Psalm 90:17
The Psalm is called 'a psalm of Moses' Spurgeon has said of this
psalm that in order to understand it aright we need to understand
its dark border and we need to remember what it must have been
like for Moses when he saw a whole generation perish in the wilderness.
Spurgeon has graphically said that ' he digged the desert till
it became a cemetery, for he lived amid forty years of funerals'.
In the 38 years that they were wandering a generation of 600,000
men perished. That must have meant an average of 42 or 43 funerals
a day, not to mention the women There is much in this psalm that
indicates to us the hardships and the difficulties that Moses
had to face in those days But there is also evidence in this psalm
that Moses was old and near the end of his life and if that is
the case then Moses would also have known that the children were
soon going to enter into the promised land and though he was not
going to be among them yet the people were going to have the privilege
of seeing the promise of the Lord fulfilled among them and they
were going to possess the possessions that God had long promised
to Abraham Isaac and to Jacob. So while we can perhaps detect
the sense of weariness with the struggles of life in this psalm
yet when he turns to make requests to God he is not reluctant
to make bold requests and to ask great blessings and there is
certainly no sense that they had been defeated .
They had just endured a long period of the chastisement of the
Lord upon them. It would be natural for someone who had seen what
Moses had just seen to be utterly cast down and weary but Moses
was a spiritual man and he knew the value of prayer and he knew
how to make bold requests of His God. Spurgeon has called this
a Moses-like prayer because it was so bold in its requests. Moses
was never afraid to ask great things of God.
And it is part of the prayer that Moses made that I want to focus
your attention on today. There are a number of petitions that
Moses presented to the Lord. He prayed for wisdom and for God's
mercy and he prayed that the lord would turn their sorrow into
gladness and their difficulty into success, But perhaps the pinnacle
and climax of all he wanted was at the end where he prayed And
let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and establish thou
the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish
thou it.
And that is the prayer of a spiritual man. That is the prayer
of a man who knew what the children of Isreal really needed at
that time when they had just endured such hardship and they were
looking forward to so much. And is it not what we need too? I
believe it is. I think that we are going to find that the more
we look at what it was that Moses was really praying for here
that our hearts are going to re-echo the petitions that he made.
And so for a few minutes I just want us to take a look at this
great petition that Moses made at the end of this great prayer
psalm. There are three things in this text that I want you to
see that Moses prays for.
I Beautify my person
He said let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us:
Perhaps Moses when he was making this prayer was thinking back
to that time when he was on Mount Sinai with the Lord. What a
wonderful thing it must have been for him. Exodus 33:11 says of
that time And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a
man speaketh unto his friend. We read of another of
Moses bold requests when he asked the Lord to show him His glory
and sought for the presence of the Lord in the midst of the people.
And we read that the Lord answered both those requests and Moses
saw something of the glory of God and we are told that when he
came down from the mountain at that time that his face shone with
a reflection of the glory of the Lord that he had seen. The beauty
of the Lord His God was upon Him. And we read that the people
were afraid to come near him and he put a vail on his face. Now
Paul adds something to our understanding of why he put a vail
on his face. In 2 Corinthians 3: 13 it says And not as Moses,
which put a vail over his face, that the children of Israel could
not stedfastly look to the end of that which is abolished:
So the vail was on his face so that the children of Israel could
not see the end of something and he describes that something as
"that which is abolished." And when you read the context
it is obvious that that which is abolished is that which has been
done away in Christ or the law. We are no longer under law but
under grace. And most of the commentators say that what Paul was
getting at is that Moses put the vail on his face so that the
people would not see the fading glory of the Lord that shone from
his face and just as they could not see the fading of the glory
in Moses face so the Jews could not see that the law had been
done away with in Christ. But it is interesting to think of Moses
in that light. Here he was. He had just received the greatest
privilege of his life. He was up in the mountain. He was having
a mountain top experience with the Lord. The Lord was speaking
with him as a man speaks to his friend-there was a close intimacy
with the Lord- so close in fact that the Lord granted Him the
almighty experience of seeing something of His glory and his face
was shining. What a blessing this was. But now he had come down
again from that mountain. He was among the people again and in
the midst of the day to day experience the glory that shone from
his face began to fade and it seems that Moses wanted to hide
that fact. He did not want the people to see the fading glory.
It was obviously something that Moses did not like happening.
He wanted to live in the light of that experience for as long
as he could. It was the highlight of his spiritual expereince
and now near the end of the wandering he wants something of that
experience again. He had lived through this long night of funerals
and chastisemment and he wanted that beauty back. He wanted to
be back in that place where he could just talk to the Lord face
to face again as a man talks to His friend. And he not only wanted
that for himself but he wanted that for the people as well. It
is the very first thing he prayed for in this petition. He knew
how much they needed it. But we ask what exactly was it that Moses
was praying for when he prayed for this beauty? What is the beauty
of the Lord?
Well firstly it was the beauty of PURITY. It is the holiness of
the Lord that gives Him his beauty. As Moses had communed with
the Lord and been in the presence of the Lord he had grown more
like the Lord. The Psalmist in Psalm 96verse 9 speaks of holiness
as being a beautiful thing when he says O Worship the Lord
in the beauty of holiness . It was that holiness that was
one of the things that really stood out about the Lord Jesus when
he was on earth. He was holy, harmless and undefiled and separate
from sinners" And that is what attracted so many people
to hear what he said. There was something different about Him.
But as Moses now looked at the people who had come through the
weary years of the wilderness and as they were about to embark
on a new venture as they entered the promised land one of the
things he wanted to pray for them to have was not strength or
might or power although he wanted them to have those things too
but the thing he prays for here is for the beauty of the Lord
and for holiness of life. He knew that there is no point in embarking
on any task for God unless they had a right relationship with
God. He knew that as they entered Canaan they were going to have
to obey the commands and the directions of the Lord. They were
going to be a people who were under orders and were going to function
like an army and he knew that they must not only listen to the
Lord but they must be prepared to obey what he said. And of course
that is just a picture of holiness and purity. We cannot come
into the presence of God unless we have clean hands and a pure
heart and if we are a pure and holy people then we will obey the
Lord. And the root meaning of being sanctified is to be set aside
for the use of the Lord. And as we embark on a new year of labour
do we not need that beauty of holiness about us? As we embark
on new efforts for the Lord we need the beauty of holiness
But secondly this beauty of the Lord includes PASSION. One of
the things that made the Lord beautiful to people and attracted
them to come and hear Him was His love. One of the things that
brought many of us to Him for salvation was the thought that He
loved us. That love was, of course supremely demonstrated when
He died on the cross of Calvary bearing our sins in His own body
on the tree. It is also surely significant that when the Psalmist
David wanted to behold the beauty of the Lord where did he go?
He went to the sanctuary and to the temple. In Psalm 27:4 he said
One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I
seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the
days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to enquire
in his temple. When he wanted to behold the beauty of
the Lord he went to the temple where the sacrifices would remind
Him of the love of God in forgiving sin. And surely we want that
beauty to be upon us today. Oh that the Lord would enfold me in
his love! Not only in his forgiving love as he deals with my sin
but in the love of a Father for His child. There is no more comforting
thing for a child when it is hurt than to be gathered into the
arms of a loving parent and the Lord will lift those who draw
nigh to Him. We need the beauty of the Lord's passion to be on
us. And then we need to show it to others. If that beauty is on
us surely we will show a love for souls and for the lost and for
those who are going to a Christless eternity. We need the beauty
of the Lord's passion
But then not only is there the thought in the phrase "the
beauty of the Lord" of Christ's purity and of His passion
but there is the thought of his PROVIDENCE. Some of the meanings
of the word that is translated beauty in the text are those of
kindness and favour Martin Luther said of the word beauty in the
text " In the word beauty there is something like a deluge
of grace." So we might say that not only was Moses pleading
for godliness but for grace That the Lord would
provide for His need. He was asking that the Lord bestow His favour
upon Him Let the grace of the Lord be upon us, Let the favour
of the Lord be upon us. And that grace will include all the things
we need It will include his power, it will include His anointing.
It will include that He will open the doors that need to be opened.
We need the Lord to supply our needs, our need for power, our
need for help, our need for provision. Surely we begin to see
what the Psamist was asking for here and as we examine it does
not our heart just tune in with his? This thing that he was asking
for is what we need. We see then what this beauty of the Lord
is.
But not only do we see what it is but why he wanted it? Why was
it that Moses was looking for this particular thing. Well, I think
it is obvious as we look at the context. That beauty had faded
in his life.. In verse 8 he says Thou hast set our iniquities
before thee, our secret sins in the light of thy countenance.
He had to admit the secret sins and he knew God had seen them.
In Psalm 39:11 we read of the discipline of God that When thou
with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty
to consume away like a moth: Perhaps Moses realised that because
of his secret sins the beauty of the Lord which once had been
in his life was like a moth eaten garment. I think some of us
know the feeling. What should be shining out from our lives has
become a bit grey and tatty and we are not what we should be.
We too need this beauty
But how can I have this beauty? Where can I find it? We have already
got a hint of that when we said that David went to the house of
the Lord to find it. Again we have the same thing in Psalm 96:6
where we are told Strength and Beauty are in His sanctuary
The sanctuary was the innermost part of the tabernacle. It was
where the mercy seat was, it was the place where the High priest
would come once a year with the Blood of sprinkling and sprinkle
it there as an atonement for sin. It was of course a great type
or picture of the cross. How will we obtain the beauty of the
lord? Only upon the grounds and merits of the precious Shed Blood
of christ. I do not merit it, I cannot earn it, I do not deserve
it but thank God that upon the hrounds and merits of what the
Lord Jesus Christ accomplished on the cross of Calvary it can
be mine. And the more I go into that sanctuary the moe beauty
I have. It is the place where I meet fac to face with God and
as I might face to face with God each day so the beauty of the
Lord will be upon me.And when I think of that it is an overwhelming
thought! Who would ask for the beauty of the Lord if Moses , under
the inspiration of God had not showed us that it is possible to
ask it. We can show something of the beauty of Christ.
You know that there are words in the New Testament which speak
of the Lord Jesus and they challenge us. It says of Him in Mark
1:45 they came to him from every quarter They came to Him.
He did not have to go running after them. He never had to send
out invitations for them to come. They came to Him because there
was something that attracted them. I wonder how many people are
drawn to christ because of the Christlikeness they see in us?
Oh may the beauty of the Lord shine out through our lives and
shine to the world that is round about us this year. Moses Prayed
Beautify my person!
II Bless my practice .
The text goes on to say and establish thou the work of
our hands upon us; yea, the work of our hands establish thou it.
He turns now from His Walk to His Work Once again this is a payer
that we can surely join the Psalmist in praying this prayer .
We want the Lord to establish the work of our hands. But notice
some things here about the Work that God wanted Him to bless.
First of all this work that the Lord will establish must be a
selfless work. It must be a work that is set apart for His glory.
I cannot expect the Lord to establish something that is not in
accordance with His will. The Lord will not establish something
that has been marred by sin. The Lord will not establish something
that has been set up to take away the glory from His own person
or simply bring glory to us. It is the desire of God to bring
glory to His own name and if I am seeking to work in my own strength
and if in the end of the day I want the glory to be brought to
my own name the Lord will not establish that. Some people work
very hard in the work of God but it is for themselves they are
working. They like to be in the limelight and they like to make
a name for themselves and while they are working they are working
to promote their own glory. If we do that the Lord is not going
to establish the work of our hands. It will last as long as we
last and no longer. Our desire must be for the glory of God in
the next year. We have to learn that whatever we do to do it to
His glory. Even when we eat and drink we should do it to the glory
of God and until we do that we cannot ask God to establish the
work of our hands. Our works have got to be sanctified works.
Whether that be in the workplace or in the market let what you
do have the stamp of righteousness about it or you will not be
able to pray this prayer. But especially in your service for God
let the stamp of your work be righteousness. If anything that
we do is going to last then it has got to have the stamp of truth
about it
But not only must the work that we ask God to do establish be
selfless work but it also must be solid work. It has to be wholehearted
work. When the text mentions the work of our hands it brings to
our minds the thought of getting our sleeves rolled up and getting
into the work I can't expect the Lord to establish work that I
have been only playing at and trifling with. If I have not had
my whole heart behind what I am doing then how could I expect
the Lord to take my prayers seriously. If I have served the Lord
in such a way that there is something lacking in my commitment
then I cannot expect the Lord to come a bless what I have been
trifling with. Now I am quite sure that there are none here who
would do the work of the Lord in a half hearted way in the
ordinary course of events. I am sure we are too well aware of
the importance of the work we are engaged in and how that one
day we will have to give an account of our stewarship before the
Lord but what I also know is that we live in days when the work
is hard and diffcult and when we get into difficult patches and
when the going is hard and when we seem to be making little progress
it is then that the devil would come in with his discouragement
and of course when we get discouraged and when we get depressed
our enthusiasm goes and when the members of the congregation seem
to be little bothered then we can say "What's the use!"
And we can begin to try to get by with the bare essentials. We
can say "there is no point in me killing myself for all the
thanks I get.' We loose sight of the Lord we serve and we begin
to get our eyes focused on men. Perhaps there is someone here
and you have become discouraged and the going is hard and you
are not working the way you once did but if I want God to bless
my work I have got to be labouring and I have got to be working.
It needs to be a substantial work
But then it has got to be something else. It will be supported
work. The text speaks of the work of our hands but I want
you to notice how in the previous verse it says Let thy work
appear unto thy servants, So the work we are to be engaged
in is not our work but God's work and we need to remember not
to take that work on alone. And so we need to remember to work
in harmony with the Spirit of truth. We need to be led by the
Spirit of God in the work that we are called to do. It is a supported
work. We have got to remember that the work is the Lord's and
while He has been pleased to use us for a while and while the
work of our hands has been vital in a way yet we need to remember
that we must one day leave the work behind. But God does not die
and He will carry the work on. And there you have the division
between God's sovereignty and our responsibility It is the work
of our hands but never let it us forget that it is God's work.
God is constantly working and the wheels of providence are constantly
turning and God is going to continue the work. But the fact that
it is God's work should also be a source of great comfort to us.
We are not alone in this work and this battle and fight. There
is One who helps us and supports us and that One is the Mighty
God of heaven. One who is able to do exceeding abundantly above
all that we ask or think. That should encourage our hearts. But
the work we must do has got to be directed by God. Moses prayed
"Beautify my person" and He prayed "Bless my practice"
III Bring me progress.
But there is one more thing that Moses prays for in this verse.
He prays Bring me progress. The text says yea, the work of
our hands establish thou it The verse speaks here of the establishing
of the work and that brings a number of thoughts to our minds
as to what Moses was praying for
Well the first thing that he was praying for was sucess. Surely
it would be our prayer that God would prosper us in our work for
the Lord in the incoming year. We know that the only real solution
to the personal and political problems that there are in the land
is through the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ and so we have
to spread the gospel as far and as wide as we can. We want to
see men and women won to Christ. Those of you who are here today
outside of Christ cannot ask the Lord to prosper the work of your
hand in this year. Such a thing would be a blasphemy because your
work is tainted by sin that has not been put under the Blood of
Christ. But how we long that the seed that has been sown may bring
forth and abundant harvest unto the Lord.
But not only does the establishing of the works of our hands speak
of success it speaks of stability. . The word esatablish is a
word that also means "make stable" fix" Sometimes
we want the work to grow and flourish and go forward in a dramatic
way but sometimes things that grow up in too swift a way do not
have very much solidity about them at all. Sometimes you hear
of those who come and they seem to do a great work and multitudes
of souls are reported as having been saved but if you were to
go back to the same place in about three months you would hardly
find one of them. So what we need as well as success is stability
?We do not want to be driven with the wind and tossed this year.
There may be great billows of trial and adversity that may blow
against the vessel this year and unless we are established and
the anchor has been buried deep in the soil and caught in the
solid rock we may well be blown off course. The Psalmist speaks
of this kind of stability when he speaks in Psalm 1 of the blessed
man being planted by the rivers of water. We think of that tree
with the roots going deep down into the soil and drawing out the
rich goodness and moisture that will sustain it. We need to let
our roots go deep this year. We need to reach new depths and new
heights in our experience with God. We need to grow in grace and
in the knowledge of God. How sad it is to see little ruined Churches
around the countryside where no doubt the gospel was preached
in faithfulness at least at some time in their history. Some of
them lasted for hundreds of years but now they are empty because
the light of the gospel went out in them. I am sure there are
none of you here who want this place to stay open one minute longer
that the truth of the gospel is preached here but we want this
place to be open a long time in which the gospel will be preached.
We want our children and our grandchildren and as many generations
as there are before the Lord comes back to enjoy the fruits of
what we are doing here. We would hate to see the doors of this
place closed in another generation due to lack of interest. It
could happen unless we put in the effort now and pray that God
will establish the work of our hands. They used to talk about
the established Church. The Church of England and the Church of
Scotland are established churches. We want to have an established
Church but a Church that established not by men but by the Lord.
We want this Church to flourish in the preaching of the gospel
long after you and I have gone to our rest but we need to take
a deep interest now if that is to be so. You need to be working
hard now.
It is worthy of notice that this prayer was answered. Even though
the first generation fell in the wilderness , yet the labours
of Moses and his companions were blessed to the second. That generation
was probably the most devoted to God of any generation that Israel
ever saw. It was them that balaam could not curse. Israel was
holiness to the Lord and the first fruits of his increase. And
we certainly look forward to the future of our church. That which
God has built no man will be able to demolish. We have come to
our 50th anniversary. Many in the past said it would not last
but the Lord has said I will build my church and the gates
of Hell shall not prevail against it." We need that blesing
this year Let us make this the prayer of our hearts for the incoming
year And let the beauty of the LORD our God be upon us: and
establish thou the work of our hands upon us; yea, the work of
our hands