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Psalm 66:16-20
Because of Christ, God always hears you
 

Come and hear, all who fear God, And I will tell of what He has done for my soul. 17I cried to Him with my mouth, And He was extolled with my tongue. 18If I regard wickedness in my heart, The Lord will not hear; 19But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer. 20Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer, Nor His lovingkindness from me.

  • Introduction

    • Are you seeking the face of Christ himself, seeking to be close to him and to know your sinfulness so that through confession and receiving forgiveness, you might know more of his holiness and presence?

    • We must acknowledge the one and only reason that we are able to praise God: the cross. Because of what Jesus did we can praise God, be heard of God.... We are freed from sins and will dwell with the Lord forever. Therefore, we praise His name.

  1. The opening of praise and exultation.
    1. 16 "Come and hear, all who fear God, And I will tell of what He has done for my soul. 17I cried to Him with my mouth, And He was extolled with my tongue."
    2. The righteous praise of the believer should come forth naturally.
      1. This is why we worship.
      2. Do you praise God only in church?
    3. What has the Lord done for your soul?
      1. Redemption
      2. Regeneration
      3. Indwelling
      4. Sanctification
      5. The Government and its order, a blessing.
    4. Praises to the true God should naturally flow out of the broken heart, out of the heart that has been redeemed, snatched from the fire of judgment.
      1. God is love, and he has lovingly provided His Son to redeem us.
      2. God is love, and He has lovingly freed us from our sins.
      3. God is love, and He has lovingly promised to never leave us.
    5. Should this not make us sing praises and thankful songs to God?
    6. It is important that we understand that praise to God, that worship to God, brings us into His presence, and in so doing, we see the wickedness in our own hearts because we are near to God and his holiness.
      1. That is why the next verse says....
  2. Verse 18 If I regard wickedness in my heart, the Lord will not hear.
    1. This is not only a statement of condemnation, but of deliverance.
    2. This is a truth that by Grace we can understand and implement in our lives.
    3. We can confess our sins.
    4. We can ask God to reveal our sins that are in us.
    5. We can leave our sins behind
    6. Because God loves you, He desires that you be heard in your prayers. He desires fellowship with you. He desires to touch you and to conform you to his will.
    7. But sin in your hearts will prevent you from being heard by God
      1. "But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear," (Isa. 59:2).
    8. As Christians, we must be constantly on guard against sin in our own hearts.
      1. Arrogance, pride, coveting, lust, and much more.
    9. Are you seeking the face of Christ himself, seeking to be close to him and to know your sinfulness so that through confession and receiving forgiveness, you might know more of his holiness and presence?
    10. Seeking to know our sin is not so that we can beat ourselves up with guilt. Not at all. Instead, it is so we might know more what to turn from so we can turn more to Christ.
  3. Verse 19 says, "But certainly God has heard; He has given heed to the voice of my prayer."
    1. The psalmist knew that God had heard his prayer.
      1. This is because God will hear the prayer of the humble and the broken hearted who cry out to him.
    2. Yes, God has heard your prayers. He has heard them because you are in Christ.
    3. No matter what you have done, God will hear your prayer in Christ.
      1. But you must go to him, in humility, and in confession.
      2. You must go to him in trust and in faith.
      3. You must give all that you have and all that you are to the holy one.
  4. Verse 20, Blessed be God, Who has not turned away my prayer, Nor His loving kindness from me.
    1. These are words that you might want to memorize. Listen to them again, "blessed be God, who has not turned away my prayer, nor his loving kindness from me."
    2. As Christians we need to be reminded of God's greatness.
    3. We need to be reminded of God's faithfulness and loving kindness to us a
    4. What a privilege it is to have our prayers heard by the Lord himself.
    5. It is because of Christ that your prayers are heard.
    6. It is because of His love for you in Christ that He will answer your prayers.
  5. Conclusion
    1. God will not turn away your prayer. He will hear you.
    2. God will not stop showing His lovingkindness to you.
    3. In Jesus' Great Commission to all of us, He said, "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
    4. Jesus is always with you, never leaving you, never turning you away.
    5. Jesus is always with you, always loving you, always hearing you.

 

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