Volume 47, No. 4
Psalm 92
Sermon prepared by Pastor Jack De Vries, Listowel, Ont.
Proposed Order of Service
The Gathering
Music Prelude
Welcome and Announcements
Call to Worship: Psalm 92:1,2
Silent Prayer followed by: PH 833
God's Greeting
Psalm of Praise: PH 187
Service of Renewal
God's Will for our Lives Exodus 20:1-17
Assurance of Pardon: Isaiah 1:18
Song of Thanksgiving: PH 32:1-3
Service of Prayer and Giving
Congregational Prayer
Offering
Offertory Prayer
Song of Dedication: PH 296:1,2,5
The Word of God
Prayer for the Word
Scripture Reading: Psalm 92
Sermon: "Ripe ol’ Age"
The Response and Dismissal
Song of Response: PH 8g:1,3,5,8
Parting Blessing
Closing Song: PH 639
Musical Postlude
Sermon
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ. Did
you know that Mickey Mouse is enjoying his retirement years? You
wouldn't know it, would you? He doesn't seem a day older than
when
he first appeared on the scene. Yet today Mickey Mouse is over
70 years old. With the decline in the birth rate and with people
living
longer, more and more people in our North American society are
senior citizens. In Canada there are 3.8 million people over
age 65. This
is 12.5% of the total population. By the year 2040, 1 out of every
4 persons in Canada will be over 65. The statistics in the United
States are even a bit higher. 13.6% of the total population has
reached the retirement age of 65. Already today, in some cities
there are more senior citizens than children. Like the rest of
North
America, we too are seeing an increase in the number of senior
citizens in our own congregations. The percentage of elderly
people is increasing.
How should we view an aging
population? What thoughts do you have about the older generation?
Some of you are senior citizens. How do you see yourself? Is growing
old a blessing or a curse? Once a person reaches a ripe ol' age — be it 65 or 75 or 85, — what is
the best way for us to deal with them? Is it to put them in old
age homes or
nursing homes? Is growing old a problem to struggle with or is
it a blessing to celebrate? What do you think?
Psalm 92, our text for
today, has something to say about growing old. Here there is a
message for you who are like Mickey Mouse — well into your retirement
years. But there is also a message for the rest of this congregation
— something all of us need to remember as we think about an
aging population - both for ourselves and for the elderly among
us. The central concern in Psalm 92 is the contrast between the
destiny of the wicked and the destiny of the righteous. Think for
a moment about wicked people — people who do not believe
in God, perhaps they worship idols of their own making, they are
God-haters,
they never worship God or gather for worship, they in fact revel
in sin: they cheat, steal, murder, gamble, lie, get drunk, and
make
it tough for believers.
Now you would think that
God would deal harshly with such wicked people. Above all, God
would not bless them, right? Well, what is your experience in life?
Look
around in the world you live in. Is the psalmist not correct? Look
at v. 7: “The wicked spring up like grass and all evildoers
flourish”... Just think how quickly grass grows in early spring
after all the winter moisture and warm spring sunshine. "The
wicked are like that," says the Psalmist. Then and now, the
wicked seem to be well off; they seem to prosper; they flourish
like grass, fresh and green after rain.
But that is not their destiny!
The Psalmist is quick to point out that the wicked are, “senseless,
fools who do not understand” (v. 6). They do not recognize
God nor do they foresee the destiny God has appointed for them.
Their prosperity has no future! The destiny of the wicked is death.
One day their life will come to an end. “They will be forever
destroyed” (v. 7). These evildoers — they are enemies
of God and they will perish. Now they flourish like the grass. God
in his love and grace blesses them just as he pours out the blessings
of life upon all people. God is gracious also to the wicked. “The
Lord is not... willing that any should perish, but that all should
come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9) If evildoers do not repent,
they will perish. That is the destiny of the wicked.
Why? Because God is sovereign!
That is the reason given in verse 8. This verse is at the heart,
the very centre of the entire Psalm: “But you, O LORD, are
exalted forever.” The LORD is the Most High God (v. 1). God
will reign supreme forever. And one day God will prove to the wicked
that they cannot simply go through life doing whatever they please.
One day they will have to face the Sovereign Most High God and they
will have to give an account for how they lived out their life.
On that day, the wicked will not flourish — but they will
perish — forever destroyed. God's sovereignty is seen in
the destiny of the wicked!
God's sovereignty is not
only seen in the destiny of the wicked but also in the destiny of
the righteous. While the wicked flourish like the grass that is
here one day and gone tomorrow, the righteous will flourish like
a palm tree and grow like a cedar tree (v. 12).
The palm-tree is a tall,
slender tree with a plume-like leaves at the top. Its deep tap roots
seek out water in the ground. The palm tree produces fruit that
is eaten as food, as much as 270 kilos of fruit a year. A drink
can be made from its sap. The leaves often were used for roofs and
woven together into mats and baskets. The palm tree is a symbol
of fruitfulness.
The cedar tree is a deep-rooted
coniferous tree that lives to a great age and grows very high and
large. The wood of a cedar tree is durable and resistant to insects.
To this day cedar trees are the preferred lumber for musical instruments,
chests, panels, furniture and outdoor buildings. The cedar tree
is a symbol of something that endures.
The righteous flourish
and grow like palm and cedar trees because they still bear fruit
in old age. They will stay fresh and green. The righteous will flourish
like a palm tree — full of sap, bearing fruit. The righteous
will grow like a cedar tree, remaining fresh and green still in
old age. This is the destiny of the righteous. In contrast to the
destiny of the wicked, the righteous will have an enduring fruitful
life. God's sovereignty gives the assurance that life belongs to
the righteous, and not to the wicked.
Yes, the destiny of the
righteous is an enduring, fruitful life. The source of this life
is found in God. The reason the righteous are fruitful in old age,
remaining fresh and green, is because they are planted in the house
of the LORD (v.13). Like palm trees and cedar trees they have long
roots that go deep into the source of living water. The righteous
flourish because they are rooted in a living communion with God.
They are connected to the ever abundant source of life that is found
in God.
That's the picture of the
righteous — planted in the house of God. Worship is a priority.
No wonder the psalmist begins by saying, “It is good to praise
the LORD and make music to your name, 0 Most High, to proclaim your
love in the morning and your faithfulness at night” (v. 1-2).
The psalmist knows that the source of life is found in communion
with God. That is why it is good to praise the Lord. It is through
worship that the righteous communes with God.
You probably noticed that
this psalm is a song for the Sabbath day. It was on the Sabbath
day, as the Psalmist gathered in public worship, that his faith
was renewed and his life was restored as his roots went deep into
communion with God. Through public worship, personal prayers and
meditation on God's Word, the righteous remain rooted to the source
of life - to God. And it is evident — for the righteous flourish
like palm and cedar trees; they still bear fruit in old age.
What a wonderful portrait
of a righteous person growing old! Reaching retirement age does
not mean an end to a fruitful life. This is the destiny of the righteous:
they will have an enduring fruitful life. They will still bear fruit
in old age, they will stay fresh and green.
This description of growing
old might seem far too glamorous for some of you. You think of old
age and you think the time when your knees buckle and your belt
won't. Old age is when you turn out the lights for economic rather
than romantic reasons. Old age is when you have too much room in
the house and not enough in the medicine cabinet. Someone once said
that if you want to know what it feels like to be old, smear dirt
on your glasses, stuff cotton in your ears, put on heavy shoes that
are too big and wear gloves, and then try to spend the day in a
normal way.
Yes, for many righteous
elderly saints, growing old is marked with many challenges. For
those who suffer with Alzheimer disease or senility, crippling arthritis
or osteoporosis, loss of spouse and the resulting loneliness — yes,
growing old has its many challenges and obstacles. Just visit any
nursing home and you know that for many righteous men and women
old age does not appear to be something to celebrate.
But that is not the point
of Psalm 92. This psalm is not about a categorical promise that
every believer can lay claim to. Not everybody reaches a ripe o1'
age! Some even die young. But the message of Psalm 92 is this: we
see evidence cf the sovereignty of God in the enduring fruitful
life of the righteous.
This is so true! When you
grow older, and some of you have already reached retirement, as
you remain planted in the house of the Lord, deeply rooted in communion
with God, you will still bear fruit in old age. In the gospel of
John (ch.15), Jesus said, “lf a person remains in me and I
in him, he will bear much fruit.” Twice in this gospel Jesus
referred to himself as the source of living water. When you have
a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, and you are deeply rooted
in Him, if you remain in Jesus as a branch remains in a vine —
then you will bear fruit — fruit that will last (15:16).
Jesus Christ, the eternal Son of God came into this world so that
you
may have life, and have it to the full (10:10).
The righteous believer
in Psalm 92 proclaims, “The LORD is upright; he is my Rock.”
Jesus is the Rock of Ages, cleft for you! He shed his blood for
you. Water and blood poured out from his side. As you hide yourself
in Jesus — as you trust Him, as you worship Him, as you follow
Him — you will bear fruit — fruit even in old age.
Racehorses do not race
for many years. After that they might be used for breeding purposes.
But once a horse gets beyond a certain age they are put out to pasture.
But that is not the picture we have in Psalm 92 of the elderly among
us. They are not put out to pasture, no matter how old they are.
They are the workhorses of the kingdom.
The elderly among us must
not be viewed as the squeaky wheel that gets the grease —
they ought to viewed as the gears that should get things going.
The elderly among us must not be viewed as a bunch of dead wood
— just taking up space in the church; they are fresh and green,
full of sap, still bearing fruit in old age. It has often been said
by the elderly when they are asked to be involved in the church:
“We have to make room for the younger members.” But
making room for the youth does not mean checking out of the room
yourself.
That's the picture of the
elderly righteous person given to us in Psalm 92. They have reached
a ripe o1' age — a ripe o1' age: they still bear fruit in
old age. A man who was celebrating his 100th birthday was told by
a friend, “Well, I congratulate you, but I'm afraid you'll
not be here to celebrate a second hundred.” To this the man
replied, “I'm not so sure of that. The fact is, I am feeling
very much stronger to begin this second hundred than I was when
I began the first.”
That's the attitude Christians
need as they face their senior years. Just think of it: what a storehouse
of wisdom and spiritual power is evident in God's senior saints!
That's why you elderly shouldn't let your advancing age and declining
physical vigour stop you from doing things for the Lord. Instead,
older Christians should continue to be fruitful and productive.
Abraham left his country
to begin a new life in a land God would show him when he was 75
years old. Moses led the people of Israel out of Egypt when he was
80 years old. But we don't even have to look that far back to find
the righteous still bearing fruit in old age.
Just look around in this
congregation — there are a number of old saints, men and women,
mothers, fathers, grandparents — they might be considered
retired and receiving a pension, but they have not retired from
the serving God and His kingdom. They are busy in the church and
in the community. They have a wealth of wisdom that they have to
offer. And they are ready to share it with those who are eager
to
listen.
When we as a congregation
see you seniors among us faithfully serving God and his church,
deeply rooted in a personal relationship with Jesus, eager to worship,
ready to serve — we see evidence that the LORD God is exalted
forever, that He is the sovereign Lord, the King of kings and the
Lord of lords.
To those of you here this
morning who have not yet reached retirement age — don't miss
out on a blessing God would want you to share in. The seniors among
us really care about you. There is nothing that they are more concerned
about than you coming into a living relationship with Jesus Christ,
that you too could say with them, The LORD is my Rock, that you
too would join them in proclaiming God's love in the morning and
his faithfulness at night! Young people, if you really want to be
blessed, then visit the elderly in this church. Talk to them and
listen to them. They have a wealth of knowledge and experience that
is rooted in a deep relationship with Jesus Christ. They might have
reached a ripe ol' age, but they have lots of fruit they want to
share with you — not apples and oranges — perhaps that
too — but the fruit that comes from a life rooted in Jesus.
Mickey Mouse is over 70
years old and he is busy as ever at Disney world. The righteous
might be old and grey, but they still bear fruit in old age, they
stay fresh and green! This is reason enough to sing of God's love
and faithfulness.
Amen!
