Sermon Cloud

FAITH IN THE UNSEEN DESPITE EVIDENCE TO THE CONTRARY PSALM 115

OPENER: The first human being ever to enter space and orbit the earth was a Soviet Cosmonaut named Yuri Gagarin in 1961. The Soviet Union was not friendly towards religion and belief in God. There is a legend that while in orbit Yuri looked out into space and commented, "I don't see any God up here." But there is no record in the transcript of Yuri ever saying anything like this. As it turns out it was Nikita Khrushchev who said this in a speech after Yuri's return from space. In a certain context Khrushchev said, "Gagarin flew into space, but didn't see any God there". I bring this up not to debunk a myth or to vindicate this cosmonaut who (by the way) was a baptized Russian Orthodox - I bring it up because it reveals so much about the spirit of the age in which we are living right now. And what is the spirit of the age telling us? Only that which can be experienced with the five senses can be considered true. This was the basis for Nikita Khrushchev's comment. If it cannot be seen, smelled, heard, touched or tasted then it should not be believed to exist. As many skeptics of the Christian faith will say - if you cannot experience God with your 5 senses then there is no logical reason for believing God exists anymore than believing the flying spaghetti monster or pink unicorns exist. This way of looking at the world is a theory of knowledge called empiricism.

TRANSITION: “Empiricism” asserts that knowledge comes from experience rather than from revelation and I am going to challenge this idea today. Now don’t get too comfortable and think - Dave is going to really hand it to those atheistic scientists - because this type of thinking is actually very common, even for us religious, non-scientific types.

1. Unseen God vs. Man-made Idols

   1. "Seeing is believing"

• • Us modern folks often think ancient people downplayed their sensory experience.

  • If you looked inside the temples of the Romans, Philistines, Babylonians, you would find a big statue made of gold, or bronze or nice rock - like marble.

  • They wanted something tangible to worship and extol as divine.

  • Now go into the Temple of the Lord, the God of Israel - no statue, no image.

  • And so the Canaanite asks his Israelite neighbor "We hear there is no image in there...what are you worshiping? Where is your god?

  • And I’ve noticed your crops look dead - prosperity has overlooked you... are you sure you are worshiping a real god who actually exists?

  • Your enemies are oppressing you - Where is your god? What good has he done for you?

1. 2. Where is our God? "Our God is in heaven;

• • What is going on here in Ps 115 is these gods are being contrasted with the God of Israel.

  • And both sides are comparing - the nations by what is "seen" by "empirical evidences".

  • IN Psalm 73 the Psalmist says: When I saw the prosperity of the wicked...I envied them... They have no struggles, they are healthy and have easy lives - yet here I am suffering!

  • Ever felt that way? The Psalmist in 73 is judging by what he see and he comments in 13 that it almost made him abandon his faith:  Surely in vain have I kept my heart pure;

  • Judging strictly by the more negative empirical evidence I can see why anyone would ask such a question: where is your god? The empirical evidence can be rather discouraging.

  • But the Psalmist compares God's character, nature and being with that of the gods.

  • First - Israel's God is "in heaven" where he should be.

  • He is not stuck in a building somewhere – for temples cannot contain him as Solomon prayed in his dedication of the Temple: The heavens, even the highest heaven, cannot contain you. How much less this temple I have built! (1 Kings 8:27)

  • He is seated high on his Mighty throne, high and lifted up above the insults of men ruling by the power of his word in righteousness, holiness, justice, goodness and truth.

1. 3. "He does whatever pleases him."

• • Many of the gods of the nations were part of a hierarchy or pantheon.

  • Baal, the storm god for example was part of a pantheon with the Chief god "El" (the father of the other gods) at the top.

  • In addition to Baal and El, there was Mot who was the god of death and he was said to be Baal's nemesis – always trying to swallow him up.

  • The Greco-Roman gods were also characterized by betrayal, competition, jealousy.

  • See the gods of the nations were really like flawed, sinful humans.

  • Unlike these weak, flawed gods our God has no competition - he is the one and only.

  • He is sovereign over everything and perfect in all his ways.

  • Yes, I realize I am struggling financially – my job is not going so well - I have credit card debt – kids are rebelling - I wake up some mornings feeling like God is not there.

  • But I am in no place to demand that he fulfill your expectations or even mine.

  • My God is in heaven and he does whatever pleases him and we are not ashamed to own him and to trust in him.

1. 4. Since we’re comparing – how about your gods? What are they made of?

• • Gold, wood, stone – and by the way – nice work! You really are quite an artist!

  • I mean you made this thing yourself didn’t you?

  • I see you gave it eyes, nose, mouth, ears, hands, feet. Can your god see? Can he even hear your prayers? He has hands but can he protect you with them?

  • He has feet – does he walk? And his mouth can he use it to speak? No he cant even grunt!

  • The prophet Isaiah described where a man goes into the woods cuts down a tree 16 Half of the wood he burns in the fire; over it he prepares his meal, he roasts his meat and eats his fill. He also warms himself and says, “Ah! I am warm; I see the fire.” 17 From the rest he makes a god, his idol; he bows down to it and worships. He prays to it and says, “Save me; you are my god.” (Is. 44:16-17) The Psalmist concludes worshiping idols makes you stupid!

  • For those who make dumb, mute, lifeless idols become like them.

APPLICATION: Now I realize making statues of gold and wood, etc for the purpose of bowing down to them is not a problem for us today - so how then might this apply to us?

• We’ve already talked about idols of the heart in our series on Jonah but since this has been addressed recently I want to address another form of idolatry we should take care to avoid.

1. • There are some who would confess they are believers in God but reject certain attributes and truths revealed in scripture that are not to their liking.

   • In Exodus 34:14 the Lord God declares: “Do not worship any other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God.”

   • God is saying I have entered into an exclusive relationship with you like a marriage – when you get married – you shall have no other women/men before your wife/husband.

   • But a popular talk show host (we’ll just call her Oprah) declared on one of her broadcasts she doesn’t like the idea of a jealous God – its all online – you can see it for yourself.

   • This is not personal – I am only saying her god is not the God of the Bible (she would agree)

   • It is an idol she has crafted in her mind in the form of what she thinks God should be.

   • And this is just as ridiculous as crafting an image and worshiping it and trusting in it.

   • Is a god of your own making trustworthy? No! But the the Lord, the living God is – (9) trust in the Lord— he is their help and shield.

2. What Makes Trusting So Difficult

1. • If you are like me there are days you feel like God is nowhere to be found.

   • Sometimes it seems there is more empirical evidence to support the existence of bad luck than a good, loving, all-powerful God.

   • And today each one of us is facing hardship: bad economy and a rapidly rising cost of living.

   • Marriage is struggling - kids are skipping school, getting mixed up with bad company, getting pregnant - car broke down - got a $450 electric bill - where is God?

1. • The evidence seems to be telling us God is either not paying attention OR is not there.

   • But our experiences do not always lead us to the right conclusions as the story of Joseph shows us.

1. • Betrayed by his brothers, sold into Egyptian slavery, falsely accused of sexual misconduct by his master's wife and imprisoned. Where was God?

     • During Josephs' time in prison the King got ticked at his cupbearer and baker and put them in prison. They both had dreams - Joseph interpreted them.

   • The baker's dream indicated he was not going to return to his duties but would be executed.

   • The cupbearer's dream indicated he would return to his duties and this came true.

   • He asked the cupbearer: But when all goes well with you, remember me and show me kindness; mention me to Pharaoh and get me out of this prison. (Ge 40:14)

   • Two years later Joseph is still in the cell - waiting for God to do something - the cupbearer had forgotten about Joseph and apparently so had God.

   • But when Pharaoh the king had a dream and could not find anyone to interpret it - it was then the cupbearer remembered Joseph the interpreter of dreams!

   • He interprets the dream, 7 years of plenty and 7 years of famine - and Pharaoh puts Joseph in charge of the survival plan.

   • Joseph is now the #2 man in all of Egypt and was used by God to save many lives including the lives of his father and brothers.

   • Where was God? He was with Joseph and orchestrated every detail of his experience to save many lives (God's providence). But this only helps so much? What if there is no happy ending?

ILLUSTRATION: Some of you might know the name Benjamin B. Warfield. Presbyterian theologian in the 19^th and early 20^th centuries, pastored 1^st Pres of Baltimore and taught at Princeton Seminary for almost 34 years until his death in 1921. Even those who are familiar with Warfield may not know is that in 1876, while on his honeymoon in Germany, his new wife Annie was struck by lightning and permanently paralyzed. For thirty-nine years Warfield took care of her until she died in 1915. During those 39 years Warfield seldom left his home for more than two hours at a time because of her needs. Unlike the story of Joseph who suffered but experienced God's good intentions in the end, there was no happy ending of Warfield's story—only the testimony of one man's devout love, patience and faithfulness to one woman through thirty-eight difficult years. Where was God? He was right there with the Ben and Annie Warfield and orchestrated every detail of their experience.

1. • But that is what makes trusting so hard: it seems like God is a loose canon, unstable, sinister!

   • We must come to terms with the fact that we are never promised ease and comfort in this life.

   • But that is not to say there aren't any PROMISES - we do have promises and on God's promises we can stand firm.

   • It was because the Psalmist believed God's promises that he says “Trust in the Lord.”

1. • This is why the Puritan writer Thomas Wilcox said: “Judge not Christ's love by providences, but by promises.

   • This means don't judge whether or not Jesus loves you according to your experiences but rather by what he has promised to do.

III. Providences vs. Promises

CLOSER: Yes, experiences and empirical evidences can be very powerful and can cause us to doubt. When we find ourselves peering through the window of our painful experience and cannot see any God anywhere we must look to his promises and trust in him. Your senses are not bad or always wrong – but don't put your trust in them ultimately as you navigate the storms of this life. They can mislead you and they are not reliable.

Our Lord Jesus Christ faced many trials and temptations during his earthly ministry. Even as he anticipated his crucifixion - the writer of Hebrews says he endured the cross with joy (12:2). How could he endure the cross with joy? What kept him from saying “Forget this!”? I believe what kept Jesus on the path to the cross was a promise to him given in Psalm 16 – you will not abandon me to the grave, nor will you let your holy one see decay – and that promise was fulfilled when Jesus was raised from the dead – and it is ours as well! For “^It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to silence; ^ it is we who extol the Lord, both now and forevermore.” (vs. 17-18) And this is a promise to us – that we will forever be with the Lord (1 Thes. 4:17) worshiping him and enjoying him forever. This promise is mine and it is yours by faith in Jesus Christ. Rather than holding to a theory of knowledge that says “seeing is believing” let us instead adopt a view that says believing is seeing. When we believe the promises – then we see that he is with us. One day this old, broken world will be completely restored and then our faith SHALL be sight –we will see Jesus, on whose heart our names are written, with our own eyes.