Psalm 123

Points of Interest
Psalm 123
I. Call to Worship:  Psalm 96:1-6
II. Offering passage:  I Cor. 16:1-2
III. Scripture references:

• Hebrews 12:2,3 - ‘fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.     For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.’
  
• Nehemiah 4:1 reads – ‘Now it came about that when Sanballat heard that we were rebuilding the wall, he     became furious and very angry and mocked the Jews.’
  
• Nehemiah 4:4,5 – “Hear, O our God, how we are despised! Return their reproach on their own heads and give them up for plunder in a land of captivity. Do not forgive their iniquity and let not their sin be blotted out before You, for they have demoralized the builders.”
  
• Matt 5:45 -  “causes His sun to rise on the evil and     the good and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous”             
  
• Exodus 34:6,7 - “The LORD, the LORD God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth; who keeps lovingkindness for     thousands, who forgives iniquity, transgression and sin …”
  

    
IV. Quotes:

• Alexander Maclaren (paraphrase) - ‘we should stand where we can see Him; we should have our gaze fixed upon Him; we should look with patient trust, as well as with eager willingness to start into activity when He indicates His commands’
  
• Spurgeon - ‘we must use our eyes with resolution , for they will not go upward to the LORD of themselves, but they incline to look downward, or inward or anywhere but to the LORD.’
  
• John Piper - ‘if you believed the promises of God, your passions would change, and you would live differently’
  
• AW Pink  - “mercy … denotes the ready inclination of God to relieve the misery of fallen creatures. Thus ‘mercy’ presupposes sin”
  
• John Newton - ‘I am an old man. My mind almost gone. But I can remember two things: I am a great sinner, and Jesus is a great Saviour