All of God’s Word is of course profitable and applicable to our lives. But this psalm is particularly relevant to our contemporary condition, and is worth our careful attention. The great Puritan writer William Gurnall once said that just as one tap can drain a whole cask of wine, so one promise can obtain for …
The Joy of Jesus Christ/Psalm 21
INTRODUCTION: As with many of the psalms, David intends himself in the description, but under the inspiration of the Spirit, the language transcends David’s situation, and finds its fullest fulfillment in the triumph and victory of the Lord Jesus. THE TEXT: The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD; and in thy salvation how …
Raining Bear Traps/Psalm 11
In the midst of our tangled earthly confusions, God sees all things clearly. As we are pressed with dangers on every hand, God remains unthreatened by them and unperturbed. This is why a right understanding of who God is must be considered the only rational basis of faith. “In the LORD put I my trust: …
The Politics of Sodomy: Remember Lot’s Wife
INTRODUCTION How do we as individuals respond to the situation we find ourselves in? How can we be faithful in our generation? These very practical questions, and they require answers that are equally practical. What are we to do? How are we to live? THE TEXTS And Lot lifted up his eyes, and beheld all …
Spiraling Away
I have recently been doing some thinking on Psalm 115. In the eighth verse, the psalmist tells us that men become like the idols they worship. And since he has already explained that all idols–whether formed by the hands or forged in cracked brains–are blind, deaf, dumb and lame, the men who worship them assume …
The Politics of Sodomy: Has It Come to That?
INTRODUCTION Often we confront problems in our individual lives, or in our families, and after we have exhausted all the possibilities in our hunt for a solution, we ask others to pray for us. “Oh,” some might be tempted to think. “Has it come to that?” We must learn to begin where we are sometimes …
Break Their Evil Arms/Psalm 10
As with so many of the psalms, this psalm shows one of God’s saints in great turmoil over the condition of the fat and sassy attitude of those who rebel against heaven. “Why standest thou afar off, O LORD? why hidest thou thyself in times of trouble? . . .” (Ps. 10:1-18). In a world …
Poetic Justice/Psalm 9
In this psalm, David recounts his fight with the heathen who had invaded his nation. David writes during the course of a brief respite in the battle. He celebrates a great deliverance in the first part of the psalm (vv. 1-12), and calls for further deliverance in the remainder of the psalm (vv. 13-20). “I …
The Politics of Sodomy: Not Whether But Which
INTRODUCTION In many respects, we are like a man who lives in a house that is increasingly cluttered and trashed. When the day finally arrives when it becomes obvious that he must do something, it is equally obvious at the same time, that he has no idea what to do, or where to start. He …
The Politics of Sodomy: The Real Sin of Sodom
INTRODUCTION What could possibly be meant, “The Real Sin of Sodom?” Isn’t is obvious? The sin of homosexual behavior draws its name from Sodom. What could be more obvious? And should we be suspicious of any attempt to draw our attention elsewhere? As always, the answer to such questions is, “It depends.” THE TEXT Behold, …