“7 I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.” ”
Before 1514 everyone assumed that the sun revolved around the earth. It didn’t. The scientific work of Nicholas Copernicus proved that it didn’t. Yet many rejected this truth because it upset their assumptions about themselves. They were no longer the center of the universe.
People continue to reject the truth that they are not the center of the universe despite ample evidence. This evening’s Scripture tells us that we are not the center, but for some of us it might be easier to reject this truth than to accept it.
This evening’s Scripture tells you that you are not the center of the universe. Can you accept that or would you rather go on pretending that the sun revolves around the earth and that life revolves around you?
Ever since scientists accepted that the Earth is not the center of the universe, there have been tremendous scientific advancements that would never be possible if they held on to illusions. The same is true for coming to terms with the fact that you are not the center of the universe. If you accept that you are not the center of the universe, you can make tremendous advancements that would never be possible if you held to your illusions.
God has made Jesus and not you the center of the universe. That’s the claim of this sermon: God has made Jesus and not you the center of the universe.
We will study this in three points. First: the Father’s Son. Second: the ends of the earth are Christ’s. Third: this rebellious world. We see the Father’s Son in verse 7. We see that the ends of the earth are Christ’s in verse 8. We see this rebellious world in verse 9.
First: the Father’s Son. We’ve seen that this Psalm is about God’s plan for this world. His plan takes the form of a king. As we saw that last time, “The One enthroned in heaven laughs [at the people’s plan]; the Lord scoffs at [the world’s rebellion] [He says]… I have installed my king on Zion, my holy mountain.” God has a plan for the world and that plan has taken the form of a king. History revolves around this king. It does not revolve around you.
We see God’s king promised throughout the Old Testament. The God who made everything and to whom everything is owed revealed Himself to one small people group. He promised to work in this world—our world with neighborly conflicts, abandoned wives, and hungry children – through these people. He promised to work in this broken, sinful world through their king.
This evening’s Scripture is about that king. “You are my Son; today I have become your Father.” These words were likely read at the coronation of the kings of Israel. None of those men lived up to this Psalm. If you looked at any of those kings – Solomon, Rehaboam, Joash - and imagined they were God’s plan to save the world, you would be deeply disappointed.
Did God promise more than he could deliver? Is God’s plan for the universe no better than my plan or your plan?
Christmas shows us that God’s plan is far better. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Jesus of Nazareth was that child. He is that king. He is the king of verse 7, ‘I will proclaim the decree of the Lord: He said to me, “You are my Son.”’
Jesus knew that he was the Father’s plan for history. He knew that he was the center around which every life rotates. “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in him shall have eternal life, and I will raise them up at the last day.” I cannot imagine even the most supreme egotist daring to say, ‘everyone’s eternity depends on how they deal with me.’ Jesus says stuff like that because he knows he is the center.
He says things like, “if you knew me, you would know my Father also.” ‘To know me is to know God.’ Jesus is either the most arrogant man who ever lived, or he is delusional, or he is the king promised in Psalm 2, God’s plan for human history.
Which do you believe is true? How do you explain him saying things like, “[God] will honor the one who serves me”, or “whoever hates me hates God?” When you read the gospels, you don’t see an arrogant man. You meet someone supremely humble even to the point of dying for others. He clearly isn’t arrogant. So how do you explain what he says? You might say he is delusional. You can hear the sorts of things that Jesus says if you visit a psychiatric ward. Yet when you read the gospels you never get the sense that Jesus is out of his mind. He is certainly different from the men and women around him, but he seems mentally healthier than all of us, not mentally ill.
I am left to believe that Jesus is who he says he is. He is who thinks he is. He is the center of human history. He is the king of Psalm 2.
The Father tells Jesus that he is the king of Psalm 2 at least twice in the gospels. The first time occurred at Jesus’ baptism. As Jesus rose up from the waters, the Holy Spirit descended upon him as a dove and the Father publicly named Jesus the king. “He said to me, ‘You are my Son.’ He said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”
The Father said that for Jesus’ sake. Jesus knew who he was but how often we delight to hear who we are. Years ago, people wore buttons that read, “I am loved.” It is good to remember that. It was good for Jesus to remember. The Father said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased,” for Jesus’ sake.
Doug Wilson is right to say that the Father speaking over His Son shows us what fatherhood is all about. He writes, ‘first, when Jesus was baptized, his Father was there. Second, He made His presence felt by sending His Spirit to descend like a dove in order to rest upon Jesus. Third, He made His presence known by speaking. Fourth, He expressed His love for His Son, “this is my beloved Son.” And last, He expressed His pleasure in His Son.’
The Father spoke those words audibly twice, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” He spoke them at Jesus’ baptism and he spoke them on the mount of transfiguration. The crowds heard what the Father said at the baptism. Peter, James, and John heard what God said on the mount of transfiguration. The Father wasn’t just telling the people that He delighted in Jesus. He was telling them to delight in Jesus.
Do you delight in Jesus? Do you delight in the fact that he is in charge of everything? Do you delight in the fact that he is the center around which everything rotates? The apostle Paul did. That’s why he could tell the Romans, “I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Paul knew that Jesus was God’s plan for working in this broken, sinful world. Paul knew that Jesus was God’s plan for working in broken, sinful people like him. Paul knew that he was not the center of the universe, but Jesus was, and that made Paul very happy.
Does that make you very happy? Or would you honestly be happier if life was about you? Would you be happier if the whole point of human history was realized when you were born that there would be no meaning if it weren’t for you? There are some people who live that way. Are you one of them?
If so, God laughs at your rebellion against Him and His plan. ‘The One enthroned in heaven laughs; the Lord scoffs at them. He rebukes them in his anger and terrifies them in his wrath, saying, “I have installed my king.”’ Jesus is that king. He is God’s plan. He is the center.
Do you rotate around him or do you expect him to rotate around you? Does your life rotate around Jesus or do you rotate around him? He is the king, not you. He is God’s plan for human history and you are a human.
Here are a few questions to help you diagnose if you are revolving around Jesus or if you expect him to revolve around you. Can you imagine heaven without Jesus? If so, you are expecting him to revolve around you. Would you rather your will be done or for Jesus’ will be done? When you come to worship in this sanctuary is your primary goal to be filled up by Jesus or to surrender to Jesus?
God laughs at the world with its plans and plots. He has His plan and His plan is the kingdom of Jesus. Are you in on that plan or do you have a plan of your own?
The history of the church is the mission of inviting people to leave world for God’s plan. We see that in our second point: the ends of the earth are Christ’s.
The Father delights in His Son and He delights to give him whatever he asks for. We see that in verse 8, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.”
The king will have his kingdom. Jesus said as much in the Great Commission, “all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations.”
Jesus was and is after the nations. Jesus was and is after people. He wants the nations as his inheritance. He wants the ends of the earth as his possession.
Jesus wants people. You and I both know what people are like, we know what we are like. You might be tempted to ask, ‘Jesus, are you sure? We can be a pretty depressing bunch. You could ask the Father for whatever you want. Are you sure you want to ask for people?’
Jesus isn’t unaware of our failings. He doesn’t have an overly optimistic view of us. As you read the Old Testament, you are left wondering why God didn’t just give up on Israel. You can look around our world today and ask why God doesn’t give up on the nations.. You can look in your own heart and ask the same question.
You will never find the answer by looking at others. You will never find the answer by looking inside yourself. You will only find the answer by listening to God. He tells us why He perseveres with people like us. He wants people like us because He chooses to want people like us. “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.”
God desires us because He chooses to. He doesn’t love us because of us. He loves us because of who He is. “God loved the world this way: He sent His one and only Son that whoever believes in Him might not perish but have eternal life.”
Jesus’ death shows the extent of that love. The nations in glory seen in Revelation 5:9 sing, “you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation.” Jesus was and is after people.
It is easy for us to miss the fact that being for Jesus means being for people. Churches must have a heart for people because Jesus has a heart for people. Do we want the nations as Jesus’ inheritance? Do we want the ends of the earth as his possession? Do we want the people near us to belong to him?
Do you have any sense that the church could advance? Many of us assume that the church is on a terminal decline, especially in this nation. We take our cues from demographics and cultural shifts. We look at our own power, or rather lack thereof, and feel helpless and hopeless.
Is that how Jesus views the situation? No. The Father told him, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.” Jesus knows it is his for the taking and so he told his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”
You are to ask for workers to reap the harvest. Do you believe there is a harvest? Do you believe the nations are Jesus’ for the taking? Do you believe the ends of the earth are his for the asking?
There have been seasons in the life of the church when we believed they were. Men and women went to China because it was Jesus’ for the taking. Men like Hudson Taylor who said, “I almost wish I had a hundred bodies; they should all be devoted to my Savior in the missionary cause.” Men and women went to India because it was Jesus’ for the taking. Women like Amy Carmichael who wrote, “To the glory of His name let me witness that in faraway lands, in loneliness (deepest sometimes when it seems least so), in times of downheartedness and tiredness and sadness, always, always He is near. He does comfort, if we let Him. Perhaps someone as weak and good-for-nothing as even I am may read this. Don’t be afraid! Through all circumstances, outside, inside, He can keep me close.”
Do you think the world is Jesus’ for the asking? Do you agree with John Calvin who said, “The Father will deny nothing to His Son which relates to the extension of his kingdom to the uttermost ends of the earth.” Do you think the Father really told His Son, “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession”? Are you caught up in the glory of God’s plan for this world, of Christ’s kingdom, or are you caught up in your own plan for your life? Are you willing to be used by Christ however he might use you for his kingdom, be it here or be it far away? Are you willing to serve the king, or do you want to be the king of your own life?
Missionary Amy Carmichael had it right. Perhaps she is right about you. “We profess to be strangers and pilgrims, seeking after a country of our own, yet we settle down in the most un-stranger-like fashion, exactly as if we were quite at home and meant to stay as long as we could. I don’t wonder apostolic miracles have died. Apostolic living certainly has.”
The apostles knew the ends of the earth were Christ’s for the asking. The apostles knew that the fields were ripe for the harvest and that there was so much for the asking that they needed to pray for more workers. Do we have that sense? Or is the church today just hoping to shrink at a manageable rate? You can’t answer for the whole church. You can just answer for yourself. The apostles were willing to serve wherever their king might lead. Are you?
All authority in heaven and on earth belongs to Jesus but that doesn’t mean that the nations acknowledge it. Many scoffed at the idea that the earth rotated around the sun. Many scoff at the idea of Christ as king. You can’t stop people from remaining in ignorance.We see the result of this ignorance in our third point: this rebellious world. Believing that the sun rotates around the earth doesn’t carry too many consequences. It would prevent you from getting a job with NASA. Refusing to acknowledge Christ as king carries massive consequences.
Do you believe that? The world doesn’t. The world will tell you that, at best, Christianity is fine for some people. ‘We all need something to believe in. If this works for you, that’s great.’ The world doesn’t think that rejecting Christ the king carries consequences. It sees the faith as a preference. ‘I prefer red. You prefer blue. I prefer Indian food. You prefer a burger. I prefer to be spiritual but not religious. You prefer Christianity. Whatever works for you.’ Rejecting blue doesn’t have a consequence. Rejecting burgers doesn’t have a consequence. Does rejecting Christ have a consequence?
Let’s put the world to the side for the moment and ask the church, ‘do you think rejecting Christ has a consequence?’ This week we had friends over for dinner. They are missionaries heading back to the field and they are in the midst of fundraising. We spoke about how missions seems to be at a low ebb in much of the church right now. We talked about how some of it stems from the fact that many professing Christians don’t appear to believe that rejecting Christ carries any real consequences. Some of us seem to believe that God’s mercy somehow cancels out God’s wrath. Some of us seem to think that we choose who God is by what we choose to believe.
That isn’t reality. You can pretend that the sun revolves around the earth all you want, but you will eventually bump up against reality. You can pretend that rejecting Christ carries no present and eternal consequences all you want, but you will eventually bump up against reality. So will those who haven’t heard the good news.
God entered history. The Son of God was born of a virgin. There are historical records of his life, of what he said, of what he did, of how he was nailed to a Roman cross, of his resurrection. There is eye-witness testimony that cannot be ignored. God’s plan for history and for humanity has been announced in the person of Jesus of Nazareth.
Those who choose to ignore all of this, those who choose to live as if they were the center of the universe, do so to their own peril. There are consequences for rejecting God’s plan and purpose. We see these consequences in verse 9, “You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
You can willingly and gladly accept the reality that Christ is king, or you can ignore it or deny it, but you cannot escape it any more than you can escape the fact the earth revolves around the sun. Are you trying to escape Christ the king? Are you trying to live as the center of the universe? If so, hear the Father’s words to Christ, “You will rule them with an iron scepter; you will dash them to pieces like pottery.”
I don’t want you to be dashed to pieces. We might have some souls here this evening who are racing headlong into a brick wall that will not give. This world is racing headlong into a brick wall that will not give. Leave that insanity. Come to Christ. No matter what you have done, he is willing to take you. Will you confess your sin? Will you try to put right what you have made wrong? Will you repent? He will take you. Jesus is after people. “Ask of me, and I will make the nations your inheritance, the ends of the earth your possession.” You can belong to him.
If you do belong to him, Jesus wants you to be courageous in this rebellious world. The world doesn’t want to hear that it isn’t in charge. People don’t want to hear that they are not the center of the universe. You will get pushback. You will encounter hostility. You will be rejected. How do you live courageously in this rebellious world?
Jesus tells you, using the words of this Psalm. Speaking to the church in Thyatira in Revelation 2, Jesus says, “To the one who is victorious and does my will to the end, I will give authority over the nations— that one ‘will rule them with an iron scepter and will dash them to pieces like pottery’—just as I have received authority from my Father.”
Don’t be afraid of the iron scepter of this world. Don’t be afraid of the fact that the world can dash you to pieces. Remember that Christ is king, and he will share his iron scepter with you. Just like him, you will dash this rebellion to pieces.
Remember that in the midst of this hostile time. Soon and very soon the fact that Christ is the center of the universe will become inescapably clear. You will overcome the world. It will not dash you to pieces. You will dash rebellion to pieces.
You are not the center of the universe but the center of the universe invites you in. It doesn’t get better than that. Are you in? Amen.