The God I Trust

Introduction

Sometimes the Psalms are not easily studied or preached systematically or linearly.

Psalm 56 seems to be a song set to the tune of “The Dove on Far-off Terebinths”

To the choirmaster: according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths. A Miktam of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

The story behind the song (of Psalm 56)

Head back to 1 Samuel 21:10

1 Samuel 16

David is anointed King (without Saul knowing)

1 Samuel 17

David kills Goliath

David comes into Saul’s court

1 Samuel 18

Saul becomes jealous of David as David becomes mighty fighting for Saul.

1 Samuel 19

Saul tries to kill David

1 Samuel 20 - David says goodbye to his best friend, Jonathan as he goes on the run from Saul.

1 Samuel 21

David Platt Sermon Archive From Fear to Faith (Psalm 56)

David comes to a town called Nob, where Ahimelech, the head priest, gives David some food and a weapon, and from Nob, David went to Gath, which is where we pick up in verse 10

1 Samuel 21:10–15 ESV

10 And David rose and fled that day from Saul and went to Achish the king of Gath. 11 And the servants of Achish said to him, “Is not this David the king of the land? Did they not sing to one another of him in dances, ‘Saul has struck down his thousands, and David his ten thousands’?” 12 And David took these words to heart and was much afraid of Achish the king of Gath. 13 So he changed his behavior before them and pretended to be insane in their hands and made marks on the doors of the gate and let his spittle run down his beard. 14 Then Achish said to his servants, “Behold, you see the man is mad. Why then have you brought him to me? 15 Do I lack madmen, that you have brought this fellow to behave as a madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?”

Psalm 56 (ESV)

To the choirmaster: according to The Dove on Far-off Terebinths. A Miktam of David, when the Philistines seized him in Gath.

1 Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me;

all day long an attacker oppresses me;

2 my enemies trample on me all day long,

for many attack me proudly.

3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.

4 In God, whose word I praise,

in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

What can flesh do to me?

5 All day long they injure my cause;

all their thoughts are against me for evil.

6 They stir up strife, they lurk;

they watch my steps,

as they have waited for my life.

7 For their crime will they escape?

In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!

8 You have kept count of my tossings;

put my tears in your bottle.

Are they not in your book?

9 Then my enemies will turn back

in the day when I call.

This I know, that God is for me.

10 In God, whose word I praise,

in the Lord, whose word I praise,

11 in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

What can man do to me?

12 I must perform my vows to you, O God;

I will render thank offerings to you.

13 For you have delivered my soul from death,

yes, my feet from falling,

that I may walk before God

in the light of life.

On days when I am overwhelmed by fear, I choose to trust God because my experience has shown God is for me.

Couple of patterns:

1a - Call for grace from God

7b - Call for justice by God

12a - Call for worship to God

1-2 - Trouble

3-4 - Trust

5-6 - Trouble

7-8 - Prayer

9-11 - Trust

12-13 - Worship

3 When I am afraid,. . .

When = in the day = “What time I am afraid”

However you translate it, it is clear that it is saying that fear is a probability not simply a possibility.

The fear is well founded.

Feel the fear

I doubt you have ever been on the run from a king trying to kill you. . .

Fear comes when we feel attacked

Psalm 56:1–2 (ESV) 1 Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; all day long an attacker oppresses me; 2 my enemies trample on me all day long, for many attack me proudly.

The attacker attacks and they trample him all day long.

Attacker is often used militarily - David has these people who are constantly fighting against him

“Trample” = pant after him. They are relentless.

Saul has pursued David throughout Israel. He has chased after him and worked with others to find him and help capture him. Saul has tried to spear David.

Do you ever feel attacked? Perhaps its physical realm or spiritual realm but you feel they are out to get you?

Fear comes when we feel overwhelmed

v 1, 2, 5 - All day long

the problems seem to keep coming without a chance to stop and breathe.

Here comes Saul. Now the Philistines. He gets to the temple - no food. About to leave the temple - no weapons.

How about you? Maybe it’s been big things or a whole lot of smaller issues but you are feeling overwhelmed and it is causing fear to grow.

Fear comes when we are treated unfairly

Psalm 56:5–6 (ESV) 5 All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil. 6 They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life.

injure my cause = “twist my words”

Ever have anyone lie about you? Twist your words so that YOU look like the bad guy? Slander or malign you?

David humbly honored Saul and Saul was looking to kill him.

We know from 1 Samuel that David was alone.

All this led to David being afraid.

Afraid of those coming after him

Afraid that he will never see relief

Afraid that his reputation is ruined

3 When I am afraid,. . .

I will pretend I’m ok

try to fix it myself

sit and sulk

3 When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.

As sure David is that fearful things will come, so sure is he that he will place his trust in God.

“Faith is seen here as a deliberate act, in defiance of one’s emotional state. The first line might too easily have run, ‘When I am at peace. . . ‘“

— Derek Kidner

Isn’t it when we are doing well that we are willing to trust, and when we feel attacked or overwhelmed that we tend to question whether we can trust God? Have you ever found that to be the case?

David doesn’t say he might trust God. David doesn’t say he will trust God once things are better.

On days when I am overwhelmed by fear, I choose to trust God because my experience has shown that God is for me.

David is saying that the object of his security is not his circumstances.

The reason for his safety is not found in his surroundings.

His source of peace is not dependent on people.

Rather, it is in GOD.

And David needs to put it there.

It is easier to place your trust in someone you know than someone you don’t know.

The more you know the person and know that the person cares about you, the easier it is to trust them.

ILLUST - if a random person told me to trust them to ??? I would ask a lot of questions first. If my wife told me to trust her and to ???? I would do it, no questions asked. Why? I have complete trust in her - I know her and i know she cares about me.

Because of what David knows about God he can choose to trust him. We can choose to trust God for the same reasons.

Choose to trust

Choose to trust God first.

(and second, and last)

Couple of patterns:

1a - Call for grace from God

7b - Call for justice by God

12a - Call for worship to God

David reaches out to God FIRST.

The psalm really starts out as a prayer.

How often is prayer your first resort? or is it more often your last resort?

I’m sure for many of you there was something that resonated with David’s feelings of fear. You said, “That sounds like me”

Now, have you prayed about it? You can identify with David’s feelings but can you also identify with David’s actions?

He can place his trust in God because he calls out to God in prayer. It begins here.

But he does this because he understands who God is.

Choose to trust God because He is GOD.

4) in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

What can flesh do to me?

11 in God I trust; I shall not be afraid.

What can man do to me?

At first thought we might say, LOTS!

I can think of alot of things people can do to me that would cause me to fear. David had Saul looking to kill him.

He had people falsely accusing him.

People can ruin your reputation

People can emotionally hurt you.

You could be abused, mistreated, lied about.

But the real measurement as to what man can do to you is to be compared to what all the omnipotent God can do FOR you!

Matthew 10:28 ESV

28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.

Before you dismiss this with, “But you don’t understand all that I’m going through,” remember this is Jesus who said this!

Choose to trust God because He will judge all sin.

7 For their crime will they escape?

In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!

The physical oppression. The spiritual attacks. Those who seem to have gotten away with it, will all be judged.

David is opening up form just his attackers to all those who deserve God’s judgment.

Have you ever found yourself asking, “How is God allowing them to get away with that?” He isn’t.

Choose to trust God because He cares.

8 You have kept count of my tossings;

put my tears in your bottle.

Are they not in your book?

What are tear bottles? Also known as tear vials or tear catchers, the technical term is “lachrymatory bottles”. Used for thousands of years, they have been found in tombs throughout the Near East and Mediterranean; small bottles to catch a grieving persons tears as a memorial and sign of devotion.

tossings = wanderings - God tracks them in his book

God not only cares about people GENERALLY, he also cares about you PERSONALLY!

My tears in a bottle. God cares about my personal pain / fears.

God don’t you care? Mark 4:35-41

Romans 8:26 ESV

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words.

Only other time word for groanings is used is in Acts to describe the Israelites in slavery in Egypt.

Choose to trust God because He is for you.

This I know, that God is for me.

Know = yada

No matter how you feel, God wants your best.

Romans 8:26–39 ESV

26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. 35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? 36 As it is written, “For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

How do we know this?

10 In God, whose word I praise,

in the Lord, whose word I praise,

(also in verse 4)

This all leads to worship

12 I must perform my vows to you, O God;

I will render thank offerings to you.

13 For you have delivered my soul from death,

yes, my feet from falling,

that I may walk before God

in the light of life.

You’ve heard of “whistle while you work?”

This is worship while you wait.

I must - obligation

I will - future plan even with the current problem

you have - past tense - good as done.

David did not say if you do this I will worship you. He said when you do this, I will worship you. 

If all we have is heaven to gain, then we have all there is to gain. 

God keeps your tears in a bottle until he can wipe every tear from your eye.

Today,

do you feel attacked

are you overwhelmed

have you been treated unfairly

On days when I am overwhelmed by fear, I choose to trust God because my experience has shown God is for me.

Will you choose to trust God today?