The Righteous Person

Psalm 16

The attitude and lifestyle of the righteous person is described in (vv. 1–8)

 Psalms 16:1 (NKJV) Preserve me, O God, for in You I put my trust.

The righteous persons attitude is one of trust. Everyone trusts in something or someone.King David put complete trust in God to preserve  him (to keep safe from harm or injury; to protect or spare) through all he had to face in life. Who do you trust to save and keep you?    Psalms 16:2 (NKJV)  O my soul, you have said to the Lord, "You are my Lord, My goodness is nothing apart from You." Have you said that?

His attitude is one of Gratefulness for God’s goodness as Master and Provider.

James 1:17 (NKJV)  Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

Psalms 16:3 (NKJV)  As for the saints who are on the earth, "They are the excellent ones, in whom is all my delight."

Righteous person Delight’s in God’s people. Their God is their glory. They are the true heroes, our missionaries and Christian people. Imagine a world without Christians or churches. God spares America because of His missionaries and His godly people spreading the gospel. 

Psalms 16:4 (NKJV)  Their sorrows shall be multiplied who hasten after another god; Their drink offerings of blood I will not offer, Nor take up their names on my lips.

cf. Ex. 23:13; Deut. 12:3 prohibited mentioning false gods. Righteous people Separate themselves from idolatrous worship. Those with other gods would drink the blood offerings to their god. Righteous people Love God alone! They know where their blessings come from.

Psalms 16:5-6 (NKJV) ⁵ O Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance and my cup; You maintain my lot. ⁶ The lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; Yes, I have a good inheritance.

Righteous have Satisfaction in God’s gracious provisions. God has given the righteous a Heavenly inheritance that is “incorruptible and undefiled and does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 1 Peter 1:4 6a(NKJV) In this we greatly rejoice.”

God is the righteous persons inheritance. He is better than anything we have on this earth.

Psalms 16:7 (NKJV)  I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel; My heart also instructs me in the night seasons. Righteous Praise the Lord for His counsel to guide us through life and trust Him and His promises. The communion of our soul with God brings us an inner spiritual wisdom which in still seasons is revealed to us as we meditate on His word.

The attitude of the righteous person in death is described in (vv. 8–11).

Verses 10-11 Refer to Jesus and His resurrection. Peter in Acts 2:25-35 said Jesus was the fulfillment of these scriptures. Jesus’ resurrection is that which gives us our hope and joy. 

Psalms 16:8 (NKJV)  I have set the Lord always before me; Because He is at my right hand I shall not be moved. Jesus set the Father God before Him as He went to the cross for us. Because He knew the Father was at His right hand, He would not be moved from His purpose.

Righteous also know the Lord is with them even as they face death as Jesus did. 

Psalms 23:4 (NKJV)  Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

Psalms 1:2 (NKJV) The righteous person’s delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law (word) he meditates day and night. When we read God’s word, study it and meditate on it, we are keeping the Lord always before us; we experience His Presence and are ready to meet Him in death.

Psalms 16:9 (NKJV)  Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoices; My flesh also will rest in hope. Jesus would have to die. His flesh would rest in the tomb in hope for three days. But His heart was glad and His soul rejoiced because He knew the outcome, mankind’s salvation. Hebrews 12:2 (NKJV)  Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. His joy was based on what would happen on the other side of death.

In facing death, the righteous person also is glad, he rejoices and is hopeful. How can this be? As we understand the future God has for us, and what is on the other side we will experience joy. We don’t base our life or death on circumstances, but on God and His promises to us.

Our Faith in Jesus Christ gives us a living joy, and bestows dying rest.

Psalms 16:10 (NKJV)  For You will not leave my soul in Sheol, Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption. Jesus’ soul was not left in hell and His body was saved from the decay of death and did not see corruption. In three days He arose from the tomb to eternal life.

Because of Jesus’ resurrection, the righteous are confident that God will also preserve their soul from hell.  Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV) ³⁸ For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come,
³⁹ nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.  2 Cor. 5:8 ‘Absent from the body, present.”

Although our bodies will decay, they will be resurrected perfect in every way. 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 (NKJV)  Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead (bodies) will be raised incorruptible, and we shall all be changed.

  Psalms 16:11 (NKJV) You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. David’s confidence in his ultimate destiny is valid for him (and for all believers) only because Christ has traveled down that path and paved the way for all who believe in Him. David looked forward to Jesus’ resurrection; we look back to Jesus’ resurrection from the grave as the fulfillment of David’s prophecy given here. Jesus said He would show us the way to life. John 14:6 (NKJV) Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me. The righteous will travel down the path of life shown to them by Jesus Christ, that is, the path leading to life, which will terminate in God’s joyful presence and the pleasures of Heaven forevermore.                                                                                                           

Invitation: Think seriously about the path you are traveling! Are you traveling the path of life set before you by Jesus who leads to heaven and all the joys and pleasures of God?

None of us know how long we have on this earth, so we should put our trust in God before it’s too late. Have you confessed your sins to Jesus and asked Him to forgive and save you?

If you have not, then you should do that right now so you too can know the joys and pleasures of Heaven.

God of Compassion

           

The title for this message came from verse 15 which says: Psalms 86:15(NKJV)  But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth.

The psalmist says because You, O God are all these things, I want to know more about You.

Psalms 86:11 (NKJV)  Teach me Your way, O Lord; I will walk in Your truth;

Unite my heart to fear Your name.

 I have been a pastor since Oct. of 1987 and I am still learning about God’s ways. We will still be learning the day God takes us home. Learning about God is an ongoing process. Only the arrogant say they know it all and have an unteachable spirit, from them stay away. We are taught God’s ways by the Holy Spirit not for head knowledge, but for a better lifestyle. We will learn God’s way to live each day in the truth we are taught! We are commanded to:Grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen. 2 Peter 3:18  

We “grow in grace” as we understand that we are living by God’s grace alone—so everything we do is a result of that grace. We “grow in knowledge” as we search and study the Scriptures, pray, listen to sound teachers, and apply that knowledge to our daily lives. If we do these things, we will not need to fear being influenced by false teachers. Christ is Lord, divine and omnipotent; he is Savior, the one who accomplished humanity’s salvation.

We are to walk or live our lives daily in the truth of God’s word. We do not live by people’s opinions or advice, not by what we think the truth is but by the truth as found in God’s word. He created us and He knows best. To Him alone be glory now and forever more.

11:b Unite my heart to fear Your name.

Our hearts at times are divided. One minute concerned about the things of this earth and then concerned with the things of God. The psalmist knows only God can unite a person’s heart to focus totally on Him and His word. When we fear God we will live for Him alone.

Psalms 86:12 (NKJV)  I will praise You, O Lord my God, with all my heart, And I will glorify Your name forevermore.

Notice Psalmist will praise God with an undivided heart, a heart that has been united by the Lord Himself. Glorify means to worship, adore, Deify, exalt, and say good things about God’s name. We know God as Jesus Christ! I will praise, honor and glorify Your name forevermore.

Why do we worship, adore, Deify, exalt, and say good things about God’s name?

 Look at Verse 13 below!

Psalms 86:13 NKJV  For great is Your mercy toward me, And You have delivered my soul from the depths of Sheol.

God’s mercy – loyal love, kindness, compassion, sympathy toward us is great,-[boundless and unlimited.] Our souls, the spiritual part of us that never dies but lives forever have been delivered from the death and grave. 

 [2 Cor. 5:8] 'To be absent from the body, is to be present with the Lord"

Psalms 86:14 (NKJV) O God, the proud have risen against me, And a mob of violent men have sought my life, And have not set You before them.

Although God is merciful, some men are not! There are people all around us who are arrogant and violent. They would take your life for a dime. They live their lives with no thought of God, no respect for Him.  There are people who do not care for me as a Christian!

Psalms 86:15 (NKJV)  But You, O Lord, are a God full of compassion, and gracious, Longsuffering and abundant in mercy and truth. We find the Lord full of compassion. God is full of compassion. He feels sympathy for us and is moved to help us with whatever situation we find ourselves in. Are we sorrowful?

Are we contending with temptation? His grace comes to our aid. Do we err? He is patient with us. Have we sinned? He is plenteous in mercy.

Are we resting on his promise? He will fulfill it with abundant truth. 

Psalms 86:16 (NKJV)  Oh, turn to me, and have mercy on me! Give Your strength to Your servant, And save the son of Your maidservant. O God of compassion, turn to me and have mercy on me. Grant me Spiritual strength, strength in my soul, to exercise grace, perform my duty as a Christian, bear my cross, and stand up against all enemies, and hold out to the end. God grant me this gift; for I am Your servant.

Psalms 86:17 (NKJV)  Show me a sign for good, That those who hate me may see it and be ashamed, Because You, Lord, have helped me and comforted me.

Not only a sign by which I might know that my sins were pardoned, and my person accepted with You God, and that I am saved; but a sign visible to others, even to my enemies, by which they might know that God is on my side, You are compassionate toward me and You will do me only good.

Invitation: Have you taken advantage of God’s compassion? Have you confessed your sins to Jesus and asked him to forgive you? If you have, are you living your life for Him? Do others see a sign that Jesus lives in you?