Resources: Lesson Manuscript, PowerPoint, and Devotional
PowerPoint Here: https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/d4w5baoqvi29ofuw0hlpr/Lesson-God-s-Righteousness.pptx?rlkey=em5oy9okdus831yi1un2so249&st=vm1znq9o&dl=0
Franklin Heights Church Connect Groups: https://franklinheights.org/connect/groups/
Review: Last week we saw God is our Creator and knows us personally. Isn’t it a blessing to know that in the good times and the hard times, God’s loving sovereign, omnipotent presence is inescapable for the believer. God did something special this past week. I was praying for the opportunity to personally lead someone to Christ in a one-on-one setting, and God answered with a “Yes” just one day later! The individual gave their life to Jesus and will be baptized at our Lake Baptism Sunday, August 24th. In our conversation, shared with him John 10:28, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand.” I love to tell new believers after they pray to receive Christ, “no one can snatch you out of God’s hand and you can’t pry yourself out of the hand of God.” He holds us in salvation, and He holds us in sanctification, promising His presence always. What a Savior!
Title: God’s Righteousness
Text: Psalm 5:1-12
Key Verse: Psalm 5:12, “For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.”
Theme: Believers can live with hope knowing that God will always do what is right and just.
Introduction: Have you ever had days where you woke up with a heavy sigh?…We all have days like that, maybe from a heaviness at what you’re facing in the day ahead or what you faced yesterday that remains still unsolved, unresolved, and uncertain. God knows that we face days like this. David did, too. Psalm 5 is David’s morning prayer as he faces his enemies and calls out for God’s help. No matter what enemy, battle, situation, challenge, or hurdle you face today, let Psalm 5 be an encouragement to you, too.
Main Points:
- The Source of Righteousness (Ps. 5:1-6)
“Give ear to my words, O Lord;
consider my groaning.”
- This groaning is a lament (NIV), “meditation” (KJV) and means a low murmur, usually a complaint that is quietly spoken.
“2 Give attention to the sound of my cry,
my King and my God,
for to you do I pray.”
- While David was given the position of being king in Israel, here he recognizes who the ultimate, real, true, all-powerful King of kings and Lord of lords is, and he longs for God’s kingdom—not his own—to take place. This harkens to the way Jesus taught His disciples to pray. Matthew 6:10, “Your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
“3 O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice;
in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for youand watch.”
- The psalmist makes specific mention of the time that he prayed, at the beginning of the day, in the “morning.” The day we start the days makes a big difference in how we carry ourselves and the way we go about our day.
- Psalm 30:5, “For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.” For the believer literal morning brings with it fresh hope in God’s favor after dealing with our rebellion and figuratively the idea of morning brings the dawning light of day after the darkness we have faced.
- Psalm 59:16, “But I will sing of your strength; I will sing aloud of your steadfast love in the morning. For you have been to me a fortress and a refuge in the day of my distress.” As the psalmist is in the midst of the hardship he anticipates that when morning dawns he will sing, again; anticipating that helps him in the present. Notice his hope isn’t in the resolution of the trial ,but in the steadfast love of his God.
- Psalm 88:13, “But I, O Lord, cry to you; in the morning my prayer comes before you.” The psalmist has a confident assurance that in the morning God hears his prayer.
- Psalm 92:2, “to declare your steadfast love in the morning, and your faithfulness by night,” this verse confronts the individual who says, “I like to ‘keep my faith to myself.’” That mindset will not fly. God’s steadfast love is so awesome and real and infinite and wondrous that the psalmist cannot keep it to himself. To keep it to himself is the most selfish travesty imaginable for the redeemed. He says that he is going to declare, proclaim the steadfast love to others. We can’t control their responses, the outcomes, but we are responsible for turning up the volume on declaring our faith to others.
- Paul encouraged continual praying throughout the day-not just in the morning-as well. I Thessalonians 5:17, “pray without ceasing,”
“4 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness;
evil may not dwell with you.”
- Evil is vaporized and obliterated in the holy presence of Almighty God. Are you struggling with a particular sin, or the pull of a sin or sins? Dwell in God’s presence, in His Word, with His people, in corporate prayer, worship, the reading of Scripture, communion, and fellowship. Cultivate a distraction-dis-attraction toward sin by an infinitely greater attraction, Jesus. He’s the one we were originally created to be all-satisfied in anyway.
“5 The boastful shall not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers.
6 You destroy those who speak lies;
the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.”
- The Hebrew word—which is typically used in the positive sense—”halal” meaning “praise” or “shine” is used here, but David uses it in the negative sense of someone tooting their own horn and boasting about themselves. And isn’t that an appropriate choice of word? To boast in oneself truly is to take a moment in time that should be devoted to God’s praise, and subverting it with one’s own praise; it’s stolen praise.
Transition: As the psalmist prays, if he’s going to go into the day ready to face what lies ahead in God’s strength, he lifts up his groaning, sigh-filled prayer, acknowledges God’s Kingship, reminds Himself that evil is demolished by His presence, and reminds himself that there’s no place for self-promotion or deception in this day. This day is God’s day and all therein. In a very real sense, David has already secured a victorious day before it’s even commenced! This is the expectancy and the victory we have in God.
Discussion: How do you think going into the day with this same focus would impact us?
2. The Benefit of Righteousness (Ps. 5:7-10)
“But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love,
will enter your house.
I will bow down toward your holy temple
in the fear of you.”
- In CONTRAST (“But I…” v. 7) to the prideful one who toots his own horn, the psalmist is gladly bowing down in God’s presence. And he sees this prostrate posture as a demonstration brought about through the steadfast, unflinching love of God toward him.
“8 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness
because of my enemies;
make your way straight before me.”
- Again, in contrast to the enemies who exert their own wills in their pride, David longs for the righteous, clear-cut, laid-out path of God’s righteousness. Proverbs 3:5-6 echo this same exemplary instruction: “Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. 6 In all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make straight your paths.”
“9 For there is no truth in their mouth;
their inmost self is destruction;
their throat is an open grave;
they flatter with their tongue.”
- There are two characteristics to those who run against God. They use lies to ATTEMPT to tear down the genuine followers and work of God; which is impossible, because His church and kingdom are undefeatable. I Thessalonians 3:3 supports God’s defense of his own when Paul says, “3 But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.” There are two approaches they take: Lies & flattery.
- The gruesome description of these liars is “their throat is an open grave.” This is a picture of the human condition without Christ, on their own, without hope of salvation. Romans 3:13 quotes David here and even enhances the descriptors of them. Look at Romans 3:13: “Their throat is an open grave; they use their tongues to deceive.’ ‘The venom of asps is under their lips.’”
- It’s worth noting here, let’s not be surprised when the lost behave as lost. We are to pray for them, even when with their voices and platforms their mouths are an open grave. As once, people who were lost ourselves, liars and flatterers, we should pray that God would convict, win, and save these individuals.
- Matthew 5:44-46, “44 But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, 45 so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven. For he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. 46 For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?”
10 Make them bear their guilt, O God;
let them fall by their own counsels;
because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out,
for they have rebelled against you.”
- The NIV renders the word “counsels” here “intrigues.” Those who oppose God in sinful ways God makes certain that their schemes and intrigues end up collapsing on them. These individuals really are their own worst enemies.
Discussion: Who does this describe whose salvation you can pray for?
3. God‘s Blessings on the Righteous (Ps. 5:11-12)
“But let all who take refuge in you rejoice;
let them ever sing for joy,
and spread your protection over them,
that those who love your name may exult in you.
12 For you bless the righteous, O Lord;
you cover him with favor as with a shield.”
- God’s presence is a shield of protection for His own. What a promise to hold to, especially when we like David wake up with a sigh in the morning. We know who will hear and answer our prayers.
Doctrine: Our key doctrine for this week is MAN.
Lifeway says, “Only the grace of God can bring man into His holy fellowship and enable man to fulfill the creative purpose of God. Ephesians 2:8-10, “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.”
Gospel:
Transition Statement: We equip our folks to regularly, consistently, repeatedly, as-much-as-possible, transition every day conversations into gospel conversations.
One of the standout problems David faces in this passage is liars and flatterers. Know any of those in our culture? Yup, politicians. And who doesn’t complain about politics in everyday conversations? Don’t be sidetracked from your primary mission when someone complains about politics or a politician in one of your everyday conversations. Test-drive this transition statement to the gospel: “Politics sure can be frustrating. With your permission, may I share with you how Jesus has helped me through similar frustrations?”
It is not by works man is saved by the gift of God expressed int eh willing death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus in our place as our substitutionary atonement, atoning us from our sin and from the moment of salvation on empowering us to recover from our brokenness (lies and flatteries) and pursue His good design for our lives.
Discussion Questions: A lot of people are still stuck in their old sin leanings, be it lies or flatteries or other, because they’re not being discipled to grow in their faith. They check the easter and Christmas service box, pray the salvation prayer on page ten, but never receive viable follow-up. If someone receives Jesus, our next follow-up should be to invite them to church with us and to our Connect group next Sunday (i.e., “What time will I meet you next Sunday at church?”). How does being a part of Connect Group (to our members & CG leaders) or a small group, Sunday School class, Life Group help you experience God’s guidance and presence in life? Please respond in the comments below.
Big Takeaway(s):
- Believers can know for certain that God is fully righteous, and His acts will always be righteous.
- The righteous enjoy God’s presence and depend on His guidance.
- God will bless and protect the righteous.
Caleb Walker 
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