God's King Will Reign

The world appears to be in chaos. And let's be honest, if you watch Fox News or MSNBC, you'd expect to see the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse if you look out the window. But there is some truth to that, isn't there? Just consider what's gone on in the last few years across the globe. The Arab Spring brought about the removal of several governments across Northern Africa with a hope for greater democratic freedom. But what this movement has left in its wake civil war in Syria, and the displacement of millions of refugees, and the death of many thousands of civilians. There's been dramatic, swift, and vicious rise of the Islamic State, and the horrendous persecution of anyone who disagrees with their narrow ideology and philosophy. There's been major problems in Europe, with the economic crisis bringing extremist parties to the fore of politics once again. Just this very month in Britain, there will be a vote on whether or not Britain should leave the European Union and the uncertainty that will spark across Europe and indeed the globe. Consider the rise of China, India, Brazil's economic powerhouses and their desire to add military might to the resumes. Or the recent conflict in Eastern Europe with an isolated but aggressive Russia and the refugees fleeing these conflicts. Consider the violent drug cartels in Mexico and Venezuela. Consider the damage national bankruptcy has done in Greece and in countries that look likely to go the same way. And I know for many of you in this room, just consider the unusual turn of events in the last few months and the upcoming six months as we consider the U.S. general election. If we're honest, and we should be honest on a Sunday morning, at times we have to wonder what on earth is going on on earth. What on earth is going on on earth? I mean, the world appears to be in an absolute mess, right? Common sense seems to have long since departed, and Mr. Brain's gone to sleep. But it's deeper than simply politics and warfare. The gospel of Christ is under attack in a different and new way in our generation. It has been under attack in every generation that's gone before, and it will be under attack in every generation that comes afterwards, to be true. It's a non-negotiable part of what it means to be a Christian. To follow Christ means to be under attack by the enemies of Christ. Again, let's think about what's happened in the last few years. A bakery has been taken to court for refusing to serve a same-sex couple. A pastor in Texas has had his sermons reviewed by the law for hate speech. Further assault has been placed upon the unborn in our country, and even more so in Britain, with a renewed effort at increased abortion laws. Same-sex marriage legislation has been passed by a legislative act from the Supreme Court. The doctrines of the world are being promoted, and the holiness of God is under constant and increasingly, it seems, aggressive attack. And Christians were ridiculed, were called holier-than-thou, homophobic, anti-women's rights, bigoted, hate-filled, and aggressive. They top it all off, ironically, We're challenged that we're the ones who are most unlike God. Because after all, God's love, isn't it? A statement which presupposes and suggests that being loving means we should get whatever we want, whenever we want, whether or not it's good for us. At times, it can and it will feel like we're under a constant attack. That we're at our very wits end, and surely the doors of the churches will be closed next week. If you feel that pressure from the news, if you feel the pressure from work colleagues or from peers or teachers at school, or even from your own family, I hope that this morning's passage will encourage you and give you comfort. As we look at Psalm 2, let's find hope in the complete and utter sovereignty of our God. No matter what you read in the papers or see on TV, the world is not out of control. In this world, where there is no certainty about tomorrow, we shall see that there is certainty in the character and the plans of a sovereign God. And indeed, beyond even that, there's purpose in our history. We're going somewhere. History is leading to something. And there is someone to whom we will all be held accountable, those who honor and serve the Lord and those who stand in direct opposition to him. So let's open our Bible and read the first two Psalms together. As you look for Psalm 1, which is on page 448 in the Pew Bible, let me encourage you that if you don't own a Bible, take that with you. That's a gift. It contains the words of God himself and how you can come into a relationship and know who he is and know what he expects of his creation. Psalm 1 is the foundation for the entire book of Psalms. We looked at that last month. But we're going to focus this morning on Psalm 2, the second Psalm. But nevertheless, let's just read Psalm 1 to remind ourselves of the context and to help us grasp fully the narrative of Psalm 2. In Psalm 1, we're told that there are two ways to live from God's perspective. Either we live in rebellion to Him or we live in relationship with Him through His Word. Psalm 1, therefore, shows us the God's eye view of history, of mankind particularly. And Psalm 2 is giving us a look of what that comparison from Psalm 1 looks like in reality when it's played out. So let's read Psalm 1, verse 1. Blessed is the man who walks not on the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season. And its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, but are like chaff, the wind drives away. Therefore, the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. Just firstly, note from Psalm 1 that the righteous man is described initially by the things he does not do. He does not take advice from the wicked. He's wise enough, therefore, to seek counsel, but wiser still to know where to seek it from. He does not stand in the way of the wicked. This means that he refuses to go with the flow, to just accept the common rule. He's prepared to avoid unhealthy relationships that would bring out his own sinful nature in an unhelpful way. He does not sit in this seat of scoffers. He's refusing to laugh at the things of the Lord. He won't compromise on holiness. And secondly, note that he gets the ability and the courage to do these things because he's rooted in the law of the Lord. He's like a tree, a large and sturdy tree, his roots going deep into scripture, finding life from the living water of scripture. In there he finds the wisdom to live by and the keys to life itself. But contrast this with the unrighteous man who has no purpose and is of no earthly use. Not only is he without roots, he's groundless, blown about by the winds of time. When temptation and trial come to him, he finds himself ill-prepared and devoid of all hope. The Lord, we're told, knows the heart of mankind, and the unrighteous man is unable to sneak into heaven. His path that he chooses for himself leads to destruction. But the righteous man, we're told, finds himself in the presence of the Lord. If you remember back to when we studied this psalm, you'll remember that we recognized the only righteous man was Jesus. He alone lived a life without sin and with perfect obedience to God. And we realized that we had to receive His righteousness because we could never work our way up to that level of righteousness ourselves. And it's only through His righteousness are we able to come before God. So with that foundation, let's come to our psalm now, Psalm 2. But in the interest of time, we'll just read it as we go through the sermon. And our passage is four different scenes. like a TV show. There's four different scenes and the structure of our sermon is going to follow these scenes very closely. So we begin here on earth with our rebellion. So let's read verses 1 to 3 of Psalm chapter 2, our rebellion. Why do the nations rage in the people's plot in vain? The kings of the earth, they set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed saying, let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us. Well, our psalm opens with a declaration that the nations and the peoples are raging and plotting against the Lord. That's not a speculative statement. There's no room for error. The nations are plotting against the Lord. And we see this in our world. think back to the examples I gave a moment ago, but even as in David's day, where the Philistines and the Egyptians and the Moabites were all plotting to destroy God by destroying God's people, we too, as God's people, are often under attack. And ultimately, any attack on God's people is an attack on God himself. The world is raging against God, and we as his people, his ambassadors here, become a prime target. And as a Christian community, Particularly globally, we experience persecution. And at this present time, although we're not often attacked the way the Israelites were with swords and armies, we are still attacked frequently. And no matter your your position, the political situations mentioned earlier, we know that the nations will always be raging against the Lord. The leaders of this world are indeed living like the unrighteous men of someone which you read a moment ago. But did you notice that little phrase in verse 2 of Psalm 2? They set themselves together. It's the same meaning as standing in the way of sinners from Psalm 1. They are actively working together to thwart God. And therefore, we can say that the characterization, the very character, the nature of the nations is that they are at war with God. They take counsel together. Again, a picture of the unrighteous man. And this council, we're told, is against the Lord. So what does that rebellion look like? Well, in a world where it looks like everyone is on different paths and there appears to be no unity, no honor between thieves, verse 2 tells us that every nation, every ruler, every king of the earth has one guiding principle that unites them. Everything they do is an act of aggression against God. When nothing else seems to make sense, that is still one uniting picture we can see. Those of you who know me, you'll know that I'm a history nerd, or buff, depending on how much you like history. Consider two great figures, they're great in the trauma they caused the world, Hitler and Stalin. Obviously, these two men could not have been more different in terms of political ideology and in terms of what they intended to achieve for the world. But both, despite these vast political differences between Marxism and Nazism, or Communism and Nazism, they tried viciously to dominate the church, to denounce the church, and ultimately, attempted to destroy the church in the countries over which they had control. That's the same no matter where you go. Ultimately, all godless leaders will end up attacking God's people. That is the end of the journey. It is the guaranteed end result. And I'm sure you've heard the maxim, there are many roads to the top of the mountain, but they all get there in the end. It's a pithy proverb. It's about, it tells a list of all religions ultimately take us to heaven and to God and to eternal bliss. But Psalm 2 would phrase it slightly differently. There are many tunnels to the bottom of the caverns of rebellion, but they all lead to judgment in the end. The ways of the world, the plottings, the plans of the world, they all lead to one end result, judgment. Godless leaders, be they political, administrative, religious, educational, institutional, legislative, whatever else, godless leaders are all on the same road, even though the paths can look very different. So you might ask, what is the picture of their rebellion? From the God's eye view, what does it look like? And verse 3 is very clear for us, isn't it? The rebellion means to be free from the restrictions that God has placed upon them. It's exactly what Keith preached a few weeks ago from Genesis 3. Adam and Eve were given one restriction in a world of sinlessness, and they chose to break that one restriction. In our culture, we can see this in many ways, can't we? The idea that freedom is our basic, fundamental right has permeated every fabric of our society. The moment our freedom has been challenged, our culture in the West goes crazy. Letters are written, marches are undertaken, phone calls made, the news is called in, and all because we feel that our freedom has been violated in some way. I think the clearest example we can look for in the last 50, 60 years is a sexual revolution. From the sexual revolution of the 60s right through to the present day, the battle cry was personal freedom. It's my body, I can do with it what I want. And the buzzword of the movement is tolerance. But it's really only tolerance for those who agree with the majority. And if you disagree, war will come. Now let's be clear, there's always been sexual immorality. Under no illusion, our generation is not worse than the generations before us. And that can come as a shock to some people, but history books are very clear on that. The difference might be that we have again, for the first time in two or three thousand years, government-sanctioned opposition to God's design for marriage and sexuality. But the world rages against the Lord, and this is not a new thing. In his kindness, he's given the gift of sexuality within the constraints of marriage. He's given us the guidelines and the restrictions, and we have chosen deliberately to disobey those and to live licentiously and actively now legislate against God's principles. And that's only one way. Just consider abortion, the dignity of human life snuffed out before it's even breathing after birth. Consider our use of wealth, the way in which we worship ourselves with our wealth. Consider our use of food in the West, Consider our abuse of the poor, and of the downtrodden, and of the disenfranchised. It's said there are only two things certain in a modern society, death and taxation. The psalmist adds a third. It is certain that society will systematically and intentionally stand against the ideals and the commands of God, because that is what rebels do. And we're under no illusion. If we're not with Christ, we're at war against him. Dear friend, if you're here, might be your first time ever in a church building. We're so glad you're here. We care for you. We're glad you're here. We want to have a conversation with you afterwards. But if you're not a believer in Christ, it's maybe the first time you're hearing this, this type of message. If you're not a believer in Christ, you need to recognize that you are actively opposed against him. You are not the Switzerland of the world. You are not neutral. There is no middle ground. And you know this. I mean, you feel it in yourself. When you're honest and you're reflecting upon your life, you recognize this. You're driven towards sinful actions, even though you know them to be wrong. You have a conscience that tells you something's wrong, and yet you refuse to listen. Now, perhaps you don't see the connection. I mean, after all, we do talk about sins a lot as Christians, right? Talk about sins a lot in plural. Don't lie, don't steal, don't gossip, don't get mad, don't kick your brother, and so on and so forth. And I can hear your thoughts go something along these lines. Well, okay, I can sort of see why lying isn't good always, but what's the big deal? It's only a lie. It's my body. I can do with it what I want. Who are you to tell me? They're only words. I haven't killed anyone. And perhaps the most poisonous of all, well, at least I'm not as bad as that person. They need this message much more than I do. And that's, I think, where Christians, we need to be rebuked a little bit. We talk too much of individual sins. You look on the web and the blog sphere and Twitter, and you see Christians condemning sins all the time. And there is a place for that. But, friends, sin is much deeper than simply telling lies or sleeping around or getting high or hurting other people. What these verses in Psalm 2 are telling us is that sin, as a concept, as a doctrine, as an ideology, is not merely actions that we believe are morally bad. Sin is a posture. Sin is a worldview. Sin is a lens through which you view the world, through which you understand reality, and it's the way in which you operate. It's your very nature. It's sinful. And that means that the nature of your heart, it's sin-ward. That means that if you're given the opportunity to choose to honor God or to choose to honor self, our human instinct, our human nature will always choose to honor self. A guy called Martin Luther, about 500 years ago, said that a man is bent in on himself. And that means that the man always looks into self. He does not look out to others and he cannot look up to God. He always looks into self. As human beings, we are sinful by nature. That means that we worship ourselves. We refuse to worship God. And isn't that the lie? The devil told Eve, you can be like God. You can be God yourself if you just break this one restriction. Because that's what breaking restrictions is. It's saying, I am God. And just think about it for a moment. Why do you lie? Why do you tell a lie? It's to protect yourself, right? And that means that we, in that moment, have decided that we are more important of protection than someone else is to know the truth about us. And if God is the God of truth, our life says we don't care about his character. Why might you steal, be it something from the store or on taxes or whatever else it might be? Well, you steal because you value your own happiness more than other people and their happiness or even justice. And if God is the God who provides, you're saying He hasn't done it right. I can do it better, so I'm going to be God. Men and women, why might you look at pornography? Because the momentary pleasure is worth more to you than the dignity of the person on the screen. And if God is the God of purity, we're saying we prefer dirt and slime and impurity to God's purity and holiness. Why might you gossip? Because your opinion is more important. My opinion is more important than the feelings, the character, or the joy of someone else. And if God is the God of integrity, we're saying we don't care about His judgment, only ours matters. We're God, not Him. And those are only four scenarios. They are symptoms of our very nature. The actions are symptoms of the disease that riddles our soul and our nature. Let me say that again, friends. Our sin actions are symptoms of our sin nature. Our sin actions are symptoms of our sin nature. Sinful acts betray a sinful heart. And that is why Christians talk so much about sins as actions. But we need to remember, Christians, to talk about sin as our very nature. It's not a surprise that people sin. We shouldn't act surprised when someone hurts us. If we do, we're not understanding and we're not proclaiming our understanding of sin correctly. But dear friend, just consider the seriousness of even an action, therefore, that in your mind seems small. From God's perspective, the God's eye view in Psalm 1 and the first three verses of Psalm 2, it's extremely instructive. Your sin actions are extremely instructive on where your heart is and who your heart worships. Like the rulers of this world, you're plotting against God. You mock his standards of holiness. And if that is you, if you are someone who's continuing to rebel against the Lord, you have to ask the next question, right? You got to ask, what is God's reaction to that? And helpfully, the second scene shows us we move from God's view of the world to the throne room of heaven. So let's read. Verses four through six, as we come to our second scene, the Lord reacts. Verse four, he who sits in the heavens laughs. The Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath and terrify them in his fury, saying, As for me, I have set my king on Zion, my holy hill. Well, frankly, God's reaction is a little bit insulting. He laughs at you. You see, the world presents freedom and breaking from the bonds that God has placed upon us as the highest act, the holiest ambition of the individual. Freedom is defined by having no constraints. And that's how we are told to define and find ourselves, right? That's what the rulers want to do in verse 3. To burst free from their bonds God has placed on us. Therefore, the ultimate freedom that mankind can experience must be, by that logic, rejecting God's ultimate law. But the Lord looks upon this rebellion and He mocks it. sounds difficult to a culture that only thinks of God as love. But God mocks it. And again, I think, if you think about it, he's looking down from the heavens. I mean, note that. He's in the heavens looking down at the petty plans of mankind, and he just, he has to laugh. It's very reminiscent of the Tower of Babel, where God had to come down to see the big building they built. It was so small in comparison. Our huge ideals of personal freedom against God, they're just so petty and pathetic. Indeed, as Luther once articulated about the crucifixion, when we thought we had destroyed God forever in that big climactic victory, Luther says, who thought that when we placed Christ on the tree, God was scorning the narrow-mindedness of the schemes of wicked men? Who thought that when we placed Christ on the tree, God was scorning the narrow-mindedness of the schemes of wicked men? Rebellion means we dethrone God. It means that we refuse to live under his kingship. And as a result, we're calling ourselves God. But the true God looks at those ambitions from his great throne room in heaven and he mocks us. It's laughable. And we should feel insecure at that. We can't be God and we definitely do not deserve to be God. But it's more than simple mockery, isn't it? Verse 5 tells us that God will come and judge with justice. And if you listen to the language, friends, God will speak in His wrath and terrify them in His fury. Just contrast that with the ambitions laid out in verses 1 to 3. All of a sudden, these schemes, these plots, these plans, they just sound childish, don't they? Rebels are those who fight against the legitimate government. In this cosmic scene, we're rebelling against the God who created all things, and He possesses all things. Therefore, He has every right to judge the rebels, and He promises that the rebels will be punished. There will be punishment for those who live in rebellion. And how will He achieve this punishment? How will He achieve this justice? Well, God's king will be established. He will establish over this rebellious planet a king who will dispense judgment from Zion. And did you notice the language used? Again, we've noticed this is the third time we'll notice this word. But in the same way the kings of the earth, these petty rulers, they set themselves against God, God will set His king over them. By the power of God's decree, His will is as good as done. And you'll notice the past tense. Although it hasn't happened yet when the psalm was written, it is still nevertheless so confident God can say, it has already been done. Even though it hasn't happened in time yet. God's reaction to our rebellion isn't an overreaction. And we need to be clear on this because unless we submit to the King, trusting in the power of the gospel to save us from our sin, we are actively at war with him. We deserve Punishment because we're guilty. We're condemned. Treachery deserves death. And no matter how ferociously we fight against God, He will win. His King will reign and we will be judged. So the burning question we must have, therefore, is who is this King? Who should we be looking out for? And that brings us to our third sin. The king's reign. So let's read verses 7 to 9. Let's read together. I will tell of my decree. This is the king speaking now. The Lord said to me, that's God said to me, you are my son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of me and I will make the nations your heritage and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like potter's vessels. So the king is God's son. We see that. This gives him an authority that no other king of the earth can claim. He's the only one who can inherit the kingdoms of the earth because God is the creator. But this king is also called the begotten son. In John's gospel, we're reminded that Jesus is the only begotten son of the father. That begottenness speaks to the sonship. of Christ. And it's through faith in Him alone that man can be saved from this punishment. This gives us a clearer understanding, doesn't it? The psalmist is not speaking of an earthly king, but of the Messiah, who would one day come and reign over all of the earth. The very verse is used by New Testament authors to point to Christ as the only begotten Son of God. And so Christian, Be comforted. Take heart. Why are you afraid? Why do you look at the world around us and the chaos that appears to be? And why do we allow ourselves to be afraid, to get so angry about elections? The worst plots and plans that any wicked generation can throw at God, he mocks and he laughs at. They're empty and they will fail. Indeed, it was a wicked, as Luther said, it was a wicked and vicious society in rebellion that laid their hands upon the very Son of God himself and in their plottings sentenced him to a traitor's death. And yet it was in that very action, that moment when the rebels believed they had their victory, that defeat was ultimately accomplished. God set his king on Zion's hill. at the crucifixion. For Christ, the Anointed Son, He wouldn't stay dead. He would be raised to glorious life. And in His resurrection, He will judge both the living and the dead. Christian, that is your King. He's a King that heaven would not hold. He's a King that sinners will not have. He's a King that death could not contain. A King that sin cannot defeat. He's a King that cannot be destroyed. He's a king that gave up his throne. A king that died a traitor's death. A king that paid the debt for sin. And a king that offers forgiveness. And he's a king that will reign in justice. And he's your king. So why are you afraid? Why are you afraid of who will be president next? Isn't God in control? Why are you afraid of militant enemies of Christ? Isn't God in control? Why are you afraid of other nations becoming more powerful? Isn't God in control? And aren't your eyes set higher than the borders of the United States? Why are you afraid of persecution? Isn't God in control? Why are you afraid to be a missionary in a dangerous place? Isn't God in control? Christian, why are you afraid of giving up control? Isn't God in control? Unbeliever, why are you afraid of giving up your sinful nature and your sinful actions? God is in control. Ultimately, believer, why are we afraid, even of death, if we believe that God is in control? The king will rule. But the king will have universal rule. You see, God has promised to make his son, this king, the owner of the nations. He's the creator, so he can give as a possession, as an inheritance, these nations to the son, who is his begotten son. And he has chosen to give them, to do so. And that includes the rebels, because the rebels are created beings as well. And so the king will reign. And he will deal with the rebels because he will be their king, whether or not they acknowledge it. Verse 8 is clear on this. Verse 8 is clear on this. The king will reign because the sovereign will of God himself will set him and will establish his kingdom. Nothing will be outside of his rule. The nations will be his heritage, and the very ends of the earth will be his possession. And so we've got to ask ourselves, what will the rule of the king look like? And it looks like that he will rule in wrath and injustice. The king will rule in justice. And justice demands that those who rebel against the king be punished. And Christian, a little note again to you. Vengeance is not yours. When we are persecuted, when we are attacked, be it verbally, be it by the media, be it by politicians, or be it by enemies who want to cause us physical harm, vengeance is not yours. There's a phrase that became very popular when I was in high school, let go and let God. For the most part, it's a bit weird, because it implies we have to do nothing and everything else will be done for us, and that's not how it works. But when it comes to vengeance and punishment, And justice. Let go and let God. It's not our job to condemn other people, it's our job to proclaim the gospel to them. God will have his vengeance. Through his king, as he has promised. Let us take comfort in that. But also let us pray and work to help others avoid that punishment. Before it's too late. Now, there is a little bit of wordplay going on, I think, in verse 9. In Hebrew, the word for a shepherd's staff and a king's royal scepter, a rod of iron, it's very similar. And akkara is a similar, different connotation, but it's a very similar word. And the justice of the king is clearly meant here. The rod of iron is clearly a weapon of justice or instrument of justice. But perhaps, just perhaps, there's the slightest glimmer that justice isn't the only option, that punishment isn't the only option. So how will it come to pass that the king shall receive the throne? How will that come to pass? I mean, there's no talk of armies. There's no talk of warfare. And God in his sovereignty could easily just force his king on the throne, couldn't he? He is the owner, the creator. He can do that after all. But there's something much larger going on here that this psalm alludes to. And this is where we find the amazing grace that we so often sing of. You see, whilst there is the promise of punishment and judgment for the rebels, there is a very clear pause. The Lord's decree is certain. His King will be established, and He will rule over this world. But His rule will be characterized by mercy as well as wrath. And this is why He presents to us the final scene. And in this fourth scene, God offers the raging nations and the warring peoples an opportunity to repent, and therefore to avoid the judgment that they deserve. He presents them with a choice, and the question of the fourth scene is simply, what is our response? Let's read the final three verses of Psalm 2 together. Now therefore, O kings, be wise. Be warned, O rulers of the earth, serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the son lest he be angry and you perish in the way for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed, blessed are those who take refuge in him. There are five commands given to the kings who are in rebellion. To choose carefully which side of the war they end up on, they finish on. And the first one is to be wise. Be wise. God says to the kings, be wise. Go back to Psalm 1. Where do you get your counsel? Where do you rest in the knowledge and the advice from? From fellow leaders that you take counsel together with or from the Word of God? Look carefully and discern the counsel that you receive. The friendship groups that you have. Be wise. Discern whether it is godly advice, that it is wise advice by God's standard, or dangerous and foolish advice. Secondly, be warned. He tells these kings to be warned. You have heard what will happen. You are in grave danger. of just punishment from the true king. And so this warning is for them. If they hear the wise advice and they hear the wise counsel of God and they refuse to take it, then the consequences are clear. So what are they to do? Well, they're to serve the Lord with fear or reverential awe, as another translation puts it. The third command in this section is to serve with fear. It's simply not enough to say you're a Christian, is it? You can't just say you're someone's husband or someone's wife. You can have someone to validate that. It's a critical thing for us to grasp that we must serve the Lord with fear because being a Christian isn't just about attending church. It's not simply about not doing sin actions. That's certainly a part of what it means to be a Christian. But those actions of going to church, reading your Bible, praying, fellowshipping together with other believers, they are They show the worldview from which a Christian operates. Just as sinful deeds stem from a sinful heart, good deeds and obedience stem from a Christ-loving heart. It isn't mindless, robotic obedience. We're given great freedom in how we live our lives. God has given us restrictions to guard against that. It's a conference through which we can know where we're going too far, but we do have great freedom. and we're to be joyful in our obedience. And that sounds very unusual to our world. To be joyful in obeying, I mean, you think of the child being told to say sorry, kicking and screaming in Walmart. They don't want to say sorry, and they'll say a sorry, but they're not joyful about it. We're to be joyful. And that joy, it's a stem from the fact that we recognize we're saved from a nature of disobedience where we can't obey. Now we get to obey freely by His power. We get to live as He intended us to be. Joy can only come in obedience when we understand that the laws of God are for our own good. There's a reason why speed limits are put in place, as annoying as speed limits are. There's a reason why God has given us parameters by which we live our lives so that we are able to be the safest that we can be and we can be the holiest that we are able to be. Rules are not there because God is a mean boss who wants to ruin our fun. They're there to give us protection to enjoy life properly and the best way. I think in our Western world we really kick against that. We hate that idea. So we must serve the Lord, and we must serve the Lord with fear. And that means we must recognize that obedience does come because punishment is the alternative. If you're in Christ, be assured, be confident you are free from the punishment because Christ bore that for you. There may still be consequences. There may still be consequences to actions that happen. But you will not bear the punishment that will come to those who refuse to submit. Fourthly, we are to rejoice with trembling. And this explains how we're to serve in joy, doesn't it? Because we know that we deserve death, and we know that we deserve separation from the Lord forever, because we are rebels, but when we repent, when we're brought into relationship with the Father through Christ, by the work of the Spirit applying Christ's work to us, we get to rejoice. We get to recognize that we actually are brought from the kingdom of darkness. brought and purchased into the kingdom of light. That's a glorious thing. That should lead your heart to rejoice. Our service is not simply obeying a tyrant. That's what our sinful nature is. We obey the tyrant of our own selves. When we're brought into relationship and into service of the great king, we obey one who loves us and one who is dispensed immeasurable grace to us. And the fifth and final command in these three verses is to kiss the sun. Now that sounds rather odd to our culture. But in the culture of royalty and of monarchy, to kiss the monarch is a very visible symbol of submission. In the ancient Near East, it was typically you kissed the king's foot. In more civilized Britain, it would be kiss the signet ring. I'm glad I'm British. But the point is to submit. If we remember earlier that to be rebel means that we proclaim ourselves as God, well, here we're told that we submit and we are actively, therefore, saying, I am not God. And I am not king of my life. And I'm not king of this world. I'm not king of anyone's world. I am a servant to the true king. And that means he gets to legislate into my life the rules and the restrictions that are good for me, and I get to obey them because I can. That's a revolutionary thought. But the warning is very clear. If the kings and the peoples refuse to submit to the king, to God's king, they will perish, just as we saw in Psalm 1. So what does submission look like? It means returning to the law of the Lord, and it means obeying His commands. But a rescued slave doesn't obey out of resentment. A forgiven rebel serves and obeys with joy because he no longer is considered condemned and guilty, but forgiven and therefore free. Submission, therefore, is obedience, but it must be characterized by thankfulness and joy. In a phrase, you may say, a forgiven rebel becomes a righteous man and obeys because he's grounded in the law of the Lord, just as we saw in Psalm 1. So when temptation comes, and it will come, temptation to return to the old man, and the temptation assaults our senses, suffocating us with its intensity. Remember that the king has conquered. He's conquered lust. He's conquered anger. He's conquered hatred. He's conquered your very sin nature. When temptations tickle our fancy to feed our ego, remember that He is King. We are not. He has conquered what we could not. When temptations come that encourage us to further temptation to ignore God's King, Remember that we serve a greater leader than our own desires. He has conquered our self-worship. Friends, do you hear that? We don't need to be so narcissistic to worship ourselves anymore. He has conquered our self-worship. He's freed us to worship appropriately. For those of you who are currently Continuing in your rebellion against the king. This warning is for you. And it shouldn't sit comfortably on your ears. Christ is the son, he is the king, and although his kingdom was established on the beams of a wooden cross, it did not end there. And his throne will be established on Mount Zion. If you remain at war with him, you will stand before his throne and from your own lips, you will plead guilty. Christ, the Son of God, eternal in nature, he became human. He became flesh. He left the throne of heaven. He emptied himself of his rights as divine king, and he humbled himself, becoming sin, taking upon himself the death we deserved, the death you deserved, so that you don't have to pay it. He's paid your ransom, and he wants you to be free. But you must accept his salvation and grace. The punishment for not doing so will be eternal separation from the goodness of God. I mean, just listen to the language. You'll be broken like a jar of clay dropped on the ground. That's pretty broken. You will depart from His presence and you will not be with Him. But you don't have to be in that place. There's an invitation to kiss the Son, to submit to His rule in your life. Turn away from your sinful nature. Turn away from your sinful actions and follow and serve Him. You're not neutral. You're either for Him or you're against Him. And that means you've got to recognize that submission is good. Rules are good. Reject the lie of the world. Reject the lie that says they're not good and trust Him. Repent from your rebellion and serve the Lord. If you do, you'll rejoice in His kindness and in His goodness. And as the final line of Psalm 2 says, you will be blessed. Blessed, happy are those who take refuge in him. So please do not leave this building without talking to someone. They will be delighted to point you to Christ in a whole new and refreshing way. And dear Christian, take heart. Although this world around us rages against the gospel, he is in control. Despite the uncertainty of political intrigue or the changing social climate, have no fear. Do not be shaken. Trust in the Lord. He is sovereign. He is in control. His son shall reign forevermore. Christ will be established when he comes to judge. And there is no power on earth or under the earth that will refuse to bow down before Christ in the day of judgment and call him Lord. And you will do so gladly. We will worship Him in purity for the first time. Yes, there may well be pain and sorrow here, but that is fleeting. As we persevere, we can take heart in the final line of this psalm also, that all who take refuge in the King will be blessed. If the world is at war with us, Christ is a refuge for us. So take heart and be confident. We don't need to fear the courts. We don't need to fear the media. We don't need to fear radicalized terrorism. We don't need to fear even who is in the White House. Our king is ruling even now, and he will come back to rule. Nothing is going to change this. It is accomplished. And so, church, take note. We're going to be under assault. We're going to be under attack. Expect it. Be prepared for it. We're destined to remain under attack until our king returns. But we are his ambassadors, and how we react to that displays how much faith and how much confidence we have in our king. How we react to persecution reflects our faith in the king. Our king has promised to be our refuge, not from temporal discomfort, as too many people preach, but from eternal separation. So let's gird ourselves with the gospel, put on the armor of faith, and go to work tomorrow, fueled by the knowledge that our King is going to return. Amen. Let's be passionate in our evangelism, seeking to show rebels that the King is indeed merciful. They don't have to be punished. Christ will bear that for them if they repent and submit. Let us be joyful servants, rejoicing in the glory of the gospel that we have been saved from the chains of slavery and are able to serve Christ. He bought us with the price of his own blood. Let's be willing to submit to the commands of Christ, to grow together as we live together and as we love one another. Church, let's withstand the assaults of a dying world, not by turning and attacking those who attack us, but by faithfully living and proclaiming the gospel wherever God has placed us. Let us arise and serve the King as his joyful ambassadors in this world until he comes again. Let's pray. Father, we thank you and we praise you that you are sovereign. We thank you for Psalm 2 and the way we're able to see that our safety is in your hands, our security is in your hands, not our own, that our hope is in your sovereign will and decree that you will send your king and we praise you and we thank you that you sent your king and you allowed him you permitted him you set him on the cross and allowed sinful wicked men to kill him but we thank you that you raised him from the dead that his kingdom has been established by his own resurrection by your power and that in his power and authority we were able to find hope we were able to come before you and to call you father We pray for wisdom for the leaders of this world. We pray particularly for a wisdom for whoever wins the November election. But we acknowledge that that is not something that ought to discourage us and destroy our hope for our world, because your king rules and your king will come back and rule again in power, in strength, in might, in mercy and grace. We praise you and we thank you. Amen.