if you are new to grace city we want to<\/p>\n
say welcome to you<\/p>\n
guys<\/p>\n
we're really thankful we're glad that<\/p>\n
you joined us today and we look forward<\/p>\n
to getting to know you better<\/p>\n
here at grace city bangkok we are united<\/p>\n
in our desire to love and care for this<\/p>\n
city<\/p>\n
we want to love and care for bangkok in<\/p>\n
god's grace<\/p>\n
we long to see our own lives changed by<\/p>\n
the grace of god<\/p>\n
and we long to love our neighbors<\/p>\n
through god's grace<\/p>\n
praying that they would come to know the<\/p>\n
god that created this world and loves<\/p>\n
them<\/p>\n
our text today is from the psalms<\/p>\n
now this part of the bible the psalms<\/p>\n
they're actually songs<\/p>\n
so these texts they were written to be<\/p>\n
sung<\/p>\n
s and just as singing is so expressive<\/p>\n
in the psalms we see the full<\/p>\n
range of human emotion<\/p>\n
you might say that we see<\/p>\n
our own lives and our hearts on display<\/p>\n
in the psalms<\/p>\n
you know we're in a time where we're all<\/p>\n
experiencing further challenges brought<\/p>\n
on by curved 19.<\/p>\n
suffering and hardship really have<\/p>\n
always been a part of what it means to<\/p>\n
be human<\/p>\n
being<\/p>\n
but we also experience great<\/p>\n
sorrow and broken hearts locomi<\/p>\n
so as you hear this psalm today as we<\/p>\n
hear it read<\/p>\n
allow it to meet us in our own lives<\/p>\n
[Music]<\/p>\n
think of all the feelings and thoughts<\/p>\n
that you have today<\/p>\n
and allow god<\/p>\n
to speak into all of this through his<\/p>\n
word<\/p>\n
ask him to speak<\/p>\n
and we'll do that now let us pray<\/p>\n
we thank you that that we can even<\/p>\n
gather here for worship<\/p>\n
that we can hear from your word the<\/p>\n
bible<\/p>\n
some of us have joyful hearts today<\/p>\n
and and some of us are facing difficulty<\/p>\n
some of us feel safe and others may be<\/p>\n
experiencing a sense of dread or fear<\/p>\n
lucifer pilot<\/p>\n
like<\/p>\n
what glow<\/p>\n
no matter how we feel today<\/p>\n
god we ask that you would meet us here<\/p>\n
meet us in the midst of these<\/p>\n
circumstances<\/p>\n
and that you love this beautiful yet<\/p>\n
broken world<\/p>\n
please open our hearts and minds to your<\/p>\n
truth today<\/p>\n
will read psalm 58 in thai and then we<\/p>\n
will read again in english the text is<\/p>\n
on the slides for us psalm 58 this is<\/p>\n
the word of god<\/p>\n
psalm 58<\/p>\n
do you indeed decree what is right<\/p>\n
you gods<\/p>\n
do you judge the children of man<\/p>\n
uprightly<\/p>\n
no<\/p>\n
in your hearts you devise wrongs<\/p>\n
your hands deal out violence on the<\/p>\n
earth the wicked are estranged from the<\/p>\n
womb they go astray from birth speaking<\/p>\n
lies<\/p>\n
they have venom like the venom of a<\/p>\n
serpent<\/p>\n
like the death adder that stops its ear<\/p>\n
so that it does not hear the voice of<\/p>\n
the charmers or of the cunning enchanter<\/p>\n
oh god break the teeth in their mouths<\/p>\n
tear out the fangs of the young lions o<\/p>\n
lord let them vanish like water that<\/p>\n
runs away<\/p>\n
when he aims as arrows let them be<\/p>\n
blunted<\/p>\n
let them be like the snail that<\/p>\n
dissolves into slime like this stillborn<\/p>\n
child who never sees the sun<\/p>\n
sooner than your pots can feel the heat<\/p>\n
of thorns whether green or a blaze may<\/p>\n
he sweep them away<\/p>\n
the righteous will rejoice when he sees<\/p>\n
the vengeance<\/p>\n
he will bathe his feet in the blood of<\/p>\n
the wicked<\/p>\n
mankind will say surely<\/p>\n
there is a reward for the righteous<\/p>\n
surely<\/p>\n
there is a god<\/p>\n
who judges<\/p>\n
on earth this is the word of god have<\/p>\n
you<\/p>\n
ever had someone ask you a question<\/p>\n
and then before you can answer before<\/p>\n
you can even get a word out the answer<\/p>\n
for you<\/p>\n
if you've ever experienced this it was<\/p>\n
likely an unsettling situation<\/p>\n
where were you last night young man and<\/p>\n
don't you dare say your room i know you<\/p>\n
sneaked out with your friends<\/p>\n
psalm 58 opens with a similar<\/p>\n
question<\/p>\n
do you<\/p>\n
out<\/p>\n
do you decree what is right and do you<\/p>\n
judge<\/p>\n
rightly<\/p>\n
judgment that follows and adheres to the<\/p>\n
law fair and<\/p>\n
now various translations render the word<\/p>\n
gods here as referring to leaders to<\/p>\n
rulers<\/p>\n
clearly it's addressing some in<\/p>\n
positions of power and authority<\/p>\n
i'm not do you rulers do you<\/p>\n
leaders decree what is right<\/p>\n
that's the sharp reply that we read in<\/p>\n
verse 2 no<\/p>\n
not only do you create wicked decrees<\/p>\n
you act unjustly and you sow injustice<\/p>\n
you create false laws and you are unjust<\/p>\n
in your judgments unjust in your<\/p>\n
justice<\/p>\n
in your hearts you devise wrongs and<\/p>\n
with your own<\/p>\n
hands you deal out violence<\/p>\n
what a damning indictment upon the<\/p>\n
rulers and leaders<\/p>\n
we have here in this text<\/p>\n
the next few verses three through five<\/p>\n
they provide further detail concerning<\/p>\n
these leaders<\/p>\n
they go astray from birth the text says<\/p>\n
their speech is punctuated with lies<\/p>\n
they're full of<\/p>\n
poison<\/p>\n
like the venom of a deadly snake you<\/p>\n
know ready to strike<\/p>\n
ready to deal out violence<\/p>\n
having overrun their boundaries for me<\/p>\n
the technology<\/p>\n
you know these snakes it says they're<\/p>\n
they're no longer controlled by the<\/p>\n
snake charmer but instead they're<\/p>\n
unbound dangerous lethal<\/p>\n
my donkey top<\/p>\n
is<\/p>\n
as we talked about the psalms are songs<\/p>\n
that reveal the full nature of humanity<\/p>\n
and here we see the evil of this world<\/p>\n
exposed<\/p>\n
the imagery we read in this psalm is<\/p>\n
it's intense it's powerful<\/p>\n
wicked rulers unjust leaders unjust laws<\/p>\n
rampant in justice<\/p>\n
these are the very<\/p>\n
conditions that led david to cry out to<\/p>\n
god for saving<\/p>\n
the call out to god for<\/p>\n
in this psalm and throughout the psalms<\/p>\n
we see david and others<\/p>\n
cry out to god for deliverance<\/p>\n
david unleashes<\/p>\n
a harsh and impassioned plea beginning<\/p>\n
in the sixth verse<\/p>\n
god break the teeth in their mouths tear<\/p>\n
out the fangs of the lions<\/p>\n
such strong and violent language right<\/p>\n
last sunday we read the psalm before<\/p>\n
this psalm 57 together<\/p>\n
also<\/p>\n
in fact it seems these two psalms may<\/p>\n
have been composed and used the same<\/p>\n
tune<\/p>\n
thank you<\/p>\n
and in the 57th psalm david writes this<\/p>\n
my soul<\/p>\n
is in the midst of lions i lie down amid<\/p>\n
fiery beasts the children of man whose<\/p>\n
teeth are spears and arrows whose<\/p>\n
tongues<\/p>\n
are sharp swords<\/p>\n
and then we read break their teeth oh<\/p>\n
god tear out their fangs<\/p>\n
take this threat away from me<\/p>\n
david's prayer here is for god to thwart<\/p>\n
the plans of the wicked to frustrate<\/p>\n
their evil endeavors<\/p>\n
reading on in psalm 58 we see david<\/p>\n
continue with creative metaphor and<\/p>\n
analogies<\/p>\n
let the evil intentions of the wicked<\/p>\n
disappear like a snail dissolving away<\/p>\n
from<\/p>\n
that let the plans of the wicked die<\/p>\n
before they even see the light of day<\/p>\n
david is looking for a way to describe<\/p>\n
his deep desire for god to act<\/p>\n
for god to rescue for god to exercise<\/p>\n
judgment and justice<\/p>\n
we cry for justice<\/p>\n
we<\/p>\n
long for justice<\/p>\n
humanity is crying out for help the<\/p>\n
heart's cry is for justice<\/p>\n
certainly not unjust<\/p>\n
judgment false justice<\/p>\n
that is what the human heart cries out<\/p>\n
for it's it's what we know we need<\/p>\n
friends the indictment the judgment that<\/p>\n
david<\/p>\n
levied against the rulers and leaders in<\/p>\n
this psalm it's it's levied against all<\/p>\n
of us<\/p>\n
you see we may desire true justice but<\/p>\n
the problem is we're part of the<\/p>\n
injustice<\/p>\n
or we're silent in the midst of<\/p>\n
injustice towards others<\/p>\n
we stand<\/p>\n
so let this psalm ask of us<\/p>\n
how do i devise unjust decrees<\/p>\n
how do i judge others unjustly<\/p>\n
yes let us cry for justice but let us<\/p>\n
examine our own hearts<\/p>\n
let us ask god to reveal our own<\/p>\n
deceitfulness<\/p>\n
the injustice in our own hearts and<\/p>\n
lives<\/p>\n
the bible details a time when a prophet<\/p>\n
named nathan came before king david<\/p>\n
he came before king david and he and he<\/p>\n
told him a story<\/p>\n
and this is the story<\/p>\n
there were two men<\/p>\n
in a certain city one had great wealth<\/p>\n
and and one was poor<\/p>\n
me<\/p>\n
the wealthy man had had many flocks and<\/p>\n
herds but the poor man had only one<\/p>\n
little lamb which he had bought<\/p>\n
the man raised this little lamb and it<\/p>\n
it grew up with him and his children<\/p>\n
and this lamb would drink from his cup<\/p>\n
and and would rest cradled in his arms<\/p>\n
um<\/p>\n
this little lamb was like a daughter to<\/p>\n
him look at tonight<\/p>\n
one day a traveler came to visit the<\/p>\n
wealthy man<\/p>\n
and despite his great wealth the man was<\/p>\n
was unwilling to take one of his own<\/p>\n
lambs to prepare a meal for<\/p>\n
and what he did he actually took<\/p>\n
the poor man's lamb from him<\/p>\n
and had it prepared for the meal<\/p>\n
the bible says when nathan finished this<\/p>\n
story<\/p>\n
not<\/p>\n
it says that david's anger was kindled<\/p>\n
up<\/p>\n
and he and he burst out with this angry<\/p>\n
response<\/p>\n
no we they caught<\/p>\n
and he said the man who did this<\/p>\n
deserves to die the food was chinese<\/p>\n
he deserves to die<\/p>\n
in the seventh<\/p>\n
verse of 2nd samuel chapter 12<\/p>\n
reads what happens next<\/p>\n
song<\/p>\n
nathan actually said to david david you<\/p>\n
are that man<\/p>\n
you see david had been sent<\/p>\n
by god to king david<\/p>\n
to expose his sinfulness<\/p>\n
david had committed adultery with a<\/p>\n
woman named bathsheba<\/p>\n
bathsheba was another man's wife<\/p>\n
david had seen her bathing on the roof<\/p>\n
and he had lusted after her<\/p>\n
now<\/p>\n
and david from his position of power and<\/p>\n
authority he had bathsheba brought to<\/p>\n
him<\/p>\n
and he violated her how long ago<\/p>\n
and he violated her marriage how long<\/p>\n
much wisdom counter and he devised<\/p>\n
wickedness and he dealt out violence<\/p>\n
with his own hands<\/p>\n
surely the righteous will be rewarded<\/p>\n
david writes in verse 11.<\/p>\n
surely mankind will say there is a god<\/p>\n
and the hello of the christian faith<\/p>\n
is that there is a god who judges<\/p>\n
that he's a fair<\/p>\n
and honest judge<\/p>\n
but the verdict for our sin is not one<\/p>\n
of flourishing but one of death<\/p>\n
the bible describes the harsh reality<\/p>\n
that the product of our own sin<\/p>\n
and the sin of others<\/p>\n
is pain and suffering<\/p>\n
and death and destruction<\/p>\n
people<\/p>\n
nathan's story exposed<\/p>\n
david's unrighteousness david's sin<\/p>\n
and he suffered<\/p>\n
and others suffered as a result of his<\/p>\n
sinful actions<\/p>\n
our unrighteousness<\/p>\n
our own sin will be<\/p>\n
our undoing.<\/p>\n
it will be our death guam<\/p>\n
so where is the hope<\/p>\n
in all of this<\/p>\n
in psalm 53 we read this<\/p>\n
god looks down from heaven on the<\/p>\n
children<\/p>\n
of man to see if there are any who<\/p>\n
understand who seek after god they have<\/p>\n
all fallen away together they have<\/p>\n
become corrupt there is none who does<\/p>\n
good not<\/p>\n
even 1.<\/p>\n
foreign<\/p>\n
the good news of the gospel<\/p>\n
is at first<\/p>\n
bad news<\/p>\n
it's bad news to us because it exposes<\/p>\n
what this psalm has exposed today<\/p>\n
but the gospel is good news<\/p>\n
because all the pain<\/p>\n
and suffering<\/p>\n
and death that our sin<\/p>\n
justly deserves<\/p>\n
was carried by jesus christ<\/p>\n
to the cross<\/p>\n
secretary he died our death that we may<\/p>\n
have<\/p>\n
life his life<\/p>\n
second corinthians chapter<\/p>\n
verse 21<\/p>\n
explains this it demonstrates this<\/p>\n
for our sake<\/p>\n
he made him<\/p>\n
to be sin who knew no sin<\/p>\n
so that in him we might become the<\/p>\n
righteousness of god<\/p>\n
in our helpless state<\/p>\n
we were rescued<\/p>\n
by the love<\/p>\n
and mercy of god<\/p>\n
after<\/p>\n
because jesus took on our own sin<\/p>\n
and in him in him when we look to him in<\/p>\n
faith<\/p>\n
how<\/p>\n
we know that that some of you<\/p>\n
may not be sure of of what you think<\/p>\n
about christianity<\/p>\n
some of you may not be sure about<\/p>\n
what you think about the claims of jesus<\/p>\n
some of you may have serious doubts and<\/p>\n
really good questions<\/p>\n
and if you're honest<\/p>\n
you may not call yourself a christian<\/p>\n
and and first of all i would say we are<\/p>\n
so thankful that you're here<\/p>\n
and we hope that you feel a warm welcome<\/p>\n
and that you trust us to walk alongside<\/p>\n
you and in your questions about all this<\/p>\n
about life and faith<\/p>\n
but i would say that the simplest way to<\/p>\n
explain<\/p>\n
the message of jesus<\/p>\n
is that we<\/p>\n
are helpless to help ourselves<\/p>\n
you see the message of the bible is that<\/p>\n
we're all like david<\/p>\n
we're calling out for justice<\/p>\n
in the world and missing the sin<\/p>\n
in our own lives<\/p>\n
jesus christ<\/p>\n
the only righteous one<\/p>\n
zombie<\/p>\n
turn to him in faith<\/p>\n
and let him build<\/p>\n
your life<\/p>\n
in him<\/p>\n
pastor timothy keller has said<\/p>\n
this cheer up you know you're actually<\/p>\n
worse than you think<\/p>\n
but at the same time<\/p>\n
you are more loved in christ and more<\/p>\n
accepted in him<\/p>\n
than you could ever imagine or hope<\/p>\n
timothy<\/p>\n
yes we are<\/p>\n
more weak more fallen more broken than<\/p>\n
we even know<\/p>\n
more than we would ever dare admit or<\/p>\n
even believe<\/p>\n
jesus<\/p>\n
is there<\/p>\n
god help us see<\/p>\n
help us see our deep need of you today<\/p>\n
help us understand just how weak we are<\/p>\n
god give us a nathan<\/p>\n
in our own lives that will help us see<\/p>\n
our sins<\/p>\n
and then help us to confess our<\/p>\n
brokenness before you<\/p>\n
hey<\/p>\n
and then help us to run to your mercy<\/p>\n
and your grace<\/p>\n
we pray this in your holy name lord<\/p>\n
jesus for now and come home<\/p>","english_search_text":"","":"","original_publish_date":"20211104","video_url":"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=UU6U3RqByLw","video_id":"UU6U3RqByLw","video_duration":"33:46","channel_name":"Grace City Bangkok"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919","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=919"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":920,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/919\/revisions\/920"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/918"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=919"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=919"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gracecity.machakosconsulting.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=919"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}