every year we spend some time going<\/p>\n
through the psalms and we look at 10<\/p>\n
psalms each year<\/p>\n
this year is no different we're<\/p>\n
currently in our series on the psalms<\/p>\n
and what we're doing is we're taking the<\/p>\n
psalm in its entirety and we're seeing<\/p>\n
what it teaches us about who god is and<\/p>\n
what that means for our relationship<\/p>\n
with him<\/p>\n
so today we get to psalm 62 and i'll<\/p>\n
invite bee to read the text to us and<\/p>\n
thai<\/p>\n
songs<\/p>\n
[Music]<\/p>\n
let's pray lord jesus we thank you for<\/p>\n
your word today we thank you that you<\/p>\n
are here with us in spirit and lord we<\/p>\n
pray that<\/p>\n
as your word it's preached lord that you<\/p>\n
would touch our hearts through the power<\/p>\n
of your holy spirit praise in jesus name<\/p>\n
amen<\/p>\n
so psalm 62<\/p>\n
now the psalms have often been called<\/p>\n
the prayer book of the bible and that's<\/p>\n
a really fitting name<\/p>\n
other places in the bible like the<\/p>\n
lord's prayer teaches us what to pray<\/p>\n
but the book of psalms teaches us how to<\/p>\n
pray<\/p>\n
the psalms take us deep into our own<\/p>\n
hearts a thousand times faster than we<\/p>\n
would go by ourselves<\/p>\n
they're raw emotional even dark at times<\/p>\n
but they also don't just vent<\/p>\n
they pray their feelings they take them<\/p>\n
into the presence of god until they<\/p>\n
change them or understand them<\/p>\n
from<\/p>\n
every single possible human situation is<\/p>\n
described and depicted in the psalms and<\/p>\n
we're shown and instructed how to pray<\/p>\n
how to address god in these various<\/p>\n
situations<\/p>\n
so psalm 62 is a prayer it's written by<\/p>\n
david when he was facing distress<\/p>\n
and it tells us<\/p>\n
that he is in a time of trouble and pain<\/p>\n
that we can say<\/p>\n
hello<\/p>\n
so verses three and four show us that he<\/p>\n
describes himself as a leaning wall a<\/p>\n
tottering fence<\/p>\n
the idea here is that he is so<\/p>\n
overwhelmed that he is about to tip over<\/p>\n
something<\/p>\n
the text doesn't tell us what exactly<\/p>\n
david is facing but it tells us that<\/p>\n
he's wary he's exhausted he's<\/p>\n
overwhelmed<\/p>\n
and in this situation he writes psalm<\/p>\n
62.<\/p>\n
and we might expect that because david<\/p>\n
is exhausted and weary this psalm will<\/p>\n
be one of discouragement<\/p>\n
but what we actually see is a psalm of<\/p>\n
hope<\/p>\n
david is encouraging himself to rest in<\/p>\n
god alone<\/p>\n
but<\/p>\n
this psalm teaches us three things that<\/p>\n
we can learn about rest<\/p>\n
the importance of rest<\/p>\n
where do we usually look for it and how<\/p>\n
do we get it<\/p>\n
so<\/p>\n
our culture today in bangkok glorifies<\/p>\n
overwork and burnout<\/p>\n
many of us are working long hours<\/p>\n
working all day even working all night<\/p>\n
long<\/p>\n
and while it's true that work and rest<\/p>\n
are a pair that come together the bible<\/p>\n
actually teaches us that the opposite of<\/p>\n
rest is not work but restlessness<\/p>\n
not knowing what it's like to become<\/p>\n
always feeling on edge always under<\/p>\n
pressure trying to prove ourselves<\/p>\n
david is under stress the pressure is so<\/p>\n
great that he is about to tip over.<\/p>\n
and in verses 1 and 5 david states that<\/p>\n
it's only for god alone that his soul<\/p>\n
waits in silence<\/p>\n
do you see how powerful this is<\/p>\n
he's being targeted he's being attacked<\/p>\n
and in circumstances that would lead him<\/p>\n
to be overwhelmed fearful<\/p>\n
anxious and restless<\/p>\n
he's experiencing the deep soul rest<\/p>\n
that is available for anyone who would<\/p>\n
come to the god of the son<\/p>\n
of<\/p>\n
now most of us aren't being chased by<\/p>\n
enemies like david usually is<\/p>\n
but we all know what it's like to be<\/p>\n
restless<\/p>\n
to be filled with fear pain regret<\/p>\n
worries about the future to the point of<\/p>\n
being overwhelmed<\/p>\n
we have to have this job or we won't<\/p>\n
make it this relationship needs to<\/p>\n
happen or things will not be okay<\/p>\n
my kids need to get into the school or i<\/p>\n
need to get into this college or make<\/p>\n
the sports team or things won't be ok<\/p>\n
our souls are never silent and facing<\/p>\n
trouble only brings this out we all know<\/p>\n
what it's like to be restless<\/p>\n
last year a global tech company<\/p>\n
published a study of the top 50<\/p>\n
overworked cities in the world<\/p>\n
they defined overwork as full-time<\/p>\n
employees who work more than 48 hours<\/p>\n
each week<\/p>\n
so they looked at 50 cities across the<\/p>\n
world<\/p>\n
and guess what place bangkok was on that<\/p>\n
list<\/p>\n
bangkok was the third most overworked<\/p>\n
city in the world just behind<\/p>\n
singapore and hong kong<\/p>\n
singapore hong kong also on that list<\/p>\n
bangkok had the second worst work life<\/p>\n
balance just behind malaysia it was<\/p>\n
number two then it is<\/p>\n
well the first reason is technology our<\/p>\n
work is far more accessible now than it<\/p>\n
ever was before<\/p>\n
technology<\/p>\n
there's no escape we can work from<\/p>\n
anywhere so we work from everywhere even<\/p>\n
our homes<\/p>\n
our competitors are no longer just the<\/p>\n
store across the street but whatever<\/p>\n
product that we're producing we're not<\/p>\n
competing with<\/p>\n
another reason for our overwork and<\/p>\n
restlessness is cultural<\/p>\n
it used to be that we got our identities<\/p>\n
and value from being part of a family or<\/p>\n
a community<\/p>\n
pension<\/p>\n
so being a son a daughter a husband or<\/p>\n
wife a friend or a neighbor<\/p>\n
and in many parts of thailand it's still<\/p>\n
that way but in bangkok for many people<\/p>\n
especially in the professional world<\/p>\n
it's changing<\/p>\n
the way we view value and worth is<\/p>\n
changing from something that is given to<\/p>\n
us to something we need to achieve and<\/p>\n
earn<\/p>\n
monthly<\/p>\n
now for many of us<\/p>\n
our work is how we get our value and<\/p>\n
worth how much money we make the social<\/p>\n
class or status that our work gives us<\/p>\n
our work is now used to prove ourselves<\/p>\n
there's never been a more restless<\/p>\n
culture<\/p>\n
the question is what do we do with our<\/p>\n
restlessness where do we look to to cure<\/p>\n
our restlessness<\/p>\n
so this psalm tells us two places that<\/p>\n
we try to look for rest two things that<\/p>\n
we trust in in the hopes that our<\/p>\n
restlessness is cured<\/p>\n
verse 9 tells us that we look to status<\/p>\n
in position and verse 10 tells us we<\/p>\n
look to accumulating wealth<\/p>\n
in verse 9 we read though those of<\/p>\n
lowest state are but a breath those of<\/p>\n
highest state are a delusion<\/p>\n
what david is saying is that wherever we<\/p>\n
fall on the spectrum of human status no<\/p>\n
matter what our class is if we are high<\/p>\n
or low class<\/p>\n
the reality is is that our status<\/p>\n
is lighter than the breath and it will<\/p>\n
not last<\/p>\n
verse 10 we read if rich is increased<\/p>\n
set not your heart on them and what<\/p>\n
david isn't saying is that there's<\/p>\n
anything<\/p>\n
outright wrong with having money or<\/p>\n
financial success<\/p>\n
what are you saying is not to look to<\/p>\n
money to provide us rest for our souls<\/p>\n
to not set our hearts on money<\/p>\n
the bible talks a lot about money jesus<\/p>\n
often spoke about money and possessions<\/p>\n
one of the reasons for this is because<\/p>\n
it's in our nature both ancient and<\/p>\n
modern people to view money as a<\/p>\n
functional savior<\/p>\n
we think if i can just have enough i'll<\/p>\n
be okay<\/p>\n
if i can just have certain resources<\/p>\n
then my heart will be at rest<\/p>\n
okay<\/p>\n
well what these two verses teach us<\/p>\n
is that we often look to the attainment<\/p>\n
of status or wealth as a way to provide<\/p>\n
our soul's rest<\/p>\n
what david is saying is no matter if<\/p>\n
you're rich or you don't have a lot of<\/p>\n
money if your class is low or if you're<\/p>\n
really successful if you look for rest<\/p>\n
in these things you will be let down<\/p>\n
i think<\/p>\n
there's a lot of reasons but i'll give<\/p>\n
you one who is writing this song<\/p>\n
nobody in israel had higher status power<\/p>\n
or wealth than king david<\/p>\n
yet even he recognizes that there is a<\/p>\n
pressure a restlessness in his soul that<\/p>\n
all the power and wealth in the world<\/p>\n
cannot fix<\/p>\n
it<\/p>\n
despite advances in technology and<\/p>\n
public health despite the world today<\/p>\n
being wealthier and more comfortable<\/p>\n
than it has ever been<\/p>\n
we are still constantly discontent and<\/p>\n
disappointed<\/p>\n
that life doesn't come together as well<\/p>\n
as we want it to<\/p>\n
nailout<\/p>\n
are countless of interviews of people<\/p>\n
who have been successful and are still<\/p>\n
and studies show us that there is a weak<\/p>\n
correlation between wealth and<\/p>\n
contentment<\/p>\n
and that the more prosperous a society<\/p>\n
grows the more common is depression<\/p>\n
you see it's a paradox the very things<\/p>\n
we look to in order to cure our<\/p>\n
restlessness the pursuit of status money<\/p>\n
identity value worth is also what makes<\/p>\n
us restless<\/p>\n
that's why even when we're resting<\/p>\n
even when we're not doing anything we're<\/p>\n
not completely still we're not<\/p>\n
completely silent like david is<\/p>\n
there's a deeper restlessness<\/p>\n
and just like sleep experts say that<\/p>\n
sleep will not<\/p>\n
really refresh us at night unless we get<\/p>\n
a certain type of sleep they call it rem<\/p>\n
just like if we don't get rem sleep and<\/p>\n
we won't be refreshed if we just get<\/p>\n
physical rest but not our deep soul rest<\/p>\n
we'll still be restless<\/p>\n
better circumstances money status<\/p>\n
relationships that's not going to cure<\/p>\n
we need the deep soul rest the type of<\/p>\n
spiritual rest david has here that goes<\/p>\n
beyond our physical need to rest<\/p>\n
this type of rest goes beyond our<\/p>\n
circumstances and allows us to<\/p>\n
experience peace in the midst of<\/p>\n
adversity<\/p>\n
and rest in the midst of unknown<\/p>\n
circumstances<\/p>\n
well we've already looked at different<\/p>\n
ways that we try to cure our<\/p>\n
restlessness<\/p>\n
and if we keep thinking that the thing<\/p>\n
that gives us lasting rest and peace can<\/p>\n
be found we will be put on a treadmill<\/p>\n
going through houses spouses jobs<\/p>\n
it puts us on a treadmill<\/p>\n
but a treadmill never goes anywhere it<\/p>\n
just gets faster and faster and<\/p>\n
eventually we burn out despair or become<\/p>\n
cynical it doesn't work<\/p>\n
david however learned to tell his soul<\/p>\n
that i need only one thing to survive<\/p>\n
and thrive and i have<\/p>\n
this is the key to understanding the sum<\/p>\n
and understanding the deep soul rest<\/p>\n
that we long for<\/p>\n
the assumption is that god alone will<\/p>\n
not be enough we need something else to<\/p>\n
make us happy or secure<\/p>\n
but david says i need only god and his<\/p>\n
all-powerful fatherly love and care<\/p>\n
everything else is expendable<\/p>\n
the reason we're discontent the reason<\/p>\n
we're restless is because we were<\/p>\n
created for relationship with god<\/p>\n
and when that relationship isn't there<\/p>\n
we're living out of sync with our<\/p>\n
purpose and we're left<\/p>\n
if a fish tries to live like an elephant<\/p>\n
or an eagle or any other animal other<\/p>\n
than a fish it will constantly be<\/p>\n
frustrated because that's not what it's<\/p>\n
designed for<\/p>\n
um<\/p>\n
and if we put our ultimate hope in<\/p>\n
anything other than god if we put our<\/p>\n
hope in money status material<\/p>\n
possessions relationships<\/p>\n
if we make these things our ultimate<\/p>\n
hope we will be shaken<\/p>\n
and we are<\/p>\n
we are shaken<\/p>\n
but david's security doesn't come from<\/p>\n
his circumstances<\/p>\n
the reason he says he can't be shaken is<\/p>\n
because he's realized that he doesn't<\/p>\n
need anything else beside god's<\/p>\n
that god is david's rock in salvation<\/p>\n
and fortress and he will not be shaken<\/p>\n
don't you want that kind of rest<\/p>\n
god's rest gives us courage in the face<\/p>\n
of the storm<\/p>\n
gives us the ability to press on even if<\/p>\n
there's hardship all around<\/p>\n
me from<\/p>\n
it gives our soul a balance an eq<\/p>\n
equilibrium in the midst of shifting<\/p>\n
circumstances and unknown futures<\/p>\n
it gives us even peace in the face of<\/p>\n
death<\/p>\n
so how do we get this rest<\/p>\n
do we just say to our hearts love god<\/p>\n
more come on just put god at the center<\/p>\n
a lot of people who are working like<\/p>\n
crazy and are looking for spiritual rest<\/p>\n
they say i'm going to be a christian i'm<\/p>\n
going to turn my life around i'm going<\/p>\n
to repent of my sins<\/p>\n
it's religious work but it's work all<\/p>\n
the same<\/p>\n
and that will not change our hearts<\/p>\n
instead what changes our hearts is the<\/p>\n
last two verses of this psalm<\/p>\n
the reason david can have such a deep<\/p>\n
and profound trust and rest in god<\/p>\n
it's because he recognizes the only<\/p>\n
thing he can depend on is god's strength<\/p>\n
god's love and god's justice<\/p>\n
he says to you o lord belong steadfast<\/p>\n
love for you will render to a man<\/p>\n
according to his work<\/p>\n
the question is how could god be both<\/p>\n
loving and just<\/p>\n
if we were held only to our own<\/p>\n
standards<\/p>\n
on judgement day if we were held<\/p>\n
accountable for all the things that we<\/p>\n
say people should do<\/p>\n
none of us would pass that test<\/p>\n
every person with a heart looks at the<\/p>\n
injustice in the world and hopes for a<\/p>\n
world where things are made right<\/p>\n
we're all going to be cut off<\/p>\n
how could god be infinitely just and<\/p>\n
punish all sin and infinitely loving and<\/p>\n
forgive us<\/p>\n
foreign<\/p>\n
on the cross jesus cried out in agony he<\/p>\n
cried out with complete and utter<\/p>\n
restlessness my god my god why have you<\/p>\n
forsaken me<\/p>\n
he was cut off from the source of<\/p>\n
eternal rest and<\/p>\n
jesus christ was the only one who put<\/p>\n
all his ultimate hope in god and he was<\/p>\n
ignored he was turned away<\/p>\n
so that when we place our whole ultimate<\/p>\n
hope in god we will never be shaken<\/p>\n
so that when we place our ultimate hope<\/p>\n
in god we can have the deep eternal soul<\/p>\n
rest that our hearts are longing for<\/p>\n
jesus was thrown into the heart of the<\/p>\n
storm so that we could have the courage<\/p>\n
to face whatever storms come our way<\/p>\n
please<\/p>\n
jesus was forsaken so that you know that<\/p>\n
regardless of what your circumstances<\/p>\n
are<\/p>\n
you can have total confidence in god's<\/p>\n
wisdom and love in your life<\/p>\n
prayers<\/p>\n
what's finished the reason for our<\/p>\n
restlessness the self-justifying work he<\/p>\n
does that move you does that melt your<\/p>\n
heart<\/p>\n
i don't know if you believe in jesus or<\/p>\n
if you believe all that he's done all<\/p>\n
this for you<\/p>\n
but i urge you to do everything in your<\/p>\n
power to find out because how else are<\/p>\n
you going to have this rest<\/p>\n
yes<\/p>\n
what else can you look to what else can<\/p>\n
we look to to provide the deep soul rest<\/p>\n
that we're all longing for<\/p>\n
but here right<\/p>\n
one more thing that david does in verse<\/p>\n
five that we<\/p>\n
should definitely do as well<\/p>\n
in verse 1 david says for god alone my<\/p>\n
soul waits in silence<\/p>\n
why is it different what is he doing<\/p>\n
he's taking what he knows to be true<\/p>\n
what he believes and he's speaking to<\/p>\n
his soul<\/p>\n
rule<\/p>\n
because he knows and we all know that<\/p>\n
what we know to be true about god isn't<\/p>\n
always our lived experience<\/p>\n
we still<\/p>\n
have anxiety we still have fear<\/p>\n
we still get angry<\/p>\n
we often times forget that we belong to<\/p>\n
god<\/p>\n
and so what david's doing is he's<\/p>\n
reminding himself to take what he knows<\/p>\n
to be true about god and to work it into<\/p>\n
his life and heart<\/p>\n
president<\/p>\n
and the great truth of the bible that<\/p>\n
david reminds himself<\/p>\n
the whole bible is that salvation comes<\/p>\n
from god alone not from ourselves or any<\/p>\n
effort that we can<\/p>\n
jesus christ died on the cross for our<\/p>\n
sins that's how god could be infinitely<\/p>\n
just because all sin was punished<\/p>\n
and that's also how god could be<\/p>\n
infinitely loving because he absorbed it<\/p>\n
all himself at infinite cost to himself<\/p>\n
use the gospel on yourself remind<\/p>\n
yourself of what he's done<\/p>\n
tim keller he calls the gospel of fire<\/p>\n
in our lives<\/p>\n
and the natural condition of the human<\/p>\n
heart is to forget the gospel and turn<\/p>\n
to self-justification<\/p>\n
and we can hide this when things are<\/p>\n
going well<\/p>\n
but when failure criticism or something<\/p>\n
goes wrong we start working longer hours<\/p>\n
we start making longer lists<\/p>\n
on<\/p>\n
we're doing all that to try to generate<\/p>\n
the heat ourselves but what we need to<\/p>\n
do is return to the fire remind<\/p>\n
ourselves of the gospel<\/p>\n
richard lovelace an author he wrote a<\/p>\n
book called dynamics of spiritual life<\/p>\n
and he basically says this<\/p>\n
richard lovelace<\/p>\n
dynamics of spiritual life<\/p>\n
if we start each day not resting on the<\/p>\n
accepting love of god and sacrifice of<\/p>\n
jesus but on our present achievements<\/p>\n
we will not be moved sorry we will be<\/p>\n
moved to either discouragement and<\/p>\n
apathy or self-righteousness and<\/p>\n
idolatry that achieves a false sense of<\/p>\n
peace<\/p>\n
but the gospel faith that is able to<\/p>\n
warm itself at the fire of god's love<\/p>\n
and what jesus has done for us<\/p>\n
instead of having to steal love and<\/p>\n
self-acceptance from all these other<\/p>\n
places<\/p>\n
that is the very root of peace<\/p>\n
remind yourselves remind ourselves of<\/p>\n
what jesus<\/p>\n
as we partake in the lord's supper today<\/p>\n
would we remember what jesus has done<\/p>\n
come to jesus warm yourself at the fire<\/p>\n
of the gospel and find deep eternal rest<\/p>\n
lord jesus<\/p>\n
some of us a lot of us here<\/p>\n
myself included our restless lord<\/p>\n
and though we know your truth we know<\/p>\n
what you've done lord we<\/p>\n
we need the power of your holy spirit to<\/p>\n
move this truth from our heads to our<\/p>\n
hearts lord some of us might not know<\/p>\n
you today<\/p>\n
we pray that you would<\/p>\n
show up powerfully in their lives<\/p>\n
lord we need you we thank you for your<\/p>\n
word today jesus name amen<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20220120","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=8h6gtQ6HJFM","video_id":"8h6gtQ6HJFM","video_duration":"39:21","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874","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=874"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":875,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/874\/revisions\/875"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/873"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=874"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=874"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=874"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}