♪ theme music ♪
(Derek) Welcome to Hope Sabbath School,
an in-depth, interactive study
of the Word of God.
I am looking forward to this study
on Prophecy in the Psalms.
These are Scripture songs, written
up to 3,000 years ago, that give us
powerful revelations about Messiah
and about a God who loves us
with an immeasurable and unfailing love.
It's part of our series
on Bible Prophecies and Stories
for the Last Days.
So, this isn't just ancient history;
this is present truth
that will bless your life today.
So, welcome to Hope Sabbath School.
Welcome to the team,
say, "Hi," to each other.
Good to have you all here.
and I'm excited because Kylynda,
one of our team members,
will be leading today in our study,
and it's going to be exciting.
Let's see who's joining us remotely.
Kevin, great to have you back with us,
always glad to have you here.
Cory, great to have you with us today,
glad you're here.
And Leeah, great to have you with us, too.
You know, I appreciate
our remote team members adding
some diversity to our team,
and I'm glad you're with us, too.
Sometimes I'll get an email saying,
"The teacher asked a question;
I raised my hand."
Well, you can always send us an email
at sshope@hopetv.org.
Let us know how you're being blessed
through a study of the Word of God.
Here's a note from Koos, K-O-O-S,
Koos in South Africa.
Hey, Zandile, that's your homeland.
Did I say Koos' name right?
(Zandile) K-O?
(Derek) O-S, two O's.
(Zandile) Okay, yes, that's...
(Derek) We'll go with Koos.
If we got it wrong, you write and tell us.
"Hope Sabbath School
is the high point of our week."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) "We don't have a church
in our town, and, therefore, we have
to rely on the internet.
We stay in a small town on the border
between South Africa and Mozambique.
God bless Hope Sabbath School.
Thank you. Amen."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Thanks for writing to us.
You know, we don't imagine sometimes
when we're recording that someone
in a little town on the border
of South Africa and Mozambique
is a lifeline learning more
about the Word of God.
Thanks so much, Koos, for writing to us.
Here's a note from Ethiopia.
Seems like we get a few emails
from Ethiopia, and Both writes.
I wrote to him; I said, "How do
you pronounce it?"
He said, "Both, like Both," okay.
"It's a great privilege for me
to participate in Hope Sabbath School
as an on-line member.
I'm filled with hope, and I get
peace of mind, and I like the theme songs
and your smiles."
(Team) Nice.
(Derek) "Throughout my study
for four years in university,
I've been watching Hope Sabbath School,
and I thank God," hear this testimony
from Both, "I thank God because He's
still keeping my Bible in my hand..."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) "...through the ministry
of Hope Sabbath School."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Congratulations, Both,
on fours years through university,
but may I give thanks to God
that you kept your Bible in your hand.
"Keep up the good work preparing people
to meet our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
May God bless you abundantly. Amen."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) We say, "May God
bless you, too, Both."
Thanks for writing to us.
Here is a note sent from a donor
in North Carolina in the United States,
"Greetings, Hope Sabbath School."
(Team) Greetings.
(Derek) "You're such a blessing
to all of us who are following
the narrow path to victory in Jesus."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Your enthusiasm mixed
with godly knowledge is invaluable,
and I personally see God's Spirit
shining from your faces."
(Stephanie) Wow, praise God.
(Derek) We know that's a miracle of God
because we're all broken people
on this planet, but if the light of Jesus
can shine through us, we're going to use
my favorite Hebrew word.
(Derek, Team) Hallelujah.
(Derek) "Stay strong
in the Lord Jesus Christ," and a donation
of 212 dollars from North Carolina.
Well, you know who you are, thank you.
I'm sure there is
some special significance to the 212,
but I want to tell you, you're part
of a great miracle of God.
And thank you to each donor.
We're a donor-supported ministry.
And you say, "Derek, can I help?
Would it make a difference?"
Absolutely! Even if it was
just the 12 dollars before the 200,
it would make a difference, wouldn't it?
Jesus affirmed those who brought
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who anointed His feet,
but also who brought the little gift
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You can go to our website,
hopetv.org/hopess, click
on the Donate button.
Say, "Derek, I pray that God would bless,
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would go to the world so Jesus
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One last note, from Gladys in Texas,
and Gladys writes and says, "I watch
Hope Sabbath School every week
with my husband.
I love the way you make it simple
to understand the Bible.
I love the team interaction,
and I love the testimonies."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) We hear that over and over again.
Well, Gladys, you may hear
a testimony today as we're talking
about Prophecy in the Psalms,
so pray for us as we study.
"We appreciate the hard work
of the entire team
including Bodil's Scripture songs."
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) "Keep spreading the good news."
Well, you know, you can download
the Scripture song that we have
for this series.
Go to our website, hopetv.org/hopess,
and scroll down and you'll see you
can get the song and the sheet music.
You can learn that and sing it
with your Bible study group.
But before we do sing, I just want
to remind you again about the free gift
we have for this series because we're
talking about Bible Prophecies
and Stories for the Last Days.
We're almost home.
The prophet Daniel said
there will be a time of trouble
such as never was
before the glorious return of the Lord,
and we want to be covered and protected.
This resource, called Radical Protection,
will not only bless you
but bless your family, and you can get
a free digital copy.
Just go to our website,
click on the Free Gift tab,
and you'll be able to download a copy.
You can share it with your friends.
You say, "Well, I have loved ones
I want to be protected."
Share it with them as well.
Be a blessing to those around you.
But, right now we need you to sing
our theme song from Colossians 3:16,
"Let the word of Christ dwell in you."
Let's sing together.
♪ music ♪
(Derek) I'm looking forward to our study
on Prophecy and the Psalms, Kylynda.
(Kylynda) Would you join me
as we begin in prayer.
Dear God, the Author of songs,
of hymns, of prophecy, thank You
so much for sending the Word, Your Son.
Please guide our Scripture study today
as we seek to understand words
that bring life. Amen.
(Derek, Team) Amen.
(Kylynda) Well, when I was
in elementary school,
one of our earliest assignments
involved a game where we had to indentify
similarities across objects.
I'll give you an example.
Let's say there was an avocado,
a cactus, and an emerald.
What would be the common similarity?
(Shawn) Green!
(Kylynda) Green, yes.
So, this is a really great task to help us
practice our pattern recognition,
and it's really important that we're able
to identify themes, whether we're
looking at data or looking at literature
because when we see a common pattern,
a motif, reappear over and over,
it's a sign that we
should take special notice.
So, I thought we could play
a kind of similarity game today
as we begin this study of the lesson.
So, if we have an example
from Exodus 14 and 15, this is telling
when the Israelites escaped
the Egyptian captors, and they
go through the Red Sea.
Now, we have another story in Matthew 26.
In fact, the last lesson we
discussed this, and this is the scene
from the Last Supper.
Jesus institutes the Last Supper,
and then later on will go to be crucified.
And our final story, Revelation 15,
and this is a description
of the temple in Heaven.
So, in these three stories,
the escape through the Red Sea
and afterwards, and then we have
the institution of the Last Supper,
and then we have the temple.
What might be a common action
that occurs in all three?
(Shawn) God's deliverance?
(Kylynda) God's deliverance, that's great,
we have salvation.
Well, something that might be
a little bit hidden in all these texts
is that in each one
of them they're singing.
(Derek) Oh!
(Kylynda) As we go through...right?
[After they go through] the Red Sea,
they celebrate with a song.
At the end of the Last Supper,
they sing a hymn together.
And when we look at the throne room,
we see the angels and the elders
as well as the creatures singing.
So, music is found throughout the Bible.
And this kind of makes sense
in our own lives.
If we think of really special moments
in our lives, like, let's say,
a special worship service
or a wedding celebration,
sometimes even really sad memories
like a funeral, music is often
in each one of these events.
We think of music as a way where we can
express our emotions.
What are ways that we see music
being utilized in the Bible
based on maybe some of these examples
we talked about our some
you know in your head?
Thoughts of how we see music
in the Bible. Sophia.
(Sophia) As praise.
(Kylynda) As praise, definitely.
Any other ways where music
appears in the Bible? Shawn.
(Shawn) Just as encouragement.
You know, there's just something
about a blessed song that's
sanctified by God that meets you
at the core of who you are
and just uplifts you to Heaven.
There have been many times
I've heard a three-minute song
that gave me more truth
than a 45-minute sermon.
And that's just a blessing from the Lord.
(Kylynda) Thank you
for sharing, Shawn. Puia?
(Puia) I'm remembering
the Song of Solomon; the entire book
is basically songs where Solomon
described his love for his lover.
So, that is also another instance
where we see song in the Bible.
(Kylynda) And, Cory?
(Cory) Yeah, it seems like King David
almost bubbled out with joy
in song many times.
(Derek) True.
(Kylynda) Wonderful, thank you,
all of you, for sharing.
So, maybe I can just do a little recap.
We can see song used in the Bible
as an expression of great emotion,
whether that's praise or celebration,
but, as Cory was mentioning, some
of the Psalms are actually songs
that are about someone experiencing
a lot of despondency in their lives.
As Shawn was mentioning, song can
also be used as a communal experience,
a worship lesson, and as Puia mentioned,
a song may be a love story
between the singer and the listener.
But there is actually, at least for me -
I hadn't studied this in the past -
a really interesting aspect of music,
music as an important, if not vital, teaching tool
and a lens in which we
can better understand prophecy.
So, that's kind of a really big statement.
We're going to back that up by taking
a framework of how God views
music in the Bible.
And so, we're going to turn, first of all,
to a verse that's located in Colossians,
chapter 3, verse 16.
And this might sound very familiar,
if you are listening on line, because it's
one of our Scripture songs.
So, we'll look at Colossians, chapter 3,
verse 16, and, Puia, would you mind
taking us there to read the text.
(Puia) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version, Colossians 3:16:
(Kylynda) So, we see
in this really beautiful text
an encapsulation of all these ideas,
of praise, of teaching and inspiration.
Well, when we think
about a very rich source of songs
in the Bible, one that was
already mentioned were the psalms.
As Derek was saying, this is a collection
of music sung, millennia old.
And we want to take a look,
because maybe someone who's
listening in says, "Well, when I read
the Bible, the Gospels are
really important; they
tell us about Jesus."
Maybe, "When I read the Bible,
it's really important for me
to focus on prophecy."
"Oh, but the Psalms, they're just songs.
If they're useful, maybe we
can use them to sing."
But God says that they are actually
very important, and they have
a very special inspiration.
So, the person
that maybe might come to mind
when we think about a psalm writer...
there are multiple.
In previous lessons, we've studied
several of them, so maybe some people
can give me some help.
Who are the various people
that have written psalms that are
recorded in the Bible?
(Team) King David.
(Kylynda) King David, right, he wrote
nearly half of the psalms.
So, let's take a look to see what was
his testimony in writing these psalms.
And we can find this in some texts
that look at the end of his life
in 2 Samuel, chapter 23, verses 1 and 2.
And, Shawn, would you mind taking us there
and reading those texts?
(Shawn) I'd be happy to; we'll be reading
2 Samuel, chapter 23, verses 1 through 2,
and I'll be reading
the English Standard Version:
(Kylynda) So, who do we see here,
inspiring King David?
(Team, Kylynda) God. The Holy Spirit.
(Kylynda) Okay, but let's say that I'm
being a little grumpy, and I say,
"Okay, well, David, you know, he was
the great king of Israel,
but what about all these other psalms?"
Well, let's take a look
at some other verses that we can find
in the New Testament
which really kind of hones in and sets
this framework of Psalms
as a place of inspiration.
We're first going to turn
towards 2 Timothy, chapter 3,
verses 16 and 17, and, Kevin, would you
mind taking us to these texts
in the New Testament?
And, as Kevin is reading, Leeah,
if you could look up 2 Peter,
chapter 1, verses 19 [through] 21.
So, we'll read these in conjunction
and then discuss.
(Kevin) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
2 Timothy, chapter 3, verse 16, says:
(Kylynda) Thank you. So, which Scriptures?
(Team, Kylynda) All Scripture.
(Kylynda) Okay, and, Leeah,
if you could take us to 2 Peter,
chapter 1, verses 19 through 21.
(Leeah) Of course, I'll be reading
from the English Standard Version, and it reads:
(Kylynda) Thank you so much, Leeah.
Okay, so, a little quick summary
of our introduction here.
We took a look in Colossians, chapter 3,
verse 16, where we use Scripture
as a teaching tool.
And then we took a look a the psalmists,
and we see the the psalms
are inspired by God.
And as we look at words written
by Jesus' own disciple,
Scripture is a prophetic word,
and if all Scripture is divinely inspired,
then Psalms have a very special place,
as all of the Bible does, to point us
to truths about prophecy.
Now, we could spend probably weeks
and weeks studying
various prophetic themes
found in Psalms.
Unfortunately, we don't have the time,
so we're going to focus on two elements,
the first, the tabernacle,
and the second, the psalms
as pointing towards Jesus Christ.
But, first we're going to view this idea
of the psalms as a way
to better understand elements
of the sanctuary.
This is a really common theme
found in the psalms.
Sometimes it's referred
to as the House of the Lord,
such as in Psalm 122,
so this idea of the tabernacle,
the House of the Lord, a place of worship.
I want us first to go back to the origins
of the tabernacle.
Who designed the tabernacle?
And how was the tabernacle formed?
And when was it formed?
So, let's take a look by focusing
on a verse found in Exodus,
Exodus, chapter 25 and verse 40.
Zandile, can you take us to this text?
(Zandile) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version, verse 40 says:
(Kylynda) Okay, so maybe Zandile
can help me out.
When was the "when"
of the sanctuary being built?
In very general terms, not a year,
but what portion of the Bible
are we reading from?
(Zandile) We are reading from Exodus.
(Kylynda) So, the Israelites
have left Egypt; they're starting off
as a people.
So, who was the designer
of the tabernacle?
(Zandile) According to the verse, God was.
(Shawn) That's right.
(Kylynda) But, how was
the tabernacle designed?
Was it something just made up on the spot?
(Team) No.
(Kylynda) Shawn.
(Shawn) God had a pattern
of the sanctuary already developed
that He revealed to Moses.
And as we discussed in previous lessons,
the sanctuary would end up being
a paradigm of how the plan
of salvation would come about.
So, it wasn't something God
just made up willy-nilly.
He wasn't thinking, "Hey,
I'll be a cool architect
and make this awesome-looking sanctuary,"
but it was to be a living parable
of our own salvation.
(Kylynda) That's wonderful, thank you.
You're giving a great summary
of where we're going to move on to next.
Perhaps one place in the Bible
that spends the most time talking
about this heavenly sanctuary,
this paragon, is found
in the book of Hebrews,
so let's take a turn towards Hebrews.
We're going to look at chapter 8
and read verses 1 and 2,
so Hebrews, chapter 8, verses 1 and 2.
And I think it was discussed
in previous lessons.
Shawn, perhaps you brought this out.
We see Hebrews as a book
that's telling us of the better,
of the better high priest,
of the better sacrifice,
of the better pure sanctuary or tabernacle.
So, as we're understanding
how the earthly sanctuary
points to salvation
and to the appearance of Christ,
let's take a look
at the heavenly sanctuary,
which was the model.
So, we're looking at Hebrews.
I mean, we could look
at many different verses, but we're
going to focus on chapter 8,
verses 1 and 2, and, Tendi,
if you could read that for us.
(Tendi) And I'll be reading
from the New King James,
and it reads, Hebrews 8:1-2 reads:
(Kylynda) Thank you, so we have
the true tabernacle in Heaven
that was erected.
So, Zandile read,
initially the tabernacle, as the children
of Israel were leaving Egypt,
was a moveable structure,
which kind of makes sense, right?
They are journeying
on to the Promised Land.
And, as we read the Bible,
eventually it becomes erected
into a permanent building place.
Maybe, Puia, would you mind
just kind of summarizing when this happens
and in what part of the Bible
this takes place.
(Puia) So, as we journey
with the Israelites, after they
entered the Promised Land,
we can find in 1 Kings that finally God
gave them the instruction to build
as a building itself, right?
So, in the story of, specifically, Solomon
was the temple built and dedicated
as an immovable sanctuary.
(Derek) I never realized
while growing up,
maybe everybody else knew,
but that tabernacle,
which was like a tent, right,
existed for several hundred years
after the children of Israel made it
to the Promised Land.
And then, as Puia mentioned,
David wanted to buld
a more permanent structure,
but the Lord said, "Your hands
are covered with blood,
but your son will build it, and that's
why we call it Solomon's temple.
But, that tabernacle, which was
designed after the pattern
Moses had been shown,
was not just when they were wandering
but was there for centuries
once they arrived in the Promised Land.
(Kylynda) Yes, definitely a sacred space.
So, we know that the tabernacle
has a long history
with the children of Israel.
We know that it's designed
after a tabernacle, a perfect tabernacle
or heavenly temple, that we
can read about in Hebrews.
And, as Shawn mentioned, it's a symbol,
a revelation, of the plan of salvation.
So, now let's take our focus
to what are the lessons that God
wanted to teach us
through the sanctuary and its services.
And to do this, we're going to go
back to the book of Hebrews.
Now, we're going to go
a chapter down, chapter 9,
looking at verses 11 through 15.
So what is God trying to teach
through the sanctuary
and its building place?
Stephanie, could you read
those verses for us?
(Stephanie) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Kylynda) That is
a very theologically packed text
of the sanctuary and its services.
Is anyone on the team willing
to summarize maybe even a portion
of what this means
for the plan of salvation?
Kevin, would you mind?
(Kevin) When I hear those verses
and read it, I get that God wants us
to really dig into the sanctuary message
and understand it deeply
because if you just look at it
on the surface, there are sacrifices,
there is blood, there are
some unappealing things.
But, if you look into it, the symbolism
behind it reveals God's plan for us.
It shows us what He actually did for us
in giving up His only begotten Son
and reveals His plan to spend
all eternity with us.
There is so much there that you
could study; it's an amazing message.
(Kylynda) Thank you so much
for sharing, Kevin. Samantha.
(Samantha) Yes, what I get from this
is that it points us to Christ,
the perfect Sacrifice.
And with Christ, there is no need
for animal blood or rituals,
and through His blood
we have eternal redemption.
(Kylynda) Thank you
so much, Samantha. Shawn.
(Shawn) It's just a reminder
that Jesus' blood was
sufficient for all time.
It's not just redemption,
it's eternal redemption.
And once we get to Heaven,
that redemption is going to continue
covering us for our entire time
in the glory of God.
(Kylynda) Wonderful, it will
certainly be such a great celebration
when we can rejoice with the Lamb.
So, there is a lot that we can unpack
on these texts, but you might say,
"Well, our lesson is talking
about the psalms,"
so let's go back to the psalms.
We have kind of a framework
of the sanctuary, of its purpose,
of its pointing toward salvation,
but the psalms,
wonderfully, beautifully provide
a new lens, a new aspect
and further depth to our understanding
of the sanctuary and sanctuary experience.
So, let's talk about this idea
of entering the sanctuary.
Shawn, you had mentioned that we're
looking forward to the day
where we can all enter, you know,
face-to-face the presence of God
and have this worship experience.
However, every single day we are called
to join God in a worship experience
to tabernacle with Him.
and the psalms give us
some interesting...
some people might call it
maybe very extremely conditional suggestions
about entering the space.
Some might call it a beautiful message
of hope of entering this space.
We're going to study this tension
of what it means to enter
into a tabernacle experience
here on a sinful earth.
The psalms bring out this idea
of cleansing before entering
the tabernacle space.
We can see this in multiple verses.
We're going to take a look first
at Psalm 15, looking
at verses 1 through 5, and then we'll take
a look at Psalm 24, verses 3 and 4.
But, first of all, let's go to Psalm 15,
verses 1 through 5, and, Samantha,
if you could read those texts for us.
(Samantha) Psalm 15, verse 1
to verse 5, I will read
from the New King James Version:
(Kylynda) Thank you for reading
those texts, Samantha.
Let's see if we can move on
a little bit forward to Psalm,
chapter 24, looking at verses 3 and 4.
So, I want to read these
in conjunction with each other, and you'll
hear a familiar theme that appears.
Leeah, could you read these texts for us?
(Leeah) Of course, I'll be reading
from the English Standard Version, and it says:
(Kylynda) Wow, that seems like a really...
(Stephanie) High calling.
(Kylynda) A high calling, thank you, Stephanie.
(Derek) I hear those, and I think,
"There's no hope for me,
really, really, unless I read
the other psalm, because he also says,
"I'll dwell in the House
of the Lord forever."
And I'm like, "Really?!
I've read the book;
I know what you've done."
And it's only because of Psalm 51,
which I know we will probably read,
where he says, "God, create in me
a clean heart," because I don't think
any of us could read Psalm 15
and say, "Yes, yes,
uprightly all the time..."
If that is what is required,
it is a miracle of God's grace
and goodness that we will dwell
in the House of the Lord forever.
(Kylynda) So, these psalms are
indicating that that cleansing
needs to take place,
but as Derek says, can we
do [this cleansing] ourselves? No. Samantha.
(Samantha) You know what will bring
you hope, Derek, is that God's mercy
dwells in this temple.
His mercy is there, and so we
can feel free to go there
because we know He's not going
to judge us like...
(Derek) Thank you, Samantha, but, you know,
I think it illustrates an important point,
as you talk about themes.
If someone just read Psalm 15,
they'd just get depressed and say,
"There's no hope for me."
They need to read
the whole counsel of God,
and all Scripture is given
by inspiration and is profitable
for reproof (ouch, Psalm 15, right),
for correction, yes,
but also for instruction in righteousness.
How can I be right with God?
(Kylynda) Wonderful. I mean,
we'll turn to Psalm 51 to take a look
at this cleansing that takes place,
a moment that happens
in a very tragic point
in King David's life.
And as we're turning there,
Puia, if you could finish off
with a comment that you were making.
(Puia) So, in verse 3 of Psalm 24
that we just read, the question was,
"Who may ascend
into the hill of the Lord?"
So, in the Hebrew Scripture,
when it talks about the hill of the Lord
in the context of the sanctuary,
it's talking about Mount Zion.
Zion was where the sanctuary
was built eventually.
And it's very interesting to note
that when we come
to the last book of the Bible
in Revelation, chapter 14, we see
this beautiful prophecy in a way
where the Lamb is standing on Mount Zion
with the saints, 144,000
and innumerable, countless people
from all parts of the world.
So, the question in Psalms was,
"Who will be able to stand?"
Well, in Revelation we see
this prophecy of people standing
with the Lamb on Mount Zion.
And the key about that cleansing
that you mention is, in order to qualify
there, according to Revelation,
they follow the Lamb wherever He goes.
That's the key!
Derek, there's hope for us.
If we follow the Lamb,
we'll be able to stand
because of the Lamb.
(Derek) Amen. So, we need to read
the whole Book, really, to find
the goodness and the grace of God.
(Kylynda) And let's take a look
at those texts of hope
found in Psalm 51.
Could someone maybe give
a very brief summary
of why this Psalm was written?
Or, what events had occurred prior
to the writing of this psalm? Shawn.
(Shawn) A very quick synopsis:
King David was supposed to be at war,
but his generals were out.
He had remained at home.
Unfortunately, he was becoming,
shall we say, slothful in maintaining
his own character.
What ends up happening is he sees
another man's wife bathing on the roof,
has unholy, lustful thoughts about her
and takes her to be his own.
Unfortunately, through that very tragic incident,
she becomes pregnant, and he tries
to hide his sin, which leads him
to killing her husband
and doing terrible things
not befitting a man of God.
He watches as his kingdom crumbles
because of this sin.
His son Absalom raises
an army against Him.
And when he is at his most broken,
he is now ready to write the Psalm
because a prophet came to him,
challenged him, and by his own confession,
by David's own confession,
he realized he was worthy of death.
And he repented, and this is
the psalm he wrote in response.
(Kylynda) So, when we hear
that story about King David,
we would certainly assume,
based off of Psalm 15, that this person
isn't someone who is going
up to the tabernacle space.
Mutsa, if you could start off, we're going
to read some select verses in Psalm 51.
First, I was wondering if you could read
verses 1 through 2.
We'll pause, and then we'll
move on to another portion in the psalm.
(Mutsa) Okay, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version, it reads:
(Kylynda) So, when we have sinned,
where can we go to?
Who can we ask for help?
(Team) God.
(Kylynda) Shawn.
(Shawn) Well, as the panel said, God,
but I want to focus, if I can,
because of Derek's question earlier
of "How can I have hope?"
It's been on my soul
for the last eight minutes
we've talked about it,
and we need to look
at what the [phrase] "blot out" means.
It means "to eliminate."
It means "to destroy the record."
David is pleading to God, "God, you know
the evil I have done."
He is ashamed of it.
He will later say his soul
was being broken; his bones are trembling.
And he asked God not only, "Forgive me,"
but, "Blot out the record
that I even sinned."
And while the psalm reference
is eluding me right now,
maybe the panel will know
where I'm talking of, the psalmist says,
"If You, Lord," kept a record,
who could be saved?!
But with You, there is
forgiveness in Your grace."
And so, he's asking God,
"Don't just forgive me,
don't just love me, eliminate the record
I ever sinned so I can ascend
back to Your holy hill."
It's a beautiful psalm,
one of my absolute favorites.
(Kylynda) Thank you for sharing. Stephanie.
(Stephanie) I agree with Shawn.
I just want to go back one step.
He's coming to God because he knows
that God will be merciful.
He says, "According
to Your lovingkindness."
He said "have mercy" because he knows
that God is a God of mercy.
And so he has confidence,
so we can have confidence
when we go to God.
(Kylynda) So there's an aspect
of the tabernacle - relationship.
Not just relationship
with another fellow believer,
which we can see in the Psalms,
but with God Himself. Sophia.
(Sophia) I think it's also beautiful
that David is called "a man
after My own heart" by God.
And it says here "to create
in me a clean heart," a new heart,
so we can have a heart
after God, no matter what.
(Derek) And I want to just affirm
what Stephanie said about knowing
the character of God.
You know, Judas didn't know
the character of God,
and with his massive failure,
he decided to kill himself.
Peter knew the character of God,
and he came and was forgiven,
and not only forgiven but became
a great worker in the cause of Jesus.
So, I think, for anyone watching
the program, I just want to remind them
that God is merciful and gracious
because sometimes we're like,
"Well, what if I tell Him all the things?"
Well, can I let you know, He already knows
because He knows all things.
But, He's coming to you in love and mercy
and wants to cleanse you and give you
a new beginning, and I think that's
a really important point.
As he prays, he's claiming that God
is as merciful as he has known Him to be.
(Kylynda) Can we continue actually reading
more of this wonderful psalm?
(Derek) It's a Scripture song, right?
(Kylynda) ...Mutsa, I'm going to ask
if you could continue.
We'll look at verses 7 through 12
because these verses also have
some sanctuary motifs in them,
just really emphasizing
God's immeasurable, unfailing love,
verses 7 through 12.
(Mutsa) And I will be continuing
in the New King James Version:
(Derek, Team) Amen.
(Kylynda) So how can we have
a tabernacle experience?
What are some of the emotions
of entering into this sacred space with God?
(Derek) I would say, Kylynda,
not only confessing, as Stephanie said,
how good God is but also confessing
how much I need His mercy and grace.
I think of the story of the sinner,
in the time of Jesus, beating on his chest
and saying, "God, be merciful
to me, a sinner."
And Jesus said, "He is the one
who left set right with God."
So, we need both to confess
the mercy and goodness of God
but also to confess our brokenness
and our great need of His grace.
(Kylynda) So, at the tabernacle,
we experience humility.
We experience confession.
What do we find in verse 12?
What other experience is there
waiting for us? Restoration.
(Team Member) Hope.
(Derek) And joy.
(Shawn) So, not only restoration,
but we are upheld by a steadfast spirit,
a spirit that won't permit us
to leave God again, that won't permit us
to fall back in that sin and darkness.
It's like God is saying,
"I love you so much, I came, I found you.
Now that you're here, I'm not going
to let you go again."
And I don't know about you,
but in my life, I want
that steadfast spirit every single day.
(Derek) I see Cory's hand raised,
but I would respectfully challenge
just a little bit with my brother Shawn.
When it says, "He would not permit it,"
I would quote Jude, who says,
"Now to Him who is able
to keep you from stumbling"
because, unfortunately, and we
could look at some examples in the Bible,
we can choose to walk away from His grace.
And we say, "Why would anybody
want to do that?"
And there are several reasons.
Maybe they've just never seen
how beautiful His character
of grace and mercy is.
But, if I choose to stay there,
He is able to keep us from stumbling,
but I wanted to see what Cory said because he...
(Kylynda) Cory, please share.
(Cory) No, it was similar to that.
I do think it's important to continue
to reflect on where David was.
I mean, what had he just gone through,
and we mentioned that at the start,
but as we go through this,
just continue to remember the sins
that he just committed - adultery, murder.
And then he's saying, "Bring
back the joy of Your salvation
in my heart, God."
And you can almost see him
on his knees, crying, praying,
pleading, begging, asking
for God's generous spirit to come back.
And that heart replacement,
that transplant, is something
that we're all offered, no matter how bad
we've sinned, how far we've gone.
That heart replacement is available to us,
and it just brings me joy just to know
that that's available to me.
(Kylynda) Thank you, Cory. Tendi.
(Tendi) And adding onto what Cory
just said, verse 12 talks
about restoration of the joy of salvation,
and let's observe that he
changed in character; he repented,
was restored, and is going to teach
transgressors not to do what he did.
So, it shows that when we are forgiven,
and God restores the joy of our salvation,
there is an act of repentance
but also maturity, spiritually - yes.
(Derek) Beautiful.
(Kylynda) Zandile and then we'll move on
to our second aspect
of Prophecy in the Psalms.
(Zandile) Thank you, I just wanted to say
that David also trusted in the power
of God to bring renewal
in his life and restoration.
If we just pray and confess our sins
and still not trust and believe that
He will restore us, we are
[as bad as] we have started.
But we need to have that faith
and that trust to say no matter
how red they are, He has promised
to make them whiter.
(Kylynda) Thank you so much.
So, at the sanctuary, we see salvation,
the model of salvation.
You know, there is a high calling,
as Stephanie said, to enter
into the sanctuary.
The bad news, we don't match that level.
But the even better news is that God
is willing not only to cleanse us
and blot out our iniquities
but elevate us, give us a clean heart,
bring us into a closer restoration with Him.
So, the sanctuary points to...?
(Derek) Messiah.
(Kylynda) The Messiah, Jesus.
The Bible is pointing to Jesus,
and the psalms point to Jesus as well.
So, Jesus actually acknowledges
the importance of the psalms
as evidence to His life.
I'd like us to turn to a verse
that's found in Luke, chapter 24.
Now, this is the Road to Emmaus story,
So, Jesus has been risen from the dead,
and as He is walking down the street,
He purposefully, we believe, meets
with several of His Apostles.
They don't know who He is,
and they are heartbroken
that Jesus has passed away.
And so, Jesus decides to give them
a Bible study of the Messiah.
Puia, I wonder if you could take us
to Luke, chapter 24,
reading verses 44 and 45.
(Puia) Sure, and I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Kylynda) Wow. I bet all of us
would have loved to have joined in
on that Bible study.
So, Luke doesn't record
the different texts that Jesus used;
he does mention the book of Psalms.
But, if I went to Heaven,
I would ask Jesus, "So, it was
Psalm 22, correct?"
So, let's turn...Psalm 22 is known
as a psalm that has multiple instances
reflecting on who the Messiah was,
on His sacrifice, on His death,
and on the resurrection.
We could spend our time looking
at every single verse.
We're going to just highlight
several of them to show that Psalm 22
is pointing to the Messiah
and how it gives us insight
into His character of love.
So, Stephanie, would you mind reading
Psalm 22, verse 1?
And as you're going there, Leeah,
if you could turn to the evidence
in the New Testament, Mark,
chapter 15, verse 34.
So, Stephanie will read first,
and then Leeah will take us to Mark 15.
(Stephanie) And I'll be reading
from the New King James Version,
Psalm 22, verse 1:
(Kylynda) So, here's a psalm
which kind of reflects
the despondency of the author.
Where do we see this in Jesus' life?
Leeah, Mark 15, verse 34.
(Leeah) In the English Standard Version, it reads:
(Kylynda) Jesus is quoting the psalmist,
and He takes these words of despondency
and reflects them in His own sacrifice
that He's given.
(Derek) One of my favorite preachers
once said Jesus cried that cry
so that we would never
have to cry that cry.
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) He suffered what we deserved,
and our sin was separating Him
from the Father's presence.
I don't think the Father was far from Him.
I think the Father was right there
and loved Him with the eternal love
with which He always had loved Him.
But our sin was separating Him.
(Kylynda) A separation never experienced in the Bible.
(Derek) But what a privilege that we
don't have to cry that hopeless cry
because Jesus is our Redeemer, praise God.
(Team) Amen.
(Kylynda) In the psalm, we actually see
even more clear examples linking
the crucifixion experience
with the psalmist's words.
I wonder if we could take a look
at Psalm 22, verses 7 through 8.
So, Jesus was experiencing this feeling
of separation that sin had driven
between Him and God,
but He wasn't also receiving comfort
from the people around Him.
Samantha, if you could read for us
Psalm 22, verses 7 through 8,
and, Kevin, if you could turn
to the New Testament
and look up Matthew 27,
verses 39 through 43. Samantha.
(Samantha) Psalm 22, verses 7 and 8:
(Kylynda) And, Kevin, if you
could take us now to look at Matthew,
chapter 27, verses 39 to 43.
(Kevin) I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Kylynda) How tragic
that the very religious leaders
who are supposed to be pointing people
towards Jesus are actually quoting,
basically, a psalm that's reflecting
this experience of anger, of mocking,
towards the Messiah.
Let's take a look at a final example.
Sophia, I wonder if you could read
verse 18 of Psalm 22, and, Tendi,
if you could take us
to a corresponding reference
in the New Testament, John,
chapter 19, verses 23 and 24.
So, Sophia, verse 18 in Psalm 22.
(Sophia) And I'll be reading
from the New King James Version:
(Kylynda) Thank you. And, Tendi,
if you could take us to John,
chapter 19:23,24.
(Tendi) The New King James Version says:
(Kylynda) Thank you, Tendi.
And I'd encourage the viewers at home
to take time to read through Psalm 22
and take a look
at the corresponding verses.
Perhaps your Bible has little asterisks
or indications of where these texts
are found in the New Testament.
Really, as I studied the Psalms,
I found that it not only deepened
my understanding of prophecies,
it helped strengthen my belief
in who Jesus is and in His ministry.
And I found it to be
a really valuable tool that takes
these words, even though we don't know
the music, as you often say to us still,
but these poetic words
that kind of speak to the soul
and bring us to a deeper understanding
of who Christ is.
As we close the lesson, I want
to take us back to this concept of music
and how God uses music,
the words of the songs,
the singing of the hymns,
as an important lesson for us
to better understand prophecies,
to better understand our experiences
living in the last days.
And, I was wondering if the group
could share, perhaps, any advice
or experiences in which music
helped them in their worship experience.
What are ways we can incorporate music
into our tabernacle experience today?
(Derek) Well, I'd like to share something.
I know we're out of time, but we
could sing Scripture songs.
I want to just, if I can, close
in the few seconds we have left,
in the middle of Psalm [22], Jesus says,
"O My Strength, hasten to help Me!"
And then verse 21, "You've heard Me."
So, this is not a cry of despair.
It's a cry of anguish, but it's
also a cry of hope.
Thank you, Kylynda, for sharing with us.
And I hope, when you sing
some of these Scripture songs,
you'll remember that the Holy Spirit
inspired the writing of those songs
to bless your heart and to remind you,
no matter how far you have fallen
from grace, that God can redeem you
and cleanse you and save you.
Let's pray; Father in Heaven, thank You
for this study today, a somber study
as we think about how Jesus was treated,
but He was willing to suffer
what we deserved, that we might receive
the eternal blessing
that He alone deserves.
Thank You for Your grace.
May we accept the gift of Your salvation
and may we share that good news
with those around us.
In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
(Team) Amen.
(Derek) Well, it's an amazing journey.
As Kylynda said, go back to the psalms,
not only Psalm 22 but other psalms.
See it all pointed to Jesus,
and then run to Him, your Savior,
and go out and be a blessing
to those around you.
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