The text this evening is the 21st Psalm, Psalm 21. Before we begin this evening, I wanna ask a very basic question. Presuming that you and I have come here this evening to seek God's blessing, the Psalm before us asks, why? Why have you come to the throne of grace to seek grace? What is that impelling cause that drives you here this evening? That very much lies behind our text this evening. The reason why we would seek divine blessing. The reason why the church of God would be seeking God's mercies. And so friend, that's certainly a question that you and I ought to have behind our meditations this evening. One that we'll return to God willing as we close. As we take up our psalm tonight, you'll notice that this is the psalm of a subject. The psalm of a subject meditating very much upon the glory, the blessedness of his King. In the first six verses, you notice that that there his principal focus is on the king's longevity. The Lord has given him life and life as he says here, forevermore. Then in verse 7, the psalmist shifts his focus from the Lord and addressing God in prayer and turns to make a statement about the King himself. He there records that the King's trust is steadfastly upon the Lord. And accordingly in the second line of that seventh verse, the King is stable, he will not be moved. But then as you go to the final section of the text, verses eight to 13, you notice that once again, there's a shift. in which now the psalmist addresses the king. And there his principle theme is the king's triumph, his victory over his enemies. And so the psalmist meditates upon the king's longevity, upon his trust and stability, and upon his triumph. But bookending all of this, you notice in verses one and 13, is a reference to the strength of the Lord. In fact, as the psalmist meditates, this is the running theme right through. That in the King's longevity, in the King's trust and stability, and in the King's triumph, the strength of Almighty God is manifest, exalted. And the point, friend, that the psalmist drives us to is to see that in the King's prosperity, in his life, The glory of God is manifest. His strong arm is lifted high, exalted. Now friend, what you and I have here is a Psalm not terribly unlike the one we considered last week. The 20th and 21st Psalms are very much alike as both are very principally focused upon the king, especially upon the king's life and victory. And friend, as we said before with regard to the 20th Psalm, of course, as the worshiper went into the temple, as he went into that place of worship, where his focus was certainly fixed, not only upon his own blessing, but that of the church, he would have passed great David's great houses. And he would have come into the temple knowing, of course, that as David and his posterity prospered, that so also did the church underage. But friend, he also must, of necessity, look beyond David. Because ultimately the church's prosperity, ultimately it rested upon the shoulders of Zion's true, eternal, divine king, who would be incarnate as great David's greater son. Beloved, in the old covenant, it was necessary as they came to worship and took up words like ours this evening to have the Lord Jesus Christ in view. Yes, certainly David is in the text, but as a signpost, pointing us steadfastly to he who is King of Zion. And friend, certainly it must be the case, as this is not only the Psalm book, the hymn book of the church under age, This is the manual of praise for all of God's people throughout all generations and in all lands. And so beloved, you and I are supposed to see in this text, the Lord Jesus Christ, and principally in this 21st Psalm, you and I are to see that God is glorified in his life and in his triumph. I want us to see that very briefly this evening as we take our attention, first of all, to the first five verses. The psalmist in these first five verses fixates upon a particular moment. It lies behind the text, but it's something that threads these five verses. You notice that that theme is that of request. First of all, he says that the Lord has not withholden the request of his lips, presupposing that the king has been offering prayer. And then you notice he tells us what the content of this prayer was in the succeeding lines. Verse 4, he asked life of thee. And so friend therein you find really the king's request and his blessing. Here the psalmist contemplates the king as one under duress and so petitioning to God for life. And the blessedness of these first five verses consists in the fact that God in fact had answered. God had answered. Now friend, what you and I should certainly keep behind our thinking of this text is what we meditated upon in Psalm 20, where there you have again, the psalmist very much fixed upon the king's suffering, as well as the king's deliverance. Those themes still thread our soul. And friend, as we recognize that of course, this is pointing us to the Lord Jesus Christ, We know, of course, that the Scriptures tell us precisely that this was the Lord Jesus, his experience, in the days of his flesh when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death and was heard in that he feared. Hebrews 5. Beloved, here you have a clear picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. and life given him. But this is the point, beloved, that you and I need to see Christ really, really indicated in the psalm. Because as you notice, the psalmist says the king asked life of God. But note what was given him. Again, back at the fourth verse. He says here, even length of days forever and ever. Now, as the worshiper of God, he ascended Mount Zion and he passed the palaces of David's posterity. Of course, perhaps even from that vantage point, he might have seen also the tombs of David and his sons. And friend, that means then that this could only apply to David in an exclusively spiritual sense until the final resurrection. Beloved, for the Lord Jesus Christ, this is quite literally His. Quite literally, something that is spoken of our King. I want you to notice, beloved, in this text, that here you have the psalmist invoking the idea that the King in view is the same One that will be in view as this psalmist taken up in praise through the running ages. This king lives forever and ever and ever and is so then appropriately the subject of the church's praise through the running millennia. My friend, what I want you to notice here is that this psalmist contemplates a living king. He contemplates a king who is alive now. As we've said in those first five verses, the principal focus of the psalmist is on the fact that the life of the king is an exhibition and exaltation of the power of God. Do you think, friend, of a living Christ in that way? That as he presently lives, not as the divine son, but as God-man, that therein lies a special display of God's power and so his glory. You see friend, God was glorified. Of course, as Christ faithfully accomplished redemption on his earthly ministry and throughout his whole life in his first advent. What you and I can't miss also is that God is still glorified in Christ's session. as this king continues to live forever and forever as Zion's king. Friend, there you have the glory of God lifted high and displayed uniquely. But that's not all that the psalmist tells us. I want you to notice in verses 6 and 7, he says something about the king. He says, not only has the Lord given him life, but he says, thou hast made him most blessed forever. Now, I suppose in our English translations, we may say that, well, that pertains to himself, that is, God has blessed him. But in the original, it's actually quite the opposite. One could legitimately translate it, in fact, or even the authorized version, perhaps you have a note in the margin, that he was set to be blessings. Even that friend, if you look at that in the original, the word blessings there is not blessings numerically, but blessedness in the abstract. Meaning he's not there set just to have blessings, but that he is blessedness. And then the idea that he was set so, is the idea that he was established, then, as it were, to be a source of blessedness. This is not blessing for himself, but this is him as the one through whom blessings would come. And the psalmist goes on to say that God had set him so forever. Beloved, it's at this point that all of David himself, and all of his posterity accepting Christ, for they simply pale in his light. The king that the psalmist contemplates in this text, at this juncture is a king who is a source of blessing to the church of God and forever. He is not merely blessed by God, but he is blessedness itself and so set that the church might flourish and certainly be blessed in him. This is an undying source of blessing. And then you notice as you come to the seventh verse that this one who is set up for the blessing of the church, he shall not be moved. This is an undying and an unmoved source of blessing. And friend, what you and I of course must see is that this is the Lord Jesus Christ but it is Him set before us as God is glorified in Him, as the One who is fount of the church's blessing and security. And friend, this the Scriptures teach in one voice. He principally, friend, is the source of all blessedness for the church. God has blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places, in Christ. and then joins the Apostle, to the praise of the glory of His grace. Precisely what you and I meditate upon in this 21st Psalm. That it is in the King, His establishment, as that very source of the Church's blessing and security, that God's glory is exalted. The Apostle says this is true of the Lord Jesus Christ. And friend, as we see in this 21st Psalm, that Christ is there unmovable. And why is that a benefit to the church? Beloved, because the king stands in her midst. And if he is unmoved, then her security is sound. If he is stable, then nothing can perturb, can undo her. In a staggering way, as you look at the text in the original, the language of verses 6 and 7 really are that of a fountain. This is a fountain of blessing, but this is a fountain that is never drying. And it's a fountain that is ever standing. This King is the source of all blessedness for the people of God, and he stands today as such. But can I remind you, friend, just at this juncture, what the psalmist is principally focused upon? And that is his meditations about the king are principally how the king, his longevity, his stability, and his triumph exalt God. Surely that, friend, that should lead us to seek It should lead us to seek Christ's blessings for God's sake then. For God's glory, we should make use of Christ. Psalmist never leaves that theme as he meditates on the benefits that come to the church through Christ, and neither should we. But thirdly, and finally, as we close, I want you to notice the final section of the Psalm. As we said, it's a Psalm of triumph. And here, the language again is universal. He will find out all his enemies. The Lord shall swallow them up in his wrath. And friend, what's striking is in this text, as you move through the pronouns and so forth, you find that this is not so much the king as an instrument, but the king as he is coordinate with the Lord. David might have been an instrument of justice deployed by the Lord for the safekeeping of Israel, but this king, Friend, of course, as we look to the king of kings, he is God of God, light of light, very God of very God. He wields divine power, not merely as an instrument, but as it is his own as well. And all of this friend, as the psalmist meditates upon the triumph of the king, as we see in that 13th verse, This induces a cry, and it should certainly be read as a cry, Be thou exalted, Lord, in thine own strength. And from the sentences, as the psalmist meditates here upon the victory of the king over his enemies, that the longing for this triumph principally terminates in the glory of God. And from the idea behind that, of course, is that Here you and I are trained to see, ought to see that God is glorified in Christ. As he, Zion's king triumphs over his enemies. I want you to notice that throughout the psalm, the idea is that this is a present reality. And beloved, you know that that's precisely how the apostles think of the reign of Christ. He is presently reigning. And he is presently triumphing over his enemies. One day certainly and in a consummative sense. But even now he is putting all his enemies under his feet. What you and I have in this picture then is, well, it's a staggering picture. We need to be clear as to why it's so profound. First of all, friend, I want you to notice here that as in an earthly kingdom, when a subject would contemplate the victory of their king, they would rejoice, not simply for the personal benefit, of course, of the king, but they would rejoice because they see the king fighting for their security and defense. And so friend, as the king is out in battle and slaying the enemies of the kingdom, the subject sees the king procuring his own security and stability. Perhaps we put it another way. Friend, when a husband goes out to defend perhaps someone who would injure his wife, the wife sees that as an act of love and an act of security for her. Beloved, the church ought to look at Christ's triumph over his enemies in such light. The scriptures lead us to do so in so many different ways. Friend, when we see finally all of Christ's enemies under his feet, make no mistake, Beloved, you and I will discern love to the church in that act as well. Yes, it will be justice upon their heads, but it will also manifest to her Christ's love for her. He will say to her, I have taken away your enemies, your enemies who were set upon your destruction. I have destroyed those who were those who hated you and would always hate you. Friend, it was an act of love for the king to go out and to vanquish his and his countrymen's enemies. It's an act of love as well for Christ to triumph over the church's enemies. But of course, friend, the highest end that Christ has in view is the glory of God. And here we are supposed to see that God's glory is manifest in Christ's triumph. You see, he needs none to plead his cause. He needs appeal to no stronger, no higher source. He, friend, can stand on his own against all, says the psalmist, of his enemies, and he will find them all out. All of this is a wonderful, brilliant picture of the glory of God in the triumph of the Lord Jesus Christ. But as we close, that brings us to the question with which we began. Friend, why do you seek blessings this evening? You may say, I'm not sure I understand where you're coming from. Well, friend, the psalmist here has thought much about the Lord Jesus Christ And his principal focus, as you read through the psalm, is not just the king himself, but as the king is made a source of blessedness for the church, as his stability becomes hers, and as his triumph means well for her. The king, friend in this case, is yes, victorious, stable, and he is immortal. But friend, all of that the psalmist thinks of, of course, in conjunction with the benefit that brings to the church. But why does the psalmist rejoice friend in this? Does he rejoice simply because of the benefits that come to him? Does he rejoice just because of the benefits and the stability of the church enjoyed under this king? And the answer emphatically is no. As we said before, bookending the psalm, friend, is a reference to the strength of God exalted in all of these ways. Why does the psalmist rejoice that Christ is so for the church? Because therein he sees God exalted. Friend, do you make use of Christ You seek blessing from him as the one set up for blessedness for God's sake. In many ways, friend, that can be determined the measure of Christian maturity. In our suits for mercy and for blessing, so often there is so much of self-interest. A beloved psalm like this should lead us to think about the blessing that comes through Christ principally. as it exalts God, his grace, wisdom, strength, his love and his power. And so friend, do you. But as we leave this text, friend, you and I would be remiss not, we would not be right in leaving these descriptions of the king without some further comment. I want you to notice again that the psalmist thinks of this king as one who has been made the conduit of blessedness to the church. And again, the word that's used there is the idea of blessedness in the abstract. He does not have some blessings. He is blessedness. And the sense is, friend, that this is a well with no bottom. A fountain never drying, as we said before. And so friend, the riches, the blessedness of this King, friend, you may draw down upon now and tomorrow, and you may draw down upon it for everlasting years, and you will be nowhere closer to the bottom. There is still always more and more to be had. That's the King in our text. Surely, friend, that should lead us to make use of him more than we do, and not to limit the hand of the Most High as so often we do. Friend, I also want you to notice this. This king in our text is one who is alive today. What does that mean for you? Do you get out of bed, friend, some mornings and allow that to be your waking thought? That my King is alive today, the 15th of May, 2024. And what does that mean for you? Behind our psalm, the psalmist helps us think about the implications. And friend, not least of those implications is the church's stability. If he is unmovable, then friend, the church is safe. And what is true of the church corporately considered is true of the church and all of her particular members. Beloved, you and I ought to make use of this reality that ours is an ever-living King, a stable King, a King who's been set up for blessedness today. And so friend, the exhortation from this text really directly is for the glory of God. Friend, you and I must make use of this King. We must seek His blessing, as God is glorified to bless us only through Him, with those saving benefits procured at His own hand. And so, friend, may the Lord lead us by His Spirit to that very end, and for His own namesake. Amen.