Psalm 110 Sermon Outline
DAVID’S SON AT GOD’S RIGHT HAND
Psalm 110
(May 8, 2005, Sermon Notes)
Ascension Day doesn’t attract attention the way Christmas and Easter do. Perhaps that’s because Jesus’ ascension is seen as irrelevant (Jesus going away) or offensive (Jesus rules the world). But Jesus’ ascension is good news for us and for the world.
THE UNIVERSAL KING (vv. 1-3)
David announces that Yahweh, Israel’s God, will exalt David’s son above David. David’s son will be David’s lord, seated at God’s right hand, and Yahweh will put all his enemies under his feet (see Josh. 10).
God always intended to have a man ruling the world (Gen. 1; Ps. 8) and now Jesus, David’s son, sits on that throne and Yahweh is extending his rule from Zion. Jesus rules from the heavenly Mount Zion (Heb. 12:22), but he sent out his gospel — the announcement that he is lord — from Jerusalem, the earthly Zion, to the ends of the earth.
By that announcement, he conquers and rules even in the midst of his enemies (v. 2). He gathers followers who volunteer for service, presenting themselves as “freewill offerings” (v. 3). Already, the king is dressed in beauty and “the dew of his youth” (which probably is related to both his ordination and the Spirit’s power to serve: see Ps. 133) will keep him fresh and strong until the battle is ended and the final victory is won.
THE PERMANENT PRIEST (v. 4)
David carried out some priestly tasks (2 Sam. 6), but this king is actually going to be a priest, as well. According to the Torah, a priest had to be from the house of Aaron and the tribe of Levi. But this priest is from a greater order, the order of Melchizedek (Gen. 14; Heb. 7), the original priest-king who served Yahweh in the city of (Jeru)Salem.
Jesus is a greater priest than Aaron and his sons. Unlike them, he has no sin, won’t ever die, and won’t need to be replaced (as Eli was: 1 Sam. 2:35). Yahweh has sworn that David’s son will be a priest forever. And unlike those other priests, Jesus is able to sit down and rest because his work is finished (Heb. 10).
THE TRIUMPHANT WARRIOR (vv. 5-7).
But the battle isn’t over. David acknowledges that his son, “the Lord,” is at Yahweh’s right hand (v. 5). The word for “Lord” here is used only for God: David’s son will be God himself and therefore the victory is certain.
Jesus crushed the serpent’s head on the cross (Gen. 3:15). But now he must go on to “execute kings” and crush the other “heads” of the nations.
He fights through us, his body. We get weary in the battle, but we won’t be defeated because Jesus keeps drinking of the brook, probably a reference to the Spirit (see Judges 15:19), and lifts up his head. He keeps us refreshed so that we keep fighting until the battle is done.
March 25th, 2007 at 3:37 am
What does the prefix Jeru mean with regard to the name of the city of Jerusalem?