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The Voice
Text: Psalm 19
The basic act of communication is transmitting a message and receiving the message. It’s fundamentally sending a message and someone else receiving that message. And there are obviously all kinds of things that can get in the way of that or confuse that message in its transmission and in its reception.
The voice from the skies (vss 1-6)
- Day and night speak of God’s glory. Heavenly bodies were for signs to speak to people from God. The space in the sky shows God’s work.
- Is this a scientific statement? I don’t know that science has tools to relate voices to God. But science does not have tools to measure a lot of things that exist. How do you measure beauty? How do you measure happiness? How does science measure itself? So lots of things exist that science is not capable of measuring.
- The heavens speak a universal language (vs 3-4).
- Other voices in the Bible like blood has a voice. The voice of Abel’s blood cried out to God. If you’re doing forensics like Ben is, you’re trying to interpret the voice of someone’s blood. What does the chemistry of the blood say? What does the blood spatter say? And people get paid to be interpreters of these languages.
- Elihu says the LORD will speak in the storm and the storm reveals many things to Job.
The voice of the scriptures (vss 7-10)
- You and I need revelation from heaven. We can’t live without it.
- Effects
- perfect… converting the soul – James 5:19-20
- sure… making wise the simple
- right… rejoicing the heart
- pure… enlightening the eyes – sight as a result of cleansing
- clean… enduring forever
- Value
- Better than gold, like Solomon will say of wisdom in Proverbs.
- Better than honey, like Solomon will say of wisdom in Proverbs.
- true and righteous… warning and great reward
- The performance of these words brings great reward.
The voice of a soul (vss 11-14)
- David is now talking about the words that come out of his mouth. The great transgression is blasphemy of the Spirit of God, which Jesus will say outright in Matthew.
- Cleanse me
- Hurting people privately with my mouth.
- Gossipping and rumor spreading.
- Spreading suspicion and evil-surmising.
- Keep my heart and mouth acceptable to you
- David yet again has these concerns about how he uses the abilities God has given him, basic things, like speaking. He’s concerned that he uses this privilege to God’s glory.
- My redeemer redeems my heart and mouth for goodness.
