Transcript

Podcast Introduction

oday is Psalms Wednesday, and we’ll read Psalms 15-17. And I will have a brief introduction to each Psalm before reading it.  I’m calling today’s episode “Who Do You Honor?”

Comments on Psalms 15

David begins this Psalm with two questions: Lord, who may enter your Temple?

Who may worship on Zion, your sacred hill?

These questions show the desire of David’s heart. He longed to be in God’s presence. The Temple (or actually in the original language the word “Temple” in our translation today, is tent, or Tabernacle) represented the place of God’s presence. 

He answers his own questions, and it is important for us to remember that he wrote from the perspective of the Old Testament, or Old Covenant. Obedience, or the lack thereof, determined the blessings or curses that a person could expect. The person who was not in obedience to God could not expect the blessing of God’s presence.

The New Testament gives us a different basis for receiving God’s blessing and being able to be in His presence, doesn’t it? Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, faith in Him is the ground on which we receive blessings and come into relationship with God. 

It is very important to understand, however, that obedience or rebellion is an indicator of whether we actually do have a relationship with God. Or put another way, if we have a genuine faith. 1 John 1:6 tells us, “If we say, ‘We have fellowship with Him,’ yet we walk in darkness, we are lying and are not practicing the truth.  7But if we walk in the light as He Himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” In other words, if we say we believe, but our life doesn’t reflect a changed heart, we are liars. 

In David’s list of attributes the righteous person should have (which is only a representative list, not an exhaustive one), he says, “They despise those whom God rejects…”. That sounds harsh to our ears today, doesn’t it? From childhood, many of us are taught not to “hate” anyone. But listen to Proverbs 8:13: To honor the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil ways and false words. 

The person who does evil habitually is in fact rejected by God. The righteous man must also reject such a person. Listen carefully, though. I am not saying that we are to assume that this person is beyond God’s ability to forgive if they come to Christ. I like the way Matthew Poole, the 17th century commentator put it:

“He doth not admire his person, nor envy his condition, nor court him with flatteries, nor value his company and conversation, nor approve of or comply with his courses; but he thinks meanly of him; he judgeth him a most miserable man, and a great object of pity; he abhors his wicked practices, and labours to make such ways contemptible and hateful to all men as far as it lies in his power.”

So what are we to do with this person? We should pray for them.

Verse 4: They despise those whom God rejects, but honor those who obey the Lord. I love Spurgeon’s comment on the second half of the verse: “We must be as honest in paying respect as in paying our bills. Honour to whom honour is due. To all good men we owe a debt of honour, and we have no right to hand over what is their due to vile persons who happen to be in high places.”

In our culture today, it is the person in high places who receive honor, regardless of their character. And the most honorable among us is often overlooked. Let us not fall into this practice, beloved.

Today’s Bible Translation

Bible translation used in today’s episode: Ch. 15 GNT, Ch. 16 ERV, Ch. 17 NASB

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Transcript

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Psalms 15-17: Who Do You Honor? (LSFAB S13E039)

[TEASER – 0:00]
If we say we have a relationship with him yet we walk in darkness, we’re lying.

[INTRO S13E039 – 0:12]
This is a Wednesday edition of the Lifespring Family Audio Bible, coming to you from Riverside, California, and podcasting since 2004, I’m your OG Godcaster, Steve Webb. This is the daily podcast where we’ll read the entire Bible in a year. I’m so glad to be with you today. How are you? Since it’s Wednesday, we’ll read from Psalms. We’ll read chapters 15 through 17. And before reading each chapter, I’ll give you a brief introduction. I’m calling today’s episode, “Who Do You Honor?”

Just a reminder that this coming Sunday will be the 18th anniversary of the first Lifespring podcast.

Before we read, let’s pray.

[OPENING PRAYER – 0:47]
Our Heavenly Father, bless our time of study today. I pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.

Okay, let’s begin.

INTRO TO PSALM 15 – 0:56]
The title of Psalm 15 is “A Psalm of David”. This is a psalm in which David is thinking about the type of person who is accepted into God’s presence.

[PSALM 15 (GNT) – 1:06]
Psalm 15.

(1) Lord, who may enter your Temple?
Who may worship on Zion, your sacred hill?

(2) Those who obey God in everything
and always do what is right,
whose words are true and sincere,
(3) and who do not slander others.
They do no wrong to their friends
nor spread rumors about their neighbors.
(4) They despise those whom God rejects,
but honor those who obey the Lord.
They always do what they promise,
no matter how much it may cost.
(5) They make loans without charging interest
and cannot be bribed to testify against the innocent.

Whoever does these things will always be secure.

[INTRO TO PSALM 16 – 1:45]
Psalm 16 is entitled “A miktam of David”. Some believe that “miktam” means “golden”, while others believe it means “to cover”. The six psalms that have this title were written when the writer was in some sort of danger. So some scholars believe that the covering refers to the sort of covering the lips as in keeping a secret, or even that this should be a silent psalm. In the psalm, David writes how he’s discovered how to have peace and even joy during difficult times.

[PSALM 16 (ERV) – 2:17]
Psalm 16

(1) Protect me, God, because I depend on you.
(2) Some of you have said to the Lord,
“You are my Lord.
Every good thing I have comes from you.”
(3) But you have also said about the gods of this land,
“They are my powerful gods.
They are the ones who make me happy.”

(4) But those who worship other gods will have many troubles.
I will not share in the gifts of blood they offer to their idols.
I will not even say their names.
(5) Lord, you give me all that I need.
You support me.
You give me my share.
(6) My share is wonderful.
My inheritance is very beautiful.
(7) I praise the Lord because he taught me well.
Even at night he put his instructions deep inside my mind.

(8) I always remember that the Lord is with me.
He is here, close by my side,
so nothing can defeat me.
(9) So my heart and soul will be very happy.
Even my body will live in safety,
(10) because you will not leave me in the place of death.
You will not let your faithful one rot in the grave.
(11) You will teach me the right way to live.
Just being with you will bring complete happiness.
Being at your right side will make me happy forever.

[INTRO TO PSALM 17 – 3:26]
Psalm 17 is entitled “A Prayer of David”. David writes about his trust in God and not himself and his hope of heaven.

[PSALM 17 (NASB) – 3:35]
Psalms 17

(1) Hear a just cause, O Lord, give heed to my cry;
Give ear to my prayer, which is not from deceitful lips.
(2) Let my judgment come forth from Your presence;
Let Your eyes look with equity.
(3) You have tried my heart;
You have visited me by night;
You have tested me and You find nothing;
I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.
(4) As for the deeds of men, by the word of Your lips
I have kept from the paths of the violent.
(5) My steps have held fast to Your paths.
My feet have not slipped.
(6) I have called upon You, for You will answer me, O God;
Incline Your ear to me, hear my speech.
(7) Wondrously show Your lovingkindness,
O Savior of those who take refuge at Your right hand
From those who rise up against them.
(8) Keep me as the apple of the eye;
Hide me in the shadow of Your wings
(9) From the wicked who despoil me,
My deadly enemies who surround me.
(10) They have closed their unfeeling heart,
With their mouth they speak proudly.
(11) They have now surrounded us in our steps;
They set their eyes to cast us down to the ground.
(12) He is like a lion that is eager to tear,
And as a young lion lurking in hiding places.
(13) Arise, O Lord, confront him, bring him low;
Deliver my soul from the wicked with Your sword,
(14) From men with Your hand, O Lord,
From men of the world, whose portion is in this life,
And whose belly You fill with Your treasure;
They are satisfied with children,
And leave their abundance to their babes.
(15) As for me, I shall behold Your face in righteousness;
I will be satisfied with Your likeness when I awake.

[COMMENTARY – 5:17]
Beloved, let’s talk about Psalm 15. David begins this psalm with two questions: Lord, who may enter your temple? And who may worship on Zion, your sacred hill?

These two questions show the desire of David’s heart, He longed to be in God’s presence. The temple represented the place of God’s presence. And actually, in the original language, the word translated as “temple” in our translation today is actually a “tent” or “tabernacle”.

Well, David answers his own questions. And it’s important for us to remember that he wrote from the perspective of the Old Testament or Old Covenant. Obedience, or lack thereof, determined the blessings or cursings that a person could expect under the old covenant. The person who was not in obedience to God could not expect the blessing of God’s presence.

The New Testament gives us a different basis for receiving God’s blessing and being able to be in his presence, doesn’t it? Because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, faith in him is the ground on which we receive blessings and come into relationship with God.

It’s very important to understand, however, that obedience or rebellion is an indicator of whether we actually do have a relationship with God. Or put another way, if we say we have a relationship with him, yet we walk in darkness, we’re lying, and are not practicing the truth. But if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his son, cleanses us from all sin. So in other words, if we say we believe, but our life doesn’t reflect a changed heart, we’re liars.

In David’s list of attributes that the righteous person should have (which is only a representative list, not an exhaustive one), he says, “They despise those whom God rejects…” Now, that does sound harsh to our ears today, doesn’t it? From childhood, many of us are taught not to “hate” anyone. But listen to Proverbs 8:13. Quote, To honor the Lord is to hate evil; I hate pride and arrogance, evil ways and false words, unquote.

So you see, the person who does evil habitually is, in fact, rejected by God. The righteous man must also reject a person like that. Listen carefully, though, I’m not saying that we’re to assume that this person is beyond God’s ability to forgive if they come to Christ. I like the way Matthew Poole, the 17th-century commentator put it. He said:

Quote, He doth not admire his person, nor envy his condition, nor court him with flatteries, nor value his company and conversation, nor approve of or comply with his courses; but he thinks meanly of him; he judgeth him a most miserable man, and a great object of pity; he abhors his wicked practices, and labours to make such ways contemptible and hateful to all men as far as it lies in his power, unquote.

So then, what are we to do with this person? Well, we should pray for them.

Verse four of Psalm 15 says, “They despise those whom God rejects, but honor those who obey the Lord.” I love Spurgeon’s comment on the second half of the verse. He said, quote, We must be as honest in paying respect as in paying our bills. Honour to whom honour is due. To all good men we owe a debt of honour, and we have no right to hand over what is their due to vile persons who happen to be in high places, unquote.

In our culture today, it’s more often the case that the person in high places is the one who receives honor regardless of their character, and the most honorable among us is often overlooked. Beloved, let us not fall into this practice.

[LIFESPRING FAMILY HOTLINE – 09:08]
So what do you think? Call the Lifespring Family Hotline at 951-732-8511. Let me know. If you’re outside the US put a +1 at the beginning of that number. You can also comment at comment.lifespringmedia.com, or email me at st***@*************ia.com.

Tomorrow is Poetry Thursday. We’ll read Job 11 and 12. Another of Job’s supposed friends speaks and Job responds to him. And of course, you just know that this new voice has nothing but good advice for Job, right? Listen to tomorrow’s show to find out.

Boost.

[LIFESRING PODCAST 18TH-ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL – 9:47]
The 18th anniversary of the first Lifespring podcast is this coming Sunday, November 13, 2022. When did you listen to your first podcast? Do you remember what show it was? For me, it was Adam Curry’s Daily Source Code in about September of 2004. If you’d like to help me celebrate this 18th anniversary on Sunday’s show, I’ll thank everyone who makes a donation with the number 18 in the amount as in $18.18, or $100.18, or $1,800, whatever you want to do. And I’ll thank anyone who sends in boostagrams with 18 in the number, maybe 181818 sats. Just be creative. If you find that the Lifespring Family Audio Bible has added to your life in some way, and if you think bringing the reading of the Bible to people around the globe is important, help me celebrate the 18th anniversary at lifespringmedia.com/support, or using a modern podcast app.

[LISTENER FEEDBACK – 10:49]
I received a note this morning from Phil Colbourn from Australia with “Here’s How I Found You” in the subject line. Well, of course, I opened that one as soon as I saw it. He said, “‘No Agenda’. I think it was something Adam said. I had been looking for a daily Bible reading and yours was better than the ones I was using, except I wasn’t looking for commentary. However, I soon realized that I enjoyed your format, as it provides context, offers some explanations of what was written, and offers answers to common questions.”

Well, Phil, thanks for the note. Yeah, there are lots of No Agenda producers in the Lifespring family. And that’s something I’m really thankful for. Thanks for letting me know, Phil, and thank you for your kind words, and God bless you.

Beloved, how did you find the show? I’d love to know, shoot me a quick email to let me know and in the subject line do put, “Here’s How I Found You”. Also, this is for all the Lifespring family members, please tell somebody about the show today. A friend’s recommendation is how most people find new podcasts to listen to. Yeah. So if you enjoy the show, tell a friend.

[PRAISE REPORTS AND PRAYER REQUESTS – 11:53]
Prayer requests. So there is a praise and continued prayer request for Kathi today. The praise is that she was well enough to go to the City of Hope for further testing on Monday on the cancer that is on her head. I talked to Del on Monday night after they got home from City of Hope. And he told me that the good news is that some of the lesions on her head had shrunk and at least one is nearly gone. Well, praise the Lord, for that, right?

Another praise is that even though some of the cancer is on some areas of the bone in her head (and I’ll explain why I said it that way in a moment) scans appear to show that it has not penetrated the bone and gone into the brain. So praise the Lord for that.

Now, the reason I’m not using the word cranium when I say the bone in her head is that some of the cancerous lesions are not on her scalp. There was one on Kathi’s lip, another one on her cheek, et cetera. So obviously, the lip and the cheek are on the head, but the bones underlying the lips and the cheeks are not the cranial bone. So anyway, the radiology doctor has said that since the lesions seem to be responding to the hormone treatment they’re giving Kathi for the cancer. He doesn’t suggest radiation for these things, but at least not yet. He said that doing radiation on the head has a high chance of destroying healthy brain tissue, which obviously is not a good thing.

Now about the hormone treatment. I think I told you last time that they were going to stop giving Kathi the new chemo drug because it was proving to be just too toxic for her. I don’t know anything about this hormone therapy, but it does look like it’s working for now. We’ll know more in about two weeks when she’ll go back for another antigen test to see how the cancer numbers are trending. So for the next two weeks, Kathi will have a time of rest, which I think is much needed. So let’s pray.

Our heavenly Father, Lord, we thank you for your goodness and for your mercy. We thank you for your love and for your faithfulness. You are God and you never change. You’re the same yesterday, today, and forever. And Lord that gives us peace. Thank you.

And now Lord, we thank you for the good news about Kathi. Thank you for shrinking the lesions on her head and I ask that you continue that process. In Jesus’ name, Lord, I’m asking for a complete healing. She has been dealing with this Lord for over 30 years and I ask that you heal her, restore her strength, restore her body, please, and help Del as he cares for her. Give him wisdom and patience and strength and bless him for his selfless love. Bless them both and fill their home with your Holy Spirit.

I thank you Lord for the Lifespring family. I ask that you bless them. Draw each of us closer to you as we read your word together each day. Where there are needs Lord, I ask that you meet them according to your perfect will. I pray this in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Well, Beloved, we do this every Wednesday and Sunday. To add your praise or prayer request on Sunday’s upcoming show go to prayer.lifespringmedia.com

[OUTRO S13E039 – 15:03]
Sister Kirsty does the newsletter, Brother Sean of San Pedro does the chapters, and Sister Denise corrects the transcripts. I’m so thankful for you guys. Thank you and God bless you. You can comment on today’s show by calling the Lifespring Family Hotline at 951-732-8511. Put a +1 at the beginning of that if you’re outside the US or you can go to comment.lifespringmedia.com and type something there or you can email me at st***@*************ia.com. I do want to hear from you. Remember the 18th-anniversary show’s coming up this coming Sunday. If you’d like to support the show, go to lifespringmedia.com/support. Or use a modern podcast app to send boostagrams.

Until tomorrow, may God bless you richly. Thank you for inviting me to be a part of your day. My name is Steve Webb. Bye.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai

Transcript corrected by Denise