Sermon text
Psalm 12
¹ Save, O LORD, for the godly one is gone;
for the faithful have vanished from among the children of man.
² Everyone utters lies to his neighbor;
with flattering lips and a double heart they speak.
³ May the LORD cut off all flattering lips,
the tongue that makes great boasts,
⁴ those who say, “With our tongue we will prevail,
our lips are with us; who is master over us?”
⁵ “Because the poor are plundered, because the needy groan,
I will now arise,” says the LORD;
“I will place him in the safety for which he longs.”
⁶ The words of the LORD are pure words,
like silver refined in a furnace on the ground,
purified seven times.
⁷ You, O LORD, will keep them;
you will guard us from this generation forever.
⁸ On every side the wicked prowl,
as vileness is exalted among the children of man.
Applying the text
- How have you been significantly affected by the words of others? How have your words impacted others in significant ways?
- How does the Psalmist describe the words of the children of men? In what ways have your own words fit this description?
- How does the Psalmist describe the words of the LORD? How does this encourage you trust more in God?
- In verses 7 and 8, the Psalmist presents us with a paradox. How does paradox help us to understand what a life of faith and obedience looks like in a broken and fallen world?
