Floridians are reminded this time of year that the sun is a powerful force. It radiates light and heat.
People who visit Florida often underestimate the sheer power of the sun. Those of us who grew up here know that you can get a burn from an old vinyl car seat or a metal seatbelt buckle.
When I was interviewing at my first church in Naples, I flew in from Kentucky and forgot to bring my sunglasses. While the pastor drove me around and showed me the town, all I saw was a bright light the entire time because I was virtually blinded by the sun.
The sun is powerful. It’s just one of the many marvelous aspects of God’s beautiful creation.
Today, in Psalm 19, we’re going to read what David writes about the sun and other parts of God’s creation. Today, we’re going to learn about “God’s Beauty on Display.”
Let’s pray together before we go any further.
(Prayer)
As we dive into the Word of God, let’s discover three displays of God’s beautiful work in our world.
First, . . .
I. The beauty of God’s creation.
Think about what you consider to be the most beautiful part of God’s creation. Think about how wonderful God is to be able to create something that beautiful.
When God creates something that is wonderful, it declares His glory.
Remember, God’s glory is best understood as the God-ness of God.
God’s glory is the display of who He is.
So, God reveals His glory by displaying how beautiful and wonderful He is through His creation.
Let’s read about this reality. Look at verses 1-6:
1 The heavens declare the glory of God,
and the expanse proclaims the work of his hands.
2 Day after day they pour out speech;
night after night they communicate knowledge.
3 There is no speech; there are no words;
their voice is not heard.
4 Their message has gone out to the whole earth,
and their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens he has pitched a tent for the sun.
5 It is like a bridegroom coming from his home;
it rejoices like an athlete running a course.
6 It rises from one end of the heavens
and circles to their other end;
nothing is hidden from its heat.
In verse 1, David begins by stating that the heavens declare the glory of God.
David is not necessarily referring to God’s heavenly home, but to all that is out there beyond our earth.
All that is out there in our universe declares how wonderful God is. Why? Because it’s vast, and beautiful, and wondrous, and it all came from the creative work of the Lord God.
David goes on to say the expanse proclaims the work of God’s hands.
Expanse likely refers to the vast sky that we are able to see. Just go outside at sunset today and let your eyes take in the vast expanse of the sky. It’s amazing!
That amazing expanse proclaims how great the work of God’s hands is.
Now, we must remember that the sky doesn’t really talk and God doesn’t have hands as we humans do.
Yet, David is using this poetic language to declare how wonderful God is.
In verse 2, David presses more into this idea that God’s creation speaks about God’s greatness.
He says, “Day after day they pour out speech; night after night they communicate knowledge.”
Then, in verse 3, he says, “There is no speech; there are no words; their voice is not heard.”
The universe does not audibly speak, but it does tell a story of how glorious God is, and it’s a beautiful story.
In fact, this message about the greatness of God is so powerful and so loud that (as verse 4 says) it has gone out to the whole earth.
Brothers and sisters, every square inch of this earth and the universe around it shouts how beautiful and glorious God is.
David then shifts his focus specifically to the sun.
David is using poetic language to describe how God accomplishes the miracle of the rising and setting of the sun.
He speaks of the setting of the sun as if the sun is going to sleep in a tent that God prepared for it.
He speaks of the rising of the sun like a newly-married groom coming out to meet his bride.
He speaks of the movement of the sun like an athlete running a course.
He speaks of how the sun moves all the way across the Earth.
David then mentions how nothing is hidden from the heat of the sun. We know that, this time of year, right?
Pay attention to this truth, church: David is focusing on just one beautiful aspect of God’s creation: the sun.
Yet, there are so many other beautiful aspects of God’s creation, aren’t there?
We must recognize that the glory of God is declared in the beauty of all of God’s creation.
Not only is there beauty in God’s creation. We also see . . .
II. The beauty of God’s law.
Listen to what David says in verses 7-11:
7 The instruction of the Lord is perfect,
renewing one’s life;
the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy,
making the inexperienced wise.
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
making the heart glad;
the command of the Lord is radiant,
making the eyes light up.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever;
the ordinances of the Lord are reliable
and altogether righteous.
10 They are more desirable than gold—
than an abundance of pure gold;
and sweeter than honey
dripping from a honeycomb.
11 In addition, your servant is warned by them,
and in keeping them there is an abundant reward.
David uses several different words to describe the law of God.
He speaks of the instruction of the Lord, the testimony of the Lord, the precepts of the Lord, the command of the Lord, the fear of the Lord, and the ordinances of the Lord.
All these refer to God’s good design for the people of His creation.
God has not left us to ourselves. He created us from nothing, and He knows what is good for us.
God’s law tells us what is good for us. God’s law tells us how we were designed.
Friends, God’s law is not here to harm you or restrict you; it’s here to help you.
We ought to want to know God’s law because it helps us to thrive as human beings.
As David said, God’s law is perfect, it is trustworthy, it makes us wise, it is right, it makes our hearts glad, it is radiant, it endures forever, it is reliable, and it is righteous.
David goes on in verse 10 to list some of the other beautiful benefits of the law of God.
He says that the ways of God are “ . . . more desirable than gold—than an abundance of pure gold.”
Now, that’s remarkable, isn’t it?
If I told the City of Bartow that we were handing out gold at church today, everyone would be sure to attend to receive their gold.
However, it I said that we were going to hear the Word of God today, we can’t even get all of our church members to attend.
However, David said the ordinances of God are more desirable than gold.
David adds that the ways of God are “ . . . sweeter than honey dripping from a honeycomb.”
I love some fresh honey! I bet many of you do as well.
You know who really loves honey? Winnie the Pooh! He’s crazy about honey, isn’t he?
Listen, church: We should love the Word of God like Winnie the Pooh loves honey and like Scrooge McDuck loves gold!
Notice, also, what verse 11 says. David says:
In addition, your servant is warned by them, and in keeping them there is an abundant reward.
David said the Word of God warns us. Warns us from what?
The Word of God can warn us about (1) foolishness and (2) sin.
Foolishness will bring us harm and destruction.
Sin will separate us from God.
Foolishness and sin often overlap and are both bad for our lives.
However, God’s law warns us to keep us from foolishness and sin.
Yet, sometimes we are foolish, aren’t we? Sometimes we do sin, don’t we?
What do we do then?
That takes us to . . .
III. The beauty of God’s forgiveness.
Forgiveness is a beautiful thing. Listen, folks: Some of you are missing out on the beauty of forgiveness.
Some of you have not experienced God’s forgiveness of your sins.
Some of you have given your lives to Jesus and have received forgiveness, but you’re still living in the guilt of past unforgiveness.
Some of you are unwilling to experience the beauty of forgiving someone else who has wronged you.
Some of you are unwilling to experience the beauty of seeking the forgiveness of someone you have wronged.
Friends, forgiveness is a beautiful thing.
Listen to what David says here in the remaining verses:
12 Who perceives his unintentional sins?
Cleanse me from my hidden faults.
13 Moreover, keep your servant from willful sins;
do not let them rule me.
Then I will be blameless
and cleansed from blatant rebellion.
14 May the words of my mouth
and the meditation of my heart
be acceptable to you,
Lord, my rock and my Redeemer.
David acknowledges that human beings can sin in two ways: intentionally and unintentionally.
I know I have certainly sinned many times in both these ways.
In fact, the closer you get to Jesus, the easier you recognize your sin against God and others, even when it’s unintentional.
David asked God to cleanse him from the faults that were hidden to him.
Listen, church: That takes some humility before God.
We have to really want to be changed in order to ask God to cleanse us from the sins that we didn’t even know we had.
David then asked God to keep him from willful sins.
We need protection and rescue from both those types of sins.
Are you willing to stop sinning in intentional and unintentional ways?
Are you willing to open yourself to God so that He can show you the areas that you didn’t even know were a problem for you?
David ends by saying, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, LORD, my rock and my Redeemer.”
David wants to be acceptable before God. What about you?
There’s a powerful peace that comes when you can stand before God and others in the beauty of forgiveness, with a clean conscience.
Through Jesus Christ, the descendant of David, we can be made new so that we can stand before God and live well before others.
God’s forgiveness is a beautiful thing.
Let this bottom line summarize what we’re learning today:
Bottom Line: God’s beauty is displayed in all that He does.
We see God’s beauty in creation.
We see God’s beauty in His law.
We see God’s beauty in forgiveness.
Listen, church: All that God does is good and beautiful. We simply have to open our eyes to see His beauty on display.
Challenge yourself this week in this one way:
Weekly Challenge: Take in God’s beauty.
Savor the beauty of God’s blessing of grace.
Thank God that He uses you to accomplish His purposes.
Enjoy the warm rays of the sun (just a bit this time of year).
Take in a deep breath and appreciate the beauty of life that God has given you.
When you wake up tomorrow morning, thank God that He gave you the beautiful gift of rest.
Look at your favorite part of creation, and simply take in the beauty of God.
(Gospel presentation)
(closing prayer)
COPYRIGHT DISCLAIMER: The text contained in this sermon is solely owned by its author. The reproduction or distribution of this message, or any portion of it, should include the author’s name. The author intends to provide free resources in order to inspire believers and to assist preachers and teachers in Kingdom work.
