THE PSALMS OF ASCENT

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1 THE PSALMS OF ASCENT The True Blessed Life Psalm 128:1-6 Sunday, August 6, 2017 By David A. Ritchie 1 Blessed is everyone who fears the LORD, who walks in his ways! 2 You shall eat the fruit of the labor of your hands; you shall be blessed, and it shall be well with you. 3 Your wife will be like a fruitful vine within your house; your children will be like olive shoots around your table. 4 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the LORD. 5 The LORD bless you from Zion! May you see the prosperity of Jerusalem all the days of your life! 6 May you see your children s children! Peace be upon Israel! (Psalm 128:1 6, ESV) I. Introduction It is honored to be back in the pulpit after four weeks of not preaching. I am thankful for the men who preached the word of God faithful in my stead, and I m thankful for a culture at this church that allows the opportunity for others to develop their gifts of preaching and teaching. I am also thankful for the mental rest that comes from taking a break from the rigor of weekly research and sermon writing, as well as an opportunity to take some extended time visiting my wife s family in Ohio. While I would describe our journey to Ohio as very beneficial, I would never describe traveling with a five, three, and one year old as restful. We often envision the dad taking his family on a road trip as a modern idea made possible by things like interstate roads and mini-vans with DVD players. But the truth is that families have taken journeys together as long as there as been families. We know from Luke 2, that as a child Jesus took family trips to worship at the Temple during feast days, as did his whole village and extended family (see: Luke 2:41-52). Sometimes the Jerusalem pilgrimage was a family affair, but even when the family couldn t make the journey, it was expected for the man to do so: Three times a year all your males shall appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose: at the Feast of Unleavened Bread, at the Feast of Weeks, and at the Feast of Booths. They shall not appear before the LORD empty-handed (Deuteronomy 16:16, ESV). This journey was thus a part of life in ancient Israel. And as a part of this journey, the people travelling together would often sing together, as they climbed in elevation to the Holy City of Jerusalem. Jerusalem was the highest city in elevation in ancient Israel, and so no matter the direction you were coming from, you would ways ascend. By way of review, in this series we are studying a section of Psalms known as the Psalms of 1

2 Ascent. These are songs that were originally sung by pilgrims ascended their way to Jerusalem, during their time in Jerusalem, and on their return journey from Jerusalem. They are songs sung by people who were drawing near to the presence of God, and as part of God s inspired word, they are also songs that I believe are helpful in teaching us to be a people who seek the Lord. Now for a moment imagine the man who has arrived in Jerusalem, and approached the bronze altar to make his sacrifice. This was the purpose of his whole trip. After this event, the priest would have given him a final word of benediction or blessing It is likely that the words of blessing that were spoken by the priest to the men of Israel were the words of Psalm This is Psalm contains particular blessings and promises for men 2 who pursue the Lord, but likewise it is a Psalm that issues a challenge to men, an exhortation, and a call to step up and rise to the occasion for the sake of their families and world around them. 3 Now we have to be careful in saying this, because to say that the Bible at times speaks directly to men with families is not to say that Scripture does not value anyone else To the contrary, the Bible honors women and children, as well as those who are not married and those who are married but do not have children. We can affirm God s value for all people, but at the same time embrace that this psalm teaches a truth both men and our culture at large needs to hear. And that truth is this: When men walk in fear of the Lord they will find true blessing; when men find true blessing, so do their families; and when families find true blessing, so does the surrounding culture. This is what I would like to call a picture of The True Blessed Life. I d like to talk about four ideas as we unfold this Psalm in more detail: 1.) The Nature of Blessing, 2.) The Blessed Man, 3.) The Blessed Family, and 4.) The Blessed Culture. II. Text 1.) The True Nature of Blessing. Before we dig into the text, I want to do some work with definitions, particularly the first word of the first verse Blessed. Blessed: can often come across as a buzz word for prosperity theology. The prosperity gospel in general refers to a particularly Americanized version of Christianity wherein we have taken our culture idol of prosperity and made it our gospel. What the prosperity gospel looks like a mindset that says, we give to receive; that giving is the chief way of worship and sign of devotion; and a guaranteed way of securing material blessing. It has some truth in it; but it doesn t account for every situation, especially when the righteous suffer (e.g. the life of the Apostle Paul or the Christians in Iraq and Syria who are faithfully worshipping Jesus despite the threat of ISIS). This teaching can destroy people, because it makes them think that when suffering arises it automatically means that we either failed God or God failed us. 1 John Goldingay, Baker Commentary on the Old Testament: Psalms , ed. Tremper Longman III, vol. 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2006), Ibid., The quiet blessings of an ordered life are traced from the centre outwards in this psalm, as the eye travels from the godly man to his family and finally to Israel. Derek Kidner, Psalms : An Introduction and Commentary, vol. 16, Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1975),

3 As a result of this teaching, we can develop an allergy to the word blessing. But nevertheless the Bible does talk about blessing, and many times that notion of blessing includes even material blessing. The Bible presents שׁ ר י א as a deep and abiding happiness, joy, and blessing in all of life that derives from knowing and serving the Lord. שׁ ר י א may include material blessings (such as health, wealth, prosperity, fertility, safety), but it is certainly more than those favorable circumstances, in that it include spiritual blessings as well (forgiveness of sins, nearness to God, deliverance from shame). True blessing is not less than material blessing, but it always more. It refers primarily to the blessing of knowing, worshipping, and loving the God who created us. When we worship the Lord, we are going with the grain of the universe. When we don t we are going against it. However, to live under the blessing of God does not exempt one from enduring suffering; rather it means that God is with us and we have access to his joy even in the midst of suffering. 2.) The Blessed Man. What does it mean to fear God? It means to worship the Lord; to possess a God centered thought-life; a constant awareness of the Lord fueled by worship, Scripture, and prayer. What is the center of through thought life and imagination? Is it truly the Lord, or is it your own comfort, your career, your pride? The phrase comes who walk in his ways comes from a singular Hebrew word ה ל ך ).( ה The idea is that such a man is literally defined by walking in the ways of God. This is a man who doesn t just talk the talk; he walks the walk; practices what he preaches. What would the people closest to you say defines you? The last attribute of this man is that he apparently works hard and is fruitful in his labor. Now in isolation, this may seem like a bland blessing, but in the context of the overarching story of the Bible this is quite profound. The promise of this verse is a reversal of the curse given at the fall of Man. (Gen. 3:17-19). Right relationship with God puts us in a right relationship with creation. When we worship the creation, we bear the image of Adam and we bring brokenness into the world. But when we worship the Creator, we bear the image of Christ bring and blessing into the world. This is the blessed man. 3.) The Blessed Family. The images given are wives that flourish like a vine and children that flourish like olive shoots or branches. The phrase within your house is a specific Hebrew term י ר כּ ת י ) ( בּ that means the inner most place. It refers to the true condition and culture of your home and marriage; not just the vacuum cleaned; curated; instagram filtered version. The use of these metaphors is to presumes a man is designed to be a cultivator and nurturer. This was Adam s design in the garden. Married men, are you cultivating your family? Or are you criticizing your way to a life that more comfortable for you? 3

4 Define your metrics of success: straight-a student, a club athlete, and a future one-percenter. I m not saying that those are bad things, but should they be the goal? Or should the metric be that your family is truly happy, growing, doing good and serving others? To cultivate requires intentionality. Turn off the TV, put down the iphone, and engage your family. Seek to cultivate your home as a microcosm of the church. Be intentional about your rhythms. For my family in our current stage of life it looks like this: we are intentional about incorporating Bible reading and discussion into our wake-up and breakfast routine, at dinner time we pray and talk about things that we are thankful for, and at bed time we pray the Lord s prayer and I speak a blessing over each of my sons. View participation in worship as a non-negotiable priority. Raise kids to know your family is different; be active in who is influencing and befriending your children. You will see your children s children. Many families can t see past the next weekend. Raise your kids with a vision that is decades and generations long. Warning: Value the family with our idolizing the. family. Family is a good thing, but it can never be an ultimate thing. It will not satisfy you in the deepest places in your heart. But when in the right place, it can be a blessing. 4.) The Blessed Culture. The Psalm concludes with a final blessing on Jerusalem and Israel. The change to the word, ברך another blessing word that relates to God s empowerment. When we position ourselves in obedience to God, we position ourselves to be empowered and used by God to bless the world. We are a called to be a missional people Culture is a core value and part of our vision: engaging the city; planting churches; going to the nations But much of our mission is much more simple. Family and vocation are two of the most profound, yet underappreciated ways for us to reach and influence surrounding culture. My friend who went to law school. A new way to engage the surrounding culture in a way that will influence it. This makes sense in the created design of families. What is the purpose of families? Adam and Eve s call to make families to bear the image of God (Gen. 1:28), but humanity failed by sinning against God, and now that image is fractured. God s rescue operation was initiated through a family (Gen. 12:1-3). The blessing of Abraham s seed The purpose of Abraham s family was to bear Christ to the world. The purpose of our families is to bear Christ to the world. And the purpose of the church is to be family that bears Christ to the world. 4

5 But what about those who come from broken families, and those without families? Is there good news in this Psalm for them? I believe the answer is yes. Because in the New Testament, the people of God are called to be a family; a family that is not bound together by their own blood, but rather by the blood of Christ. Keller: A loving spouse and a growing family are a great blessing. But sin in the heart and evil in the world have disrupted the life of the human family. Many wish to have families who don t, and many who have families wish they had very different ones. There are also people who have suffered terrible abuse within their families. Jesus said that his family did not consist of biological relatives: Whoever does God s will is my brother and sister and mother (Mk. 3:35). The church must not only support and repair families but also find a way to become the family of God where everyone, married and single, childless or not, can flourish in love. 4 We should seek to have this vision for our church. Not only are we to seek to impact culture through our families, but as the church we are called to create a culture of family that we might be a blessing to our surrounding culture. III. Conclusion Psalm 128 envisions the entire world being blessed because of the righteousness of one man. None of us could ever truly be this righteous man. But the good news, is there is one who was, is, and will forever be this righteous man. Jesus is the one who was God, yet as man walked in fear of God. He is the righteous one, whose perfect obedience has reversed the curse of Adam and the curse of creation. He is the bridegroom who laid down his life for his bride the Church, that she might flourish like a vine. He is the visible image of the invisible heavenly Father, who has adopted us into his family (Rom. 8), grafted us in to his covenant (Rom. 11), and welcomed us to his table. In Christ we are a family. He is the true vine that is the source of our life, blessing, and fruitfulness, apart from who we can do nothing (Jn. 15). Through him Jerusalem prospers and we the people of God find true blessing. As the Apostle Paul writes to the Ephesian Church: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will, to the praise of his glorious grace, with which he has blessed us in the Beloved. In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace, which he lavished upon us, in all wisdom and insight making known to us the mystery of his will, according to his purpose, which he set forth in Christ as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth. (Ephesians 1:3 10, ESV) AMEN. 4 Timothy and Kathy Keller. Songs of Jesus: A Year of Daily Devotions in the Psalms. (New York: Viking, 2015),

6 Questions for Community Group Discussion 1.) Psalm 128 is a Psalm of blessing. What are some other examples of blessings in the Psalms? Using some of these examples, what is a biblical understanding of blessing? 2.) What does it mean to fear the Lord and walk in his ways? 3.) In Psalm 128, the Psalm begins with a man who is blessed because he fears the Lord and walks in his ways. This blessing in turn is a blessing to this man s wife, family, and even his nation. How should this blessing serve as an encouragement but also a challenge to men today? 4.) How should this Psalm point us toward a vision of the church that looks like a family? 5.) How should this Psalm point us toward the blessings we inherit only in Christ? 6