God of the Lonely _ Ps 142

Introduction

Spelunking trip in high school — nope. Who would ever choose to crawl through caves?

Caves are dark, lonely, fearful?

The heading for Ps 142 tells us that David wrote this Psalm while he was in a physical cave. What we will hear as we walk through the Psalm is that David finds himself in an emotional cave as well.

As lonely as physical caves can be, emotional caves can be even worse.

Cave of depression and loneliness

Can be dark, lonely, fearful

Caves are places of hiding.

Sometimes hiding from what we’ve done (sin)

Sometimes hiding from what is being done to us (persecution)

The Christian’s chief occupational hazards are depression and discouragement.

John Robert Walmsley Stott (English Preacher)

Why? Because depression makes the Christian either ineffective or unfulfilled.

Ineffective

If we are depressed, we are not showing or sharing the joy of the Lord.

If we are depressed, we are not experiencing the joy of the Lord.

Psalms 73–150: An Introduction and Commentary Psalm 142. Hemmed In

In the present psalm the strain of being hated and hunted is almost too much, and faith is at full stretch. But this faith is undefeated, and in the final words it is at last joined by hope.

The truth of God and His promises are a light to lead out of the cave of despair.

Psalm 142 (ESV) A Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer.

1 With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord. 2 I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him. 3 When my spirit faints within me, you know my way! In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me. 4 Look to the right and see: there is none who takes notice of me; no refuge remains to me; no one cares for my soul. 5 I cry to you, O Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” 6 Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low! Deliver me from my persecutors, for they are too strong for me! 7 Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to your name! The righteous will surround me, for you will deal bountifully with me.

We are told of a few times David found himself in physical caves.

Cave of Adullum (1 Sam 22)

David is on the run from Saul, flees to Gath which is in the land of the Philistines. They see David as a threat, David acts as a madman, then flees from Gath when he fears they are after him.

We explored this in Psalm 34

Cave at En Gedi

David flees from Saul - hides in cave

Saul chases David - comes into cave to “relieve himself.” David spares Saul’s life.

There are some things we learn in the cave that we don’t tend to learn as easily while in comfort

God hears your prayers. (v1-2)

A Maskil of David, when he was in the cave. A Prayer.

It is interesting that we are told it is a prayer. This is what David did when he was in a cave. What do you do when you are in a cave? What do you do when you are depressed or lonely?

There is really two parts to this point: 1. God hears 2. your prayers.

We tend to question if God will ever hear us but to hear us first requires our prayers.

1 With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord.

It’s not as though God did not know what was happening (wait for point two), but in God’s design, he has ordained that our prayers be a part of his plan to provide for us.

(more for us than for him)

“With my voice (x2)” - David prays when in trouble - He uses his voice.

To cry out to the Lord

To plead for mercy

David is honest with the Lord

. 2 I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him.

Pours out ‘complaint’

This word is translated most often as ‘complaint’ in Job - who had a reason to complain!

This word is connected to the word for meditate. Telling God that which goes over and over in your mind.

ILLUST - Grinch - echo in the cave - “You’re an idiot!”

What are the echoes you hear in the cave?

“you’re no good” “You’re a failure” “No one likes you” “You deserve what’s happening to you” . . .

Tells of his ‘trouble’ - tsara not to be confused with sara what a dangerous tongue twister for Abraham!

God wants us to come and ask him - why? Because he does not know? NO.

“But I shouldn’t need to ask God - He should just know, right?”

What do we call a child (or person) who doesn’t feel they need to ask - they feel they should simply get what is needed? ENTITLED.

*Have you ever been entitled in expecting things from God? I know I have?

*What are some things that you believe God ‘owes’ you? What are some things that you believe God should simply do for you?

James 1:17 ESV

17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.

Luke 9:11–13 ESV

11 When the crowds learned it, they followed him, and he welcomed them and spoke to them of the kingdom of God and cured those who had need of healing. 12 Now the day began to wear away, and the twelve came and said to him, “Send the crowd away to go into the surrounding villages and countryside to find lodging and get provisions, for we are here in a desolate place.” 13 But he said to them, “You give them something to eat.” They said, “We have no more than five loaves and two fish—unless we are to go and buy food for all these people.”

The child still asks the father for a fish. Our Father is quick to respond and care for us in the way that HE knows is best.

The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, Vol. XXXVIII David’s Prayer in the Cave (No. 2,282)

God will hear prayer on the land, and on the sea, and even under the sea. . . .Our God is not the God of the hills only; but of the valleys also; he is God of both sea and land. He heard Jonah when the disobedient prophet was at the bottoms of the mountains, and the earth with her bars seemed to be about him for ever. Wherever you work, you can pray. Wherever you lie sick, you can pray.

Take a look at verse 3. Notice the shift from the third person (him) to second person:

3 When my spirit faints within me, you know my way!

David will begin to describe more of what is going on but notice that he already understands that God knows!

We can be honest and confident when we pray because:

God knows your situation. (v3-4)

David shifts from praying about God to directly addressing God.

God is personal in our problems because he knows our circumstances

3 When my spirit faints within me, you know my way!

“When. . . you know my way!”

God knows even when others don’t.

Caves are lonely places. Does anyone know where David is? Does anyone know what is really going on?

Your face may be smiling while your spirit is fainting. Someone today has asked how you are doing and you’ve said, “fine” when, in fact, you are far from fine.

David is feeling “faint.” What must have happened for David, the warrior, to feel faint?

1. Unfairly treated, 2. unseen, 3. no help in sight, 3. alone, 4. depressed (v6), 5. trapped (v7)

“They have hidden a trap”

David is likely in the Cave of Adullam on the run from King Achish of Gath as he was already on the run from King Saul

Sometimes external problems lead to internal echoes:

David lists the lies we tend to hear and believe:

The cave echoes the lies:

“None who takes notice of me”

David was feeling unseen.

He was struggling but no one seems to know.

It’s awfully lonely in the cave

“no refuge remains for me.”

I have no help in sight.

I don’t know what to do.

“no one cares for my soul”

1 Peter 5:7 ESV

7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

loneliness

David was a faithful man. You can have faith and still feel faint.

Because:

God will deliver you to praise. (5-7)

David heard the lie “no refuge remains for me” echoing in the cave of despair.

He “truthed” himself with the truth “You are my refuge”

Psalm 46:1 “1 God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.”

He is our “refuge and strength” (46:1), so we have all the protection we need. The cave may have been his temporary home, but David knew that the Lord was his Rock and his fortress (90:1; 91:1–2).1 Wiersbe, Warren W. 2004. Be Exultant. 1st ed. “Be” Commentary Series. Colorado Springs, CO: Cook Communications Ministries.

This is not wishful thinking for heaven.

my portion in the land of the living.”

David knows God’s promises are for here and now.

John 10:10 ESV

10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.

joy is the inheritance of every Christian

Joy is the expectation of every spirit-filled believer

Joy is our hope

not the escape from circumstances but true JOY

And so JOYA IS THE CONFIDENCE OF EVERY CHRISTIAN STILL IN THE CAVE.

Though David is “very low,”

David expects God to deliver him from the external circumstances which are too strong for him.

He expects to find freedom from the “prison” that is the cave.

He expects to no longer be lonely as the “righteous surround” him

Because,

God will deal bountifully with me.

Again, the purpose of deliverance is not for personal comfort, but for God’s glory.

Psalm 142:7 (ESV) 7 Bring me out of prison, that I may give thanks to your name! The righteous will surround me, for you will deal bountifully with me.

ILLUST - my story. I’m here to give thanks to God’s name.

Conclusion

ILLUST - like a headlamp, these truths can light the way to keep moving forward until you are out of the cave.

The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit Sermons, Vol. XXXVIII David’s Prayer in the Cave (No. 2,282)

The caves have heard the best prayers. Some birds sing best in cages. I have heard that some of God’s people shine brightest in the dark. There is many an heir of heaven who never prays so well as when he is driven by necessity to pray. Some shall sing aloud upon their beds of sickness, whose voices were hardly heard when they were well; and some shall sing God’s high praises in the fire, who did not praise him as they should before the trial came