The Joshua Mission Podcast
Podcast – Weekly, Wednesday, from 30 Oct 2024 for 5 weeks
Updated 240315
Theme: Delight yourself in the LORD!
Applying Psalm 37 to our Lives
Friday, 31 July to Sunday, 2 August 2015
Theme Introduction
Theme- Delight yourself in the LORD and He will give you the desires of your heart
The Power of the Psalms
Psalms are poems & songs
They declare God's truth in these ways
They express both thoughts and feelings in great depth and range
They reflect a very wide range of human situations and experiences – from the greatest tragedies to the highest joys
They draw us into their world and identify with us in ours
They have Very Strong Eschatological Content
The Book of Psalms
This is a Very Complex Book!
- Five Books in this Book – Pss 1 to 41; 42 to 72; 73 to 89; 90 to 106; 107 to 150
- Each of these Five has an Inner Structure
- All of the Five form Into ONE Overarching Structure
- Each Psalm has a structure
- ALL these Structure Guide us to A Deeper Grasp their Content and Purpose
The Psalms may be variously Categorised by
- similarity of structure
- similarity of topics
- connection to a common theme
- occasion of usage
- authorship
Psalm 37 – Main Points
A Psalm of David. A Didactic Psalm – it aims to teach
An Acrostic Psalm – it is structured in such a way that each pair of sayings starts with a letter of the Hebrew alphabet in sequence – roughly each 2 verses form a pair, but a few single verse consists of a pair
It has a Chiastic Structure (like the letter X, which is pronounced “Chi” in Greek, giving it this technical literary term)
Trust in the LORD and Do Good – Session 1
Focus – The Importance of Walking in Faith & Righteousness & How to Do So
Do Not Fret because of Evil – Session 2
Focus – The Need to Resist and Reject Evil & How to Do So
How the Theme Work Out in our Lives – Session 3
Focus – How to Work Out the Two Sides in Synergy in Real Life
Session 1 – Trust in the LORD and Do Good
Friday, 31 July 2015 Night Session
The Righteous Path of Faith
vv 3 & 4 - the Call to the Path of FAITH & RIGHTEOUSNESS
- Trust
- Delight
vv 5 & 6 – COMMIT your Way to the LORD
- HE will bring forth your righteousness
Rejecting the Flesh
vv 7 & 8 – Be STILL & Refrain from Anger
The Meek will Inherit the Land
vv 11-13 – the wicked will attack the righteous BUT God will destroy the wicked
The Advantage of the Righteous
vv 16-19 – Better to Be Righteous
- he is Upheld by the LORD
- he is Known by the LORD
- their Inheritance is Assured by GOD
- protected by HIM from disasters
God Upholds the Righteous
vv 23 & 24 – though the righteous may fall the LORD uplifts him
Testimony to the LORD's Faithfulness
vv 25-29 – the LORD is Totally Trustworthy
- He ALWAYS Upholds the Righteous
- He ALWAYS judge Evil
The Way of the Righteous
vv 30-31 – Righteous in Speech & Deed
- Speaks with godly Wisdom
- God's Law is IN his heart
- Lives by God's Law – will Not Slip
Eternal Trust in the LORD
v 34 – WAIT for the LORD
v 37 – Follow the Examples of the Righteous who has Secure FUTURE
vv 39-40 – the LORD SAVES – for Eternity and for Current Life
Group Discussion
Review as a Group the Lessons of this study
- what IS the “Righteous Path of Faith”?
- why walk this Path?
- what do we Need to Do to Walk this Path?
- what is the SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT Action to take to Walk this Way?
- what would we Be Like If we Walk this Path?
What lesson stands out MOST for you from this study? Why?
What would you identify as the Greatest Challenge for you to walk this Path?
Session 2 – Do NOT Fret because of Evil
Saturday, 1 August 2015 Morning Session
Evil will not Last
vv 1 & 2 – they will FADE like the grass
Evil will be cut off
vv 9-10 – they will be no more
Evil carries its own end
vv 14-15 – all that they do eventually leads to their own destruction
Wicked Ways lead only to Judgement
vv 20-22 – emphasises the transcience of the wicked – reinforcing vv 9-10
The Wicked Seeks to Destroy the Righteous
vv 32 & 33 – it is in the way of the wicked to seek to destroy the righteous BUT God protects the righteous
However Great the Wicked they will Vanish!
vv 35 & 36 – the wicked may grow very large and spread out far on earth BUT God will banish all evil
Evil will be Eternally Extinguished
v 38 – GOD will utterly destroy the wicked so that he will have NO Future
Group Discussion
Review the Lessons of this study as a Group
- how does evil act?
- why will it not prosper?
What stands out Most for you from the talk? Why?
Draw from your own experience and observation:
- what kinds of evil have you experienced or seen?
- is it true to your experience that evil Never prosper?
- if you believe it does, share why and how it has done so
- if you believe it does not, share why and how too
NOTE: Relate what you share to the passage as presented
Drawing from Session 1 – How is the Righteous to relate with the Wicked?
- What do you find particularly difficult?
- What can be done about it?
Session 3 – How the Theme Work Out in our Lives
Saturday, 1 August 2015 Afternoon Session
Connecting the 1st Two Sessions
The Way of Righteousness
The Way of Wickedness
Truth & Beliefs
It BEGINS and is FOUNDED on our Insides!
How fully do we Actually Uphold & Live according to Christ and the Bible?
Values & Priorities
When we make Decisions in life what are the true bases of our choices?
How do we Prioritise our way of life, our relationships, our work life & all areas in relation to Christ as Lord?
Relationships & Behaviour
How do we relate with people?
Christians or non-Christians; familiar or strange; near or far
How do we carry ourselves in day to day life; especially in how we treat them in the way we speak, act, work or play?
Inner Life vs Outer Life
How Congruent is our Outward Life to our Inner Life?
What weight do we give and What discipline do we put in place to ensure we are Integrated within ourselves and in relation to God and His Word?
The Church & the World
Within the Church
How do we relate with people in Church, fellow church members, fellow Christians?
How does Righteousness and Wickedness work out in this context?
The Church IN the World
How strong and sound a witness are we to the world?
Personal Level? Collective Level?
Home Life
Spouse, Parents, Children, Extended Family
Working Life
Colleagues, Seniors, Juniors, Clients
Society
Government, societal issues, public matters; social groups & involvements
Group Discussion
Take a Few Minutes to Highlight together the Key Points of this study. Then move on to consider the following Questions:
What strikes you as Most Important if we are to live Righteously? Why?
Which of the areas mentioned, you think, is the Most Challenging Area to get right? Why?
What do you think Christians at a personal level Need to Correct or Need to Do to practise what this Psalm teaches?
What do you think the Church (local congregations; national body of Christians; the global body) Needs to Correct or Needs to Do to Live Out what this Psalm teaches?