The Voice of the Spirit – Learn and Submit
Psalm 2:10-12
“Now therefore, be wise, O kings; Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, And rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, And you perish in the way, When His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him.”
Today we began our Pastor’s Chat with a prayer for the dear people in the path of the monster hurricane, Ian. Many of us have loved ones in our families, and friends who are being directly impacted in some way from this storm. And we all care for all those that are facing tremendous loss of property, and in some cases even loss of life. We need to pray especially for the first responders as they risk their lives today to save others.
Then we need to continue to pray and give to those who will provide relief and help in the recovery efforts in the days and weeks ahead. There are great organizations that are ready to go in as soon as it is safe. I want to encourage you to give to those who not only offer physical relief, but along with that, give spiritual comfort and encouragement and will share the gospel. There are many like Franklin Graham’s Samaritan’s Purse and Southern Baptist Disaster Relief.
If you are not sure where to send it, you can give your donation through Global Partners in Peace and Development (www.gpartners.org), or even through Pastor Mike Impact Ministries (www.pmiministries.org). We will make sure that the donation goes directly to those giving the relief. Thank you so much for your prayers and support in the days ahead.
Today in our Bible study we will be finishing up Psalm 2. Remember in verses 1-3, we heard the voice of the nations, the voice of rebellion. In verses 4-6, we heard the voice of God, the voice of His wrath. In verse 7-9, we have the voice of God the Son, the voice of victory. Now in verses 10-12, we hear the voice of the Spirit instructing the leaders of the nations, and everyone for that matter, to learn and surrender to the Lord.
In the closing three verses the Spirit appeals to every area of the personality: The mind (v. 10), the will (v. 11) and the heart (v. 12). We need to keep in mind that every Word in Scripture is the work and voice of the Holy Spirit which reminds me of 2 Timothy 3:16, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness”.
In verses 10 and 11, the Spirit speaks first to the kings and leaders, and then in verse 12, He addresses "all" and urges them to trust the Son. The Spirit starts his appeal with the world leaders, because they are accountable to God for the way they govern the world (Rom. 13). The people are enraged against God mainly because their leaders have incited them. They are ignorant because they follow the wisdom of this world and not the wisdom that comes from God (1 Cor. 1:18-31). They are proud of what they think they know, but they really know nothing about eternal truth. How can they learn? "Be instructed" (v. 10) from the Word of God. The word also means "to be warned." How gracious the Lord is to save sinners before His wrath is revealed!
Once the Spirit has instructed the mind, He then appeals to the will and calls the rebels to serve the Lord and stop serving sin (v. 11). True believers know what it means to have both fear and joy in their hearts. Love for the Lord casts out sinful fear (1 John 4:18) but perfects godly fear. We love our Father but still respect His authority.
The third appeal is to the heart and calls for submissive love and devotion to the King. In the ancient world, vassal rulers would show their obedience to their king by kissing his hand or cheek. This is the kiss of submission and even reconciliation.
The Spirit ends with a word of warning and a word of blessing. The warning is that this loving King can also become angry and reveal His holy wrath suddenly and without warning (1 Thess. 5:1-4). Psalm 1 opens with "blessed" and Psalm 2 concludes with promised blessing for all who put their trust in the Son of God. That promise still stands (John 3:16-18; 20:31).
God bless!