Turn back to Psalm 37. Psalm 37. We began the service by reading
a portion of this psalm. But Lord willing, I'd like to
look at eight exhortations from this passage of scripture. Kind of interesting, that word
exhortation, it can mean a word of correction, but it can also
mean a word of comfort. And we're told, we're told in
scripture to exhort one another daily. That must be fairly important
if it's something we should do every day, exhort one another
daily. And there's eight exhortations
in this passage here that I'd like for us to look at quickly
this evening. David wrote this in old age. If you look at verse 25, you'll
see that David was an old man when he wrote this. He says there,
I've been young and now I'm old. Often old men are credited for
wisdom. So let's look at this passage
of scripture this evening. And this first exhortation, again,
Psalm 37, look at verse one. He says, fret not thyself because
of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of
iniquity. To fret, it means to be furious. It means to fume, or it could
also mean to worry, to burn with anger. You know, this sinful nature
of ours, it doesn't take much to kindle
that fire, does it? How often in times of trial and
adversity do we come to the conclusion
that the Lord somehow has forgotten us? Psalm 73 verse three said, I
was envious at the foolish when I saw the prosperity of the wicked. Not only do we sometimes look
at things and think God has forgotten us, we look at others and we
become envious of them. The prosperity of the wicked,
at best, at best it's temporary. Our Lord asked this question
in Mark 8, 36. He said, what shall it profit
a man if he should gain the whole world? but lose his own soul. What about the self-righteous
of this world, the hypocrite? Scripture said, those that love
to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the street,
for what purpose? Not to declare God's Word. For
what purpose? That they may be seen of men. Would we fret? Would we fret
because of them? We read verily, verily they have
their reward. If that's their desire, if that's
what they want is to be seen of men, they got it, didn't they? But back to the initial point,
how often, how often are we quick to murmur and complain against
God's providence? He says, fret not, fret not because
of evil doers, neither be thou envious against the workers of
iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down
like the grass and wither as the green herb. Sometimes the yard, the grass
gets a little tall, and you go out there and you cut it, and
it just looks a mess. And if it's a hot week, in just
a short amount of time, all that grass is just withered up, and
just like dust, it's taken away. The destruction of the ungodly,
it'll be quick, it'll be sure, and it'll be overwhelming. just like in the days of Noah. So for the believer, listen,
there's no reason to fret. And we need to be exhorted to
that, don't we? We need to be reminded of that.
We need to be instructed. We need to be encouraged. We
need to be reminded. No reason to fret. In the believer,
there is an incorruptible seed that lives and abides forever. Why would we ever envy the things
of this world? Well, second, look at verse three. Here's the second exhortation.
Trust in the Lord and do good. This is the cure. This is the
cure for fretting. What is it? It's faith. Trust in the Lord. Solomon wrote that. He said the
exact same thing. He said, trust in the Lord with
all thine heart and lean not unto thine own understanding
and all thy ways acknowledge him and he, he shall direct thy
path. Trust in the name of the Lord.
His name. The name of the Lord Jesus Christ.
To call upon Him. To worship Him. We sing that
song, that name. There's no other name. There's
something about that name, isn't there? Something about that name. The name of Christ. It declares
what He is. It declares who He is. Not just
a Not just a man. I hear everybody in the world
talks about a man named Jesus. I tell you, this world is filled
with Jesuses. He's the Lord Jesus Christ. That's his name. Jesus, that's
his name of humiliation. He's the Lord Jesus Christ. Isaiah said this about His name,
His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the
Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace. Trust in Him, trust
in the Lord, not man. Put not your trust in man. Put not your trust in princes
nor the Son of Man in whom there is no help. Listen, His breath goes forth
and then it's going to return to the earth. And in that very
day, His thoughts perish. He's going to be gone. Trust
in the Lord. Third, look at Psalm 37, look
at verse 4. Delight thyself also in the Lord. Delight yourself. Be merry. Rejoice. Rejoice in the Lord. Don't fret. Rather rejoice. Trust. Trust in the Lord. Delight thyself in the Lord.
Again, not this flesh, not this world. Delight thyself in the
Lord. Turn over to Hebrews. Hold your
place. there in Psalm, but turn over
to Hebrews chapter 11. Hebrews 11. You know Moses was, he was 40
years old. And think about this, he was
raised in Pharaoh's house. He was born in that time when
Pharaoh was having all the male children killed and cast into
the river. And yet he was putting that little
basket there in the water. And in God's providence, Pharaoh's
daughters, she walks by, sets her affection on him. And that
little boy is raised in Pharaoh's house by the very man that seeks
to kill him. And then they go find someone
to nurse that baby, and who is it but his mother? God's providence, isn't it just
glorious? And sometimes we catch just a
little glimpse of it. Raised in Pharaoh's house, and
listen, there's no doubt in my mind he was well-educated, he
was wealthy, and likely, I'd say there's probably a good chance
he would have succeeded Pharaoh. But he refused. He refused the
honors of Egypt in order to be identified with the Lord's people. Identified with the Lord God
and His people. He believed the promises of God
to be true. And rather than take those things
that were in his hand, those possessions, he said, I'll not
have them. He left those all behind. He
esteemed the reproach and affliction of the people of God better than
all the sinful pleasures of Egypt. Hebrews 11, do you have verse
24? Hebrews 11 verse 24, By faith Moses, When he was come to years, he
refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, choosing
rather to suffer affliction with the people of God than to enjoy
the pleasures of sin for a season, esteeming the reproach of God
greater riches than the treasures in Egypt, for he had respect
under the recompense of the reward. Delight thyself, not in this world, delight thyself
in the Lord. Everything in this world, everything
in it is temporary. But God's promises, they're eternal. They fail not. Well, again, back
to Psalm 37. Here's the fourth exhortation.
Look at verse five. Commit thy way unto the Lord. Trust also in him. Commit thy way. Anxiety, worry, fear, whatever it might be. Commit thy way unto the Lord. Scripture says this, cast all
your care upon Him, for He careth for you. We're told to take our burden
to the Lord and do what? Leave it there. I can remember
Henry saying this, we usually don't have any trouble taking
our burden to the Lord, but boy, we sure do struggle just leaving
it with Him, don't we? Commit thy way unto him. Paul writing to Timothy, he said
this, I know whom I have believed and I'm persuaded that he is
able to keep that which I have what? Committed. Committed unto
him against that day. Commit thy way to the Lord. That means I'm trusting Him. I'm casting myself upon Him. I'm in His hands. Only He can save me. Only He
can sanctify me. Only He can glorify me. He's
my wisdom. He's my righteousness. He's my
sanctification, my redemption. Commit thy way unto the Lord. Trust Him. Trust Him alone. He'll bring it to pass. Commit thy way. Am I looking
to Him? Am I resting in Him? Well, fifth, look with me at
verse seven. Rest, rest in the Lord and wait
patiently for him. In Genesis chapter two, verse
two, it says on the seventh day, God ended his work which he had
made and he rested on the seventh day. He rested from all the work
which he had made. Now you and I, when we rest,
it's because we're tired. It's because we've grown weary. God rested. He doesn't grow tired. He doesn't grow weary. He rested
declaring there was nothing more to do. Creation was finished. Turn to Hebrews 4. Hebrews 4. Look at verse 9. Hebrews 4. Verse nine, there remaineth therefore a rest. Who's it for? To the people of
God. For he that is entered into his
rest, he also hath ceased from his own works as God did from
his. The Lord Jesus Christ entered
in to rest, having finished the work, of redemption. Let us strive to enter in to
that rest, to cease from fretting, to cease from laboring, to cease
from doubting and simply rest in Him. You know, the more we learn of
His sufficiency, the greater our rest should be,
knowing that He's finished the work. That's what He cried. That was His cry on the cross,
wasn't it? It is finished. Rest in the Lord
and wait patiently for Him. Well, back to our text. Here's
the sixth point. In verse 8, this is a tough one. Cease from
anger and forsake wrath. Cease from anger. In Romans 8,
28, we read, we know that all things work together for good.
to them that love God, to them who are the called according
to His purpose. Knowing that all things are of
His hand, knowing that He's purposed all
things, He's ordained all things, I'm confident as long as we're
in this flesh, we're going to deal with this, aren't we? This
thing of anger. You know, David, I said, we read
there he was an old man. He knew this. He knew this by
experience. He wasn't talking about anything
here that he hadn't experienced either. Back in 2 Samuel 6, they were bringing the ark. They
built a new cart to haul the Ark of God around on. And apparently
it hit a bumpy spot in the road and a man named Uzzah, he reached
up there to just steady that Ark. And what happened? God slew him, didn't He? God
slew Uzzah. for touching that ark. God's
holy. This is serious, isn't it? He
just reached up there to steady that ark from falling off a cart.
God slew him. He smote him for his error. And
he died right there beside that ark. And scripture says that
displeased David. It didn't displease David. He
wasn't displeased with himself. He wasn't displeased with Uzzah. He was angry, wasn't he? That's
what that word means, displeased, angry. God is just and God is righteous
in all that He does. We read, oh man, who art thou
that replies against God? Shall the thing formed say to
him that formed him, why have you made me thus? God does all things well. All that he does is just. and write, all that he does is
for his glory and the good of his people. How can I be angry? How can I be angry with him?
Cease, cease from anger. And knowing, listen, not just
God, knowing the ignorance and blindness of man, and that God
is the first cause of all things, how can I be angry with my fellow
man? I will be. Maybe that's why we're
told to exhort one another daily. Back in Genesis 50, Joseph's brothers, you know the
story of Joseph and what his brothers did to him. And Joseph's
brothers thought when their father died that that was the only thing
holding Joseph back, that he would get even with them. And after he died, Joseph returned
to Egypt, he and his brothers, And they went up to bury his
fathers, and after they had buried his father, they went and fell
down before him. They fell down before Joseph,
and they said, we're your servants. Boy, they must have thought he
was just going to lower the boom on them, didn't they? We're your
servants. And Joseph said this to him.
He said, fear not. Am I in the place of God? You thought evil against me. There's no mistake in that. But God meant it for good. God meant it for good to bring
to pass this day to save much people alive. Fear not. I'll nourish you. I'll take care
of your little ones. And he comforted them. and he
spake kindly to them." A meek and quiet spirit. Scripture
says this, a meek and a quiet spirit is of great price in the
sight of God. Cease from anger and forsake
wrath. James 1.20 says this, that the
wrath of man the wrath of man, and we're plentiful in it. The
wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. And this thing of getting even,
this thing of getting back, that's in the hands of God. Romans
12, 19, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto wrath,
for it's written, vengeance is mine. Vengeance is mine. I will repay, saith the Lord. Listen to these words. Be ye
kind, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God, for Christ's
sake, hath forgiven you. Someone once said this, your
anger's never gonna win the heart of a foe. but your kindness might
just reach the heart. Well, quickly, two more points
here, two more exhortations. The seventh one is found in verse
27. Depart from evil. Depart from
evil and do good. That's spoken to man, man who
drinks iniquity like rainwater. We're drawn, listen, we're drawn,
we're sinful. Man is sinful. And we're drawn
to sin like a moth to the flame. But what's the exhortation? Depart
from evil. Turn with me to Proverbs 4. Proverbs chapter 4. Look at verse 14. Enter not into
the path of the wicked. That's a good way to depart from
evil, isn't it? Enter not in the path of the wicked. Go not
in the way of evil men. And listen to this emphasis.
Avoid it. Pass not by it. Turn from it. And pass away. Enter not into the path of the
wicked. Depart from evil. And did you know the word Exodus,
it means to depart? The children of Israel, what
did they do? They departed from Egypt. But you know what? Time and time
again, they voiced their desire to go back, didn't they? Lord,
we'd have been better off if you'd just left us there. Depart from evil. Lot. Remember Lot? You know, unlike his wife, he
departed. He departed Sodom, and unlike
his wife, he did not look back. There was a cost, wasn't there?
Earthly speaking, there was. He lost his wife. He lost his
son-in-laws. He lost his home, he lost his
wealth, he lost his flocks, his herds, everything in that city
was reduced to ashes. Depart from evil. Peter spoke
and he, listen, the Lord said this, he said to the Lord, he
said, we've left all and we followed Thee. And the Lord replied to
him, and he said, there is no man that hath left house, or
brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children,
or land for my sake and the gospels, that he's not going to receive
a hundredfold in this time, in brethren, and sisters, and mothers,
and children, and lands, and persecutions, and in the world
to come. eternal life. Paul said this, he said, abhor
that which is evil and cleave to that which is good. We sin, don't we? Believers sin,
but listen, we're not to love sin, not in ourselves or in others
for that matter. And the fact that we are sin
and we read that over and over in scripture, it doesn't excuse
or justify it. Depart from evil and do good. And then last, here's the last
exhortation. Verse 34. Again, back to Psalm 37. Look
at verse 34. Wait on the Lord. Wait on the Lord. Those who trust
in the Lord, those who delight in the Lord, those who rest in
the Lord, and wait on Him. Wait on Him. Wait on God's time
for all things. That doesn't mean we sit idle. God's people are We should be
active in his kingdom. Scripture describes us as a peculiar
people, zealous of good works. Our Lord didn't sit idle, did
he? Remember that? As a young man, he'd slipped off from his
parents, and they were a day's journey away, and they came back,
and what'd he say to them? I must be about my father's business. All that he would use us to spread
the gospel by whatever means he supplies. It's all of him. We don't sit out of it. Listen,
we do wait for him. Wait for his direction. Wait
for him to open doors. Wait for him to give liberty.
Wait for him to give wisdom. Wait on him for results. We don't run up and down the
aisles grabbing people, dragging them up here, do we? No, God
gives the increase. Listen, I've planted, Apollo's
watered, but God gave the increase. Wait on him in obedience as a
servant. Wait on him in hope as an heir. Wait on Him in expectation as
a believer. What's the command? Wait on the
Lord. Isaiah 30 verse 18, listen to
what Isaiah said. He said, blessed are all they
that wait on Him. That wait on Him. Well, eight
exhortations. What are they here? Fret not
thyself because of evildoers. Trust in the Lord. Delight thyself
also in the Lord. Commit thy way unto Him, unto
the Lord. Rest in the Lord. Cease from
anger. Depart from evil and do good.
and wait on him, wait on the Lord. All right, Isaac, you come
lead us in a closing.