Psalm 48. I titled this message, for this
God is our God. This God of Zion, this God who
protects and keeps the church, is our God. This God who is to
be greatly praised. This God who is the guide, our
guide, even unto death. And some translations say even
over death. But He is our guide. He is our
God. That is so comforting to me.
We live in such, seems to be uncertain times, but they're
certain with God. What's uncertain with me is certain
with Him. And that's where I get my comfort from. That's why I
can go home at night and I can sleep. I do. I don't lose sleep
over anything. It's either because I either
trust the Lord or I'm not very smart. I don't get too involved. But I hope it's that I trust
the Lord. I hope that's where it comes from. Now most people
claim to believe there is a God. Most claim to have a God. But there's only one God. This is what separated Israel
from the other nations. They believed in one God, while
the nations believed in many gods. Zion, which is the church,
has only one God, and He's the God of heaven and earth, He's
the God of creation, He's the God of salvation, and He's our
God. Now it says in verse 1, Great
is the Lord, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God,
in the mountain of His holiness. Great is the Lord, none compared
to Him. There's none compared to Him.
To whom will you liken Me? God said. To whom will you liken
Me? To whom will you compare Me? In His person, He's love. God
is love. He is truth. He is light. God is light and in Him is no
darkness. He is just. He's a just God and a Savior.
He's the great Shepherd of the sheep. He's the great I Am. And He's our God. And He's to
be greatly praised. I looked that word up, greatly.
It means in a great manner. in a great manner." Our God is to be praised in a
great manner because everything about Him is great. There's not
a flaw in Him anywhere. As it says in the Song of Solomon,
He is altogether lovely. Happy. Now listen, happy is the
person, the family, or the home. where God is great." Happy is
that home where God is great. And greatly to be praised ought
to be in accordance with the person's character. It's the
first thing I thought of when I saw this. If you're going to
praise somebody, your praise of that person should be in accordance
with their character and with their accomplishments. Well,
there's none like God. There's none like Him. And that
being so, the Lord cannot be praised too much and too often. There's a lot of things you and
I can do too much of. And there's a lot of things that
we can do too often. But when it comes to worship
of the Lord Jesus Christ, when it comes to praising Him, we
cannot even begin to do it too much, nor too often. Now where is He to be praised?
In the city of our God? in the mountain of His holiness."
He's speaking here of the church. You know, Jerusalem was a type
of the church. And He's speaking here of the
church, which is in the Lord Jesus Christ, and the church
is spoken of as a city, a thriving city. Listen to Hebrews 12.22,
"'But ye are come unto Mount Zion, and unto the city of the
living God, the heavenly Jerusalem," not the type, not the one on
earth, the heavenly Jerusalem, "...and to an innumerable company
of angels." It is spoken of as His city. It's His city, not a city, it's
His city. He created it. He formed it. It's a city inhabited by the
saints of God. He has chosen every person that's
in that city. He's chosen them personally.
He's chosen to be in that city, in His city. He made up His city
by His elect. He chose them. It is written
in Isaiah 26.1, In that day this song shall be sung in the land
of Judah. We have a strong city. Salvation
will God appoint for walls and bulwarks." That's what surrounds... The walls that surround God's
city are salvation. It's salvation. It's the salvation
of His people. And it's His city. And he says here in verse 2,
"...and it's beautiful for situation." That word beautiful means elevated. It means elevated. That's what
it means. Jerusalem, now if you go back, Jerusalem was a type
of the church. Jerusalem sat on a hill. We call
it a hill. It was 2,500 feet above sea level. It sat up on top of that hill.
You know, in the Scriptures, they always talk about going
up to Jerusalem. No matter where you came from
on this earth, when you went to Jerusalem, you had to go up
to Jerusalem. because she represents the church
of the living God, which is seated at the right hand of God in Christ
at the throne of God. Everyone could see her beauty
from a long ways off, and everyone, when they came, they would look
up, and when it was at its prestige, they could look up, and they
stood in awe of this city, sitting up 2,500 feet above everybody. The church is in the Lord Jesus
Christ, in Him you are complete, and God has elevated her to His
throne. To His throne. And he says here
that she's a joy, beautiful for situation, and the joy of the
whole earth. Now this is definitely the language
of a true Israelite. When he looked at Jerusalem,
He said that this is the joy of the whole earth. This is where
God is. This is where His presence is. This is where the Messiah,
all the pictures and the types and everything was there. No
other nation had that. No other nation had the oracles
of God. They didn't have any of the pictures,
the types, they didn't have any of that. He says here that she
is the joy of the whole earth. There's Mount Zion on the sides
of the north, the city of the great King. This is where the
King, the great King, the God King, this is where He resides,
in His church. That's where God resides. Why
is she called the joy of the whole earth? Well, think about
this. It's out of Zion, out of the church, went glad tidings
through all the earth. He told his disciples to go to
all the world and preach the gospel. When our Lord arose from
the dead and ascended on high, He sent out His disciples from
Jerusalem, that's where it started from, it went from Jerusalem,
and it has spread throughout the whole world. Listen to Colossians
1.23, If you continue in the faith, grounded and settled,
and be not moved away from the hope of the gospel which you
have heard, and which was preached to every creature which is under
heaven, whereby Paul had made a minister. You take the church
out of this world, listen, and there's no joy. There's no joy. I was thinking today as I was
looking at this over and over today, I was thinking, you take
the church out of this world and there's nothing to be joyful
about. You know, you look at people who do not know the Lord
Jesus Christ, they don't know God, and they're out there, and
they have a good life, so to speak, and they're happy, and
they're going about here to and fro, and things are going fine.
You know why? Because God has a church in this
world. You take the church out of this
world, and that ends. That comes to an end. She's the
joy of this world, whether even the world knows it or not, but
you and I know it. Can it a joy to come here? Is
it a joy to come here? To sit and listen to the Word
of God, to read the Word of God, to hear of our God-King? It is. And listen, God is known
in her palaces for a refuge, in her houses. These are thoughts that come
to me when I study these things. And I was reading this right
before coming down here, and I thought this, God is known
in her palaces, the local assemblies of the churches throughout this
world, you've got local assemblies, they're like palaces. This is
like a palace. And God is known in this palace,
in this house. That palace here represents a
house, that's why it's called a house. He's known in this house. Here's another reason to praise
God, and that's this, He's made Himself known here. I'm not preaching
to you a false God. I'm not preaching to you a God
who wants to do something if you'll let Him. I'm preaching
to you the God of heaven and earth who does as He will, with
whom He will, when He will. That's God. That's our God. That's
our God. And He is known as the God of
all comfort, the God of all grace. Listen, He's known as Jehovah
Jireh, the Lord will provide. We know that. We know the Lord
will provide. He's known as Jehovah Rapha,
the Lord our healer. He's healed us of our spiritual
sickness. He's known as Jehovah Nisi, the
Lord our banner. He's our banner. Our Lord is. Jehovah Shalem, the Lord our
peace. He's known as Jehovah-Rehah, the Lord our Shepherd. Is He
not our Shepherd that leads and guides us and feeds us? He's
known as Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord our Righteousness. Is He
not our Righteousness? We know Him as that. We know
Jesus Christ as the Lord our Righteousness. Is He not Jehovah
Shema, the Lord is there? Is He not? He's known. We know
Him. We know the Lord, He made Himself
known to us. He's revealed Himself to us.
And He's known to be a refuge in our palaces. Where do you
take refuge? Now every person in this room,
we take refuge in something or someone. For the believer, we
take refuge in God. We come before His throne of
grace and we lay down our burdens and we take our refuge in Him. He is known as a refuge for her. She's been kept by her king throughout
the ages. You know why the church is still
here? Because God has kept her. He has kept her. Her husband
is her maker, and her husband is her refuge. Now, in verses 4-8, we see that
kings have gathered together against her and try to defeat
her and bring her down. Verse 4, For lo, the kings were
assembled, they passed by together. We saw that in 2 Chronicles 20
with Jehoshaphat. And then you can see in 2 Chronicles
32, the same thing happens with Hezekiah. And yet the Lord defeats
these armies. He defeats them for them. But
listen, the kings have assembled themselves together against her
many times over the years. But she's still here. She's still
here. You know what has happened to
them? It says here, and they passed by together. They've come
and they've gone. They've come and they've gone.
Pilate, Herod, Nero, where are they at? The church is still
here. Their kingdoms have been destroyed.
Their power has been destroyed. She's still here. Just reading this today piqued
an interest for me today, reading the Fox's Book of Martyrs. All
those men and people that have been martyred over the years
for the gospel, and yet, she's still here. She's still here. Because God has kept her. He's
kept her. They've all passed by. The Lord
said this, "'No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper.'"
He said, "'I made the smith that blows upon the coal. I make the
waster. They're in My hands.'" There in Isaiah 54, 16. "'They're
in My hands.'" The king saw it there in verse
5. They saw it and so they marveled. They were troubled and they hasted
and hurried up and ran away. The idea is this. They have gathered
together. They're going to defeat Jerusalem,
God's city. And they come and here they are
looking up this 2,500 feet. They've got to go up to get to
her. And they just lose heart. They lose heart. unlike Julius Caesar who said,
I came, I saw, I conquered. They came, they saw, and they
were defeated. That's what happened. That's
what happened, exactly what that verse is saying. They came, they
saw her, and they were defeated. They went backwards. Isn't that
what happened when our Lord was in the Garden of Gethsemane,
that army came out against Him? And what did they do? They told
Him who they were seeking, and He said, that's me, you know,
I am. And what happened? They all fell backward to the
ground. He had to help them get up. He had to help them get up
and finish the job. They fell backward at His Word. Over the years, God has manifested
His power in defending His church. To fight her is to fight God.
The Lord said to Paul, why? When he was named Saul, He said,
why? He said, it's hard for you to kick against the pricks. Why
are you fighting against me? That's what he's saying. Paul
was persecuting the church, which is the body of Christ, which
is to touch her is to touch the apple of his eye. For anybody
to touch you, I'm telling you they're touching the apple of
God's eye. They have no clue how dangerous or what they're
dealing with. Fear, he says in verse 6, took
hold upon them, and pain as of a woman in travail. Their own
fear defeated them. I'll tell you what they found
out. They found out that God, outside of Christ, is a consuming
fire. God is a consuming fire. God
in Christ is a Savior. God in Christ is merciful. Outside
of Jesus Christ, He is a consuming fire. He says here, he proves it in
verse 7, "...thou breakest the ships of Tarshish, those powerful
ships. It is said those ships could
take very long voyages." They were so big and manned, and they
could take long voyages. And he says here, you break them
with the east wind. You know, God's army in nature
is more powerful than all the armies of the world. God's army
in nature is more powerful than all the armies put together in
the world. He can just send snow and stop a war. He can send cold
and stop a war. He just commanded it to happen. He can command the east wind
and destroy the ships that were set against Jerusalem, that was
bringing them over, that crew, the army bringing them over.
He just destroyed the ships. And he says here, as we have
heard, so have we seen. We've heard about this and we've
seen it come true. in the city of the Lord of hosts,
in the city of our God. God will establish it forever.
God's witness is a true witness. Those who have ears to hear have
eyes to see. As we have heard, so have we
seen. You know, when I heard the gospel,
It just has to relate this to an experience. When I heard the
Gospel for the first time when Henry was preaching, I've told
you this before, but when I heard it, it matched what I was reading. As I heard, I could see it. I could see it in the Scriptures.
I see. That's what I see. And he says
here, "...as we have heard, so have we seen." The witness is
true. The message is true. Now in verses 9-11, the Lord's presence
brings joy to His people. He says here, We have thought
of thy lovingkindness, O God, in the midst of thy temple. Have
you ever sat down and contemplate the loving kindness of God to
you? Have you ever really just sat down and done that? You kind
of put away the busyness of the day and get away to yourself
and you really think about God's loving kindness to you, that
God has really saved you. That's amazing. Spurgeon said, God's people are
a thoughtful people. They are thoughtful people. We
have thought of thy lovingkindness. David said, Who am I and what
is my house? That is the attitude of every
believer. You find it amazing that God
saved you. Because you know you're just
like everyone whom God has sent to hell. You're just like them.
You know that. We have thought of Thy lovingkindness,
O God. This is good meditation. We think
upon God, think upon His mercy, His power, His lovingkindness.
Now that to me is what makes for a good day. Not thinking
upon my troubles, not thinking upon this or that, but thinking
upon the lovingkindness of God to me in Christ. And he says here in verse 10,
"'According to thy name, O God, so is thy praise unto the ends
of the earth. Thy right hand is full of righteousness.'"
Everything God does is right. Everything He does is right.
Our King does nothing but right. But he says here, "'According
to thy name, O God, so is thy praise.'" You know, great fame
belongs to great people. Great fame belongs to great people,
and there's none greater than God. None greater than God. All pale in comparison to Him. God is to be praised accordingly,
as He is. The God of heaven, I am that
I am. And especially in this matter
of righteousness. Spurgeon said, Thy scepter and
thy sword, thy government and thy vengeance are altogether
just. They're just. When God saves
a sinner, He does it in a just way. When God sends one to hell,
He does it in a just way. He's just, whichever He does
with people. He's just. Let Mount Zion, let the church
rejoice. Let the daughters of Judah be
glad because of thy judgments. God's people don't fear judgment. They don't fear judgment. Not
if they know God. If you know God, you don't fear
judgment. Our judgment was passed upon the Son of God. And we know
this, we know God's judgments are right. And we rejoice in
God's judgments throughout the earth. Whatever He does is right. I kill and I make alive. I wound and I heal. I lift up and I bring down. And all we say is, even so, Father,
it seemed good in Your sight. Do I understand? No. No. I don't
understand all that God does, I just understand who God is.
Now if you understand who God is, then you know that all that
He does is right. I don't have to understand all
the other stuff, I just understand who He is. If we're going to boast, we boast
in God. Let Mount Zion rejoice. Let the
daughters of Judah be glad." You know the church of God is
not a mournful place. It's a joyful place. It's a place
where we come together and we rejoice in God our Savior. And then he says here, and here's
something that piqued my interest. Walk about Zion. He's talking
about the church here. Go round about her. Study her. Study her. Look at her, because
what you're looking at is the work of God. That means count her towers one
by one. Look at them individually. Look
what God has done over the centuries. Walk about Zion. Don't just pass
by. You know, you're driving down
the road, you pass by all these beautiful flowers and trees. You're just
zooming to wherever you're going to go. Slow down. Slow down. Walk about Zion. Look at her. Go around about her. Walk all
the way around her like they did around Jericho. Just walk around
her. Look and study her and count her towers. Let the work of God
in His church have your attention. Use your mind for spiritual matters. That's what he's saying. Use
your mind for spiritual matters. God gave us a mind. One of the
most brilliant things God has ever given any human being is
a mind. To be able to have a mind that
can think and that can reason and that can... You know, the
mind, it just fascinates me. I mean, it just fascinates me.
And God has given us a spiritual mind. He's given us a spiritual
mind, not just a mind that we can think of, earthly thing,
but God Almighty has given us a spiritual mind. Renewing of the mind, Paul speaks
of. Study what God has done for Zion. Study what God has done in Zion,
the church. I think one of the reasons we
become so indifferent is because we are ignorant of history. We're
ignorant of history. We are ignorant of what it took
to get us here. That applies in natural things
as well as spiritual things. I started reading today and I
was reading about the martyrs that were just burned at the
stake. And they wouldn't deny Christ, and all they had to do
is deny, and they could have walked free, but they wouldn't
do it. And you know what? Because of that, we're here today. That's our ancestry. That's my
ancestry. Consider what God has made the
church. Listen to Ephesians 5.27. that
he might present it, the church, to himself, a glorious church,
not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should
be holy and without blemish." Walk about Zion. Look how perfect
she is in Christ. Look at her perfection. She's
without spot or blemish. She is made the righteousness
of God in Jesus Christ. You, you, every one of you who
believe, you are righteous in God's sight. You are without
blemish and without spot. You really are. You really are. And listen, verse 13, And Mark
wailed her bulwarks. Consider her palaces or her houses,
that you may tell it to the generation following. Don't you like it
when somebody that really knows history tells you about history?
I don't want some moron to tell me about history. I mean, who
knows what you're getting? You're only as good as the teacher
you sat under, aren't you? You're only as good as the people
that teach you. He says here, you mark you well her bulwarks. Consider her houses and listen,
and tell it to the next generation. Tell what God has done for the
church. Tell what God has done for your
soul. Tell how God has brought her through. It's like if you
go back into the Old Testament. Those children, when they grew
up, they knew what the Passover was all about. Because He said,
you tell your children. about this. When they ask, you
tell them, God brought you out of the land of Egypt. Instruct your children. Instruct
the next generation concerning the church and concerning what
God has done in Christ for the church. He's reconciled us to
Himself. Give attention to what God has
done and tell it to the next generation. Be a good witness.
Be a good witness. Mark how secure her inhabitants
are. She is safe. She's safe. You tell that next generation
that the Lord is her refuge. And when
that generation is gone, the next generation comes, the church
will still be here. She'll be here until the time is no more. And listen, you tell them this
too. You tell them this. You tell them to that next generation
of believers. This God, the God of Zion, is
our God. Let's not talk about a God like
the heathens do. They have many gods. But we have one God. And this
God is our God We will not have a changing of the gods. You go
over to the palace in London, they have a changing of the guards.
We will not have a changing of the gods. God is our God. God is our God. And He is our
God forever. In Psalm 100 it says, Thou hast
made us and not we ourselves. We didn't make ourselves, and
we didn't make God. God made us. God made us believers. And listen to this, this is good.
He's our God forever and ever, and He will be our guide even
unto death or over death, however you want to read that. But He
will guide us in life, That should be, and I'm sure it is, one of
your prayers, is the Lord guide me. Guide my decisions. Guide my thinking. Guide my thinking. You ever just want to just hit
you and say, why am I thinking that? Why do I think like that? It's just, Lord, guide my thinking.
Take control of my mind. Guide me in this life. He's my
guide in this life. Do you know which way to go? Do you know what's going to happen
tomorrow? Then you don't know which way to go, do you? If you
don't know what's going to happen, you don't know which way to go.
You don't know what road to take. I don't know what road to take.
I don't know what path to go down. Day by day, Lord guide
me. Shepherd me. Shepherd me. That's what I want. That's what
a good shepherd does. He guides the sheep, takes them
to the green pastures, takes them to where the still waters
are. You're not gonna fall in and be swept downstream. The
still water where they can go over and drink and be safe. Guide
me. Guide me in your word, guide
me by your spirit, and when it comes time to die, and it will
for every one of us, when it comes time to die, He'll be my
guide then. He'll guide me over Jordan. And I'll land safely on heaven's
shore in that day. This God is our God forever and
ever.