Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

This is our second and last sermon in the third book of Psalms.

Just a reminder as we have been looking at the Psalms, the third book collection has a general focus of exile in the lives of the people.

Exile in their world is both actual and metaphorically.

There was a time where the people of God’s choosing where driven into exile as a way of punishing their unbelief and rebellion against God.

If you have been reading through the Psalms in this section of Psalms, you would have also realized that many of these psalms are written from a perspective of exile from God in their lives.

A sort of spiritual desert in their time.

God appeared to be silent,

God appeared to be inactive,

God appeared to be letting the evil prevail.

Church, this morning’s Psalm is one of those Psalms.

I have labelled this Psalm as a Palmist Cry.

This Psalm leaves us with many questions, like

Why do we, as beloved people of God, have to go through a time of suffering?

How are we to act as Christians when it appears to be a silent time from God.

In fact, is God really silent or do I have a problem.

Am I the problem?

You may be wondering why would God place these verses in the scripture,

but I hope that after we walk through these verses this morning, that you will have a richer understanding of the heart of the Psalmist, and more importantly

the very heart of God

the heart for His people as they at times walk through those difficult moments in our lives.

Before we look into this Psalm let me tell you this.

This Psalm is a Psalm of great emotion and suffering.

I hope that this is not a warning like those found in front of a TV show, but to bring you to an awareness as we work through these Words from God.

It may be hard to read and hear.

For some of us that are currently walking through trials, it may be a Psalm that you can quickly identify with.

You are feeling the same intensity that the Psalmist speaks of.

May I encourage you to listen to God’s Spirit speak to you with words of comfort.

For some of us, we may struggle with these words as we are struggling with the same emotion and suffering of the Psalmist.

May I encourage you as well, to hang tight, because in this Psalm you will find out God’s redeeming Grace and a shadow of things to come.

For the rest of us that are not experiencing this presently in our life, To God be the Glory, but may the words found in this Psalm be packed away for a time that may come or as you walk along side someone who is experience these words, that you will be able to pull them out to bring words of comfort.

With this in mind, let’s open up our Bibles and turn with me to the Double 8 Psalm.

Ps 88

Cry of the Heart (vs 1-2)

You may have noticed that I have developed a practice of speaking of the writers of the Psalm as “The Psalmist”.

I am intentionally doing this to begin our shift of looking at the Psalms as writers, who have been inspired by God to formulate the words.

Many people have held to the fact that most of the Psalms were from David, as this is largely true, but not all.

I want you to realize that these Psalms have been penned by inspiration from God.

They are the very words of God.

In those moment of feeling lost, abandoned, a maybe thoughts of God’s Silence in our lives, we can turn to these passages and listen to God speak to us.

This inspired writer for today’s Psalm is non other than the band of the Sons of Korah.

Those temple musicians that have a dark past in their lives and by the words of this Psalm, they are reliving that past in their present day circumstance.

As we work through this Psalm will will be focus around various crys.

We are going to be looking at cry’s from the heart,

Cry’s of our life,

Cry’s to God and end the morning with Christ’s cry for us.

Stop for a moment....

Do you have a cry of the heart.

pause

Remember, these Psalms were often put to music and became a chorus for people to sing.

It was the nation’s song book.

I always appreciate our worship leaders as they week by week pick songs that bring us together to worship,

If the Psalms were the songs to pick for worship, I could hardly see this one being one of the top songs.

I’m not sure if it would even be in the top 100

You see the Psalmist is in great turmoil.

His life seems to be crushing down on him as he cries out to God.

But I must point out that even in the midst of the turmoil he is holding onto his faith in a God that has delivered in the past and will soon deliver him in his cry.

This Psalm has been placed specifically in the Psalter a reminder for all of us as we in a point of despair that we can cry out to God and it not a indication of our lack of faith.

It is the farthest from that.

He cries out, “The God of my salvation”,

I have seen so many hurtful words have been placed from well meaning brothers and sisters in the Lord when they approach a fellow believer who is feeling what this Psalmist is feeling.

When we are going through this rough patch, our faith is not wavering, but we can cry out to God.

You see this cry is a cry out for something to be done.

It’s not a cry of complaint, but a cry for action.

Once commentary writes,

The Preacher’s Commentary Series, Volume 14: Psalms 73–150 (Ceaseless Prayer)

In verse 1 God is addressed as Yahweh, the personal God of Israel, and is identified as the “God of my salvation” (“deliverance”).

This is reason enough to pray.

The psalmist knows God as his Savior.

What ever else may be said, he is anchored in the God who saves His people.

No wonder that he can pour out the bitter agony of his soul before God.

To know God as our Savior is to know just enough.

We can come to Him without pretense and tell Him who we really are.

When we are in a good relationship with God and understand that he is our savior, we can cry out to God for deliverance.

Our faith in God is the anchor that will hold us strong as we go through these times.

I read a poem about an anchor, It goes like this.

This anchor holds in day of adversity, When all else threatens to give way.

This anchor keeps my vessel from drifting, Never letting my ship run astray.

This anchor holds midst angry seas battering, When waves and winds battle for my soul.

This anchor holds in the lonely night hours, When darkness levy my spirit less bold.

This anchor holds with vigil over me, Surveying waters lest my ship drift away.

This anchor is trustworthy and faithful, Making unanxious my passageway.

This anchor holds fast though life is fleeing, When death’s icy fingers my life grasps for.

This anchor will never let me falter, Till my ship moors on that sacred shore

This anchor holds in the Judgment, When the elements melt with fervent heat.

This anchor will calm and quiet my spirit, Shoring me on with mercy and peace.

***********

This anchor holding me is Jesus.

My ship is in his arrant control.

He is my one hope!

He is my comfort!

He is the anchor of my soul!

Written by L C Taylor- https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon-illustrations/65416/on-stories-by-sermon-central

You see the Psalmist cry was a cry to God not because he wasn’t getting what he wanted, but a cry for help.

The Psalmist’s plea was similar to that of Jacob (Gen 32:26) when he sat all night wrestling with an angel.

A Shadow of things to come: A Cry of Heart

In each of the crys in this Psalm, there is also a shadow of things to come.

I refer them to Shadows as they are in the background a casting of an image or thought that is there from another source.

A cry of another’s heart.

The first shadow is when Christ was in the garden praying to God, He too cried out knowing that what he was about to endure was for the sake of the lost.

He was crying out for comfort and strength to complete the call on His life.