Warm for Chilly Hearts (Ps. 85)

Here’s Sunday’s message from Psalm 85. You can listen to the audio here.

I don’t know about you. But I’m excited to have some cooler days. I pull out my wool flannels the very first chance I get. I love to layer on another blanket and burrow myself from the cold. But what about when that chill works its way into our hearts? Or into our churches? When we feel dry and lifeless? The life we once felt is now but a memory. The joy that once moved our souls feels so distant.

We remember back - when the Spirit seemed to propel us out of our beds to pray. Or when the presence of God in gatherings together was powerful - even palpable. And we wonder what happened. And how we could ever feel that  way again. What do we do?

Now that’s what I want us to ponder together as we take a look at Psalm 85 this morning. Next week, we’ll jump back into the gospel of Matthew. But we also, at least once a month here in Karis, take a look at a Psalm. A few years ago, we found ourselves regularly encouraging you to daily read and pray from these Psalms. And it hit us. If this prayer book - this song book - is so important for our lives, isn’t it also important for our life? Our life together? So, we began this rhythm, and it’s been really good for our church.

But why, you might ask, are the Psalms so important for us? Well, put most simply, we need their encouragement. Because in these pages, we see the full range of human emotion. And we see what God wants us to do with all these ups and downs. He wants us to bring them to Him. Here in Psalm 85 the Lord gives us some hope - for the days when our hearts and homes grow cold.

This Psalm is about revival. One of my heroes and mentors, Ray Ortlund, says that we shouldn’t “neglect the revival dimension in our churches.” And I’m trying to heed his advice. But it’s a misunderstood concept. And perhaps that’s why it’s neglected. But if we ignore this teaching, we end up hurting ourselves. Because we often feel dry and cold, don’t we?

We should be a people who pray and prepare for God to move in revival. That’s my big idea for this morning. That’s what I want you to take with you today and try to apply along with me.

But, before we get there, who wrote Psalm 85? Well, all the Psalms aren’t written by David. There were others involved. And eleven of these songs or prayers were written by a group of men called the “sons of Korah.” We see this in the Psalm’s title. Now back in the book of Numbers, the clan of Korahites are listed as one of the families in the tribe of Levi that took care of the tabernacle and the temple. They were servants and leaders in the worship of Israel. In 2 Chronicles 20:19, in fact, they seem to be leading up the praise of the people. And this could explain how they ended up penning some of the Psalms. More on those boys in a bit. Let’s jump into the passage.

Remembering and Thanking

There are three main encouragements I want to give you today. And here’s the first: let’s remember and thank our God for how He has moved in the past. Let’s think about the setting for this Psalm for a minute.

Were you with us last week? We looked at Jeremiah 29, where God’s people are in exile in Babylon and God - through the prophet - is telling them how to live. Here in this Psalm, most scholars think the nation is back in their land, and it’s not as great as they thought, and things aren’t going well at all, and they’re looking back to when God delivered from out of the hand of their enemies. Hear it again, in verses 1 through 3:

Psa. 85:1  LORD, you were favorable to your land;

you restored the fortunes of Jacob.

Psa. 85:2 You forgave the iniquity of your people;

you covered all their sin.

Psa. 85:3 You withdrew all your wrath;

you turned from your hot anger.

God had disciplined His people. He had afflicted them with suffering. But He had showed compassion upon them and listened to their prayers. He brought them back. The Psalmist here is showing us how to remember and thank our God for how He has moved in the past. That’s the first thing we need to do when we feel dry and dead.

My mind goes back to a really tough time in my life. I was dating a girl. I was thinking about the future. And she came back from a trip to Venezuela. And she hadn’t been thinking about me. I was suddenly a part of her past. And I was devastated. I remember those days and weeks and months following as some of my sweetest times I’ve ever had with the Lord. I’m talking studying the Bible for hours. With so much joy.

I also think back to getting started with Karis. I’d walk downtown to work at a coffee shop early every morning. I’m talking 5 a.m. early. And I would wonder, first, to God, “I just finished a master’s degree. Why do I have to be doing this?” And I’d think, second, “I’m awkward and introverted. How is this ever going to happen?” But God was faithful. And somehow Karis came to be. I can think back, when I’m really struggling - and I’ve felt some of this lately - and I can think, “God, I remember back when she dumped me on my head. And you brought Karis from the dead. Do something great again, Lord. I want to see you move. I want to feel you in my life.”

We can look at where the church is today - especially in America - and we can get discouraged. But we can look back and see how God moved back in the day. Of course, we can think back to the early church, to Acts chapter two, where God’s Spirit came down, and three thousand souls were baptized and added to the church.

One of my favorite stories is that of Patrick of Ireland. He’s sadly best known today as the one who gets people donning green and downing Guinness in March. But do you know what he should be famous for? Kidnapped as a kid and dragged into pagan Ireland, he was held there for six years, where he became a follower of Jesus. But he later escaped. And got ministry training back in Britian. It was during that time that God gave him a dream - to go back to the place of his captivity. Where he ended up baptizing 100,000 people and starting a church planting movement that impacted the world.

Now here’s another one. Back on September 22, 1857, Jeremiah Lamphier held a prayer meeting in New York City’s Fulton Street Church. The first and second Great Awakenings had come and gone, and the church in America was declining. The country was caught up in some of the same arguments we’re having today. Immigration was surging and people were fighting. Chattel slavery was still the practice of the day. The country was divided. And then Wall Street tanked. Things were bad. And this missionary, Jeremiah Lamphier had an idea. To get businessmen together for an hour each day over lunch to do nothing but pray.

After a half an hour had passed in that first meeting, six men walked in. Then everything took off. To where it got to 10,000 people a day, praying in that city. And it spread across the nation. And hit college campuses. Between 1856-1859, the Protestant church in America added almost 475,000 members. Historian Kathryn Long says that movement “was perhaps the closest thing to a truly national revival in American history.” And it started with one fairly average guy inviting some friends to pray. As we stand today, in a nation that’s dry and divided, can’t we remember something like that and have hope? Let’s remember and thank our God for how He has moved in the past.

Trusting and Expecting

I want to encourage and challenge you in a second way, as we move to verses 4 through 7. Second, let’s ask and plead for our Lord to move in our present. Let’s be like Jeremiah Lamphier and ask the Lord to work. Because times are tough, also, today.

Church attendance is way down across the nation. Across America a group of people, that experts call the “nones” - those who in polls claim no religious affiliation - has risen. It was 5% of the population back in the 70s. It’s up too 30% of Americans in 2022. Nones. Saying they hold to nothing, to no-one at all.

You look at those who’ve been inside the church, and it gets even more discouraging. On one side is a massive group that’s denied most of the Bible out of fear. One the other is another huge group that’s made an idol out of the American flag. And just deleted some different Bible verses. They’ve both shirked King Jesus and His kingdom of heaven. They’ve chosen the way of the dragon over the way of the lamb. We’re in a mess.

And what we don’t need to do is go back to 2019. The pandemic just brought out what was under the surface. It boiled over. The result is what we’re dealing with today. What we need is what’s described here in verses 4 thorough 7.   

Psa. 85:4 Restore us again, O God of our salvation,

and put away your indignation toward us!

Psa. 85:5 Will you be angry with us forever?

Will you prolong your anger to all generations?

Psa. 85:6 Will you not revive us again,

that your people may rejoice in you?

Psa. 85:7 Show us your steadfast love, O LORD,

and grant us your salvation.

Our Father has reason to be angry - as He looks at His people today. And He has every right to discipline us - to wake us up to Him. What we need is what’s described in these verses. Revival.

Now you might be familiar with that word. But it’s also very misunderstood. Now some Christians resist the concept. They don’t think God works like He did in Acts. That we have God’s Spirit. That should be enough. And we’re past the age of such works of God.

But others think God’ll move, if we do the right things. If we repent enough. If we call out to Him enough. He’ll do something. He simply has to. God brings revival. With conditions. But that doesn’t seem to square up with the Bible - or even church history. Back in Acts 2, in verse 43, it says that, after all those conversions to Christ, that “awe came upon every soul.” That’s just not something you schedule over a weekend or in four nights in a tent.

No, revival is God’s prerogative. He does what He wants to do. Ortlund has written a book I love, entitled, When God Comes to Church. And he writes this:

“Revival is the season of the life of the church when God causes the normal ministry of the gospel to surge forward with extraordinary spiritual power. Revival is seasonal, not perennial. God causes it; we do not. It is the normal ministry of the gospel, not something eccentric or even different from what the church is always charged to do. What sets revival apart is simply that our usual efforts greatly accelerate in their spiritual effects. God hits the fast-forward button. And this blessing spills out from the church to wash over the nations with an ingathering of many new converts.” (Ray Ortlund)

That’s what revival is. God works. He restores us. He revives us. He puts away His  indignation, His anger toward us. He shows us His steadfast love. All because it pleases Him to do so.

But that doesn’t mean we don’t have anything to do. We do turn from sin. We do call out to Him. But, as Ray puts it elsewhere, “The remedy for our deadness to God’s grace is more grace.” It all comes because of Him.

I’ve heard Tim Keller compare what we’re doing to building an altar. We can gather the wood. We can grab a sacrifice. But we can’t call down fire from heaven. Others have said it’s like sailing a boat. You can get the boat ready to float. You can hoist the sail in the air. But you can’t begin to create the wind. It’s God who does the work in revival. But He uses what we do as means of that revival.

Back to Psalm 85. Many have pointed out that the same Hebrew word is found five times in this text. It’s explicit in verse 3 and 8. It’s the word for “turn.” But it’s also actually behind the word for “restored” in verse 1 and “restore” in verse 4. It’s even seen in the word “revive” in verse 6.

But in verse 3 the Psalmists speak of God turning from His “hot anger” toward His people. And in verse 8, they speak of God not letting His people “turn back to folly.” Revival has to do with turning. God turning away from His anger and back to His people. God’s people turning away from their foolishness and turning back to their first love.

Now when that happens, beautiful things are seen among the people of God. Here are some of the marks that have been seen throughout history. These come from author John Armstrong.

First, an awareness of God’s presence. There is a heightened consciousness of God. People walk into church gatherings, and they’re immediately convicted of their sin. You open up your Bible, and it feels like God’s speaking directly to your heart.

People just know that God is in their midst, and it changes everything. Believers are strengthened. Non-believers are converted.

Second, an uncommon readiness to hear God. God’s people have always been created and nourished by His Word. But during revival, people especially crave to hear from God. They come from miles away. They stay for hours at a time. They flock to hear truth proclaimed.

And these aren’t new truths. They are the historic themes of God’s holiness, man’s sinfulness, and Christ’s redemption. As Romans 10:17 says, “Faith comes from hearing and hearing through the word of Christ.” In times of “awakening,” people both lost and found desperately want to hear from God. And their faith deepens and grows.

Third, a deep conviction over one’s sin. When people become aware of God’s presence and hear clearly of His holiness through His word, they can’t help but come face-to-face with their own sinful condition.

They experience what the prophet Isaiah did in chapter 6. They see the Lord and fall down, crying out with him, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts” (v. 5). Revival brings conviction. Conviction brings confession - and this on a large scale and with much intensity.

Fourth, a heartfelt repentance over that sin. Closely related, when we experience revival, we are also moved to forsake our sin. Repentance involves a change in heart that results in a change in behavior. A turning. During revival, scores of unbelievers do turn from their sin, placing faith in Christ. But believers also break from old patterns and ways. As Luther said, Christ willed that the “entire life of believers be one of repentance.”

Repentance is for believers too, as we begin to see more and more the gap between God’s holiness and our sin. This gap is especially seen during seasons of awakening, as God’s Spirit moves us to move away from that sin. Through the Spirit’s convicting work, churches and cities have truly been transformed, almost seemingly overnight, during times of revival. People overwhelmed by grace walk away from sin.

Fifth, an extraordinary concern for others. Communities are changed because people begin looking outward from themselves. As they begin to more and more love God first, they in turn love their neighbors second (Matthew 22:37-39). Armstrong writes,

“When the church begins to act more like what she was designed to be, her life spills over into the world with great force and effect. Even those who despise revivals must admit that authentic awakenings have helped to build hospitals, taught the illiterate to read, clothed the naked, fed the poor, moved entire nations to act more justly, and even caused general reductions in crime and family dissolution.” (John Armstrong)

Awakening changes cities, as citizens newly reborn and recently revived serve on mission those around them in word and deed. In addition, these revivals have also led to mission movements as leaders are raised up and missionaries are sent out near and far. A key mark of awakening is genuine love.

Those are five things you’ve historically seen happen when God comes to church, when He brings revival. He turns things upside down. The church does ordinary things - and extraordinary things happen. As God’s people have a renewed love for Him and His gospel. That comes from God.

And here’s something to think about. Maybe Jesus needed to come into the church and flip over tables. I’ve loved the writings of Mark Sayers, and he says that “comfortable times create comfortable Christians.” America was comfortable. We were comfortable. Maybe 2020 and beyond are the best things that could have happened to us - and for the world.

Karis, in the coming weeks, we’re going to initiate a couple of two new ministries in the life of our church. First, a couple of prayer meetings on Wednesday, right here. One at 6:30 a.m. Another at noon. Both will last an hour. We’ll ask God to move. Second, we’ll start a monthly night of worship and prayer. We’ll sing and call out to God, likely on a coming Friday night. Stay tuned. Karis, let’s ask and plead for our Lord to move in our present.

Trusting, Expecting

Let’s move on to my third and final point. Let’s trust and expect our Father to move in big ways in our future. We look back to the past, remembering what God once did. We act in the present, begging him to do it again. We trust Him for our future - expecting Him to move.

Here, in verses 8 through 13, God encourages us to live in that expectation.

Psa. 85:8 Let me hear what God the LORD will speak,

for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints;

but let them not turn back to folly.

Psa. 85:9 Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him,

that glory may dwell in our land.

Psa. 85:10 Steadfast love and faithfulness meet;

righteousness and peace kiss each other.

Psa. 85:11 Faithfulness springs up from the ground,

and righteousness looks down from the sky.

Psa. 85:12 Yes, the LORD will give what is good,

and our land will yield its increase.

Psa. 85:13 Righteousness will go before him

and make his footsteps a way.

In verse 8, it’s like one prophet or priest steps to the front. The language shifts from second person plural - “us” - to first person singular, “me.” And this person, whoever he is, starts preaching, assuring us of the purposes and promises of God. God “will speak peace to his people, to his saints.” Peace? Yes, that’s shalom, that we talked about last week. He’ll bring it to us. And to all His creation. God will turn His people back. His salvation is near. His glory will return. That’s verse 9. We can have hope.

Look down at verses 12 and 13. The Lord will give “what is good.” The “land will yield its increase.” God’s “righteousness” will lead His people again. This preacher is saying that we can trust Him to work. We can expect Him to work. But I want you to think about the verses in between, verses 10 and 11. “Steadfast love” and “faithfulness” coming together. “Righteousness” and Peace” embracing as a kiss. “Faithfulness” coming from the ground. Meeting “righteousness” in the air. Three things about these two glorious verses.

First, revival fits with God’s character. Think about all those words. What’s in their background? Exodus 34. God’s words to Moses on the mountain.

Ex. 34:6 The LORD passed before him and proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness,

Ex. 34:7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, but who will by no means clear the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children and the children’s children, to the third and the fourth generation.”

This is who He is. He’s a just God. But One who longs to forgive. And with that, He loves to renew and refresh, to awaken His people. To soften hearts of stone. To melt away the ice. This is His character. It’s why we can pray with hope.

Second, revival comes on Christmas morning. There, in verse 9, that “glory.” Coming to “dwell.” It brings to mind the tabernacle and temple. God’s presence among His people. God loves to restore that to His children again. But it comes fully and finally in Jesus. Here’s a verse that we like to read at Christmas each year - that communicates that truth - from John 1:14. “And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus came to bring God’s presence to us. And He wants us to experience that.

Third, revival is accomplished at the cross. Christians have long seen verse 10 fulfilled in Jesus. God loves to show “steadfast love” and “peace.” He longs to show mercy to His people. But He’s also a holy God. He’s one of “righteousness” and “faithfulness.”

How does a perfectly righteous God pour out kindness to sinful humans? Through Jesus. They “meet.” They “kiss” in Christ. On the cross, God takes the penalty for our sin. God displays His righteousness. And we’re forgiven. He shows His mercy. And if we believe, we’re now right with God again. And because of that, there’s this hope.

Hear how Dane Ortlund puts it:

“Are you feeling dead and dry? Pray Psalm 85. Meditate it on the morning and in the evening. After all, God has proven, that He will not let such a prayer go unanswered. How did He prove it? By showing, in the fullness of time, exactly how “righteousness and peace” would “kiss each other” (v. 10). He sent Jesus Christ, His only Son, to satisfy the righteous requirements of the law and, in so doing, provide true and lasting peace for any who humbles himself enough to receive it. Jesus has wiped away any reason for God to withhold His renewing grace from you.” (Dane Ortlund)

So God’s people, though the Psalms, could pray this way back then. But we can pray it even more here in now. Because Jesus has come. And He is on our side.

Karis, in this life, we’ll have live through cycles. We’ll experience ups and downs. It’s because we’re sinners. It’s because we’re human. And we’re on this side of the new heavens and the new earth. But if we’re in Christ, we don’t have to settle for cool hearts and dead souls. We can go to our Father and trust Him, even expect Him, to meet us and make us new. Not because we’re good. But because of His grace. Psalm 85 reminds us of this.

Back to those sons of Korah. Do you know the ancestors of those guys? Do you remember what happened in Exodus 16? Korah is the guy who gets frustrated, maybe from carting around the big tent, and he stands up to Moses. He grabs 250 other men and launches a coup. He doesn’t want to just be a priest. He wants to take over as the boss. And he basically dares God to choose a leader. And God does. And He opens up the ground and sucks his family down. And He sends down fire from heaven to take the other 250 out. The descendants of that guy. That’s who the sons - the descendants - of Korah are. You see? God’s just. But He delights to show mercy.

There is hope for us all. Whoever we are, wherever we’ve been, we can pray Psalm 85. Our Father delights to pour out His grace. Let’s trust and expect our Father to move in big ways in our future.

Praying and Preparing

Now, in summary, we want revival. What do we do? First, we pray. We believe that revival is a work of God. We beg God to turn from His anger, and turn to us in love.

Second, we prepare. What goes with revival is reformation. We seek to align our lives, our churches, with His word. We turn from our idols. We turn back to our God.

We pray. We prepare. We rest in His sovereignty. We claim our responsibility. Both have to happen, church. So let’s pursue renewal, awakening, revival in our personal lives, and our corporate life together here, as a church.

Longing for Revival

It’s right around mid-terms time over on campus. And there will be a lot of praying and maybe a little prepping as students head into those classes. But as we, church, are tested by these difficult times, we need the same. We should be a people who pray and prepare for God to move in revival.

Now the last few years have been pretty rough. The church in America has suffered a great deal. Our hearts have really struggled in so many ways. And it would be so easy to believe that God has forgotten us, that He has abandoned us. But author Mark Sayers says the conditions are just right for where God tends to work.

He calls this time we’re in a “gray zone.” Where we’re moving from one era to another. Our world has changed in the past couple of years. And it will never be the same. But maybe what we’re losing isn’t that bad. And what we could gain might be so much greater. Before us are so many possibilities.

Sayers argues that the world has lulled the church of Jesus to sleep. The turbulence of these times can serve to wake us up. To move us to turn from our idols and back to the one, true God. And to move God to turn back to us, as well. To restore us and revive us. To work in powerful ways.

Suffering and struggle can be our friends. As they show us our need. And lift our eyes to the hills. Where we ask God to work. And get to see His hand.

He compares these days to Krakatoa, an island in Indonesia that was rocked in August of 1883 by a volcanic explosion. Three quarters of the island was destroyed. Over thirty thousand people were killed. In just a moment, that island was dramatically changed. A team of scientists visited shortly after. The terrain of Krakatoa was completely rearranged. Two mountain peaks were instantly gone. All flora - and fauna - had disappeared.

But just a few years later, another team visited the island, and they were amazed by all the signs of life. Lush vegetation had returned. Signs of animal life were everywhere. And this is how Sayers puts it:

“What looked like destruction was the phase before germination. The devastation created a blank page upon which a new story could be told. The gray zone became the seedbed of renewal. Krakatoa reminds us that what may look like decline, loss, or even obliteration can be revival’s launching pad. For such renewal to occur, all it takes is a single seed.” (Mark Sayers)

Perhaps this trial we’ve all felt will be a catalyst for change. And what’s felt like death, will actually be a pathway to life. Perhaps refreshing rains will pour down on His people again. And moisten our dry spirits. Maybe the rays of His sun are about to break into our worlds. And melt our cold hearts. And fill them with joy again. Let’s be a place that prays for that, and preps for that, Karis. I just have to finish that quote from Ray that I started with:

“My plea comes down to this. Let’s not neglect the revival dimension in our churches. It is biblical. It is right. It is of God. Let’s stop being so timid. Let’s trust God so much that we follow His Word without qualifying it to death. None of us has long to live. Why not do something boldly radical before you die? Follow God’s Word fully. Don’t censor it. Don’t whittle it down to the narrow confines of your comfort zones. Trust that God is wise in all his Word and ways. Pray for more of Him than you’ve ever had before. And then go beyond praying. Expect Him to show Himself near to you in new ways that will delight you and honor His own name. Venture your whole personal fulfillment on God, withholding nothing. He will be honored, and you will be amply rewarded.” (Ray Ortlund)

We should be a people who pray and prepare for God to move in revival. Let’s pray now.