Martin Luther once had this to say about<\/p>\n
the Psalms uh the Salter should be<\/p>\n
precious to us if only because it most<\/p>\n
clearly promises the death and<\/p>\n
resurrection of Christ and describes his<\/p>\n
kingdom and the nature and standing of<\/p>\n
all Christian people it could well be<\/p>\n
entitled a little bible since everything<\/p>\n
contained in the entire Bible is<\/p>\n
beautifully and briefly comprehended and<\/p>\n
compacted into a<\/p>\n
manual he continued it seems to me as if<\/p>\n
the Holy Ghost has been pleased to take<\/p>\n
on himself the trouble of putting<\/p>\n
together a short bible touching on the<\/p>\n
whole of Christianity in order that they<\/p>\n
who are a unable to read the whole Bible<\/p>\n
May nevertheless find almost the entire<\/p>\n
sual comprehended in one little book The<\/p>\n
Salter is the very Paragon of books<\/p>\n
Luther said it is to the Psalms we come<\/p>\n
today into Psalm number 87 specifically<\/p>\n
which really exemplifies this quote from<\/p>\n
Luther within this prophetic Pongal we<\/p>\n
will find references to the very<\/p>\n
Cornerstone of our faith the intricacies<\/p>\n
of God's Redemptive plan the mystery of<\/p>\n
the Gospel the role of Christ Church and<\/p>\n
the future glorification of that church<\/p>\n
at the end of all things there's deep<\/p>\n
meaning in these short seven verses<\/p>\n
there's great theological truths that we<\/p>\n
can find here as we get get a glimpse at<\/p>\n
Zion the city of our god notice the<\/p>\n
psalm is broken up quite easily into<\/p>\n
three parts by the interjection saah<\/p>\n
word is not meant to be read when we see<\/p>\n
it in the Psalms but instead it's uh to<\/p>\n
tell us to pause take a moment to take a<\/p>\n
deep breath meditate on what we've just<\/p>\n
read and what we will continue to read<\/p>\n
in the psalm so as I read the psalm<\/p>\n
you'll notice that there and I'm not<\/p>\n
going to read it it's more of an<\/p>\n
instruction to us to meditate on God's<\/p>\n
word with that in mind let's turn to<\/p>\n
today's text if you have a Bible turn<\/p>\n
with me to Psalm 87 if not it will be on<\/p>\n
the<\/p>\n
screen on the holy Mount stands the city<\/p>\n
he founded the lord loves the gates of<\/p>\n
Zion more than all the Dwelling Places<\/p>\n
of Jacob glorious things of you are<\/p>\n
spoken oh city of God Among those who<\/p>\n
know me I mentioned Rahab and Babylon<\/p>\n
behold philistia and Ty with Kush this<\/p>\n
one was born there they say and of Zion<\/p>\n
it shall be said this one and that one<\/p>\n
were born in her the most high himself<\/p>\n
will establish<\/p>\n
her the Lord records as he registers the<\/p>\n
peoples this one was born there singers<\/p>\n
and dancers alike say all my Springs are<\/p>\n
in you when I was 13 years old I found<\/p>\n
out I needed glasses and it was kind of<\/p>\n
an unorthodox way to find out that I<\/p>\n
needed glasses um I was playing in the<\/p>\n
first game of a new baseball season<\/p>\n
um and it's important for context in the<\/p>\n
story to understand that like when you<\/p>\n
play Little League Baseball the field<\/p>\n
kind of gets bigger every year as you<\/p>\n
get older and when you turn 13 you start<\/p>\n
playing on a field that's basically like<\/p>\n
normal sized what like you play on for<\/p>\n
the rest of your life and the difference<\/p>\n
between the field when you're 12 and<\/p>\n
when you're 13 is really big it's it's<\/p>\n
really big and so for those who are<\/p>\n
unfamiliar with the game of baseball I<\/p>\n
was playing in the Outfield was much<\/p>\n
farther from the hitter than I was used<\/p>\n
to being and I was nervous it was the<\/p>\n
first game of the season but I was ready<\/p>\n
for the opportunity to make a play for<\/p>\n
my team and I watched as the pitcher<\/p>\n
threw the ball and I heard the batter<\/p>\n
hit the ball but I had no idea where the<\/p>\n
ball was and I somehow I knew the ball<\/p>\n
was coming in my direction all the other<\/p>\n
players on my team were looking to me<\/p>\n
and I Stood Still and looked up in the<\/p>\n
sky hoping to find the ball somewhere<\/p>\n
there<\/p>\n
and as I stood there<\/p>\n
helplessly searching the sky for the<\/p>\n
ball it landed about 10 feet behind me<\/p>\n
back that way and I ran and I got it and<\/p>\n
I was embarrassed and I threw the ball<\/p>\n
back in and I was like wow that was<\/p>\n
really weird hope that doesn't happen<\/p>\n
again the next inning it happened two<\/p>\n
more times and at the end of that inning<\/p>\n
uh I got back to the DG the The Dugout<\/p>\n
after the inning was over and my coach<\/p>\n
uh who happened to meet my dad basically<\/p>\n
said you are killing us out there what<\/p>\n
is wrong with you what's going on and I<\/p>\n
told him I can't I can't see the ball<\/p>\n
and he said well you need to figure out<\/p>\n
a way to see the ball or you're going to<\/p>\n
be on the bench I rode the bench the<\/p>\n
rest of the game and long story short uh<\/p>\n
we went to the eye doctor the next day<\/p>\n
and I realized that I was really<\/p>\n
nearsighted I couldn't see anything that<\/p>\n
was far away from me I needed glasses<\/p>\n
and my dad felt really bad about yelling<\/p>\n
at me about not being able to uh see the<\/p>\n
ball but uh that's not the moral of the<\/p>\n
story<\/p>\n
I still remember the first time that I<\/p>\n
put on glasses I walked out of the eye<\/p>\n
doctor and the first thing I said to my<\/p>\n
mom was is this how everybody else sees<\/p>\n
all the time you know I could see the<\/p>\n
leaves on the trees for the first time I<\/p>\n
could see the shapes of the clouds in<\/p>\n
the sky for the first time and<\/p>\n
thankfully I could see the baseball when<\/p>\n
it was coming towards me Psalm 87 is<\/p>\n
meant to be like eyeglasses for us you<\/p>\n
know we live in the world corrupted by<\/p>\n
sin and truthfully everything<\/p>\n
is a little blurry because of that all<\/p>\n
of creation has been fuzzy to us for all<\/p>\n
of our lives and Psalm 87 is meant to be<\/p>\n
eyeglasses for us to let us see what<\/p>\n
creation can and will be in pure<\/p>\n
detail when we see this city of God<\/p>\n
described it should give us hope for a<\/p>\n
future for what's coming for what God<\/p>\n
has<\/p>\n
promised we get a glimpse of God's<\/p>\n
glorified Z<\/p>\n
iion and we can start to see how the<\/p>\n
church itself can reflect that Glory<\/p>\n
even now in this short Psalm we learn<\/p>\n
what Zion is who the citizens of Zion<\/p>\n
are and how the citizens of Zion should<\/p>\n
behave it's broken down into three easy<\/p>\n
Parts the foundations of Zion the<\/p>\n
citizens of Zion and the song of<\/p>\n
Zion the foundations of Zion the<\/p>\n
citizens of Zion and the song of Zion<\/p>\n
the main point is that God founded Zion<\/p>\n
to establish a place for his gospel to<\/p>\n
be proclaimed and for his name to be<\/p>\n
worshiped by people of every tribe<\/p>\n
nation and<\/p>\n
tongue verses 1 to three<\/p>\n
discuss verses 1 to three discuss the<\/p>\n
foundations of Zion in these verses we<\/p>\n
see God's Divine initiative in<\/p>\n
establishing Zion<\/p>\n
himself when we read poetry in any<\/p>\n
language the placement of words is<\/p>\n
significant it's important<\/p>\n
and in the original text the first word<\/p>\n
of each of these first three verses is<\/p>\n
an action that God himself is doing uh<\/p>\n
in verse war in verse one the first word<\/p>\n
um says that that God is founding Zion<\/p>\n
that he's establishing Zion himself in<\/p>\n
verse two the first word gives the<\/p>\n
implication uh that God God has chosen<\/p>\n
to love his chosen people he he has he<\/p>\n
loves his people and he has chosen to<\/p>\n
love them verse three gives the<\/p>\n
implication that first word gives the<\/p>\n
implication that God<\/p>\n
exalts the place that he chooses to<\/p>\n
dwell above every other<\/p>\n
place and he does so by the Glorious<\/p>\n
things that are spoken about it by his<\/p>\n
people God is the one who gives Zion its<\/p>\n
significance and its<\/p>\n
Holiness so let's return to verse one it<\/p>\n
says on the Holy Mountain stands the<\/p>\n
city he founded in Hebrew this verse<\/p>\n
begins with the word uh his foundations<\/p>\n
the foundations that God has established<\/p>\n
and actually if they were if you were to<\/p>\n
directly translate it there's really no<\/p>\n
mention of a city it's just the<\/p>\n
foundations of God in the Holy mountains<\/p>\n
um now the mountains themselves there's<\/p>\n
not like a a holy mountain that exists<\/p>\n
on Earth that's holy because of it being<\/p>\n
a mountain it's holy because God has<\/p>\n
established himself there he chooses to<\/p>\n
dwell there and he has established the<\/p>\n
foundations<\/p>\n
there God himself founded Zion not the<\/p>\n
people of Israel or the church um in<\/p>\n
this verse it's talking about the city<\/p>\n
of Jerusalem which God chose to be his<\/p>\n
dwelling place within this the nation of<\/p>\n
Israel during the time that this Psalm<\/p>\n
was written now the people of Israel<\/p>\n
didn't even build the city of Jerusalem<\/p>\n
but God made it significant he made it<\/p>\n
his Zion when he chose to set up his<\/p>\n
Dwelling Place there his<\/p>\n
Temple God himself is the one who<\/p>\n
established and laid his foundations he<\/p>\n
has set it apart for his purpose his<\/p>\n
will and his worship John Newton the<\/p>\n
author of The hym Amazing Grace uh found<\/p>\n
inspiration in this Psalm to pen another<\/p>\n
hymn titled glorious things of thee are<\/p>\n
spoken it's a beautiful hymn that<\/p>\n
understands that this Psalm has a lot to<\/p>\n
say about the relationship that God has<\/p>\n
with his church and the way that his<\/p>\n
church can exist in the world<\/p>\n
today in that hymn Newton writes this<\/p>\n
line on the Rock of Ages<\/p>\n
founded I love the connection that<\/p>\n
Newton is making between the foundations<\/p>\n
of Zion in this Psalm and the<\/p>\n
Cornerstone of the<\/p>\n
church Christ is that Cornerstone Isaiah<\/p>\n
28:16 which we read<\/p>\n
earlier Builds on this idea it says<\/p>\n
therefore thus says the Lord God behold<\/p>\n
I am the one who has laid as a<\/p>\n
foundation in Zion a stone a tested<\/p>\n
Stone a precious Cornerstone of a sure<\/p>\n
Foundation whoever believes will not be<\/p>\n
in<\/p>\n
haste a tested Stone<\/p>\n
a precious<\/p>\n
Cornerstone in other words a living<\/p>\n
Stone rejected by men but in the sight<\/p>\n
of God Chosen and<\/p>\n
Precious on Christ the solid rock we<\/p>\n
stand all other ground is sinking sand<\/p>\n
as the old song<\/p>\n
goes Jesus is our foundation he is the<\/p>\n
stone that the builders rejected that<\/p>\n
has become the Cornerstone upon which<\/p>\n
the whole Church of God is<\/p>\n
built when he when the storms rage when<\/p>\n
the enemy surrounds it's on the<\/p>\n
foundation of Christ that we stand and<\/p>\n
we remain strong our foundations hold<\/p>\n
strong if we stand upon<\/p>\n
Christ in the book of Ephesians Paul<\/p>\n
discusses this truth and the sign<\/p>\n
significance it has for the church in<\/p>\n
verses 19 20 through 22 of chapter 2 he<\/p>\n
says this so then you are no longer<\/p>\n
strangers and Aliens but you are fellow<\/p>\n
citizens with the Saints and members of<\/p>\n
the household of God built on the<\/p>\n
foundation of the apostles and Prophets<\/p>\n
Christ Jesus himself being the<\/p>\n
Cornerstone in whom the whole structure<\/p>\n
being joined together grows into a holy<\/p>\n
Temple in the world in him you are also<\/p>\n
being built together into a dwelling<\/p>\n
place for God by the<\/p>\n
spirit the church itself not the<\/p>\n
physical building not this room that<\/p>\n
we're in right<\/p>\n
now but the body of<\/p>\n
Believers each of us in this room are<\/p>\n
being built into a holy Temple for the<\/p>\n
Lord<\/p>\n
we have become the spiritual embodiment<\/p>\n
of God's holy Zion his Dwelling Place<\/p>\n
his<\/p>\n
temple built on the foundation of his<\/p>\n
sacrifice the sacrifice of his son<\/p>\n
Jesus that sacrifice is the greatest<\/p>\n
example of God's love that we have as we<\/p>\n
move to verse<\/p>\n
two we see this love<\/p>\n
described verse two reads the lord loves<\/p>\n
the gates of Zion more than all the<\/p>\n
Dwelling Places of<\/p>\n
Jacob the first word here is the is one<\/p>\n
of the Hebrew words for love but not<\/p>\n
just any love this love is God's<\/p>\n
elective love there is a sense of of<\/p>\n
election here there is a sense of God's<\/p>\n
Divine Choice here God has chosen to<\/p>\n
love Zion more than any of the other<\/p>\n
Dwelling Places of of Jacob Zion<\/p>\n
Jerusalem was not the only place within<\/p>\n
the people of Israel that God was<\/p>\n
worshiped but God has chosen it to be<\/p>\n
his place of dwelling<\/p>\n
in his love in his elective<\/p>\n
love God shows his love for his people<\/p>\n
by choosing them by choosing them for<\/p>\n
himself it's a consequence of God's<\/p>\n
Divine initiative and Sovereign choice<\/p>\n
that the Glorious things of Zion are<\/p>\n
spoken uh it may be odd to read at first<\/p>\n
that God loves the gates of the city<\/p>\n
more than any other Dwelling Place of J<\/p>\n
Jacob not the not the temple not a<\/p>\n
worship site but I think there's<\/p>\n
significance here when we see the term<\/p>\n
Gates what we should take from that is<\/p>\n
that what what we what the psalmist is<\/p>\n
saying is um that God loves the very<\/p>\n
heart and soul of the people of Israel<\/p>\n
the gates were more than just where<\/p>\n
people entered and exited the city um<\/p>\n
that was where uh the the elders talked<\/p>\n
about what the laws should be for the<\/p>\n
people it's where they heard petitions<\/p>\n
uh it's where the worship of God was<\/p>\n
outlined it's where people gathered and<\/p>\n
talked about uh things and um where<\/p>\n
people sold and bought Goods is where<\/p>\n
they did everyday life the significance<\/p>\n
here is that God is choosing to love the<\/p>\n
very heart and soul of people not some<\/p>\n
pedestal that set us off to the side but<\/p>\n
where everyone come comes and goes where<\/p>\n
everyone does their everyday<\/p>\n
life he's dwelling with them in their<\/p>\n
midst he is not off some place<\/p>\n
different to be looked at far away he's<\/p>\n
dwelling within their<\/p>\n
midst and speaking about these verses<\/p>\n
Charles Spurgeon had this to this to say<\/p>\n
where God Reveals His love the most<\/p>\n
there should each believer most Delight<\/p>\n
to be<\/p>\n
found God Reveals His love most in<\/p>\n
choosing his<\/p>\n
church can you say that you Delight to<\/p>\n
be found in his<\/p>\n
church do you look forward to Gathering<\/p>\n
of Believers every week<\/p>\n
or is it just something else that you<\/p>\n
know you have to check off your to-do<\/p>\n
list God has poured out his love in his<\/p>\n
Spirit on the church when we Embrace<\/p>\n
that spirit and experience that love<\/p>\n
there's no other place we would rather<\/p>\n
be when we truly understand the benefits<\/p>\n
of God's elective love it can change us<\/p>\n
completely uh verse three talks<\/p>\n
about how the city of God is exalted and<\/p>\n
glorified it reads glorious things of<\/p>\n
you are spoken oh city of<\/p>\n
God great honorable glorious things are<\/p>\n
spoken of the city of God because God is<\/p>\n
the one who exalted<\/p>\n
it the the use of the Hebrew word that's<\/p>\n
translated Spoken Here gives the idea<\/p>\n
that even though the people of Zion are<\/p>\n
the ones saying these glorious things<\/p>\n
that God is the one who gave them those<\/p>\n
words to say God is the one who exalts<\/p>\n
Zion<\/p>\n
himself God has glor ious things to say<\/p>\n
about his Dwelling<\/p>\n
Place how do you speak about<\/p>\n
it how do you speak about the Lord's<\/p>\n
church do you focus on its shortcomings<\/p>\n
and<\/p>\n
failures now I know that the church has<\/p>\n
many failures throughout its long<\/p>\n
history I'm not trying to imply that the<\/p>\n
church doesn't have anything that it<\/p>\n
needs to repent for the truth is that<\/p>\n
the church is filled with people who are<\/p>\n
sinners and who fight an eternal battle<\/p>\n
daily between the Flesh and the spirit<\/p>\n
so people within the church are going to<\/p>\n
do wrong<\/p>\n
things but God still chooses to love<\/p>\n
this<\/p>\n
church that's the place he chooses to<\/p>\n
dwell not within the building God is not<\/p>\n
not dwelling in this building when we're<\/p>\n
when we're not<\/p>\n
here God chooses to dwell within the<\/p>\n
heart and soul of each and every<\/p>\n
believer<\/p>\n
the church is still the vehicle for the<\/p>\n
proclamation of God's<\/p>\n
gospel and the Hub of God's<\/p>\n
worship blemishes in<\/p>\n
all God Delights in his church he loves<\/p>\n
his church do you as we move to verse<\/p>\n
four we enter the second portion of this<\/p>\n
Psalm the citizens of<\/p>\n
Zion verse four reads among those who<\/p>\n
know me I mention Rahab and Babylon<\/p>\n
behold fisa and<\/p>\n
Ty with Kush this one was born there<\/p>\n
they<\/p>\n
say here we have a list of Nations but<\/p>\n
not just any<\/p>\n
Nations the Nations included here are<\/p>\n
all enemies of the people of Israel we<\/p>\n
begin with Rahab which we should<\/p>\n
associate with Egypt the writer is using<\/p>\n
the term Rahab to to represent Egypt<\/p>\n
here and Babylon the two greatest<\/p>\n
oppressors of the people of Israel<\/p>\n
throughout history the Egyptians<\/p>\n
Enslaved the Israelites for Generations<\/p>\n
the Babylonians<\/p>\n
exiled the Israelites from their<\/p>\n
Homeland we continue with the<\/p>\n
Philistines the constant thorn in the<\/p>\n
side of the Israelites during their era<\/p>\n
of prominence the era of prosperity in<\/p>\n
the promised land the list continues<\/p>\n
with people of Ty and Kush Kush was uh<\/p>\n
modern day Ethiopia these were two<\/p>\n
powerful city states in the of the<\/p>\n
ancient world one to the north one to<\/p>\n
the south of Israel uh these nations<\/p>\n
were constantly trying to lure the<\/p>\n
Israelites away from worship of God with<\/p>\n
their worldliness and<\/p>\n
idolatry so in summation we have enemies<\/p>\n
to the north south east and west and<\/p>\n
from within of<\/p>\n
Israel but this is not a Psalm where God<\/p>\n
is uh promising judgment on the enemies<\/p>\n
of<\/p>\n
Israel this is a Psalm where<\/p>\n
each of these nations is included in the<\/p>\n
citizens of<\/p>\n
Zion this is<\/p>\n
miraculous these Gentile Nations will<\/p>\n
become citizens of the people of<\/p>\n
God they will be able to enter the place<\/p>\n
where God chooses to<\/p>\n
dwell they will be able to become people<\/p>\n
of the<\/p>\n
Covenant Paul calls this the great<\/p>\n
mystery of the Gospel in Ephesians he<\/p>\n
says in Ephesians 3:6<\/p>\n
this mystery is that the Gentiles who<\/p>\n
are are fellow heirs members of the same<\/p>\n
body and partakers of the promise in<\/p>\n
Christ Jesus Through The Gospel through<\/p>\n
the death of Jesus we are no longer<\/p>\n
strangers and Aliens as we read<\/p>\n
earlier but we are a chosen people a<\/p>\n
holy nation a people for God's Own<\/p>\n
desire a people of God's own<\/p>\n
choosing through Christ even though we<\/p>\n
are from different countries we have<\/p>\n
different skin colors we speak different<\/p>\n
languages we come from different<\/p>\n
religious<\/p>\n
backgrounds even though all of those<\/p>\n
things are true we are still buing being<\/p>\n
built up together into the Temple of the<\/p>\n
one true<\/p>\n
God isn't that<\/p>\n
amazing each of us in this room should<\/p>\n
be particularly thankful for this<\/p>\n
mystery because we we should be included<\/p>\n
in this list of enemies of the people of<\/p>\n
Israel and the people of God we're all<\/p>\n
Gentiles but through the sacrifice of<\/p>\n
Jesus J us we can become co-s of the<\/p>\n
Covenant God has made with his chosen<\/p>\n
people God did not wait for us to be<\/p>\n
drawn to his holy city by the Glorious<\/p>\n
things that were said about it instead<\/p>\n
he came to us when we were still far<\/p>\n
away when we had rejected him when we<\/p>\n
had turned our backs on him when we ran<\/p>\n
away from<\/p>\n
him Romans 5 8-10 says but God shows his<\/p>\n
love for<\/p>\n
us in that while we were still sinners<\/p>\n
Christ died for us since therefore we<\/p>\n
have now been justified by his blood<\/p>\n
much more shall we be saved by him from<\/p>\n
the wrath of God for while we were<\/p>\n
enemies we were reconciled to God by the<\/p>\n
death of his son much more now that we<\/p>\n
are reconciled shall we be saved by his<\/p>\n
life God saved us even though we<\/p>\n
rejected<\/p>\n
him even though we walked<\/p>\n
away even though we were his<\/p>\n
enemies what a beautiful gift of Grace<\/p>\n
this is<\/p>\n
there are three main things that I think<\/p>\n
we can take away from this truth the<\/p>\n
first is that no one is disqualified<\/p>\n
from citiz citizenship in Zion this list<\/p>\n
of Nations includes the greatest<\/p>\n
oppressors and idolators of the ancient<\/p>\n
world yet to each of them God extends<\/p>\n
the gift of citizenship citizenship in<\/p>\n
Zion on the other hand aren't we so<\/p>\n
quick to<\/p>\n
judge we eliminate people all all the<\/p>\n
time that we believe are too far gone to<\/p>\n
be<\/p>\n
saved we say to ourselves that it isn't<\/p>\n
worth having that conversation because<\/p>\n
they're never going to turn back from<\/p>\n
their<\/p>\n
ways so often we group ourselves with<\/p>\n
the citizens of Zion and and we are a<\/p>\n
part of the citizens of Zion but we<\/p>\n
forget that we were once enemies of<\/p>\n
God we were once equal of equal standing<\/p>\n
with Babylon and Egypt and philistia and<\/p>\n
Ty and<\/p>\n
Kush do not not be so quick to condemn<\/p>\n
others when you yourself deserve to be<\/p>\n
condemned if it not for God's grace you<\/p>\n
too would stand condemned so understand<\/p>\n
this no one is beyond salvation no one<\/p>\n
is beyond<\/p>\n
Redemption no one is too far gone that<\/p>\n
they cannot receive<\/p>\n
Grace God's grace is sufficient for all<\/p>\n
Jesus blood is sufficient for all<\/p>\n
sin the second thing that we should see<\/p>\n
here is the basis for the citizenship in<\/p>\n
Zion it's listed three times once in<\/p>\n
each<\/p>\n
verse did you see it it's<\/p>\n
birth Now isn't that interesting how can<\/p>\n
birth<\/p>\n
be what includes Us in citizens of been<\/p>\n
Zion when all of these nations come from<\/p>\n
different places they're different<\/p>\n
people<\/p>\n
groups I have American<\/p>\n
citizenship there are lots of people in<\/p>\n
this room that don't have American<\/p>\n
citizenship you have citizenship in<\/p>\n
different countries and we all have<\/p>\n
different benefits because of those<\/p>\n
things because we born in different<\/p>\n
places but here people from different<\/p>\n
places receive the same benefit even<\/p>\n
through birth so how can it be<\/p>\n
birth that seals our citizenship and the<\/p>\n
people of God we should be immediately<\/p>\n
reminded of the conversation that Jesus<\/p>\n
has with Nicodemus in John<\/p>\n
3 Nicodemus is a Pharisee he's a<\/p>\n
religious person he knows the the Bible<\/p>\n
he has read it cover to cover he's<\/p>\n
memorized it<\/p>\n
comes to Jesus<\/p>\n
questioning what little thing he needs<\/p>\n
to change so that he can be assured that<\/p>\n
he is included in the people of God and<\/p>\n
Jesus flips his world upside down Jesus<\/p>\n
tells him you don't need a small fix you<\/p>\n
need to be completely reborn you have to<\/p>\n
become a new person to be in to be in<\/p>\n
part of the people of<\/p>\n
God what does Jesus say he says unless<\/p>\n
one is born again he cannot see the<\/p>\n
kingdom of<\/p>\n
God Nic is perplexed he thinks that<\/p>\n
Jesus is talking about a physical birth<\/p>\n
he's talking about he thinks he's<\/p>\n
talking about re-entering again into his<\/p>\n
mother's womb and being going through<\/p>\n
the process of birth again but that's<\/p>\n
not what Jesus is talking about Jesus is<\/p>\n
talking about the fact that we have to<\/p>\n
experience a spiritual rebirth we should<\/p>\n
become spiritually refreshed spiritually<\/p>\n
new to become a part of God's<\/p>\n
kingdom we must become new people the<\/p>\n
old must pass away and the spirit must<\/p>\n
take hold in your life and make you into<\/p>\n
complet complely New<\/p>\n
Creation now you may be sitting here<\/p>\n
today you may know that you were far<\/p>\n
from God you may know that you're not<\/p>\n
following God you're not seeking him<\/p>\n
you've turned your back on him you may<\/p>\n
have run away from<\/p>\n
him or you may be sitting here today and<\/p>\n
you may be like<\/p>\n
Nicodemus you've heard this all before<\/p>\n
you've heard the gospel many times you<\/p>\n
know<\/p>\n
everything but you haven't been reborn<\/p>\n
see the thing about these two scenarios<\/p>\n
is they not different both of the people<\/p>\n
in these scenarios have to experience<\/p>\n
rebirth they have to be reborn through<\/p>\n
the spirit become new<\/p>\n
people verse six of our Psalm says the<\/p>\n
Lord registers as he records as he<\/p>\n
registers the people this one was born<\/p>\n
there you cannot receive the benefits of<\/p>\n
the citizenship in Zion unless God has<\/p>\n
written your name in The Book of Life in<\/p>\n
his record book is your name name in<\/p>\n
that book of<\/p>\n
life have you been<\/p>\n
reborn have you become a new<\/p>\n
creation the third and final takeaway we<\/p>\n
have from this section is our<\/p>\n
responsibility considering this truth<\/p>\n
the truth that people of Any Nation can<\/p>\n
become citizens in the citizens of<\/p>\n
Zion it's our missionary<\/p>\n
hope we know that the picture painted in<\/p>\n
Psalm 87 and echoed in Isaiah 2 and<\/p>\n
revelation for is going to come back<\/p>\n
come to pass what began at Pentecost<\/p>\n
when the spirit was poured out on the<\/p>\n
apostles and they spoke in many tongues<\/p>\n
will come to fruition fruition at the<\/p>\n
end of all things there will come a day<\/p>\n
when people of every nation and tongue<\/p>\n
will worship Before the Throne of God<\/p>\n
together how is that going to happen how<\/p>\n
is that going to come to pass Romans<\/p>\n
Romans 10 14-5 says<\/p>\n
this In this passage Paul was wondering<\/p>\n
how it's going to come how this is going<\/p>\n
to come to pass<\/p>\n
himself he says how then will they call<\/p>\n
on him in whom they have not believed<\/p>\n
and how are they to believe in him of<\/p>\n
whom they have never heard and how are<\/p>\n
they to hear without someone<\/p>\n
preaching and how are they to preach<\/p>\n
unless they are<\/p>\n
sent as it is written how beautiful are<\/p>\n
the feet of those who preach the good<\/p>\n
news it is our responsibility to take<\/p>\n
the gospel to those who have never heard<\/p>\n
it before Jesus Jus told us to Go Make<\/p>\n
Disciples of all Nations he told us to<\/p>\n
be his Witnesses in Jerusalem Judea<\/p>\n
Samaria and to the ends of the Earth let<\/p>\n
me ask you would you consider yourself<\/p>\n
Jesus witness to the people in your life<\/p>\n
when was the last time you had a<\/p>\n
conversation about the gospel with<\/p>\n
someone when was the last time you<\/p>\n
invited someone to<\/p>\n
church how long has it been since you<\/p>\n
shared the good<\/p>\n
news it is our greatest joy to share the<\/p>\n
good news with those never heard of<\/p>\n
before our hope is that we may see some<\/p>\n
of those people worshiping around the<\/p>\n
Throne of God With Us One<\/p>\n
Day the final section of our Psalm the<\/p>\n
song of Zion contains just one verse it<\/p>\n
says singers and dancers alike say all<\/p>\n
my Springs are in you it's a picture of<\/p>\n
Celebration it's a picture of<\/p>\n
Joy Paul says rejoice in the lord always<\/p>\n
again I say rejoice<\/p>\n
when we understand the gift of God's<\/p>\n
grace the beauty in our spiritual<\/p>\n
rebirth and the benefits of citiz<\/p>\n
citizenship in Zion our only response<\/p>\n
should be<\/p>\n
Joy When We Gather on a Sunday our<\/p>\n
attitude should be typified by<\/p>\n
joy we should not allow ourselves to be<\/p>\n
brought down by the trials and<\/p>\n
tribulations we face in this world when<\/p>\n
we gather together experiences the joy<\/p>\n
of the gathered body of<\/p>\n
Believers even though we remain in this<\/p>\n
world we know know we are not of this<\/p>\n
world we live now experiencing a<\/p>\n
foretaste of future Glory the proverbial<\/p>\n
already but not yet find your joy and<\/p>\n
your hope in the promises of<\/p>\n
God the celor song in this verse is that<\/p>\n
all my Springs are in<\/p>\n
you this most likely means something to<\/p>\n
the effect of all my all the blessings<\/p>\n
of citizenship citizenship in Zion are<\/p>\n
in you but I think there's significance<\/p>\n
to the fact that that water is used to<\/p>\n
symbolized that I'm reminded of the<\/p>\n
conversation that Jesus had with the<\/p>\n
Samaritan woman at well where he told<\/p>\n
her I can give you water that will never<\/p>\n
make you thirst<\/p>\n
again Jesus is that Living<\/p>\n
Water Jesus will take away your<\/p>\n
thirst he is the source of all of our<\/p>\n
blessings of all the promises of<\/p>\n
God celebration we see in this verse is<\/p>\n
a picture of the one that is to come<\/p>\n
Revelation 19 18<\/p>\n
6-9 talks about that beautiful Feast<\/p>\n
that is to come at the marriage supper<\/p>\n
Lamb one day the citizens citizens of<\/p>\n
Zion will be fully United with the<\/p>\n
founder of Zion and we will sing the<\/p>\n
song of Zion<\/p>\n
together the New Jerusalem the New Zion<\/p>\n
will be a place where God truly dwells<\/p>\n
with his<\/p>\n
people Revelation<\/p>\n
21 describes the city having the glory<\/p>\n
of God it's radiance it's like a most<\/p>\n
rare Jewel verses 23- 27 say and I saw<\/p>\n
no temple in the city for its Temple is<\/p>\n
the Lord God the almighty in the lamb<\/p>\n
and the city has no need of sun or moon<\/p>\n
to shine on it for the glory of God<\/p>\n
gives it light and it's lamp is the Lamb<\/p>\n
by its light will the Nations walk and<\/p>\n
the kings of the earth will bring their<\/p>\n
Glory into it and its Gates will never<\/p>\n
be shut by day and there will be no<\/p>\n
night there they will bring into it the<\/p>\n
glory and honor of the Nations<\/p>\n
but nothing unclean will ever enter it<\/p>\n
nor anyone who does what is detestable<\/p>\n
or false but only those who are written<\/p>\n
in the Lamb's Book of<\/p>\n
Life God himself will dwell in this new<\/p>\n
Zion he will be the place of<\/p>\n
worship he will be its light and its<\/p>\n
lamp and in it a river filled with the<\/p>\n
Water of Life will<\/p>\n
run what a beautiful picture for the<\/p>\n
future citizens of Zion<\/p>\n
those whose names are written in the<\/p>\n
book of<\/p>\n
life so as we sit here today remember<\/p>\n
that<\/p>\n
God the one who founded and established<\/p>\n
Zion has given us the opportunity<\/p>\n
through his elective love to become<\/p>\n
citizens of Zion even though we rejected<\/p>\n
him and as we gather as his church each<\/p>\n
week we get a foretaste of the glory<\/p>\n
that is to<\/p>\n
come we get to sing the song of Zion<\/p>\n
together in his church we get a good get<\/p>\n
a<\/p>\n
glimpse of what awaits us as chosen<\/p>\n
Zion one day we will feast in the house<\/p>\n
Zion one day we will sing with our<\/p>\n
hearts<\/p>\n
restored we will glorify his name<\/p>\n
together and we will feast and weep no<\/p>\n
more<\/p>\n
amen let's<\/p>\n
pray father God we all we praise you as<\/p>\n
the almighty founder of Zion<\/p>\n
we thank you for choosing to love<\/p>\n
us we thank you for sending your son to<\/p>\n
be a holy and perfect sacrifice for us<\/p>\n
even though we were your<\/p>\n
enemies we praise you for in your<\/p>\n
sovereignty you made your son the<\/p>\n
foundation on which your church is built<\/p>\n
we thank you for giving us the<\/p>\n
opportunity to become citizens of your<\/p>\n
kingdom for giving us the benefits of<\/p>\n
citizenship Lord let our lives reflect<\/p>\n
the joy in your song every day let us<\/p>\n
ref reflect the beauty of your holy city<\/p>\n
When We Gather each Sunday father we<\/p>\n
love you in Jesus name we pray amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20240813","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=yNxEtyrCFhE","video_id":"yNxEtyrCFhE","video_duration":"32:45","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/382","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=382"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/382\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":383,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/382\/revisions\/383"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/381"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=382"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=382"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=382"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}