use this to bless others.”
May we be people who offer our bodies up daily as a living sacrifice unto the LORD with thankful hearts.
The LORD then shifts his focus from “the faithful ones” who were doing the right thing with the wrong motives to ”the wicked” who were doing bad things with the wrong motives. He turns to the wicked and says, “Don’t think you’re off the hook, buddy!”
Let’s look at what he has to say to the wicked,
“[16] But to the wicked God says:
“What right have you to recite my statutes
or take my covenant on your lips?
[17] For you hate discipline,
and you cast my words behind you.
[18] If you see a thief, you are pleased with him,
and you keep company with adulterers.
[19] “You give your mouth free rein for evil,
and your tongue frames deceit.
[20] You sit and speak against your brother;
you slander your own mother’s son.
[21] These things you have done, and I have been silent;
you thought that I was one like yourself.
But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.
In verse 16, the word recite means to declare, recount, celebrate, or shout. The LORD asks, “What right do you have to talk about the law you hate?”
Put in a way we might better understand. It would be the equivalent of someone saying, “Who are you to discuss the negative effects of the paleo diet!? You ate McDonald's for lunch and ice cream for dinner!”
The actions of the wicked don’t align with the law they recite. Their words and their life do not align. The wicked talk about God’s law with no concern for God’s law. The wicked talk about obedience with no regard for obedience. Friends, may we be careful not to proclaim something with our lips that we do not proclaim with our lives.
THE WICKED HATE DISCIPLINE
The wicked are stiff-necked and hate discipline. They always have an excuse and never submit to rebuke. When they hear a Bible verse that convicts them, their knee-jerk reaction is to justify their actions instead of repenting.
How we respond to discipline reveals a lot about who we are. The righteous receive it, while the wicked hate it.
THE WICKED HATE GOD’S WORD
Instead of having God’s commandments written on their hearts, bound on their hands, and frontlets between their eyes, they “cast God’s commands behind them” like pieces of trash. They bring their Bible on Sundays but leave it in the truck for the rest of the week.
How we treat God’s word reveals a lot about who we are. The righteous delight in God’s law, while the wicked are indifferent.
THE WICKED KEEP BAD COMPANY
The wicked don’t walk with the righteous; they are pleased with the thief and keep company with adulterers. In other words, they join themselves and keep company next to those without concern for God.
The company we keep reveals a lot about who we are. The righteous walk with the righteous, while the wicked keep company with the wicked.
THE WICKED KEEP LOOSE LIPS
They give no concern about the words coming out of their mouths. They spend their time slandering those around them, tearing down those they love the most.
The words we speak reveal a lot about who we are. The righteous seek to use their words for life, while the wicked give no concern about what comes out of their mouths.
JUDGMENT IS COMING, BUT GRACE IS AVAILABLE
The wicked have done these things, thinking God doesn’t care. But he does. One of the greatest lies you could ever believe is the lie that God doesn’t see all things and that God doesn’t care. Verse 21 says, “These things you have done, and I have been silent; you thought I was one like yourself. But now I rebuke you and lay the charge before you.” Do not mistake God’s current silence for a lack of care. Judgment is coming for the wicked. God sees all our sins, and judgment is coming. God’s apparent silence now toward wickedness is not God’s endorsement of wickedness. You may profit off sin now, but that well will soon run dry.
The LORD concludes with an invitation that we must take heed to today. He says, “Mark this, then, you who forget God lest I tear you apart, and there be none to deliver! The one who offers thanksgiving as his sacrifice glorifies me; to one who orders his way rightly, I will show the salvation of God!”
Brothers and sisters, next to all rebukes is an invitation. Right next to this warning of judgment is an invitation of grace and mercy. Forget the LORD and God’s wrath will one day be yours. The wicked will be torn apart with nothing left. But, remember the LORD and return to him with humble thankfulness and taste and see that the LORD is good! Repent and return to the LORD, and God will show you salvation!
All who call upon the name of the LORD will be saved.