Wayfaring stranger Traveling through This world below Lord, I swear there's no pain I know there's no danger In that bright world To which I go Welcome to this podcast from Faith Bible Church in Reno, Nevada. Faith Bible Church is a Christ-centered, Bible-teaching ministry dedicated to bringing the good news of the gospel to the whole world. Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. And now, for this week's message from Pastor Alan Battle. Our scripture reading today is from Psalm 40, verses one through five. I waited patiently for the Lord. He inclined to me and heard my cry. He drew me up from the pit of destruction, out of the miry bog, and set my feet upon a rock, making my steps secure. He put a new song in my mouth, a song of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord. Lest is the man who makes the Lord his trust, who does not turn to the proud, to those who go astray after a lie. You have multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us. None can compare to you. I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told." This is the Word of God. In 1588, the great Spanish Armada was on its way to put an end to Protestantism in England. The Pope had declared Queen Elizabeth as an illegitimate heir to the throne and a heretic. And he said that anyone who killed her would be doing God a favor. So Spain was the most powerful nation in the world at the time. And their fleet outnumbered the British fleet by more than double. So they planned to meet up with another army in the Netherlands and then launch a massive invasion on English shores. In human terms, the outcome was inevitable. They would install their own puppet government and end the Protestant heresy. But God had other plans. Instead of picking up that waiting army in Flanders, the armada was chased by the British up the north coast of Scotland. And there they encountered a hurricane that sunk half of their ships. And the rest of them turned tail and limped home. And from that day on, the Spanish ceased to be a power on the sea. And Protestant Christians, they saw this as God's endorsement of their cause. The storm came to be known as the Protestant wind. And that victory was celebrated in all kinds of ways. Here's a medal that they struck that bears the inscription, Jehovah blew his winds, and they were scattered." Can you make it out? The ship's on there. Up at the top, you see the wind coming down? And you can't really make it out, but that's Yahweh in Hebrew letters. Who's blowing the wind that says Yahweh? And then here's a portrait of Queen Elizabeth. with the armada behind her in the two windows. On the left, they're on their way to invade, and on the right, they're capsizing in the storm. So why am I telling you this story on the Sunday after Thanksgiving? Well, it's our final sermon in our series on the Psalms. And today's psalm is Psalm 40, which is a psalm of thanksgiving, appropriate to the season. This psalm today calls on God's people to proclaim His wondrous deeds. So I've decided to depart from my normal practice of verse-by-verse exposition in favor of using this psalm as a springboard to proclaim some of those wondrous deeds leading up to the first Thanksgiving in America. So Thanksgiving has its roots in the celebration of God's providence in the founding of Christian America. It's a celebration of freedom from oppression, of the freedom for self-determination, and most importantly, freedom of religion. The defeat of that Spanish Armada is just one of the wondrous deeds that God performed in order to bring about the birth of this nation. Had the Spanish succeeded, the first Christian settlement at Plymouth would never have happened. But the defeat of the Spanish Armada was just the first of many wondrous deeds that God performed in the founding of this land. Today I want to illustrate our passage with some of those deeds in the lives of the pilgrims. But first, who are these people that we call the pilgrims? They were part of a Christian movement in England. They were known as separatists. They saw the state church as corrupt, and they wanted to worship in their own way. And it was a small movement. It was a splinter group. They never numbered more than a thousand people in England. And the pilgrims are a small number of those who came over on the Mayflower. And they were often in peril. They often feared for their lives. Just like we find David in Psalm 40. I'm going to read verses 1 and 2 to you again here. So this passage must have been a great comfort to those pilgrims. who were often on the brink of disaster. When the Protestant Queen Elizabeth defeated the challenge to her throne, that didn't put an end to the threat against these believers. She was now the head of the English church. Her father had replaced the pope as the head of the church, and now she took up that mantle. And she turned the power of the state toward those who refused to conform to the worship of the Church of England. And many resisted because of the similarities that the Church of England maintained with the Catholic Church. Elizabeth, she was just attempting to make a compromise so that the most people possible could feel comfortable in the new church. But many of the same abuses that the reformers were trying to remedy remained in the Church of England. So these believers sought to purify the church of those elements. And so they were given the derogatory name, Puritans. That's where that comes from. And some of those Puritans, they sought to work within the church, And some of them didn't want to have anything to do with it, and that was the separatists. And we call this little band of separatists who came over on the Mayflower pilgrims because they were on a religious journey. But they didn't call themselves pilgrims, they called themselves saints. And because they refused to conform, they were persecuted with fines and with imprisonment and even death. So they decided to flee England and go to Amsterdam in the Netherlands, where there was freedom of religion. But when they got there, they found another threat. They found the evils of a secular society. Amsterdam was a famous seaport. Much like today, it had a bad reputation. It was full of brothels and ale houses. So the pilgrims left Amsterdam for a little village called Leiden. And they settled there for about 10 years, but they decided they needed to move again because of the loose morality in the Dutch culture. And their kids were growing up Dutch, and they wanted them to be English. So they began to dream of going to the new world, to Virginia, on this continent, where they could make their own society, free from foreign influences. and secular influences. But they weren't a wealthy people. They were working class folks. And they didn't have enough money to pay for the passage to the New World. So they made a deal with a corporation for their passage in exchange for the fruits of their labor in the New Land. And two ships were commissioned to bring them, the Speedwell and the Mayflower. Well, the speed well, when they first took off, started to leak. So they went back and they made repairs, and this cost them. Cost them some of their provisions. And then they attempted to leave two more times, and the speed well failed both times. So they all had to set sail in the Mayflower in the fall of 1620. And of the 102 passengers on the Mayflower, only about 40 of them were these separatists. The rest were just what people called adventurers. They wanted to find something better in the new world. The Puritans called them strangers. And the journey across was treacherous. In those autumn seas, they had to stay below deck stinking low decks. They ate terrible food. Two months it took to travel across the ocean. And because these saints were so vocal in their faith and dedicated to holy living, they encountered more opposition on the ship. And verse 14 of our psalm is a prayer of protection against such enemies of the faith. David prayed, let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether who seek to snatch away my life. Let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt. You know, sailors in general are a rowdy and irreverent lot. They taunted the saints mercilessly. One of them, their ringleader, called them psalm-singing puke stockings and made fun of them when they were sick, when they got seasick, and he taunted them and he said, I can't wait until I can wrap you in a shroud and feed you to the fish. Well, that opposition came to a quick end when that very sailor fell ill and he died within a day. Everybody else said, whoa, I think I'll leave these guys alone. You know, God's people are never promised freedom from persecution. In fact, we're promised just the opposite. But we are promised that God will fulfill his purpose in our lives. So we can have confidence in the face of opposition. And God had a purpose for this people. They finally arrived, and they didn't arrive at their attended destination of Manhattan Island. We're in New York now. But they arrived further north on the Massachusetts coast at Plymouth. And before they disembarked, they got together and they made an agreement among themselves as to how they were gonna govern themselves in this new community. It was called the Mayflower Compact. And it set the tone for the American way of life from that time forward. It's an agreement of mutual consent of the governed to choose their own leaders and to make their own laws. This is how they operated their churches. So it was natural for them to extend this to the government. And as the colonies multiplied, each one developed this tradition of self-government. So by the time of the revolution, every one of the colonies elected their own officials and made their own laws. So it was a short step from there to the Constitution, which has preserved that tradition of freedom for over 240 years now. So they got off the boat. And here's what their governor, William Bradford, wrote about their arrival. And I'm gonna read it in the original English of the time, so listen carefully. Being thus arrived in a good harbor and brought safe to land, they fell upon their knees and blessed ye God of heaven, who had brought them over ye vast and furious ocean, and delivered them from all ye perils and miseries thereof, again to set their feet on ye firm and stable earth, their proper element, and no marvel if they were thus joyful. So they landed and everything was awesome, right? Well, not really. The spot they landed was an area that was mysteriously cleared for building. And they even found some corn stored in metal pots there. But the winters in New England are especially harsh on the English, the New English, England coast. And when they arrived in the winter of 1620, their suffering had only begun. They didn't have enough building materials or enough food to last the winter. They'd sold off a lot of their provisions just to get there. So Bradford went on to write this. But that which was most sad and lamentable was that in two or three months' time, half of their company died, especially in January and February, being ye depth of winter, and wanting houses and other comforts, being infected with ye scurvy and other diseases which this long voyage and their inaccommodate condition had brought upon them. So as they died sometimes two or three of a day in ye aforesaid time, and that of one hundred and odd persons, scarcely fifty remained. Half of them died that first winter. But God hadn't abandoned them, and they didn't abandon hope. As verse 1 of our psalm says today, they waited patiently for the Lord. And their faith was not in vain. Let's look at verse 5. You multiplied, O Lord my God, your wondrous deeds and your thoughts toward us. None can compare with you. I will proclaim and tell of them. They are more than can be told. Notice it's not only deeds, wondrous deeds that God does for his people, he has wondrous thoughts for us as well. Notice, I want you to hear what Charles Spurgeon said about this verse. He says, all the divine thoughts are good and gracious towards his elect. God's thoughts of love are very many, very wonderful, very practical. God's thoughts of you are many. Let not your thoughts be few in return. Isn't that good? His exhortation is often repeated in the pages of Scripture. We're constantly reminded in Scripture to remember the things that God has done. And when we do that, we find strength and we find hope. And the pilgrims did find strength and hope. And that brings me to the most wondrous deed, I think, that the loving Father had for them. for this little group of believers. They were on the brink of extinction. There was a previous colony in Roanoke, in what's now North Carolina, that had completely disappeared about 30 years earlier. But God saved this little village. He prepared a helper for the pilgrims who would literally save their lives and turn their fortunes around. And you may have heard of him. His name was Squanto. Eric Metaxas has written a wonderful children's book about Squanto. I highly recommend it. So that spring, the settlers saw an Indian walking on the beach and they raised the alarm with the cry, Indian coming, Indian coming. And they had their rifles ready. But to their surprise, this Indian hailed them with an English, hello! And then the next thing he asked was, do you have any beer? Well, they had drank all their beer on the voyage, but they had some brandy to offer him. This wasn't Squanto. This was an Indian named Samaset, and he was from Massasoit's tribe. We heard about him last week. That's the tribe that came and shared the first Thanksgiving with these settlers. Well, he had learned English and his taste for beer from some English fishermen farther down the coast. And he told them that where they had landed had been a settlement of Indians who had all perished in a plague. And he told them that there was one Indian from that tribe that was staying with them and that they should meet him because this Indian was a Christian. That was Squanto. Squanto had been kidnapped as a teenager by an English sea captain, sold into slavery, He learned English and eventually bought his way out of slavery. And he met Captain John Smith. You know, remember that guy? Pocahontas and John Smith. And John Smith returned him to his village. But he was captured a second time and once again sold. This time he was purchased by some Spanish friars. And they taught him about Jesus. And he became a Christian. So again, he earned his way out of slavery, and he traveled back to his village. But this time, he found it deserted. Everyone had died. There weren't any surviving members of his tribe anywhere to be found. So that's why he was living with Massasoit when the pilgrims arrived. So he came to the pilgrims, and he turned their fortunes around. Here's Bradford's account. But Squanto continued with them, and was their interpreter, and was a special instrument sent of God for their good beyond their expectation. He directed them how to set their corn, where to take fish, and to procure other commodities, and was also their pilot to bring them to unknown places for their profit. and never left them till he died. He was a native of the place." Amazing. God had prepared this one man. And then while he was on an expedition with Bradford, Squanto died. And it was less than a year later. God used him for that specific time. And then he took him home. And while he lay dying, He wasn't very well educated in the faith, but he begged the governor to pray for him as he lay dying that he might go to the Christian heaven. He was truly an instrument of God prepared to preserve this little band of believers. The Lord multiplied his wondrous deeds and thoughts upon them. So they celebrated the first Thanksgiving. What is the proper response to such grace? Look at verses 9 and 10. I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation. Behold, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O Lord, I have not hidden your deliverance within my heart. I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation. I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation. David had experienced God's deliverance many times in battle, as well as a profound understanding of God's grace that forgave him of the deepest sin. The pilgrims, they were Christians who first came to know Jesus as their Savior, and then followed his leading into the new world, and experienced his physical deliverance in those inhospitable northwest seacoast climbs. David never stopped praising God, and he continues to praise God to this day through the Psalms that he's written. And the pilgrim's legacy of thankfulness remains also to this day in the form of our yearly celebration. And you and I have experienced deliverance from our sin. I find it hard to understand how anyone so rescued could fail to praise Him for the grace that they've received. David says he doesn't restrain his lips from doing so. He doesn't hide it in his heart. Do you tell the good news of your deliverance to others? Do you speak of his faithfulness and his salvation? That's why we're here. That's how his kingdom is going to be advanced. So let's move together forward to advance that kingdom. because we see the time drawing near. I want to end with a prophecy that is hidden in the middle of this psalm. It's a prophecy of the coming of Jesus. It's from verses 6, 7, and 8. And it says, In sacrifice and offering you have not delighted, but you have given me an open ear. Burnt offerings and sin offering you have not required. Then I said, Behold, I have come. In the scroll of the book it is written of me. I delight to do your will, O my God. Your law is within my heart." So this passage is quoted in the book of Hebrews, in the New Testament. But it's not quoted from the Hebrew Bible, it's quoted from the Greek translation called the Septuagint. And instead of saying, open ear, in that translation, it says, a body has been prepared for him. The original literally says, God dug out his ear. And for David, that opened ear signified his ability to hear God and then respond with his whole body. The author of Hebrews puts these same words into the mouth of Jesus. says in Hebrews 10 5. Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me. Then he says, I delight to do your will. The will of God that Jesus came to do is explained in the next few verses. It was to offer that body as a sacrifice for sin, once and for all. The psalmist experienced deliverance through his faith in God. And the pilgrims experienced that deliverance as well. First, the deliverance of their souls, from the penalty of sin, and then their deliverance from their enemies of the faith in England, and finally from the dangers that they encountered in the new land. The pilgrims laid a foundation for the greatest nation this world has ever seen. There's been lots of great nations like Babylon or or Rome, whose riches and influences reach far and wide, but they were built on the backs of the people they conquered. America has had its share of mistakes, but the overwhelming source of America's wealth comes from the people who've been given the freedom to pursue life, liberty, and happiness. No other nation has had such a long history of freedom. And it began with those pilgrims, and their faith in Christ, and the covenant of self-government that they made under God. So regardless of the system of government that you and I may live under, we have a true and ultimate liberty It's the same liberty that inspired those pilgrims and the founding fathers. Jesus said, if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed. That means free for real. The good things that we experience in this life are just glimpses of the things that we're going to live out in reality in the presence of God. Paul says that for now we just know in part. But someday, we're going to know fully. That's the day that we're going to see Him face to face. So for now, we're only pilgrims on this earth. But someday soon, we're going to go to our true home and take up residence in our Father's house. Let's pray. Lord, we thank you that freedom is your idea. Lord, we ask that you would give us wisdom to use our freedom for your glory. Lord, that we might spread that good news and tell of your wondrous deeds to others and those thoughts, those thoughts that you have toward us of peace. Lord, we give you all the praise and all the glory for what you've done and what you will do. In Jesus' name we pray. Thank you for listening to the preaching of God's Word from Faith Bible Church in Reno, Nevada. We hope that it has been an encouragement to you and that the Word of God will fill your hearts and minds as you walk through this world. If you have been blessed by this ministry and would like to make a small donation to help defray the costs of this podcast, just click on the green support us button at the top of the webpage. Thank you.