1 The heavens proclaim the glory of God—
The skies display his craftsmanship.
2 Day after day they continue to speak, night after night they make Him known.
3 They speak without a sound or word; their voice is never heard.
4 Yet their message has gone throughout the earth,
and their words to all the world.
God has made a home in the heavens for the sun.
5 It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding
5 It bursts forth like a radiant bridegroom after his wedding
It rejoices like a great athlete eager to run the race.
6 The sun rises at one end of the heavens and follows its course
to the other end. Nothing can hide from its heat.
7 The instructions of the Lord are perfect, for reviving the soul.
The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple.
8 The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart—.
The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living.
9 Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever.
The laws of the Lord are true—each one is fair.
10 They are more desirable than gold—
Even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey,
Even honey dripping from the comb.
11 They are a warning to your servant, a great reward for those who obey them.
12 How can I know all the sins lurking in my heart?
Cleanse me from these hidden faults.
13 Keep your servant from deliberate sins! Don’t let them control me.
Then I will be free of guilt and innocent of great sin.
14 May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
be pleasing to you, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer.
What we need is a sure word from God. If the sovereign God has spoken, then some may shout one thing and some another, but the only judgment that matters is what God declares. If God calls it, that settles it! We can only lay aside our speculations and submit to what He says. In Psalm 19, David shows that God has spoken to us through the revelation of His world and in concludes by showing how we must respond.
God is very real and we must first recognize Him as real in our lives too...
When David was tending his Father’s sheep as a boy, he can recall sitting in the early morning darkness, he was awed with the vastness of space and the immensity of God as he gazed into the starry sky. Soon the darkness gave way to the first light of day and to a glorious sunrise. David, moved with the greatness of God, wrote this psalm which combines beautiful poetry with profound theology and what should be our appropriate response. It shows God’s general revelation in the heavens, God’s specific revelation in the Scriptures, and how David responded.
God reveals Himself in His world (19:1‑6)
“The heavens are telling of the glory of God and their expanse is declaring the work of His hands.” :1). The Scriptures teach that the universe was created by God: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” Gen. 1:1. And in 2 Peter 1:11 “…as a light that shines in the dark, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this that no Scripture is of any private interpretation, revelation never came by the will of man, but holy men of God as they spoke and were moved by the Holy Spirit.
We see abundant evidence of God’s splendor and great worth anywhere we can look… at the vastness and grandeur of the universe. Every day the sun in its splendor and every night the stars in their brightness of light tell about the greater glory of the God who spoke them into existence. The message extends everywhere. There is clear testimony to the God who created it.
The reason so many do not see this evidence is because of moral choice, rather than intellectual. As Paul put it, they “suppress the truth in unrighteousness.” “For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four‑footed animals and crawling creatures.” Romans 1:18, 20‑23
GOD IS REVEALED BY HIS OWN ATTRIBUTES
The next time you step outside on a starry night and look up into the sky, think about the fact our galaxy, the Milky Way, contains more than 100 billion stars. And there are probably at least 100 billion other galaxies in the universe, each with billions of stars! God spoke this universe into existence!
God is infinite in His power.
God is consistent and faithful.
God is radiant in His splendor.
God is consistently strong.
God is omnipresent and omniscient.
a. Let God’s creation humble you in His presence. The Bible is clear that the sinful tendency of the fallen human race is proudly to exalt ourselves, to think that we are like God. But the truth is, we are not like God. He alone is the Almighty Creator. This also means that you cannot use God for your own ends. God doesn't exist to make you happy as you pursue your selfish goals. He is the sovereign of the universe, who alone is great. We need to humble ourselves and submit to our awesome Creator!
b. Don’t let evolutionary theories infect your thinking. Evolution enables proud men to act as their own gods. It is almost always presented as theory, not fact … the natural world came to be through incredible odds and through attributing exceptional intelligence either to lower forms of life or to “Mother Nature,” which mystically and powerfully has equipped our world with amazing things! But there is no such thing as Mother Nature--there is only Father God, the Creator!
c. Worship God in His creation—don’t worship the creation. Let your study of the many facets of the created world direct you beyond itself to worship the infinite God who designed it all. We must respond by facing our sin and submitting to God’s revelation. (19:12‑14)
David’s response to God’s revelation was to face his own sin and call out to God for His help in overcoming it. The Bible is not given for speculation, but for application. David mentions three types of sin:
HIDDEN SINS (19:12)
Sin is so much a part of us that we don’t realize much of our own sin. God has to reveal them and deal with them in us. Do we believe God—or let His revelation to us slip away (which is usually stems from pride, we know better than God).
WILLFUL SINS (19:13)
This is outright disobedience. There are times when you know what God wants you to do and you act like a defiant child and say, “I will not!” David doesn't want either kind of sin to dominate his life, and so he prays that God would deliver him.
SINS OF WORD AND THOUGHT (19:14)
Be aware that sin lies deeper than our outward actions—God’s Word searches our innermost being and shows us wrong thoughts which are the source of wrong words and wrong deeds.
“The word of God is living and active and sharper than any two‑edged sword, and
piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to
judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart” Hebrews 4:12.
If David, who calls himself God’s servant--whom God called a man after His own heart, knew to pray for his own sin with repentance in his heart, how much more must we constantly confront ourselves with God’s Word and call out to Him for cleaning in our inner being! We must let God’s revelation shine into the inner recesses of our heart and scour away the sin which we so often try to hide.
If David, who calls himself God’s servant--whom God called a man after His own heart, knew to pray for his own sin with repentance in his heart, how much more must we constantly confront ourselves with God’s Word and call out to Him for cleaning in our inner being! We must let God’s revelation shine into the inner recesses of our heart and scour away the sin which we so often try to hide.
God wants to be to you a rock of refuge and your redeemer who rescues you from bondage to sin and death. He paid the price to rescue you from bondage to sin by sending His only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He died in your place, God is now free to forgive and accept you if you will accept the pardon He offers in His Son.
God’s world gives much revelation and shows us how we can be right with Him—and how we can live a truly blessed life. He alone is the umpire who calls the plays. Make sure you’re safe in Him!
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