Psalm 16

Read Psalm 16

“Preserve me, O God, for in You I take refuge.” David called out to the Lord for help. He found in God his only hope for goodness. This was David's faith—that the Lord alone could provide what he needed for salvation.

David was not the only one in his generation that had this faith in God. He wrote of those that are called “the saints” in this psalm. These holy and excellent people were David's delight. David's trust in the Lord was expressed well in his sincere affiliation with others who were also committed to God as their only hope in life and death.

Others even in Israel had a very different value system. They chased after pagan gods. They bound themselves to demons in the false sacraments of spirits that could never bring them solid joys. They were planting seeds of idolatry and would only harvest bitter sorrows.

David had chosen a better way of life. Even if tragedies consumed him in this life, he was confident that the God of Israel would be his pleasant inheritance. With the settled assurance of lasting treasures, he worshiped the God of his salvation. He knew that he was safe in the Lord.

Even if his body rested in the grave, he knew that the final story of his life would not be the normal decay of his body that is the expectation of every human being. Nonetheless, after David died and was buried, his body did see corruption in the grave. We know now that David's words had another meaning. They would find their most complete fulfillment in the resurrection of Jesus after a very brief period in a borrowed tomb.

Jesus rose again to everlasting life after He died for our sins. He became the “path” of life that David wrote about at the end of Psalm 16. Because Jesus is now at the right hand of the Father, all who are His children have a secure promise of “pleasures forevermore.”

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

O God, You are our strong hope. We thank You for Your church. We are together in Christ. We will not follow other gods. You are our portion. Our inheritance is beautiful. You are with us and our hearts are glad. You have heard the prayer of Your Holy Son. We have eternal pleasures at Your right hand forevermore.

Psalm 15

Read Psalm 15

“O LORD, who shall sojourn in Your tent?” Is it easy for mortals to dwell with the everlasting God? David gave some specific requirements in Psalm 15. The person who would dwell in the Lord's house would have to meet God's high standards of thinking, speaking, and living.

The Lord demanded that those who would live in communion with Him would have merciful and respectful relationships with one another. God also required that all who would love Him would make a distinction between ungodly people committed to evil abuse and worshipers of the Lord who were dedicated to growth in holiness. If anyone wanted to be with God, he needed to stay true to the commitments he made to others and not be ruled by the love of money.

Psalm 15 ends with these words, “He who does these things shall never be moved.” Jesus of Nazareth was a perfect example of what true stability is. He kept His Word to the Father despite the cost. He has become the Cornerstone of His church.

Our Savior's obedience for us was entirely solid. Because of what He has accomplished, all those who turn to Him in truth can dwell with God forever.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord God, may we live with You forever in Jesus? He was without sin and has called us friends. He shall never be moved, and so we have peace.

Psalm 14

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“The fool says in his heart, 'There is no God.'” God has always made a distinction between the wise and the foolish. In Psalm 14 David wrote about the incorrect thinking of the fool—the one who thought and lived as if there were no God.

In this song recorded for Israel to sing, David wrote not only about foolish thinking, but also about deeds that came from the confident assertion of God's non-existence. Those who lived by that wrong assumption were not only morally corrupt, but they also did abominable deeds with the confidence that there was no one in the heavens that they would need to answer to one day.

David longed for Israel to be better than this. He wanted them to know that the Lord was not only real, but that He was also very aware and engaged in the lives of people all over the world. The Lord was looking down from heaven at all the children of mankind. He looked for wisdom and an honest longing for God. What did He find? No one was doing good—not even one!

Yet God had chosen His people. The Lord noted that the rest of mankind would be happy to consume and destroy His elect as if they were just bread to satisfy their own hunger.

One day God would rescue those who worshiped Him. He would make a distinction in favor of the ones who called out to Him for help and against those who continued to ignore Him in stubborn rebellion. The Lord was committed to this plan of saving people who looked to Him as their refuge.

Throughout the centuries the humble have found the Lord's greatest salvation in the death and resurrection of the Messiah for them. Yet even after the good news of Jesus has been preached throughout the world, fools continue to deny the existence of the only God who could give them the help that every human being desperately requires.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Father, Your holy Son knows You and understands us. There is no corruption or hypocrisy in Him. He called upon Your Name and was heard. Therefore You are with the generation who takes refuge in Christ. Bring great salvation out of Zion for Your Israel throughout the world.

Remembering Carol Coskery - Two Messages

Carol's Help

(Psalm 121, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 8, 2014, Amesbury, Massachusetts)

[121:1] I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?
[2] My help comes from the LORD,
who made heaven and earth.

There is something majestic about the mountains. People have looked to them for help, but we all need help that cannot come from the tallest peaks. We need help from heaven and from heaven's God—the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

[3] He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.
[4] Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

We need a God who has the knowledge to understand all our needs and the power to save us. Then we need something more. He must have the love to do whatever is necessary to bring us to our eternal home. Carol Coskery found such a God and Savior in Jesus Christ. When Carol could not walk or speak as she once did, when she could not keep herself alive, her Lord kept her, and brought her safely home.

[5] The LORD is your keeper;
the LORD is your shade on your right hand.
[6] The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

Jesus was Carol's keeper—not as if she were just a pet. Carol was a child of God through faith in Jesus. There was a time in her life when worship was something she allowed her children to attend, but which was not something she desired for herself. Eventually she changed her mind about that. She saw that the Lord's love for her was personal and deep. She believed.

[7] The LORD will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.

When Carol found the true Jesus of the Bible, the cross, and the resurrection, she found a Savior who could keep her from all evil and grant to her eternal life. She never turned away from Him.

[8] The LORD will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.

But more than that, she knew that He had never turned away from her. On her final day, Sunday, August 3, 2014, after ninety years, Jesus came for her, to take her soul to His home in heaven. His care for her was not only for her going out and coming in on planet earth between 1924 and 2014. He did care for throughout her days here below, but He had something more for her.

Carol gave herself in faith to the One who gave Himself in life and death for her. She was able to approach her weakness and death with this confidence—that the Lord Jesus, would keep her forevermore. She found help from the God who is far above even the most glorious mountains.

True Christian Endurance – In Memory of Carol Coskery

(Hebrews 10:32-39, Preaching: Pastor Stephen Magee, August 10, 2014)

[32] But recall the former days when, after you were enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, [33] sometimes being publicly exposed to reproach and affliction, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. [34] For you had compassion on those in prison, and you joyfully accepted the plundering of your property, since you knew that you yourselves had a better possession and an abiding one.

Carol Coskery was a daughter, sister, wife, and a mother. She was also a teacher and a friend. She loved her garden, her crafts, her home, and her nation. Above all, Carol Coskery was a Christian. She cared about the Word of God, the suffering people within her church and beyond, and the glory and honor of her Lord.

Though she did not face exactly the same intense opposition that is described in the opening verses of our passage, she did face suffering, and she endured as a woman of faith. Through injury, illness, and the hard work of recovery, Carol remained faithful to the Lord. She knew what it was to be enlightened by the Holy Spirit. She cared about others who faced difficulties, and she prayed for them. She loved her home, and she was able to spend her final days there, but she also knew that she had a better possession and an abiding one.

[35] Therefore do not throw away your confidence, which has a great reward. [36] For you have need of endurance, so that when you have done the will of God you may receive what is promised.

In this way Carol joined so many throughout the world and throughout the centuries who have run the race and have endured through trials with confidence in Jesus. The author of this letter tells his hearers that this way of life, Carol's way, has “a great reward.” Carol knew about heaven and was looking for it, but even though she suffered decreased mobility and the indignity of having her food reduced to something that most of us would rather not eat, she still wanted to live. She felt that there was more remaining for her with her family and her church on earth. She endured well until the Lord called her home. Now, because of Jesus, she has gone before us to a place that is far better than her house in Salisbury.

[37] For,
“Yet a little while,
and the coming one will come and will not delay;
[38] but my righteous one shall live by faith,
and if he shrinks back,
my soul has no pleasure in him.”

Carol lived out her ninety years. Still, it was only a little while when compared with eternity. Once she came to the clarity of faith, she continued in it, despite every challenge and hardship. She did not shrink back. She knew the One who died and rose again, and she stayed with Him.

[39] But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls.

What about you and me? Will we follow her simple life of faith with patience even if people have to help us to go from one room to the next? Will we live as followers of Jesus? Be inspired by all the saints who have believed and lived, and continue in simple faith to the very end.

Psalm 13

Read Psalm 13

“How long, O LORD? Will you forget me forever?” David recorded his despair in a time of great difficulty. At least to him it felt like God was hiding. When he cried out to the Lord about his deep sorrow it seemed like he was only talking to himself.

David was sad all day every day according to the words recorded here. His unidentified “enemy” was exalted over him. Could it be that the Lord had determined that David's story on earth was over? Would his enemy win?

Though he could not discern the Lord's presence, David wrote down his plea to God in this song that would be given to the choirmaster for all of Israel to sing. This great man did not keep his desperate need a secret. He invited all of God's people to sing with him.

“Consider and answer me, O LORD my God.” David did not stop singing to God even though he felt like the Lord was not listening. He knew that only the Almighty could bring the victory that he needed. If God would not grant the light of His presence, David would “sleep the sleep of death.”

If David died then his enemy would win. His foe would rejoice in the destruction of one of God's beloved children. David could not believe that his struggles would end this way. He added words of abiding faith for others to sing. “I have trusted in Your steadfast love.” He sang with hope. “My heart shall rejoice in Your salvation.” Suddenly the words of future longing became the song of accomplished fact. “He has dealt bountifully with me.”

David was determined to rejoice in the Lord. He invited others to join him. One of his descendants would one day lift up His voice in praise to God using David's psalms. After many centuries had passed, after David's body had rested in the grave for so long, the Messiah would come to Israel. He would sing of the tender mercies of God and live a life of perfect love during a time of the deep despair. Through the death and resurrection of this one Son of David, the Lord has dealt bountifully with all who trust in Him.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord, You will not forget Your righteous Servant who made satisfaction for our sins. Our foes will not win the day, for in Your steadfast love You help us.

Psalm 12

Read Psalm 12

“Save, O Lord, for the godly one is gone.” David brought before God the sad state of the entire nation. “The faithful have vanished among the children of men.” There once had been a substantial group of people who were devoted to the Lord. Where were they now?

There remained many Israelites who said nice things, but their hearts did not match their pleasant words. “Everyone utters lies to his neighbor.” They were guilty of flattery and boasting, imagining that their great words would bring them mastery over others. They had forgotten the Lord.

God had not abandoned the poor and the needy. He heard their groans. He would arise and save them. His words were not false, though so many others were liars. The Lord would be true to His promises.

In every generation the faithful remnant of worshipers can still sing these ancient words. They can remember the purity of God's speech, even in an age when false talk seems to rule among important men and women. God will guard the weak from the evil plans of the powerful. Though the wicked seem to prowl on every side, the Lord who gave Himself to save His people from sin and death will protect them from those who would like to destroy the godly from the face of the earth.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

God of Our Salvation, there are troubles and dangers all around us. Please help us. The needy cry out to You every day. In Your purity and love, You will keep us and rescue us.

Psalm 11

Read Psalm 11

“In the LORD I take refuge.” David had found a resting place for his soul. This provision was not just for him. He wrote about his faith in Almighty God to the choirmaster so that others in Israel would be able to add their “Amen” to their leader's great hope.

Yet David struggled with advice that came to him at this difficult moment. Should a man like him actually “flee like a bird” in the face of danger? Was there ever a time when it would be right for the faithful to run away? David certainly came to the conclusion that he needed to retreat from more than one enemy over his many years of serving God. It was the only way that he could live to fight another day. God at times explicitly directed His people to flee from a place that was under divine judgment. The foundations within a once godly society might soon be gone. What could the righteous do then? They had to flee or simply face the arrows of the wicked.

Even if all of God's people needed to run, the Lord Himself could never be in danger from even the most fierce adversaries imaginable. Though Jerusalem would perhaps be assaulted by foreign armies, the God of Israel would still be safe in His holy temple on high. Heaven was His throne. He could easily bring any enemy to an end. The God who tested the righteous might destroy violent wicked men at any moment according to His own sovereign will.

Even though God was safe in His heaven this did not mean that the Lord was detached from the sufferings of His people. He was so committed to the salvation of the upright that He squarely faced trouble for them that they could never have endured. When the time came for the Son of God to die for our sins, He did not flee to the mountains. On the cross He fought and won a battle that we could never have survived so that we might behold His face forever.

Prayer from A Book of Prayers

Lord God, You are the refuge of Your people. Will we be forced to run from men and angels who pursue us? You are safe in heaven and we are secure in You. We know that the day of rescue will come. We will see Your Son. We will behold His face.