Congregation, we will open the Word of God and read Psalm 39. Psalm 39. We read God's Word in this last service of this year in Psalm 39. To the chief musician, to Jonathan, a Psalm of David, I said I will take heed to my ways, that I sin not with my tongue. I will keep my mouth with a bridle while the wicked is before me. I was dumb with silence. I held my peace even from good, and my sorrow was stirred. My heart was hot within me, While I was musing, the fire burned. Then spake I with my tongue, Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am. Behold, thou hast made my days as an handbreadth, and mine age is as nothing before thee. Verily, every man at his best state is altogether vanity, Selah. Surely every man walketh in a vain show, surely they are disquieted in vain. He heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. And now, Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in Thee. Deliver me from all my transgressions, Make me not the reproach of the foolish. I was dumb. I opened not my mouth, because thou didst it. Remove thy stroke away from me. I am consumed by the blow of thine hand. When thou with rebukes dost correct man for iniquity, thou makest his beauty to consume away like a moth. Surely every man is vanity, Selah. Hear my prayer, O Lord, and give ear unto my cry. Hold not thy peace at my tears, for I am a stranger with thee and a sojourner as all my fathers were. O spare me that I may recover strength before I go hence and be no more. so far the reading of the Holy Word of God. The text for the sermon is the first part of verse 4, Psalm 39 verse 4a, where we read the words, Lord make me to know mine end. Beloved congregation, we are again at the last day of a year the last day of the year 2022. And on a day like this we are reminded of the brevity of life. Our lives are busy and time flies on. It will not take long until we will have our last day on earth. On a day like this we are also reminded of other matters Many things have happened in the past year. There were funerals amongst us. Loved ones have been taken away by death. We have been repeatedly reminded that on earth we have no fixed dwelling place. We have no lasting abode here. And on a day like this, we also look back and consider the many blessings we received that the Lord has spared us and given health and strength, also restoring grace, and the Lord has blessed us that we could come to his house every week to hear his word. But ultimately, as we look at this last day of the year, we are kind of maybe a bit emotional, but it's also realistic, reminded of the brevity of life. And the last day of this year, it will slide away, and the Lord willing, the new year 2023 will start tomorrow. And then this last day of the year reminds us of the fact that one day you and I will have to leave this world. All what is old passes away. This world will also pass away. Scripture says we are like a shadow. We look at this life as if it all remains the same, and we think we will remain. We know we will not, but we can't imagine not to be here, because we have always been here, as long as we exist. And that's why we kind of have a hard time imagining not to be here anymore. And yet, we're all on our way to our last dwelling place, our final dwelling place, our long home. That's how scripture calls it. And this present life will soon be spent And so this last day of the year calls us also to prepare ourselves for that one last day that will come. Maybe years, it may be next year, longer or shorter. And that is what we find in Psalm 39. That's what David says. David is aware of these matters. And he writes in verse 4, "'Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my days, what it is, that I may know how frail I am.'" We wish to meditate upon these words, "'Lord, make me to know mine end.'" So we consider then David prays to know his end. And this prayer is because of four things. It's because of the brevity of life, it's because of the vanity of life, it's because of the sinfulness of life, and because of the only hope in life. So David prays to know his end. This prayer is because of the brevity, the vanity, the sinfulness, and the only hope in life. So David realizes that he is a mortal person. He knows life is quickly spent. How does David know that? Well, he's looking around him. He's been in battle, and he has seen people who were killed in battle. He sees death around him. his grandfather, Obed. He probably had died, and his father, Jesse, would maybe have died at that time already. He knows that he too will have to die, and after him his sons will die. He knows there's nothing more certain in this life than death. Death will come for each and every one of us here in church. Death can come when we are old, but it's also possible that it comes when we are young. We can be 60 or 80. We can be 50 or 40 or 10. It will come for sure. And it can come so soon before we are aware of it. It can come already, suddenly, a sickness breaks through, or a truck spinning out of control, racing right towards us. The collision is unavoidable. Death is before our eyes. Daily people die in traffic accidents, or the heart failure that will sooner or later lead to death. In the long run, nobody will escape death. If the Lord does not return, we will all die. We will all return to dust. Just like there were many people sitting here in church that many of us remember and talk to, we see their faces. that they are no longer with us. They have passed on. Most of them were older, but there were also younger ones, some even very young. And so we all will return to dust, because we are made of dust, and to dust we shall return. We're all going to the land of no return. We're going to the land where there will be no more labor, to the land where there will be no more eating or drinking. And then our place will be left empty at family gatherings. Our place in church will be left empty, because we are traveling on. Because, congregation, you know very well we are created for eternity. And this short life on earth determines where we will spend eternity. At that time, as we know, we have to leave this life. We may have many regrets. We may regret that we didn't seek the Lord more diligently. We may then regret that we didn't listen more intently to sermons in church, or that we didn't listen to admonitions of parents or of grandparents. We may regret that we wasted so much time, or that we neglected to make use of the means of grace. But at that moment when we have to leave this life, all these regrets will be of little or no avail. And after our death, we will continue to exist. Scripture is very clear about that. The existence will either be in hell or in heaven. It will be with the Lord forever in glory, or it will be forever in outer darkness. You and my final home will not be where you now live, but our final home, where we will stay forever and ever, will either be with the Lord in New Jerusalem, or it will be in the abyss. The Lord Jesus described it as smoking with fire and sulfur. and therefore it's a rather important question, wouldn't you agree? Lord, make me to know mine end. What shall be the end of my days, O Lord? Of course, David means to say here, if it is well with me, let me know that, O Lord. And if it is not well with me, let me know now, O Lord, that I may repent, that I may still turn to Thee and live. For Thou hast no pleasure in the death of the sinner, but therein Thou hast pleasure, that the sinner would repent and would be saved." David is actually preparing himself for the day of his death. He knows that death can be very close. In verse 5, Thou hast made my days a handbreadth. And a handbreadth, that's the width of a hand. That's how close death is. It shows us how short our life can be. That's the brevity of life. Now maybe you find this all gloomy. Why does David refer to the end of his days? Why do we in church have to meditate upon a topic like that? David must be a very pessimistic man. He must have been very melancholy, depressed maybe. But that was not the case. For as we read Scripture, we read that David was a very joyful person. He wrote beautiful psalms in which he praised the Lord. He was a man of trust who composed Psalm 23, The Lord is my shepherd. He lived in trust. He lived rejoicing in the Lord. He composed songs of praise to the Lord. And so the Holy Ghost has inspired David to write these Psalms of praise. But at the same time, David is also realistic. He's not gloomy or depressed. He's realistic. He faces the facts in life, that I am a sinner, And I need to be reconciled to God. That's a fact of life. It has nothing to do with being gloomy. We have sins. I do. You do. And those sins have to be covered. Those sins have to be washed away. I need the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ upon me. That sober-mindedness. has nothing to do with being gloomy. It would be foolish to pretend that I have no sins and not to think about the day of our death. Oh, when that comes, we'll worry about that later. That's foolish! Then you're not facing the facts. Then you're like an ostrich, as they say, who puts his head in the sand if there's danger. That's how people live. Oh, let's just enjoy life as much as we can. Eat and drink, for tomorrow we die. That's what the pagan Greeks said in their philosophies. Paul quotes it. But that's what people now say. I'm alive now. Now I will enjoy as much as I can. And when death is there, I'm not there. So who worries? But it's all foolish. Now, David is not foolish. He is sober-minded. And he considers the brevity of life. He knows that he has a never-dying soul. And so David displays wisdom, for he knows that now in this life, the decision is made where you belong. And those who belong to the Lord will be with him. and those who don't belong to the Lord will not be with him. They will go to their own place, a place without God. Maybe it is that we have our hopes set on the things of this life. It's going well materially, and so we hope to have many more years of prosperity, But now, in the last day of this year, in this last service, the Word of God comes to you and says, you have to set your house in order. You know, it's very blunt to say it this way, but we are actually waiting for our own funeral and it is close by as the width of a hand. How will your end be? How will it be in the state you are now in if you have to leave this life? We've all heard of young people who were taken away by an accident. And how will it be with you? Don't push the question away. But realize the brevity of life. Be wise. Be sober-minded. Believe the Scriptures, for they are true. The prophecies are true. They are being fulfilled. The Belgian Confession says, even the very blind can see that what has been prophesied is taking place now. Consider the brevity of life. Consider the Lord Jesus Christ, that you need Him as your foundation. It's not only the brevity of life, but also the vanity of life. David speaks about that here in verse 5. Verily, every man at his best state is altogether vanity. Well, that's a very strong statement. Every man, you and me, at his best state, with all we've accomplished, or we think we have accomplished, with our beauty, with possessions, with whatever we have, every person, you and me, is altogether vanity. It's vain. It will all pass away. Naked we come in this world, and naked we will leave this world. Various words have emphasis here. Verily, the first word, verily, for sure, truly, it's certain. We are inclined not to believe such a word, that we are vanity. So God's Word wants to convince us by adding this prefix, verily, so that we would not doubt. It doesn't say most men, but every man, every human being, with all he or she has accomplished, is vanity. Whether rich or poor, obscure or well-known, High or low, all are vanity." And then we also see here the addition, "...in his best state." So even the best years of man, it's vanity. The young years, healthy, strong, prosperous. The young years when he is most merry, when he thinks his mountain stands firm and secure, Man is vanity. It's only by God's grace that we are spared, that we are not in a war, that we have no country invading our nation. And then we have the word altogether. Man is altogether vanity, not just partially, not just certain aspects of your life that's vanity, but other aspects, no, that has real lasting value. No, man, in his own best state, is altogether vanity. And then the word Selah is added. The word Selah, that is, pay attention to this. That's what Selah means. It has a certain emphasis. Every man in his best state is altogether vanity. And in verse 6 the matter is explained even stronger. Surely every man walketh in a vain show. David says life is nothing but a show. What is a show? That's something unreal. that's pretending something. We are masters at pretending to one another that the reality is different when we are alone. What we see is not reality. Every man walketh in a vain show in life. Men behave in a certain manner and they come home. and they put the shoes off, and their mask drops, and then you see how they really are, how they interact with their members of the family. Because man has in his public life a vain show. It's like a parade where people are dressed up. They pass the bystanders. And the people look at them and think they are what they see, but it's not what they see. It's not how it is. They display something different than they really are. And that's how our lives are in the procession. Man walketh in a vain show. He pretends something that He not really is. What is real? It's not what we see. But what God sees, that's real. That's real. What we see of man is not lasting. It's not how things actually are. So the invisible things, they are real. the things that we don't see from each other, what lives in your and my heart, that's real. And the Lord doesn't look at that vain show, but he looks at your and my heart, what makes us tick, what motivates us, what rules our life, that's real. Health, what does it mean actually? And wealth, what does that mean? It may be blessings. And what would a man benefit if he would gain the whole world but would lose his soul? What does it benefit to live in the most beautiful house of Ontario? But when you don't know God in your heart and life, Then after a little time of vanity, you would be exposed to reality, your everlasting destination. What then do all the riches of the world mean? When the rich man had to complain that there was not a drop of water to cool his tongue. And so what is the reality of your and my existence? How do we live? How does the Lord see us? When you are with your loved ones in a sheltered environment, how do you behave towards your children? How do you behave towards your parents? How do we behave towards one another in marriage? Are we caring? Are we loving? What is our real existence? David knows of this vanity of life. and this vain show. He says further in verse 6, surely they are disquieted in vain. Disquieted in vain. The hustle and bustle of daily life, we're so busy we run to and fro. We're all so busy. And we can neglect the most important, basic thing of life is to care for our soul and to seek communion with the risen Christ. We can be so busy and are full of unrest. Man, short of days, is full of unrest. And that's vain. Tension and stress, but it's vanity. People make themselves so busy, they have no time, no time for the Lord, no time to seek the One who gives everlasting life. They are disquieted, but it's all in vain. At the end, it will not bring them any relief. David says here, he heapeth up riches, and knoweth not who shall gather them. If people would know who are now passed on, who are squandering their riches, they would turn around in their graves. People working so hard to scrape dollars together, and they don't know who shall spend them. Man is so active in gathering riches, and that makes life vain. because the true riches of life everlasting we are inclined to neglect, because we gravitate to this world, you and I. We gravitate to what this world offers, even lawful things. We're not even speaking about the unlawful, sinful things per se, but lawful endeavors. And we gravitate towards that, and we give that the highest priority in our life. But what about God? What about his honor? What about his name? What about his image in our life? So man can work for that which satisfieth not. The real thing is to have a treasure in heaven. That's something you can't see. It's invisible. It's behind the curtain. But it's there. The Lord Jesus speaks about a great reward there in heaven. And so there are people who are rich, very rich in Christ. And in this life on earth, they are very plain, they have a very modest income, but they are rich in Christ. And for a number of years they will live with their modest income, and then inherit the everlasting riches. That's a reality. And so the real thing is what you cannot see. The real thing is eternity. The real thing is your soul, the state of your soul. And therefore, David says here, Lord, make me to know mine end. And how much time have we spent in this past year of things that cannot satisfy? How much time have you spent on the computer screen watching things? But you had little time to study the Scriptures. You had little time for prayer. Realize what you're doing. It's vanity. It is air, it's wind, it's nothing. While the true riches, you're neglecting them. And I know it takes strength and time and self-denial and effort to study the Scriptures. But do that. Make that your highest priority in life. and to seek the face of the Lord daily. Isaiah 1 says, Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which satisfieth not? Hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness. And so David says, Lord, make me to know mine end. It's not only because of the brevity of life or the vanity of life, but it's also because of the sinfulness of life. In verse 8, David refers to his transgressions. Deliver me from all my transgressions. David knows that the sorrow and grief in life are actually the result of transgressions, and that transgressions are also the cause of sorrow and grief. Nobody is happy by living in sin. A person is happy and blessed when he is under the righteousness of Christ and as peace with God. That gives happiness. That gives true joy and delight. But sin makes a person miserable. And the result of sin is that a person will die. Therefore, make me to know mine end. Deliver me from all my transgressions. David doesn't pray to be delivered from trouble. He doesn't pray to be delivered from a headache or from pain. Nothing of the kind. He prays to be delivered from his transgressions. to be delivered from sin. Lord, put all my sin away so that I may be fully clean from all my sins. Deliver me from temptation and from the assaults of sin. Temptations. Who is here that is not tempted by all kinds of sins? David feels those temptations, and he knows they will lead to transgressions and they will make me ultimately miserable. And they are sins of thought and word and deed. They can be special sins, bosom sins. They can be sins in your life you want to break with, but you feel you can't. Well, David knows of sins in his life, and these transgressions weigh heavy upon David. He sees more sins the more he thinks about it, but David is a child of God. He is a man according to God's heart, yet he has much indwelling sin within him, and he knows that he's responsible and accountable for all he has been doing. And how can he meet God with these sins in him? He needs deliverance from these transgressions. He needs to be washed, that all those sins will be washed away. Therefore, deliver me from all my transgressions. Is that also your prayer? Pride, covetousness, ungratefulness, they're also in our hearts. Sins of neglect, sins of deed, unbelief, impatience, lack of love, complaining, undue anger, lust, carelessness, indifference, Are these transgressions a burden to you? Well, you may think, if David is a child of God, so why should he be bothered about those transgressions? The Lord gives promises in His Word that if we confess our sins and we leave them, the Lord will forgive. But isn't that enough for David? No. because he knows he can't even leave those sins, they are a part of him, and he hates it, and he resists it, but he can't overcome them. And he knows about promises for forgiveness, but he wants to be delivered, delivered from his transgressions, not just the guilt, but also the practice of doing them. He wants to be forgiven. Make me to know mine end. Verse 12 again, that cry for an answer. Hold not thy peace at my tears. David needs an answer for his own heart and soul. Hold not thy peace. Speak to me, O Lord, through thy Word and Spirit. And then David finds a pleading ground in the promises of God. So we may also plead those promises of the Lord. There's a certain comfort in the fact that we may plead the promises of God But ultimately, we need those promises to be fulfilled in our own heart and life. It's not enough to know a promise or to plead a promise, but we need the fulfillment of that promise. We need peace spoken to our heart, and the Lord confirms His Word to the heart, and that He says, I am thy salvation. And that gives comfort to the soul, a token of his nearness and his presence. And this comfort is what David needs, and that comfort is what you and I need. How else can you reflect upon the end of your days? You need comfort of the Lord in your heart, that forgiveness of transgressions is received, because of the Lord Jesus. He suffered on the cross. He took all the transgressions of his people upon himself. He gave the perfect sacrifice for sin. Salvation, you know, is in Christ alone. He merited a full remission. He merited an entrance into heaven. Christ made it possible that men can know their end and know it is well with my soul. People can know that. And how can you know that? How can you know if it is well between the Lord and your soul? The Lord gives various marks for that. The Lord Jesus speaks about abiding in His Word. If you abide in His Word, you are truly His disciples. Do you abide in His Word? Is His Word a part of your life? Is it a foundational part? What did you read this morning? Did you think about it this day, what you read? Is His Word normative for you? And then the Lord Jesus says, If ye love one another, ye are truly my disciples. Love, it's a second characteristic. What dwells in your heart? Is it love for your brother or sister? Is it love that motivates you? Love to the Lord? love to those around you, that even though they may not be kind to you, that you will still love them, be good to them. That's a mark of those who know the Lord in their hearts. And it's also that they display the fruit of the Spirit, as you find revealed in God's Word, of love and joy and faith and patience. Maybe that's hard to detect, but that's a mark given in God's Word. And the final mark of those who truly know the Lord is that God loves them, that you have a sense, that you may know that God loves you, that you may sense that in your heart, by guidance, by His mercy revealed to you, by His lovingkindness poured out to your heart, and that the desires of your heart are curbed towards Him, that you have an awareness that God has love to you, because that love will be immutable. It will be everlasting. Those are marks to know whether you are right with God or not. And therefore, in this last service of this year, we need the fulfillment of the divine promises. So David prays, Lord, make me to know mine end. And that finally also is because of the hope in life. In verse 7, David confesses that his only hope is in God. And now, Lord, what wait I for? My hope is in Thee. David expresses that only the Lord can be his hope, his comfort, his support, his strength. Everything in this life cannot give me hope. Nothing that I own or am can give me hope. It is only Thee, my hope, is in Thee, like 1 Timothy 1, verse 1, the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our hope. And that's a firm, strong hope. And with Him as the content of your hope, and with Him as the one you are hoping upon, then you know your end. Then you're delivered from vanity. Then you may have good courage. When He has become your hope, my hope is on thee. Outside of Christ, there's no hope. But the Lord Jesus, who fulfilled every righteousness, He only can be our hope. He saves to the uttermost. He is the Good Shepherd. He is the priest who lifts up intercessory prayer for His people, that their faith would not cease. He is the one who prepares a home in the house of His Father. He is the one who is with his people, who undergirds them, who supports them, that when they go through the water, the river shall not overflow them. When they go through the fire, the flame shall not consume them. He is the hope. He is the prophet who gives light and insight and personal instruction. The Lord Jesus is the hope of his people. who delivers His people from the menacing enemy and from the terror of temptations. He gives them armor to resist temptations. It's all in that precious name, Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins. A life without Christ is a mirage, a deception. It's fake. but a life with Christ is everything. It's life everlasting. That's what it is. And blessed you may say, my expectation is not on the things of this life or of this earth, but it's upon Thee, Lord Jesus, that I may forever belong to Thee. I wait for nothing else that thou wouldst take me home to be where thou art, that I may be an inhabitant of new Jerusalem, that I may be there where thou art forevermore, that is real. And that sure hope, that's a sure comfort for a child of God, is that our expectation What shall be our end? An end in Christ or an end in ourselves? And therefore this prayer, Lord, make me to know mine end. Amen. For the last time in this year, we may, together as a congregation, call upon thy name And we do that, Lord, with thanksgiving for Thy holy Word that shows us direction and perspective in life. And we pray Thee, wilt Thou cause us to know our end, and may there be an end in Christ, that Thou wilt be our end, our aim. We pray, Lord, if Thou wilt give us grace to live with and for Thee. May that be how we will end this year, 2022. We pray, Lord, if Thou will be with those in need, also amongst us, widows and widowers, those who may be lonely, those who have cares in their home, We pray for them, and we pray, Lord, if those in nursing homes may be strengthened and blessed. We lift up unto Thee, Lord, also those who may have certain problems or stress that weighs upon them, that Thou give them deliverance. Through Thee, Lord Jesus, teach us to live according to Thy will and to listen to Thy word of promise. We pray Thee for the war-torn country of Ukraine, that Thou give deliverance and peace there. We ask Thee Thy mercy upon countless people who are in blindness, in darkness, who do not know the gospel. also in our country and throughout this world, the countless people who are living without the gospel, who may have known something of it, who may have heard a testimony about it, but who turned away from it, or those who never heard the gospel. O Lord, we pray for the extension of Thy kingdom. also now in these last hours of the year 2022. We pray, Lord, if Thou wilt be our hope, our expectation. Go with us this evening and bring us again tomorrow morning in Thy house. Watch over us, we pray. For Jesus' sake, we ask this all. Amen.