Make Me Know My End
Text: Psalms 39
I. Psalms 38-40 cover related themes regarding the problems caused by sin
A. God has punished David because of his sin - Psalms 38:1-2
B. Between God’s punishment and the burden of the sin itself, David feels overwhelmed - Psalms 38:3-8
C. Even close friends and family avoid you when you are suffering because of sin - Psalms 38:11
D. Worse, your enemies try to gain an advantage in your time of weakness - Psalms 38:12, 19-20
II. David resolves to not sin
A. He is going to keep careful watch over what he says - Psalms 39:1
1. Controlling our words is a desirable state - James 3:2
2. He was especially going to be careful in the presence of his enemies
a. They are the ones looking for ways to bring David down
b. They would pounce at the first sign of wrongdoing on David’s part
B. But like many of us, David went too far
1. His care to not say something wrong caused him to not say anything good - Psalms 39:2
2. Knowing the good to be done and not doing it is also a sin - James 4:17
3. Thus, in trying to avoid sinning, David sinned - Ecclesiastes 7:16
4. Instead of a solution, David’s sorrows increased
C. The need to speak burned within - Psalms 39:3
1. As Jeremiah learned when he tried not to speak because of the wicked - Jeremiah 20:7-9
2. Silence is not the solution
III. We need to realize just how little time we have
A. However long our days on earth are, they are short - Psalms 39:4
1. James noted this in regards to making plans - James 4:13-16
a. Just before noting that to do nothing is also a sin
b. We aren’t guaranteed a tomorrow.
c. We cannot leave unsaid, what needs to be said
2. Three “surely”s - Psalms 39:5-6
a. Every man is a mere breath (literally a vanity).
(1) Compared to eternity, life is nothing
b. Every man moves through life like a ghost.
(1) We each are close to death - Hebrews 9:27
(2) It is an appointment that none of us can avoid
c. Every man makes an uproar for nothing
3. In other words, because we lose sight of how short life is, we focus too much on this world, its causes and its things
4. Thus, we need to make the best use of our time - Ephesians 5:16
B. Why am I waiting? - Psalms 39:7
1. A solution exists. Not in myself but in God.
2. It means leaving my sins and coming to God for forgiveness - Psalms 39:8
3. Only in God’s forgiveness can David be rescued from the reproach of the foolish wicked
4. Once again David doesn’t speak, but for a different reason
a. Psalms 38:13-14 - He doesn’t speak, ignoring his enemies
b. Psalms 39:1 - He doesn’t speak, so as not to sin before his enemies
c. Psalms 39:9 - He doesn’t speak because he knows his punishment is deserved
5. David realizes he needs to change before he perishes - Hebrews 12:11
a. God, with His reproofs, is consuming everything a man finds precious to him, just like a moth consumes a person’s clothing - Psalms 39:11
b. Truly, every man’s life is a breath (a vanity)
IV. Therefore David begs for forgiveness - Psalms 39:12-13
A. Where David was silent, trying to avoid sin, he asks God not to be silent
B. He realizes that he is just passing through this world
C. Thus, he asks God to turn from punishing him so he can have some joy before he leaves this world - Job 10:20-21
V. The solution to sin is not in ourselves
A. While we try to avoid sin, we cannot solve the problem by becoming perfect
1. Because none of us is without sin - I John 1:8,10
B. Ignoring our sins is also not the solution because we have so little time
C. The solution resolve our sins with God by asking Him for forgiveness - I John 1:9
D. Won’t you do something about your sins today?
