Who Lives with God? – Psalm 15
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TITLE: Who Lives with God?
SUBJECT: Psalms
PROPOSITION: Who dwells with God in His holy place? 1) He Who Walks Uprightly, 2) He Who Controls His Tongue, 3) He Who Does Not Take Advantage of Others.
OBJECTIVE: Each person will understand that to dwell with God, he must practice these things.
AIM: The Christian’s walk with God must be rooted in holiness or he isn’t walking with God.
INTRODUCTION:
1. Read: Psalm 15
2. About the Text:
1) This is a Psalm of David.
2) David was a great worshipper and loved God.
3) He wanted live in fellowship with God and reflected on that regularly.
4) This Psalm records some of those thoughts.
5) The notion of character is the fundamental basis for dwelling with the Lord.
6) David was called a man after God’s own heart (1 Samuel 13:14).
7) This Psalm reflects why David was so named.
3. Ref. to S, T, P, O, and A.
DISCUSSION: Who dwells with God in His holy place?
I. He Who Walks Uprightly (2).
1. He walks uprightly
1) To be upright is to be a healthy morally, to be blameless.
2) “Good and upright is the Lord; Therefore He teaches sinners in the way” (Psalm 25:8).
3) “He who walks in his uprightness fears the Lord, But he who is perverse in his ways despises Him” (Proverbs 14:2).
2. He works righteousness.
1) Righteousness is pursuing just and equitable dealings with others.
2) “He loves righteousness and justice; The earth is full of the goodness of the Lord” (Psalm 33:5).
3) “To do righteousness and justice Is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice” (Proverbs 21:3).
3. He speaks the truth in his heart.
1) This means that we are honest with ourselves.
2) “For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting, And His truth endures to all generations” (Psalm 100:5).
3) “Behold, You desire truth in the inward parts, And in the hidden part You will make me to know wisdom” (Psalm 51:6).
II. He Who Controls His Tongue (3-4).
1. He does not backbite.
1) Backbiting is talking about someone behind their back with evil intent.
2) “The north wind brings forth rain, And a backbiting tongue an angry countenance” (Proverbs 25:23).
3) Backbiting is listed among the sins of the rebellious in Romans 1:30.
2. He does not take up a reproach against his friend.
1) The word reproach means to scorn, despise, or insult.
2) “Cast out the scoffer, and contention will leave; Yes, strife and reproach will cease” (Proverbs 22:10).
3) “Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, Him I will destroy; The one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, Him I will not endure” (Psalm 101:5).
3. He swears to his own hurt and does not change.
1) Do not go back on your promises regardless of how they may hurt.
2) “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain” (Exodus 20:7).
3) “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one” (Matthew 5:37).
III. He Who Controls His Actions (3-4)
1. He does not do evil to his neighbor.
1) He does not sin against his neighbor.
2) “Keep yourself far from a false matter; do not kill the innocent and righteous. For I will not justify the wicked” (Exodus 23:7).
3) “Abstain from every form of evil” (1 Thessalonians 5:22).
2. He despises vile people.
1) He does not keep company with wicked people nor countenance their behavior.
2) “Through Your precepts I get understanding; Therefore I hate every false way” (Psalm 119:104).
3) “The fear of the Lord is to hate evil; Pride and arrogance and the evil way And the perverse mouth I hate” (Proverbs 8:13).
3. He honors those that fear the Lord.
1) He wants to be around decent people and speak well of them.
2) “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding” (Proverbs 9:10).
3) “The fear of the Lord leads to life, And he who has it will abide in satisfaction; He will not be visited with evil” (Proverbs 19:23).
IV. He Who Does Not Take Advantage of Helpless People (5).
1. He does not put out his money to usury.
1) He does not charge interest for loans that he makes to his brethren.
2) “If you lend money to any of My people who are poor among you, you shall not be like a moneylender to him; you shall not charge him interest” (Exodus 22:25).
3) “You shall not charge interest to your brother—interest on money or food or anything that is lent out at interest” (Deuteronomy 23:19).
2. He does not take a bribe against the innocent.
1) He does not receive money to influence his decisions against others.
2) “And you shall take no bribe, for a bribe blinds the discerning and perverts the words of the righteous” (Exodus 23:8).
3) “A wicked man accepts a bribe behind the back To pervert the ways of justice” (Proverbs 17:23).
CONCLUSION:
1. Read Isaiah 33:14-16
2. Do we want to be like God?
1) Walk Uprightly
2) Control Your Tongue
3) Control Your Actions
4) Don’t Take Advantage of Helpless People
3. Invitation