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December 18, 2021 7:00 am
Welcome to through the song a weekend ministry of the truth.
Pulpit overtime will study all 150 Psalms with pastor Don Greene from Cruz Community Church in Cincinnati, Ohio were glad you're with us is over the Psalms that as we join our teacher in the truthful well I'm so happy to see you all here this evening. One of the things that I love about the Bible is that it takes life seriously and you don't have to live two very long before you want something that is dealing with life in an honest way the frivolity in the silliness of of life and of entertainment and the different things that occupy the minds of men as soon lose their appeal when you see through the glitter of it all. When your heart is troubled and that things are happening and you need the you need something that you can really base your life on one of the ways that that manifests itself in. You don't have to be around too long to realize that is that there are times where relationships disappoint you where people that you trusted, betray you, and turn against you and abandon you even in your time of need. We all know something about that.
And when that happens, and when the consequences of that start to develop and start to unfold.
There's a lot of inner turmoil to that sometimes there are external consequences that you have to deal with when that takes place. You know something about that, and something about even being betrayed by those that are closest to you. What a time like that you want something meaningful to respond to it. You don't need a comedienne at a time like that when life has really fractured on you. You need something that you can turn to and say oh I find help here that strengthens my soul. I find I find assistance in these things that can give me the strength to go on will Psalm 55 which Andrew read force earlier is a Psalm like that.
Psalm 55 is David's prayer and extended prayer at that in response to the betrayal of a friend and this betrayal has had a lot of consequences in his life, not only in his life and the people who were living in the capital city of Jerusalem and so David comes to God in this prayer and basically he asks God to help him through the difficulty and he expresses trusting God and in the God Hussein's his people, and in the process as you're going to see David expresses feelings that are very familiar to us, we can identify with some of the things that David says how he wants to he wants to run away. He wants to escape the trouble and just leave it all behind and go someplace else.
As as if he could leave it behind, but beloved as were going to see in the exposition of the text that's never a godly response to your troubles to just run away from them to just the just abandoned all everything and just flee and panic away from what what is going on. The answer to trouble and even the answer to betrayal is to take that as an opportunity for you to turn in trusting faith to your God. Remember who he is. Ask him for his help and watch this and to wait for him to work it out, and to deliver you in it. Psalm 55 in part teaches us and admonishes us not to give in to that desire for escape, but rather rather than running away from it to take that as an opportunity to draw near to your God, and that's in part what were going to see this evening I'm very delighted to be able to open the Psalm with you.
It's a privilege really any time that we open God's word together is in it so with that in mind, this Psalm breaks down in three main sections in the first eight verses we could say that that were seeing David's oppression, David's oppression in the first eight verses, so let's just follow along and see what David has to say to us here as he opens this Psalm, and more importantly what God has to say for us and to us because this is the word of God that we are reading, not ancient human literature of of only a human origin. This comes from God and it's his word to his people and so we approach it with a sense of reverence, a sense of awe sense of of great and deep respect to realize that our Creator has spoken to us in his word and we approach it with that sense of respect but also with a sense of desire, a sense of longing, a sense of of earnest receptivity because for those of us who are in Christ, we are receiving the word not only of our God, but of our Redeemer of our Savior, the one who is loved our soul enough to give himself up on a cross for us and so this is a very precious time. Every time we open God's word together and I'm delighted that you're here with us to do that here this evening so this first section. David's oppression records his prayer to be to be saved from his plight. Look at the first two verses of Psalm 55 and obviously with a Psalm of 23 verses were going to have best just skim the surface of what this Psalm is saying here this evening. David prays give ear to my prayer of God and do not hide yourself for my supplication. Give heed to me and answer me.
I am restless in my complaint and am surely distracted already in those first two verses, beloved, you have something that's of great encouragement to you as you see David's example as he prays, first of all you see him him calling Alvin as he often opens up his his prayers God pay attention, listen to me.
Hear me respond to me give an answer to me, as I pray to you, David opens many of the Psalms, and in this manner, and it's it's sort of an invocation for God to hear him and he acknowledges the one that he is that he is approaching but for those of you that that know something what what it's like to have such trouble weighing on your mind so hard that it sometimes even difficult to think straight. You have a friend in the Scriptures here as we read what David has to say.
Look at what he says there at the end of verse two, he says I am restless in my complaint and I am surely distracted David's David's mind and his thoughts are going back and forth tossing to and fro like a like a restless ocean wave crashing on the seashore, only to crash again and again and you can identify with that. Can't you you know something about understanding that that your Christian life has not is not always an easy bed of rose petals that you walk along in utter serenity.
One of the things I should've posted it to the choir group on Facebook but I didn't do this, I thought about it at the time on Sunday as our choir was singing and I was looking into their faces as they sang so well and and were an encouragement to us all. One of the things that struck me is looking at each individual face.
I know from just relationships that everyone that was up there was going through a serious or has in the recent past gone through serious life issues that were a test of their faith and yet they were up singing in you know serving Christ in that way, we understand that and what I want you to draw encouragement from in the midst of this Psalm here when David says I'm restless in my complaint on I'm distracted here is to draw encouragement from and to trust your God for what this is telling us. God hears us, even through the noise of the battle God is able to hear the cry in the midst of the booming canons of trial, God hears us, even when it seems like we are praying out of utter weakness and with a even with a divided voice. Beloved your God. The same God who gave himself on Calvary, who shed his blood in order to save you from your sins, your God receives you, even when trouble is plaguing your mind even when it seems like you get three words out in your distracted and your your mind is running someplace else because the trouble is so close and so pressing and so difficult and so disappointing.
God hears us, even in the midst of our distracted prayers and that a sweet comfort to your soul.
Isn't it wonderful to know how merciful, how compassionate how gracious God is and how wonderful it is that he would record something like this in our's in the Psalms to encourage us and to invite us and to bid us to pray, even when it seems like we are.
Have we have trouble even giving our full attention to it because the battle is so strong. I don't know about you but I love him for that.
I don't know about you but I often need that praying in the problem. Your your your your expressing your concerns to God. And then that the trouble crashes and again in your thinking in human terms in your back and forth. David says God I'm restless in my complaint.
I'm distracted. Hear me, it's an appeal to sheer grace and mercy from a loving God to the one who is praying David voices. The reason for his plight.
Look at verse three. Why is it David that you need God to answer why are you distracted, he says in verse three. It's because of the voice of the enemy because of the pressure of the wicked, for they bring down trouble upon me in anger. They bear a grudge against me like a bookshelf is been tipped over and is just fallen on him in different aspects things off-the-shelf are falling all this trouble is just landed on him in a heavy crash upon his life, and there are multiple dimensions to it as we'll see as we go along, says God, there are wicked people who are after me.
They have a grudge against me in it and it hurts him in his inner man. It's not just the external circumstances and again every one of you who is here in Christ. I know that you know something about this when you have external problems that are affecting you. It's not just the external manifestation of circumstances. It you feel that you feel the way to have it inside you.
You agitate on it and it hurts in the inner man will David expresses that David gives voice to it. Scripture gives voice to us and teaches us how to approach God and what to say to him in those times verse four. Look at it with me. David says my heart is in anguish within me in the terrors of death of fallen upon me fear and trembling.
Come upon me in horror has overwhelmed me look at the words there. Look at the terms he uses fear and trembling horror and anguish and terror and death is praying from a pretty dark place in his heart. The combination of these. All of these different terms.
Just give us kind of a comprehensive sense of how great his anguish is all of the different words that the related synonyms and things like that are all just kind of multiplying in order to give us a sense that this is dominating his mind as he comes before God and is overwhelmed in the midst of it. Well it's at this point where David continues in his transparency as we alluded to earlier, and you can probably identify with David's initial response. He just wants to run away. He just wants to escape. Look at verses six and seven where he says I said all that I had wings like a dove. I would fly away and be at rest. Behold, I would wander far away I would lodge in the wilderness he wants to escape.
He wants to run away. One writer said this about the nature of the bird a dove said it is characteristic of the dove to fly great distances quickly resting among boulders ending gorges where hunters cannot follow it.
David says I want to be like that dove the can just fly away from the people that are after it and hide someplace for no one can find me that's what's going on in his heart the word selloff there at the end of verse seven calls attention to that understandable emotional response you want to run away.
We sympathize with David in that we know what that feels like. But, beloved, here's a great important point for your spiritual growth. Here is a significant thing for you to understand if you're going to live a godly life when you are a Christian and you know something about the mechanisms the.
The reality of trusting God as we've learned it so many times in the Psalms, the answer in the response to the difficulty surgery or of your life are not flight it is not to run away is to turn instead in faith to God and work out your trust in him, in a way that comforts you and gives you strength and help to find stability in the midst of that trouble rather than to run away from it. We all know in our personal lives and in other places as well. We all know people who simply run away when trouble comes and you know what it is you know what happens when they do that they're not solving anything. All they're doing is taking more baggage with them to their next stop on the way and and beloved that is not the way for you to live life that is not how God calls you to live and and it is so common and I can't tell you how often over the many years of of ministry where people will say silly, foolish things, like I got all of this trouble. God must be telling me it's time to leave though know you have all this trouble and God is telling you to trust him entered into maturing to grow in the midst of it, don't run away from it. Where's the spiritual victory in that how do you manifest the strength of God and that when you simply run away every time a problem comes every time there is a relational conflict to just run and not talk about it to go away and not have anything to do with the people that you were previously involved with the Psalm goes on to talk about that as we will see.
So David is looking for a place out of the store and look at verse eight he says I would hasten to my place of refuge from the stormy wind and tempest. The Psalm doesn't stop there, which tells us that David did not run that he did not fly away. You know what beloved thing about this what David David says in him in in his moment and in his transparency says I wish I wish I was like a dove.
I just fly away and and get away from this problem.
We know what a dove might be able to do that, but a dove is a very high on the created order is it you were created for more than that. Christian friend you. You are called to a much higher response, a dove bird a a a stupid dumb animal can run away from its problems know what you do as a Christian, what you do is one who knows the living God is you stay and you meet your duty.
You meet your responsibilities and you don't run away. That's so important James Montgomery voice says this and I quote he says it is not always possible to escape our problems. David does not have the wings of a dove, and God does not always give us leave meaning permission God does not always give us leave to leave either, especially if the problems we face involve continuing responsibilities on our part" someone in a difficult marriage. Running away isn't the answer.
Problems on the job. Running away isn't the answer. Different aspects different things different relationships become difficult. There's no honor in running away at shameful and so the answer is not for you to run and simply try to escape your troubles. God listen, this will change your perspective on it, you believe, don't you going on a tangent here, you believe, don't you. The God is sovereign over your life. Right you believe that you believe that you believe that God is if you if you're a biblical Christian you believe that God is involved in all of the circumstances that bring that come about in your life. You believe that don't you will. If that's the case then what you your first response about your life needs to be is that this is the life that God has given to me and therefore my responses not to run away from it, but rather mice my responses to trust God and to be faithful to my duty in the midst of it. Running away is not the Christian response being faithful to duty in the midst of your trouble is the godly response to it.
So don't run.
Trust your sovereign God and fulfill your duty to say again don't run. Trust your sovereign God and fulfill your duty when you're looking for the way forward in the midst of your in your midst of your difficulties. You ask your question you asked the question, what's my duty here what's my responsibility here and then you go from there.
There may be time in life where, after a period of time.
You realize in it. It is the right time to move on. But that's never the. The initial first response to run at the first sign of danger.
Imagine a soldier running every time the first sign of danger comes up first time a bullet whizzes past his helmet as I gotta get out of here this I what I didn't sign up for this.
What's that, where's the nobility of victory. Anyone can be a coward and runaway, you have different beloved, you set your sights higher. You hold your heart to a higher accountability you set your life in a way that says I'm not going to run from the battle or run toward it, trusting God as I do to completely different way of thinking than what we are traditionally used to Scripture leads us in this direction. So we seen the oppression that David was feeling in the first eight verses. Secondly, having said these things.
Let's look at David's intercession, David's intercession, by which I mean his prayer in the situation. David has has honestly voiced his emotional reaction to his circumstances and God has graciously received that prayer but notice that David moves out of his emotion and he pivots from his emotional reaction to start to deal with the situation that is actually in front of him and he recites the impact that these wicked people have had on the people in the city. Look at verses nine through 11 with me. David prays confuse oh Lord, divide their tongues for I have seen violence and strife in the city day and night. They go around her upon her walls and iniquity, and mischief are in her midst destruction is in her midst, oppression, and deceit do not depart from her streets. David here is asking God to intervene and to deal with the people who are causing the trouble and it is crucial for us to see what he is saying and it is so very very important for you to distinguish between some of your personal trials and and personal difficulties in relationships and and not just interpret and read the Scripture in light of your own circumstance but rather to step you out of out of your circumstance and see what's going on. As David writes this song. This song is not simply about David's private trials. That is not the point here it all. David is writing as as the king of Israel, and he is responsible for the public welfare of the covenant people.
And so for wicked people to be running amok in the city with violence with deception, with theft with with disloyalty and all of those things it's more than just David's personal life that's involved.
Here he is praying to God because this is affecting the broader people of God, not just himself and that informs the way that we understand the things that he asks for what these men have done and they brought violence and chaos into the capital city, beloved, think about it this way.
One of the walls of's of the city. In ancient times were they designed to do. They were designed to provide protection to keep the good guys and in the bad guys out so that the good guys inside the walls could have a sense of security as they go about their lives.
The walls of the city provided protection to the city. That's what they were intended to do what is happening in this circumstance, we don't know the full occasion of the Psalm. The most commentators will say it's not it's not. We don't know exactly what the occasion is.
But look at what David is saying here verse nine will come back to the start of verse nine. In just a moment. He says I have seen violence and strife in the city day and night. They go around her upon her walls. These violent men. The sinful disloyal men going around on the walls of the city and iniquity and mischief are in their midst, destruction, oppression, and deceit do not depart from her streets. Listen wicked people of overrun the city and rather than those walls being a a means of protection to the people of God, they become the parade route for sinners, for those who have no regard for God or for his people are actively seeking to bring them harm. They were just attacking David they were attacking the provision of God for his people.
They were attacking the people and the purposes of God. You see, it's more than it's more than just a private conflict that's at stake here is important for us to understand and to enter into the spirit of the way that David prays because these wicked people were like that because they were opposing the purposes of God like that they were right for judgment. It was time for God to step in and intervene.
He's the covenant God, that the promise keeping God who protects his people who sovereignly exercises care over them, who says that he will be their God and they will be his people, and so it's on that basis. That is who God is and who these wicked people are and what they are doing that. David asks God to intervene.
Look at verse nine he says, confuse, oh Lord, divide their tongues that has echoes and harkens us back to the time when God judged the nations at Babel when they were rising up in rebellion against God. God entered in and brought judgment upon them and frustrated their wicked purposes by confusing their tongue so they could no longer communicate with one another anymore in the past.
Here's the point of it in the past God had judged those who opposed his purposes and brought harm to the people of God. Watch this that past historical judgment of God is David's warrant for praying this way now. He said he looks back at the Pentateuch looks back into the book of Moses and says God I remember how you judge people who oppose your purposes in the past, on the basis of you being like that. Now I ask you to again act in a way to judge those who oppose your purposes to hurt your people and to deliver us from their actions. So David isn't simply praying and a sense of personal vindictiveness. He's praying is a representative king looking out for the welfare of the people of God, and seeking to advance the purposes of God.
Well the worst part of the situation in the midst of all of this is that David could look into the crowd and he saw someone participating in the midst of the rebellion that he knew the worst part of the situation is that here is part of the source of the trouble. Look at verse 12 with me and oh, those of you that been betrayed by friends can relate to what were about to see right now. David says it is not an enemy who reproaches me. Then I could bear it no somebody is my enemy. I could see that coming. I could deal with added that doesn't bring personal turmoil to me, nor is it one who hates me, who is exalted himself against me. Then I could hide myself from it. Now you see that the treachery and he builds to a climax. He says it's not an enemy. It's not someone that that I've had problems with in the past that is the source of my trouble. Verse 13 it drips with pain. It drips with sorrow says that you a man, my equal. My companion and my familiar friend see how he builds it up. He's building up to a climax he he he walks us through in a way that that builds a sense of tension is as it grows. As he asked, using these words to bring it to a climax at this what is happening here in the source of my trouble. This is utterly unthinkable that would come from you. His heart is broken first step to me and my equal. My companion, my familiar friend. Verse 14, we who had sweet fellowship together, walked in the house of God in the throng. David says David says it's not just that we were close friends. We worship together we serve God together.
We serve the people of God together and now betrayed me. Now you're bringing harm upon my head without cause. David says that's more than I can bear. And so what you see here is that there's kind of that there is a two-sided aspect to the trouble that is describing out in the city. There's this breath of violence and evil. It is broad in the description of the friend shows that the evil is close and it's personal and it hurts and everything that's happening. It's broad and it's close. And that is a tough place to be and so we see what you and I both have known and experienced over the years of life sometimes close friends turn on us and become open enemies. Sometimes family sometimes others and when that happens, beloved, it's no surprise that it brings inner turmoil. It's no surprise that the outward trouble comes with an inner tempest in your soul because it shouldn't be that way. This is not what friends do to one another. This is not what those who share in the worship of God together should do. There shouldn't be that kind of treachery that comes out, of a relationship like that, should it that should not happen.
What I want you to see. As were talking about these things is to realize this is to realize that there is a certain kind of evil in that the goals beyond even the personal betrayal that you might feel remember what God is like God is the loyal covenant keeping God who is true to his promises and he is true to his people. Well, it's only right it's only right for us, especially within the house of God within the people of God to deal with each other with a similar kind of loyalty that reflects the character of God when that is violated is not just a personal disruption is a violation. It is a sin against the character of God when that happens, there is a wickedness that is embedded in that that because it is because it is a spirit that is contrary to the one true spirit of God shouldn't happen shouldn't be that way. So David in verse 15 prays for judgment to come upon them with verse 15 when he says let death come deceitfully upon them. Let them go down alive to Sheol for evil is in their dwelling in their midst. Now let's take a moment to review what was most likely in David's mind. Here turn over the numbers chapter 16, number 16 this picture of of the earth swallowing someone alive is pretty vivid and direction, consequential. But again, David is not David is not just venting venomous sinful sentiments when he says this David is recalling the way that God had previously judged enemies in the past judged his enemies. You remember that a man named Cora led a rebellion against Moses and this came to a climax when God judge them in order to vindicate his servant Moses and to defend his leadership. In chapter 16 verse 31 of the book of numbers.
Moses, having said in verse 30 of the Lord brings about an entirely new thing and the ground opens its mouth and swallows them up with all that is theirs and they descend alive and to Sheol, see David's language from Psalm 55 then you will understand that these minutes spurned the Lord. Verse 31. As he finished speaking, all these words, the ground was under them split open and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up and their households and all the men who belong to core with their possessions so they and all the belong to them went down alive to Sheol and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly while I bring fear of God upon you wanted, don't forget that there was something's not that different that happened in the early church in acts chapter 5 when God struck Ananias and Sophia were dead when they misled the apostles about the gift that they were bringing to the altar. See the love here's what you need to see David's prayer might seem severe but don't run immediately to the question of which David justified.
Pray this way or to be critical or to to to condemn his prayer as some would be tempted to do. David here is the king of Israel is praying according to a prior pattern. A prior incident of divine activity revelation and judgment what Dave is praying here is God. This is a similar situation of wicked people opposing Europe appointed leader, speaking in Old Testament terms about the king and he says God in the past when that happened you vindicated Moses and swallowed them up alive in order to put in into the rebellion, God, I am asking you to do something similar as I is the covenant leader of the people, and under a similar attack from wicked people judge them. God intervene help in vindicate your people and protect them and vindicate your leadership well notice something at the end of verse 15 as he prays this way, he gives the ground for the prayer he's he's he's called attention to a prior act of God. But in verse 15. He says God evil is in their dwelling in their midst.
He says he says they are committed to this course of wickedness by which they have oppose your people and wreaked havoc upon us. God evil is dominating them. God deal with it because it's out of my hands is beyond my ability to do so and for the sake of your truth for the sake of your purposes.
For the sake of your people intervene and help us just like you have done in the past God. I'm not asking for anything other than what you previously done a strong prayer pretty sobering to see these things and what we see in this is that God does not deal lightly with wickedness that there is great guilt and great danger to those who oppose the people in the purposes of God. Remember that even the apostle Paul said Alexander the coppersmith is caused me much more harm the Lord deal with him according to his works.
To call God down to protect his people in the midst of the opposition.
Not because it's personal. And this is why that this is why it's so important.
This is not bullheaded. This is not the prayer that we go to as soon as someone offends us personally when you're offended. On a personal level, you should respond with the spirit of grace, loving your enemies as Christ taught us in Matthew chapter 5 having a sense of that and make being having a distinction in your mind between being being that the personal things that we deal with with those things that are connected to the greater purposes of God.
David calls upon God to vindicate righteousness, to deliver him from evil. We know what you know why that that's a that's a prayer that Jesus taught us, deliver us from evil.
You know what when God delivers us from evil sometimes is going to be adverse consequences for the perpetrators of evil.
We just commit ourselves to the justice the righteousness the wisdom of God in the midst of those times there's something else that it should do for you when you see this in Scripture. I'm glad I remembered what I'm about to say. I hope I don't forget Fort comes out one of the things that you should do when you see wickedness going on when you've been affected by the trail of people. People have wronged you and done. Done badly to you what you're going to see in verses 16 to 23 coming up what you should do is number one. You should remember how God views that and be fearful last you would drift into that same kind of that same kind of step-by-step and find yourself in a place of evil. He opposing the purposes of God, don't go there because you don't want to be on the wrong side of the justice of God.
You don't want to be on the wrong side of his discipline, but for those of you that have been harmed personally by betrayal by wickedness. This is somewhat beyond the scope of the text maybe. But it is something that I think fits in with what we need to say here rather than becoming bitter about that.
Here's what you need to do.
Look at that situation. Look at what people have done and determine and set your heart in your heart a holy purpose that says they may have done me like this, but I am not going to do like that to others and let their negative example become the force of conviction in your heart that says I will live differently. Even if I feel pain from the what others do to me in the process and you you look at that negative example you learn from it and you you learn to detested say that is wrong.
That is not the way of Christian should be and therefore I will separate myself from that I'll be different in my relationships at so critical to understand and that is how one way among many that you can turn that kind of negative thing into a positive in your own character do that beloved would you seen the oppression we seen the intersession.
Now we come to the final point number three here as we look at David's confession, David's confession and and in broad terms, David is poured out his heart in the first eight verses he is he is asked God, as it were, to deal with the situation. We might be able to state it is is plainly and is generally is that God deal with the situation that is before me, and now in point number three we see his confession and we come to the high point of the song David having prayed, his prayer for help.
Now watch it. It's the same point that we come to in the Psalms again and again and again, David. Having prayed now trusts in the answer to come. Verse 16 he says. As for me, I shall call upon God and the Lord will save me. They there God there like this. There are there full of evil and a close friend has betrayed me and there's wickedness on the walls of the city.
That's what they're like God.
Let me give you a contrast God. I see what they're like. By contrast, I am going to be someone different. I will respond differently. God, I will call upon you and I trust you to save me. This is the turning point of the entire song David moves away from around the could lead to bitterness and puts his trust in God to deliver and look at verse 17 says, evening and morning and at noon. I will complain and murmur and he will hear my voice it says on the prey repeatedly throughout the day naming my prayers and I'm going to. I am just going to knock and knock and knock on the door of heaven until God opens and answers. God, I know you're in there. Hello, answer me by which he means intervene and change the situation and bring me out of this trouble that I'm facing verse 18 and drinking in the spirit of confidence that this expresses he will redeem my soul and peace from the battle which is against me, for there are many who strive with me God there's a multiplicity of enemies here. One of them in particular was a man who betrayed me. David says that God I'm looking past all of that and I trust you. I trust my loyal covenant keeping God who is sovereign over all these knots. Not just that he sovereign over all David's praying, it's that he is personally concerned for me and he's committed to my protection and welfare, and therefore when I commit myself to the care of this God I can know that the outcome will be good for me. I know that he will help me. I know that he will deliver me. I know that I simply need wait on him to intervene on my behalf. Verse 19 he rests his confidence in the unchanging nature of God.
Verse 19 he says God will hear and answer them. Even the one who sits enthroned from of old cell, says God, God is eternal God is God transcends history. God transcends this situation, God never changes. He's he is the ruler over all he is always been that way and he's always faithful to his people. What does that mean for me as his child, except that I can run into his presence and know that he will receive me well and he has the ability to work. All of this out to his glory and the my good in the end, beloved, let me say something to you.
There's us a lot here you stop and pause and meditate on it.
Do you realize that when a man runs from his problems. When a woman flees from the difficulties that she's facing and just go someplace else and leaves duty and relationships behind. Do you realize when people do that they missed the spiritual victory that David is describing here. They lay down their weapons of faith and lost the battle. The could of been one that's that is in it. Well for you and me but we look at and say okay when the trouble comes my way when the betrayal hits me all to stand firm all just trust God through this and all weight and all cry out to him and all consciously, intelligently lay hold of his character and say God I know your character I trusted. I commend myself to you all wait for your deliverance and then when the deliverance comes got a spiritual victory. You got a notch of honor for your spiritual belt where you trusted God and he proved himself faithful.
Isn't that a great place to be. That's a whole lot better than running is in it. Will the Lord give us wisdom to sort out how that applies in all of our lives. David go back to verse 19 at this at this high point of trusting in the character of God. There's kind of a, it's kind of a slipping back not met. Not really slipping back but ate a look back at the enemies it opposed him.
He said God is enthroned over these people and who are these people are those who, with whom there is no change.
They're not going to change their evil is settled in their minds. There committed to this course of wickedness in verse 19. They do not fear God and continuing on.
Speaking of the one who betrayed him. In verse 20 says he is put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him is violated his covenant and is kind of rehearsing and now with the spirit of clarity.
He looks back and he looks on this one is who betrayed him. He says his beach was smooth and butter but his heart was war, his words were softer than oil, yet they were drawn swords. This man was one who spoke a good game who spoke words that were designed to look like he was a close friend and supporter, but was real and the duplicity and the hypocrisy of it came out over time.
When the opportunity for betrayal was there. This betrayer struck David brings this all before the Lord and commits it to him, no blood.
We all are vulnerable to flattery. Currently, we all like it when people speak well of us.
Be careful about the way that you commit yourself to people like that. Be careful to the one who's always flattering you and and and commending you and saying great and grandiose things about you just look at that and be careful with with who you give yourself give your heart to maybe young people and relationships. Be careful with that young man or that young woman who just just flatters and flatters you and it's not always what it seems to be. David says, speech smooth is butter I like butter. David says watch on a personal note said this before, I'll say it again because were all just kinda growing together in Christ starkly you and me together here truth community. You know what God would have us be like God would have us be people who don't proclaim our own loyalty he would just have us be loyal, don't tell everybody about how faithful you're going to be in and what a great friend. You're going to be to somebody just be a good friend. Keep your mouth shut on those kinds of things and just manifest loyalty in your life and let God bless that that's the kind of people that we need to be put a discount on flattery when it comes your way and entrust yourself to God. David wraps it all up for us here in verse 22. He has committed his cause to God.
God knows the betrayal God knows the insincerity of those that had betrayed David God knew that there flattering words were worthless. God knew it all and that has an impact for the way that David closes up this song. He kind of rehearses things for himself and yet he also expands it out to instruct others who would read the Psalm as his contemporaries. And for those of us who would follow. Look at verse 22, he says, cast your burden upon the Lord, that covenant keeping God, Yahweh, faithful to his people cast your burden upon the Lord, and he will sustain you. He will never allow the righteous to be shaken. What David is saying here to you tonight. Beloved is this is in the midst of your sorrow in the midst of the way that maybe you have been betrayed. What you find is this is that you can trust God in the midst of it. God God is a faithful God.
God is a sovereign God. He is a good God to his people and that means that you can bring all manner of trial all manner of sorrow, even the personal betrayals that you've gone you can come and just kind of casted on and dump it on God's David is done here in Psalm 55.
Knowing what the outcome will be. What will God do will sustain you.
He'll never allow the righteous to be shaken and what is more, you can trust God to work out the consequences of the people that have wronged you. Verse 23 but you, oh God will bring them down to the pit of destruction. Men of bloodshed and deceit will not live out half their days.
God will personally attend to the fall of the wicked, God will personally judge them. He by no means will clear the guilty and so that means we don't have to worry about it. We don't have to have the turmoil we we we bring the character of God to bear on these things, we commit our cause to him and we trust him to work it out.
Knowing that wicked people are sowing the seeds of their own destruction that they will reap what they themselves so beloved because of the certain character in the certain rule of God. You can be confident.
And that's the note. The David ends the Psalm on look at at the end of verse 23. This is what happens to Minna bloodshed and deceit, but I will trust in you. God, I bring my emotional sorrow to you.
I bring the situation to you.
And now that I've committed myself to you.
I can in the Psalm and peace before I see the answer. David looks on the singing of his betrayal and instructs us brother and sister in Christ, God has your situation under control suffering at the hands of insolent, rebellious people, people in your family. God has it under control.
David shows us the pattern to devote yourself to trust rather than further worry about the ungodliness around you.
Oh, beloved, how many times can we say this in so many different ways God deserves your trust he will sustain you. He will not allow the righteous to be shaken. He will judge the wicked. The outcome is sure. Therefore, we rest together in him spell together in prayer father, thank you for who you are and we bring a multitude of difficult situations and sorrows before you now collectively and individually verbally and in the quiet of our own heart and we cast our burden upon you father to each one of us show forth in what follows in the days to calm that your God who sustains us that you don't allow your righteous to be shaken that you know how to deal with the sin of men father for those who would refuse to repent. We understand that you will deal with them. Father, perhaps for those that have wronged us personally or betrayed us personally.
Lord we would be like Christ and ask for your mercy upon them, forgive them, Lord forgive those who have wronged us in a personal way and let not a root of bitterness take root in our heart that father show mercy to them as you did to us at some point in the past, the father, for those who would oppose your purposes whose evil is more deeply rooted in and they actively oppose your purposes.
God, we ask you to protect your church. We ask you to deal with those who would teach falsely, who would teach a false gospel who would bring harm upon the true people of Christ, and that you would deal with them. Father in your wisdom and your justice and protect your people were were small and more vulnerable.
God were weekend. We need your help. So father we asset throughout the world for pastors and leaders and good Christians who are under the poor under the knife from evil men. We ask you to intervene and help the power that you display the data through bless us as we go. God, thank you. You are trustworthy. God we trust you completely and without reservation in the name of Christ. We pray, amen, will friend thank you for joining us on through the Psalms. If you would like to follow my weekly messages from truth community church go to truth Community Church.org and look for the link titled pulpit podcast again. That's truth Community Church.org God bless you. Thanks, Don, and friend.
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