THE PRESENCE OF GOD

Pastor James J. Barker

Text: PSALM 16:7-11




INTRODUCTION:


  1. Psalm 16 is a Messianic Psalm. This is clear from Acts 2:25 where Peter says, "For David speaketh concerning him (Christ), I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved" (cf. Psalm 16:8).
  2. The apostle Paul also quoted this Psalm in reference to Christ in Acts 13:35-37.
  3. I want to preach this morning on the presence of God. David says in verse 11, "in thy presence is fulness of joy."
  4. The LORD said to Moses, "My presence shall go with thee, and I will give thee rest" (Ex. 33:14). God's presence is vital.
  5. David says in verse 8 -- "I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved."
  6. Jesus is my Savior, I shall not be moved;
    In His love and favor, I shall not be moved,
    Just like a tree that's planted by the waters,
    Lord, I shall not be moved.
  7. Some people misunderstand that song. The pastor says he wants to see more people come out soulwinning and they sing, "I shall not be moved."
  8. The pastor says he wants to see more people come out for prayer meeting and they sing, "I shall not be moved."
  9. The pastor says he wants to see more people give to missions and they sing, "I shall not be moved.

 

I. GUIDED BY GOD (PSALM 16:7)

  1. David said, "I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons" (16:7).
  2. "Reins" literally means "kidneys" and refers to the inner man.
  3. Psalm 7:9 says, "The righteous God trieth the hearts and reins."
  4. Psalm 26:2 says, "Examine me, O LORD, and prove me; try my reins and my heart."
  5. Psalm 73:21 says, "Thus my heart was grieved, and I was pricked in my reins."
  6. Proverbs 23:16 says, "Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things."
  7. Jeremiah 11:20 says, "But, O LORD of hosts, that judgest righteously, that triest the reins and the heart..."
  8. Spurgeon said, "By the reins understand the inner man, the affections and feelings. The communion of the soul with God brings to it an inner spiritual wisdom which in still seasons is revealed to itself."
  9. Psalm 16:11 also refers to being guided by the LORD.
  10. This is one of the great blessings enjoyed by believers in the Lord Jesus Christ -- guidance. Unbelievers do not have this guidance. Consequently their lives are disordered and confused.
  11. Psalm 32:8 says, “I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go.”
  12. God's people have continual guidance. Isaiah 58:11 says, "And the LORD shall guide thee continually."
  13. It is perfect guidance. Our Lord said in John 16:13, "Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth."
  14. In the Old Testament we read that the LORD led the children of Israel through the wilderness by a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night.
  15. In the New Testament we read that the Lord leads us by His Holy Spirit. Romans 8:14 says, "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."
  16. Walter Wilson wrote an interesting story, comparing the Christian life to an automobile.

The automobile cannot guide itself. It must have an intelligent hand on the wheel. The one who guides it must not be under the influence of any evil spirits found in bottles. He must not be asleep. He must not be a lunatic. He must be sober, sane and sensible if the car is to be guided safely. The Christian too must be guided. He cannot direct his own step nor lay out his own path. "As many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14). When the Spirit is at the wheel the duty will be well done and the road will be safely traversed. Have you taken your hands from the wheel and turned your life over to the Spirit of God?


The car may be beautifully painted, splendidly upholstered, equipped with new tires, have the license plates in place and still make no progress. There is no gasoline in the tank. It cannot go without power. So our blessed Lord told His disciples, "Tarry ye in Jerusalem until ye be endued with power from on high" (Luke 24:49). Many of the Lord's people are trying to operate without power. They are really saved. They are clear on the Gospel. They are lovers of the Lord Jesus but that blessed Spirit of Christ who alone can endue with power and endow for service seems a stranger to them. Their Christian activity is a drag, a push and a pull. They are weary in the Lord's work. They feel that it is an uphill job with little prospects of success. Oh, that God's people would take time to go to the "filling station," that throne of grace and give the Holy Spirit an opportunity in their lives.


Even though the tank may be filled with gasoline still the car may not operate, the engine way not turn over because the battery is "down." There are those among His people who are clear on the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. They can quote the Scriptures about His Person and Work, but somehow or other there is no power in their lives. They have the theory but do not see the theory operating in their own experience. The battery may be likened to that indescribable and yet indispensable touch of the Holy Spirit upon the soul which builds a fire under the boiler, makes "steam" and causes the machine to throb with power. In the case of our story it is the making of the spark with the sparkplug which ignites the gas and explodes with power in the cylinder. Have you had any explosions in your experience? Do you know the blessing of this limitless power of God manifested in the working of the Holy Spirit?  Christianity is a "going concern." You will never go as you should until the power is there.


An automobile would not be safe if it had plenty of power but no brakes. Not only does it need power to go but it needs power to stop, as well. The Christian must not run riot on any subject. He must not go "to seed" on any truth. He must not become lopsided on any teaching. There must be power to restrain, as well as power to constrain, in every Christian's equipment. "Thus far shalt thou go and no farther" must be applied in the every day life of the believer. Bands are just as necessary as joints.


Gasoline is necessary in the tank but oil is necessary throughout the car. The car would soon burn itself out if there were no oil in the engine. The inward parts of the car, the clutch, the differential, must be lubricated. The outer parts of the car, the wheels, the fan, the steering apparatus must all be greased if the car is to run properly. The oil is another figure of the Holy Spirit. Not only does he empower for service but he also equips the Christian for happy service, sweetly and kindly given. He makes things run smoothly when there is danger of friction. He makes it possible to operate with heavy loads and with great burdens without the engine heating up and sticking tight. How wonderfully blessed the Holy Spirit is in all His ministry for the Christian.


There must be cushions in the car for comfort. Who wants to ride on a hard, board seat? Comfort in the seat is a prime requisite for happy automobile driving. Our Lord calls Himself the God of all comfort. He not only would have us as soldiers serving Him in the battlefield, but He would have us comfortable, enjoying sweet peace of the heart and the comfort of the Holy Spirit in our souls. In one place He said, "Be of good comfort" (Matthew 9:22). Our service will be more effective and our ministry more profitable if our hearts are comfortable.


No manufacturer would produce a car with no lights. Driving through the night requires sufficient light. There are dangers to be avoided. There are cars to be passed. There are curves to be negotiated. The light reveals all these dangers and enables the auto-driver to travel safely through the dark. We Christians are traveling through a dark scene. The Sun of Righteousness was nailed to the Cross. The shadows of sin have fallen athwart the pathways of men. We need a light to guide us safely through the maze and mist. This light is the Lord Jesus Christ, the Light of the World. Be sure that in all your arrangements for life you do not miss the Light, the Lord Jesus Christ.


Gasoline in the rear end of the car is no substitute for water in the front end. There must be a cooling system, else the engine would not operate. Let the Living Water flow freely through your soul, that you may operate well for the Lord.

 

II. GUARDED BY GOD (PSALM 16:8)

  1. When Peter quoted this verse in Acts 2:25, he said, "I foresaw the Lord always before my face, for he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved."
  2. What a glorious thought -- "I foresaw the Lord always before my face..." "Face" denotes presence and nearness.
  3. "I shall not be moved" (16:8) -- stay in the presence of God!
  4. F.B. Meyer said, "Cultivate the habit of recognizing the presence of God...There is no life like this. To feel that God is with us; that He never leads us through a place too narrow for Him to pass as well; that we can never be lonely again, never for a single moment; that we are beset by Him behind and before, and covered by His hand; that He could not be nearer to us, even if we were in Heaven itself."
  5. W.H. Griffith Thomas said, "To form a habit needs diligence. Then it will come easily." In other words, God's presence will become as real to us as the presence of our friends and relatives.
  6. The apostle Paul said, "Pray without ceasing" (I Thess. 5:17). This command would be impossible were it not for the presence of God.
  7. One preacher said that for the Christian all ground is holy ground, and every bush is a burning bush!
  8. Some people think they have to go into a church building to get in the presence of God, but that is contrary to Scripture.
  9. Jacob said, "Surely the LORD is in this place; and I knew it not" (Genesis 28:16). Jacob was not sitting in a church building, for there were no church buildings back then. Nor were there a tabernacle or a temple.
  10. Brother Flanders said something interesting at our pastors fellowship the other day. He said, "When Jacob wrestled with God, who won?"
  11. He then said Jacob won because God said, "Thy name shall be called no more Jacob, but Israel: for as a prince hast thou power with God and with men, and hast prevailed" (Genesis 32:28); but God won also because from that point on Jacob walked with a limp. God broke him!
  12. Has God broken you yet?
  13. God wants to break us of pride, of self-will, of an unforgiving spirit, of stubbornness, of making excuses, of backbiting, of worldliness, of impurity, of a bad temper, and of every work of the flesh.
  14. A.T. Pierson said, “Self-denial is not cutting off an indulgence here and there, but laying the axe at the root of the tree of self, of which all indulgences are only greater or smaller branches. Self-righteousness and self-trust, self-seeking and self-pleasing, self-will, self-defense, self-glory – these are a few of the myriad branches of that deeply rooted tree… We speak of our ‘crosses’ – but the word of God never uses that word in the plural, for there is but one cross – the cross on which the self-life is crucified, the cross of voluntary self-renunciation” (George Muller of Bristol).

 

III. GLADDENED BY GOD (PSALM 16:9)

  1. "Therefore my heart is glad..."
  2. We have much to make us glad -- "the path of life...the presence of God...fulness of joy...and pleasures for evermore" (16:11).
  3. This begins with faith -- "For in thee do I put my trust" (16:1). We enter into God's presence by faith. Hebrews 10:22 says, "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith..."
  4. First faith, then there is fellowship (16:7, 8). First John 1:6 says, "If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth."
  5. One cannot enjoy fellowship with God and walk in darkness. First faith, then fellowship, and then there is gladness (16:9).
  6. Satisfaction and gladness always follow when we surrender to God.
  7. Unrest and dissatisfaction always follow when there is a refusal to surrender to God.

 

CONCLUSION:


  1. Gipsy (Rodney) Smith was born in 1860 in a gypsy tent in Epping Forest, six miles northeast of London, England.
  2. Gipsy Smith was a great evangelist, who preached on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. His trips across the Atlantic Ocean were so numerous that biographers and historians cannot agree on the exact number. Some estimate he crossed the Atlantic 45 times.
  3. In fact, he died while crossing the Atlantic on the Queen Mary, stricken by a heart attack, only three hours out of New York Harbor. His funeral was held here in New York. That was 1947. Gipsy Smith died at the good old age of 87.
  4. When he would preach, he would often give his life story, and great crowds came to hear him, overflowing the halls and auditoriums.
  5. Gipsy Smith had no formal education. He was saved in a Primitive Methodist Chapel and when he went forward to get saved at the invitation he heard somebody whisper, "Oh, it's only a gypsy boy."
  6. He was sixteen-years-old. He got himself a Bible, an English dictionary and a Bible dictionary and he carried them everywhere, causing people to laugh.
  7. "Never you mind," he would say, "One day I'll be able to read them," adding "and I'm going to preach too. God has called me to preach." He taught himself to read and write and began to practice preaching.
  8. He went on to become a great preacher and the author of several books. An accomplished singer and musician, he also wrote several hymns and Gospel songs.
  9. Gipsy Smith said this: "I didn't go through your colleges and seminaries. They wouldn't have me...but I have been to the feet of Jesus where the only true scholarship is learned."
  10. In other words, Gipsy Smith lived in the presence of God.
  11. Gipsy Smith would often ask his audiences, “Do you really want to see a revival begin?” When they answered in the affirmative, Gipsy would say, “Then go back to your home and draw a circle three feet around and get down on your knees in the middle of that circle, and ask God to send revival to everybody inside that circle. When you do that, you are experiencing the beginning of revival.”


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