INTRODUCTION: Read Psalm 78
Psalm 78 is the longest historical psalm recounting Israel's history from the slavery in Egypt to King David's reign. It is also a psalm of Asaph's wisdom and teaching in the hope that the Israelites would remember their past and be reminded of God's wonder and mercy, and be encouraged to share this with their children and other generations.
When I first read this psalm I felt disheartened, for no matter what God did for His people, the Israelites - no matter how faithfully He blessed them and cared for them - they continually complained and remained unfaithful.
"It's a lesson that must not repeat itself. The people must never again be unbelieving." James Montgomery Boice
Are we people like this too? We are God's children. He is our loving, merciful Father, and these qualities, along with the many more we have trusted in over the years, are unfailing. Still, WE COMPLAIN! Still, our pride gets in the way of our obedience. Still, when confronted with "human suffering and guilt" we refuse to humble ourselves and "accept God's offer of grace."
"The humble heart is quick to acknowledge their need for God, eager to confess sin, willing to kneel before the Father. Those who walk in pride God is able to humble. But those who walk in humility God is able to USE." Max Lucado.
God was merciful. He listened to His people's complaints and was angered with their unfaithfulness; but He still blessed them abundantly. The same is true for us today. So don't forget to praise God and thank Him for all He has done for you; for taking your hand and at times carrying you along those difficult "stepping stones" in your life. Thank Him for "moulding you" into the special child of God you are today.
TEACHING OUR CHILDREN: Read Psalm 78:1-8
The Word of the Lord is to be carefully handed down to our children. We must be concerned for our future generations, passing on down the wonders and mercies of the Lord, what we have read in the Bible and from our own experiences.
It is such a blessing for Mark and I to be able to go to Church with our son, daughter in law and our three granddaughters, to see them serve the Church in their own way, and to see our granddaughters get excited about Children's Church, telling us each week what they have learnt.
"You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul and all your strength. And you must commit yourselves wholeheartedly to these commands that I am giving you today. Repeat them again and again to your children. Talk about them when you are at home and when you are on the road, when you are going to bed and when you are getting up. Tie them on your hands and wear them on your foreheads as reminders." Deuteronomy 6:5-8
Asaph was concerned about passing on 3 important things to the next generations:
1. THE PRAISES OF GOD - teaching them that God was worthy of adoration and graduation.
2. GOD'S STRENGTH - His power and greatness above and beyond all.
3. HIS WONDERFUL WORLD - God's power and greatness in assisting His people.
The greatest of God's works was the giving of His Word (the Law) to Israel. If we don't pass this on to our children it can become totally irrelevant in our world today. We want them to trust God and be obedient to His Word, not just because we have taught it to them, but because we have shown them by living it through our lives. They will hopefully learn the right way to live, and will want to focus their lives on the Word and be faithful to God.
GOD'S WONDER'S, EPHRAIM'S REBELLION - Read Psalm 78:9-6; Ephesians 6:10-18
Ephraim was a cowardly people, one of the larger tribes of Israel. Sin had discouraged their hearts. They were evil and treacherous because they had disobeyed God and forgotten His works.
* He delivered them from the hands of Pharoah in Egypt.
* He made a path through the Red Sea.
* He gave them courage tho walk through the sea and then guided them in the wilderness.
* He led them step by step, day and night, supplying them fresh water and healthy food.
"Those who forget God's works are sure to fail in their own." Charles Spurgeon
As a "breakaway tribe" they were also a symbol of "backsliding". They often failed in battle for although they were armed with their "bows", they did not use them properly. They refused to trust in the Lord, remembering all the wonders He had done for them.
This can be true of all the spiritual battles we face today. God makes spiritual resources available to us, but we can only have victory in our battles if we use these effectively.
"Stand your ground, putting on the BELT OF TRUTH and the BREASTPLATE OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. For SHOES, PUT ON PEACE that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. In addition to all these, hold up the SHIELD OF FAITH to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. Put on SALVATION AS A HELMET and take the SWORD OF THE SPIRIT, which is the WORD OF GOD. PRAY IN THE SPIRIT at all times and on every occasion. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere." Ephesians 6:4-18 (NLT)
GOD'S MERCY, ISRAEL'S UNBELIEF - Read Psalm 78:21-39; Numbers 11
God was merciful with His people even though they rebelled. He blessed them more and provided for their needs, but they challenged God to GIVE THEM MORE. They continued to be dissatisfied with God's provisions. God was angry and displeased with them, because it showed their lack of trust. They thought that the reason God didn't give them what they wanted was because He couldn't. They lacked faith in His power and care for them. Because of their fear and unwillingness to seek the Lord by faith this first generation did not enter the Promised Land, but spent 40 years wandering in the wilderness.
"Never again say, "Can God?", but "God can?" Meyer
"Now the Lord sent a wind that brought quail from the sea and let them fall all around the camp. For miles in every direction there were quail flying about three fee above the ground. So the people went out and caught quail all that day and throughout the night and all the next day, too. No one gathered less than 50 bushels! They spread the quail all around the camp to dry. But while they were gorging themselves on the meat - while it was still in their mouths - the anger of the Lord blazed against the people, and He struck them with a severe plague." Numbers 11:31-33 (NLT)
By these plagues God made a way for His people to rely and trust in Him more. At times they repented of their sins, but these were not sincere confessions. They came to God with flattery, insincere words and actions. It was their sin of idolatry that entangled them most; but again God was full of compassion, forgiving the sins of His children. God forgave their lack of sincerity and turned his anger away, bringing the next generation into the Promised Land.
"Eventually a generation of people sought earnestly for God, but even their seeking was somewhat insincere." David Guzik
God had been furious with their unbelief, their doubting and their ingratitude. We often think today that these sins are only small in comparison to many, but they led to one generation of Israelities being kept from God's salvation. Yet despite God's merciful blessings and corrections, ISRAEL STILLED SINNED, and this is the most tragic line in this psalm. ISRAEL DIDN'T LEARN!
How will our generations be? Will we spend our lives "wandering in the wilderness" or will we accept the salvation Jesus has offered to us by His death on the cross. Will we seek Him with sincere confession and trust in His Word?
"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths.":Proverbs 3:5&6 (NIV)
THE PLAGUES IN EGYPT - ONWARD TO THE PROMISED LAND - Read Psalm 78:40-55; Numbers 14; Exodus 7-11
We know that God continues to be compassionate, but He does not ignore sin. Asaph recounted again how God worked His miracles in Egypt and then in the wilderness, bringing His people to the Promised Land in Canaan.
In Egypt we read about the plagues:
* Turning the river into blood.
* Sending swarms of flies, frogs and locusts.
* Sending hail, frost and locusts.
* Killing of lifestock - cattle.
* The death of the firstborn.
Then the People of Israel were led forth as sheep, protected from their enemies. He brought them to Canaan, driving out the nations before them, and giving the new generation an inheritance.
These verses continue to speak of God's great mercy. The people did not know where they were going, but God guided them with care and tenderness. He led safely along dangerous paths and they did not need to fear, for they knew God was with them. God was their `ROCK' and 'REDEEMER', and they knew they could build their lives on Him, if they continued to trust in Him to save them. As we are reminded, for a short time, they did this, seeking God's forgiveness and humbling themselves before Him.
"Then if my people who are called by my name humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, I will hear from Heaven and will forgive their sins and restore their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14 (NLT)
Although the Israelites weren't always sincere in remembering God's salvation, His mercy and forgiveness continued to be offered to them, and we know that His total forgiveness was offered by the death of His Son on the Cross: HE IS OUR TRUE ROCK AND REDEEMER.
"For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. Yet God, in His own grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty for our sins." Romans 3:23&24 (NLT)
THE ISRAELITES DEFEATED BY THE PHILISTINES - Read Psalm 78:56-64; 1 Samuel 4:10-22
In these verses we read how Israel was a "bow that did not shoot straight". Even in the Promised Land, they continued to be unfaithful. They failed to fulfil God's purpose in their lives and they worshipped other gods, "setting up altars and carved images". This is something we often do when we follow our own will in our lives, rather than listening to God.
Asaph remembered the tragedy at Shiloh, when the Philistines took the Ark of the Covenant. God allowed the Philistines to capture the Ark and take it as a trophy of their victory in battle. Even the priests who attended the Ark fell by the sword. Yet eventually GOD TRIUMPHED! Even though the Philistines had taken it to their pagan temple, the Lord `found it'.
"God demonstrated that He was able to guard His glory when His people neglected His glory." David Guzik
THE CHOICE OF JUDAH AND IT'S LEADER DAVID - Read Psalm 78:65-72; 1 Samuel 5
Psalm 78 ends on a hopeful note. Asaph explains why God chose the tribe of Judah and rejected the other tribes of Israel, and why He also chose David, a humble shepherd boy to be king over his people.
God delights in honouring the humble and diligent. David had a great trust in God, he "shepherded them according to the integrity of his heart", and was found to be both skilful and trustworthy in discharging his duties as a soldier and responsibilities as a king. He failed at times, but ultimately, he ruled God's people, taught them and protected them. He was sincere and wise in all he did, because He followed the Lord and His Word.
The Ark was brought back to Jerusalem, to the Sanctuary in Zion, and would later be placed in the Temple in Jerusalem which David planned for his son Solomon to build.
God chose Judah because this was the tribe through which He would send His Son Jesus, who like David would be the GREAT KING and GOOD SHEPHERD of all God's people.
"I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd sacrifices His life for the sheep." John 10:11
CONCLUSION
So this long, historical psalm has come to and end. But God's wonders and mercies never will. God will continue to bless His children, as He did the Israelites, as He will you and me. He continues to offer His grace and forgiveness when we wander in the wilderness. He sent His Son Jesus, so that we could have a ROCK AND REDEEMER.
What great promises for us to cling to!
Guzik, David, 2020, "Psalm 78 - Learning from God's Faithfulness to His Rebellious People", enduringword.com
Henry, Matthew; Mansen, Martin H, 2008, "The New Matthew Henry Commentary" Zondervan
"Holy Bible, New International Version", 2011, Biblica.Inc
"Holy Bible, New Living Translation", 2015, Tyndale House Publishers
Lucado, Max, 2018, "Unshakable Hope", Thomas Nelson Publishers.
Lucado, Max, 2003, "Devotional Bible, New Century Version, Experiencing the Heart of Jesus", Thomas Nelson Publishers.
