SERMON: REVELATION AND RESPONSE

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Psalm 19:1-14

 

Psalm 19

For the director of music. A psalm of David.

1 The heavens declare the glory of God;

    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

2 Day after day they pour forth speech;

    night after night they reveal knowledge.

3 They have no speech, they use no words;

    no sound is heard from them.

4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,

    their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

5     It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,

    like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

6 It rises at one end of the heavens

    and makes its circuit to the other;

    nothing is deprived of its warmth.

 

7 The law of the Lord is perfect,

    refreshing the soul.

The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,

    making wise the simple.

8 The precepts of the Lord are right,

    giving joy to the heart.

The commands of the Lord are radiant,

    giving light to the eyes.

9 The fear of the Lord is pure,

    enduring forever.

The decrees of the Lord are firm,

    and all of them are righteous.

 

10 They are more precious than gold,

    than much pure gold;

they are sweeter than honey,

    than honey from the honeycomb.

11 By them your servant is warned;

    in keeping them there is great reward.

12 But who can discern their own errors?

    Forgive my hidden faults.

13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;

    may they not rule over me.

Then I will be blameless,

    innocent of great transgression.

 

14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart

    be pleasing in your sight,

    Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

 

            -- I read a story about President Franklin D. Roosevelt that I wanted to share with you this morning -- a lot of people don't know that President Roosevelt had a great sense of humor and was known for being mischievous at times -- as President, he often had to endure long receiving lines at the White House as guest and foreign dignitaries would file by to speak to him and shake his hand -- He complained that no one really paid any attention to what was said

            -- so, one day, when he was hosting a formal dinner for ambassadors from various countries in the White House, he decided to try an experiment -- as each person passed down the line and shook his hand, he murmured, "I murdered my grandmother this morning."  -- the guests responded with phrases like, "That is great! Keep up the good work.  We are proud of you.  God bless you, sir."

            -- It wasn't until the end of the line, as the ambassador from Bolivia bent down to shake Roosevelt's hand, that his words were actually heard -- as Roosevelt murmured, "I murdered my grandmother this morning," the ambassador leaned over and whispered, "I'm sure she had it coming."

 

            -- it's frustrating when people don't listen to us, isn't it? -- when you are trying to say something and they're obviously not paying any attention at all – a lot of the time, they're distracted by their cell phones or the TV – sometimes, they just don't care enough to listen

            -- Kim repeatedly complains about this to me – I think she’s just as much to blame – the other day, she started a conversation with me by saying, “You’re not even paying attention, are you?” – I thought that was a weird way to begin a conversation

-- the truth is that my ability to focus has changed as I have gotten older – plus, I’m a man – so, a lot of the times, if I’m on my computer or on my phone, I simply don’t hear or see what’s going on around me – but that’s not okay

-- in this case, Kim was talking about going to town or something – I honestly wasn’t paying attention – because I was distracted and didn’t focus on what was important

-- this really bothered her, as she made me painfully aware of – so, I’m trying to do better – and I understand why she got upset – it’s not a great feeling when you talk with someone and they don’t pay attention – or when they interrupt you when you’re talking, like what you are saying is of no real importance compared to what they have to say

– I feel this, too – I’m sure you know what I’m talking about -- it's one of those shared human experiences

            -- and if it bothers us this much, imagine how it bothers God -- imagine what God thinks when He speaks to us and we don't take the time to listen or we just rush through our prayers and our Bible readings and daily devotions and get on with life

            -- I’m as guilty of this as anyone else, but I’m going to commit to doing better

            -- that's why I felt led to focus on the New Testament in the new year – I’m going to spend all year reading and meditating solely on the New Testament, with an emphasis on the words in red

            -- It’s like I've said before – the amount of the Bible you read in a day or in a year is not what is important -- what is important is that read with open hearts and open minds and open ears – what is important that when you read the Bible, you listen for the voice of God

-- every time we approach the Bible, we need to be asking, “What am I hearing? -- What is God saying to me? -- What does God want me to do with what I just read?"

            -- the goal is to reach the place where it becomes second-nature to listen for God and to look for His presence -- not just when we are taking time out of our day to read His word -- but every moment of every day -- when we're walking through life and going through our daily routines to just stop and think, "Where is God? -- What is He saying? -- What is He doing right now?  And what does He want me to do?"

 

            -- with that idea in our minds, I wanted to take a few moments here this morning to look at Psalm 19 in a little more depth and see what we can hear from God through His word

            -- this Psalm was written by King David -- a man who knew God intimately -- who had a relationship with Him from the time he was a boy and who continued to spend time with God throughout his long life

            -- that's not to say David was perfect -- the Bible tells us of the times he strayed from God's commands and suffered the consequences -- but it also tells us of how David returned to God and how God's word sustained him through trials and tribulations

            -- David learned to always listen for God’s voice – and that was what made him a man after God’s own heart

            -- this Psalm reminds us that God is constantly speaking to us and revealing His presence and His will to us in the world today – and if we will just learn to listen and respond to His word, we will experience renewing and revival and restoration in our lives – so, with that, let's look at this Psalm together again now

 

II.  God's Revelation through Creation

            -- Psalm 19:1-2

 

Psalm 19:1 The heavens declare the glory of God;

    the skies proclaim the work of his hands.

2 Day after day they pour forth speech;

    night after night they reveal knowledge.

 

 

            -- here in the beginning of this Psalm, David reminds us that God speaks to us through His creation -- he writes that the heavens declare the glory of God -- the skies proclaim the work of His hand

            -- all of creation -- from the sun and moon -- from the stars and the heavenly bodies -- to the awesome splendors of this natural world -- everything reflects the glory of God and proclaims His presence to all who see

            -- I have had the opportunity to see various places around this country and around the world -- I have seen the sun rise from the top of a mountain in Tennessee and watched as a new day began in Colorado -- I have stood at the base of waterfalls and marveled at the sheer power and grandeur of the water -- I have found myself on my hands and knees, engrossed at the striving of a beetle as it struggled to cross a moss-covered knoll – I have seen God through His creation so many times that I cannot count them

-- that’s why I cannot understand anyone who can look at this world and still say, "There is no God"

            -- God speaks to us through His creation -- He has put Himself into this world so that might know Him and respond to Him

            -- it’s just like the famous hymn, “How Great Thou Art,” says, “When I in awesome wonder consider all the works Thy hands have made -- I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder -- Thy pow'r throughout the universe displayed!

            -- when you see that, your soul can’t help but cry out to God, “How great Thou art!”

           

            -- theologians call this display of God’s presence and greatness in nature "general revelation" -- God's self-disclosure to a watching world through His creation -- God making Himself known to all creation

            -- that's exactly what David is saying here in these verses -- through God's creation, He opens our eyes and let's us see His glory -- His creation displays to us His power, wisdom, and divine nature -- it shouts to us through our everyday lives and tells us there is a God and we are not Him

           

 

            -- Psalm 19:3-6

 

Psalm 19:3 They have no speech, they use no words;

    no sound is heard from them.

4 Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,

    their words to the ends of the world.

In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun.

5     It is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,

    like a champion rejoicing to run his course.

6 It rises at one end of the heavens

    and makes its circuit to the other;

    nothing is deprived of its warmth.

 

            -- God's revelation in His creation is a means of grace by which He speaks to the whole world – it goes out to all people in all places – believers and nonbelievers alike

-- that is why Matthew 5:45 says that God causes the sun to rise on the evil and the good and that He sends rain on the righteous and unrighteous – it is because God’s work in Creation is a special revelation to the entire world

-- through Creation, all mankind becomes aware of their Creator -- and the truth revealed about God through creation is enough to make all people accountable to know about God and to worship Him – additionally, God’s revelation of Himself through Creation is sufficient to condemn those who plainly see there is a God but who refuse to worship Him   

            -- Romans 1:19-20 says, "what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them -- for since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities -- His eternal power and divine nature -- have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse"

            -- every single person from the beginning of time to this very moment -- every man, woman, and child who has every lived -- knows there is a God because God has revealed Himself to them through His creation -- and since they know there is a God, they are required to acknowledge Him and worship Him

 

            -- the musician Michael Card pointed this out in an interview with Discipleship Journal – he said, "Again and again in China I talked to people who had never heard of Christianity, never heard of Jesus, never heard a single word from the Bible -- yet through nature and their God-given conscience, many believed in God

            -- "not only did they believe God existed -- they had derived some understanding about His loving character because He provided food, water, and a beautiful world. One old woman told me, "I've known him for years. I just didn't know his name."”¹

 

            -- in these verses, David reminds us that God's word and His revelation of Himself is like the sun rising over us -- it shines light on His presence and makes us responsible to worship Him and to love Him, even if we don't fully understand the magnitude of who He is and what He has done at the moment

            -- and the thing about God's creation is that it is always there -- reminding of us of God and illuminating our hearts – all you have to do is walk outside, and you will find God

 

      -- as I was reflecting on this Psalm and God's revelation of Himself through creation, I was reminded of the faith of a Russian Christian around the turn of the century -- as the communists began to take over Russia, they began to tear down the churches and remove all the symbols of God that were in that country

      -- this Christian was confronted by a member of the Soviet police, who proudly said, "We will crush your religion.  We will remove everything that represents your God to you." 

      -- to which the Christian replied, "Oh really, how will you do that?  Will you pull the stars from the sky?  Will you darken the sun and the moon?  Will you destroy God's handiwork in nature?"

      -- the Soviet policeman was left standing there, speechless -- you see, he could destroy the man-made symbols -- he could pass laws declaring God was dead -- but the revelation of God in Creation could not be destroyed

      -- God created this world and His presence cries to us from it every single day – no matter what happens – no matter what others might say or do -- the heavens and the skies will continue to proclaim His glory and His presence until the end of the age

 

III.  God's Revelation through His Word

            -- now, while general revelation is sufficient to make everyone accountable to the truth of God's presence and to the requirement to worship Him, it is not sufficient for salvation

            -- general revelation awakens our understanding of the need for salvation but does not reveal the means of salvation -- for that we need God's special revelation

            -- theologians define God's "special revelation" as God's disclosure of Himself by an act of direct revelation -- in other words, God's special revelation is the way He communicates with us to reveal His plans of salvation and redemption and restoration

            -- there are many examples of God's special revelation in the Bible – we saw many examples of this in our study through the Book of Acts

            -- for instance, God revealed His plan of salvation – the good news of Jesus and the promise of the forgiveness of our sins and eternal life with Him – in many different ways

-- God spoke through angels – He spoke through dreams and visions – He spoke through missionaries and special messengers – He spoke through the prophets and the apostles

-- and He continues to speak through His church -- through circumstances -- and through the Holy Spirit in response to prayer

            -- but as we all know, the main way God speaks to us and reveals His plans for our lives today is through His written revelation – His Holy Word given to us in the Scriptures

 

            -- in this next section of Psalm 19 -- verses 7-10 -- David reminds us of God's special revelation given to us through His written word

            -- if you read carefully, you'll see these verses follow a pattern -- first, David gives us a different name for God's written word -- then he describes the character of that particular aspect of God's word -- followed by the target of God's word and the effect it can have in our spiritual lives

            -- as we go through this and as you look at this passage again at home, look for this pattern in this Psalm

 

            -- let's start at Psalm 19:7

 

Psalm 19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect,

    refreshing the soul.

The statutes of the Lord are trustworthy,

    making wise the simple.

 

 

            -- remember the pattern -- first, David gives us the name of the Word -- in this case, the Law

-- next, the character of the Word -- God's law is perfect

-- this is followed by the target and effect -- God's perfect law revives and restores our soul

            -- taken together, we are told that God's law is perfect -- by following His word, our soul is revived and restored -- it is brought back to life again -- made whole through the power of His word in our lives

 

            -- look at the next one -- the statutes -- the testimony or witness of the word -- are trustworthy -- sure -- reliable -- steadfast – His word – His statutes -- makes the simple -- the average person in this world -- wise in the ways of God

 

            -- Psalm 19:8

 

Psalm 19:8 The precepts of the Lord are right,

    giving joy to the heart.

The commands of the Lord are radiant,

    giving light to the eyes.

 

            -- the precepts -- the commands of God -- are right and radiant -- pure -- untainted by evil or error

            -- they bring joy to the heart and light to the eyes

-- God's precepts and commandments give us well being -- they change us from the inside out -- affecting our heart -- the seat of our emotions -- and the eye -- the window to the soul

 

            --  Psalm 19:9

 

Psalm 19:9 The fear of the Lord is pure,

    enduring forever.

The decrees of the Lord are firm,

    and all of them are righteous.

 

            -- the fear of the Lord – this is reverential awe -- obedient respect -- worshipful submission – the right consideration of his ordinances and judgments – the fear of the Lord affects our mind and our will – it brings purity – it endures forever

 

            -- the second part of this verse reminds us that God's word – His ordinances -- are sure and righteous – God’s word is the standard by which all else is measured -- it and it alone accurately reflects reality -- it and it alone tells it like it really is

 

            -- we live in a world that constantly tries to redefine what is right and what is acceptable -- we live in a world of shifting sand, where those in charge decide what is moral and right and just -- but God's word does not change -- it is permanent and relevant and never in need of alteration

            -- while those around us may proclaim evil things "good" and immoral things "normal," God's word corrects and keeps us from following the wrong path or accepting a lie in place of His truth

            -- as Adam Clarke put it, we find in God's word His "system of instruction, by which men are taught the knowledge of God and themselves -- directed how to walk so as to please God -- redeemed from crooked paths -- and guided in the way everlasting"

 

            -- Psalm 19:10

 

Psalm 19:10 They are more precious than gold,

    than much pure gold;

they are sweeter than honey,

    than honey from the honeycomb.

 

 

            -- God's word is more precious than gold and sweeter than honey -- many people in our day rush around trying to gain wealth and prestige and power – they seek the sweetness of pleasure and the pursuit of happiness -- but, in the end, all that they have accumulated will turn to dust

            -- David tells us that God's word is more precious than all the gold of the world -- it is sweeter than honey -- because it will never fade away -- it will never rust or be stolen or turn to dust -- God's word is the one thing in this world that we can depend on -- and the person who knows God's word and who follows God's commands is the wealthiest person there is

            -- worldly knowledge and worldly wealth will only get you so far – worldly power is only good for a moment -- knowing God through His word will get you to heaven

 

            -- before we move on to the next section, I want to point out something I found really interesting in this chapter -- if you go back to the original Hebrew, you'll see that David changes how he calls on the name of God in this Psalm

 

            -- in verses 1-6, as David writes of God's general revelation through creation, he uses the name Elohim for God -- Elohim is used to denote God's power and majesty -- it is the same word used in Genesis 1 for God as we read of God creating the heavens and the earth

            -- by using the name Elohim in the first section of this Psalm, David reminds us that God is Creator -- Maker -- Provider -- for all of creation -- for every man, woman, and child -- not just for the Christians -- not just for the Jews -- but for every person

            -- the use of the name Elohim in verses 1 through 6 speaks of God's prevenient grace that reaches out to all people at all times to call them into relationship with God

            -- Elohim uses Creation as general revelation of Himself to the world

 

            -- but here in verses 7-10, David stops using Elohim, and instead uses God's covenant name Yahweh -- the name by which the nation of Israel knew God

-- this is the name that God first gave Moses at the burning bush when Moses asked God, "Whom do I say is sending me? -- Whom do I say You are?"

            -- this calls attention to the fact that God's written word is His special revelation for His special people – Yahweh is the name of the burning bush – it is the name of the cross – it is the name of the empty tomb

-- Yahweh is for those who know Him and for those He knows -- for those who have a relationship with Him -- for those who responded to His general revelation of Himself in Creation and who have come to know Him as Lord and Savior – for those who dig into His word to seek Him and find Him and hear from Him

 

            -- by using these two names for God, David is reminding us that God declares His presence through creation to open our ears and our eyes and our hearts to His presence for a reason -- He does it to draw us into a special relationship with Him that will lead to redemption and salvation and restoration for our souls

            -- in other words, God speaks in creation to the entire world as Elohim so we might respond to Him as Yahweh – and then as Yeshua -- Jesus

 

IV.  God's Revelation Demands a Response

            -- let's finish this up – look back at Psalm 19:11-14

 

Psalm 19:11 By them your servant is warned;

    in keeping them there is great reward.

12 But who can discern their own errors?

    Forgive my hidden faults.

13 Keep your servant also from willful sins;

    may they not rule over me.

Then I will be blameless,

    innocent of great transgression.

 

14 May these words of my mouth and this meditation of my heart

    be pleasing in your sight,

    Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer.

 

 

            -- God doesn't speak just for the sake of speaking -- He speaks to communicate His will and His plans for our lives -- He speaks that we might respond to what He is telling us

            -- God's word always demands a response

 

            -- David writes here that God's word serves two main purposes – first, it guides our footsteps and keeps us on the right path -- it rewards us and leads us into God's blessings as we follow His words and His ways -- as we keep His law and His precepts

            -- and, secondly -- David tells us that God's word warns us when we have missed the mark -- when we have strayed away from God's path and are heading the wrong way

-- God's word is like a warning light in our lives -- an alarm that lets us know something is wrong

            -- being in God’s word – reading it and meditating on it and seeking God through it -- leads to recognition of who we are and of where we are at with Christ

 

            -- in verse 12 it says that God's word reveals our hidden faults -- this is referring to our unintentional sins and sins of omission -- as we read God's word, we grow into a deeper understanding of what is right and what is wrong -- and we start to realize that there are some things in our lives that we have been doing that are actually wrong and are hurtful to us or to others -- like Paul's example in the New Testament with the eating of meat sacrificed to idols

 

            -- in verse 13 David writes that God's word not only reveals willful sins, but keeps us from committing them -- God's word becomes a boundary in our lives -- kind of like the sidelines on a football field

-- by reading God's word -- by knowing what He is saying -- we know what is acceptable and what is not -- we know where we can go and what we can do and what crosses the line of God's law and how God wants us to live as His body on earth today

 

            -- when we come to know Christ as Lord and Savior -- when we hear Him and respond to His word and abide by His law -- then sin no longer rules over us and we are blameless in the sight of God -- innocent of all transgression

            -- following God's word makes us pleasing in His sight and leads to redemption, restoration, and rest in His eternal arms

 

V.  Closing

            -- The American Bible Society periodically releases a survey they call, "The State of the Bible" -- and there's some good news and some bad news about Bible reading and biblical literacy in America

            -- First, here's the encouraging news -- 85 percent of all homes in America have at least one Bible and 69 percent of Americans believe the Bible provides answers on how to live a meaningful life.

            -- But here's the bad news -- even though most of the homes in America have a Bible, 55 percent of Americans read the Bible less than once a year and many only look at the Bible during worship services

-- only 17% of Americans are what the American Bible Society terms as “Scripturally Engaged” – meaning they read the Bible several times a year – however, only 9% of Americans read the Bible every day

 

            -- how are we to hear God’s voice when He speaks if we don't open His Word? -- we spend more time checking and reading e-mail, texts, and Facebook statuses than we do listening to the God of all creation

 

            -- In her book Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus, Lois Tverberg retells the following story about a famous first century rabbi named Rabbi Akiva:

 

            -- "One day as Rabbi Akiva was shepherding his flocks, he noticed a tiny stream trickling down a hillside, dripping over a ledge on its way toward the river below -- Below was a massive boulder -- Surprisingly, the rock bore a deep impression -- The drip, drip, drip of water over the centuries had hollowed away the stone.

            -- "Akiva commented, "If mere water can do this to hard rock, how much more can God's Word carve a way into my heart of flesh?"

            -- "Akiva realized that if the water had flowed over the rock all at once, the rock would have been unchanged -- It was the slow but steady impact of each small droplet, year after year, that completely reformed the stone."²

 

            -- we need to learn to receive God's word like the boulder in this story received the water from the stream – slow and steady – taking time to read it and meditate on it and to listen for God to speak to us through it

 

            -- the Bible is God's special revelation to us -- it tells us who God is -- what He has done for us -- and what He want us to do for Him

            -- it is a living word that can touch our lives today -- it can transform us -- it can revive us -- it can renew us -- it can sustain us -- but it can't do any of that if we don't let it

            -- we have to take it in daily – to let it become a part of us – to let it be the vessel by which we hear God speak to us -- so we will become the men and women He has called us to be and so we might walk in the blessings He promises in His kingdom

 

            -- I know some of you are reading through the whole Bible this year – and I applaud you for that – I know most of you are picking up the Bible some throughout the week, even if it’s just on Sunday

-- but let me challenge you this morning – let’s commit to doing more with God’s word as we prepare for the Advent Season and for Christmas and the New Year

-- if you finished reading the whole Bible this year, why not just commit to reading a section of the Bible – maybe the New Testament or the Gospels – this year?

-- if you haven’t been reading the Bible every day, why not start? – just take a few verses – maybe a chapter – and commit to reading it every single day

 

-- no matter what you do, as you read God’s word, take it slow – take it in deep – meditate on it – think about it – listen for God’s voice to speak to you through it

 

-- this Psalm tells us that God reveals Himself and His will and His ways through creation and through the special revelation of His word – so, let’s begin to seek Him through His word, beginning today

 

-- the important thing is not how much we read – but that we are in the Bible and we are listening for God and we are responding as He leads, so we can be transformed and renewed in His presence

 

            -- let us pray

------------------------------------

1 Michael Card, interview in Discipleship Journal (Nov/Dec 2002), p. 72

2 Lois Tverberg, Walking in the Dust of Rabbi Jesus (Zondervan, 2012)

 

SERMON: MORE RIGHTEOUS THAN I

 

Naylor Community Christian Church

Naylor, Georgia

 

I.  Introduction

            -- turn in Bibles to Genesis 38:1-11

 

Genesis 38:1 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. 2 There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua. He married her and made love to her; 3 she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er. 4 She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan. 5 She gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah. It was at Kezib that she gave birth to him.

 

6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death.

 

8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.

 

11 Judah then said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s household until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, just like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s household.

 

            -- I want to open this morning by sharing with you a story I once heard from a chaplain about the time he overheard his son playing with friends in the back yard – let me read this to you now:

 

-- "When my son was a small boy playing with his buddies in the back yard, I overheard them talking one day -- and the conversation was, amusingly, one of those, "My dad can whip your dad' routines."

-- "I heard one boy proudly say, "My dad knows the mayor of our town!' -- Then I heard another boy say, “That's nothing! My dad knows the governor of our state!"

-- Wondering what was coming next in the program of bragging, I heard a wonderfully familiar voice -- that of my own little son – he turned to his friends and proclaimed, “That's nothing! My dad knows God!"

-- "I swiftly slipped away from my place of eavesdropping with tears running down my cheeks -- I dropped on my knees in my room and prayed earnestly and gratefully, “Oh, God, I pray that my boy will always be able to say, "My dad knows God."”

 

II.  What is Righteousness?

-- what does it mean to know God? – what is the biblical term for that?

-- we all know the terms salvation and justification – the means of grace which save us from our sins as we repent of our sins and turn to Jesus in faith and trust for the forgiveness of sins and for eternal life through Him – but salvation and justification aren’t the term that the Bible uses to describe knowing God

-- the term is actually “righteousness” – and it points to the relationship with God that is made possible through Jesus’ atoning death on the cross and His resurrection – it is this relationship that was restored through Jesus as we were reconciled with the Father through Him

-- that’s why we read in 2 Corinthians 5:18-19 about the ministry of reconciliation – that God was reconciling the world to Himself – to reconcile with someone means that you are restoring your relationship with them – that you are making two conflicting things compatible

– in this case, reconciling the person of God – the holiness of God – with mankind, who was filled with sin and controlled by a sin nature that conflicted with God’s holiness

-- the only way we could be reconciled with God was by Jesus taking our sinfulness away by putting it to death on the cross – and then replacing our sinfulness with something compatible with God’s nature – giving us His very righteousness – imputing to us His righteousness -- so that we would be able to be reconciled with the Father

-- that’s what we read in 2 Corinthians 5:21, “For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God”

 

 – this idea of reconciliation is why righteousness is sometimes defined as being in a right relationship with God – it is because we have been reconciled to Him – because our natures and our being have been transformed – through the righteousness of Christ that was imputed to us

-- the only way we can “know” God, as the little boy said his father knew God – the only way we can know God -- the only way we can be in a right relationship with Him – is through Jesus and His imputed righteousness

 

-- so, when we speak about or read in the Bible about the righteousness that comes from Christ – the righteousness of God – this is speaking about the attributes of His person – His holiness and purity and sinlessness – all of which were transferred to us through the cross as we believed in Jesus and put our faith in His atoning death and resurrection

-- we are holy in the sight of God as Jesus is holy – not because of anything that we have done – not because of any acts of holiness that we have done – but only because His holiness – His righteousness – has been imputed to us

 

-- but there is another aspect of righteousness that we read about in the Bible – this is the righteousness of mankind – being in right relationships with others

-- look up here at the cross – notice that the cross is made of two parts – there is a vertical part and a horizontal part – the vertical part of the cross reminds us that Jesus’ atoning death reconciled us with the Father – He made us righteous in the sight of God by imputing – by giving – His own righteousness to us

-- but there is also a horizontal aspect to the cross – which tells us that Jesus’ death on the cross did more for us than reconcile us to the Father and bring salvation and justification – His death changed who we are so that we might not only be reconciled with the Father, but we could be reconciled with mankind – with other people

-- in other words, the righteousness of Christ that was imputed to us changed us so that we could begin to love our neighbors as ourselves – to even love our enemies, as ourselves

-- that’s why we say that the commandments that Jesus said were the greatest commandments in Matthew 22:37-40 – that we are to “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” – and to “love your neighbor as yourself” – are now possible because His righteousness was given to us and we are filled with the power of His Holy Spirit

 

-- we are reconciled to both God and to man through the righteousness of Christ – and this has implications for us in our everyday lives

-- we sing in church the song, “They will know we are Christians by our love, by our love” – while we live in open hostility to those around us

-- we proclaim the command of Christ to love one another – to love our neighbor as ourselves – to even love our enemies – while we stab them with the blade of hatred and injustice

-- I saw a meme online this week that said, “Rather than seeing Christ put back in our nation, I’d like to see Christ put back in Christians” – and that says a lot about how we treat others – how we act towards those around us – the very ones that Christ called us to love as proof of our love of Him

-- so, this morning, I want us to take a moment to think about what it means to be righteous in this world today – to live in a right relationship – not only through reconciliation with the Father – but in a right relationship with those around us

-- to remember that we are called to be righteous vertically and horizontally – and to live holy and righteous lives in right relationships with both God and mankind

 

-- to try to get a biblical perspective on the importance of righteousness and right relationships with others, we’re going to look at a story here in the Book of Genesis that you rarely hear taught – it is hard story to hear – it is a hard story to understand and to apply – but I think it is timely for us to look at it this morning

-- in the middle of the story in Genesis about Joseph, we are given the story of Judah and Tamar – it seems like it is out of context – until you realize that God had Moses include it at this point to demonstrate that the unrighteousness of the Israelites was systemic – in all their dealings with others, they were unrighteous and unjust

-- we see that in their relationship with Joseph -- the sons of Israel were unrighteous to Joseph in the way they treated him and as they sold him into slavery in Egypt – and we see that in the actions of one of the leading sons of Israel, Judah -- Judah and his sons were unrighteous to Tamar – who represents those who are wronged by the very people that should be harbingers of holiness and righteousness in the world today and who seek justice and reconciliation from those who wronged them

-- so, let's look now at the story of Judah and Tamar and see what we can learn about righteousness from this passage

III.  Scripture Lesson (Genesis 38:1-30)

-- I have been trying to impress on you the importance of exegesis when reading and studying the Bible – of reading it in context and in light of how God intended His message to be heard by the original audience before applying it to ourselves

-- so, to follow this principle, let me give you just a bit of the background and context of Genesis 38 before we begin – as I said, this chapter occurs in the middle of the story of Joseph – Joseph was Israel’s favorite son – the firstborn son of his true love Rachel – Israel doted on Joseph and favored him above all his other sons, except for Joseph’s brother Benjamin – it was to Joseph that Israel gave the coat of many colors, which led Joseph’s brothers to be even more jealous and hateful to him

-- in Genesis 37, we read how the brothers’ hatred of Joseph comes to full force, as he checks up on them in the field – they attack Joseph and take his coat from him – and consider killing him – before they eventually sell him to a group of Midianite traders enroute to Egypt on the suggestion of Judah – thus begins Joseph’s life as a slave in Egypt

-- but the importance of this story was to show the unrighteous way the brothers acted towards Joseph and towards their father – following Judah’s lead, the brothers did not consider Joseph one of them, but unrightly and unjustly sold him into slavery

-- which brings us to Chapter 38 and the story of Judah and his relationship with Tamar – where once again, we see Judah treating others unrighteously instead of how God commanded

 

-- Judah was the fourth oldest son of Jacob or Israel -- but even though he was not the oldest, he still was the most influential leader of the 12 sons – we see that throughout the story of the sons of Israel here in Genesis

-- for instance, after Joseph had been sold into slavery in Egypt, a great famine occurred in the land of Canaan – and the Israelites were not able to grow enough food to support their family – Israel or Jacob, as we sometimes see him called in Genesis – sent all of his remaining sons to Egypt to buy grain to get them through the famine – all except Benjamin, his youngest and the full brother to Joseph, who Israel thought was dead

-- Judah took charge of this trip and it was Judah who led the negotiations with Egypt to buy grain for the family

-- and, of course, we know that it was through the family line of Judah that the Messiah was to come – so, even though Judah was not the oldest son, he was the leader and the most influential of all the brothers

 

-- look back at Genesis 38:1-5

 

Genesis 38:1 At that time, Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hirah. 2 There Judah met the daughter of a Canaanite man named Shua. He married her and made love to her; 3 she became pregnant and gave birth to a son, who was named Er. 4 She conceived again and gave birth to a son and named him Onan. 5 She gave birth to still another son and named him Shelah. It was at Kezib that she gave birth to him.

 

 

-- after the brothers sold Joseph into slavery, they continued to live their lives as normal – as though nothing out of the ordinary had happened – their actions towards Joseph were just reflective of the way they interacted with everyone around them

-- we read here that Judah left his brothers and went down to stay with a man of Adullam named Hiram – he ended up marrying a Canaanite woman named Shua – which we should point out was direct disobedience to the commands of God – God had called His people to be separate from the world – to live differently from those around them – to not follow their ways or their practices – and so they were not to marry outside the family to prevent contamination from the ungodly

-- Judah was not righteous towards Joseph – and now he shows his unrighteousness towards God by marrying a Canaanite woman – it was through her that Judah had three sons – Er, Onan, and Shelah

 

-- verse 6-10

 

Genesis 38:6 Judah got a wife for Er, his firstborn, and her name was Tamar. 7 But Er, Judah’s firstborn, was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death.

 

8 Then Judah said to Onan, “Sleep with your brother’s wife and fulfill your duty to her as a brother-in-law to raise up offspring for your brother.” 9 But Onan knew that the child would not be his; so whenever he slept with his brother’s wife, he spilled his semen on the ground to keep from providing offspring for his brother. 10 What he did was wicked in the Lord’s sight; so the Lord put him to death also.

 

 

-- okay, there’s a lot going on in these verses that we need to explain

 

-- first, I want to call your attention to how the sons of Judah are described here – both Er and Onan are described as being “wicked” – this is an apt description of who they were and how they lived and related to those around them

-- to be “wicked” in this context is to be estranged from God – it is to be living in sin and unrighteousness – it is to be doing things that God does not want you to do

-- all of us were wicked before we came to know Jesus as our Lord and Savior – it describes the nature of our heart and the result of the sin nature that lives in all of us – to be wicked is to be unrighteous and out of relationship with God

-- and even though God had called Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to be His people – for them and their descendants to be His chosen race on earth – to be those who would be the image bearers of God and through whom the Savior of the world would come – it is important to note that the sons of the leader of the Israelites are both described here as wicked – unrighteous – sinful – not right with God

-- and we’ll see how their unrighteousness and wickedness affect their relationships in a moment

 

-- the second thing we see in these verses is a description of the enactment of what is known as a levirate marriage – this was a custom in which the brother of a deceased man is required or expected to marry his widowed sister-in-law, particularly if the deceased died without children

-- we see the practice of levirate marriages described in more detail in Deuteronomy 25:5-6 -- "If brothers are living together and one of them dies without a son, his widow must not marry outside the family. Her husband's brother shall take her and marry her and fulfill the duty of a brother-in-law to her. The first son she bears shall carry on the name of the dead brother so that his name will not be blotted out from Israel."

-- so, basically, God established this type of marriage arrangement to ensure the continuation of a family and to ensure that His chosen people remained faithful to Him and separate from the world, as He commanded

-- in Biblical times, the lineage of a family and the fortune of a family followed the eldest son – that means the land and the wealth and all that was given by God to that family was to be passed on from Father to the eldest son – so, it was important that his line continued, even if he passed before having a male heir

-- also, the practice of levirate marriage was a way of providing for widows – women had no rights and no wealth in this day – they were dependent on their family to provide for them – for this reason, if a widow had children, then her children were obligated by law to take care of her -- this was a way of making sure that both the family line continued and all members of the family were taken care of

-- we see this concept of levirate marriage as the core foundational truth in the story of Ruth from the Bible – where Ruth and Naomi struggled to survive until Boaz redeemed them according to the law of levirate marriage

 

-- so, the story of Judah’s unrighteousness begins when he marries his firstborn son, Er, to Tamar – a Gentile who lived in the land where Judah was

-- Er was so wicked that God put him to death before he had a child – that meant two things – first, Judah’s line of inheritance was broken, since his firstborn son did not have an heir – and second, it meant that Tamar had no one to protect her and provide for her after the death of Er

-- so, following the law of levirate marriage, Judah tells Onan, Er’s brother, to fulfill his duty by marrying Tamar and providing her with a son who would continue to represent the line of Judah and Er as Judah’s rightful heir

-- we are not told if Onan had another wife or other children, but since Er had passed without an heir, Onan now stood to receive the inheritance of Judah – but one thing stood in his way – the righteousness transmitted through the law of levirate marriage

-- Onan knew that if he fathered a child with Tamar, then that child would receive all the inheritance of the family -- in other words, Onan and any children he had through another marriage would not be eligible to receive the family fortune

-- so, out of greed, he refused to father a child for Er as the law demanded – and just like with Er, because of his wickedness – because of his greed and his unrighteousness towards both God and Tamar, the Lord put him to death, too

 

-- verse 11

 

Genesis 38:11 Judah then said to his daughter-in-law Tamar, “Live as a widow in your father’s household until my son Shelah grows up.” For he thought, “He may die too, just like his brothers.” So Tamar went to live in her father’s household.

 

-- at this point, Judah punted and chose to disobey God by not following the law of levirate marriage – after seeing two of his sons die after being married to Tamar, Judah decided he would not risk a third

-- and so he uses the excuse that Shelah was too young for marriage, and he tells Tamar to go back to her father’s household to live with him as a widow

-- not only does Judah refuse to follow the law of levirate marriage, he also refuses to take care of Tamar in his household as the law and as God demanded – instead, he sent her back to live with her father and to fend for herself

-- and Tamar had no choice but to return to her father’s household – even though the law and God’s righteousness demanded otherwise

 

-- verse 12-19

 

Genesis 38:12 After a long time Judah’s wife, the daughter of Shua, died. When Judah had recovered from his grief, he went up to Timnah, to the men who were shearing his sheep, and his friend Hirah the Adullamite went with him.

 

13 When Tamar was told, “Your father-in-law is on his way to Timnah to shear his sheep,” 14 she took off her widow’s clothes, covered herself with a veil to disguise herself, and then sat down at the entrance to Enaim, which is on the road to Timnah. For she saw that, though Shelah had now grown up, she had not been given to him as his wife.

 

15 When Judah saw her, he thought she was a prostitute, for she had covered her face. 16 Not realizing that she was his daughter-in-law, he went over to her by the roadside and said, “Come now, let me sleep with you.”

 

“And what will you give me to sleep with you?” she asked.

 

17 “I’ll send you a young goat from my flock,” he said.

 

“Will you give me something as a pledge until you send it?” she asked.

 

18 He said, “What pledge should I give you?”

 

“Your seal and its cord, and the staff in your hand,” she answered. So he gave them to her and slept with her, and she became pregnant by him. 19 After she left, she took off her veil and put on her widow’s clothes again.

 

-- by the time that Judah's wife died, Tamar had figured out that Judah was not dealing with her honestly – he was as unrighteous and wicked as his two sons had been towards her, so she took matters into her own hand -- she was going to make sure the law of God was followed even if she had to do it deceitfully

-- Tamar dressed as a prostitute and seduced Judah and conceived a child with him

 

-- now here’s where exegesis comes into play – we read this story and see it as an act of sexual immorality – both by Judah and by Tamar, who pretended to be a prostitute to seduce him

-- but the purpose of this story’s inclusion in the Bible and the way it would have been understood and heard by the Bible’s original audience was a story of a family’s unrighteousness and wickedness towards a vulnerable woman -- they would have understood the story to be primarily about economics and honor, and the importance of following the righteousness of God’s holy commands

-- in this case, Tamar rightly did what she had to do in order to fulfill the law and the righteousness of God since Judah and his sons acted wickedly and unjustly towards her

-- as Skye Jethani put it, “because three wicked men had broken their promises and the socially acceptable system for her protection had failed her, Tamar believed her only choice was to break the rules. Out of desperation, she concealed her identity, pretended to be a prostitute, and conceived a child with her father-in-law, Judah”

-- it’s important for us to see this story in that light and not to read it as a story of sexual immorality – it is a story of someone seeking justice because of a systemic unrighteousness perpetrated against them

 

-- skip down to verse 24-26

 

Genesis 38:24 About three months later Judah was told, “Your daughter-in-law Tamar is guilty of prostitution, and as a result she is now pregnant.”

 

Judah said, “Bring her out and have her burned to death!”

 

25 As she was being brought out, she sent a message to her father-in-law. “I am pregnant by the man who owns these,” she said. And she added, “See if you recognize whose seal and cord and staff these are.”

 

26 Judah recognized them and said, “She is more righteous than I, since I wouldn’t give her to my son Shelah.” And he did not sleep with her again.

 

-- when Judah found out Tamar was pregnant, he was incensed -- he demanded that she be brought before him and be killed for sexual immorality – for committing adultery

-- but when Tamar presented Judah’s seal and cord and staff in her defense of her actions, Judah realized the truth of the matter – he was the father of Tamar’s children – and that meant that when he had been unrighteous and wicked towards her in the sight of God, that she had acted in a way to force his righteousness, even when he didn’t want to do it

-- the law of God was fulfilled, even though Judah himself had tried to keep it from happening

 

-- the key verse in this entire story about Judah and Tamar is verse 26 -- "She is more righteous than I"

-- and here we are back at the idea of righteousness – in this case, the idea of righteousness is referring to the horizontal understanding of conducting ourselves in right relationships with other people

-- the Hebrew word used here is "Tsedequah" -- it does not mean holy -- or sinless -- or pure -- the word Tsedequah refers to having right relationships with other people – it means that we are to be in right relationships with others and to fulfill the demands of any covenantal relationships that we are in, such as familial or marriage covenants

 -- to put this in simple terms, this means that we act in a right way to other people – especially to people in our family or that we are married to – that we act righteously and holy towards them – we do what we are supposed to do and we don’t act with hatred or injustice or persecution to others

 

-- when King Saul was seeking to kill David, there was an occasion when David had the opportunity to kill Saul when he took a bathroom break in a cave – but David refused to do that because Saul had been called and anointed by God to be king of Israel at that time – and for David to harm Saul would be an unrighteous act

-- when Saul realizes that David had acted righteously towards him, even when he was being persecuted by Saul, he proclaims to David in 1 Samuel 24:17, "You are more righteous than I"

-- when someone says that – when someone does that in the Bible – what they mean is that in this relationship between them and the other person, that person was loyal and faithful to the requirements of justice and honor – they did what was necessary to keep the relationship intact and to follow the royal law of God to love others as ourselves – not allowing enmity or injustice to come between them

 

-- in the case of Judah and Tamar, Tamar did what she had to do to keep the line of Judah -- the lineage of Er – intact

-- when justice was denied her – when Judah and his sons acted wickedly towards her -- she became a prostitute to Judah in order to ensure the requirements of righteousness in the sight of God were met – and when confronted with the truth, Judah recognized his sin

-- to quote Skye Jethani again, “It’s important to notice that Judah does not confess his sin of sleeping with a prostitute, but rather his far greater sin of not keeping his promise to provide for Tamar’s welfare. He understood that Tamar’s actions came from weakness and desperation, but he was guilty of abusing his power and neglecting his duty. Therefore, he had the far greater sin.”

 

-- “Tamar represents a woman whom the system failed. She represents those who suffer because men in power misuse their authority and neglect those in need.

-- “And through her tenacity and willingness to embrace shame and ridicule, she exposed their wickedness.

-- Tamar became sin to reveal the sin of the unrighteousness of Judah and to foreshadow what the New Testament would declare about Jesus in 2 Corinthians 5:21, that we mentioned earlier -- “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God”¹

-- one thing that we need to remember in this story of Judah and Tamar is that Perez, the son of their illicit relationship, was a direct ancestor of Jesus – and in Matthew, we read about Tamar in Jesus’ genealogy

-- why does Matthew include a woman – especially a Gentile woman – in the genealogy of Jesus? – it’s because her story tells part of Jesus’ story.

-- just as Judah and his sons were to take care of her and be righteous in their dealings with her, the leaders of Israel were responsible to care for the people and prepare for the Messiah.

-- “Instead, they abused their power, neglected the people, and rejected Jesus. When the established systems of godly authority failed, like [in the story of] Tamar, Jesus welcomed humiliation and ridicule by allowing himself to die on a cross. In doing so, he exposed the true evil and injustice of the world”¹ and did what was necessary to restore righteousness in the world – both vertically and horizontally – by reconciling man with God and man with each other

 

IV.  Closing

            -- so, what does all this mean to us?

-- in Zephaniah 2:3 we read, “Seek the LORD, all you humble of the land, you who do what he commands. Seek righteousness, seek humility"

-- and in Romans 1:17 it says, "The righteous will live by faith"

 

-- the story of the cross is the story of righteousness – through the cross, Jesus reconciled us to the Father and imputed His righteousness to us – making us holy and pure in the eyes of God – and breaking the power of sin in our lives

-- and He also made it possible for us to be reconciled to all those around us – to be empowered through His Spirit to love our neighbors and our enemies as ourselves – to live in a right relationship with them – doing what is right and holy in the eyes of God to others

 

            -- Tamar was more righteous than Judah in their relationship, because she honored and maintained the relationship, as God’s holy law commanded – granted, she didn't do it in the most moral way -- but her circumstances and the systemic wickedness that Judah and his sons had perpetrated against her left her with no other avenue of recourse – she did what she had to do to fulfill the law of righteousness

-- and because of her actions, God made Tamar and Judah's son Perez a direct ancestor of Jesus Christ

 

            -- I have been a Christian for a long time now – and I have tried to serve God and follow His word to the best of my ability – I have tried to live righteous and holy towards God in my life, even though I fail all the time – as all of us do

            -- but one thing that God has shown me in the last several years is the importance of not only being in a right relationship with Him, but in a right relationship with those around me – He showed me that Christianity is not so much about doing what is right, but living in a right relationship to Him and to others

            -- that was the failure of the desert fathers – they thought they could achieve true holiness and righteousness by isolating themselves in the desert alone and in monasteries – but they realized they had missed the most important part

            -- Christ came to reconcile us with both God and with man – and we cannot be a Christian apart from others – we cannot love our neighbor as ourselves if we are not near our neighbors – we cannot fully be who God called us to be unless we are living in righteousness with both God and His people

            -- and we are failing to live as He intended – we see that in the way the world thinks of us – we see that in the way the world describes us – when they look at Christians, they are not seeing love – they are not seeing people seeking righteous relationships – they are seeing hatred and persecution and injustice

 

            -- the story of Judah and Tamar is intended to point us to Christ and the cross – to show us a better way – the way of Jesus – the way of righteousness – the way of love

            -- so, as we close this morning, let us take a moment and consider how we act towards those around us – not only our family and our friends – but the strangers and the acquaintances and the enemies in our lives – to those who may vote differently than us or belong to a different political party

            -- are they seeing the love of God through us? – do we love them and show them the righteousness of God through how we treat them – through how we act towards them?

            -- consider your social media posts – consider your words and your actions – are you loving your neighbor and your enemy as God intends? – are you righteous in the way you deal with them?

            -- search your heart – open yourself before God – and if you need to repent of the way you have acted or the words or the thoughts you have about others – then take a moment now to get right with God and right with those around us

            -- with that, let us pray

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1 Skye Jethani – With God Daily Devotional, 26 October 2026, Tamar: Exposing the System's Failure