I Will Teach You the Fear of the Lord

Dennis Tuuri

Outline: Psalm 34:11 I Will Teach You the Fear of the Lord (Part Four of Four) Sermon Notes for February 18, 2007 by Pastor Dennis R. Tuuri Introduction – Isa. 8:11-13 You Gotta Fear Somebody 1. Psalm 34 as a Psalm of Acknowledgment (18, 30, 32, 34, 40:1-8, 106, 116; 138) A specific acknowledgement of God’s work for the individual. A. A proclamation to praise God, moving from private to public, with an implied acknowledgment of what God has done for the individual. vv. 1-3 B. A reflection upon the individual’s need and subsequent deliverance. vv. 4-7 C. A renewed vow of praise involving a sacrifice/meal. vv. 8-10 D. Instruction or homily. vv. 11-22 (Acrostic, missing waw, added pe) Psalm 33 (34) Knox Translation (Of David, when he feigned madness at the court of Abimelech, so that Abimelech sent him away, and he escaped.’) A t all times I will bless the Lord; his praise shall be on my lips continually. B e all my boasting in the Lord; listen to me, humble souls, and rejoice. C ome, sing the Lord’s praise with me, let us extol his name together. D id I not look to the Lord, and find a hearing; did he not de liver me from all my terrors? E ver look to him, and in him find happiness; here is no room for downcast looks. F riendless folk may still call upon the Lord and gain his ear, and be rescued from all their afflictions. G uardian of those who fear the Lord, his angel encamps at their side, and brings deliverance. H ow gracious the Lord is! Taste and prove it; blessed is the man that learns to trust in him. I t is for you, his chosen servants, to fear the Lord; those who fear him never go wanting. J ustly do the proud fall into hunger and want; blessing they lack not that look to him. K now, then, my children, what the fear of the Lord is; come and listen to my teaching. L ong life, and prosperous days, who would have these for the asking? M y counsel is, keep thy tongue clear of harm, and thy lips free from every treacherous word. N aught of evil cherish thou, but rather do good; let peace be all thy quest and aim. O n the upright the Lord’s eye ever looks favourably; his ears are open to their pleading. P erilous is his frown for the wrong-doers; he will soon make their name vanish from the earth. R oused by the cry of the innocent, the Lord sets them free from all their afflictions. S o near is he to patient hearts, so ready to defend the humbled spirit. T hough a hundred trials beset the innocent, the Lord will bring him safely through them all. U nder the Lord’s keeping, every bone of his is safe; not one of them shall suffer harm. V illainy hastes to its own undoing; the enemies of innocence will bear their punishment. The Lord will claim his servant as his own; they go unreproved that put their trust in him. 2. The Story of David and Achish/Abimelech 1Samn. 21:10-15 3. A Brief Overview of the Structure Psalm 34 A Psalm of David When He Pretended Madness Before Abimelech, Who Drove Him Away, and He Departed. 1 I will bless the Lord at all times; His praise shall continually be in my mouth. 2 My soul shall make its boast in the Lord ; The humble shall hear of it and be glad. 3 Oh, magnify the Lord with me, And let us exalt His name together. 4 I sought the Lord , and He heard me, And delivered me from all my fears. 5 They looked to Him and were radiant, And their faces were not ashamed. 6 This poor man cried out, and the Lord heard him, And saved him out of all his troubles. 7 The angel of the Lord encamps all around those who fear Him, And delivers them. 8 Oh, t aste and see that the Lord is good; Blessed is the man who trusts in Him! 9 Oh, fear the Lord , you His saints! There is no want to those who fear Him. 10 The young lions lack and suffer hunger; But those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing. ---- 11 Come, you children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord. ---- 12 Who is the man who desires life , And loves many days, that he may see good? 13 Keep your tongue from evil, And your lips from speaking deceit. 14 Depart from evil and do good; Seek peace and pursue it. 15 The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their cry. 16 The face of the Lord is against those who do evil , To cut off the remembrance of them from the earth. 17 The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears , And delivers them out of all their troubles. 18 The Lord is near to those who have a broken heart, And saves such as have a contrite spirit. 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous, But the Lord delivers him out of them all. 20 He guards all his bones; Not one of them is broken. 21 Evil shall slay the wicked, And those who hate the righteous shall be condemned . 22 The Lord redeems the soul of His servants, And none of those who trust in Him shall be condemned 4. The Fear of God and the Fear of His Word Prov. 13:13; Ps. 19l Isa. 66:4; Ezra 9:4 The King’s Word of Power Ps. 29; Hab. 3:16; Ex. 9:20 The Word of Eternal Judgment – Jn. 12:48 An Established Word – Mt. 24:35 Bunyan “the want of reverence of the Word is the ground of all disorders” “all transgression beginneth from wandering from the Word.” 5. David’s Instruction on the Fear of the Lord vv. 11-22 A. Be a child and get ready to learn. V. 11 Link to verse 9,10 – no self-sufficiency Fear is foundational to wisdom and instruction B. Recognize the temporal and eternal stakes. V. 12 C. Speech - Put a guard on your tongue. V. 13 Eph. 4:24-5:2 D. Action - Put off the old man and put on the new man – in earnest! V. 14 Isa. 1:16,17; 1 Peter 3:8-14 E. Cry out to God. V. 15, 17 F. Meditate on the fork in the road and fear God’s wrath. V. 16, 21 G. Have a contrite spirit. V. 18-20 “broken hearted” “spiritually crushed” Mt. 28:20; Heb. 13:5 This Is My Father’s World H. Serve God – v. 22 Children’s Notes for Psalm 34 1. This is the last of Pastor Tuuri’s sermons on ___ ___ ___ ___. 2. We should learn to fear ___ ___ ___. 3. David wrote this when King Saul was trying to ___ ___ ___ ___ him. 4. David didn’t have to fear ___ ___ ___ ___ because he feared God. 5. Each line of this Psalm starts with the next ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ of the Hebrew alphabet. (Except one is missing!) 6. The last half of the Psalm is a ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ on fearing God. 7. We are to ___ ___ ___ ___ God’s Word. 8. To learn the fear of the Lord you must want to ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. 9. You must be ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ and not prideful. 10. To learn to fear the Lord, we use our ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___. 11. We should tell the ___ ___ ___ ___ __, and not ___ ___ ___. 12. When we lie, we ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ the Holy Spirit. 13. We are to ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ __ for peace, God’s order. 14. Those who fear the Lord ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ to Him when they are in trouble. 15. To fear God, we should think about death and ___ ___ ___ ___. 16. Those who fear God think of ways to ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ Him. 17. To serve God, we should serve ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___.