Psalm 68
Our Triumphant King
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Welcome to God’s Word for You, a ministry of Sharon RP Church in Morning Sun, Iowa. Check us out online at www.Sharonrpc.org. We pray that this message will be a blessing to you and that the Lord will use it to transform your faith and your life.
Please turn in your Bibles with me now over to Psalm 68. Psalm 68. Psalm 68. And as we get into Psalm 68, we're going to see some beautiful truths about what God is teaching us there in Psalm 68, about who He is, what He has done. And in Psalm 68, instead of working through the whole passage at one time and reading it together in its entirety now, we're going to work through this passage, this entire chapter, chunk by chunk together and see how it ties into how the church is defined today. So, we'll be looking at Psalm 68 and how that ties in with Ephesians 4:7-10. So Psalm 68 is this beautiful, beautiful song that teaches us about a triumphant God, a triumphant God who gives good gifts.
I wonder, have you ever given a good gift before? Have you given a good gift to someone and it seemed like that person was really excited about the gift, but there's that moment, you know the moment I'm talking about, right? The moment when someone moves beyond the gift, and instead of just loving the present, they love the person who gave the present. One of my favorite things about giving gifts to our children, or even giving gifts to Olivia, I love to see their smile and then when they say, “Thank you!” It's this beautiful heartwarming. I’ll always love and I'll never forget our daughter with her crazy curly hair when she accepted a gift from me one time and she looked at the gift and she smiled and she was so happy and she hugged her gift and then she looked up at me and she ran to me and she gave me a hug and thanked me for the gift. Not because I necessarily gave her the gift, but because I loved her and she was loving me.
And so, I want to look this morning at that context. How do we show that love to our King, who shows us good gifts? Well, in Psalm 68, we start off with the first four verses where God is called forth as a triumphant King to be praised. God is called forth to be praised as a triumphant King. Look with me at verses one through four: “Let God arise, let His enemies be scattered; let those who hate Him flee before Him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away; as wax melts before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God. But let the righteous be glad; let them rejoice before God; yes, let them rejoice exceedingly. Sing to God, sing praises to His name; extol Him who rides on the clouds, by His name YAH, and rejoice before Him.”
Do you hear it? Do you hear the Psalmist calling God's people to rejoice in Him? Do you hear the words that God is calling us together now, to rejoice with exceedingly great gladness, on Him who rides upon the clouds? It is God who has come. It is Yahweh who has come. It is He who is to be praised. That is how this Psalm starts. Rejoice! Rejoice!
Why? Why should we rejoice? Well, first we rejoice because God remembers the poor. We rejoice because God remembers the poor. Look with me at verses 5 and 6, and then verse 10. Psalm 68:5, “A father of the fatherless, a defender of widows, is God in His holy habitation. God sets the solitary in families; He brings out those who are bound into prosperity; but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.” And then drop down to verse 10. “Your congregation dwelt in it; You, O God, provided from Your goodness for the poor.” Oh, that's something to rejoice about, isn't it? That our God, who dwells in heaven, is not so transcendent that He doesn't care about us. He's not so far removed from you that He doesn't care for you. But God is near to you.
God takes the lonely. There are many lonely in our culture in our day today. And He puts them in a family. What we learn is that in the New Testament is that family is in the church, where we call each other, “brother and sister.” Did you know that one of the rumors in the early days of the church during the Roman empire, that people would talk bad about Christians, they would say, “Eww, they're incestuous,” or something like that because they all call each other, “brothers and sisters”? Well, no, that’s not what it was, but we are all brothers and sisters in Christ. God gives us a family. God cares for the widow. God cares for the poor. And we see that happen in the church. We see that happen in His holy Tabernacle. We see that happen. It happened in the Old Testament at the actual temple, and it happens now, in the New Testament, in the church. This is one of the things that God does. This is one of the reasons why we rejoice.
But we also rejoice in a historical reality. We also rejoice in what God has done in the past, definitively. And for that, let's look at why we rejoice in God doing definitive acts in the past in verses 7 through 18. Turn in your Bibles there with me, Psalm 68:7-18, “O God, when You went out before Your people, when You marched through the wilderness, the earth shook; the heavens also dropped rain at the presence of God; Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel. You, O God, sent a plentiful rain, whereby You confirmed Your inheritance, when it was weary. Your congregation dwelt in it; You, O God, provided from Your goodness for the poor. The Lord gave the word; great was the company of those who proclaimed it: “Kings of armies flee, they flee, and she who remains at home divides the spoil. Though you lie down among the sheepfolds, you will be like the wings of a dove covered with silver, and her feathers with yellow gold.” When the Almighty scattered kings in it, it was white as snow in Zalmon. A mountain of God is the mountain of Bashan; a mountain of many peaks is the mountain of Bashan. Why do you fume with envy, you mountains of many peaks? This is the mountain which God desires to dwell in; yes, the Lord will dwell in it forever. The chariots of God are 20,000, even thousands of thousands; the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the Holy Place. You have ascended on high, you have led captivity captive; you have received gifts among men, even from the rebellious, that the Lord may dwell there.”
What beautiful imagery we have in this portion of the Psalms of what God has done. God went before His people in that great cloud during the Exodus. When the Israelites were poor and the Israelites were needy and the Israelites were oppressed, it was God who led them out of that captivity. It was God who went before His people in that cloud. It was God who led His people in the wilderness. It was God who hid them beneath the shadow of His wings. It was God who delivered them. It was God who confirmed His presence and His word at Mount Zion. It was God who came down from the heavens. Do you remember that scene in Exodus chapters 19 and 20? Do you remember, if you close your eyes, hearing the voice of God booming in the thunder and in the lightning and the earth shaking and the people crying out to Moses that they needed him to intercede because if they heard God's voice they would die? God has always been with His people.
But He is not just the king who dwells here. He came down upon Mount Sinai, yes, that's true, but He also ascended. Do you remember that story of that great procession when the ark was taken from Shiloh and taken up to the Tabernacle when it was built, when David had the whole hosts of people singing aloud and he danced before the ark as the ark was taken up into the Tabernacle? Do you remember that story? Do you remember God upon His throne? That's what the ark is: the Ark of the Covenant, the throne of God, as it ascended up onto Mount Zion into the Holy Tabernacle. It ascended there. Oh, it ascended there, the Lord of hosts, the one who has command over all the armies. This is one of my favorite titles for God, “Yahweh Sabaoth”, Lord of hosts. God of armies. The one who, as a verse 17 tells us, “The chariots of God are 20,000, even myriads of myriads, thousands of thousands of chariots.” Our God is strong. Our God is mighty. He is the conqueror. It is God. The strength, with the strength of His right hand, delivers His people. Oh, what an amazing God we serve. And this is what Psalm 68 is pushing us towards, to lift up our eyes to God and to see the ascended one sitting upon His throne. And it's interesting what happens as He sits upon His throne in verse 18. What do the people do? They bring him gifts. Verse 18, “You have received gifts among men, even from the rebellious.”
But then the chapter goes on from there and the Psalmist turns our eyes to not just God, but His salvation. Look with me at verse 19 and 20, as we look at God's salvation and what God has done as the triumphant King. Verse 19 and 20, God the triumphant King, “Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation! Our God is the God of salvation; and to God the Lord belong escapes from death.” Our triumphant King has rescued His people, has snatched them from the snares of death, has taken them from the jaws of defeat. It is God our Savior, our triumphant King who does that saving.
But the Psalmist doesn’t stop there, the Psalmist keeps going and he talks about God's triumphant. Look with me at verses 21 through 22, at God who is triumphant. “But God will wound the head of His enemies, the hairy scalp of the one who still goes on in his trespasses. The Lord said, “I will bring back from Bashan, I will bring them back from the depths of the sea, that your foot may crush them in blood, and the tongues of your dogs may have their portion from your enemies.”” It is God who will triumph over His foes. It is God who has triumphed over His foes. It is the Lord of hosts, the God of armies, who has won the victory, who has suppressed His enemies. It is God who has done this.
But the Psalmist goes on even more about our triumphant God. Look with me at verses 24 and 27. In 24 and 27, what we find is that there is a procession of praise to the triumphant God. Verse 24, “They have seen Your procession, O God, the procession of my God, my King, into the sanctuary. The singers went before, the players of instruments followed after; among them were the maidens playing timbrels. Bless God in the congregations, the Lord, from the fountain of Israel. There is little Benjamin, their leader, the princes of Judah and their company, the princes of Zebulun and the princes of Naphtali.” I know we're spending time in the classroom today, and that's okay. We need to look at the Psalm as it's originally written and what does it mean at that time to those people. Well, here it is saying that they saw the people entering in to the Temple and as they were going into the Tabernacle, and into the Temple, there was a great procession following them. God's people singing praises to their King, to their God. That is what we find in verses 24 through 27.
But the Psalmist says, “If that wasn't enough,” and keeps on going. Look with me at verses 28 through 31. What we find is a prayer for the day when all the kings will submit to God. It's not just enough that the people submit to God, but the Psalmist cries out that all the kings would submit to the triumphant God. Look with me at verses 28 through 31, “Your God has commanded your strength; strengthen, O God, what You have done for us. Because of Your temple at Jerusalem, kings will bring presents to You. Rebuke the beasts of the reeds, the herd of bulls with the calves of the peoples, till everyone submits himself with pieces of silver. Scatter the peoples who delight in war. Envoys will come out of Egypt; Ethiopia will quickly stretch out her hands to God.” God is the one who is triumphant. He's the one who sits enthroned. He is the one who has come riding upon the clouds. He is the deliverer of His people. He is the one who is praised by His people. He is the one who all the kings will worship as the triumphant King. And they'll pay their tribute to Him. Egypt and Ethiopia and Bashan, all of them will pay tribute to the Great King, our Triumphant One in heaven.
Again, it doesn't stop there. The Psalmist concludes the Psalm with verses 32 through 35, again, singing about the kings of the earth. Verse 32, turn there with me. Verse 32, “Sing to God, you kingdoms of the earth; oh, sing praises to the Lord, to Him who rides on the heaven of heavens, which were of old! Indeed, He sends out His voice, a mighty voice. Ascribe strength to God; His excellence is over Israel, and His strength is in the clouds. O God, You are most awesome in Your holy places. The God of Israel is He who gives strength and power to His people. Blessed be God!”
The entire Psalm of Psalm 68 is this crying out that the triumphant King would be praised by all the nations. That He has ascended upon His throne. But it's amazing what God does in Ephesians chapter 4. Turn over there with me. Ephesians chapter 4. We've seen this is speaking specifically about Yahweh. This is speaking about the God who led His people out of Egypt. This is speaking of the God who ascended upon Mount Zion. But when we come to Ephesians chapter 4, we find God revealing something amazing to us. Ephesians chapter 4, look with me at verses 7 through 10, “But to each one of us grace has been given according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore He says: “When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.” (Now this, “He ascended” – what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)”
Did you catch it? Who is this speaking about? Did you see it? Look again with me at verse 7, “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift. Therefore He says: “When He,”” when He, when Christ, ““ascended on high, He led captivity captive, and gave gifts to men.”” Psalm 68 is a Messianic Psalm. See, the people in the Old Testament, when they sang Psalm 68, they were singing it to God. And indeed, God had done those things, but all those were types and shadows that were pointing us, pointing you, towards the fuller revelation that it was Jesus Christ who truly would descend and would then ascend upon His throne. It is Jesus Christ who Psalm 68 points to. It is Jesus Christ who is the ascended king to whom all nations must pay tribute. It is your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ whom has been given all nations. Do you remember Psalm 2? Psalm 2 specifically says that all the kings are to come and to bow, to kiss, the Son lest His wrath be burned. It is Jesus Christ whom all the nations come and bow their knee to.
It is Jesus Christ who descended upon the Earth. And what does it mean that He ascended but that He first descended. He came in the form of a humble servant. Our Lord saves the poor and the widow. Our Lord brings us everything we need, and His name is Jesus Christ. It is Jesus Christ who has triumphed over His enemies. God has conquered Satan. Jesus Christ has crushed the head of the serpent. Jesus Christ is the One who is the majestic king, the mediatorial king, over all the nations. It is Jesus Christ who is triumphant. It is Jesus Christ who has ascended.
And if you want to check me on this, just go look back at Ephesians chapter 1 verse 20. Ephesians chapter 1 verse 20 is blatantly clear that this is talking about Jesus. And if that's not enough, go ahead, even in the same book, to Ephesians chapter 2 verses 5 and 6, where, again, it is Jesus Christ who is the ascended one. It is Jesus who is the triumphant king. It is Jesus who has won the victory, and it is Jesus who is giving the gifts.
Now, don't worry. We're going to get the gifts next week. Don't worry, we're going to get there, but it's important that we not just get stuck on the gifts. All modern evangelical churches love to get stuck on the gifts, forgetting the gift giver. And we must never take our eyes off Christ.
But let me ask you, we're going to step out of the classroom and let me ask you now: What are the implications and applications of this reality? How does this apply to your life? Well, brothers and sisters, I would like to tell you that Jesus Christ is not just the king of the world, He is also the king of His church. Remember, in the second half of the book of Ephesians, 4 through 6, we're looking at the church. And here in chapter 4, Paul is concerned about the church. And the church has one head. The church has one king. I had a mentor, he's gone to be with the Lord now, but Dr. Blackwood would get upset with people when he would hear them say, “Oh, that's Pastor Bryan's church.” And he would say, “That is not Pastor Bryan’s church, that is Jesus Christ’s Church.” No pastor is king of his church. No elder is king of the church. There is one head and there is one king and His name is Jesus Christ. The church does not bow to the president. The church does not bow to any prime minister. The church does not bow to any other Lord. We have one Lord and His name is Jesus Christ, and He is our ascended king. He earned that crown. He sat down at the right hand of God His Father in majesty. It is He whom we listen to. It is His words which we obey. He's the one who tells us how we are to live our lives. He's the one who tells us how we are to love. He is the one who instructs us how we are to be like Him. So, the first application, or implication, of this is that we must never, as the church, let anyone usurp the authority of our King Jesus.
But there's another application, a more personal application and implication for this, and that's for each of us, individually, in our own lives, that we must be those who fix our eyes upon our King. Oh, brothers and sisters, I implore you to fix your eyes upon Jesus, the author and the finisher of your salvation, that you would rejoice in Jesus Christ, that you would look to Him for comfort, that you would look to Him for your security, that you would look to Jesus Christ for salvation. It is in Jesus Christ that we find comfort. It is in Jesus Christ that we have joy. It is in Jesus Christ that you have redemption. It is in Jesus Christ that you, the poor, the meek, the humble, those who mourn, those who are broken over your sin, those who are lonely, those who are hurting, those who are too busy to have any time to breathe, those who are down trodden, he is your king and He will give you rest. If you are those who are still leaning on your own works, do you know that you have a king who has come? He descended from heaven and carried the burden which you could never bear. Your king came and took the yoke of the law upon His shoulders and He tells you now, “Come to me all you who are weary and heavy laden, I will give you rest.” What a great King we have, you have, in Jesus Christ, that you have a king who's not just triumphant, not just riding upon the clouds, but has come down, descended, and now carries you, gives you a family, brings you into His body, cares for you as His church. Rely on Him. Look to Him. Praise Him. May Psalm 68 be on your tongue as you look to your triumphant King. Christ is our triumphant King.
He's a gracious king who saves and He's a gracious king who gives many good gifts. I'm excited! Next week we're going to get into more in-depth verse 7 about “to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift.” And as we look at those gifts over the next few weeks, we're going to be seeing how Christ gives gifts to His people, how our King gives to you and to me. And how those gifts are to work and what the purpose they are of in the church. But God has given you gifts. Most of all though, never lose sight of your greatest gift, Christ Himself. Christ is your triumphant King. Rejoice in Him. Sing to Him. Cling to Him. Never let your eyes move off of Christ.
Let's pray, “Father, we thank you so much for this day. We thank you, Father, for Jesus Christ. We thank you, Lord, for giving us a triumphant King, one who sits upon Your throne and has all authority in His right hand. Father, we pray that we'd always fix our eyes upon our Lamb who was slain, our King. In Jesus’s name, amen.”
Thanks for listening to this week's message from God's Word for You, a ministry of Sharon RP Church in rural southeast Iowa. We pray that the message would be used by God to transform your faith and your life this week. If you'd like to get more information about us, feel free to go to the website: Sharonrpc.org. We’d love to invite you to worship with us. Our worship time is 10 a.m. every Sunday at 25204 160th Avenue, Morning Sun, Iowa 52640. May God richly bless you this week.