God's Directions for Distressing Times
God's Directions for Distressing Times
Psalm 56:1-13
Sermon by Rick Crandall
Grayson Baptist Church - March 1, 2015
(Revised September 21, 2019)
BACKGROUND:
*In the KJV, the introduction to Psalm 56 says: "To the chief Musician upon Jonath-elem-rechokim, Michtam of David, when the Philistines took him in Gath."
*The first part of that Hebrew phrase is "Jonah," like the Prophet Jonah's name. I never knew this before, but Jonah's name means "dove". And the whole phrase "Jonath-elem-rechokim" means "The Silent Dove in Distant Lands."
*Church: That may be how David felt when he wrote this Psalm, because he was trapped in enemy territory. It was one of the most distressing times in David's life, so the introduction in the NKJ says: "To the Chief Musician. Set to "The Silent Dove in Distant Lands." a Michtam of David When the Philistines Captured Him in Gath."
*David was trapped by the Philistines when he wrote this Michtam Psalm. And this word "michtam" means something "engraved" or "permanent". You see, God wants us to know that the words David wrote 3,000 years ago can still help us today. And we need this help, because all of us have to go through times of maximum stress in life. (1)
*With this background in mind, let's all stand as we read Psalm 56.
MESSAGE:
*You may have seen the news about PFC Jerome Swaggart getting killed while serving in our Army over in Kenya. His funeral is in West Monroe this afternoon at 3. The young man's mother used to work in one of Mary's schools, and Thursday night Mary got this text from one of the teachers up there:
*"Hey Mary. Didn't know if you had heard about Shalia Swaggart's son. He was in the service and died in Kenya. His body is being returned tomorrow. . ."
*Mary asked if it was combat related, and her friend replied: "He was on his post at night, and went to investigate some smoke (at the end of an airstrip). They later found out cause of death was a snake bite. The 5 most dangerous snakes are located there. They said one snake was very aggressive and death would be almost immediate. His mother, Shalia got word on her birthday, February 19, at 9 p.m. Just now getting body back."
*Mary said, "This is so sad. Did he have a family?" And her friend said, "Just parents and 3 older sisters and their families. He wasn't married and didn't have kids. I think he was 26." (2)
*We have the Swaggart family on our prayer list. May the Lord help them through their terrible loss. There are also people in our church family going through difficult days, but God is faithful, and He will surely help us. Today's Scripture can help, because it gives us some good directions for distressing times.
1. FIRST: WE SHOULD ASK FOR GOD’S ASSISTANCE.
*That’s what David did in 1, when he cried out to the Lord and said: "Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; Fighting all day he oppresses me." Just like David, we should ask for God’s assistance.
[1] ONE REASON WHY IS BECAUSE WE NEED GOD'S HELP.
*David surely did. Again, this was one of the most distressing times in his life. David was so desperate that he pretended to be insane before the Philistine King Abimelech.
*Ironically, the trouble started after one of David's greatest victories: The day that he killed the giant Goliath. That incredible warrior was over ten feet tall, and he had been terrorizing the whole Jewish army.
*David's victory over Goliath made him a hero to his nation, but it also made David's king insanely jealous. King Saul was so jealous that he tried to kill David at least twice with a spear. Then Saul began to hunt for David all over the country. Finally, in desperation, David made a terrible decision: He would go where Saul would never reach him. He would go to Goliath's hometown and seek asylum from the Philistine king.
*Of course, as soon as that king's servants realized who David was, they grabbed him and took him to their king. David was out of the frying pan and into the fire, so 1 Samuel tells us that David:
13. . . changed his behavior before them, feigned madness in their hands, scratched on the doors of the gate, and let his saliva fall down on his beard.
14. Then Achish said to his servants, "Look, you see the man is insane. Why have you brought him to me?
15. Have I need of madmen, that you have brought this fellow to play the madman in my presence? Shall this fellow come into my house?''
1. David therefore departed from there and escaped to the cave of Adullam. . . (1 Samuel 21:13-22:1).
*David was trapped with the Philistines. What could he do? Well, one thing David did was pretend to be crazy before the people of Gath. But the most important things he did are in this Psalm, like in vs. 1, where David cried out to God for help: "Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; Fighting all day he oppresses me."
[2] JUST LIKE DAVID, WE SHOULD ASK FOR GOD’S ASSISTANCE, BECAUSE WE NEED HIS HELP, AND BECAUSE HE WILL SURELY HELP US!
*God will surely help His people! David knew this great truth, and we can see his faith as he spoke to the Lord in vs. 9. There David said: "When I cry out to You, Then my enemies will turn back; This I know, because God is for me."
*Don't miss what vs. 9 says to everyone who trusts in the Lord: God is not against us. HE IS FOR US. God surely helped David, and He will surely help us in every situation.
*Greg Anderson told the story of a man who was deserted by his wife. He was totally depressed. He had lost faith in himself, in other people, and in God. Then one rainy morning the man went to a neighborhood restaurant for breakfast. Several people were in the diner, but no one was speaking to anyone else.
*The miserable man leaned over the counter, stirring his coffee. A young mother with her little girl was in one of the booths. They had just been served, when the girl broke the silence by almost shouting, "Momma, why don't we say our prayers here?"
*The waitress turned and said, "Honey, we can pray here. Will you say the prayer for us?" Then that tough waitress looked at the rest of the people in the restaurant and said, "Bow your heads." -- And one by one, they did. Then the little girl then bowed her head and prayed, "God is great, God is good, and we thank him for our food. Amen."
*It was just a little prayer, but the whole atmosphere in that diner changed. The sad man with the coffee later said, "All of a sudden, my whole frame of mind started to improve. From that little girl's example, I started to thank God for all that I did have and stopped majoring on all that I didn't have. I started to be grateful." (3)
*God surely helped that man in a big way when a little girl prayed what seemed to be a little prayer. God found a way to help that hurting man, and He will surely help YOU.
2. WHAT CAN WE DO WHEN TIMES ARE TOUGH? ASK FOR GOD’S ASSISTANCE. AND TALK ABOUT OUR TRUST.
*One of the most helpful things we can do when we are going through hard times is talk about our trust in God. That's what David did starting in vs. 3. He was still praying to the Lord, and David said, "Whenever I am afraid, I will trust in You."
*Yes, there will be times when we are afraid, but we must have David's determination to never stop trusting in the Lord!
*Also notice that talking about our trust helps to build up our faith and our courage. So, in vs. 4, David said, "In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?" Then down in vs. 11, David said: "In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?"
*David wanted to remind himself (and us) that when the situation is unsure, God is still sure, and God’s Word is still sure. David had something to talk about! And if we have trusted in Jesus Christ, then we have something to talk about too, because we have been saved in a miraculous way!
*This past January, Daniel and Heather Felton went on a Disney Pacific cruise to Mexico. And that young couple from Louisville, KY did something I don't think I ever would have done: They took their 13-month-old baby along for the ride.
*Guess what: Between the different time zones and all the excitement, little Katherine couldn't get to sleep. They were up most of the night, and as their ship sailed near Mexico, Mom and dad thought: "We're on this big ship. Nobody's awake but us, and there's all this room on deck." So they went outside.
*Mom later told a TV reporter, "We were taking pictures of her, and then we both kind of heard something. We were the only people out on the deck. It was early enough that we didn't see anybody else, and we heard it a second time. I ran out toward the edge of the boat, and I looked down, and someone's going right by, yelling for help."
*Heather ran and found some crew members. She told them about the life-or-death situation. Seconds later a loudspeaker announced: 'Mr. MOB.'" (That's code for man overboard.) The ship turned around as soon as possible. And the Disney crew was able to rescue the man who had been in the ocean for 5 hours! That 22-year-old was a passenger who had fallen off another cruise liner! (4)
*Think of the infinite odds against that man out in the ocean being heard and seen and rescued. There is no doubt that God was watching over that man. And I hope he sees that. What a rescue! What a great story of salvation!
*But Church: We have a much greater story of salvation! Think about it: Because of our sin, we were far more hopeless than the man lost at sea. We were completely helpless and hopeless without Jesus Christ. For Romans 3:23 says "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." The first part of Romans 6:23 says "the wages of sin is death. . ." And Revelation 20 says:
14. . . Death and Hades were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.
15. And anyone not found written in the Book of Life was cast into the lake of fire.
*Christians: We were helpless and hopeless without Jesus. But here's the rest of our story: It begins in John 3:16 with the gracious love of God: "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."
*1 Timothy 1:15 tells us: "This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. . ." And Colossians 1 says this about Jesus:
19. . . It pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,
20. and by Him to reconcile all things to Himself, by Him, whether things on earth or things in heaven, having made peace through the blood of His cross.
21. And you, who once were alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now He has reconciled
22. in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy, and blameless, and irreproachable in His sight
23. if indeed you continue in the faith. . .
*Because of our sin, we were far more hopeless than the man lost at sea, because again in Romans 6:23, "The wages of sin is death. . ." Thank God this verse goes on to say, "But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." That's the greatest story of salvation ever! And it comes through trusting in the Lord.
3. SO WHEN TIMES ARE TOUGH, KEEP TALKING ABOUT YOUR TRUST IN GOD. ALSO BE EDUCATED ABOUT OUR ENEMIES.
*David certainly knew about his enemies. They were idol-worshipping Philistines who were trying to destroy the Children of Israel. And David talked about his enemies when he cried out to God in vs. 1-2:
1. . . Be merciful to me, O God, for man would swallow me up; Fighting all day he oppresses me.
2. My enemies would hound me all day, For there are many who fight against me, O Most High.
*In these verses we see the intentions of the enemy: They wanted to swallow David up, and they were relentless about it. David said they were trying to oppress him every day.
*Then, in vs. 5-6, we see the increase of David's enemy as they gathered together to destroy him:
5. All day they twist my words; All their thoughts are against me for evil.
6. They gather together, They hide, they mark my steps, When they lie in wait for my life.
*But God is in control! He will always get the victory! And in vs. 7, David calls for God to bring them down. "Shall they escape by iniquity? In anger cast down the peoples, O God!"
*David knew his enemies. And we need to know our enemies. Certainly that includes the Islamic-terrorists who want to destroy us, and the radical atheists who want to destroy our freedom.
*But our worst enemy is the devil. That’s why in Ephesians 6, the Apostle Paul said:
11. Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
12. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
*Our worst enemy is the devil. But also, in a way, we are our own worst enemy. I say that because of our sin. The terrorists can put people in the grave, but their sin can send them to hell.
*And in vs. 7, David asked God to cast down his enemies. But what do you do when the enemy is yourself? That’s why we needed a substitute: Someone to take our place, someone to take our sins.
*We all needed a Savior, and Jesus Christ was the only one who could ever fill those shoes. Jesus is the only Son of God and sinless Son of man who could die on the cross to take the punishment for our self-destructive ways. And that is exactly what the Lord did. But Jesus rose again from the dead! Now we can turn to the living Lord to save us. And when we do, we will get both peace with God and peace in our hearts.
4. BUT WE NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE EDUCATED ABOUT OUR ENEMIES. ALSO REMEMBER THAT GOD REMEMBERS US.
*That's why David prayed these words to God in vs. 8: "You number my wanderings; Put my tears into Your bottle; Are they not in Your book?"
*David is telling us that God remembers our sorrows with words in His book and with our tears in His bottle. In the old days, sometimes they really did save those tears in a bottle. And here’s the application: God hasn’t forgotten us. He knows every tear. He remembers every sigh. He remembers us, because He loves us.
*One preacher said the reason why God keeps our tears in a bottle is so He can wipe them away. And that's what God has promised to do. In Revelation 21, the Apostle John said:
1. . . I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
2. Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
3. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself will be with them and be their God.
4. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.''
5. WHEN TIMES ARE TOUGH, REMEMBER THAT GOD REMEMBERS YOU. AND POUR OUT YOUR PRAISE TO THE LORD.
*That’s what David did in vs. 4: "In God (I will praise His word), In God I have put my trust; I will not fear. What can flesh do to me?"
*And again in vs. 10-13:
10. In God (I will praise His word), In the Lord (I will praise His word),
11. In God I have put my trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?
12. Vows made to You are binding upon me, O God; I will render praises to You,
13. For You have delivered my soul from death. Have You not delivered my feet from falling, That I may walk before God In the light of the living?
*Here David was praising the Lord. He was praising the Lord for His Word. He was praising the Lord for His salvation. And Christians: That's what we should do!
CONCLUSION:
*What do you think that young man did when he got on the Disney ship after being out in the ocean for five hours? I would have kissed the deck, and hugged that young couple 'til it hurt!
*Church: That's the spirit of thanksgiving the Lord deserves from us, "for (He has) delivered (our souls) from death. . . that (we) may walk before God In the light of the living!"
*As we back to God in prayer put your trust in the Lord Jesus Christ. And let's pray for the Swaggart family, pray for the hurting people here, and pray for the hurting people all around us.
(1) THROUGH THE BIBLE WITH J. VERNON MCGEE by J. Vernon McGee - Thomas Nelson Publishers, Nashville - Copyright 1981 - PSALM 56 - THEME: David's fear and trust
(2) Sources:
-Bailey Jerome Swaggart - October 13, 1989 - February 19, 2015 - www.kilpatrickfunralhomes.com
(3) LIVING LIFE ON PURPOSE by Greg Anderson - Source: Sermons.com sermon "Giving Thanks Before Thanksgiving" by Brett Blair - Luke 17:11-19 - 10172004
(4) "13-Month-Old Baby Keeps Parents Awake on Cruise Ship, Causing Them to Venture on Deck -- Some Will Believe It Was Fate" - Jan. 16, 2015 - by Dave Urbanski