1 00:00:04,900 --> 00:00:08,400 Welcome you again, the new life. My name is Kyle and I serve as 2 00:00:08,400 --> 00:00:13,000 the lead Pastor here, we're going to be in Psalm 128 today 3 00:00:13,100 --> 00:00:16,600 as you turn there, when I wish you, you menu, father's a Happy 4 00:00:16,600 --> 00:00:18,800 Father's Day. Thank you so much for the work 5 00:00:18,800 --> 00:00:22,100 that you do. I appreciate it, keep it up. 6 00:00:22,100 --> 00:00:25,800 Keep up the good work. Psalm 128 is where we'll be 7 00:00:25,800 --> 00:00:31,700 today, was kicked off the summer series in the Psalms and James 8 00:00:31,700 --> 00:00:34,300 set that up really well. Thank you, brother, Jasper. 9 00:00:34,400 --> 00:00:37,000 I followed it up with a another good. 10 00:00:37,000 --> 00:00:43,400 Sermon from the Psalms, his was on integrity and and then today, 11 00:00:43,400 --> 00:00:49,300 we're in Psalm 128, Psalm 128 is called a song of ascents, a song 12 00:00:49,300 --> 00:00:51,500 of ascents. Not a, not a cent like what you 13 00:00:51,508 --> 00:00:55,300 smell, but an assent, like going up something and the reason 14 00:00:55,300 --> 00:00:59,300 these songs are called a song, a song of a sense is that they're 15 00:00:59,300 --> 00:01:05,800 referring to the pilgrimage up to Jerusalem during Feast which 16 00:01:06,000 --> 00:01:08,700 God's people would have made. And so, they were Jerusalem, set 17 00:01:08,700 --> 00:01:10,500 on top of a mountain, that's where you would go for the 18 00:01:10,500 --> 00:01:13,000 feast. And so you would remind yourself 19 00:01:13,000 --> 00:01:16,200 of God's goodness. You would remind yourself of who 20 00:01:16,200 --> 00:01:19,400 God is, how he works in a family of why we serve the Lord, those 21 00:01:19,400 --> 00:01:21,800 kinds of things. As you're going up through these 22 00:01:21,800 --> 00:01:26,100 songs, by singing them, to one another, among the people that 23 00:01:26,100 --> 00:01:30,500 you were with, it's also possible that these were used 24 00:01:30,500 --> 00:01:36,300 likely used to in Israel's. As returns from Exile, that 25 00:01:36,300 --> 00:01:38,400 these would have been things. They would have sung as they 26 00:01:38,400 --> 00:01:41,800 were returning to the Lord. And so, in that way, you could 27 00:01:41,800 --> 00:01:47,100 view them as oftentimes songs of repentance songs of reminder, of 28 00:01:47,100 --> 00:01:50,700 the faithfulness of God, and how we need to remain faithful to 29 00:01:50,700 --> 00:01:53,200 him. And so there's really no reason. 30 00:01:53,200 --> 00:01:55,800 It can't be both at there wouldn't have been used in both 31 00:01:56,100 --> 00:01:59,100 instances. One final thing about the song, 32 00:01:59,100 --> 00:02:06,300 This song particular it comes after. 127, obviously, which was 33 00:02:06,300 --> 00:02:09,400 written by Solomon, but we don't know the author of 128. 34 00:02:09,600 --> 00:02:14,000 What we do know is that 128 is really an expansion of thoughts 35 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:16,600 from 127. So, it's possible that Solomon 36 00:02:16,600 --> 00:02:24,300 is the author of 128 also, but it really doesn't matter for 37 00:02:24,500 --> 00:02:29,400 what we're going through today. Psalm 128 is a song for 38 00:02:29,400 --> 00:02:33,000 families. It's a song for families and 39 00:02:33,200 --> 00:02:36,300 here in this Psalm, we were taught that the prosperity of 40 00:02:36,300 --> 00:02:40,000 our families and all Define, what we mean by prosperity and a 41 00:02:40,008 --> 00:02:42,300 moment are really as we go through this. 42 00:02:42,300 --> 00:02:45,800 But the prosperity of our families, depends on the 43 00:02:45,800 --> 00:02:50,900 blessing of God, and we are shown how to obtain his 44 00:02:50,900 --> 00:02:52,400 Blessing. So, the prosperity of our 45 00:02:52,400 --> 00:02:54,600 families, depends on the blessing of God. 46 00:02:54,600 --> 00:02:59,100 And in this Psalm, we were shown how to obtain his Blessing. 47 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:02,100 If you're able a task That you stand as we read these six 48 00:03:02,100 --> 00:03:06,700 verses here in Psalm 128. When I finish reading I'll say 49 00:03:06,700 --> 00:03:10,100 this is God's holy word and you respond with, thanks. 50 00:03:10,100 --> 00:03:12,000 Be to God. All right, thanks be to God. 51 00:03:12,300 --> 00:03:16,200 All right, Psalm 128 verse 1. Blessed is everyone, who fears 52 00:03:16,200 --> 00:03:21,000 the Lord, who walks in his ways. You shall eat the fruit of the 53 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:24,400 labor of your hands. You shall be blessed and it 54 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:27,900 shall be well with you. Your wife will be like a 55 00:03:27,908 --> 00:03:31,600 fruitful Vine within your house. Your children will be like all 56 00:03:31,600 --> 00:03:36,500 of shoots around your table. Behold the Show the man, be 57 00:03:36,500 --> 00:03:42,000 blessed, who fears the Lord? The Lord bless you from Zion. 58 00:03:42,400 --> 00:03:45,900 May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your 59 00:03:45,900 --> 00:03:47,500 life? May you see? 60 00:03:47,500 --> 00:03:52,400 Your children's children? Peace be upon Israel. 61 00:03:52,900 --> 00:03:54,600 This is God's. Holy word. 62 00:03:55,100 --> 00:03:58,000 Thanks be to God. Amen, let me pray for you and 63 00:03:58,000 --> 00:04:00,700 then you'll be seated, Heavenly Father, we thank you for your 64 00:04:00,700 --> 00:04:02,900 word, we thank you for Psalm 128. 65 00:04:03,000 --> 00:04:04,800 We thank you for the truth that are here. 66 00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:10,000 But Lord, these truths will only be as good as the ink on this 67 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:12,100 white paper. If your Holy Spirit, does not 68 00:04:12,100 --> 00:04:18,000 open our eyes to see or ears to hear our hearts to grasp to take 69 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:20,600 hold of and our minds to comprehend. 70 00:04:20,600 --> 00:04:24,600 So, Lord, would you arrest our attention today with your word? 71 00:04:25,400 --> 00:04:27,400 Lord, that we might be strengthened to walk in your 72 00:04:27,400 --> 00:04:32,200 ways that we might be men and women who fear you who live in 73 00:04:32,200 --> 00:04:35,100 reference to you father. We are helpless. 74 00:04:35,200 --> 00:04:38,000 Alice without your spirit and these moments as we come to your 75 00:04:38,000 --> 00:04:40,200 word. And so we beg of you now. 76 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:43,700 So feed us from your word. It's in Christ's name we pray. 77 00:04:43,900 --> 00:04:46,000 Amen. May be seated. 78 00:04:52,700 --> 00:04:57,600 It's true that there is a common Grace. 79 00:04:59,100 --> 00:05:03,900 From God, which is meant for all people to experience. 80 00:05:05,000 --> 00:05:09,000 There's a common Grace from God, which is meant for all people to 81 00:05:09,000 --> 00:05:11,300 experience. You might say there's a common 82 00:05:11,600 --> 00:05:14,300 blessedness, there's a common blessing. 83 00:05:15,700 --> 00:05:18,700 One example is from scripture, we read that it rains on the 84 00:05:18,700 --> 00:05:26,100 just and the unjust, this could mean that bad things come to 85 00:05:26,100 --> 00:05:30,600 both the just and the unjust. It could also be taken that God 86 00:05:30,600 --> 00:05:36,100 supplies rain for the production of so much of what we depend on 87 00:05:36,600 --> 00:05:38,600 for both the just and the unjust. 88 00:05:39,600 --> 00:05:42,400 And so that would be one of his common. 89 00:05:42,400 --> 00:05:48,800 Grace's, marriage is another one marriage is enjoyed when we say 90 00:05:48,800 --> 00:05:52,400 marriage, when mean between a man and a woman has God ordained 91 00:05:52,400 --> 00:05:55,300 it marriage. And that way is enjoyed, can be 92 00:05:55,300 --> 00:05:58,400 enjoyed by both the Christian and the non-Christian, they can 93 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:04,400 enjoy marriage. A hearty ribeye by like Ribeyes 94 00:06:05,100 --> 00:06:09,100 grilled to Perfection, which is medium. 95 00:06:09,300 --> 00:06:13,600 Or medium rare, of course, hitting the taste buds for the 96 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:18,700 first time is a Savory experience for almost anyone. 97 00:06:20,300 --> 00:06:23,600 The sights, The Sounds. The smells of all that God has 98 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:30,200 created and given us to enjoy our other examples of his common 99 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:33,000 Grace. I have been fortunate enough to 100 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:36,300 see the Grand Canyon, a couple of times in my life. 101 00:06:37,200 --> 00:06:41,300 The Grand Canyon is all inspiring whether you're a 102 00:06:41,308 --> 00:06:44,200 Christian or a pagan you find it amazing. 103 00:06:46,500 --> 00:06:51,800 However, there exists a blessedness from God, that 104 00:06:51,800 --> 00:06:58,200 remains only for his people, whom he calls to himself, those 105 00:06:58,200 --> 00:07:01,700 who will in return devote themselves to him. 106 00:07:02,000 --> 00:07:06,100 And to his ways, there is a special blessedness, it's an 107 00:07:06,100 --> 00:07:10,500 uncommon Grace. It's a Grace received by his 108 00:07:10,500 --> 00:07:14,400 people from his hand and these people. 109 00:07:14,900 --> 00:07:19,700 Are truly blessed and that's what the psalmist means to show 110 00:07:19,700 --> 00:07:22,000 us here. In Psalm 128, is that there is a 111 00:07:22,200 --> 00:07:26,600 blessing reserved for those who fear the lord and walk in his 112 00:07:26,600 --> 00:07:28,200 ways. In other words, if you will 113 00:07:28,300 --> 00:07:34,800 align yourself with God, his heart by revering him by walking 114 00:07:34,800 --> 00:07:39,600 in his ways, then you will know his divine blessing in your 115 00:07:39,600 --> 00:07:41,000 life. You will know it. 116 00:07:41,300 --> 00:07:43,000 Psalm 128 one. I'll read it to you again. 117 00:07:43,000 --> 00:07:48,800 Blessed is One, who fears the Lord who walks in his ways? 118 00:07:49,900 --> 00:07:53,400 I think many of us may be aware of what the Bible means. 119 00:07:53,400 --> 00:07:58,300 When it uses the word blessed, it means a happiness, but it's 120 00:07:58,300 --> 00:08:01,100 not just any happiness. It's a divinely inspired 121 00:08:01,100 --> 00:08:04,100 happiness, we might call it a divine blessing or a Divine 122 00:08:04,400 --> 00:08:06,500 happiness. It is a happiness that can come 123 00:08:06,500 --> 00:08:10,700 only from the hand of God. In other words, it's to know the 124 00:08:10,700 --> 00:08:15,600 joy of the Lord intimately. It's to be acquainted with 125 00:08:15,700 --> 00:08:19,000 deeply acquainted with God's joy. 126 00:08:19,700 --> 00:08:25,500 And where, where do we find such Divine happiness? 127 00:08:25,500 --> 00:08:29,400 Well, the psalmist is telling us that it's found in the fear of 128 00:08:29,400 --> 00:08:33,100 the Lord. And one way that I think about 129 00:08:34,000 --> 00:08:38,100 what the fear of the Lord means, one way, we might say this is to 130 00:08:38,100 --> 00:08:41,500 say it's found in the shadow of the Almighty. 131 00:08:42,500 --> 00:08:44,800 And what do I mean by? It's found in the shadow of the 132 00:08:44,800 --> 00:08:48,900 Almighty. I mean you find blessing when 133 00:08:48,900 --> 00:08:53,600 you humble yourself before God when you Revere God when you 134 00:08:53,600 --> 00:08:59,800 ascribed his name all glory and honor which is due only and 135 00:08:59,800 --> 00:09:04,000 rightly to the one true God Of Heaven and Earth the creator of 136 00:09:04,000 --> 00:09:09,200 all things, the Christian God and you do this as you reverence 137 00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:12,900 God this is where you find his Divine blessing. 138 00:09:12,900 --> 00:09:17,300 Again blessed is everyone who who fears the Lord say it with 139 00:09:17,300 --> 00:09:19,700 me. Fears the Lord hears. 140 00:09:19,700 --> 00:09:25,900 The Lord who walks in his ways. So to fear the lord is to 141 00:09:25,900 --> 00:09:29,800 reverence, the Lord is to ascribe to him all glory and 142 00:09:29,800 --> 00:09:32,000 honor. What do we mean when we see walk 143 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:34,800 in his ways, what does the psalmist telling us? 144 00:09:35,300 --> 00:09:39,300 Well walks in his ways and tends to communicate the whole of 145 00:09:39,300 --> 00:09:43,600 one's life and behavior. It's everything about who you 146 00:09:43,600 --> 00:09:46,400 are. One way you might think of this. 147 00:09:46,400 --> 00:09:49,400 Is that your heart. Which in scripture your heart is 148 00:09:49,400 --> 00:09:53,000 the sinner of all that you are your life. 149 00:09:53,000 --> 00:09:56,000 You're being your emotion, your work. 150 00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:58,500 The heart is the center of all, that you are. 151 00:09:58,500 --> 00:10:00,600 And so when the Bible talks about the heart of man is 152 00:10:00,600 --> 00:10:04,800 talking about everything that he is, the whole of the man. 153 00:10:06,100 --> 00:10:08,300 It's only think about someone who's walking in his ways were 154 00:10:08,300 --> 00:10:13,400 thinking about someone whose heart is submitted to Christ. 155 00:10:14,600 --> 00:10:17,900 A heart that Revere's the Lord above all else. 156 00:10:21,500 --> 00:10:24,900 This man is blessed and you can see it. 157 00:10:24,900 --> 00:10:26,900 You can see that he Revere's. The Lord in the way that he 158 00:10:26,900 --> 00:10:29,700 lives in the way that he behaves. 159 00:10:30,100 --> 00:10:34,600 It's not merely outward showing of The, there are those kinds of 160 00:10:34,600 --> 00:10:36,800 people but I'm not talking about those kind of people today, I'm 161 00:10:36,800 --> 00:10:39,700 painting. A picture for you today as the 162 00:10:39,700 --> 00:10:42,900 psalmist is here of what it looks like to be this kind of 163 00:10:42,900 --> 00:10:46,700 man. This kind of man is seen in the 164 00:10:46,700 --> 00:10:49,400 way that he walks is one who reveres the lord. 165 00:10:50,000 --> 00:10:54,900 It's noticed in all that he is, the blessed man is not merely 166 00:10:54,900 --> 00:10:58,600 one who fears the Lord, but he also walks in his ways. 167 00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:01,200 He trust him enough to follow him. 168 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:04,800 This means that he hit the very least, knows God's word. 169 00:11:04,800 --> 00:11:07,700 And I don't mean that, you know, every word, every Dot and Tittle 170 00:11:07,700 --> 00:11:12,400 every Every piece of it, you'll spend your life, hopefully 171 00:11:12,400 --> 00:11:14,800 devoted to the word of God studying those things. 172 00:11:15,000 --> 00:11:16,800 But you you love the word of God. 173 00:11:16,800 --> 00:11:18,100 Maybe that's a better way to say it. 174 00:11:18,500 --> 00:11:20,700 You love God's word. You love what he has to say. 175 00:11:20,700 --> 00:11:25,200 You're you're attentive to its and so you're seeking to align 176 00:11:25,200 --> 00:11:29,500 yourself with his word. He knows what God's command, 177 00:11:29,500 --> 00:11:34,300 what God commands of his people to do, and then he commits 178 00:11:34,300 --> 00:11:38,100 himself to do it again. We're talking about blessed is 179 00:11:38,700 --> 00:11:42,100 Everyone who fears the Lord who walks in his ways and then in 180 00:11:42,100 --> 00:11:47,200 verse 2, it's going to get into specifically the man who is 181 00:11:47,200 --> 00:11:49,400 doing this. We know that because it says 182 00:11:49,400 --> 00:11:55,200 that his wife and his children, his work But right now the the 183 00:11:55,200 --> 00:11:57,600 principle of fearing, the Lord and walk in his ways and the 184 00:11:57,600 --> 00:12:02,000 blessedness that comes with this applies to all people who fear 185 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:05,600 the lord and walk in his ways, you can know the divine blessing 186 00:12:06,500 --> 00:12:09,400 but I would like to turn our attention to the kind of man 187 00:12:09,400 --> 00:12:14,900 that's being described here. With a with a dogged 188 00:12:14,900 --> 00:12:18,800 masculinity. We might say he pursues God and 189 00:12:18,800 --> 00:12:24,200 his ways Above All Else. He knows that divine blessing, 190 00:12:24,200 --> 00:12:27,900 only exists for such a man and his family. 191 00:12:27,900 --> 00:12:32,100 And so he devotes himself to this life for his own good. 192 00:12:32,100 --> 00:12:36,500 For the good of those who were under his care and for the glory 193 00:12:36,500 --> 00:12:41,200 of God, this is what drives him to wake up each morning. 194 00:12:41,200 --> 00:12:44,800 That's why he steps out of his house to go to work. 195 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:48,100 It's why he steps into his home in the evening returning from 196 00:12:48,100 --> 00:12:51,300 work to care for his family. It's why he doesn't check out. 197 00:12:51,700 --> 00:12:55,600 He's there, he's present because he knows that divine. 198 00:12:55,900 --> 00:12:59,200 Blessing is reserved for the man who fears the Lord and walks in 199 00:12:59,200 --> 00:13:02,800 his ways. And for that, man, his family 200 00:13:03,000 --> 00:13:04,700 will experience the same blessings. 201 00:13:05,700 --> 00:13:11,100 And so he sacrifices himself in this way that he might lead 202 00:13:11,100 --> 00:13:14,300 others cheerfully into the divine blessing. 203 00:13:15,200 --> 00:13:18,500 This blessing for those who fear the lord is deeply rooted in 204 00:13:18,500 --> 00:13:22,700 scripture and Christian history. I mean we I have not near the 205 00:13:22,700 --> 00:13:25,400 time to take you through so many passages that talk about this 206 00:13:25,400 --> 00:13:29,700 but I tried to hit a few different places Deuteronomy 8 207 00:13:30,200 --> 00:13:33,300 Moses in Deuteronomy is giving what might be read as like a 208 00:13:33,300 --> 00:13:35,400 final address to the Israelites before there. 209 00:13:35,600 --> 00:13:38,500 Enter the promised land. He's not allowed to enter, but 210 00:13:38,500 --> 00:13:40,700 he's a dressing them. He's telling them how their to 211 00:13:40,700 --> 00:13:44,700 live, how they're to to walk in the ways of the Lord to fear 212 00:13:44,700 --> 00:13:45,700 Him. This is what he says, in 213 00:13:45,700 --> 00:13:48,000 Deuteronomy chapter 8, he's already said so many things like 214 00:13:48,000 --> 00:13:50,700 this, but he sums it up and Deuteronomy chapter 8 verse 6. 215 00:13:50,700 --> 00:13:52,900 He says. So you shall keep the 216 00:13:52,900 --> 00:13:57,100 Commandments of the Lord, your God by walking in his ways and 217 00:13:57,100 --> 00:14:00,900 by fearing him. So you shall keep the 218 00:14:00,900 --> 00:14:04,300 Commandments of the Lord, your God by walking in his ways and 219 00:14:04,300 --> 00:14:06,000 by fear. Seeing him. 220 00:14:07,000 --> 00:14:10,300 How do you keep the commands of God by walking in his ways? 221 00:14:10,300 --> 00:14:14,300 And by fearing him reverencing, him hiding yourself in the 222 00:14:14,300 --> 00:14:16,500 shadow of the almighty, humbling yourself. 223 00:14:16,500 --> 00:14:24,000 Before him, ascribing glory to him, and to him alone, There are 224 00:14:24,200 --> 00:14:27,900 many. And again I joked with my dad 225 00:14:27,900 --> 00:14:31,900 before the service, I I don't like a Father's Day. 226 00:14:31,900 --> 00:14:35,200 Message that that beats you over the head like I'm just not here 227 00:14:35,200 --> 00:14:38,400 for that. There's enough of that. 228 00:14:38,400 --> 00:14:48,800 What we need is for men to catch a vision of what A rugged Godly 229 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:51,800 Christianity. Looks like in the life of a man 230 00:14:52,500 --> 00:14:55,700 so that their home will be blessed so that the church will 231 00:14:55,700 --> 00:14:58,100 be blessed. So that the community at large, 232 00:14:58,100 --> 00:15:00,600 the nation at large, will be blessed. 233 00:15:01,700 --> 00:15:04,000 But there are warnings in scripture in the wisdom 234 00:15:04,000 --> 00:15:08,200 literature especially about the kind of man who looks to find 235 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:11,300 his own way apart from the ways of God and this is what Proverbs 236 00:15:11,300 --> 00:15:13,700 14:12 says. So there's a way that seems 237 00:15:13,700 --> 00:15:20,000 right to a man but in its but it's end is the way of death its 238 00:15:20,000 --> 00:15:22,600 end as the way to death. So there's a way and every man 239 00:15:22,600 --> 00:15:27,400 that seems right unto him and he will pursue that selfishly, But 240 00:15:27,400 --> 00:15:35,300 it's way is the way to death. And so the wisdom literature, 241 00:15:35,900 --> 00:15:39,300 the law into the gospels Christ himself. 242 00:15:39,300 --> 00:15:41,500 As I'm going to read in a moment, the letters of the New 243 00:15:41,500 --> 00:15:44,000 Testament, all of these things were reminding. 244 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:46,300 You what? It's like to be a Godly person 245 00:15:46,500 --> 00:15:49,100 who walks in the ways of the Lord, so that you might receive 246 00:15:49,100 --> 00:15:52,000 divine blessing. All of scriptures doing this 247 00:15:53,100 --> 00:15:56,500 Jesus in John, chapter 15 is really summing up the same 248 00:15:56,500 --> 00:15:58,500 things. He's at the end of his time, 249 00:15:58,500 --> 00:16:00,900 with his disciples. He's about to be arrested. 250 00:16:01,500 --> 00:16:04,400 And he says they're likely in the garden. 251 00:16:04,400 --> 00:16:07,200 Now we're he will eventually be arrested, but he says this. 252 00:16:07,200 --> 00:16:10,400 He says, if you keep my Commandments, you will abide in 253 00:16:10,400 --> 00:16:12,800 my love. Just as I have kept my father's 254 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:15,200 Commandments and abide in his love. 255 00:16:16,900 --> 00:16:20,800 One way to think about a fear of the Lord, a healthy fear of the 256 00:16:20,800 --> 00:16:26,200 Lord is to abide in his love. These things, Jesus goes on to 257 00:16:26,200 --> 00:16:29,300 say, I've spoken to you that my joy may be in you. 258 00:16:30,400 --> 00:16:35,000 And that your joy may be full. My joy may be in you, and that 259 00:16:35,000 --> 00:16:38,900 your joy may be full. That may be the very best 260 00:16:39,400 --> 00:16:42,700 succinct. Definition of the divine 261 00:16:42,800 --> 00:16:46,700 blessing that awaits, those who will fear the lord and walk in 262 00:16:46,700 --> 00:16:51,700 his ways that your, that the joy of Christ himself will be in you 263 00:16:51,900 --> 00:16:57,300 and your joy might be full. And so as we continue reading, 264 00:16:57,300 --> 00:17:00,800 we see that the godly man is a man who Here's the Lord. 265 00:17:01,200 --> 00:17:03,900 As we've seen that, now, as we continue reading, see that the 266 00:17:03,900 --> 00:17:10,200 godly man, the man who fears the Lord, enjoys a flourishing home. 267 00:17:11,200 --> 00:17:13,599 Let's look at the psalmist description of this divine 268 00:17:13,599 --> 00:17:15,700 blessing. I kind of he flushes it out for 269 00:17:15,700 --> 00:17:17,800 us. This is what the blessing looks 270 00:17:17,800 --> 00:17:20,599 like in verse 2. He says you shall eat the fruit 271 00:17:20,599 --> 00:17:23,599 of the labor of your hands and you shall be blessed and it 272 00:17:23,599 --> 00:17:28,300 shall be well with you. You shall eat the fruit of your 273 00:17:28,300 --> 00:17:31,000 hands. The labor of your hands, you 274 00:17:31,000 --> 00:17:33,800 shall be blessed and it shall be well with you. 275 00:17:34,300 --> 00:17:38,500 Now, let's think about for a moment, the time period of this 276 00:17:38,500 --> 00:17:43,600 song, right? This is not written today in 277 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:47,500 this day and really this wasn't that long ago Even in our 278 00:17:47,500 --> 00:17:50,500 history. But in this day, a man planted 279 00:17:50,500 --> 00:17:56,200 his own food. A man gardened a man hunted. 280 00:17:56,400 --> 00:18:00,400 A man fished a man lived off the land, that was given to him. 281 00:18:00,400 --> 00:18:05,200 He cultivated it, he worked it, he protected it just as he was 282 00:18:05,200 --> 00:18:08,300 designed to do. Genesis 2:15 is God creates the 283 00:18:08,300 --> 00:18:09,500 man. He puts him into the garden. 284 00:18:09,500 --> 00:18:13,200 He says to Adam that he has to work it and keep it. 285 00:18:14,500 --> 00:18:18,000 This is Central to the design of a man is that he's a worker and 286 00:18:18,000 --> 00:18:21,800 the keeper. He's a cultivator, he causes 287 00:18:21,800 --> 00:18:25,400 things to flourish. And he keeps them. 288 00:18:25,500 --> 00:18:30,800 He protects he fights for. He's a provider and a protector. 289 00:18:32,700 --> 00:18:36,000 In many ways we still do this to some extent, right? 290 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:38,700 Your our were might look different but we're still 291 00:18:38,700 --> 00:18:40,400 providing. We're still cold to vaiting. 292 00:18:40,400 --> 00:18:45,500 We're still working and keeping. The idea is the same that you 293 00:18:45,500 --> 00:18:48,800 work, and you keep all that God, grants you just like Adam was 294 00:18:48,800 --> 00:18:52,700 created to do. But here's the issue, Adam 295 00:18:52,900 --> 00:18:55,500 failed to do, what God commanded him to do. 296 00:18:55,500 --> 00:19:01,100 And so, he was told that the ground was going to be cursed. 297 00:19:01,200 --> 00:19:04,600 Because of him and work was going to be cursed because of 298 00:19:04,600 --> 00:19:06,500 him. And it was told to him that he 299 00:19:06,500 --> 00:19:10,200 would now work by the sweat of his brow that he would toil 300 00:19:10,200 --> 00:19:14,500 against thorns and thistles all the days of his life until he 301 00:19:14,500 --> 00:19:19,300 returns to dust. And in many ways, this is what 302 00:19:19,300 --> 00:19:22,300 work is for us. Whether you sit in a cubicle and 303 00:19:22,300 --> 00:19:26,300 work all day or you're out and a plant working all day, or your 304 00:19:26,600 --> 00:19:29,600 gardening at home, working all day or whatever you're doing 305 00:19:29,800 --> 00:19:34,000 work is kind of the same, right? Your toiling against proverbial. 306 00:19:34,000 --> 00:19:39,100 Thorns and thistles, your work feels fruitless at times. 307 00:19:40,400 --> 00:19:44,600 Solomon in Ecclesiastes is going to say that it's vanity because 308 00:19:44,600 --> 00:19:48,700 it's just monotonous it's over and over and over a man works 309 00:19:48,900 --> 00:19:51,900 all the days of his life and then he returns to dust all is 310 00:19:51,900 --> 00:19:55,900 vanities. And we feel that, right? 311 00:19:55,900 --> 00:19:58,900 There's some of you men in here kind of not in like yeah you 312 00:19:58,900 --> 00:20:02,700 feel that as you check into your 925 each day, your seven, two 313 00:20:02,700 --> 00:20:05,400 three, seven, two four, seven, two seven whatever you're 314 00:20:05,400 --> 00:20:12,400 working you feel this? And so in many ways, we're still 315 00:20:13,300 --> 00:20:17,000 toiling against thorns and thistles until we return to 316 00:20:17,000 --> 00:20:21,100 dust, but the divine blessing that's being pronounced here in 317 00:20:21,100 --> 00:20:25,100 Psalm 128. For those who fear the lord and 318 00:20:25,100 --> 00:20:28,300 walk in his ways is announcing to you. 319 00:20:29,500 --> 00:20:32,900 That the curse of the Fall is overcome. 320 00:20:34,500 --> 00:20:40,100 For you that the curse of the Fall does not completely affect 321 00:20:40,100 --> 00:20:44,800 your work, that there is blessing in the work because all 322 00:20:44,800 --> 00:20:47,700 that you're committing your hands to do. 323 00:20:47,700 --> 00:20:50,200 You're committing to do unto the glory of God. 324 00:20:50,400 --> 00:20:53,000 You fear the lord and you're walking in his ways. 325 00:20:53,000 --> 00:20:57,300 And so he is blessing your work. He is causing your hands to be 326 00:20:57,300 --> 00:21:01,400 fruitful and so you're eating of the fruit of your labor. 327 00:21:03,300 --> 00:21:06,600 But you battle these thorns and thistles all your days your work 328 00:21:06,600 --> 00:21:10,700 is fruitful not fruitless. That's one of the blessings that 329 00:21:10,700 --> 00:21:14,000 you see here for the man who fears the Lord and walks in his 330 00:21:14,000 --> 00:21:16,400 ways. You shall eat the fruit of the 331 00:21:16,400 --> 00:21:18,200 labor of your hands. You shall be blessed and it 332 00:21:18,200 --> 00:21:23,600 shall be well with you. And so, what this means is that, 333 00:21:23,600 --> 00:21:28,100 it's good for you, absolutely. But if you're a husband, if 334 00:21:28,100 --> 00:21:31,200 you're a father, if your man who's helping taking care of his 335 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:33,200 community, that's not only good for you. 336 00:21:33,200 --> 00:21:35,800 It's good for all of those who were under your care or within 337 00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:39,400 your reach, you're affecting them also. 338 00:21:39,400 --> 00:21:42,800 And that's where the psalmist heads to Next in verse 3, he 339 00:21:42,800 --> 00:21:47,800 says your wife will be like a fruitful Vine within your house. 340 00:21:49,200 --> 00:21:52,900 Your children will be like all of shoots around your table. 341 00:21:55,200 --> 00:21:58,800 Let's deal with this first phrase, your wife will be like a 342 00:21:58,800 --> 00:22:01,000 fruitful vine with in your house. 343 00:22:01,000 --> 00:22:05,600 There's two things in mind here. I'll get to those as we go 344 00:22:05,600 --> 00:22:11,400 through this. The wife of a godly man receives 345 00:22:11,600 --> 00:22:15,300 blessing. Also she receives the divine 346 00:22:15,300 --> 00:22:18,800 blessing. Also as he leads and producing 347 00:22:18,800 --> 00:22:24,500 as he leads and fruitfulness she follows and assist him, when God 348 00:22:24,500 --> 00:22:27,200 looked at the man in the garden, he said it's not and he's 349 00:22:27,200 --> 00:22:31,300 already given him the command to work and to keep He looks at the 350 00:22:31,308 --> 00:22:33,400 man he says not good. That the man should be alone. 351 00:22:33,400 --> 00:22:39,400 I'll make a what for him, a helper fit for him, a helper fit 352 00:22:39,400 --> 00:22:41,800 for him. And so a wife is to come 353 00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:47,000 alongside her husband and join in the mission of being fruitful 354 00:22:47,100 --> 00:22:51,300 and multiplying of exercising, dominions doing all that God. 355 00:22:51,300 --> 00:22:54,400 Created a wife, assist her husband in this. 356 00:22:54,400 --> 00:22:57,400 She follows him in this, he leads. 357 00:22:57,400 --> 00:23:00,900 She follows he works. She assists it doesn't I mean 358 00:23:00,900 --> 00:23:03,800 that she doesn't have responsibilities to take care of 359 00:23:03,800 --> 00:23:06,300 that are her own and that she's tending to absolutely. 360 00:23:06,300 --> 00:23:08,700 She does. Everything's Patricia does that? 361 00:23:08,700 --> 00:23:13,700 I am absolutely not wired to do and I don't mean cooking and 362 00:23:13,700 --> 00:23:16,800 cleaning. All right, let's not reduce it 363 00:23:17,100 --> 00:23:19,700 to that. But let's also not paint over 364 00:23:19,700 --> 00:23:22,400 cooking and cleaning like they're bad things either. 365 00:23:23,300 --> 00:23:26,600 These are gifts from the Lord and he's created a wife, to be a 366 00:23:27,100 --> 00:23:30,100 cultivator of her own to nourish and cherish things so that they 367 00:23:30,300 --> 00:23:33,900 grow and flourish alongside her husband. 368 00:23:34,500 --> 00:23:37,500 And so together. Working together, they bear much 369 00:23:37,500 --> 00:23:40,600 fruit. She becomes a fruitful vine with 370 00:23:40,600 --> 00:23:43,100 in the house. Now, one way a wife is meant to 371 00:23:43,100 --> 00:23:47,500 be fruitful is how she Bears children. 372 00:23:48,900 --> 00:23:52,900 This is one way. A woman is absolutely doing 373 00:23:52,900 --> 00:23:54,400 something. I don't care what the news says 374 00:23:54,400 --> 00:23:56,300 today. A man cannot do. 375 00:23:59,800 --> 00:24:05,000 She Bears, the fruit of children for him. 376 00:24:06,300 --> 00:24:10,900 And they raise them together and these children are a tremendous 377 00:24:11,100 --> 00:24:13,800 blessing to the God-fearing husband and wife. 378 00:24:15,300 --> 00:24:20,400 Psalm 127 says of the man. And his children behold, 379 00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:23,500 children are a Heritage from the Lord. 380 00:24:24,000 --> 00:24:31,000 The fruit of the womb, a reward like arrows in the hand of a 381 00:24:31,000 --> 00:24:35,700 warrior or the children of one's youth blessed is the man who 382 00:24:35,700 --> 00:24:39,400 fills his quiver with them. He shall not be put to shame 383 00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:43,000 when he speaks with his enemies in the gate. 384 00:24:43,200 --> 00:24:46,300 And so this is one way. But the fruit of the womb which 385 00:24:46,300 --> 00:24:49,300 is something only the woman can do alongside her husband. 386 00:24:49,500 --> 00:24:56,500 Of course, the fruit of the womb becomes Heritage for the man. 387 00:24:57,500 --> 00:25:01,800 Children are like arrows. In his hands. 388 00:25:03,500 --> 00:25:06,400 And blessed, is the man that says who fills his quiver with 389 00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:09,800 them? He shall not be put to shame 390 00:25:09,800 --> 00:25:12,200 when he speaks, with his enemies in the gate. 391 00:25:12,200 --> 00:25:16,300 They are a Heritage there, a testimony to the faithfulness, 392 00:25:16,300 --> 00:25:21,100 and fruitfulness of God, the blessing, the divine, blessing 393 00:25:21,300 --> 00:25:24,000 of the Lord, as he seeks to raise them. 394 00:25:24,000 --> 00:25:26,800 The way God commands. They become a Heritage as he 395 00:25:26,800 --> 00:25:30,500 seeks to follow the lord and all his ways to Revere him. 396 00:25:30,700 --> 00:25:34,100 His children are like, arrows. I mean, you know, a crooked 397 00:25:34,100 --> 00:25:36,400 arrow is no good. All right, you've ever shot a 398 00:25:36,408 --> 00:25:39,900 bow and arrow of any Type you like this. 399 00:25:39,900 --> 00:25:42,300 This is used to happen when you would make your own right as a 400 00:25:42,300 --> 00:25:46,000 kid. You would get a piece of wood 401 00:25:46,000 --> 00:25:48,300 that you found a stick. Really that you found in the 402 00:25:48,300 --> 00:25:51,400 woods and you'd been that thing you tie some string to and then 403 00:25:51,400 --> 00:25:54,200 you go find another stick and because it's a lot of work kind 404 00:25:54,200 --> 00:25:57,100 of knock the knots off of it and really it's hard to find a 405 00:25:57,108 --> 00:25:59,400 straight one. You just kind of settle but you 406 00:25:59,400 --> 00:26:01,900 end up with an arrow that kind of looks like this, right? 407 00:26:01,900 --> 00:26:04,200 It's got knots all over and you try to shoot that thing. 408 00:26:04,200 --> 00:26:08,100 It just Falls at your feet, like a crooked arrow is of no use use 409 00:26:08,200 --> 00:26:11,100 to a man, you go to battle with a crooked arrow, you're in 410 00:26:11,100 --> 00:26:13,600 trouble. In trouble. 411 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:15,000 You can shoot around corners with them. 412 00:26:15,000 --> 00:26:16,900 They don't fly that way. They don't work that way. 413 00:26:17,700 --> 00:26:20,300 And so a man who's not seeing to the raising of his children 414 00:26:20,300 --> 00:26:24,000 manage not training. His children for godliness is 415 00:26:24,000 --> 00:26:27,100 really setting himself up to be defeated by his enemies later in 416 00:26:27,100 --> 00:26:29,000 life. He doesn't have the proper 417 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:32,000 arrows for the battle. He won't win the war. 418 00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:36,300 When the enemies are at the gate. and so, his job is to 419 00:26:36,300 --> 00:26:43,500 cultivate and protect Right? It's the grow things to protect 420 00:26:43,500 --> 00:26:47,100 them. Listen to what proverbs 31 says, 421 00:26:47,100 --> 00:26:50,800 with the woman and her children, I love this her children. 422 00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:54,800 Rise up and call her blessed. Here's that word. 423 00:26:54,800 --> 00:26:59,200 Again, divinely. Happy for children, rise up and 424 00:26:59,200 --> 00:27:02,700 call her blessed. Her husband also, and he Praises 425 00:27:02,700 --> 00:27:07,300 her, this is what he says, many women have done excellently, but 426 00:27:07,300 --> 00:27:12,400 you surpass them all. Verse 30. 427 00:27:12,400 --> 00:27:14,800 It says this of the woman, again, the husband's done 428 00:27:14,800 --> 00:27:18,300 talking now, we're back to instructions for The Godly woman 429 00:27:18,300 --> 00:27:19,900 here. It says charm is deceitful, 430 00:27:20,200 --> 00:27:25,000 beauty is in vain, but a woman who fears the Lord is to be 431 00:27:25,000 --> 00:27:28,800 praised a woman who hides herself under the shadow of the 432 00:27:28,808 --> 00:27:33,600 wings of the almighty, a woman who reveres the Lord is to be 433 00:27:33,600 --> 00:27:36,100 praised. She's the one. 434 00:27:39,000 --> 00:27:42,400 Verse 31, it says give her the fruits of her hands. 435 00:27:42,600 --> 00:27:45,800 Here we go with the vine again. She's a fruitful Vine and let 436 00:27:45,800 --> 00:27:48,800 her works. Praise her in the gates. 437 00:27:49,300 --> 00:27:51,300 Other words. This woman doesn't walk around 438 00:27:51,300 --> 00:27:53,400 saying look at all the things that I've done. 439 00:27:53,600 --> 00:27:55,800 She's hidden herself under the shadow of the almighty. 440 00:27:56,100 --> 00:28:00,200 She's not counted charm as something to be held onto. 441 00:28:00,200 --> 00:28:02,000 She's knows that this is deceitful. 442 00:28:02,100 --> 00:28:04,900 She knows that beauty. Is in vain, you were Beauty. 443 00:28:05,300 --> 00:28:08,600 You are beautiful in the way that the world counts Beauty. 444 00:28:08,800 --> 00:28:11,000 For just a short time of your life, right? 445 00:28:11,700 --> 00:28:16,200 I mean aging is not pretty it's just not things sag that didn't 446 00:28:16,200 --> 00:28:19,100 sag before wrinkles appear that weren't there before. 447 00:28:19,100 --> 00:28:20,800 And so is the world counts Beauty? 448 00:28:20,900 --> 00:28:25,300 We start thinking, well, I need liposuction and I need all kinds 449 00:28:25,300 --> 00:28:27,800 of different surgeries to take care of these things. 450 00:28:27,900 --> 00:28:30,700 And by the time I'm done, I'm going to look like a messed-up 451 00:28:30,700 --> 00:28:34,200 Barbie doll, okay? But you don't need those things 452 00:28:34,400 --> 00:28:41,900 because beauty is vain But a woman who fears the Lord, that's 453 00:28:41,900 --> 00:28:46,400 the one where to praise. But do you know who's under the 454 00:28:46,400 --> 00:28:50,800 most attack? Really in our culture. 455 00:28:52,300 --> 00:28:56,000 From feminist. Is the kind of woman that the 456 00:28:56,000 --> 00:29:01,700 Bible says, is worthy of praise. The kind of woman that the Bible 457 00:29:01,700 --> 00:29:05,300 says is worthy of Praise feminism does not hold up this 458 00:29:05,300 --> 00:29:10,200 kind of woman. In fact they want to end the 459 00:29:10,200 --> 00:29:16,200 work of a Biblical woman. They want to demean her work to 460 00:29:16,200 --> 00:29:20,700 ascribe to her. Something that the Bible says is 461 00:29:20,700 --> 00:29:26,800 deceitful and vain The same is true of men. 462 00:29:27,000 --> 00:29:29,200 The kind of men that are being propped up here in scripture. 463 00:29:29,200 --> 00:29:33,100 The kind of man that the Bible says, is going to be divinely 464 00:29:33,100 --> 00:29:36,200 blessed by God. It's not a man who fears the 465 00:29:36,200 --> 00:29:40,200 Lord. It's not a man who walks in his 466 00:29:40,200 --> 00:29:43,000 ways. It's a man who Blaze his own 467 00:29:43,000 --> 00:29:45,800 trail, who pays his own path, who goes, the way that no one 468 00:29:45,800 --> 00:29:50,600 else has gone before. And what we need is a return to 469 00:29:51,600 --> 00:29:55,200 a proper understanding of biblical, manhood and Womanhood. 470 00:29:55,200 --> 00:29:59,100 As God has designed it and men, and women who will say I'm 471 00:29:59,100 --> 00:30:04,200 submitting myself, To that. But I digress. 472 00:30:04,200 --> 00:30:07,200 That's a different sermon all together. 473 00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:12,000 So children are in mind here when we talk about the 474 00:30:12,000 --> 00:30:15,500 fruitfulness of a woman as they should be, but this blessing is 475 00:30:15,500 --> 00:30:19,200 not limited to Children. Only God is not saying that if a 476 00:30:19,208 --> 00:30:22,800 woman does not have a child, she is not fruitful Vine. 477 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:26,200 That's not what's being said, here might be one of the ways 478 00:30:26,700 --> 00:30:29,800 does not the only way the God-fearing husband and wife 479 00:30:29,800 --> 00:30:32,800 will be fruitful in a myriad of ways. 480 00:30:32,900 --> 00:30:36,200 Namely, this is the thing here. This is what's being said here, 481 00:30:36,200 --> 00:30:39,900 about the Divine blessedness that Vine happiness. 482 00:30:39,900 --> 00:30:43,400 Namely, they will the husband and wife, who fear the lord 483 00:30:43,400 --> 00:30:45,700 walking in his ways. They will spread the joy of the 484 00:30:45,700 --> 00:30:50,300 Lord into all the world as they fear Him and walk in his ways. 485 00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:55,700 This is fruitfulness and we know that because the psalmist also 486 00:30:55,700 --> 00:31:01,300 means here that your wife will be a bringer of Joy like wine. 487 00:31:01,500 --> 00:31:05,700 He has a mind here, the vine that produces wine. 488 00:31:06,700 --> 00:31:10,800 Which is meant to bring joy often it's abused and so it's 489 00:31:10,800 --> 00:31:15,100 not a joyful thing at all. But the way God intended wind to 490 00:31:15,100 --> 00:31:18,200 be used, was to be a bringer of joy and he's saying a woman. 491 00:31:19,400 --> 00:31:22,600 Under the care of a husband who is like, this will be a bringer 492 00:31:22,600 --> 00:31:27,800 of joy for him like wine. She too knows the Divine 493 00:31:27,800 --> 00:31:31,500 happiness of her husband. And so she shares it with all 494 00:31:31,500 --> 00:31:37,600 those who are around her and the husband benefits also from this, 495 00:31:38,500 --> 00:31:41,400 your children will be like all those shoots around your table 496 00:31:42,300 --> 00:31:46,000 again following the instruction of God, the man is Walking, In 497 00:31:46,000 --> 00:31:48,400 God's ways. He's teaching his children, he's 498 00:31:48,400 --> 00:31:50,300 exemplifying the commands of God. 499 00:31:50,500 --> 00:31:53,000 I mentioned to you, Deuteronomy 8 earlier about walking in the 500 00:31:53,000 --> 00:31:55,500 ways of the Lord fearing him and Deuteronomy. 501 00:31:56,200 --> 00:31:59,400 It's just a couple of chapters. Earlier, Moses says this, I'm 502 00:31:59,400 --> 00:32:01,800 going to read to you a somewhat lengthy portion here, because I 503 00:32:01,808 --> 00:32:03,700 think it's really important to what we're talking about. 504 00:32:03,800 --> 00:32:08,600 He says this, he says, now this is the Commandment, the statutes 505 00:32:08,600 --> 00:32:11,700 and the rules that the Lord, your God commanded me to teach 506 00:32:11,700 --> 00:32:15,000 you that you may do them in the land to, which you were going 507 00:32:15,000 --> 00:32:18,000 over to possess it. That you may fear the lord, your 508 00:32:18,000 --> 00:32:22,500 God did you and your son and your son's son by keeping all 509 00:32:22,500 --> 00:32:24,200 his statutes and his Commandments. 510 00:32:24,200 --> 00:32:28,400 You see how it affects the next. Asian men, the way you fear. 511 00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:32,300 The Lord says that you may fear. The lord your God you and your 512 00:32:32,300 --> 00:32:35,800 son and your son's son, the second and third Generations, 513 00:32:35,800 --> 00:32:40,300 which I command you all the days of your life and that your days 514 00:32:40,300 --> 00:32:44,000 may be long here. Therefore o Israel and be 515 00:32:44,000 --> 00:32:47,600 careful to do them that it may go well with you and that you 516 00:32:47,600 --> 00:32:49,700 may multiply greatly as the Lord. 517 00:32:49,700 --> 00:32:52,200 The god of your father's has promised you in the land, 518 00:32:52,200 --> 00:32:55,700 flowing with milk and honey hear o Israel. 519 00:32:55,700 --> 00:32:58,400 The Lord our Our God. The Lord is one. 520 00:32:58,600 --> 00:33:01,800 You shall love the Lord. Your God with all your heart. 521 00:33:01,800 --> 00:33:04,800 And with all your soul and with all your minds, this is 522 00:33:04,800 --> 00:33:08,300 reverence. And these words that I command 523 00:33:08,300 --> 00:33:11,300 you today shall be on your heart again. 524 00:33:11,300 --> 00:33:14,200 That's the the logo of the central. 525 00:33:14,200 --> 00:33:16,000 Locus of the man. This is everything. 526 00:33:16,000 --> 00:33:17,400 That is these words. I command you. 527 00:33:17,400 --> 00:33:19,300 Love the Lord, your God with all your heart, with all your soul 528 00:33:19,400 --> 00:33:21,300 with all your might. These things shall be on your 529 00:33:21,300 --> 00:33:23,800 heart. You shall teach them diligently 530 00:33:23,800 --> 00:33:26,000 to your children and shalt talk of them. 531 00:33:26,500 --> 00:33:29,500 When you sit in your house and when you walk, by the way, and 532 00:33:29,500 --> 00:33:32,900 when you lie down and when you rise, you shall bind them as a 533 00:33:32,900 --> 00:33:36,100 sign on your hand and they shall be as frontlets between your 534 00:33:36,100 --> 00:33:40,000 eyes, you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and 535 00:33:40,000 --> 00:33:44,100 on your Gates, another words everywhere that you are the word 536 00:33:44,100 --> 00:33:48,800 of the Lord is meant to be. And in every conversation, not 537 00:33:48,800 --> 00:33:53,800 every, in everyday conversation, you can bring up the joy of the 538 00:33:53,800 --> 00:33:56,600 Lord, the love of the Lord, with your children, and your Meant 539 00:33:56,900 --> 00:34:00,600 especially father's, you're meant to be leading in this way. 540 00:34:01,200 --> 00:34:04,500 The Divine happiness of the man, not only impacts his wife. 541 00:34:04,500 --> 00:34:08,000 It impacts their children also and like all of shoots is 542 00:34:08,000 --> 00:34:11,300 children who are now full of energy and they're full of 543 00:34:11,300 --> 00:34:14,100 Promise. There's lots that could be 544 00:34:14,100 --> 00:34:17,699 produced from them. How many of, you know, there's 545 00:34:17,699 --> 00:34:21,300 lots of Destruction that can come from a child, right? 546 00:34:22,300 --> 00:34:24,600 There's lots of blessing that can come from a child. 547 00:34:25,800 --> 00:34:28,600 The Lord blesses, the Man's children, and his children's 548 00:34:28,600 --> 00:34:33,000 children, when they fear Him, and walk in his ways and verse 549 00:34:33,000 --> 00:34:36,600 4, he of Psalm 128, he says this, he says, behold the shall 550 00:34:36,600 --> 00:34:38,800 the man be blessed. Who fears the Lord. 551 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:42,100 So it's just kind of a summary of everything that he said and 552 00:34:42,100 --> 00:34:45,000 the last two verses are really a prayer, but let's summarize it 553 00:34:45,000 --> 00:34:48,699 real quick. Nothing suggests that happiness. 554 00:34:48,699 --> 00:34:53,100 Divine happiness is automatic that, that's not what the 555 00:34:53,100 --> 00:34:56,000 psalmist is suggesting here. In fact, he's suggesting Quite 556 00:34:56,000 --> 00:34:59,000 the opposite. And the rest of the wisdom 557 00:34:59,000 --> 00:35:04,000 literature would fill out how men who fear the lord they work 558 00:35:04,000 --> 00:35:07,600 diligently. They love their lot, their wife, 559 00:35:07,600 --> 00:35:13,000 well, they Faithfully train their children and godliness and 560 00:35:13,000 --> 00:35:16,400 so this Psalm Paints the picture of the divine blessing that 561 00:35:16,400 --> 00:35:19,900 surrounds such a family. But it's not saying it's 562 00:35:19,900 --> 00:35:21,600 automatic. It's not saying that this is 563 00:35:21,600 --> 00:35:24,900 even easy work. It's saying this is the Blessed 564 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:27,600 work. This is the work of divine 565 00:35:27,900 --> 00:35:31,500 blessing. And so Brothers, you are wired 566 00:35:31,500 --> 00:35:35,200 by God to be a worker and a keeper. 567 00:35:36,000 --> 00:35:40,600 You were wired by God to be fruitful for his namesake and 568 00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:42,700 the good of all those under your care. 569 00:35:42,800 --> 00:35:48,400 You were wired by God to produce and to protect and to cultivate. 570 00:35:48,700 --> 00:35:54,800 And when you fear the lord, He blesses you He makes you more 571 00:35:54,800 --> 00:36:00,700 fruitful, you produce with higher quality, you protect with 572 00:36:00,700 --> 00:36:04,900 greater precision and you cultivate with a deeper strength 573 00:36:04,900 --> 00:36:10,700 when you hide yourself under the shadow of the Almighty. in verse 574 00:36:10,700 --> 00:36:14,600 five and six again, we see a prayer and what this tells us is 575 00:36:14,600 --> 00:36:19,700 that the godly man helps God's people Prosper, also, So, The 576 00:36:19,700 --> 00:36:22,700 Godly Man is one who fears the Lord and walks in his ways that 577 00:36:22,700 --> 00:36:25,500 man sees fruitfulness in his home. 578 00:36:25,700 --> 00:36:28,600 And now we see that, that same man and his home, which are 579 00:36:28,600 --> 00:36:33,600 being fruitful now, affect the people of God at large, look at 580 00:36:33,607 --> 00:36:38,200 verses five and six again, the Lord bless you from Zion, may 581 00:36:38,200 --> 00:36:41,400 you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your 582 00:36:41,400 --> 00:36:43,400 life? May you see your children's 583 00:36:43,400 --> 00:36:46,600 children? Peace be upon Israel. 584 00:36:48,500 --> 00:36:51,400 Here, the psalmist. Praise that each member of God's 585 00:36:51,400 --> 00:36:54,100 house, might know this Divine happiness. 586 00:36:54,400 --> 00:36:57,600 He's just say, may this happen. May the Lord bless you. 587 00:36:58,900 --> 00:37:02,700 May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem of the people of God? 588 00:37:02,800 --> 00:37:06,000 All the days of your life? May you see your children's 589 00:37:06,100 --> 00:37:07,800 children? The psalmist? 590 00:37:07,800 --> 00:37:11,200 Praise that the man might see his children's children. 591 00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:14,400 It's incredible. I've not prayed this own this 592 00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:18,300 prayer for my life yet nor have I prayed it for anyone else. 593 00:37:18,300 --> 00:37:26,600 But what a thing to pray for One of the quotes that flies around 594 00:37:27,400 --> 00:37:31,000 and some of the things that I read is, is that the difference 595 00:37:31,000 --> 00:37:34,800 between one of the differences between a godly man, who fears 596 00:37:34,800 --> 00:37:38,400 the Lord and a worldly man is that the godly man ought to be 597 00:37:38,700 --> 00:37:43,300 thinking about his grandchildren and his grandchildren's 598 00:37:43,300 --> 00:37:45,200 children, right? His great-grandchildren. 599 00:37:45,800 --> 00:37:50,500 And what they mean by this is that The Godly man knows that 600 00:37:50,500 --> 00:37:53,500 his life. Now affects the trajectory of 601 00:37:53,500 --> 00:37:59,100 the family for Generations. The worldly man doesn't know 602 00:37:59,100 --> 00:38:01,500 this, but you can rest assured that your directory of his 603 00:38:01,500 --> 00:38:05,200 family is affected for Generations by his worldliness. 604 00:38:05,800 --> 00:38:08,900 And so the adverse is true, that the godly man who knows this and 605 00:38:08,900 --> 00:38:12,400 sees us Works to cultivate and keep the kind of family, that 606 00:38:12,400 --> 00:38:15,800 knows the divine blessing, so that his children's children 607 00:38:15,800 --> 00:38:18,900 know, the divine blessing, this is one way to think about our 608 00:38:18,900 --> 00:38:22,100 life, we get 50, 60 70. 80 years. 609 00:38:22,100 --> 00:38:25,800 If we're lucky maybe a bit more, you don't know, maybe less. 610 00:38:27,800 --> 00:38:31,300 But each day is meant to be lived. 611 00:38:32,300 --> 00:38:34,900 Understanding that life is short. 612 00:38:36,200 --> 00:38:38,400 There's a phrase for this Memento more. 613 00:38:38,400 --> 00:38:42,200 I called me, I think you got it on your on your arm, don't you? 614 00:38:42,800 --> 00:38:47,600 I saw it earlier. It's meant to be lived. 615 00:38:47,600 --> 00:38:51,600 With the understanding that life is brief the brevity of life 616 00:38:51,600 --> 00:38:54,100 changes. The way you wake up each day, 617 00:38:54,600 --> 00:38:57,100 the way you go to sleep, the way you work for things. 618 00:38:57,100 --> 00:39:00,000 During the day, when you cultivate a relationship with 619 00:39:00,000 --> 00:39:03,400 your wife and your children, the community around you, that sort 620 00:39:03,400 --> 00:39:07,500 of thing. And so here what we're seeing is 621 00:39:07,500 --> 00:39:11,800 that the blessing may you be blessed so that you know, the 622 00:39:11,800 --> 00:39:15,000 prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life and so that 623 00:39:15,100 --> 00:39:20,300 peace be upon Israel. And so, he reveals to us one 624 00:39:20,300 --> 00:39:22,900 further benefit of the divine blessing. 625 00:39:27,800 --> 00:39:31,100 Is that it the blessedness that's on a man and his 626 00:39:31,100 --> 00:39:34,700 household is the same blessing that will benefit the whole of 627 00:39:34,700 --> 00:39:37,300 God's people which is Illustrated here using the words 628 00:39:37,300 --> 00:39:41,900 Jerusalem and Israel. Then back then is this was 629 00:39:41,900 --> 00:39:43,700 written. They look to the nation of 630 00:39:43,700 --> 00:39:49,000 Israel as God's people today. We look to the church those who 631 00:39:49,000 --> 00:39:51,200 are of the faith. This is why Paul writes in 632 00:39:51,200 --> 00:39:54,100 Romans for that, not all who are Israel or not. 633 00:39:54,100 --> 00:39:57,400 Well, that's Romans 10. He says not all. 634 00:39:57,600 --> 00:40:00,300 Who are of Israel were Israel. In other words, just because we 635 00:40:00,308 --> 00:40:02,100 were born in Israel, didn't mean you were part of it, but you 636 00:40:02,107 --> 00:40:04,500 became part of it by faith, which he talks about in Romans 637 00:40:04,500 --> 00:40:07,200 chapter 4 is, he's mentioning Abraham and his faith. 638 00:40:07,200 --> 00:40:10,400 And this is what made him God's people. 639 00:40:11,400 --> 00:40:14,400 And so the Divine happiness on the home, affects the whole 640 00:40:14,400 --> 00:40:17,100 church. Also not just your local church, 641 00:40:17,100 --> 00:40:20,500 but the whole church. And so we might say, as the man 642 00:40:20,500 --> 00:40:24,800 goes, so, goes his home It's the man goes. 643 00:40:24,800 --> 00:40:29,200 So goes his home and as the home goes, so goes the church. 644 00:40:31,100 --> 00:40:35,900 The song reveals that a man's work, his wife, his children and 645 00:40:35,900 --> 00:40:41,400 the church all will prosper due to the fact that he not, they 646 00:40:41,700 --> 00:40:49,500 fear the lord, what Grace and kindness of God are on display 647 00:40:49,600 --> 00:40:53,300 here. Well God does visit the sins of 648 00:40:53,300 --> 00:40:57,100 the father on the third and fourth Generations, he shows 649 00:40:57,100 --> 00:41:00,700 incredible kindness to thousands of generations because of 650 00:41:00,900 --> 00:41:04,600 Faithfulness to him in this generation. 651 00:41:06,200 --> 00:41:08,900 That's one of the saddest things to read and scriptures and 652 00:41:08,900 --> 00:41:14,800 judges chapters one and two. The people had already, they had 653 00:41:14,800 --> 00:41:17,200 already rebelled against Deuteronomy and all that was 654 00:41:17,200 --> 00:41:19,900 commanded of them. There to know the blessing of 655 00:41:19,900 --> 00:41:26,100 God to know his divine grace on them to stay in that to walk in 656 00:41:26,100 --> 00:41:28,400 that. And and so they would Prosper, 657 00:41:28,900 --> 00:41:30,300 they've already rebelled against that. 658 00:41:31,000 --> 00:41:33,000 And in Judges chapter 2, I believe it is. 659 00:41:33,000 --> 00:41:37,200 We read that the people did not know. 660 00:41:38,600 --> 00:41:43,100 The way of their fathers. And so they did all that their 661 00:41:43,100 --> 00:41:47,800 heart desired. In other words, they lost their 662 00:41:47,800 --> 00:41:50,600 way because the father's lost their way. 663 00:41:52,000 --> 00:41:58,300 The father's lost their way and so it's true that God does visit 664 00:41:58,300 --> 00:42:01,800 the sins of the father on the third and fourth Generations. 665 00:42:02,400 --> 00:42:06,100 But it's also true that he shows kindness, the thousands of 666 00:42:06,100 --> 00:42:09,900 generations because of the faithfulness to him in this 667 00:42:09,900 --> 00:42:13,300 generation and so the consequences of sin are 668 00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:18,600 ultimately exceeded By and eclipsed By Grace. 669 00:42:19,600 --> 00:42:23,500 Grace toward those who follow God. 670 00:42:24,700 --> 00:42:27,700 Who submit themselves to him, who will repent of their sins 671 00:42:28,000 --> 00:42:30,800 and Believe In Christ for their salvation. 672 00:42:31,500 --> 00:42:34,600 And so as the man as the husband, the father lives by 673 00:42:34,600 --> 00:42:38,800 God's grace a life and the fear of God, he can expect God's 674 00:42:38,800 --> 00:42:42,200 blessing to rest on his labor and on his wife. 675 00:42:42,400 --> 00:42:47,400 And on his children, you might call this as one translator or 676 00:42:47,400 --> 00:42:50,400 one scholar called the umbrella principle. 677 00:42:51,200 --> 00:42:55,400 One man, holds the umbrella faithfully and by God's grace, 678 00:42:55,800 --> 00:42:59,000 countless others are protected under the cover that it 679 00:42:59,000 --> 00:43:02,000 provides, but it doesn't stop there. 680 00:43:02,800 --> 00:43:08,600 As we read in these final two versus a man who fears God Or as 681 00:43:08,600 --> 00:43:12,400 a man, fears, God, his children are blessed and so his wife is 682 00:43:12,400 --> 00:43:15,500 bless his children are blessed. And so the church, the people of 683 00:43:15,500 --> 00:43:19,700 God, likewise are blessed. And so again, as goes the 684 00:43:19,700 --> 00:43:23,600 husband and the father, so go the children and the church. 685 00:43:25,000 --> 00:43:30,300 Last week in my devotion time. I read these words from David 686 00:43:30,300 --> 00:43:35,700 and First Chronicles, David is rallying the troops for yet 687 00:43:35,700 --> 00:43:39,500 another battle against those who were threatening God's people. 688 00:43:40,700 --> 00:43:45,600 Threatening to devour them. Overrun them rebelling, against 689 00:43:45,600 --> 00:43:48,600 God. And this is what David says in 690 00:43:48,600 --> 00:43:51,500 first Chronicles night First Chronicles, 19 13 He says be 691 00:43:51,500 --> 00:43:53,700 strong. He's addressing the troops. 692 00:43:53,700 --> 00:44:00,900 He says be strong and let us use our strength for our people and 693 00:44:00,900 --> 00:44:07,800 for the cities of our God and may the Lord do what seems good 694 00:44:08,000 --> 00:44:14,700 to him. Read it one more time, brothers. 695 00:44:15,600 --> 00:44:20,800 Be strong and let us use our strength for our people and for 696 00:44:20,800 --> 00:44:25,500 the cities of our God, and may the Lord do what seems good to 697 00:44:25,500 --> 00:44:27,300 him. Amen. 698 00:44:29,900 --> 00:44:36,500 Men, I urge you. To fight the good fight. 699 00:44:37,900 --> 00:44:44,000 To compete to finish the race well to run strong to not grow. 700 00:44:44,000 --> 00:44:47,800 Tired of doing the good work that God has granted to you. 701 00:44:49,400 --> 00:44:56,000 I urge you to join together here with other brothers and let us 702 00:44:56,000 --> 00:45:01,500 each all of us together Endeavor to hide ourselves in the shadow 703 00:45:01,500 --> 00:45:05,700 of the almighty God today. Let's resolve. 704 00:45:06,800 --> 00:45:12,900 In our minds and in our hearts right now that we will fear Him 705 00:45:12,900 --> 00:45:17,900 only that, we were Revere him alone and that we will walk in 706 00:45:17,900 --> 00:45:22,100 his ways, whatever that takes, whatever it demands of us, 707 00:45:22,300 --> 00:45:27,000 whatever it calls for. We're following him so that we, 708 00:45:27,000 --> 00:45:30,300 and those under our care. And within this church community 709 00:45:30,800 --> 00:45:34,600 may enjoy God's Divine happiness. 710 00:45:36,700 --> 00:45:41,700 Blessed is the man who fears the Lord and walks in his ways. 711 00:45:42,200 --> 00:45:46,800 Let me pray for you. Heavenly father, I thank for 712 00:45:46,800 --> 00:45:48,100 your word. I thank you. 713 00:45:48,100 --> 00:45:51,300 Lord, for these men. I thank you for the women here. 714 00:45:51,300 --> 00:45:53,400 I thank you, Lord, for the children that are in attendance 715 00:45:53,400 --> 00:45:56,100 today. God, would you help each one of 716 00:45:56,100 --> 00:45:59,800 us to fear you and to walk in your ways? 717 00:46:01,100 --> 00:46:05,600 That we might know the divine blessing of God, help us to 718 00:46:05,600 --> 00:46:07,900 Revere you. It's a humble ourselves submit 719 00:46:07,900 --> 00:46:13,000 ourselves to you. Father, I do. 720 00:46:13,000 --> 00:46:16,000 Pray. A prayer for the men that are 721 00:46:16,000 --> 00:46:20,800 here whether married or unmarried whether fathers or not 722 00:46:22,300 --> 00:46:28,400 Lord, help them to do this. Strengthen them for this, Lord, 723 00:46:28,400 --> 00:46:37,000 whatever it takes. I pray that you would take hold 724 00:46:37,000 --> 00:46:42,200 of their allegiance to you or the, their heart would be 725 00:46:42,200 --> 00:46:47,600 aligned with yours only. Their desires would be your 726 00:46:47,600 --> 00:46:50,100 desires that their hopes would be your hope. 727 00:46:50,600 --> 00:46:55,400 That their mission would be to take the divine blessing of God 728 00:46:56,300 --> 00:46:59,200 and shine it all around to those around us. 729 00:47:01,100 --> 00:47:04,100 But their wives would be fruitful that their children 730 00:47:04,100 --> 00:47:08,800 would be fruitful. That the church City's the 731 00:47:08,800 --> 00:47:12,100 nation at large would be fruitful because men have 732 00:47:12,100 --> 00:47:15,600 surrendered themselves to you and have chosen to follow your 733 00:47:15,600 --> 00:47:18,200 ways. God everywhere we look, we're 734 00:47:18,200 --> 00:47:26,700 told that this is foolishness. But it's silly to entrust 735 00:47:26,700 --> 00:47:35,400 ourselves to a God. We can't see to a lord who 736 00:47:35,400 --> 00:47:44,100 demands this of us. To a God who creates division 737 00:47:44,100 --> 00:47:47,100 among Believers and unbelievers by his word. 738 00:47:50,400 --> 00:47:53,600 But father, my prayer is that you would be found truthful. 739 00:47:54,200 --> 00:48:00,500 And every man a liar Help us to know you. 740 00:48:01,500 --> 00:48:08,900 Help us to trust you, help us to hide ourselves under your Shadow 741 00:48:09,000 --> 00:48:15,700 almighty God. Lord, we need men who love the 742 00:48:15,700 --> 00:48:20,800 Lord. We see to it to work and to live 743 00:48:20,800 --> 00:48:25,400 for you. To cultivate and to protect. 744 00:48:26,400 --> 00:48:32,100 For Your Glory. Lord, we trust you for that 745 00:48:32,100 --> 00:48:35,200 work. Thank you, Lord. 746 00:48:35,600 --> 00:48:38,500 I think it's in Christ's name. I pray today. 747 00:48:39,000 --> 00:48:35,200 Amen, man. Thank you, Lord. 748 00:48:35,600 --> 00:48:38,500 I think it's in Christ's name. I pray today. 749 00:48:39,000 --> 00:48:40,700 Amen, man.