Sermon Central
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The Half Has Not Been Told Of The Crown (Sermon Three) Series
Contributed by Toby Powers on Dec 27, 2008 (message contributor)
Summary: Who is this King of Glory? We have not told the half of his majesty and power. And this Psalm tells us how we will share in it as believers.
From The Desk Of
Pastor Toby Powers
Truth Baptist Church
Bremen, GA
THE HALF HAS NOT BEEN TOLD
“The Crown”
Intro: Our text tells of the time when the Queen of Sheba comes to Jerusalem to meet Solomon. She says that even with all the stories she was told of him, the half had not been told. Jesus tells us that he is like Solomon, the king of the Jews, but that he is a greater than Solomon (Matt 12:42). So, we know that this scripture about the Queen of the South has prophetic value as it concerns our Lord. We began to look at that value as we preached on “THE HALF HAS NOT BEEN TOLD ABOUT HIS CRADLE.” Last time we looked at “THE CROSS.” Today, I want us to see how “THE HALF HAS NOT BEEN TOLD OF HIS CROWN.”
Psalm 24 is the third in a series of prophetic Psalms concerning Christ. Psalms 22 show us the SUFFERING SERVANT. Psalms 23 tells us of the SUSTAINING SHEPHERD. Psalms 24 tells us of the SOVEREIGN SAVIOR. This is a Psalm all about his glory, his majesty, his power, and what it means for us. THE HALF HAS NOT BEEN TOLD OF HIS CROWN. Notice:
I. HE IS HIGH: v. 1-2, This Shows He Is The POSSESSOR OF THE EARTH, These verses reveal He is:
A. The Creator of All: John 1:1, Gen 1:1
B. The Owner of All: “the fulness thereof, the world, and they that dwell therein.”
C. The Designer of All: “founded it on the seas, and established it on the floods.”
Illustration: Some people believe they own a lot, but it all belongs to God. A Texas oil man invited the preacher home for dinner on Sunday. After the meal, he took the minister out on the deck and proudly told the story of how he started with nothing. Then he pointed north to the oil wells and said, “No all of those are mine.” He pointed south to the pastures and the Beefmaster cattle grazing as far as you could see and said, “All of those are mine.” He guided the pastor’s attention east to the sprawling fields of grain and proudly said, “All of those are mine.” And to the west, those forests, “They too are mine,” he said. The oil man expecting the minister to compliment him on his success, felt the preacher set his hand upon his shoulder. With his other hand, he pointed toward heaven and said, “How much do you own that way?” The truth is that God is high above us, and he owns the heavens and the earth! Anything we have is on loan from the Lord!
II. HE IS HOLY: v. 3-6, This Shows The PREDICAMENT OF MEN,
A. People Coming To Serve: v. 3, Ascending to the Hill of the Lord speaks of the necessary journey to Jerusalem to minister in the house of God. It was a city on a hill and required for man to journey to get there. When man sees God as High and Holy, he will seek to serve him.
B. People Cleaned To Serve: v. 4-5, this is the problem… we have dirty hands and filthy hearts. It takes a holy God to make clean an unholy and sinful man.
C. People Caring To Serve: v. 6, This generation seeks his face. Most today seek his hand… that is his blessings, his miracles, but the generation that will truly serve him will seek his face! They will seek his righteousness, his purpose, his plan, his holiness, his will. And they will leave no room for anything else.
Illustration: A certain Haitian man wanted to sell his house for $2,000. Another man wanted very badly to buy it, but because he was poor, he couldn’t afford the full price. After much bargaining, the owner agreed to sell the house for half the original price with just one stipulation: He would retain ownership of one small nail protruding from just over the door. After several years, the original owner wanted the house back, but the new owner was unwilling to sell. So the first owner went out, found the carcass of a dead dog, and hung it from the single nail that he still owned. Soon the house became unlivable, and the family was forced to sell the house to the owner of the nail.” The moral of the parable is, “If we leave the devil with even one small peg in our life, he will return to hang his rotting garbage on it, making it unfit for Christ’s habitation.” You need to sell out altogether to him.
III. HE IS HERE: v. 7-10, This is the PROCLAMATION OF THE MESSIAH, The occasion of the writing of the Psalm is of the time when the Israelites were bringing back the Ark of the Covenant from the house of Obed-edom to Mount Zion. And the questions asked are in respect to the person’s fitness to minister about the ark. It appears the gatekeeper is questioning each one, but when he questions one in verse 7-10, he learns a very different answer. The gatekeeper says to the people to lift up their heads, to the gates and doors to be lifted up… let the King in. These were not the gates of Zion, but this was a vision of the heavenly place of worship (“everlasting doors”). v. 3-6 show us the picture of people who want access to the ark of God and the mercy seat, but they are denied, for they are not worthy. But when we were not worthy, there was one found that was worthy! Furthermore, it appears that this king comes into this heavenly temple on two separate occasions:
