WILT THOU NOT REVIVE US AGAIN?
PSALM 85:1-13
Introduction:
Here in the Psalms we see a parallel in history. Israel had been unfaithful and disobedient refusing the grace of God. However, God does not give up on us easily. The Psalmist expresses his desire for repentance and the favor of God on behalf of the people. Let us consider what he is saying to us in our day that is so needful.
I. Turn us, vs. 4-6
A. Revive us again, v. 6.
1. Cause thy face to shine on us, Psalm 80:3, “Turn us again, O God, and cause thy face to shine; and we shall be saved.”
2. Grace has been given for a moment, Ezra 9:8, “And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the LORD our God, to leave us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.”
B. “Turn thou me, and I shall be turned,” Jeremiah 31:18-19, “I have surely heard Ephraim bemoaning himself thus; Thou hast chastised me, and I was chastised, as a bullock unaccustomed to the yoke: turn thou me, and I shall be turned; for thou art the LORD my God. 19-Surely after that I was turned, I repented; and after that I was instructed, I smote upon my thigh: I was ashamed, yea, even confounded, because I did bear the reproach of my youth.”
1. “Surely after that I was turned, I repented,” Ezekiel 36:26, “A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh.”
2. “After that I was instructed,.. I was ashamed,” Jeremiah 3:25, “We lie down in our shame, and our confusion covereth us: for we have sinned against the LORD our God, we and our fathers, from our youth even unto this day, and have not obeyed the voice of the LORD our God.”
II. Shew us thy mercy, vs. 7-10
A. He will show mercy to cause you to return, Jeremiah 42:12, “And I will shew mercies unto you, that he may have mercy upon you, and cause you to return to your own land.”
B. The King will speak peace to the heathen, v. 8; Zechariah 9:9-10, “Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass. 10-And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.
1. Hear when He speaks of peace, Hebrews 3:7-8, “Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, 8-Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:”
2. “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh,” Hebrews 12:25, “See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:”
C. His salvation is near, v. 9; Romans 13:11, “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed.”
1. Mercy and truth are met together, v. 10; John 1:17, “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.”
2. “Righteousness and peace have kissed each other,” v. 10; Romans 3:25-26, “Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God; 26-To declare, I say, at this time his righteousness: that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
a. “Righteousness shall go before him,” v. 13; Isaiah 58:8, “Then shall thy light break forth as the morning, and thine health shall spring forth speedily: and thy righteousness shall go before thee; the glory of the LORD shall be thy rereward.” {rearguard}
b. “And shall set us in the way of his steps,” v. 13; Ephesians 5:1-2, “Be ye therefore followers of God, as dear children; 2-And walk in love, as Christ also hath loved us, and hath given himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.”
CONCLUSION
“Revive us again” is a hymn that we sing often without hearing the words. We desperately need revival in our lives. We need the grace of God is our lives in order to serve the Lord.
The love of many has waxed cold and they have filled their lives with the things of this world. We have shut our ears to His call to peace and salvation, to His call to service and satisfaction, and hear only the desires of our flesh and selfishness. God help us to repent and return to Godly living.