Monday, August 31, 2009

Psalm 2 (part 3a)

The Revelation of the Son. (Psalm 2:7-9)

“(7) I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. (8) Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. (9) Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.”

The term begotten here refers to the Lord Jesus Christ. The timing is linked in the New Testament to the Lord’s resurrection (see Acts 13:33). The Resurrection of the Lord Jesus is the cap stone by which the entire world can know that God accepted or was pleased with the sacrificial atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. When Christ rose from the grave, he was declared to be the only begotten Son (see also Romans 1:4). It is important to note that Christ did not become the Son of God upon His Resurrection; rather He always was the only begotten Son of God. The Resurrection provides the evidence by which Christ’s Sonship is proclaimed or rather manifested. He did not become the Son because of His resurrection, He is the only begotten Son and His resurrection proves it.

(More to come on the topic of "only begotten")

Thursday, August 27, 2009

On the Lighter Side

The perfect gift for that Calvanist, and Reformed IFBer, or conservative envangelical wanna be.

Permission granted by www.sacredsandwich.com

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Monday, August 24, 2009

erratum

On my 3rd gabcast, I mentioned the links located on the "right section of the blog posts." When I decided to switch templates, the current one I am using has the side menu bars located on the left hand side. The gabcast was finalized prior to the switch, and thus the error.

Psalm 2 (part 2)

The Response of the LORD. (Psalms 2:4-6)

(4) He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.
(5) Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.
(6) Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.


The LORD doesn’t beg. He isn’t a victim. He isn’t fearful of their rejection. He mocks those who reject Him. His laughter doesn’t stem from humor rather it is sarcasm or ridicule. As the famous saying goes, it is He who gets the last laugh. What does God do to the scorner? He scoffs at them. Verse 4 may seem unusual, but it speaks of God’s mighty and unchanging power. The LORD God is no puppet king. He is almighty.

He also expresses righteous and holy anger. Anger is one of those emotions that automatically get’s a bad rap. We are so prone to assume that when a person is angry that they have lost all control. A temporary insanity if you will. But God’s anger is not like that of man. God’s anger is regulated by His holiness and faithfulness. The language of God’s wrath in verse 5 is extreme. The theme of God’s wrath has largely disappeared in modern evangelism. The idea of a “lovey-dovey” God is rampant throughout professing Christianity. Many have imagined a god that is soft and non-intrusive. The Bible knows no such God. The God of the Bible is just and holy, and He is angry with the wicked everyday (Psalms 7:11). It is incumbent upon us as believers to warn people of God’s wrath. The Lord Jesus warned sinners about the wrath of God (Jn. 3:36). Let us follow His example, let us not shy away from the responsibility of talking to lost sinners about their true condition. Away with the salesman tactics, the non-confrontational presentation, we are ambassadors of Christ (2 Cor.5:20), not volunteers merely conducting religious surveys. Let us compassionately warn people to flee from wrath to come, and get to the proclaiming the gospel in a God honoring way.

The language of v.5 is intense for it speaks of God’s attitude towards those who reject Him. Dr. John Gill (a prolific Baptist commentator) renders an alternative reading for “vex them in His sore displeasure” which is essentially similar and insightful: “in the heat of His anger.” God’s wrath is intense. We must remember that God’s anger is not out of control. His anger is constitutional; it works in conjunction with His righteous character and always against sin.

Although God’s wrath is just and right, thankfully He doesn’t leave us without hope. In verse 6, God provides a way by which His wrath can be extinguished. God presents to us His anointed King, the Lord Jesus. Praise God for providing the way of Salvation. Christ is the King spoken of in this verse, and the holy hill of Zion refers to Jerusalem. When Christ first came to the earth, He did not find a throne upon the holy hill - He wasn’t looking for a throne, at least not yet. He did find a cross. He set his face like a flint towards that cross in order to secure the Salvation of lost sinners (Lk. 9:51). One day King Jesus will literally rule in Jerusalem.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Psalm 2 (part 1)

The Rejection of the Unsaved (Ps. 2:1-3)

(1) Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
(2) The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
(3) Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.


The rejectors are categorized into three groups particularly the nations, the rulers, and the individual. The primary characteristic of those who willfully reject the mercies and kindness of God is that of “rage” meaning violent commotion or agitation (according to Barnes). Unsaved people resort to anger as an expression of their rejection. The Psalm looks ahead to the time when the Lord Jesus arrives for the first time to be the Savior of the world. From the time He came to earth the world's rulers were already against Him. His death on the cross can be seen as a combination of rulers’ rejection both political and religious namely Herod Antipas, and Pontius Pilate, and even the High Priest Caiaphas and the Sanhedrin member Annas. The Lord Jesus is no stranger to rejection.

Besides “rage,” another characteristic of rejection is pragmatic large numbers. It is amazing how many people ascribe greatness simply on the basis of numbers. A large crowd in a packed football stadium can be very intimidating. When the cameras pan through the crowd, almost immediately we are disposed to say “Wow!” in amazement of the size of the crowd. But, at the same token, when the same crowd is viewed from on high, that is from a blimp or a “bird’s eye view” the crowd doesn’t look like anything big at all. How truly small all of mankind is in the sight of an almighty God. True greatness resides in the Lord God.

And what is their desire? Basically, they are rejecting God’s authority for their own autonomous authority. “Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us” they say. This is perhaps the most interesting characteristic of the unsaved. The reason people reject Christ is because they do not want to come under the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ. Atheism and Humanism are simply excuses for not coming under God’s authority. The Lord Jesus said "Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest take my yoke upon you...for my yoke is easy, and my burden is light" (Matt. 11:29). And what does the Bible say about God’s commandments? 1 John 5:3 says: “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.” God's authority is just, right, loving and easy.

Dear friend, if you have not placed your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ alone, if you have not repented of sin and self that you may receive forgiveness of sins and eternal life, then know that you are part of that crowd which rejects Christ’s gracious offer of mercy. Don’t be part of that crowd. Don’t allow anger, rebellion and desire for control hinder your soul from receiving Christ as Savior. Today, before it is eternally too late, trust in Christ alone for Salvation.

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Psalm 2 - God's Wrath Appeased (Introduction)


Psalms 2:1-12

(1) Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?
(2) The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying,
(3) Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us.

(4) He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.
(5) Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure.
(6) Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.

(7) I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.
(8) Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.
(9) Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.

(10) Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.
(11) Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.
(12) Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.


Psalm 2 is easily classified as a prophetic Psalm, and Messianic in nature since we read about the Lord’s anointed in verse 2. The Lord Jesus Christ is the one who fulfills this Psalm in the New Testament and has yet to fulfill its contents in the future. We see four main divisions within the second Psalm, and each division contains three verses. An outline could therefore look like this:

A. The Rejection of the Unsaved (v.1-3).
B. The Response of the LORD (v.4-6).
C. The Revelation of the Son (v.7-9).
D. The Recommendation of the Psalmist (v.10-12).

As we look into each division we must keep in mind that the Lord Jesus has fulfilled some of what is written in the Psalm, and also has yet to fulfill other aspects of what is written. We are literally in the midst of all this.