“When Life Is A Mess…There’s A Psalm
For That” * Psalm 2& 3 * 7/1/12
C. How does the New Testament use this psalm?
Luke 24:44 – ‘Jesus said, “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in
the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
I. Psalm 1 recap
II. There are numerous categories of psalms
A. _____________________ psalms – that mark out what a
good and godly life looks like
B. __________________ of ______________ psalms – that
celebrate the King that God establishes to rule
C. _______________________ psalms – where the writer
calls out to God to help him
D. _______________________ psalms – where the writer
can’t help but worship God
III. But don’t confuse these categories with the way Psalms is divided:
Book 1: (Psalms 1-41)
Book 2: (Psalms 42-72)
Book 3: (Psalms 73-89)
Book 4: (Psalms 90-106)
Book 5: (Psalms 107-150)
IV. A Look At Psalm 2
A. What type of psalm is it? __________________________
B. What are its four sections?
Section 1 & its theme:
E. Why is any of this important to know?
F. Unbelievers think that becoming a Christian is all about
having a chain thrown about their necks. But what’s the truth?
V. A Look At Psalm 3
A. What type of psalm is it? ___________________________
B. What’s the structure of the psalm? (Hint: break it up into
an A-B-C-A-B format)
C. What are some life lessons about prayer that come from this
psalm?
1. When you approach God in prayer, begin with your
__________________ - pour it out honestly.
2. Summon your __________________ into action by
recalling or reciting the ________________ about God
until you receive in your ______________ wholeness.
Section 2 & its theme:
Section 3 & its theme:
What happens in this section? Who is it really about?
3. This type of praying is not a ___________________
exercise. I’ve got to ________________________, as I
face life and its daily problems and challenges.
Section 4 & its theme:
An important tip from a 50 year old dude:
“When Life Is A Mess…There’s A Psalm
For That” * Psalm 2& 3 * 7/1/12
I. Psalm 1 recap
II. There are numerous categories of psalms
A. Purity psalms – that mark out what a good and godly life
looks like
B. Prince of Peace psalms – that celebrate the King that God
establishes to rule
C. Problem psalms – where the writer calls out to God to help
him
D. Praise psalms – where the writer can’t help but worship
God
III. But don’t confuse these categories with the way Psalms is divided:
Book 1: (Psalms 1-41)
Book 2: (Psalms 42-72)
Book 3: (Psalms 73-89)
Book 4: (Psalms 90-106)
Book 5: (Psalms 107-150)
IV. A Look At Psalm 2
A. What type of psalm is it? Prince of Peace psalm.
B. What are its four sections?
Section 1 & its theme:
Section 1 would be verses 1-3. It’s theme: The kings of the earth
resist God and his appointed ruler. David certainly experienced
opposition as he came to power, and opposition after he became
king. David is not being hypothetical. He experienced this
Section 2 & its theme:
Section 2 would be verses 4-6; the theme? God laughs at their
resistance, and reaffirms that the king is in power by his command.
David knew that he was king solely by God’s appointment. God
installed him. There is no other explanation for David’s rise to
power.
Section 3 & its theme:
Section 3, is verses 7-9. The theme? God assures his king that he
will be with him and establish his reign.
What happens in this section? Who is it really about?
This is where the psalm begins to morph into something bigger
than David, because David was never going to possess the end of
the earth. David was never going to rule with an iron scepter all
the nations. Clearly, this is about Jesus. The kingdom of God
which Jesus announced and ushered in, which you and I are
participating in as we speak, that kingdom is a continuation of the
rule God established through David so long ago. Jesus is the one
who will ‘inherit the nations’ and ‘possess the ends of the earth’
and ‘rule with an iron scepter.’
Section 4 & its theme:
Verses 10-12. And its theme: the kings of the earth are summoned
to honor and serve this king, this Son of God.
C. How does the New Testament use this psalm?
The apostles in the New Testament saw Psalm 2 as Messianic, as
about Jesus. In Acts 4:25, Psalm 2 is used to explain why Jesus was
crucified. Herod and Pontius Pilate and the Jewish leaders are the
very embodiment of these kings who rage and plot against the
Lord and his Anointed. In Acts 13:32-33, Paul quotes this Psalm as
a prophecy about Christ. “We tell you the good news. What God
promised our fathers he has fulfilled for us, their children, by
raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: ‘You are my
Son, today I have become your Father.” Psalm 2 is again quote in
Hebrews 1:5 as proof of Jesus’ divinity, and superiority to angels.
Luke 24:44 – ‘Jesus said, “Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in
the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms.”
E. Why is any of this important to know?
If you aren’t sure if this Jesus Christ is the true Son of God, or if
you are struggling in your own faith, and find yourself in a season
of doubt, as we all go through from time to time, then this part of
Christianity should be highly encouraging to you. How do you
know this story is true, and not some fairy tale? Because it’s a
story that was foretold centuries before it came to pass, a story
that was foreshadowed, re-enacted, rehearsed in types and
shadows long before the real thing happened.
about God in whatever moment you are in, what you end up doing
is talking yourself into feeling better, healthier, holier, happier.
You receive in your body wholeness, shalom. And that’s letter C in
this psalm.
F. Unbelievers think that becoming a Christian is all about
having a chain thrown about their necks. But what’s the truth?
It’s amazing to me how people think to themselves that being a
Christian is all about having chains around your neck. That if you
start following Jesus you’ll be less free and more miserable than
you were before. When in fact, you’ll never know what freedom
and joy truly is until you bow your knees to him and accept his
kingship over your life.
3. This type of praying is not a one-and-done exercise.
I’ve got to keep at it, as I face life and its daily
problems and challenges.
Walking with Jesus is not a lobotomy – he doesn’t take away your
stinkin’ thinkin’. You’ve got to hand your stinkin’ thinkin’ over to
him. You’ve got to take responsibility for what’s going on in your
heart and mind. Responsibility for your attitude. And that’s how
you grow.
V. A Look At Psalm 3
A. What type of psalm is it? Problem psalm (or psalm of
lament).
An important tip from a 50 year old dude:
A lot of success in life just comes from doing the same good things
over and over again. Eating your vegies. Doing your pushups.
Brushing your teeth. There’s a lot about our spiritual lives that we
just need to keep on doing, over and over again till Jesus brings us
home. Daily Bible reading. Weekly church attendance. Going to
my LIFE group a couple times a month. Taking Communion once
a month. Over and over, wash, rinse, repeat, till we look up one
day, and there’s Jesus saying, “Child, welcome home.”
B. What’s the structure of the psalm? (Hint: break it up into
an A-B-C-A-B format)
In verses 1 and 2 David cries out to God to help him. That’s letter
A. In verses 3 and 4 David reminds himself of God’s faithfulness.
That’s letter B. In verses 5 and 6 the cries and the reminder bring
David relief. That’s letter C. But in verse 7 he again is back to
letter A, crying out to God to help him. In verse 8 he again is back
to letter B, reminding himself of God’s faithfulness.
C. What are some life lessons about prayer that come from this
psalm?
1. When you approach God in prayer, begin with your
heart - pour it out honestly.
2. Summon your mind into action by
recalling or reciting the truths about God
until you receive in your body wholeness.
We’ll see David all the time in the psalms talking to himself as he
talks to God. “Bless the Lord, O my soul.” Say that aloud. Now,
what are you doing? Who are you talking to? You’re talking to
yourself. And when you set your mind to remembering the truth