On the Occasion of Asbruy’s 70th Anniversary
Rev. Dr. Brent Russett – Asbury Free Methodist
A Psalm of Ascents –November 3, 2024
A few weeks back we started a series titled, “Psalms for your life.” Each week we look at a different genre of the Psalms. Last week we looked add a Psalm of lament. This week we’re going to look add a Psalm of ascent. There are 15 psalms of ascent which are Psalms 120-134. We are going to look at Psalm 126. This song is so appropriate for our 70th anniversary.
I believe that we are going to see ourselves in this Psalm. I believe this Psalm is going to build your faith, encourage your prayer life, and inspire you to live with anticipation.
I have had the privilege of seeing God do so many great things. I have seen him heal friends of mine. I have seen him answer prayers in some dramatic fashions. When I look back at my life, I see the time after time God has been faithful. I feel like the psalmist who said you took my feet out of the miry clay and gave me a firm place to stand. My guess is that many of you can say the same thing.
But as time goes on and memories of those things grow faint, our soul can feel dry. Have you ever been there? You’ve seen God move in the past, but he seemed silent in the present. If you’ve been there this Psalm is for you.
****
Let me tell you about the Psalms of ascent. If you lived in Israel before Jesus came you would be expected to make a yearly pilgrimage to Jerusalem. There you would go to the temple, and you would have sacrifices for the forgiveness of sin made on your behalf. This is just part of what it meant to be it Israelite.
So, year after year pilgrims would make their way to Jerusalem. You need to understand that Jerusalem is on a reasonably sized hill. When the city of Jerusalem came into sight and when the pilgrims started to ascend that hill they would break out into song. The song that they would break out into would be the psalms of ascent.
Come with me to Psalm 126. Here is one of the songs they sang.
Psalm 126:1–6 (NLT)
1 When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem,
it was like a dream!
2 We were filled with laughter,
and we sang for joy.
And the other nations said,
“What amazing things the Lord has done for them.”
3 Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!
What joy!
4 Restore our fortunes, Lord,
as streams renew the desert.
5 Those who plant in tears
will harvest with shouts of joy.
6 They weep as they go to plant their seed,
but they sing as they return with the harvest.
You may remember the history of Israel. After a number of bad kings and unheeded calls to repent, the city of Jerusalem was attacked and captured by Babylon. The walls were broken down. The temple was destroyed. The people were taken captive and carried off to Babylon.
There they remained for about 70 years. Their life in Babylon was not horrible, but it was not home. The people of God longed for home. But when you were exiles, held in captivity. What chance was there of escape. After 70 years, through a miraculous intervention by God, and led by Nehemiah, the captives were freed and returned back to Jerusalem. Through hard work and the grace of God Jerusalem was rebuilt.
***
Now it is 50, 100, 200 years later and the people of God outside of Jerusalem are making their way to the holy city. They come to a brink of a hill they look down into the valley and across to Jerusalem and they start to sing.
Psalm 126:1–3 (NLT)
1 When the Lord brought back his exiles to Jerusalem,
it was like a dream!
2 We were filled with laughter,
and we sang for joy.
And the other nations said,
“What amazing things the Lord has done for them.”
3 Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!
What joy!
Can you see it? Can you imagine it? They were remembering what God had done for them. They could see what God had done for them. Jerusalem was in front of them. It was rebuilt. They remembered their joy, their laughter, their worship. Stories have been handed down from one generation to the next. Grandparents told their grandkids. Their grandkids told their grandkids. It did not take much imagination to remember the drudgery of exile and the joy of returning home.
****
In 1950 there were some people who said Perth needs a new church. By faith they conducted outreach services. They formed a Sunday school. God did some amazing things. People came to know Jesus. There were enough people who came to know Jesus that On November 2nd, 1954, they were able to form at church.
The next year they purchased the land where The Table is now. Things cost less back then than they do now. But people made a whole lot less then they do now. I have talked to some of you who told me about making $0.25 an hour. But because of the faithfulness of God and his people the land was purchased and the building was built.
There were so many people who came to know the Lord over the next decade that space became an issue. In 1965 this building came on the market. Through a few people who had real faith, they were able to purchase this building. They saw the faithfulness of God.
When you come to church Sunday after Sunday and you walk into this building, you are walking into a place where God has done miracle after miracle to provide for his people. We can say with the people of Israel. Verse 3 – The Lord has done amazing things for us.
***
Of course, the church is a minor provision of God compared to the transformed lives that have happened because of the people of God who worship in this place. I have heard story after story how God has used his people here to bring people to himself. I have seen the difference that you have made in the lives of youth and seniors. I have watched as we together have reached out around the world to alleviate pain and bring hope.
I know that there are a number of you who are followers of Jesus because the people in this church shared Christ with you.
Psalm 126:3 (NLT)
3 Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!
What joy!
But the people of God are now climbing their way towards Jerusalem, and they are not filled with joy. They remember what God has done. They can see what God has done in the past. There is a city sitting on the hill. But now they feel impoverished. They feel oppressed. Life is hard.
So, as they climb towards Jerusalem remembering the past, they are also very aware of the present.
Psalm 126:4 (NLT)
4 Restore our fortunes, Lord,
as streams renew the desert.
Their country was again depressed by outside forces. They were doing the religious thing. The right thing. They were going to Jerusalem too obey the law and render sacrifice onto God. But their hearts were not filled with that joy they experienced before.
Have you ever been there? You remember what God has done in the past. You know he is present now. But light feels gray. You feel the challenges of life keenly. You feel the worries and anxiety that life can bring. You look at the state of the world and you wonder what is going to happen. You look up Perth and you hurt over the fallout of the murder that happened a week ago. You wonder what our town is becoming.
We pray, Psalm 126:4 (NLT)
4 Restore our fortunes, Lord,
as streams renew the desert.
But the Psalmist didn’t stop there. He went onto state the truth by faith.
Psalm 126:5–6 (NLT)
5 Those who plant in tears
will harvest with shouts of joy.
6 They weep as they go to plant their seed,
but they sing as they return with the harvest.
The psalmist acknowledges that there are times in the journey when life feels like hard work. He uses the analogy a planting. These people are sowing their seed under duress. Life is hard. Tilling the ground is hard. They may even be sowing seed that they think they need for food.
The worry is real. They wonder if they will get the right weather. Will we get enough rain? Will we get enough sunshine? When you are sowing seed, you are putting money into the ground. The seed cast money. There is sweat equity. But there is also hope.
There is hope that in the future there will be a harvest. There is hope that in the future that they will have enough food to carry on. Sowing is hard work. But when you get to the season of harvest, there is a joy in seeing things ripen; in seeing your work come to fruition.
It reminds me of the Apostle Paul’s words.
Galatians 6:9–10 (NLT)
9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. 10 Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone, especially to those in the family of faith.
I have noticed that churches go through seasons. There are times when everywhere you look you can see the blessing of God. People are excited. People are coming to know Jesus. People are growing in their faith. People are reaching out to their neighbors. Everywhere you look there is joy.
There are other times when we are tempted to become weary in doing good. We do all the things that we believe God has called us to do. We are loving people the best we know how. We are seeking God’s blessing. Yet we are not seeing the harvest.
It seems like much of life is lived between verses 3 and 4 of Psalm 126.
Psalm 126:3–4 (NLT)
3 Yes, the Lord has done amazing things for us!
What joy!
4 Restore our fortunes, Lord,
as streams renew the desert.
We remember what you’ve done Lord. We remember the joy we had when we were doing a particular ministry or watching your hand at work in a particular person. But now Lord we’re not seeing what we want to see. Restore our fortunes, Lord. Renew your work, Lord. Maybe you are there right now.
****
There are a lot of good things happening around Asbury. I, by no means, think that we are in the desert. I see people growing in their spiritual lives. I see God drawing here the people he wants us to minister to. But nothing happens as fast as we would like.
I believe that we as a church are in a time of sowing. There are a lot of you who are doing good things. Some of you are in Bible studies. Others of you or our ministry teams. Some of you will be collecting food in front of stores in a couple of weeks. There have been a couple of new ministries start up around here in the last little while. Clothing for new immigrants. Celebrate Recovery. There are ongoing ministries that have I lots the impact on people.
I know that a number of you are praying for your friends and your family. You have invited them to church, but they are not ready to come yet. So, you keep on praying, keep on hoping, keep on inviting.
With all the activity you could become weary. You can become weary when you are just doing what God has called you to do and not doing what God has not called you to do. You are like the sower who plants in hope.
You are like the people who are living between verses 3 and 4. You remember what God has done but things are not as exciting as they used to be.
Hear God’s promise to you
Galatians 6:9 (NLT)
9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up.
Your responsibility is to just keep sowing seed. God’s promise to you is that you are going to reap a harvest. That harvest will come just at the right time. Hear God’s promise to you. You will reap a harvest if you don’t give up. It is God who gives the harvest, you can trust him.
How then should we live?
Galatians 6:10 (NLT)
10 Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.
Whenever you have the opportunity plant a seed. Whenever you have the opportunity do good. Whenever you have the chance do an act of kindness; speak a word of grace; share the message of God; encourage one another; share what God has been teaching you; help those in need; love people for Christ sake; sow another seed.
This may involve ministering at church or volunteering in the community. It probably will involve generosity with your time and talent and maybe your money. God’s promises this, that in the right time you will reap a harvest as long as you don’t give up.
So, my friends, our church is 70 years old. There have been wonderful times of blessing. When we look at the building and when we look at the people, we can see part of what God has done. But we need to prepare for a new harvest. We need to get ready for new blessings. Our call is to do what God has called us to do. We plant seed and we trust him with the harvest.
So, as you look over your life from last week, how did you plant seeds? If you have trouble identifying that, then ask God how you should be planting seeds.
Optional
I’m too old to plant seeds
Every pray is a seed.
Every telephone call made to encourage someone is a seed.
I’m too busy to plant seed.
If you don’t plant today, you don’t harvest tomorrow.
Galatians 6:9–10 (NLT)
9 So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. At just the right time we will reap a harvest of blessing if we don’t give up. 10 Therefore, whenever we have the opportunity, we should do good to everyone—especially to those in the family of faith.