1.
Grace,
mercy, and peace to you from God our Heavenly Father and our Lord and Savior
Jesus Christ. Amen. The message from God’s Word today is taken
from Psalm 146:1-10 and is entitled, “Jesus
is Our Sure Investment,” dear brothers in Christ.
2.
One of the popular journals of
today is Money magazine. The point of the magazine is
simple, it’s a guide to making money. It tells you which stocks are good, how
to avoid taxes legally, which banks are granting the highest returns on their
money market accounts, and how to save money as you spend it. Money magazine also profiles investors
and suggests ways to join the ranks of the wealthy. People have always been
concerned about their investments. Our economy is powered on the growth of
capital. The possibility of an inside tip has always allured us. The problem
with all of this is that when we deal with money we’re dealing with that which
passes away. The real investment is for eternity rather than for time. This is
the investment with the big payoff, and this is the subject of Psalm 146. It’s also the reason why we teach our
children to invest their time in the study of God’s Word. Luther believed that we as Christians should
invest our time in the study and teaching of God’s Word. Hear from the reformer himself, "I am much afraid that schools will
prove to be great gates of Hell unless they diligently labor in explaining the
Holy Scriptures, engraving them in the hearts of youth. I advise no one to
place his child where the scriptures do not reign paramount. Every institution
in which men are not increasingly occupied with the Word of God must become
corrupt" (Martin Luther). As we begin Rally Day in our churches
let’s remember why we invest our time in the study of God’s Word.
3.
The psalmist begins by praising
God. He then warns against trusting in men (v. 3). The problem is their mortality.
When a man dies his spirit departs, he returns to the earth, and his plans
perish (v. 4). What good are all of his investments to him now? Where are all
those things that he cherished? The blessed person is the one who has God for
help. That one’s hope is in Him (v. 5). God is the Creator and the Redeemer
(vv. 6–9). Over against our human mortality stands this truth: “The Lord
shall reign forever.” Here’s where we can stand. Jesus is our sure
investment for eternal life.
4.
Psalm 146:1-2 says, “1Praise the LORD! Praise the LORD, O my soul! 2I will
praise the LORD as long as I live; I
will sing praises to my God while I have my being.” Verse
1 opens with: “Praise the Lord!” We can learn from this that we
need to exhort ourselves to engage in worshiping God. The psalmist vows that as
long as he lives, “I will praise the Lord.” Such praise will be his theme.
He adds, “I will sing praise to my God
while I have my being” (v. 2; compare Ps. 104:33).
5.
Psalm 146:3-4 says, “3Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no
salvation. 4When his breath departs he returns to the earth; on that very day his plans
perish.” We’re faced with only two
alternatives in life, either to trust men, including ourselves, or trust God.
Most people, when they’re honest, admit that they spend most of their time
trusting men. They trust politicians to run the country. They trust news
commentators to tell them what’s going on in the world. They trust professors
to educate them. They trust doctors to diagnose them, and they trust pastors to
care for their souls. Here’s where we make our investments. We put our faith,
time, money, and energy into what people say. Most of us would admit that we
don’t really pray over decisions. We don’t expect God to run our lives day to
day. Nevertheless, the psalmist clearly tells us that we’re foolish to continue
this. He writes, “Do not put your trust
in princes, / Nor in a son of man [a
‘man,’ see Ps. 8:4], in whom there is no
help [literally, ‘salvation’]” (v. 3). As we look to men, even great
spiritual leaders, we need to ask one question: “Can this person save me?” This question places even kings and
presidents in perspective.
6.
Psalm 146:3 describes the
powerlessness of man.
Dr. A. C. Gaebelein told of a visit he had from an orthodox Jew. I’ll let him
tell it in his own words: “He stated that
he had read the New Testament and found the title of Jesus of Nazareth so often
mentioned as ‘the son of man.’ He then declared that there is a warning in the
Old Testament not to trust the son of man. As we asked him for the passage he
quoted from this Psalm, ‘Trust not … in the son of man in whom is no
salvation.’ We explained to him that if our Lord had been only the son of man
and nothing else, if He had not been Immanuel, the virgin-born Son of God, if
it were not true as Isaiah stated it, that He is the child born and the Son
given, there would be no salvation in Him. But He came God’s Son and appeared
in the form of man for our redemption. His argument showed the blindness of the
Jew. The statement is given in this Psalm, that man is sinful, that there is no
hope in man, he is a finite creature and turns to dust. There is but One in
whom salvation and all man’s needs is found, the God of Jacob, the loving
Jehovah” (The Book of Psalms, p.
500–501).
7.
Now we’re told why we should make
no ultimate investment in a man. First, “his
spirit departs.” The life can be crushed out of
him. Mortality is his lot. Thus, “he
returns to his earth.” The idea of “his earth” designates the earth from
which he was created (see Gen. 2:7). He’s dust. Would you trust dust with your
destiny? Second, when he dies, “in that
very day his plans [or ‘thoughts’] perish”
(v. 4). What good are his schemes now? What benefit are his investments to
him? When he’s taken, all is taken from him. Why then would we trust man?
There’s a better alternative; that is to trust God. To this we turn.
8.
Psalm 146:5–9,
“5Blessèd
is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose
hope is in the LORD his God, 6who made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that
is in them, who keeps faith forever;
7who executes justice for the oppressed,
who gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets the prisoners free; 8the LORD
opens the eyes of the blind. The
LORD lifts up those who are bowed down; the LORD loves the righteous. 9The LORD
watches over the sojourners; he upholds the widow and the fatherless, but the
way of the wicked he brings to ruin.” The psalmist pronounces a
blessing upon the one “who has the God of
Jacob for his help.” He calls him “Blessed.” “The God of Jacob” isn’t only a title for Yahweh, it also brings to our minds all that God did to help this
patriarch, making him wealthy, blessing him after breaking him through a night
of wrestling with an angel, giving him twelve sons who became the fathers for
the twelve tribes of Israel, rescuing him from famine, and restoring his lost
son Joseph to him (see Gen. 25:26ff.). As God did with Jacob so He’ll do with
us. The man is blessed “whose hope is in
the Lord his God” (v. 5). Why
is this so? The psalmist answers this
for us. He lists the ways that the Lord
keeps his promises and helps His people.
Ultimately, the Lord has kept His promises through His Son Jesus Christ,
who suffered and died on the cross to win for us the forgiveness of sins. When
someone is oppressed, the Lord is responsible for being sure that justice
prevails. When someone is hungry, the Lord is responsible for feeding that
person. As the psalmist lists the problems of the helpless and insignificant,
the reader is reminded that the powerful and influential can only give
temporary help. It’s the Lord who gives real freedom, real sight, real
strength, real hope, and real love.
9.
The prophet Isaiah describes
these activities in chapter 35 as the deeds of the Lord during and after the
captivity. The
psalmist may be picking up on these promises of the prophet. As Jesus himself
carries out the promises also in our Gospel reading today (Mt 11, Mk 7), he
demonstrates his divinity, his power, and his love. Jesus’ ministry reminds us that the greatest
gifts aren’t natural food, physical healing, and political freedom, but
spiritual food, which gives eternal life; healing that frees us from sin and
death; and freedom that will endure forever. These blessings the Lord provided
for his people through the messianic King, whom he sent to them. For these
blessings we praise the Lord now and forever.
10.
Psalm 146 ends with, “10The LORD will reign forever, your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise
the LORD!” This psalm opens with the call:
“Praise the Lord!” It also closes
with the same call. Here’s our sure investment for life. Here is an investment
with an eternal return. Here’s an investment that won’t pass away. As the
psalmist says: “The Lord shall reign forever.” When we
put our faith, our love, our time, and our energy into serving Him, we’re not only
preparing for eternity; we’re experiencing some of eternity right now. It would be proper to end with Johann
Herrnschmidt’s hymn based on Psalm 146, which reflects the unique thought of
the psalmist that JESUS IS OUR SURE INVESTMENT FOR OUR SALVATION. The hymn says, “Trust not in princes, they are but mortal; Earthborn they are and soon
decay. Vain are their counsels at life’s last portal When the dark grave will
claim its prey. Since, then, no one can help afford, Trust only Christ, our God
and Lord. Alleluia! Alleluia!” (CW 235:3) Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment