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The River ChurchSermons

Josh Yates · 28 Jun 2026

Josh Yates · Sunday, 28 June 2026 · 47:50 · 7,780 words

There is no public page for this message yet — the transcript below is the whole of it.

The sermon examines Psalm 112 and its companion Psalm 111, explaining that wisdom literature describes patterns that are usually true. It urges listeners to fear the Lord, delight in His commands, and build a blessed life anchored in God rather than in worldly success. The speaker challenges parents to raise children in faith, practice generosity, and trust God when life is hard. Ultimately, the message calls each person to stop chasing a self‑made shadow and to find true identity in God’s unshakable character.

What this sermon is about

Ranked by keyness against every other sermon in the corpus. Each one is a word this sermon actually said — nothing here was written by a model.

wisdom 36 bless 38 pure 12 righteous 38 adversary 6 purity 7 focus 19 psalmist 11 adversaries 6 chase 8 dawns 5 psalm 27

Topics

Righteousness 9 Prayer 2 The Gospel 2 Faith 1 Salvation 1 Hope 1

Scripture referenced 22

Verified against the transcript. A reference the recording does not support is never listed here.

Psalms 112 1:51 Psalms 112 1:55 Psalms 111 1:57 Psalms 111 2:03 Psalms 111 2:28 Psalms 111 2:36 Psalms 112 2:38 Psalms 111 2:44 Psalms 112 2:46 Psalms 112 2:50 Matthew 5 4:42 Matthew 5 4:44 Matthew 5:3-12 4:51 Psalms 112 6:56 Matthew 5:8 25:14 Matthew 5:8 25:19 Ephesians 6 29:39 Psalms 112 34:10 Romans 1 34:27 James 1:5-7 35:20 James 3:13-18 36:52 Psalms 112 39:27

Transcript

Every word, as spoken, with the second it was said. Each word links to its own entry in the index.

Pre-service announcement — 7 lines, 0:38. Excluded from every count and search on this site, kept here so nothing is hidden.

Hey everyone, my name is Joel Radecki and thanks for checking out one of our sermons today.

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You can also visit our website at theriverchurch.cc to learn more about us and what we have going on as a church.

Thanks again for joining us and we hope you are blessed by today's message.

Coming to a psalm of wisdom.

And so, what we're going to hear today is going to sound a lot like what we hear in the book of Proverbs.

Because Proverbs, if you don't know, is a book of wisdom.

Now, wisdom, we have to understand before we dig into this this morning.

Wisdom, literature, in the scripture, speaks of things that are usually true.

Like, raise up a child in the way they should go and they won't depart from it.

Right?

However, that's usually true.

Most of the time, that's the norm.

However, a parent can do as much as they can.

And no one can be sure their son or daughter are going to follow the Lord.

Their child needs to learn from wisdom psalms and the wisdom of Proverbs and the wisdom that God gives us in the scripture.

And this psalm is no exception to that.

Now, this is one of the psalms that we're not quite sure of the author.

This particular psalm of Psalm 112, which if you have your Bibles, go ahead and turn there this morning.

We're in Psalm 112.

It's actually part of a duet, a pair of psalms in Psalm 111 and 112.

So in Psalm 111, the writer calls the people to delight in the works of God.

It talks about what God has done.

Look at creation.

Look at all these things that God has done in looking at the works.

And that psalm speaks of the splendor of God's glory and majesty.

His works should be remembered that they are faithful and just.

He's the redeemer of his people.

And he keeps his covenants.

That's Psalm 111.

And that psalm ends with a reminder that the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Psalm 111 ends that way.

So let's dig into Psalm 112 and let's focus on the words of God.

Psalm 111 is the works of God.

Psalm 112 is the words of God.

So let's hear it.

Psalm 112.

Praise the Lord.

His offspring will be mighty in the land.

The generation of the upright will be blessed.

Wealth and riches are in his house.

And his righteousness endures forever.

Light dawns in the darkness for the upright.

He is gracious, merciful, and righteous.

It is well with the man who deals generously and lends.

Who conducts his affairs with justice.

For the righteous will never be moved.

He will be remembered forever.

He is not afraid of bad news.

His heart is firm.

He is trusting in the Lord.

His heart is steady.

He will not be afraid.

Until he looks in triumph on his adversaries.

He is distributed freely.

He is given to the poor.

His righteousness endures forever.

His horn is exalted in honor.

The wicked man sees it and is angry.

He gnashes his teeth and melts away.

The desire of the wicked will perish.

Let's pray together.

God, I just thank you for your word.

I thank you for the wisdom that you give us in your word.

That you inspire to be written down for us.

God, this morning I pray for you.

I pray you give us open minds and open hearts.

Help us to apply your word this morning.

Help us to hear you above all the noise that's going on in our lives.

And help us to apply this wisdom in our lives today.

As we seek to live for you.

In Jesus' name we pray.

So right off the bat, it says that praise the Lord.

Bless this man who fears the Lord.

Who greatly delights in his commandments.

And I thought, man, what does it mean to delight in the commands of the Lord?

What does it mean to fear the Lord?

Well, we're told right off the bat that the person that fears the Lord.

Is going to be blessed.

And it reads kind of like the Sermon on the Mount.

Like this person is going to be blessed.

It reads like the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5.

So I'm going to go over in Matthew 5.

It's going to be on the screen behind me.

I want to read the Beatitudes this morning.

Just so we can hear them.

Matthew chapter 5, verses 3 to 12.

I just want to read this.

Jesus is speaking.

And he says,

Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.

Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.

Blessed are those who humble themselves.

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.

Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy.

Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called sons of God.

Blessed are those who are persecuted for righteousness' sake, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you.

And utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account.

Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.

For so they persecuted the prophets.

Who were before you.

And so, Jesus is speaking about the life of somebody who follows him.

The disciple of Jesus.

So is the psalmist.

The one who follows God.

Blessed is he who delights in his commandments and fears in the Lord.

And there's a progression in the book, in Jesus' sermon here in Matthew.

And we did a sermon on the Beatitudes, or a sermon series on the Beatitudes, I want to say a couple years ago.

And it should be available on our website if you want to see those.

The word blessed keeps coming up.

Blessed or blessed.

Blessed, blessed, blessed, blessed.

What does that mean?

It means to be happy.

It means to be right before the Lord.

It actually means one who is accepted by the Lord is the poor in spirit.

Those who mourn.

The meek.

Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness.

The pure in heart.

The peacemakers.

They're acceptable to God.

And it starts, though, with the fear of the Lord.

Because you can't get to a place of being poor in spirit if we haven't figured out how to fear the Lord.

Wisdom starts with that.

So, does that mean that every time we turn...

Turn around, that we're supposed to be cowering in a corner in fear of God and wondering what he's going to do to us?

Not in the least.

In fact, if we go back to Psalm 112, what does it start with?

It starts out with the word, Hallelujah.

You know what?

Let's try that.

One, two, three.

That was okay, but there wasn't much spirit in that.

Let's have a little church this morning.

One, two, three.

There we go.

Praise the Lord.

When we come into his house, that's the first thing we see.

Because we see him, we go, Hallelujah.

I cannot believe I'm in his presence.

That's how we should feel when we come into the church.

Remember, we're the people.

There's nothing special about this building until y'all are in it.

But the reality is, is when we come together to worship the Lord, it's not a mundane thing.

We want to see him.

Praise the Lord for who he is and what he's done.

What reasons do you have to praise the Lord?

Maybe that's a hard question for some of us here this morning.

Maybe life is hard.

It takes a lot.

To come in when you don't have all the answers and still praise the Lord.

But can I encourage you in something this morning?

That's actually the first thing you need to do.

Because it causes you to remember who he is and focus less on what your problems are.

Because he holds you and loves you and cares for you even when times are hard.

So what's your reason to praise?

Why do you sing?

Why do you sing?

And we just sang that song, Great I Am.

Gene and I were talking last week.

That song bears a lot of weight in our lives.

Been here a long time.

Don't need to focus on that.

Don't need to focus on that.

Don't need to focus on that.

Don't need to focus on that.

Don't need to focus on that.

When we were during COVID as Gingival Community Church, we got down to 40 people.

I sang that song over our church a lot.

To see dead bones, dry bones, walk again, become alive again.

And to hear you sing, singing as one, now five years later.

That's all I can say to that.

Because it's he who's done it.

I mean, many of you don't know that story.

But man, I stand here every Sunday and I just say praise the Lord.

Praise the Lord to what he's done.

And that's the heading of this psalm.

Because we praise the Lord because of everything we're about to hear in the

rest of this psalm.

But then we get to the fear of the Lord, right?

Blessed is the man who fears the Lord.

It's a deep reverence and respect for the Lord.

Knowing that he's your father and he's your judge.

He's your redeemer and restorer and friend, as well as a jealous God, a

righteous God, and a holy God.

We don't forget those things either.

Have to focus on that as well.

And so why should we delight in the commandments of the Lord?

Because they bring life.

They bring life.

I got to tell you, as a pastor, one of the things that breaks my heart so much

is when someone comes to me and has questions about something good, bad, or

otherwise going on in their life.

And I talk to us, talk to myself and my wife about marriage and about career or

attitudes or the scripture or parenting, whatever it is.

And we have what we think is a good conversation.

And then six months down the road, I see them and they continue continually

making choices that are taking them away from God.

Because let's be honest, all of us have tendencies to think we know better.

I do.

And we make those choices.

And for a while, it can seem like it's working.

But then years down the road, I have some of those same people come back and say,

man, I wish I'd have done it differently.

And the person is broken.

Sometimes their family is broken.

Sometimes their kids are broken.

And oftentimes they're heartbroken.

It breaks my heart too.

Never from an I told you so place.

Because if I'm honest, like I said, I can be in that same boat so many times in my life.

I make decisions that aren't always wise, that aren't in the fear of the Lord.

And I regret them every time.

And I'm also broken at times.

But here's the thing about our God.

He says,

He saves the crushed in spirit, even when we put ourselves there.

Even when we put ourselves there.

He's not an I told you so God.

He's a rescuer, our salvation.

He pulls us out of the pit when we fall into it and life happens,

or whether we willingly step into it ourselves.

With our God, there is always hope.

That's why we delight in his commandments.

Because with God, there is always hope.

And it's a hope that will not disappoint.

And we continue to see it in the rest of this psalm.

So again, as we dig into verses 2,

Again, remember, wisdom is what things that are usually true.

And so it says in verse 2, he talks about how the offspring of the righteous will be mighty and they will be blessed.

This is not a reward for righteous living.

God is also not a quid pro quo God.

You do this, that'll happen.

We do this, God does what he promises he'll do always.

And more than we can ask or even think.

And usually in ways that we don't even anticipate.

But typically, this is true.

And because this isn't a reward for righteous living, it is a result.

Of righteous living.

It's a result of righteous living.

And when I got into this, I thought about my girls.

And I was talking with Jeannie.

I'm like, man, you've been talking a lot about our girls recently.

And I apologize.

There's one more time I'm going to talk about them this morning.

We're proud of them.

And I mean, we start talking about kids.

And I think about my girls.

And so I'm sorry.

I'm proud of them.

But, you know, I have two daughters.

Sydney is 16.

And Kylie is just, she just graduated Cornerstone.

Ada Bible is working at our Waterford location as their kids director.

So proud of her doing awesome stuff.

She was here this week helping Mitchell with VBS.

It was so cool to have her here.

And Pastor Mitch, you did a great job.

You and your people did a great job at VBS.

Thank you.

Thank you.

And then I think of Sydney.

She loves to worship.

She prays for and with her friends.

She's a great student.

She's currently going through the college soccer recruiting process.

We're just going to see what God's going to do.

And so, and a lot of times, you know, we look at them and we're so proud of them.

But I also want to say it hasn't always been easy for them.

Kylie has struggled with depression in her life, just like her dad.

I struggle with depression.

And I pass that on.

It wasn't my fault.

It's just how it goes sometimes.

My dad struggled with depression too.

And Sydney makes great choices.

But since she's been stabbed in the back by friends,

she lives between knowing what she wants to do for God,

but also the pull of the world.

I see it in her.

We talk about those things.

It's not always easy.

And people have told us often, you just have easy girls.

That's what people have told us.

You just have easy kids.

I'm like, you haven't seen behind closed doors.

You're good girls.

But it's worked for all of us.

We often say we love each other, but we, because we love each other,

we're also going to take each other off.

That's the truth.

But the bottom line for us is we have girls that we gave back to Jesus.

That's really what it is.

We may try to make God the first thing in our home.

We failed so many times with them.

I can't tell you how many times I've had to say, I'm sorry, because I was just stupid or mean or selfish.

I pushed them too hard at times.

I made so many mistakes as a dad.

Jeannie's made mistakes as a mom.

As a husband and wife.

And we ask for forgiveness.

Because see, when the psalmist is talking about here, he's not talking about perfection.

He's not talking about perfection.

He's talking about running after God as a righteous parent.

As somebody who wants to follow the Lord.

It's falling on your face toward God, not away from him.

Because I've got plenty of gravel stuck in my spiritual teeth from falling on my face.

And the reality is both of our girls still have choices to make.

I pray we set a good foundation.

Decisions do not mean future ones are going to be consistent.

They have their walk with God to live.

They have choices to make.

And that's true of all of us as parents.

In fact, the commentator put it like this.

While children must make the faith personal,

there's no denying that kids of believing parents enjoy certain privileges

that children of unbelieving parents don't enjoy.

They get to hear the gospel.

They get to hear the scriptures taught in the home.

They get to be led in prayer by their parents.

They get godly counsel for living.

They get to see a just and kind life modeled before them.

Again, this doesn't ensure their conversion to Jesus.

But again,

it does mean that they should see privileges they enjoy.

And we parents should see our responsibility to train them up

in the gospel that they may find life and blessing.

See, the blessing that we're talking about with kids that can receive

is a mom and dad that's committed to Jesus.

A mom and dad that's going to point them to Jesus.

That will show them how to repent to Jesus.

To ask for forgiveness from Jesus.

To bow their hearts to Jesus.

To give their home to Jesus.

To give their possessions to Jesus.

To submit everything.

Yes, even their,

their own kids to Jesus.

This is the blessing of the Lord on the next generation.

When you mom and dad model that life after Jesus.

It's not about perfection.

It's about falling on your face toward God and leading your home toward Jesus in everything.

They've got to learn how to mess up.

Mom and dad,

if you're trying to act like being perfect and you're always right,

it's the worst thing you can do as parents.

Show them how to ask forgiveness.

Show them how to repent before the Lord.

We have to,

we have to show them that that's the blessing on these,

on these children.

It's not about perfection.

It's about Jesus.

And then,

then the psalmist goes on and talks about verse three,

that wealth and riches are,

are in the,

are in their house.

Health and wealth,

right?

This is all about the prosperity gospel.

We should all be filthy rich,

right?

Nobody said,

only one person said no.

Some people are like,

maybe I'd like that.

No,

here's the deal.

This is not a reward for righteousness.

Again,

it's a result.

And the wealth and riches that the psalmist is talking about is provision.

Like she,

the ability to live.

It's not talking about our Western idea of prosperity,

of getting all this money and living and getting all that we want.

It's a whole different way of prosperity.

It's a,

it's a,

it's a provision.

And there are really two ways to get wealth.

We've learned this through the Psalms too,

through violence and taking from others and through righteous ways of hard work.

And,

and in the,

in biblical times,

so many people gained riches on the backs of other people.

that kind of sounds like today,

too,

doesn't it?

We like to think that we're,

things are very different today than it was years,

thousands of years ago.

It really isn't.

Evil people have been profiting off of the backs of the poor and those without means for a long time.

That's why we see in the Bible managers,

treat your workers.

Well,

right.

Jesus changes the dynamic.

what we have is from God,

whether a lot or a little,

everything we have is from the Lord.

Every good and perfect gift comes down from the father of lights.

And God gives us richly in so many ways,

not just monetarily or materially,

but here's the thing.

When God blesses us,

we're called to bless others.

That's what a righteous person does.

It's not to be used for yourself.

It's to be used for others as well.

It goes right along with verses four and five,

that light dawns in the middle of the darkness for the righteous.

It dawns in the middle of the darkness.

Why?

Because God is their portion and strength.

It's God's righteousness in us that endures forever.

When we talk about it being a dark world,

light dawns in the middle of that darkness for the righteous,

because God is ever present.

The darkness gets really dark when we forget who the light is.

We have to be careful about that and keep our perspective.

But let me remind us this morning that there is not one person in here that is good

or does good stuff apart from Jesus.

Anything that looks like righteousness apart from Jesus will not last.

It will not endure.

It simply will not.

I've seen that a ton in my life too.

And in lives that God has brought into and out of my life and ministry.

And I'm looking at where I'm at.

I'm getting close to 30 years in ministry.

That's a blessing in and of itself.

I'm only turning 48 this year.

30 years at 48?

I'm thankful for that.

And I'm not saying that to toot my own horn.

I really sat back and I was like,

wow, sometimes I need to gain that perspective.

That I'm not too old yet.

I'm smack dab in the middle ages.

But I mean, the reality is it's still 30 years in ministry.

At 48, I'm thankful for that.

I can get caught up in all kinds of different things.

But when I think about that, it's awesome.

And I'm so thankful.

And over that time, I've seen people try to be righteous.

But really, they're just trying to be good people.

I hear that a lot.

That as a Christian, we just got to be a good person.

I've seen people that grow slowly but steadily.

I've seen people stay committed.

I got to tell you something.

If you're seeking to be a good person, it's not going to last.

So many walk away from God when it's just about being a good human.

And I want to say this this morning to those of you that are parents.

Because there are no good humans, only a good God

that lives through the Holy Spirit in humans.

Parents, don't raise good humans.

Raise Jesus followers.

It's not about being good.

It's about looking like Jesus, which is altogether different.

Because if we're just trying to raise good humans,

that's all what everybody else thinks about them.

But if we're raising Jesus followers, it's a different standard.

How do we do that?

By living for Jesus ourselves.

The best thing you can do for your kids is live for Jesus.

And honor your spouse.

And then love your kids.

In that progression.

In that progression.

Point your kids to Jesus.

Because that's the only righteousness that will last.

And then they'll have a chance to live into this life the psalmist is talking about.

Because that's the core of this psalm.

Point your life at Jesus.

Look at Jesus.

Consider Jesus.

Remember Jesus.

Jesus only.

You may think, wait a minute, it doesn't say Jesus.

It's pointing to the future of what Jesus will be.

It's saying this is the life of the righteous.

And Jesus is the fulfillment of the law.

So, of course, it points to living for Jesus.

Because when the light dawns, the righteous are generous.

They're just with what they have.

They seek justice wherever they go.

They don't seek to gouge those around them or steal or take advantage or manipulate people.

This is probably the hardest for those of you that live and work in the society around us.

I watched a documentary yesterday about Uber drivers and stuff.

And how this technology is now coming to stores with these digital price tags.

And it can literally get to the point that they figure out who you are when you walk into the store.

And the price will change based upon you and what they know about you off of the internet.

So the person next to you might pay 10 cents less than you do.

It's crazy.

Or they're going to raise prices.

Hey, it's a really hot day today.

It's a really warm day.

We're going to raise the prices on all of our pop and our water for this day.

That's literally already happening in many different industries.

But what does that look like for those of us that are trying to keep up with big corporations?

And maybe we own a small business.

What are we called to do as the righteous?

We're called to trust God.

And do what's right because it's right.

And because God has called us to be righteous people before him.

Because we want God's blessing more than we want any blessing the world can give us.

That's really what it comes down to.

Is it easy?

No.

There's also a reason why we learn in the New Testament that the path to destruction is wide.

And many people are on it.

The path of the Lord is narrow.

And there are few that find it.

It's all about what our focus is.

It's got to be.

It's got to be Jesus first.

Jesus only.

And Jesus always.

And then we get to verses 6 to 9.

The psalmist takes us to the stability of the righteous.

And something that can happen when we have our focus on God rather than on any circumstance.

That's what happens to those who are pure in heart like Jesus talks about in Matthew 5.8.

What happens to the pure in heart in Matthew 5.8?

Those that are pure in heart, what happens?

They actually see God.

They see God.

Why is that?

Why is it the pure in heart that sees God?

Oftentimes we read that verse and we think that it's a moral purity.

And absolutely there is a moral purity there.

But what Jesus is talking about there is the purity of heart, of focusing that heart purely on Jesus.

It's a purity of focus on Jesus.

Because here's the thing.

When you focus on him, what does it say?

You will seek me and find me when you seek me with 10% of your heart.

How about 20?

How about 40?

How about 60?

No.

With all of your heart.

With all of your heart, that purity of focus, that's when you see God.

It's too easy to miss him in the things of life.

It's too easy to take credit for things that God gave you when you think that you accomplished something.

It's a purity of heart.

Those are the people that see God in the midst of terrible circumstances.

And I got to tell you, I don't always know how people that are facing death or dire circumstances or health, how they can see God.

I've been in some rooms watching loved ones watch their loved one die.

And some.

And others absolutely follow God.

I've seen it happen.

There's been times I've been in that room going, wow, if I was in that position, I would not be acting like that person is.

I would be a wreck watching this.

I mean, I was a wreck because my heart was broken for what I was observing.

But I suppose that's it.

Because God gives us what we need when we need it, not before, not after.

He meets us right where we.

And that purity comes as we focus on God and the righteousness because the righteous focus on God.

And then the psalmist says that the righteous then are not moved.

I don't know about you.

I read that and I go, I want to be like that when I grow up.

I'm not there yet.

I feel shaken sometimes in my life.

He says, not afraid of bad news.

How often do I live in the what ifs?

How often do you live in the what ifs?

Firm heart, trusting in God.

I mean, I try to trust in God.

I believe I do.

But man, there are times that I'm scared.

Yeah.

There's times that are scary.

The commentator said this.

The reality of both threats being bad news and enemies that produce anxiety.

Those who fear God have no need to fear or yara is the Hebrew word.

The absence of fear, however, does not come from the denial or dismissal of such threats.

So it's not about saying, oh, I'm not afraid.

It's not even really going to happen.

I'm not going to worry about it.

The absence of fear stems from the psalmist's trust in the Lord and who holds him.

And then the next 10, then the very next line, the psalmist even addresses that.

A steady heart that isn't afraid.

Like, okay.

Now you're just hitting me every, every, every way you can.

Right?

Now you're telling me that the righteous aren't even afraid.

And the next line, until he looks in triumph over his adversaries.

That made me think, who's really our adversary?

Because that's really what we're afraid of is an adversary.

And we see so many adversaries in life.

Sometimes it's money and finances.

Sometimes it's relationships.

Sometimes it's a career or a career change or a loss of a job.

Sometimes it's health.

Sometimes it's loss of a loved one.

We have all these things.

Sometimes it's our kids, good, bad, or otherwise.

We have all these things that we get afraid of that, that, that sometimes shake us in life.

Right?

But we got to go back to Ephesians chapter six.

Who is our real adversary?

Because Paul tells us that we wrestle not against flesh and blood.

The problem isn't actually what we see in front of us.

It's the principalities and powers of evil in the heavenly places.

It's actually a spiritual battle that we face.

So what is our real adversaries here?

Unrighteous ambition.

The evil one himself is our adversary.

See, we have to recognize who our adversary is so that we know how to fight what the adversary is.

Because if the battle we fight is not actually what we see in front of us, it's spiritually inside of what's going on in us,

then what do we have to do?

We run to the cross.

That's what we do.

Because God has given us every spiritual blessing to be able to live our lives.

God has given us weapons.

We have weapons of warfare that are spiritual in nature that break down strongholds.

That break down every philosophy that tries to stand itself up against the Lord.

Why do we get so wrapped up in politics?

Right?

Nothing's going to knock him off his throne.

No nation, no king, no nothing.

Look like Jesus.

Not like blue or red.

Not like what the world tries to tell us.

We go to look like Jesus.

We love whoever is in front of us.

And we see Jesus.

We see Jesus.

We see Jesus.

We see Jesus.

We see Jesus.

We see Jesus Christ.

Because he alone is salvation.

Nothing else brings salvation.

There is no other name under heaven by which men and women must be saved.

Nothing else saves.

And if you're here this morning and you don't know Jesus, I want to tell you there is a Savior that loves you and died for you.

Because all of us have sinned and fallen short of God's glory.

And the wages of that sin is death.

But God's free gift is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

And if we've confessed with our mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in our heart that God raised him from the dead,

you will be saved.

You will be saved.

That is the gospel.

That is what we preach.

That is the answer to what's going on in our world today.

We have to stop trying to change culture.

And we have to look at the people in front of us and go, God, change them.

And before they even change them, change me.

So that I can be loving to everyone that comes my way.

Loving so much that I'm willing to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ everywhere I go.

Because that's what changes people.

That's what changes a culture.

That's what changes the world.

That's what will change the world.

Because one day he's coming back.

One day he's coming back.

And what's holding him back is that he wants everybody to come to repentance.

And who has he sent?

You and me.

We've got to be about the gospel.

Our adversaries are spiritual in nature.

And we fight against them spiritually.

And then he talks about, again, going back to the righteous person being generous.

Because of generosity, we see righteousness.

How generous are we all really with our time, our talents, our treasure?

Yes, that means our money.

How generous are we really?

Another commentator sums up.

He sums up all of this very well.

He says,

This psalm is intended to be an encouragement in terms of wisdom theology.

To live in Yahweh's Torah in the midst of a hostile and godless world.

And to seek happiness of one's life in it.

But I would suggest, the commentator says, that the psalmist calls for even more.

Despite the circumstances of the day,

the psalmist says,

I suggest that the blessed person is the one who uses his prosperity for the sake of others.

His piety, his following of God, shapes his morality.

Psalm 112 serves as a reminder that piety and morality belong together.

And that both are manifestations of the same commitment to God.

How we live for God and how we actually live are supposed to be the same thing.

And then the psalmist concludes with the fact that the wicked will see this and they get angry.

We see it in Romans 1.

Evil being called good.

Good being called evil.

And we see this across our world today.

But here's the thing about the gospel.

And why we have to be about the gospel.

Because those that are wicked will perish one day.

They will perish.

That's not just death.

Perishing is separation from the Lord in a very real place called hell.

Those that oppose God will face justice.

It's not our job to see them face justice.

It's our job to do everything we can to love them to Jesus.

But how can we love those that we want to be more right over?

See, the New Testament speaks about this wisdom that we so desperately need.

In the book of James, there's a couple of passages I want you to hear.

It won't be on the screen.

I want you to listen to them.

James 1, 5-7.

If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask.

Ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him.

But let him ask in faith with no doubting.

For the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.

For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.

If we need wisdom, we ask God for it.

But here's our problem.

We ask God for wisdom, and then we ask the person on our TV for wisdom.

And then we ask the person in politics for wisdom.

And then we ask our financial advisor for wisdom.

I'm not saying we shouldn't look at some of these things.

But we look to all.

We look to our boss, and we look to our best friend, and we look to all these places for wisdom.

And the problem is we try to conglomerate it all together into this ball that is like 10% God and 90% of the world.

And we wonder, why in the world does it work?

Why are we so blown and tossed by the wind?

Because we are not pure in heart, focusing on the Lord and the wisdom that he gives us.

Now, that has to be put together with, in the company of many advisors comes wisdom.

That's a proverb as well.

But here's the thing.

We ask the world.

We ask the world for wisdom.

We don't get together with brothers and sisters in Christ and people that are going to point us toward God and give us that godly wisdom too.

God will point you in that direction of the people that also know the Lord.

But when we're asking the TV for wisdom as much as we're asking God for wisdom, we are surely headed for destruction.

James 3, 13 to 18 says,

Who is wise and understanding among you?

By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom.

But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth.

This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic.

For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice.

But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere.

And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace.

Jealousy of others.

Selfish ambition.

Thinking only of yourself and living for yourself.

Boasting about yourself and everything you do.

And lying about the truth.

What's the source of truth though?

God's word is the source of truth.

What are all these things that we just talked about?

What's their source?

Earthly, unspiritual, and did you catch it?

Friends, often we're listening to the enemy and we don't even know it.

Because the enemy doesn't come to you with a pitchfork and a red tail.

He comes to you as an angel of light, acting like he's telling you the truth.

He may even give you 99.9% truth.

That 0.1% makes it a 100% lie.

What does it bring?

It brings disorder in every vile practice.

Is this not a description of the world in which we live?

Disorder all over the place.

Vile practices all over the place.

Is it a description of your home?

Is it a description of your workplace?

Friends, we need God's wisdom.

We need God's wisdom.

What is wisdom?

It's pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason.

Full of mercy, good fruits, impartial and sincere.

What does that sound like?

Especially for those of us that might struggle at home.

The blessed person in Psalm 112 redefines human life.

When lived well, the human life is a reflection of the divine life.

Through our relationship to God and his word,

we're reminded that the shape of our lives is meant to reflect that of God's.

A guy by the name of James Roberts wrote a book called Shiny Objects.

Why we spend money we don't have in search of happiness we cannot buy.

He explores our fascination with mess.

With messaging and effects that it has on our lives as individuals, families, and communities.

Throughout his book, one of the underlying claims is that most people

chase after shiny objects because they're not sure what constitutes a meaningful life.

He explains, in our rush, rush world,

a common way we tell others who we are or would like to be

is through our use and display of material possessions.

He drives a Mercedes, so he must be a captain of industry.

A truck, and he must be a cowboy or at least a rugged individualist.

This tendency to define ourselves by the products

we consume results in what researchers call the extended self.

In other words, our possessions become an extension of who we are.

I can't tell you how many times I hear people say,

I can't come to church on Sunday because I gotta make sure my house looks good.

For who?

Sorry, got off track there a little bit.

Then the commentator says something that's so profound.

Our failure to understand what constitutes a meaningful life

suggests that we have a deficient theological anthropology,

which is a belief about mankind, humankind.

And to compensate, we are forced to,

we are forced to create our own identity,

created in our own sinful image.

Don't waste your life chasing a self-made shadow.

Anchor your identity in the unshakable character of God.

Don't chase after everything in the world.

Man, it's alluring.

We define ourselves by what we do or what we own.

Have you created your own identity apart from God?

Are you chasing a self-made shadow because your foundation isn't God?

Is it everything but God that defines you?

No.

You don't have to ask that question.

Is everything but God what defines you?

Because it's really easy to come on a Sunday morning

and listen to a guy rant and rave or whatever you want to call what I do up here

and sing a few little songs or just kind of get through the morning

and walk out going, I've done my religious thing.

Now I'm going to live my life.

That is not a life that looks like God.

It's defined by our career.

It's defined by our finances.

It's defined by our 401ks.

It's defined by our cars and our homes and whether you're Apple or Google.

All these kinds of things.

It's defined by your favorite sports team.

It's defined by all these things and not God.

And we wonder why we struggle with who we are and what we're supposed to do.

We are desperate for God's wisdom and so often we don't even realize it.

What's the blessed life?

It's a life that's lived for and toward God.

This whole thing reminds me of the parable of the man that built his house on the sand.

The parable of the man that built his house on the rock.

And so many of us have a foundation about that thicker rock,

but underneath it is all sand because we,

just added Jesus at the top of all the other stuff.

When it starts shaking,

we're like,

maybe God doesn't work.

The foundation is God.

It can't be shaken.

Blessed life is rooted in relationship with God and people,

loving God and others.

And it's made real in how we live and move and breathe.

How we actually live,

not how we think we do.

How do you live today?

Is it characterized by worship?

Look at David coming into the house of the Lord.

He was excited to come and say,

praise the Lord.

Are we excited about Sunday or is it kind of like,

got to get to church again.

Listen to that weird guy.

This is a privilege,

Think about the world cup right now.

How many nations don't have freedom to do what we're doing right now?

We take it for granted all the time.

I take it for granted.

There's times I get out of bed on a Sunday morning and like,

do I have to go to church too?

He's like,

he's the pastor.

You got to get up,

I get it.

I look out.

I'd like to be on a boat.

I'd like to be doing something else.

There's all these other stuff that we could be doing,

but is it worth it?

Yeah.

Sometimes take a vacation and we,

we get away.

Let me ask you this is in a summer.

Sometimes it's easy to do.

I'm not going to go to my church.

I'm just going to kind of phone it in next Sunday.

If I'm not here,

right.

Just keep going to the Lord.

What can we teach our kids?

Go back to parenting,

If I'm on vacation,

we're still going to at least watch church.

Even if we're on the boat in the middle of a lake,

what does that tell your kids?

God is always more important.

What does it teach your kids?

If you consistently go on vacation and you,

it's not that big a deal worth be there two weeks.

God's throw awayable.

I care less about having rear ends and seats.

I care more about souls that are committed to the Lord.

Are we righteous?

As our life characterized by worship,

delighting in God's commands,

parenting your kids to know Jesus,

generosity and a firm faith in God.

I want to sound like verses six to nine in this song.

The righteous will never be moved.

He'll be,

he'll be remembered forever.

He's not afraid of bad news.

His heart is firm.

Trusting in the Lord,

his heart is steady.

He will not be afraid until he looks in triumph over his adversaries.

He is distributed freely.

He's given to the poor.

His righteousness endures forever.

His horn is exalted in honor.

And I'm so not there yet.

I don't know about you.

Maybe you're perfect and all that.

I'm so not there.

But here's the thing for all of us this morning,

we have to understand, only Jesus can take you there.

Only Jesus can take you there.

Don't waste your life chasing a self-made shadow.

Anchor your identity, unshakable character.

Heavenly Father, we thank you so much for your love for us.

God, I thank you for who you are

and how you point us toward you

and the wisdom that you give us.

God, I pray that as we ask for wisdom, Lord,

it would truly be a desire of our hearts

to live our lives for you.

God, that we would seek to no longer chase

a self-made shadow, Lord.

We all chase shadows.

Think of my dogs and a laser pointer.

God, confess that sometimes I'm just chasing a laser pointer.

Be pure at heart.

Pray that over us this morning,

that we would desire to be pure at heart,

focusing our lives on you.

Yes, there's things in the world we have to do.

The things that we focus our lives on are good things,

but they hurt us when they become God things.

So God, help us to keep our eyes on you,

the author and the finisher of our faith.

Help us to be pure at heart.

Help us to be righteous.

So that we can see,

help us to be grounded,

you and your character.

In Jesus' name we pray.