Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Adult Sunday School Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/bb/bb19980628.htm

PSALMS: DIARIES OF GODLY OLD TESTAMENT SAINTS
Psalm One Hundred And Seventeen - A Call For Optimistic Fervor When Witnessing A World In Decline
(Psalm 117:1-2)
  1. Introduction
    1. When one looks at the deterioration of his world with the growth in crime, abuses and breakdowns from marital and family all the way up to international groups of people, he can become very discouraged!
    2. However, God has provided a great reason for optimism regarding the world's destiny, and through this optimism suggests a worthwhile cause to which the believer can dedicate himself with fervor in such times!
    3. That insight is provided for us in the shortest and middle chapter of the Bible, Psalm 117:1-2 as follows:
  2. A Call For Optimistic Fervor When Witnessing A World In Decline, Psalm 117:1-2.
    1. In verse one, the psalmist calls for all the nations and then for all of the people groups within the nations to praise and laud Jahweh. Our explanation for this interpretation follows:
      1. The word translated "nations" (KJV and NIV) is goyim in the Hebrew, and is used to view a nation as a whole from the outside point-of-view, Biblia Hebraica, p. 1078; Girdlestone, Syn. of the O.T., p. 257.
      2. On the other hand, "peoples" as the NIV has it comes from umim, meaning "folk" as viewing a group of people by themselves that may exist within a nation with other groups of such "folk", Ibid.
      3. Thus, the psalmist is picturing the human race in terms of all of its parts of broad and smaller groups.
      4. In other words, the psalmist calls upon all the people groups in the world's nations to praise God!
    2. The reasons for this praise are given in verse two as follows:
      1. God's great chesed, or loyal love to the world's people groups deserves such praise, Ps. 117:2a.
      2. Also, God is eternally faithful (emet) in expressing that loyal love to the world's people groups, 117:2b.
    3. In its Biblical context, this call to praise God shows we can be optimistic in the midst of a declining world:
      1. We know from Revelation 12:1-6 that the Abrahamic Covenant God made with Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3 is the basis of God's working to rescue Israel from annihilation during the coming Great Tribulation Period so that God can bring peace on earth through Israel.
        1. In Rev. 12:1-2 by way of Joseph's dream symbols in Gen. 37:6-9, we know that the woman there is Israel in the Abrahamic Covenant who brings for the child, Messiah.
        2. Satan as the great dragon seeks to destroy Messiah, and failure to do so brings his wrath out and he seeks to devour the woman, Israel under anti-christ in the Tribulation, Rev. 12:5-6, 13-17.
      2. Thus, the Abrahamic Covenant is the hope that rescues Israel from evil destruction in the end!
      3. Well, that Abrahamic Covenant also holds the hope of the world's peoples' futures as well!
        1. When God gave His original blessing to Abraham, He extended it to all the family groups of the world through Abraham, Gen. 12:1-2, 3. The word in Gen. 12:3 is mishpekot, meaning "clan" or "family connection of individuals", Biblia Hebr., p. 16; B.D.B., Heb. & Eng. Lex. of O.T., p. 1046.
        2. In its historical context, this reference to "family connection of individuals" in Genesis 12:3 picks up God's concern about the wayward descendants of Noah's sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth who were repopulating the world at the time as developing nations of clans, Genesis 10-11!
        3. Thus, God's saving Israel during the coming Great Tribulation is the key to His saving world history for Noah's descendants who will receive blessings through Israel's Messiah, Jesus, Rev. 20:4-6!
      4. Accordingly, no matter how bad things get in our world today, God's loyal love and eternal faithfulness to keep the Abrah amic Covenant means that Israel and the world's people groups have a blessed future!
      5. Thus, we should praise and laud the God of Abraham for His loyal love and eternal faithfulness to that Abrahamic Covenant in bringing a wayward, disintegrating world back into order and blessing!
Lesson: In place of losing hope upon witnessing the deterioration of our world's institutions, if we know Christ through Whom the Abrahamic Covenant's blessings come, we can praise and glorify God: His loyal love and eternal faithfulness to keep th at covenant will give our world a blessed future!

Application: In viewing the Abrahamic Covenant's FUTURE hope, we should respond to the world's increasing deterioration by (a) optimistic hope and praise to God's future plan's fulfillment. (b) We should also increase our personal dedica tion to the spread of the Abrahamic Covenant's blessings through increasing our efforts to discipling others to follow Christ, Mtt. 28:19-20 with Gal. 3:13-14.



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