The Lord Who Reigns | Psalm 16

When you ponder this for a moment, what kind of person says they are inwardly content, wholly joyful, and physically unafraid to die? That's a pretty stirring testimony, wouldn't you agree? That's a vibrant summation of someone's life, that they're inwardly content wholly joyful, W-H-O-L-L-Y, completely joyful, and physically just not afraid of the fact of death. What person says that? Here's the answer, it's the person who knows the Lord reigns and the grave doesn't. It's that person.

How about I introduce you to him? His name is David. He writes this very testimony in Psalm chapter 16 verse 9. Will you open your Bibles to that portion and put your eyes and a finger on that verse? Because this is David's succinct testimony. Psalm 16, 9. Will you read this with me, whether on the screen or in your Bible together, church? Therefore, my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices.

My body also rests securely. What a beautiful 15-word summary of his life, both internally and externally, both physically and spiritually. This is the testimony of David, a very short version of it.

Now, I could let those words suffice. Perhaps I'll show you a picture of this verse, of his inward contentment, of his whole body, his whole life rejoicing and his body resting securely. Let me show you a picture as I've drawn it.

And it really may seem like a sketch to you, but it's got some Hebrew meaning to it. Let me explain. You notice three colors, right? This verse really describes the whole of a person, both inside and out.

For instance, notice the word heart. In biblical language, especially Hebrew, heart referred to the seat of your emotions, that core aspect of your being, like who you really are in a nutshell, the deepest part of you. Proverbs says this, guard your heart for out of it are the issues of life.

So Solomon, they're saying of all the things you've got to guard, it's the inner deepest part of you. So that's the heart. And he's saying here, my heart is glad, meaning content, satisfied.

He then says his being rejoices. I think it's safe to say that he's here referring to his soul. So you'll see the yellow oranges kind of torso section got to work with me a little bit here.

Okay. It's still an internal kind of representation, but he's saying, this isn't just the core of you, but it's kind of all of you. That's really you.

So if you were to say, who's Andy? You could look at his flesh and bones, but that wouldn't tell you who Andy really is. Andy's a lot more than what you see on the outside. So he's all these things and the core of that's his heart.

So that's his heart and soul. That's kind of how this verse reads. That's a literal kind of interpretation based on the original text.

It's his heart and soul. And David's saying that across the whole of me, my being, maybe the part you don't see, but who I really am from the core to every other part, man, it's joyful. I rejoice.

So he's internally, he's inwardly content. He's wholly joyful. You could say body life joy.

And then he says, my body rests securely. But the key word in this last phrase is the word also, because the word also provides a shift for us. He's thinking of something different.

He's not thinking of what's inside. Now he's thinking of what's on the outside. He says, yeah, inside spirit and soul, man, I'm contented and I'm joyful.

And also what's on the outside. It rests securely. Like I'm not worried about the flesh and bone part.

I'm not worried about what you see as it starts to die. And I age and I face death. I'm not worried about that.

I mean, this is a stirring testimony. Wouldn't you agree? Psalm 16, nine, that my heart is glad. My whole being rejoices.

My body also rests securely. Now, as you look at the picture and think about the verse and some of the keywords, you should be wondering like, how does someone gain that kind of assurance? Like where does that level of confidence come from to be able to make such a statement? That's not really arrogant, but it is pretty honest. How does someone make that? The answer to that question is what verses one through eight tell us.

They all lead to verse nine, Psalm 16, one to eight. Will you follow me? I'll read these verses for us. Let's feast on these for a minute.

David here writes the longer version of his testimony. He begins in verse one, protect me, O God, for I take refuge in you. I said to the Lord, you are my Lord.

I have nothing good besides you. As for the holy people who are in the land, they are the noble ones. All my delight is in them.

The sorrows of those who take another God for themselves will multiply. I'll not pour out their drink offerings of blood, and I will not speak their names with my lips. Lord, you are my portion and my cup of blessing.

You hold my future. The boundary lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance.

I will bless the Lord who counsels me even at night when my thoughts trouble me. I always let the Lord guide me because he is at my right hand. I will not be shaken.

Therefore, now you see it, don't you? It's a word of consequence. It's a word of result. Therefore, my heart is glad.

He's inwardly content. My whole being rejoices. He's wholly joyful, and my body also rests securely.

He's physically unafraid of dying. That's incredible that those eight verses would lead someone to make such an astounding, assuring type of statement. Can I just share with you briefly six things that David proclaims in these eight verses? I won't go over them at length at all, but I want you to see in a nutshell the things that he recognizes, what he proclaims, and how he really places himself under the exclusive rule and reign of the Lord.

This is a section of Scripture, these eight verses, where there is no competition. This is not a synchronistic situation where David's like, we could do this or that, or I'll hold both of these things together. David here is speaking with very exclusive language.

It's like no rivals. There's no competition. This is a no-complete, excuse me, a no-compete clause, so to speak.

It's beautiful. And David here says six things. He says God is his sole refuge in verse one.

God is his highest good in verse two. Verse three, he says God is his closest community. What I mean by that is if David were to say, I've got to find some friends, I'll find my best friends among God's people.

That's what he says here. They're the noble ones. Everything is about the Lord.

It's God and God alone, whether it's God's people, his portion, his inheritance, his refuge, tough times, celebratory times, his eyes are completely vertical. He says in verses four to six, God is his chosen portion. And there's some beautiful metaphors in there and some language that we don't use much.

I won't take time today to kind of unpack some of that, but I would encourage you, check out the Extra Point Podcast Tuesday. I'll go over some of this, and it's just very, it's filling. You'll revel in all that David says here about God as his portion.

Verse seven, he's his trusted counselor. And then in verse eight, he says, God is my constant presence. Notice that in these six things, this entire section, David never once says, and here's something to help God, or here's something I want to add.

There's no supplements or additives. It is strictly God is everything to me. So he sees the Lord.

He places himself under the Lordship, the rulership, the kingship of Christ, of God. And he said, this is enough. That's the one who's able to say, I have inward contentment, whole joy, and physical courage, even in the face of death.

That's that person. That's why he says the end of verse eight, this simple summation again, I will not be shaken. And I think this phrase in verse eight is just a prelude to really what verse nine says, isn't it? When he says, my heart is glad, my whole being rejoices, my body rests securely.

I mean, everything about this last verse and a half is just David saying, it's all about God. And I place myself under the Lordship and rulership and kingship of the Lord. That's the person who can say such a stirring testimony as we read here in verse nine, that their heart is glad, their being rejoices, and their body rests.

Now, as rich as that is, as much as right now you're licking your lips thinking, man, that was delicious. That's some great text. Like let's eat some more.

I think it's a great idea because there's more at the buffet. Because in these first eight verses, David does speak primarily to the here and now. All that God is for him in these moments and the evenings when his heart is perhaps not trustworthy and he's wrestling with thoughts or in the day when there's enemies, all these things, he's not really addressed the last part of verse nine.

When he says my body rests securely, well, David, it's good that you have inward joy and inward contentment, you know, whole body peace. Great. But you said your body's secure at the end, but why can you say that? And that's what 10 and 11 address.

Look at 10 and 11. You will not abandon me to Sheol. Sheol is the place of the dead.

Let me give you a modern word for it we use, it's graveyard. Like when you drive by a graveyard, you don't know the spiritual status of every single soul in there, but you know they're all dead. Sheol is the Old Testament word for that.

Now there's a lot to this as well. I'll leave that for another message. Just know this, that this isn't necessarily meaning hell.

It's another word in the New Testament. That word's Gehenna. And so Hades would be the New Testament word for Sheol.

It just means the place of the departed spirits. It's the graveyard. David here saying you won't leave me there.

You won't abandon me there. You will not allow your faithful one to see decay. Now watch this.

It moves from what he won't do to what he will do. Verse 11, you reveal the path of life to me in your presence is abundant joy at your right hand are eternal pleasures. David says, man, when the time of death comes, here's why my body rests secure because it's not just what won't happen to me, it's what will happen to me.

And he's saying that the afterlife is way better than this life. Eternal pleasures forevermore, abundant joy in God's presence. So just kind of lodge this in your brain because right now your heart's not believing it, but theologically here's the accurate, precise truth.

What's next for those who believe is way better than what's going on right now. And some of you think you got a pretty good life. You're liking things right now.

I can't even describe for you how, how immeasurably awesome God's presence is. So much that the Bible says your pleasure in that moment will increase. It will grow in intensity.

So here's what David is saying about after his life. Six words to sum up and give you the foundation for his assurance. He says no decay physically, no decrease spiritually.

That's amazing, isn't it? So it took between one through eight and 10 and 11 is this incredible testimony of a man who says, I'm inwardly content. I'm wholly joyful and I'm physically unafraid of dying. Why? Because the Lord is my portion, my inheritance, my treasure, the only thing that matters to me.

He's everything to me. I've placed myself underneath his authority and rule and reign. It's God and God alone.

That's who gives the testimony of verse nine. In fact, I would say to you that the end of the chapter really answers the very first statement in the chapter. Do you see verse one? What does he cry out to God? Verse one, protect me, oh God.

How does he end the chapter? He will. He will take me to glory where there are increasing pleasures forever more in your presence. It's a wonderful chapter.

And so this shows us clearly why David is so confident, why his testimony is so stirring, why there's such an assurance in his statement. Let me show you this to you in numbers. I don't mean the book of numbers.

I mean actual numbers. A lot of you know I'm a word guy. I'm not great with numbers.

Julie's worried right now. She's like, oh my goodness, this could go bad in a hurry. But I was just reading this over and over this past week and perhaps my engineers and mathematicians will like this.

Here's Psalm 16 in the number fashion. One through eight results in nine. But what holds number nine, verse nine, in place? What undergirds it? It's 10 and 11.

10 and 11 are the anchor that keeps nine in place. As you feed it by making God your portion, your inheritance, your treasure, your soul pursued, no rivals, no little g-gods, no false deities, no idols. You pursue God.

He guarantees you that not only will this life be one of inward contentment and whole joy, but after this life, he guarantees you, he's going to tether you to his promise that you'll experience his presence in increasingly deep ways forevermore in heaven. That's kind of a numerical look at Psalm 16. Now as you're pondering that and hearing what I've said so far, you're probably right now thinking that's a pretty good sermon.

That's a pretty good message for Easter. But my spidey says this. Some of you don't buy it yet.

You're like, Todd, I think it sounded good, but I'm not sure. There was a moment I was stalling mentally. I'm not sure I'm with you because I know what you read and I know what you said, but my mind keeps thinking, like, no disrespect, Todd.

Like, I'm not trying to be weird. I'm not trying to be offensive, but my mind keeps thinking David's body did decay. Like, I think if I went over to Israel, I could find his tomb.

And I don't think there'd be much in there. So I'm kind of curious, Todd. Reconcile that with what you're saying.

Like, something's not adding up to me. And if you're thinking that, I actually want to commend you. I think that's a legitimate question.

We shouldn't believe everything we hear and think, oh, he said it must be true. You should ask those kinds of questions. I think it's a great question because David's body is somewhere in Israel.

It has rotted. So what gives here? Great question. In verse 10, we see an important turn.

It's what I call a messianic term, and it hinges on the words, your faithful one. Those are not words that point to David. Those are words that point to Christ.

And what we have here in this moment is a turn of our attention away from David to the faithful one of God, who is Jesus. Really, that's who's in focus suddenly. That's why this is called a messianic psalm.

It actually points to Christ. And the faithful one who will not see decay, who will not be left in the graveyard, is Jesus Christ, God's son. So yes, David saw it dimly.

He writes about it. But Christ fulfilled this perfectly. He was not abandoned to the grave.

His body did not decay. He was there three days and three nights. God raised him from the dead.

He walked out of the tomb. So this is not just prophecy. This is actually history.

It's actually victory. It's glory. Jesus Christ lives.

And because he lives, the promise of Psalm 16 is good for all those who believe in Jesus. That's a messianic psalm that points to Jesus. It brings great satisfaction, delight to us who are in Jesus about our testimony, that it's rooted in Christ.

He's the reason we're inwardly content, wholly joyful and unafraid of death, because this psalm points to him. Now, I hope you're having another mental pause for a moment. I hope you're thinking, Todd, that was another few minutes of good preaching there.

But I have a question because really, I mean, you just kind of said it. I like your opinion, but like, yeah, no evidence of it. Back that up, buddy.

You should be saying that right now. You should be saying, hey, is that just your opinion? Can you just take the Bible and say, well, that's not what it's talking about. It's talking about this and just say it and it's good.

Like, how can you prove that that's talking about Jesus? You just kind of said it like it was true. What about those who don't think it does? That's a really good question. I commend you for that one too.

You should be challenging and discerning as you hear. So let's just agree to this. Don't take my word for it.

How about we take God's word for it? God's word best explains God's word. And when the church first began in the first century in the city named Jerusalem, there was a man who stood up who had been with Jesus for three plus years. And he was the first one up to preach.

The church was gathered. They were wondering, is the man that we saw crucified, and then he was raised, he was with us about 40 days, was he the one that we've been waiting on? Is he the Christ? That's the Old Testament word. The long-awaited promised one.

Is that who we just saw ascend to heaven? And Peter rises to say, yes. And so he's preaching about that, verifying and giving evidence that Jesus Christ of Nazareth is the one who rose from the dead, the one that we've been waiting for to save us from our sins. He preaches on that.

And in that sermon, which is Acts chapter two, it's a pretty long sermon. It goes from about verse 22, at least all the way through 36, 37. Can I show you three verses in there in which he tells us under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, exactly who David is referring to here.

Listen to these verses, follow them on the screen with me and let them fill your heart and strengthen your feet and provide a foundation for your belief. Verse 29, Peter says this first sermon to the first church in Jerusalem after the resurrection and ascension, he says, brothers and sisters, I can confidently speak to you about the patriarch David. He's getting almost humorous here.

Look what he says. He is both dead and buried. You can find his grave.

You can go see his tomb. His tomb is with us to this day. So I think if you're listening to that and you're a Jew, you're thinking, oh my goodness, he's contradicting Psalm 16.

Like who brought this pastor in, right? Look what he says. Since he was a prophet, he knew that God had sworn an oath to him to seat one of his descendants on his throne, seeing what was to come. He spoke concerning the resurrection of the Messiah.

That's God's word on Psalm 16. David spoke concerning the resurrection of the Messiah. He now quotes Psalm 16.

Come on church, is he in this right here? He was not abandoned in Hades and his flesh did not experience decay. So verse 32 is Peter saying, God has raised this Jesus. That's who Psalm 16 speaking of.

And we are all witnesses of this church. Don't take my word for it. Take God's word for it from the apostle Peter in the book of Acts inspired by God.

Psalm 16 takes a turn at verse 10 and the faithful one who does not see decay, who will not be abandoned in the, in the graveyard is Jesus Christ, God's son. So back to our original question, since he's the one who reigns and rules, since he's Lord of the grave, Lord of all life, who is the person that can say, I have inward joy, whole contentment, I'm secure physically, even at death. It's the person who knows that the Lord reigns and the grave doesn't.

The person Psalm 16 is talking about, who never knew decay, who was not left in the graveyard, but who was raised from the dead and walked out of the tomb. That's Jesus Christ. If you know him, then that's your testimony.

So maybe we should take our numerical, take home truth, make it more precise. It should actually look like this. Yes.

One to eight leads to nine without a doubt. And nine is tethered by 10 and 11 without a doubt. God's promise, no decay, increasing joy, but it's actually referencing Jesus Christ, which shows me something, the anchor of the life of the person who can say, I've got inward contentment, whole joy, and no physical fear at death is the person whose life is anchored in Jesus Christ.

And because he was raised from the dead, you can bank on it. If you were in Christ, God will raise you as well. Your afterlife will be way better than your current life.

Just ask Jesus. Now, because I can't resist putting this into words, I do want to give this to you with some words, just a simple sentence. This is from my English teaching friends.

Is that okay? Here's how I'd say it in one sentence. Psalm 16, this messianic song that so beautifully points to Christ and is proven to by God himself. Here's what we'd say, that the anchor of my reality, that's one through eight, Christ's lordship and kingship in every part.

He's my portion, my sole refuge, my only treasure. It's God and God alone. The anchor of my reality, both now and forever, is the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

It's verse 10. It's speaking of the Lord who reigns. When that, when he is my anchor, then my life is inwardly content, wholly joyful, and physically secure.

And that is proven true as I continue to submit myself to the lordship of Christ, putting myself under his kingship. No rivals, no little g gods, no false idols, Jesus only. I live that kind of life in the power of God's spirit, to the glory of God, and it's inward joy, contentment, security outwardly.

I can be confident because the resurrection of Christ anchors that. And just as he was resurrected because I'm in him, I'll be resurrected. And that's the testimony I want to have, don't you? Say, Todd, how do you get that testimony? How does one say that? You come under the lordship of Christ.

You obey the first eight verses. You say, Lord, you are my portion. You are my inheritance.

I'll put it to you in the blunt way of the Old Testament patriarchs. You make God your God. You put away competition, destroy your idols.

You repent of believing little g gods and trusting them, and you turn to the only true God. And you say to him, God, I believe that only through your son Jesus can I be made right with you. So now I trust you alone to forgive my sin through the work of your son Jesus.

I repent of sin and of trusting false gods and idols, and I turn only to you. God, would you save me through your son Jesus? And in that moment, God saves you. You're making God your God, and he's your portion, your treasure.

What you'll find over time is a developing and increasing inward contentment, whole life joy, and physical security, even at death. It starts with making God your God, and removing all idols and little g gods, and exclusively and solely trusting in the name of Jesus Christ, the resurrected King. And maybe you're sitting there thinking, what does that look like? Is that a form you sign? It's like a chant you say? Is that an aisle you walk? Like Todd, how does that happen? It happens while you're listening to a guy preach, and your heart's like, God, I want that.

In this room right now, there are people whose heart is crying out to God to save them. Your eyes are open. You're listening to me.

It's happening in that moment. The Holy Spirit's convicting you. God's calling you.

He's lifting up Jesus in front of you. And the Bible says, when he's lifted up, all men will come to me. God is doing that very thing in your presence, in your midst.

And what I want to ask you to do is right in this moment, just say, God, save me. You want to close your eyes? You want to walk an aisle? You can. You don't have to.

The key is to pray a prayer of faith. Now, I want to remind you of something we say a lot around here. Prayer doesn't save people.

God saves people, right? But prayer is the way we respond to what God is doing in us. And right now, some of you are realizing I've never bowed the knee to Jesus. I play church, but I've got loads of idols in my life.

God's got tons of competition. He's just one of many gods in my life. And you're not born again.

You're not a Christian. You're not genuinely saved. You don't exclusively worship God.

God's calling you this morning to repent of false worship, of trusting little G gods. And he's asking you to trust only in his son, Jesus, as the means of forgiveness and security and contentment. And I'm giving you this opportunity today to do exactly that.

Here's how. You just pray and respond to God in repentance and faith. You ask him simply this, God, I do believe that Jesus is your son, my savior.

He lived the life I could not live, which was perfectly holy. That's what God expects. You haven't done it.

I haven't done it. Jesus did. He died the death.

You should have died because of your sin. I should have died. Jesus did everything for us.

And so now we put our faith in Jesus. God sees that and declares us holy and righteous. We make God our God in that moment.

And if that's you this morning, right now, just say, God, save me through Jesus and God will save you. Be the best Easter of your life. When you finally come to know God, the only true God, your sole refuge, your chosen portion, your inheritance, and you wouldn't dare pour out offerings to other gods.

You wouldn't dare take a knee to false idols because your heart is given now to one and only one, Yahweh, the God of heaven and earth, whose son was raised from the dead. So thankful for the gospel and its deliverance, aren't you? When you say that, you join the ranks of not only those who are baptized this morning, many folks sitting around you, you join the ranks of a man named D.L. Moody. A lot of you have heard of D.L. Moody.

He was an evangelist in the 19th century. I bring his name up because he said something kind of funny at the end of his life, but I think it's very true and it's very motivating. As he was nearing the end of his life in ministry, he started a school.

He discipled tons of pastors. He wrote books. He preached thousands of sermons, a fantastic instrument in God's hands.

As he approached the end of his life, someone asked him like, hey, you ready? What's going to happen? You know, let's walk through this. And he responded with these words. Someday you will read in the papers that D.L. Moody of East Northfield is dead.

Don't you believe a word of it. At that moment, I shall be more alive than I am now. That will be my coronation day.

And if you are in Christ, you know what you're headed for? Because Christ arose. When you die, you're headed for your coronation day as well, because God will raise you eventually and your body will meet your spirit and soul, and you will forever be with the Lord. Enjoy him in increasing intensity forever and ever.

It'll be your coronation day when you die as well. If you don't know Christ, if you've not chosen him, if you've not placed yourself under his lordship and kingship, that'll be your destruction day. Because those who don't believe they never get eternal life, what they get is eternal death.

You'll die over and over in an attempt to pay for your sin, which a mortal man or woman can never do because God is infinitely holy. And so for eternity, you'll try to make up ground that you can never make up. And you'll suffer, as the Bible says, in a place called hell where the worm never dies and the fire is never quenched.

I urge you and beg you, turn to Jesus. Make him the Lord of your life. Submit and take the need to his kingship and lordship and enjoy the gift of salvation that unfolds and blossoms with inward contentment, whole life joy, and physical security even when it's time to die.

That's the testimony of the redeemed. I'm praying this week, today, that all of you who are in Christ will live with confidence you've never known before, deep assurance, and joy that's overflowing. And if today was your day to come to Christ, I pray it begins a fantastic journey of knowing the only true God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, our risen Savior.