Being all in for God (Psalm 34)

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Psalm 34 is all about going hard for God and praising from experience. It also teaches us how we ought to paise, pray, and pursue God.

Notes
Transcript
Key passages: Psalm 34, 1 Samuel 21:10-15;22:1-2

Introduction

As we navigate through life's journey, we encounter numerous peaks and troughs – moments of joy and moments of sorrow, times filled with laughter and times marked by tears. Similarly, in this Psalm, David finds himself in a profound state of despair, facing one of the lowest points in his life.
During those moments, God might have seemed distant, but did you still maintain your trust in Him?
I can recall moments when I would cry out to God, and it felt as though He was far away, distant from my pleas.
The reality is that everyone will encounter such situations in life.
When you find yourself in the midst of a challenging circumstance, how will you respond?
As a follower of Christ, how should we respond?
These questions prompt us to consider our reactions and actions when faced with adversity, particularly from a perspective of faith and following the teachings of Christ.
Psalm 34 provides valuable insights into how we should respond in difficult situations, as well as how David himself reacted.
In the first part of the psalm, David shares his personal experiences, offering a heartfelt account of his own challenges and encounters with God's goodness.
In the second part, he transitions to providing guidance and counsel on how to fear the Lord, imparting wisdom for faithful living and a deeper relationship with God. This psalm serves as a source of inspiration and instruction for believers facing trials and seeking a closer walk with the Lord.

Background of Psalm 34

The context of Psalm 34 is crucial for understanding its significance.
This Psalm was penned by David's escape from Abimelech, which is described in 1 Samuel 21:10-15. In this narrative, David acted like a madman to elude the Philistine king's capture.
It was during this challenging and desperate time of escape that David composed Psalm 34, providing us with a glimpse into his faith and reliance on God even in the face of adversity.
How do we understand the two different reference to Achish king of Gath and Abimelech? The king of Gath before whom David played the madman is also called “Abimelech” in the title of Psalm 34; however, 1 Samuel 21:11 identifies the king of Gath as Achish. This has led many scholars to believe that, among the Philistines at least, Abimelech was a title given the king, rather than a personal name—much as the Egyptians always called their king “Pharaoh.”
The psalm's composition during such a trying period makes its message of trust and praise all the more profound and relevant for those navigating difficult circumstances in their own lives.
David was fleeing from King Saul, and he sought refuge with King Achish of Gath/Abimelech. However, when Achish's servants recognized David, he grew concerned about his safety in Gath. To protect himself, David altered his behavior and pretended to be insane.
He even went so far as to make marks on the doors of the city gate and let his spit run down his beard. Imagine the extent of the behaviour that David had to put on to escape. When King Achish witnessed this bizarre behavior, he ordered that David be removed from his presence, inadvertently allowing David to escape from a potentially perilous situation.
In that cultural context, individuals suffering from insanity were believed to be either cursed by the gods or chosen to receive divine messages. In both scenarios, most people preferred to avoid any interaction with such individuals. Surprisingly, what could have turned into a disaster for David ultimately ensured his safety. In Psalm 34, David expresses his gratitude to God for listening to his prayers and safeguarding him (Psalm 34:4–7).
David was it his lowest at this point. He was a mighty warrior. The people sang of him ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?” (1 Sa 21:11). Yet now this mighty warrior has to act like a mad man to escape from the Philistines, as he was also escaping from Saul. He had enemies all around.
Let’s examine how David responded, through writing Psalm 34 and we can look at the following aspects through this Psalm:
Praise (Psalm 34:1-3)
Pray (Psalm 34:4-8)
Pursue (Psalm 34:9-22)
The overall theme of this Psalm is to go hard for God. That is to seek Him, thirst for Him, and pursue him. Amen!

Praise (Psalm 34:1-3)

Psalm 34:1-3 “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth. My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad. Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!”
David begins by declaring “I will” bless the Lord at all times!!
It is a decision and a choice regardless of what others may be doing. In other words, saying, “I am determined to celebrate God. I have resolved in my mind and and spirit and my being is set on Him alone.
Not only to “bless” the lord, but to “bless Him at all times.” David is determined to celebrate and worship as something constant in his life and at all times.
Notice he says “at all times”. That is to mean at the good times, and the bad times. In the time of plenty, and in a time of lack. In a time of pain, and in a time of joy. At all times, I will bless the Lord and His praise shall be continually in my mouth.
In this lowest of periods in his life, David was still praising the Lord.
300 Sermon Illustrations from Charles Spurgeon Be Thankful for Preservation (Psalm 34:1; Ephesians 5:20; Colossians 3:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:18)

You have heard, perhaps, of a Puritan who met his son, each one of them traveling some ten or twelve miles to meet the other. The son said to his father, “Father, I am thankful to God for a very remarkable providence that I have had on my journey here. My horse has stumbled three times with me, and yet I am unhurt.”

The Puritan replied, “My dear son, I have to thank God for an equally remarkable providence on my way to you, for my horse did not once stumble all the way.”

If we happen to be in an accident by railway we feel so grateful that our limbs are not broken. But should we not be thankful when there is no accident? Is not that the better thing of the two? If you were to fall into poverty, and someone were to restore you to your former position in trade, you would be very grateful. Should you not be grateful that you have not fallen into poverty? Bless God for his unknown benefits. Extol him for favors that you do not see, always giving thanks to God for all things.

Likewise, throughout scripture we are commanded to be thankful to God at all times.
Ephesians 5:20 “giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,”
1 Thessalonians 5:18 “give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.”
In the next verse (Psalm 34:2 David says, “My soul makes its boast in the Lord; let the humble hear and be glad.” ), David says, he makes his boast in the Lord.
In other words, David is bragging on God. He is boasting about His God, His deliverer. People often tend to brag about thier job, or house, or riches, or thier abilities. But David brags on about God. We are to brag on God.
Jeremiah 9:23–24 “Thus says the Lord: “Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.””
We are no to boast in our wisdom or might, or riches INSTEAD,
This boasting should be one of understanding and knowing God.
It is to boast in Him because God practices steadfast love, justice, and righteousness.
We must boast in Him because the Lord delights in these things.
David boasted in God, becuase God delivered Him becuase He trusted in God
Because of that He is worthy to be blessed, and worthy of our praises.
Even in the hardest of times, we must boast in the Lord, we must praise His name, and bless the Lord. With our mouths.
Sometimes we are quick to bless God and praise Him when times are good, and plentiful - but it is a lot harder when you are in the midst of struggles.
We are to make MUCH OF CHRIST, and LESS OF US! Trust in Christ, and not in US, and so David goes on to say in:
Psalm 34:3 “Oh, magnify the Lord with me, and let us exalt his name together!”
Next David’s worship and praise of God is corporate
He is asking for everyone to join in with Him to praise God
Many a times we might enjoy our private time of praise and worship and thankfulness to God for His goodness, at the same time, there is something special, empowering, and encouraging in joining in with others in the adoration of God.
Actually, worshipping God together, jointly and corporately in the family of God is non-negotiable. Amen
Ephesians 5:18–19 “...but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,”
In fact, all the people surrounding David at this time were all those who were lacking in some way. He is now asking them to join in with his worship to God regardless of thier situation.
1 Samuel 22:1–2 “And everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul, gathered to him. And he became commander over them. And there were with him about four hundred men.”
David is asking all these whom are in distress to join him in magnifying the Lord.
Application
What are you going through today. Whether good or bad, are you truly able to say “I will bless the Lord at all times”. Not just to say it, but to boast in the Lord, and call those around you to praise and glorify God.” Let us stand alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ to bless God together. Amen!
Let us magnify God not just by ourselves, but to call our brothers and sisters and sing worship to God together. When we can do this, then truly our trust is in God alone and no longer in our abilities. Amen!

Pray (Psalm 34:4-8)

After beginning with praise and declaring the goodness of God, David now takes us to a place of prayer as he experienced and did in this time of trial. May we too always begin with praise of our Father.
Psalm 34:4–6 “I sought the Lord, and he answered me and delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant, and their faces shall never be ashamed. This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.”
Here we see David praying, and crying out to God. As he did so, God delivered him from all of his fears. David sought God in prayer for both “deliverance from fear” and “salvation from trouble”.
Then it says that, those who look to God in prayer are radiant and thier faces shall never be ashamed.
From Praise should flow prayer. When praising we are exalting and declaring who God is, His character, His nature, His acts. As we declare these and together with our brothers and sisters, it brings us to a place of prayer. It takes us to a confidence in Christ.
The manner in which David comes before God in prayer in humbly and lowly before God. Psalm 34:6 “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him and saved him out of all his troubles.” Note here it says “This poor man cried, and the Lord heard him.”
There is a manner in which we must come before God in prayer. It is to be in humbleness. We see a similar example of this in Jesus Christ. Hebrews 5:7 “In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.”
Jesus came before the Father with loud cries and tears and he was heard because of His reverence.
So the key here is “seeking/sought”. David sought the Lord and he was heard. Jesus sought the Father and He was heard. Likewise brothers and sisters in Christ, SEEK the Lord to be heard. Spend time in prayer.
What we see from this is those who do not seek the Lord in prayer may not receive His response. This could be because they rely solely on their own abilities and pride, thinking they don't need God's help. What you are saying in other words is “I can do this on my own.”
They don't approach God humbly to seek His presence or His deliverance. So, the key lesson here is that humility and a sincere seeking of God's presence are vital in our relationship with Him.
In the context of our spiritual journey, when we enter into a place of prayer, it should primarily be to seek God and His presence above anything else. Often, we approach God with a list of specific requests, almost like a shopping list of prayers.
Sometimes we come demanding from God the needs of our lives.
Someimes we go to Christ with a proud and demanding demeanor. Instead we are to enter His presence with humbleness and even before we seek our shopping list prayers, we ought to first seek Him. To put our trust in Him.
Psalm 34:7–8 “The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and delivers them. Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good! Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”
Why “taste”? Why didn’t David exhort us to “think” or “remember” or some other purely cognitive exercise? Because God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him (John Piper)!
The imagery of tasting makes the point that experiencing God is pleasant and enriching to the soul. There’s a spiritual sweetness to the knowledge of God! It’s as we savor the flavor of his glory and splendor that he is most honored and exalted in us.
It is like looking at an amazing steak. You can imagine all you want about the goodness of it, but it is not until you taste it, you can truly enjoy it. I often watch the food network, especially the food in the US. Very unhealthy but looks amazing. I hear them talk about how tasty the food it. There is one show called “the best thing I ever ate.” It is about the best and tastiest food they have ever eaten. The show makes your mouth water and you get an idea of how good the food is, but it won’t be fully realised until you taste it. Likewise, we can be told about the goodness of God, but it is not until you experience Him for yourself that you will know He is truly amazing and beyond all that this world can offer. Amen!
This isn’t to say that those who “taste and see that the Lord is good” will be insulated from pain and persecution. Far from it.
Their determination to seek ultimate satisfaction in God above all else may in fact expose them to even greater oppression and disgrace. But it matters little, for abiding in his presence awakens spiritual joys that are incomparably full and spiritual pleasures that never lose their capacity to enthrall and satisfy (cf. Ps. 16:11).
Taste the bread of life, the one who said come unto me and you will never thirst. He tasted the bitterness of taking our sin and God’s wrath so that we could could have salvation in Him.
John 6:53 “So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you.”
There are two ways to see it. The problem in our human thinking is that we often see one side of the picture. That is God answering our prayer of deliverance in the way we view it. It is a positive outcome according to our standards and thoughts.
Likewise, Jesus prayed in the garden of Gethsemene, saying in Luke 22:42 “saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.””
Taste and see that the Lord is good.
Application
In our spiritual journey, it is vital for us, like those who came before us, to seek Christ earnestly. We can do this by dedicating time to prayer, coming humbly before the Lord, and relying on His wisdom instead of our own. When we reach a place of complete reliance on God, that's when we truly experience His goodness.
Let's remember that God's plans and purposes for us go far beyond our own understanding. His protection and provision are extended to all who call upon His name. The comforting truth is that He never turns away anyone who approaches Him in sincerity and faith.
So, as we seek Christ with open hearts, trusting in His guidance, may we find solace in His unending grace. Amen!

Pursue (Psalm 34:9-22)

We just finished a section of praise and blessing God. Seeking Him in prayer and coming humbly before the Lord in prayer and that He is a God who answers prayers, and most of all to taste and see that the Lord is good Amen!
Now the very next verse begins by David stating that he will teach us the “fear of the Lord.Psalm 34:9 “Oh, fear the Lord, you his saints, for those who fear him have no lack!”
This seems to be a change of tone. First we were asked to savour God’s goodness and now we are asked to fear Him. What are we being taught here. What the psalmist means by “fearing the Lord” is:
To both enjoy God and tremble at His greatness
We are to both rejoice Him and reverence Him
We must both adore Him and at the same time fall on our knees in awe of His power, authority, and holiness
The people of this world do not “fear God”, but they certainly do fear other things:
Ungodly people are afraid of poverty
fearful of loosing jobs, and health, etc.
they are fearful of the things of this world, rather that in the one who created it all.
But those who trust in God are in fear of Him, because He is good and just, and He is sovereign and He is Almighty God.
When you fear him rightly, then you are in reverent awe of Him, which then leads you to do those things that honor God, and so David goes on to show how this looks, in Psalm 34:11 “Come, O children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the Lord.” In the next few verses David will now teach how to fear the Lord. :
Psalm 34:13 “Keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking deceit.”
Psalm 34:14 “Turn away from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.”
Psalm 34:16 “The face of the Lord is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.”
Psalm 34:21 “Affliction will slay the wicked, and those who hate the righteous will be condemned.”
When you pursue God in such a manner, then the result is:
Psalm 34:15 “The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous and his ears toward their cry.”
Psalm 34:17 “When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.”
Psalm 34:19 “Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.”
Psalm 34:20 “He keeps all his bones; not one of them is broken.”
Psalm 34:22 “The Lord redeems the life of his servants; none of those who take refuge in him will be condemned.”
David is teaching those who love the Lord to pursue righteousness, and to detest evil. Those who pursue God, will also pursue righteousness and right living.
We also need to note here that in the midst of all the promises of deliverance there is also truth about afflictions. Psalm 34:19 says that the afflictions of the righteous are many. The difference is that for the wicked, affliction will slay then and they will be condemned WHEREAS the affliction fo the righteous will be many BUT God will deliver him out of all of them, AMEN!!!
Acts 14:22 “strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying that through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.”
Righteousness is Out of Style
Sometimes people are careless and speak disparagingly of all human righteousness, as if there were no such thing that pleased God. They often cite Isaiah 64:6 which says our righteousness is as filthy rags. It is true–gloriously true–that none of God’s people, before or after the cross, would be accepted by an immaculately holy God if the perfect righteousness of Christ were not imputed to us (Romans 5:19; 1 Corinthians 1:30; 2 Corinthians 5:21).
But that does not mean that God does not produce in those “justified” people (before and after the cross) an experiential righteousness that is not “filthy rags.” In fact, he does; and this righteousness is precious to God and is required, not as the ground of our justification (which is the righteousness of Christ only), but as an evidence of our being truly justified children of God.
John Piper, Future Grace: The Purifying Power of the Promises of God, Multnomah.
The ultimate righteous person was Jesus Christ, who lived the most perfect life.
Many were His afflictions as He walked this earth
He cried unto God and prayed, and the Father strengthened Him.
Luke 22:42–44 “saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
Psalm 34:20 says none of His bones would be broken and it was a prophetic reference to Christ. He went to the cross and none of His bones were broken
He pursued righteousness because He Himself was the righteousness of God
We His disciples are to follow His same example, not in our own abilities and strength, but in His.
It is to continue pursuing God, and persvering in righteousness, and God will always be with you.
The final promise in Psalm 34:22 is that the Lord redeems the life of his servant and none of those who take refuge in Him will be condemned.
Amen, what a great promise. You see, this life is temporary and we may loose it. What Christ promises is to give us is a life beyond this world and that is eternal life.
In addition those who pursue righteousness and seek thier refuge in Christ will never be condemned. Through the sacrifice of Christ those in Him will no longer be condemned but receive salvation and eternal life. This is the greatest gift.
When we do struggle through this life, Christ has sent us another helper, His Holy Spirit to help us.
He helps us in our prayer, when we do not know what to pray for, reminds us of scripture. In fact, even when we do not know what to pray for at time, His Holy Spirit will intervene on our behalf, and we have Christ as our mediator before the Father.

Conclusion

As we conclude our reflection on Psalm 34, we see a remarkable Psalm born from a place of pain and despair, transformed into a song of hope and deliverance in our Father God. The response to such a profound deliverance is clear: we are called to respond with praise, prayer, and an unwavering pursuit of the One who has done this for us.
In the same way, let us consider our own lives. We were once ensnared in the darkness of sin, enslaved by its grip, and spiritually lifeless. Our future seemed bleak, and God's judgment hung over us. We were, in many ways, as lost as David acted when he was surrounded be enemies. Yet, even when we lacked the ability to cry out for a Savior, Jesus Christ descended to Earth, living as a man, enduring suffering at the hands of His own creation. He became the Lamb who bore the weight of our sins, delivering us from darkness and ushering us into the radiant light of His kingdom.
Today, we stand justified, undergoing sanctification, and one day, we will be glorified, just like Him. What a glorious and marvelous God we worship! Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good.
No matter your current situation or circumstance, I encourage you to join in continuous praise to God, maintain an open dialogue with Him through prayer, and tirelessly pursue Him with your entire being. In this pursuit, you will discover your ultimate satisfaction in Christ alone, and your heart's desire will align with His, leading you on a path of righteousness. Amen!
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