Fighting On Your Knees

Introduction

Psalm 5:1–12 KJV 1900

1 Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation. 2 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: For unto thee will I pray. 3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up. 4 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness: Neither shall evil dwell with thee. 5 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: Thou hatest all workers of iniquity. 6 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: The Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man. 7 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: And in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple. 8 Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; Make thy way straight before my face. 9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; Their inward part is very wickedness; Their throat is an open sepulchre; They flatter with their tongue. 10 Destroy thou them, O God; Let them fall by their own counsels; Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; For they have rebelled against thee. 11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: Let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee. 12 For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; With favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

David is again, as we see many times, facing a time of trouble. It is generally understood that Psalm 3,4,5 go together in sequence. They all seem to relate to the time of Absalom’s rebellion, which was, a really tough time in David’s life.

Psalm 3 is a morning prayer, Psalm 4 is an evening prayer, and Psalm 5, another morning prayer.

Soul searching prayer is always the best help in troubled time ; and how we start the day, often determines how we will end it .

It’s been rightly stated, "The first hour is to the day what the rudder is to the ship ; therefore, spend it in prayer."

It is for certain one cannot pray too much, but most of us pray far too little. We have to be backed into a corner with no way out but up before we get excited about praying . The tragedy of this is that we lose many battles before we ever start…

We need to get it in our heads today, more spiritual battles are won on our knees in prayer than on our feet in combat.

With this in mind, let’s take a look at these verses with the thought of “Fighting On Your Knees”...

1-The Prayer of the Sincere (v.1-3)

Psalm 5:1–3 KJV 1900

1 Give ear to my words, O Lord, Consider my meditation. 2 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: For unto thee will I pray. 3 My voice shalt thou hear in the morning, O Lord; In the morning will I direct my prayer unto thee, and will look up.

This Prayer is Personal

The possessive pronoun “my” is found 7 times in these 3 verses.

“my words…my meditation…my cry…my King…my God…my voice…my prayer.”

God is a person. God is a person that lives inside of us.

He is personal so our prayers should be personal.

People who don’t know God well think they have to pray with special words and their prayers sound like a formula with set words and phrases. But if you know God, you can come to him without putting on your makeup. You pour out your plain and straightforward thoughts to Him.

I know it’s Father’s Day and this message really isn’t centered on Father’s…But it is centered on the Heavenly Father as all messages should be!

You think about this though, if you had a good earthly father, you talk to God the way you would talk to your dad—you are respectful but completely comfortable that he loves you and understands. I’ve told my Dad things I’d never tell anyone else besides my wife. I talk to him truthfully, knowing, even if we disagree on some things, he’s going to keep on loving me anyways. I’m glad I can talk to my earthly father that way, but even more thankful that I can talk to my Heavenly Father like that!

This Prayer is Passionate

David says, “Give ear to my words…Consider my meditation...Hearken unto the voice of my cry...”

Prevailing prayer comes from a full heart that erupts into tears.

The Psalmist wasn't just killing time nor going through a ritual. He was passionate in this prayer!

The word meditation here is speaking of sighing, murmuring, groaning...

When our burden is beyond expression, all we can do is sigh and moan before the Lord. The Spirit hears our groanings and intercedes for us.

Notice the progression of the prayer…it begins with “words”…then “meditation”…then “cry”...

Prayer is not always a quiet, joyful conversation with God. Sometimes it is a battle against the principalities arrayed against us…

This Prayer is Pointed

Psalm 5:2 KJV 1900

2 Hearken unto the voice of my cry, my King, and my God: For unto thee will I pray.

He pointed this prayer to God!

Hebrews 4:16 KJV 1900

16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.

That word boldly goes back to prayer being personal! I’m glad there is a throne room where I can point my personal prayers to!

This Prayer is Prospective

David was confident that God heard his prayer and would answer. Verse 3 says, “In the morning”, at the beginning of the day, David offered his sacrifice and waited to see what God would do for him.

Notice, he says, “…will look up.” This has the sense of looking with expectation. It is the same root in Hebrew as the word watchman or watchtower.

David just didn’t thrown out a few words and walk away…When David prayed, he expected an answer!

We see all this in the prayer of the sincere…Next, we have:

2-The Evaluation of the Sinful (v.4-6)

God is Displeased with the Sinful

Psalm 5:4 (KJV 1900)

4 For thou art not a God that hath pleasure in wickedness...

God doesn’t think sin is fun or funny…He doesn’t find sin attractive or entertaining in any fashion. I think about this when I think of the content that is on our smartphones or television programs…It’s full of wickedness.

You listen to me right here…you may not thing it’s a big deal, but sin will desensitize you if it entertains you. But God does not delight in wickedness—ever.

God will not Dwell with the Sinful

Psalm 5:4 (KJV 1900)

4 ...Neither shall evil dwell with thee.

“God is so incompatible with sin that even the most temporary coexistence is utterly impossible.”

God will Dishonor the Sinful

Psalm 5:5 (KJV 1900)

5 The foolish shall not stand in thy sight:

The prideful and arrogant (the foolish) will never enjoy a face-to-face encounter with the Lord. They will only stand before him in judgment.

Psalm 5:5 (KJV 1900)

5 ...Thou hatest all workers of iniquity.

To truly love God is to reject all that is evil. God hates sin, and so should we.

God will Destroy the Sinful

Psalm 5:6 (KJV 1900)

6 Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing:

Verse 5 referred to the boastful and arrogant talkers, (the foolish) and here, we have reference to liars… “…them that speak leasing:” -

God Despises the Sinful

Psalm 5:6 (KJV 1900)

6 ...The Lord will abhor the bloody and deceitful man.

Our God abhors the violent and treacherous…the bloodthirsty, the deceitful. Deceitful goes back to liars…This is important, the bloodthirsty murder with their hands…The deceitful murder with their tongues; both are violent and treacherous acts that God despises!

3-The Sanctuary of the Saint (v.7-12)

Psalm 5:7 KJV 1900

7 But as for me, I will come into thy house in the multitude of thy mercy: And in thy fear will I worship toward thy holy temple.

The word but in verse 7 places the remainder of this chapter in strong opposition to verses 4–6. David returns to discuss the one who seeks the Lord in prayer. We discover he is also the one who seeks the Lord’s house, his mercy, and his guidance.

After seeing what person the Lord takes no pleasure in, the Lord will take pleasure in this kind of person.

David comes, as should we, to the place where God’s people come together. When the people of God gather for corporate worship, the gathering ministers to the heart and soul of a person. David says we find, “…the multitude of thy mercy.”

Finding himself as the recipient of this undeserved mercy, David says that he will worship!

Only by mercy may we approach God. Only in worship will we draw near to God.

God is our Shepherd

Psalm 5:8–10 KJV 1900

8 Lead me, O Lord, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; Make thy way straight before my face. 9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; Their inward part is very wickedness; Their throat is an open sepulchre; They flatter with their tongue. 10 Destroy thou them, O God; Let them fall by their own counsels; Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions; For they have rebelled against thee.

You think about it, I mentioned in the introduction that this was written after Absalom’s rebellion. This right here is exactly how Absalom had stolen the hearts of Israel. Their speech was all lies, wickedness and flattery.

David speaks in verse 9 of their throat being “…an open sepulchre...”

The foul things Absalom and his crowd were saying and suggesting were proof enough of the corruption of their hearts.

These people may be David’s enemies, but their sin and rebellion are ultimately against God.

David prayed that the Lord would lead his steps and protect him from their evil schemes.

Psalm 37:23 (KJV 1900)

23 The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord:...

David had the attitude of an obedient sheep…He had the attitude of:

Proverbs 3:5–6 KJV 1900

5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; And lean not unto thine own understanding. 6 In all thy ways acknowledge him, And he shall direct thy paths.

There’s nothing our Shepherd loves more than for us to trust Him!

Because he is a God who takes no pleasure in, will not give an audience to, will not allow to stand, hates, will destroy, and abhors wickedness and all evil, we can be confident he will lead us in righteousness, in the right way, and along the right path.

God is our Song

Psalm 5:11 KJV 1900

11 But let all those that put their trust in thee rejoice: Let them ever shout for joy, because thou defendest them: Let them also that love thy name be joyful in thee.

Those who put their trust in the Lord are called to rejoice. They can have a song. Why? Because the Lord will “defend them.”

Even though surrounded by enemies, the saints can still sing.

The wicked may laugh now, but they will weep forever; we may weep now, but we will rejoice then.

Psalm 30:5 (KJV 1900)

5 ...Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.

God is our Song!

God is our Shield

Psalm 5:12 KJV 1900

12 For thou, Lord, wilt bless the righteous; With favour wilt thou compass him as with a shield.

Those who trust the Lord and rejoice in his protection also love his name and see him as their shield.

Psalm 3:3 KJV 1900

3 But thou, O Lord, art a shield for me; My glory, and the lifter up of mine head.

Because we love the one who is righteous, we will pursue righteousness. This is the place of divine blessing. Such blessing is to be surrounded with God’s favor like a shield, a shield that provides 360-degree protection.

Like a great eagle spreading her wings over her young, so our great God and King spreads his covering of protection over those who seek him in prayer, depend on his mercy, ask for his guidance, and trust in his protection.

Conclusion

The essence of trusting God with saving faith is that everyone who runs to Him will find joy, protection, and favor.

True joy comes from trusting in and loving the Lord . This kind of joy comes from God's work on the inside, not from circumstances on the outside .

The theme here goes right with the series we just finished up with on the Book of Habakkuk.

The lesson we need to learn is that prayer that begins with sighing generally ends in singing. We need to pray with purpose.

We need to spend each day in prayer to our Heavenly Father.

David was in trouble…He was in a battle with the wicked, and he fought that battle on his knees, praying to the greatest Father ever, our Heavenly Father.

How are you fighting your battles today?