The Thanksgiving of theRedeemed a brief study of Psalm 107, adapted from PCCPrayer Meeting Exhortation on 2 July 2010 Many of us would probably haveheard of the famous words of Augustine: “Thou hast made us for Thyself, [OLord], and our heart is restless until it resteth in Thee.” Augustine saidthese words in the opening paragraph of his Confessions.Where did Augustine get the idea for these words? It believe the idea aroseboth from his own conversion experience; and from the picture painted in Psalm107. We read in verse 4— 4 They wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way; they found no city todwell in. 5 Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. 6Then they cried unto the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them out oftheir distresses. Does this not paint a beautifulpicture of the conversion experiences of the redeemed of the Lord? Their soulswere restless and wandering aimlessly. Then, like the Prodigal Son, they cameto themselves (cf. Lk 15:17),and began to cry out unto the LORD in their troubles, and the LORD deliversthem out of their troubles. Well,it is true that verse 3 may at first look appear to suggest that this Psalm isabout the re-gathering of Israelscattered in the world. But take careful note: when the Lord alluded to thisverse in Luke 13:29, He suggests that this is about the gathering of thegentles from all over the world. The Lord had warned theunbelieving Jews that they will weep for their unbelief when they are thrustout of the kingdom of God. But “they [i.e.the Gentiles] shall come from the east, and from the west, and from the north,and from the south, and shall sit down in the kingdom of God”(Lk 13:29). Sothen, Psalm 107 is best understood not as a thanksgiving psalm for the nationof Israelre-gathered, but as a thanksgiving psalm for the redeemed and for the Church.So we may entitle it: “The Thanksgiving of the Redeemed.” Thispsalm has essentially six parts. The first part is an introduction, which is acall to give thanks to the LORD. Then, the next 4 parts, verses 4-31 paints forus four pictures of man in his desperation and how God redeems him. Then fromverse 32 to the end, we have picture of the blessings of the Lord upon theredeemed and the congregation of the redeemed. Let’s look at this Psalm verybriefly. Consider first the introduction, which is… 1. A Callto Thanksgiving 1 O give thanks unto the LORD, for He is good: for Hismercy endureth for ever. 2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so, whomHe hath redeemed from the hand of the enemy; 3 And gathered them outof the lands, from the east, and from the west, from the north, and from thesouth. Doesnot these opening words resonate with your heart, you who have been redeemed bythe precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ? Wewere under the bondage of Sin and Satan, the enemy of our soul. Wherever wewere in the world, whatever was the station of our life, we were unknowingly slavesto the Wicked One. Our lives were meaningless and empty, full of turmoil anddiscontentment. But thanks be to God, the Lord in His mercy redeemed us, andplucked us out of the hand of the enemy of our soul. And He brought us home. Hegathered us from, as it were, the four corners of the world, to care for ustogether as His people. O let us not fail to thank Him for His bountifulmercies. Letus thank Him, especially as we consider the desperate state that we were inwhen He redeemed us. Firstof all, we were like… 2.Travelers Wandering Hopelessly in the Desert (v. 4-9) Thisis painted for us in verse 4-9. Take notice of how this paragraph is written,for this same pattern will be used in the three remaining pictures of man that will be painted. Ineach of these pictures, you will see a description of our former misery;followed by the refrain: “Then they criedunto the LORD in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses.”And this is followed by a corresponding description of precisely how the Lorddelivered us. And in the midst of this, there is another refrain in the words,“Oh that men would praise the LORD for Hisgoodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!” In this firstpicture of us wandering in the desert, notice how we “wandered in the wilderness in a solitary way” (v. 4a); how we “found no city to dwell in” (v. 4b); andhow “hungry and thirsty, [our ] soul fainted in [us]” (v. 5). Wewere in other words, restless in our hearts, lost, aimless, frustrated anddiscontented. Is that not an accurate description of what you were before yourconversion? Thenthe fullness of time, by the grace of God, you came to yourself, you cried untothe Lord. And He delivered you out of your distresses. How?You were lost and wandering aimlessly; He led you forth by the right way (v.7a). You had no city to dwell in; he brought you to a city of habitation (v.7b), even heavenly Jerusalemand made you a citizen of Her. You were spiritually hungry, but He filled yourempty soul with goodness (v. 9). Ohwill you not praise the LORD for His goodness and His wonderful works to thechildren of men (v. 8)! Butagain, we were like… 3.Prisoners Sitting in Darkness in Prison (v. 10-17) Notonly were we wandering aimlessly. We were sitting in spiritual darkness, bound bythe chains of sin, awaiting certain death (v. 10). Thishad come about because of sin. Sin is lawlessness, a rebellion against thewords of God; and a contempt of His counsel (v. 11). For this cause, Godhumbled us, by consigning us to “labour for that which satisfieth not” (Isa55:2), with no one to help us when we fall, and no one who can address ourconcerns or complaints (v. 12). Itwas by the mercies of the LORD that we were brought to ourselves, and we criedunto Him for deliverance; and He delivered us (v. 13). How?Well, we were in darkness and bondage; He broke our chains and brought us outinto the light (v. 14). We were freed from the curse of the Law and the wagesof sin. He broke the gates of brass and cut the bars of iron asunder (v. 16) sothat we are no longer under the grip of the power of sin which makes us rebelsand children of God’s wrath. We now have a Christian freedom—freedom to do whatis right and good. We were made to know the truth, and the truth made us free(Jn 8:32). Obeloved brethren and children, would you not praise the LORD for His goodnessand for His wonderful works towards you? Butnot only were we like prisoners in bondage. We were also like… 4. SickPersons Lying in Beds of Affliction (v. 18-28) Wewere once fools (v. 18). The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. So werefused to live according to God’s ways. So instead of a life abundant andfree, we were like sick persons lying in bed with no spiritual appetite (v.18). We were, living-dead; and were it not for the mercies of the LORD to bringus to ourselves, we would have perished. Butthanks to God, He quickened us and enabled us to cry unto the LORD, and Hesaved us from our distresses. How did the LORD save us? Hesent the Word to heal us and deliver us from destruction (v. 20). No only didwe hear the call of the Lord to come forth; we heard also His instruction. Wewere taught the narrow way that leads to life. We were given life abundant andfree. 21 Oh that men would praise the LORD for His goodness,and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 22 And let themsacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare His works with rejoicing. Butagain, we were not only like a languishing sick person. We were also like… 5. SailorsTossed About in the Sea (v. 29-32) We were living in this world,full of ambition to be rich or even to gain the whole world. We eagerly madeuse of every opportunity. We would even, as it were, take to the ships to dobusiness in great waters (v. 23). Instead of serving the Lord; we sought to dothings our own way like Jonah. TheLORD out of His electing love for us, raised a storm, and sent gigantic waves.Again and again, our ship was lifted up into the air and plunged into the depths.We were tossed to and fro on deck, staggering like a drunken man not knowingwhat to do. Thenby the mercies of the LORD, we were brought to ourselves and given the strengthto cry out unto Him for salvation. He heard our cries and delivered us out ofour troubles (v. 28) How?Verse 29— 29 He maketh the storm a calm, so that the waves thereofare still. 30 Then are they glad because they be quiet; so He bringeththem unto their desired haven. Doesthis not sound very familiar? Remember the disciples of the Lord were caught instorm and how the Lord awoke and rebuked the wind and the waves. “Peace, bestill!” He said, and immediately the wind ceased and there was a great calm (Mk4:39). Is that not apicture of how the Lord overcomes the storms in our lives to give us peace,even a peace that the world cannot understand. Gonewere the turmoil. Gone were the roller-coaster emotions of anger and bitternessmixed with short-term thrills. In their place is a peace and stability andcontentment in the Lord. 31 Oh that men would praise the LORD for His goodness,and for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32 Let themexalt Him also in the congregation of the people, and praise Him in theassembly of the elders. Letus beloved brethren praise the Lord for His goodness and mercy towards us. Letus do so not just individually, but in the congregation of the people. Letus praise and thank Him for what He has done for us individually and corporately.Let us also praise Him for the blessings bestowed upon us individually andcorporately as we enjoy an earnest of the heavenly inheritance until the daywhen we will forever rejoice in Him in the Celestial City. 5. The Blessings We Enjoy Even Today (v. 33-43) Now,we know that this paragraph is not about final rest, because we see that thereis still oppression, affliction and sorrow (v. 39); and iniquity (v. 42). Butthe state of grace is nevertheless a state of great blessings. From wonderingaimlessly in the wilderness, we have been given rest. From bondage, we havebeen given freedom. From the death and sickness, we have been given life andhealth. From the turmoil of great storms, we have been given peace and calm. Andthough we continue to fall short of His glory, He blesses us according as weseek first His kingdom and righteousness. This seems to be what the last partof this Psalm is intended to convey, for we read in v. 42—“The righteous shall see it,and rejoice: and all iniquity shall stop her mouth.” Thusin verses 33-34, we are told of how the Lord curses the land when the wickeddwell in them. Rivers become desert and fruitfulness turn into barrenness wherethe wicked dwell. Onthe other hand, for the sake of His redeemed, “He turneth the wilderness into a standing water, and dry ground intowatersprings” (v. 35). Heprovides for them a place to live, to cultivate and to farm and to build theirfamilies (v. 36-38). Now, in Old Covenant days, this blessing would have beenliteral. Today, the blessing may or may not be literal; but certainly no lessreal, for the Lord Jesus himself promised: “Seek ye first the kingdom of Godand His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you” (Mt 6:33). Andnot only does He bless us materially. He brings us through trials andtribulations as a school for sanctification. But even then, He protects us andrestores us (v. 39-41). We may assume He does so when we cry out in repentanceand dependence upon Him, for otherwise why would “the righteous… see it, andrejoice: and all iniquity shall stop her mouth” (v. 42). Thefact is, “these things” happenaccording to the covenant “lovingkindnessof the LORD” (v. 43). Conclusion This is Psalm 107, thethanksgiving psalm of the Redeemed. May the Lord grant us that we will not onlysing this Psalm with grateful hearts, but reflect often on what a greatprivilege we enjoy as God’s redeemed. Let us remember that the Redeemed are in a state of grace. If our hearts are restless; or we are in bondage to sin; or we are spiritually sick or we are tossed to and fro, confused and exasperated. It may be because of backsliding or sin. And as such, only repentance and faith in Christ Jesus will restore our joy. Amen. Ω |
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