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I’m going to invite you to Romans Chapter nine. We’re at the very end of Romans, Chapter nine. We’re going to pick up in verse 30 today into Chapter ten. There is a chapter break that kind of overlaps from Chapter nine, Chapter ten. So we’re going to mostly focus on chapter ten today, but hit the tail end of chapter nine as we explore this section in Romans nine, ten and 11. This is really a section that works together in this book. If you ever read Romans nine, ten, 11, they go together. And it really is from the position of Israel’s perspective in light of everything that Paul shared for us for. Romans But there’s application to today in the way it relates to our own personal walk with the Lord. So so chapter nine, in terms of thinking how Chapter nine, ten and 11 work, Chapter nine deals with Israel in the past, Chapter ten deals with Israel and the present. Chapter 11 deals with Israel in the future. And it relates to all of us, really, in our relationship with God, because in their own personal struggle and figuring out where they they fit in their walk with the Lord, we can ask really some of the similar questions that Israel is wrestling with. And part of what they’re wrestling with is they look at the way that God has moved in the Old Testament and now they’re looking at the way that God has has conducted himself into the New Testament.
And they really feel like they’ve been left behind, that God is now moving into working with the Gentiles. And now they’re wondering, where does that put us as Jewish people? We are God’s promise people, right? We’re the carriers of the the messianic promises of the Lord. That was to bless all people. And that looks like God has just really abandoned us and moved to the Gentiles. And they’re kind of wondering how how they fit in what God wants to do and how God desires to accomplish his will in this world. Is God unfaithful? It’s even one of the questions they’re challenged with because having received the promises of God, but now seeing God fulfilling those promises and working with other people, they they feel like God has been unfaithful to them because he’s abandoned them in those promises. And God has reminded himself, really reminded us of Him in his faithfulness in chapter nine to look how he continues to work in Chapter ten and the hope that we have in the future with him. And so he’s bringing Israel to that place. And this is important for us because for all of us, we we come to a place where we need to to come to an understanding of who God is and walk in light of that, that many times in life we can have a view of God that is erroneous, incorrect, and that affects our whole outlook.
And when we feel disappointed by a God, really that didn’t fulfill what we thought he should because he wasn’t real, then we’ve got to we’ve got to respond to that. I mean, Malachi chapter three, verse six, tells us God doesn’t change. And if there’s something that we believed about God that wasn’t fulfilled, the problem isn’t that it was God because God doesn’t change. The problem is there was something wrong with what we were believing. And so we need to figure out really who got is and respond in light of that. And if I said it in a most general sense, I could say it like this, that you don’t get your own Jesus, right? It is not your job to make up who Jesus is. Jesus is who Jesus is. It’s our responsibility to understand who Christ is and then respond to him in light of that, not decide who who I want my Jesus to be, but to realize who Jesus is and then how my life is to respond to him and his authority and reflect his his goodness. In this world, we don’t get our own Jesus. In fact, if you’re reading through our New Testament in a year study that we do, or even the Old Testament this this week or today, even we were reading through the Gospel of Mark. And in Mark, chapter two, you will see if you’re reading through with that the disciples moving around in ministry with Jesus and the religious leaders coming to Jesus.
And all they’re doing in chapter two is asking a bunch of questions, not because they really care who Jesus is, it’s because they have this idea of who they think the Messiah should be, and they realize that Jesus isn’t aligning with that and they want to try to trap Jesus and trick Jesus. And so they’re asking all these questions to try to get Jesus to stumble because they’re not really interested in the truth of who Jesus is, but it’s the truth of who Jesus is that transforms our life. And that’s what’s important for us, that we need to find a place for our soul to be anchored. And when we find the truth of who God is and we put our faith in that, then we know wherever we go from there that we’re on a place of solid ground because our faith is in the one that ultimately matters. Everything else in the world, in the world, is going to pass away. But what you have in Christ will last for eternity. So discovering who God is matters for our life. And so aligning our hearts with with God’s heart being anchored in the truth of who He is is what Romans Chapter nine and ten is all about. And in fact, these opening verses, Paul starts with those questions, sort of these rhetorical questions, because the Jews are there looking at the Gentiles and they’re looking at themselves and they’re asking these questions, Have we been abandoned? And that’s how he starts.
What shall we say then? That Gentiles who did not pursue righteousness have attained it. That is a righteousness that is by faith, but that Israel, who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness, did not succeed in reaching that law. Why? Because they did not they did not pursue it by faith, but as it were, based on works. So you see Paul asking these sort of questions because he wants to deal with with the problem. That’s the first point under your notes as Paul’s addressing, in order to align our hearts with God, he’s first addressing the problem that the Jews are are facing. And this is sort of the perspective that they had. They’ve received the Old Testament and the and the law, and they want to live this law because they think that they can be perfected in this law. And when they look at the Gentile people, their perception is we can’t wait until the Gentile people reach our level. The passages in Scripture remind us through the promises of Abraham, starting in Genesis Chapter 12, that through Abraham there would come a seed, and through his seed he would bless all nations. They were really the salvation of the world. That’s the way they would view themselves and even view themselves today.
Many of them think that the Messiah isn’t actually a person, that Israel itself is the Messiah, and they’re going to lead people into the promises that God has declared, and they just keep living this law. And it’s it’s it’s when the Gentiles who are lower realized that they they need to get to that position, that they will finally achieve what what God has desired for them. And so the Jews believe the Gentiles had to come up to their level when actually what he’s saying in this past is the Scripture is that the Jewish people needed to to go down in humility and in order to be saved, they were teaching that you had to follow the law and that the righteousness could be earned. But but it says something interesting here in this passage. It says in verse 31, it says, But that Israel, who pursued a law that would lead to righteousness, did not succeed in reaching the law. What he’s saying is the standard they were given. The Old Testament was never truly intended to free them. In fact, we could give this blanket thought towards really every religion in this world. There’s not a religion in this world that can give you the security of of your eternal destiny in God. At best, you have a hope, right? You can say, well, here’s here’s the standard they want to live up to.
And you can kind of measure yourself to other people and think to yourself, Well, I’ve done a decent job in comparison to other people. And and at best you could say to that. Well, I sure hope that’s enough. Right? There’s never a complete peace because you never know if you’ve ever done enough. You can always do more. There’s always something more you could have done in your life in order to try to avail yourself to some religious standard. It’s all you could work yourself to the bone. But you know that if there’s sin in your life, you’ve never performed completely perfectly. The standard of religious law. And that’s what it’s saying about the Jews. And verse 31, they did not succeed in reaching that law, that even though they had this this law, this law never brought him true peace because it never brought them freedom. And that’s a huge distinction between all religions in this world and Christianity. In fact, when you read the New Testament, one of the things that you’ll often see reflected in the New Testament at the very beginning, Paul says over and over in his letters, that all of us receive this, and I know this is in tiny, tiny font for ants, right? So you may not be able to read this or where you are, but but let me just tell you the theme I highlighted for you that you can see in the beginning of every letter that the Apostle Paul writes, starting in Romans, Romans chapter one, verse seven, and he goes through each letter after that, in fact, Romans chapter one and verse seven, This is the latest time that Paul mentions it in his letters, all the other verses he or all the other letters he writes, he mentions it within the first four verses, but he says this grace to you and peace.
Grace and peace from God, our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. That type of greeting in God is only possible because of the Gospel. That you have received the grace of God what you didn’t deserve. Sometimes he talks about the mercy of God in his greetings as well, that God didn’t give you what you did deserve. And in that you find the peace of God. There’s finally peace. Not because of your performance, but what Christ performed on your behalf. That Jesus is enough. And in the security of that statement, rather than give a phrase that we find at the beginning of of the book of Romans and he goes on and he says it through every letter that he writes, the first 13 letters that Paul gives some debate, the book of Hebrews as his 14th letter. But in this this passage that tells us in verse 31 that they did not succeed in reaching the law, trying to perform and trying to perform and never living up to the standards, you got to think this is centuries of people, generation after generation, and none of them could could reach the standard of perfection and living this law and therefore never had peace.
But Christ is the deliverer of that grace and peace. And you see where their struggle comes from and where their problem is. And when you refuse, then to to bow, Jesus becomes a stumbling block rather than a foundation. Rather than to discover that peace and an understanding of who Christ is and embracing that Christ rather than than find yourself built on the foundation of Jesus, it becomes a stumbling block. And this is what he says for us at the end of verse 32 and verse 33, they have stumbled over the stumbling block as it is written. Behold, I am laying in Zion, a stone of stumbling and a rock of a fence, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame. There’s this passage that he’s quoting from in verse 33 is in Isaiah chapter eight. Isaiah Chapter eight and Isaiah Chapter 28. Describe the Messiah in two different pictures, both as a stone, but in chapter eight, he is the stumbling stone. But in chapter 28, he becomes this cornerstone, and it all depends on where you put your trust. And the performance of you. Or in the performance of him. Who is Jesus batter’s and where you put your faith matters.
If you rest it on yourself, there is no peace. You’re never certain that what you’ve done is ever enough because it can’t be. You can never live up to the standards of the law. And so in that sense, Jesus becomes a stumbling stone. But to those who see who Christ is. Who embrace what he has done. He becomes the cornerstone. The foundation for building a home. A place of rest. A place of security. A place of grace. A place of peace. A place of. Of hope. And then Paul, then in chapter ten, verse one, he talks about the hope, which is point number two. In your notes you have point number one was the problem. Point number two. Then he wants us to see the hope and and he starts off with his own prayer, his own heart desire in for Israel is he’s sharing this because you remember the apostle Paul Israel saw the apostle Paul as a trader. He referred to himself as the apostle to the Gentiles. And their thought was, well, do we not matter? Why would you abandon your people, Paul? Do you not care about your people? And we know in reading Paul’s story, Paul certainly cares about his people. When he traveled around preaching the gospel and seeing churches established the first place that Paul would often go from town to town and city to city was into the synagogue in order to share the gospel.
And so Paul says in chapter ten, verse one, and this is very reflective of the same thing Paul said in chapter nine, verse one Brothers My Heart’s desire and Prayer to God For them, talking about Israel is that they may be saved. I love that some translations just go ahead and say rather than them, it goes ahead and says Israel. So they know you’re directly referring to the Jewish people. But but. But I love in the translation it just says them because no matter where you are, your your heart should be reflected of of God’s heart. And God’s heart is for the salvation of people, for all nations, tribes, tongues and languages. And so we could insert whatever people group that we’re a part of in this and wanting to carry God’s heart as well. That that our heart would not think internally but externally, that we would live to give ourselves away for the glory of God to the benefit of others, knowing that the same hope that we received in Jesus is the same hope that we should offer to the world, because they can find that freedom and peace to. And so the Apostle Paul, he shares his heart. It’s prayer. For their salvation, that not only that Israel would see them see him not as an enemy or as a traitor, but one who cared for his people. And he goes on in verse two and he says, for I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to to knowledge.
And Paul’s acknowledging, look, they’re religious people. They even have a passion for what it is that they’re doing, right. How many people you can think of in your life? They’ve got a certainly they have a zeal for for what they believe in. If you want to find what you truly believe in, look what you’re zealous for. It will reveal your idols. It will reveal what you worship. It may not be the direct object, but there’s there’s whatever your passion about in life. There’s an underlining motive that’s driven by a belief as to what makes that important or what what gives you that zeal? Why do you cheer so loud for football? What is it? Where does that zeal come from? It’s not saying to have to have jealousy is is to be wrong. But but there’s something about that being that zealously in spirit, just being able to question what’s the motivation behind it, and is it or is it not godly? Because Paul goes on and says they have a zeal, but it’s not according to knowledge and they have a zeal even for God, but it’s not the true God. And the reason we know it’s not the true God because they don’t know the truth. And if you don’t know the truth, even though you may call it God, what ends up happening is that it’s a false God.
It’s not the real God, the God who frees you, the God who delivers his promises to you. They they have a zeal. Paul’s acknowledging that. They’re very caring people in that sense. But not according to the truth that matters. Not according to the truth that sets you free. It’s why we say as a church, we don’t believe in the fact that people often say, As long as you’re good, that’s all that matters. We talked about that last week. It undermines what Jesus has done for us. And the whole point of Christ himself. If Jesus’s whole point for our lives was just be good, he would have showed up to the first century among some of the most religious people in the world and said to them, Man, you guys are really religious. Great job. As long as you’re good, that’s all that matters. That’s not what he did because he knew that’s not what mattered. What mattered is the freedom they found in him. That’s why he gave his life. And to not acknowledge the significance of that is to depreciate the value of Jesus and why he matters to all of us. And so they have a zeal, but it’s not according to the knowledge. And Paul knows that the truth is what sets us free. And we as God’s people above everyone, should stand for it because that’s where we know true freedom is found.
And so, Paul, he acknowledges their zeal and we can do the same for religious people around us. If they’re going to be passionate about something, at least as passionate for what they think might be right. But it’s the truth. It’s the truth that sets us free. Some of us may look at Paul’s statement here and. And suggest that he’s a bit arrogant. How dare Paul look at a religious group of people that are doing good. And then just dismiss that. Right. They have a zeal and it’s not according to knowledge, but. But Paul’s not doing this in arrogance. Paul, I think, is doing this in humility. In fact, in Philippians chapter three of verse four, talking about his own life, his own religious upbringing, he says this, though I myself have reason for confidence in the flesh. Also, if anyone thinks he has reason for confidence in the flesh, I have more. Paul saying, if you want to boast in your own performance, whatever you think you’ve done, I always did better. But then he says this as to zeal, a persecutor of the church as to righteousness under the law blameless, saying, You want to know how far I went? I would even persecute Christians. So so Paul’s not saying this as a position of superiority above other people. And Paul went so hard into his religious life that he was even willing to kill people.
To do it. Paul doesn’t share this from a position of of pride or arrogance, but a place of humility. In fact, he then acknowledges in verse three, he says this for being ignorant of the righteous of God. And seeking to establish their own. They did not submit to God’s righteousness. You know what Paul is saying here? The thing that God’s people are lacking in this moment. Is the same thing all of us lack and why we don’t come to Jesus. Humility. That’s humility. And I think I told us this last week that some people look at what Christ is accomplished. They’ll look it. We’ll say, as believers, look, Jesus paid it all on the cross for you. There’s nothing you can add to it. There’s nothing you should add to it because it’s an insult to God and diminishes the value of what Jesus has achieved for you. He paid it all in full and people will look at that and say, Well, Christianity’s too easy. But but we would respond as believers and say, well, if it’s so easy, then believe it. Trust it. Put your faith in it. But the reason that we often don’t. It’s because we don’t want to humble ourselves before someone else. We want to be in charge of us and determining our own destiny and our own performance. But in Christianity, that’s not how it works.
It’s not about your performance is about his on your behalf. It’s about coming to the cross and surrendering your life to him and finding finding your true identity not in what you achieve in him, but what he has achieved through you and accepting what Jesus has done. And by the way, the way your Christian life starts is the same way your Christian life continues. The mark of a believer should be the mark of humility. Because not only do we follow the King of Kings, but the King of Kings was the servant of servants. He gave his life that we could find freedom. And he calls us in that that we should mimic him in the way that we live for him in this world, which means the things that I possess, the things that I have, the gifts and talents and times and resources, they’re not mine. There is. And what I do with all of it matters because this is a demonstration of where my loyalty lies. Am I trusting and me living for my glory or my trusting in him and living for his glory? The way forward for us as believers is really truthfully, it’s on our knees. And it’s not because we’re weak, but rather we find that in him. We are strong. Because through him we receive the power of a spirit to live for his glory in this world. It’s a completely different shift from anything that we’ve been a part of in this world, because this world is all about your worth is found in your behavior.
But in Christianity we discover that it’s truly found in his. And that all right I did identity in that is only continued to to be found in and walked in as our our lives are truly surrendered to him for his glory. And so Paul is saying, do you know what the struggle is in this passage? And it’s not it’s not just the Jewish people. It’s every people. They just become an example of really the heart of what hides in all of us. I did not submit to God’s righteousness. Because he tells us in verse four. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. It’s not the law. But it’s him. It’s his righteousness for which we have. So then in talking about addressing the problem and in order to talk about the hope, Paul then gives us a call. And that’s the way the rest of this, this section responds to us is this this calling in our life. And he he gives us in these first few verses something to let go in order for something to embrace, to understand that all of us have a place to be a part of this. So this this idea of something to let go. He goes on in verse five and he says this for Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on the law that the person who does the commands shall live by them.
By the way, if you read if you’re reading through the Old Testament in the year, when you get to the book of Deuteronomy, which is the last book that Moses writes for us, the first five books of the Bible, Moses wrote, he gets the end of Deuteronomy and the first five books that’s referred to as the Pentateuch, the Torah. It’s the law. This is this is the law of Israel that they followed in the Lord. And Moses gets the in the book of Deuteronomy, and he and he sort of it’s a lackluster ending. He sort of says this to Israel, and here’s the law, but we know you’re not going to obey it. It’s almost like here it all is, but it’s impossible. It’s kind of how the ending goes. But he’s saying in this verse, look, if you want to try it, try it. Go for it. If you if you think that you can achieve your own salvation through these commandments, embrace it, but know you’re responsible for it. And when you read in the New Testament, you find that reminder again and again and several books. And I didn’t include every possible verse, but I’ve listed several here in the bottom in just a few on top. But look what James says. James.
Chapter two. Whoever keeps the whole all. But fails in one point. Has become guilty of all of it. And so what he’s saying to us in responding to this call first is understand that there is an impossible path for you to follow. Now, it’s not to say God doesn’t want you to do good things in this world. God certainly wants you to do good things in this world. And some of us we approach Christianity. I would even say for Christians, sometimes our life is erroneous in the way that we view the Bible. Like, we think, okay, I’ll have a problem in life. I’ll read the Bible, and the Bible will solve the problem of problem in life. I read the Bible, Bible solve a problem. And there certainly you can find that in Scripture. But do you know the Bible doesn’t talk about every problem you’re going to face in life? Because the point of the Bible isn’t to tell you how to address every problem you face in life. The point of the Bible is to tell you how to have a relationship with God. How to Faithfully Walk with Jesus. The point of Scripture is about a relationship with God, and through that relationship, then you learn how to honor God in the struggles you face in this world. It’s not a self-help book of do’s and don’ts do’s. It’s a book of discovery of who you are in light of who Christ is or who you could be without him.
So that you could walk with him. So this law is not this task. If you just look at the law about your performance, all all of salvation, then in that just becomes solely about you, what you do or don’t do. That’s not the point of life. The point of life is about him. And his glory. And so sometimes we’ll have people ask the question, Well, if you’re not afraid, like if God paid it all, then what? What what keeps you from living like hell in this world? And the answer is I don’t respond to God out of fear and hope that I get salvation, but rather I respond to God enjoy because of salvation. It’s the joy of now knowing I have a walk with God and I can enjoy that walk every day. That’s why I do any good in this world. It’s not because of me, and my performance is because of him and his performance and that delight and that hope in that joy and that love, that grace. That’s what motivates me to respond. It’s not of this place of insecurity, but it’s it’s out of this place of complete security in him. I have a position now that I never I never would have had, apart from Jesus. And in the beauty of that position in Christ, I now get to respond in love as he has loved me.
And so there’s this warning in the book of Romans chapter ten, verse five. And regarding Moses, that he’s telling us, if you want to try it, try it. But then he goes on and says this and verse six, But the righteousness based on faith says, Do not say in your heart who will ascend into heaven? That is to bring Christ down. Or who will descend into the abyss, that is, to bring Christ up from the dead. It’s interesting in a religious mentality, people tend to have this idea that I’m going to avail myself to God. I will elevate myself to him or I will pull him down to me because of how great I am. I will make him bow rightly. I can be so good that God can do nothing but refuse or cannot refuse to love me because of how amazing I am. Right? And you bring God down or or your faith is really a dead faith. And so you’ve got to resurrect this God from the grave. But what’s interesting is in these comments, what he’s highlighting for us is the incarnation and the resurrection of Jesus. He’s saying, look, you’re not bringing God down to you, nor are you resurrecting God from the grave. It’s not a dead faith that you need to bring to life by your performance. What he’s saying is God has already pursued you incarnation and God has already conquered this faith that was dead in you because you were dead in Christ.
He’s already resurrected because he’s overcome the grave. It’s not you. It’s him. And so he goes on then and he gives us the call and verse 8 to 10, he says, But what does it say? The word is near you. In your mouth. And in your heart. That is the word of faith that we proclaim. Because if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified and with the mouth one confesses and is saved. What he’s saying is, if your heart genuinely embraces what Jesus has done, your life will proclaim it. Because what you truly believe you live. And so your life is going to demonstrate both the lordship of Christ and and the resurrection of Christ by by by how you surrender your heart and how you live your life, whether or not Jesus is truly Lord. This is one of the most freeing, powerful, important verses, I think, in Scripture for all of us to rest. And no matter where you’ve come from in life, if if you see what Jesus has done and you take your trust and you put it in this accomplishing work of Christ. The Bible promises. Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.
So you let go of what He talks about in the idea of Moses thinking that you make God available to you by your performance. Let go of those things and embrace what Jesus has done through his incarnation. His resurrection is becoming flesh, His dying for you and coming to new life, accomplishing his work over sin, Satan and death that you can find freedom in him. In that there is new life. In that out of everything in this world that you can trust and that will endure forever. Jesus would not have given his life if it were not were not so. It would have been a waste of his life and no reason to even come into this world in incarnate form to to live a servant of servants. If the truth of this statement, we’re not secure. Jesus has given it all. And so he tells us in verse 11, then he reminds us who then can participate in those promises? For the scripture says. Everyone who believes in him. Will not be put to shame. For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek. For the same Lord is Lord of all bestowing His riches on all who call on him. For everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. Doesn’t matter where you come from, he’s saying. Doesn’t matter if you’re Jew or Gentile, he tells us in Galatians. Doesn’t matter if you’re male or female.
It doesn’t matter your economic position in life. That’s not what God is interested in. God certainly cares about you and wherever you are, but that’s not what produces that saving work. It’s him. And I love what he says here. Verse 11, you will not be put to shame. I got to think. In our Christian journey. How many of us have stumbled in our faithfulness? Because we were afraid of what other people would think. How many of us may have denied Jesus at certain times in her life because we were more concerned with what other people thought about us than what Christ thought about us? Or maybe how many people right now. Won’t take the step to trust in Jesus. Because their eyes are too much on people and not enough on him. The security of what Christ brings. The promise is you will not be put to shame. Do you believe that Jesus has enough? Are you tired of letting other people dictate what your relationship with God should look like? And walk with him. Do you believe he’s enough? Able to help us with this. I’ll close with this illustration we get. Some of you might have tomorrow off right President’s Day. It’s a good day off and I. On the 12th, we had Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, which I consider Abraham Lincoln, I think the greatest president in US history, not the slight George Washington.
I mean, I think he sort of started it all, set the foundation for what the presidency would be was to be about. But when I think about the greatness of leaders in our country, Abraham Lincoln is at the top for me. And the reason is, is because in such a difficult time, he led with such dignity. And can I tell you what I think, Abraham? Abraham Lincoln’s secret was. I think Abraham Lincoln’s secret was the word of God. Um. I could not have imagined having to be in his shoes during his time period leading through the Civil War. Knowing that you would put father against sons, brother against brother. Many people would not return home. Some estimate somewhere between 2 to 3% of the population was killed in the Civil War. Knowing how families would be divided during this difficult time. But yet what he stood for was right and good. And I think the only reason he was able to do that was because his greater hope and the one that he ultimately lived to please was was the Lord. And on the screen is a picture of his Bible. And I think weighing in this man’s mind would have been the idea of of who did he want to to live for. Was he worried about the shame from others? Or did he recognize that in Christ as he followed him, he would never be put to shame. Abraham Lincoln was raised as a as a boy in Pigeon Creek, Indiana.
And that Bible on the screen is the Bible that his mother read to him as a young boy. Some people say that when he left Pigeon Creek as a young man, that was the only possession he carried with him and he carried it all the way to the White House. To the point that I read about a minister. He was a pastor at the New York Avenue Presbyterian Church in Washington, D.C. It was the it was the church Abraham Lincoln attended during his presidency. It was actually the pastor of that church when Abraham Lincoln was shot that they called. And he went by the bedside of Mary Todd Lincoln, lay there and breathed his last breaths on this earth. And and he prayed for the family. And he and this pastor of this church, he took Mary Todd back to the White House and and told Abraham Lincoln’s son that his father had passed. One of the pastors years later picked up this Bible. And he started to. He held it in his hands and he said he thought to himself, what a privilege it is to hold this Bible that that guided the heart of Abraham Lincoln. And as he thumbed through the pages, he came to one passage of scripture that was earmarked. And it was Psalm 37. And the pastor reflected on on that passage, thinking what this section of Scripture must have meant to this man and how it guided his heart.
Are any of you familiar with Psalm 37? When you think about the the security that you can have in Jesus, that you will not be put to shame that the way forward is is not in your strength, but in his as you surrender your life to what Christ calls you to in Him, you will not be disappointed. Psalm 37, guiding Abraham Lincoln’s heart and hopefully ours. This morning it says this Do not fret because of those who are evil. Or be envious of those who do wrong for like the grass, they will soon wither like green plants. They will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good. Dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the Lord and He will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord. Trust in Him. And He will do this. He will make your righteous reward. Shine like the dawn, your vindication, like the noonday sun. Be still before the Lord and wait patiently for him. What keeps you from believing? What keeps you from following? Humility we learn in this passage is the key to faithfulness. It’s the key to what starts your relationship with God. It’s the key to what continues your relationship with the Lord so that your heart would be aligned with his.