We continue our NEW sermon series entitled “Who Cares?”. Preaching from Nathan Gordon. Worship led by Terri Wheeler.

Sermon Notes

Introduction

As we dig deeper into Psalm 139 this morning, we are looking at God’s thoughts about us and the world we are living in today. What does God think about the decisions you have made in your life? Do you think He is pleased or displeased with you now? We often spend a lot of time gathering and collecting our thoughts in worship that explain how we feel about God, but today we are going to pay attention to what God thinks about us and His church today.

For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.

Ephesians 2:10

God pays close attention to the details – v16

• David recognized his life was mapped out by the chief designer of his life.
• God intricately maps out a perfect plan for our lives but allows us the liberty to follow His plan or choose our own path.  – see John 7:17, Joshua 24:15, Revelation 3:20, Mark 8:34
• God has the ability to see the big picture of our lives whilst also paying close attention to the finite details.

God’s thoughts are precious in content. – v17

• Although David was speaking of himself, God’s thoughts are in fact precious and of great value for all of humanity.
• God thinks so highly of humanity that he planned the course for our salvation before the world was even framed. – 1 Peter 1:18-20
• Psalm 116:15 Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his faithful servants. When a believer dies who was faithful to God, the Lord is pleased because He or She embraced the precious and perfect plan of God for their life.
• God can also be grieved, displeased, and even angry in his thoughts towards sin and disobedience. – See Deut 9:8, Exo 15:7, 2 Kings 13:3, Matt 21:12-13, Matt 3:7, Isa 13:9

Challenge = Because of the holiness of God his thoughts concerning his creation are pure and precious. God however can be displeased with his creation when we sin and turn away from the plans he has for us.

The Good news for humanity = God hates Sin, but he loves the sinner! If we turn back to Him in genuine repentance, then he will be faithful and just to forgive us of our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

God’s thoughts are innumerable & refreshing. – v17-18

• David understood God’s thoughts are too great in number to be counted.
• We can never become dissatisfied or bored with the vast number of thoughts from God.
• Humanity is limited to what we can comprehend of God’s thoughts but even with our limited understanding God has revealed enough of his divinity for us to be in awe of his presence each day.
• Day after Day throughout our lives we can be refreshed and renewed through the grace of God and the daily sustenance of His word. – Lamentations 3:22

Challenge – Whose report will you believe? sometimes we fix our attention on too much negative and bad news that we overlook the opportunity to focus on the precious and innumerable number of thoughts God has towards us.

Questions for further study

1. During the sermon it was highlighted that God pays close attention to the details of our lives. Do you believe God’s plans are always precious and good towards us? Discuss your reasons why. (Think about Job’s suffering which was allowed by God) how does God use even suffering and trials to develop our character? (See also James 1:3)
2. How often do you stop to consider that God has been interested in you even before you were born, and so he is intensely interested in the outcome of your life? How should knowing this shape your behavior and decisions?
3. Spend some time assessing some of your thoughts throughout the day.  Would you describe most of your thoughts today as precious or something else? What do you think shaped your thoughts today?
4. According to 139:13-16, when did God first establish a relationship with each of us? What significance does this have for the unborn?
5. In verse 16 David speaks to God’s divine plan for his life that was put together before he was even born. Discuss God’s foreknowledge of us compared to our free will to make our own choices. Can we choose to follow our own path exclusively or will the divine plan of God prevail in our lives at some point?