Watchman on the Wall

Announcer: Welcome to Watchmen on the Wall, a daily outreach of Southwest Radio Ministries and swrc.com. God is still on the throne and prayer changes things. Today, Larry Stam will take us in the land of Israel and share some much-needed encouragement from God's word. Don't miss out on one of the year's most exciting Bible prophecy events. Join us for Prophecy in the News Live, September 18th and 19th at Cornerstone Church in Northfield, Minnesota.

Announcer: Hear powerful Bible-centered teaching from Josh Davis, Mark Lindstead, Mica Van Huss, Larry Stam, Mac Dominic, and Clayton Van Huss as they tackle End Times Prophecy, Israel Apologetics, and today's headlines through the lens of scripture. Admission is free but registration is encouraged. Reserve your spot today at swrc.com. That's swrc.com. We'll see you in Northfield, Minnesota, September 18th and 19th.

Announcer: Observing the signs of the times causes some Christians to think that everything's falling apart. Psalm 2 reminds us that it's not falling apart. It's falling into place for God's ultimate victory. Standing in Northern Israel, Jewish follower of Jesus Larry Stam reveals the truths in this prophetic Psalm. Josh Davis then turns to 1 Thessalonians 5 to encourage believers living in these significant days.

Host: Greetings, friends. I'm excited to bring you another selection from our brand new In the Land video teaching project. We filmed this on location in the Holy Land. Five different Bible teachers over 90 minutes worth of content. Today, we're going to be hearing from Larry Stam. He's going to be looking at Psalm 2, a powerful prophetic Psalm that's Messianic in nature.

Host: But it doesn't just look to Jesus' first coming. It also looks to the end times and when He will return. Larry Stam filmed this teaching standing in Northern Israel, and he'll explain a little bit more about the significance of that particular site as he begins his teaching. Now, let's join Larry Stam to understand more about this prophetic Psalm, Psalm 2.

Larry Stam: Shalom, friends. Larry Stam here, coming to you from the Holy Land, Eretz Yisrael, the land of Israel, and specifically, coming to you from the Golan Heights, a strategic place in the modern state of Israel. In today's study, I want to ask you a question. Do the events of the day, the pandemonium and chaos of today's events in the world discourage you and get you down?

Larry Stam: Well, I want to encourage you in this Bible study that we're about to embark on. I hope that you are refreshed in God's word, focusing on the promises of God. Because I want you to know, friends, that the way things are are not the way things will be in the soon coming future. We're going to study Psalm 2 today. This is a royal Psalm. It's a beautiful Psalm about the future reign of Messiah.

Larry Stam: I'm reading Psalm 2, beginning in verse 1. The word of God says, "Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed, saying, 'Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us.' He who sits in the heavens shall laugh.

Larry Stam: The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath and distress them in His deep displeasure. Yet I have set My king on My holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to me, 'You are My Son. Today I have begotten you. Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession.

Larry Stam: You shall break them with a rod of iron, you shall dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel.' Now therefore, be wise, O kings, be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you perish in the way when His wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all those who put their trust in Him."

Larry Stam: Again, as I mentioned, this is a royal Psalm. And as we start, the context is things appear to be falling apart, but they're actually falling into place. Because remember, history is his story, and God is in control. In God's providence, things are unfolding exactly the way they should. So to us, in the current chaos and pandemonium of the day, things are falling apart, but make no mistake, they're not actually falling apart. They're falling into place.

Larry Stam: It's interesting to note that in Psalm 2, this is the first explicit reference to the relationship in the Trinity between God the Father and God the Son. We can separate the Psalm into a few basic teaching points for connections for us. First of all, in verses 1 through 3, we'll learn about man's rebellion. In verses 4 through 6, we'll talk about God's purpose.

Larry Stam: In verses 7 through 9, we'll talk about God's reign, and in verses 10 through 12, as we conclude our brief study of Psalm 2, we'll talk about man's responsibility. First of all, take a look at verses 1 through 3 once again. Verses 1 through 3, Psalm 2. "Why do the nations rage and the people plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed, saying, 'Let us break their bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us.'"

Larry Stam: We must understand that the nations are raging against God and His anointed. Who are His anointed? Well, in a specific sense, God's anointed would be God's Messiah, the Son of God. We as Christians know Him as Jesus Christ. So the nations are raging against God and His anointed, the Son of God, Messiah Jesus.

Larry Stam: But in a very general sense, the nations are also raging against God's people, the redeemed of God. We see that in our modern day. The modern day church is being persecuted in many ways in unprecedented fashion. And so what we're seeing in today's geopolitical world is really a manifestation of a spiritual reality. The battle lines are being drawn.

Larry Stam: Perhaps in ways manifested that we've never really seen before in our modern time. But make no mistake, the nations are raging against God and His anointed. Why? Because the scripture tells us, they want to break the bonds in pieces and cast away their cords from us. You see, there are two kinds of people in the world. There are those people who are aligned with God, God's redeemed, made up of Jew and Gentile.

Larry Stam: And those who are against God, who do not know Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. And if you remember in the gospels, Jesus said very plainly, He couldn't have been more clear. He said these words. He said, "If you're not for Me, you are what? That's right. You are against Me." And so we see the battle lines being drawn, and this is really nothing new since the beginning of the world when God created mankind.

Larry Stam: We've seen this rebellion of man against a holy, righteous, just God, and we've seen man throughout history try to break the bonds, try to separate from God, because when we align ourselves with God, we are accountable to the Creator. And people today, many who are lost and who don't know Jesus Christ, do not want to submit. They do not want to surrender. They do not want to give their allegiance to God.

Larry Stam: Because remember, Jesus also said to whom much is given, much is expected. So we see here clearly in verses 1 through 3 of Psalm 2, man's rebellion. Now, take a look at verses 4 through 6. Here's God's response to man's rebellion. "He who sits in the heavens shall laugh. The Lord shall hold them in derision. Then He shall speak to them in His wrath and distress them in His displeasure. Yet I have set My king on My holy hill of Zion."

Larry Stam: God's response to man's rebellion. God holds them in derision. God laughs. If you remember Assyria had taken Israel, the Northern Kingdom of Israel, captive in 721 BC, and they were next coming for the Southern Kingdom of Judah and King Hezekiah. Now, King Sennacherib, he talked a big game, and he called out Judah and King Hezekiah, and he said, "Hey, all the gods of those nations didn't deliver them.

Larry Stam: Your God, the God of the Northern Kingdom, didn't deliver them, and he's not going to deliver you from my assault on you." Note God's response in 2 Kings chapter 19, verses 20 and 22. "Then Isaiah the son of Amoz sent to Hezekiah, saying, 'Thus says the Lord God of Israel: Because you have prayed to me against Sennacherib, king of Assyria, I have heard.

Larry Stam: This is the word the Lord has spoken concerning him.' Hear the words of God now, given to Sennacherib. He's going to send Sennacherib a message now, the king of Assyria. God speaking, 'The virgin, the daughter of Zion, has despised you, laughed you to scorn. The daughter of Jerusalem has shaken her head behind your back.'" So He speaks through the people of Israel, in derision at Sennacherib.

Larry Stam: But then in verse 28, listen to these words. God speaking now, "Because you rage against Me and your tumult have come up to My ears, therefore I will put My hook in your nose and My bridle in your lips, and I will turn your back by the way which you came." So, in short, after King Sennacherib calls out God's anointed and said, "Your God is not going to do anything for you."

Larry Stam: God calls him out and says, "Oh, yes, I will." And what occurs? In one night, the Angel of the Lord will strike down the Assyrian army, 185,000 strong. Dead in a moment. Once King Sennacherib gets a grasp of what occurred and the gravity of his entire army of 185,000 men being trashed, he tucks tail and heads back to his homeland.

Larry Stam: That, my friends, is the power and provision of God. But you know, on a spiritual note, as we think about the enemies of God's people, the redeemed, the greatest enemy that we face is the enemy of sin and death. In 1 Corinthians 15, Paul wrote these powerful words. He wrote, "O Death, where is your victory? O Hades, where is your sting?"

Larry Stam: And then Paul wrote that "the sting of sin is death and the strength of the sin is the law, but thanks be to God who gives us the victory in our Lord Jesus Christ." Friends, we can rejoice as believers. The tomb is empty. The war has been won. We're simply fighting out the skirmishes this side of glory, okay? But I want you to be encouraged.

Larry Stam: Psalm 37, verses 7 through 13. David wrote, "Rest in the Lord and wait patiently for Him; do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass. Cease from anger and forsake wrath; do not fret, it only causes harm. For evildoers shall be cut off, but those who wait on the Lord, they shall inherit the earth.

Larry Stam: For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more. Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, but it shall be no more. But the meek shall inherit the earth and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace. The wicked plots against the just and gnashes at him with his teeth. The Lord laughs at him, for He sees that his day is coming." So the good news even gets better.

Larry Stam: Verses 7 through 9. God will install His Son, Messiah. Psalm 2, verse 7. "I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to me, 'You are My Son. Today I have begotten you.'" So here we see a clear reference to God the Father speaking to God the Son. What does He continue and say? God the Father says, "Ask of Me, and I will give you the nations for your inheritance and the ends of the earth for your possession.

Larry Stam: You shall break them with a rod of iron. You shall dash them to pieces like a potter's vessel." When Jesus returns at the second coming, He'll defeat the enemies of God. He'll restore Israel to their former place of glory, and Jesus Christ will sit upon the throne of David, and He will rule with a rod of iron, and peace, justice, and righteousness will dominate the earth.

Larry Stam: The King will be in Zion. King Jesus, the King of kings and Lord of lords. Zion, another name for Jerusalem. The installed king then recites the Lord's decree by declaring in verse 7, "The Lord has said to me, 'You are My Son. Today I have begotten you.'" And as I mentioned, this is the first place in the Hebrew scriptures, the Old Testament, where we see this explicit Father-Son relationship within the Trinity.

Larry Stam: This somber warning from the Lord and encouragement for the redeemed. In verses 10 through 12, when we talk about man's responsibility. God speaking, "Now therefore, be wise, O kings. Be instructed, you judges of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry and you perish in the way when His wrath is kindled but a little.

Larry Stam: Blessed are all those who trust in the Lord." In this context, that phrase "kissing the Son" refers to an act of submission or obedience. As followers of Jesus Christ as Christians, that's what we do when we put our trust in Jesus. We surrender. We walk in obedience. In Colossians 1, verses 27 and 28, the Apostle Paul wrote these words.

Larry Stam: He wrote, "Christ, whom we preach. We are warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus." Friends, if you're watching this and you know the Lord Jesus, I pray that you're encouraged and inspired and edified. If you happen to be watching me and listening to this Psalm and don't yet know the Lord Jesus and have not yet paid homage to the Son and surrendered to Jesus Christ.

Larry Stam: Understand that He died for your sins and rose again from the dead for you. He loves you. And if you believe the good news that He died for you and rose again, won't you confess your sins and put your trust in Jesus Christ? The word says in Romans chapter 10 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Larry Stam: For with the heart, one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth, confession is made unto salvation. A couple of closing applications as we conclude our brief study of Psalm 2. Number one, if you are resting in the promises of God, if you know the Lord Jesus Christ, rejoice. We have a future, a bright and glorious future. In fact, it couldn't be any brighter, and it couldn't be any more glorious.

Larry Stam: Second thing I want to encourage us to do as God's people is to fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith. Remember, the Apostle Paul wrote in Colossians 3 to set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. And then finally, don't overcome with evil, overcome evil with good. I want to conclude with these words from Psalm 37.

Larry Stam: David concludes this Psalm, and we conclude our time in his word. "Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land. When the wicked are cut off, you shall see it. I have seen the wicked in great power and spreading himself like a native green tree. Yet he passed away and behold, he was no more. Indeed, I sought him, but he could not be found.

Larry Stam: Mark the blameless man and observe the upright, for the future of that man is peace. But the transgressors shall be destroyed together. The future of the wicked shall be cut off. But the salvation of the righteous is from the Lord. He is their strength in the time of trouble, and the Lord shall keep them and deliver them. He shall deliver them from the wicked and save them because they trust in Him." Amen.

Larry Stam: Friends, once again, it's been a joy to be with you. I hope and pray that this brief message, this brief study of Psalm 2, has been an encouragement and an inspiration to you. Now, may the Lord Jesus richly bless you, keep you, and give you peace. Shalom.

Host: Friends, that was Bible teacher Larry Stam, teaching about Psalm 2, "Why do the nations rage?" We know that ultimately that Psalm ends with a solution, and it is that God will set everything right. And I don't know about you, but I am looking forward to that day when all things are made new, and God has made all things right. You see, that's the story of Bible prophecy.

Host: It's not one of failure. It's not one of decline and decrease and defeat. No. For the child of God, for the follower of the Lord Jesus Christ, Bible prophecy is a story of victory. It's the culmination of everything being made new. All that was destroyed because of the curse of sin is reversed by our God. That's the victory that we have in Jesus.

Host: I want to do a short Bible study with you, and I'm going to turn to 1 Thessalonians chapter 5 and explain some scriptures that I see connected to what we've heard Larry talk about from Psalm 2. Now, before I jump into 1 Thessalonians 5, I want to remind you that what you're listening to, this In the Land teaching, is available right now as a DVD and also as a digital download.

Host: That's right. You can download the video digitally from our website. Our website is swrc.com. Again, that's swrc.com. You can go to the search bar and type in these three words: In the Land. As you search that, you'll see two options come up on the screen. One is for the DVD, the other is for the digital download product. Now, what's unique about the digital download, you won't physically receive anything in the mail from us.

Host: But as soon as you complete your purchase, you'll get an email, and it has the download instructions in there to where you can access this video and watch it instantaneously. And so that's a great way to get this video content delivered to you instantaneously. It's In the Land, and it's available at swrc.com. That's swrc.com. Of course, you're welcome to give us a call and order the DVD over the phone.

Host: Our phone number is 1-800-652-1144. That's 1-800-652-1144. Just ask for the In the Land Video Project DVD, and we'll be happy to send that to you. Now, let's briefly look at the time that we have remaining on today's episode, at 1 Thessalonians chapter 5. Again, I see this encouraging message here as we realize the culmination of Bible prophecy.

Host: 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 1 tells us, "But of the times and seasons, brethren, you have no need that I write unto you." Now, what is the Apostle Paul talking about here? Well, 1 Thessalonians 4, the last verses are describing the rapture. Now, he draws a contrast. He's moving on to a new topic, and the language of verse 1 tells us that he is moving on to a new topic.

Host: First, you have the rapture, and then you have the tribulation, which is what he's going to describe here. In verse 2, he says, "For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night." That phrase, "Day of the Lord," it refers to God's judgment upon humanity, a special act of God's judgment. It could have been a temporary thing.

Host: For instance, we could call some of the locust plagues in Joel's day as a temporary Day of the Lord. But ultimately, the Day of the Lord finds its fulfillment in the tribulation. And that's what Paul's referring to here in 1 Thessalonians 5, verse 2. "You yourselves know perfectly that the Day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. For when they shall say."

Host: Now, notice his distinction. He's switching back and forth with his pronouns. It's important to pay attention even to the small words in scripture. In verse 2, he says, "Yourselves, you know perfectly." Then in verse 3, he switches to say, "They, for when they shall say, 'Peace and safety.'" Then sudden destruction cometh upon them as travail upon a woman with child, "And they shall not escape."

Host: "They shall not escape." He doesn't say, "You." He says, "They." Then in verse 4, he contrasts that again. He switches back to "you." "But ye." Here in the South, we like to say, "You all" or "All y'all," if I'm going to be really Southern with you. "But ye, brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief. You are the children of light and the children of the day.

Host: We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore, let us not sleep as do others, but let us watch and be sober." Friends, here on Watchmen on the Wall, we are proclaiming to you, this is an urgent hour. This is the time for us to watch and to be sober. In the New Testament, the phrase "be sober" doesn't mean to not be drunk. And there is that implication in the word.

Host: But the concept biblically of being sober is to be watchful, to be aware, to be awake, to understand what is going on around you. Isn't that an apt description of what biblical Watchmen on the Wall ought to be doing? We're to stay awake. We're to keep our eyes open on what's happening around us, knowing the direction that this world is heading.

Host: And so Paul's admonition to us as believers is, "Don't fall asleep. Hey, church, wake up, believers. Let's join together. Let's open our eyes. Let's look at what's happening in the world around us. Let's watch and be sober. For they that sleep, sleep in the night, and they that be drunken are drunken in the night." He says, "That crowd that doesn't want to be awake, the crowd that doesn't want to pay attention to the signs of the times.

Host: The crowd that's not interested in what's happening, they're going to just go off and do their own thing. They're going to be living for the here and the now. They're not going to be thinking about eternity." But he says in verse 8, "But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love and for a helmet, the hope of salvation."

Host: Now, anytime you see the word "salvation" in scripture, you need to ask yourself, "Saved from what or saved to what?" Now, why do we need to ask ourselves that question? Because we don't know if it's talking about eternal salvation in the sense of saving our souls from an eternity in hell, or is it speaking about some temporary deliverance? I believe that what's in view here is the hope of deliverance.

Host: It's the hope of the rapture. He's referring to here in verse 8. So let's put that in its context and in its understanding and rebuild what he said. He says, "Let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love." We need faith in this day. We need love as followers of the Lord Jesus Christ. The culmination of Bible prophecy, as Larry Stam was telling us in Psalm 2, is not a story of defeat.

Host: No, it's a story of great victory through Jesus Christ. As Paul would say in 1 Thessalonians 5:10, the very next verse, "This one, we are looking for that salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us that whether we should wake or sleep, we shall live together with Him. Wherefore, comfort yourselves together and edify or build up one another, even as also you do."

Host: Yes, friends. We edify one another today by reminding ourself of the hope of the rapture, that blessed hope that we have, and that we can stand faithfully as Watchmen on the Wall in our generation, faithfully serving the Lord in love until we hear Him call us home to be with Him. Don't forget to check out the In the Land brand new video project available now at swrc.com or by giving us a call 1-800-652-1144.

Announcer: What happens when you open God's word in the very places where biblical history unfolded? The brand new In the Land collection from Southwest Radio Ministries brings the Bible to life like never before. First, experience the all new In the Land DVD, featuring breathtaking on-location teaching from Israel and Jordan by Dr. Larry Spargimino, Josh Davis, Mica Van Huss, Larry Stam, and Clayton Van Huss.

Announcer: Then, dive deeper with the Abraham Proclamation, where Dr. Larry Spargimino examines God's everlasting covenant with Israel and why it still matters today. Finally, explore Petra in History and Prophecy by Noah Hutchings, revealing the fascinating history and prophetic significance of one of the Bible's most remarkable locations. Together, these three resources will deepen your understanding of scripture, strengthen your faith, and help you see today's headlines through the lens of Bible prophecy.

Announcer: Order the In the Land Collection today at swrc.com or call 1-800-652-1144. That's swrc.com or 1-800-652-1144. Headlines from the End Times coming up on tomorrow's Watchmen on the Wall program, so be sure to tune in. Watchmen on the Wall is a production of Southwest Radio Ministries and is supported by you. To learn more, please visit our website swrc.com.