God's Heart for the Weak
Notes
Transcript
Intro
Today is Refugee Sunday and the 2nd week in our Summer Playlist sermon series in the Psalms. So, in a moment we are going to look at Psalm 142 together and discover the heart of God for the weak and vulnerable in our world.
But first, some sobering statistics. We’ve already seen a video this morning to give us more awareness of this issue but here are a few highlights...
82.4 million men, women and children are forcibly displaced in the world
30,000 people are newly uprooted every day
1 in every 95 people in the world are forcibly displaced
About half are children
About half are women and girls
Today, refugees are perhaps the most vulnerable people in the world and they are people for whom God cares for greatly.
Many in the Bible were refugees including the entire nation of Israel, the early church, and Jesus himself!
Hear the heart of God for the stranger and alien from Leviticus 19
“When a stranger sojourns with you in your land, you shall not do him wrong. You shall treat the stranger who sojourns with you as the native among you, and you shall love him as yourself, for you were strangers in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.
Because God cares for them, so should we. May our hearts be united with the heart of God for the weak and vulnerable.
Even more so, we are told in the gospels that when we serve the weak and vulnerable we are actually serving Jesus!
Jesus says this to his followers in Matthew 25
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’
As I was preparing for this sermon by researching opportunities in our area to serve refugees, I learned that our area has a history of serving refugees. Back in the 1990’s over 80 Bosnian families fleeing Yugoslavia were aided in setting in the Poughkeepsie area.
Sadly, I learned that in 2016 a Vassar College professor began to organize an effort to serve refugees in partnership with Church World Services.
But this was met with great opposition from area residents and ultimately the movement was shut down in December of 2017 because the city decided to cease accepting refugees.
My hope is that because of the Love of Christ and the transforming power of the Gospel, our church would be a voice in support of the weak and vulnerable in our community.
Let’s look now at our Psalm for today’s sermon, where we will hear the heart of a David when he was a refugee fleeing King Saul who sought his life in jealous rage.
These words from David came at a time when he was hiding in a cave, alone and powerless.
And as we see the heart of David poured out to God may we see this morning God’s heart for the weak and vulnerable.
Please stand with me if you are able as we read Psalm 142 together this morning...
With my voice I cry out to the Lord; with my voice I plead for mercy to the Lord. I pour out my complaint before him; I tell my trouble before him. When my spirit faints within me, you know my way! In the path where I walk they have hidden a trap for me. 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. I cry to you, O Lord; I say, “You are my refuge, my portion in the land of the living.” Attend to my cry, for I am brought very low! Deliver me from my persecutors, for they are too strong for me! 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.
PRAY
Let’s discover the heart of God for the refugee and more broadly for the weak and vulnerable. We’re going to do this by breaking down David’s prayer into 4 points — they all begin with “P” I have to give credit here to Derek Kidner for this outline from his commentary on the Psalms.
The P’s are...
My Plea
My Plight
My Portion
My Prospect
My Plea (vv. 1-2)
My Plea (vv. 1-2)
Look at verses 1-2 with me. David’s emotions are intense. This is not silent prayer of the heart it is vocal and audible!
With my voice I cry out
With my voice I plead, David says.
I’d venture to guess that not many of our personal prayer can be described like this. Our prayers may even seem routine at times.
So, what does it take to lift our prayers to this level of intensity? I think that trouble is certainly is some thing that can elevate our pleading.
Recently, the Grove’s experienced a crisis in their family and it was incredible to see how so many came together on these Zoom prayer meetings with such passionate pleading for the Lord’s mercy. Tears were shed as so many cried out to the Lord to intervene!
In easy times it seems that our prayers are easy too. But they take on a whole new urgency when severe trials come our way!
David’s Plea is an appeal to the character and heart of God who is merciful!
What is the mercy of God?
It’s an aspect of God’s goodness. Mercy is God’s goodness toward those who are in misery and distress.
When God declared His name to Moses in Exodus 34 he proclaimed, “The LORD, the LORD, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.”
In 2 Samuel 24, David entrusts himself to the Lord’s discipline for his ungodly census that he took. He thrusts himself upon God who is merciful when he says, I am in great distress. Let us fall into the hand of the LORD, for his mercy is great!
In Matthew 9 two blind men who want so badly for Jesus to notice them cry out, “Have mercy on us, Son of David.”
In Hebrews 4 we are invited ourselves to draw near to the throne of grace that we may receive MERCY and find grace to help in time of need.
And it’s not just that God is merciful but we are to imitate God’s mercy in showing kindness to people in need. Jesus says, Blessed are the merciful, for they shall receive mercy (Matt. 5:7)
My Plight (vv. 3-4)
My Plight (vv. 3-4)
Let’s move on to our next point where David lays out his plight before the LORD.
In verse 2 he pours out his complaint — NOT in a petulant way but in a way that is simply pouring out his troubled thoughts.
And is trouble is two fold...
He is in physical danger, his enemies have laid a trap for him
And he is alone — there is no one on his right.
To sit at a someone’s right was a reserved position of honor for close friends and soldiers with high military authority. David says, there is no one at his right.
There is no refuge for him, no one cares for his soul! He feels completely abandoned.
Yet there is hope even here. At his lowest and most depressed state David acknowledges that God KNOWS his way!
When all hope seems lost and it may feel as though God has fallen asleep — David affirms that God has complete knowledge of his circumstances and that God alone knows the way out!
And it is here in verse three where something striking happens...
To this point in David’s prayer he has only written in the first person...
I cry out...
I plead...
I pour out...
But in verse 3 David speaks to God Himself. At his lowest point, he addresses God personally and declares — YOU KNOW MY WAY!
So too with us, when we are at our lowest and feel as though on one notices our circumstances — God KNOWS our troubles and He KNOWS the way out!
My Portion (v. 5)
My Portion (v. 5)
Point #3 — My Portion
While David had no friends or allies to his right, God was at his right. David may have remembered his own words from Psalm 16...
I have set the Lord always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.
David may have felt MAN-Forsaken but he was not GOD-Forsaken!
While David was alone in a cave by faith he could see that God was 4 important things to him and for him and for us also. These 4 things can all be summarized by this idea of God being his PORTION...
OUR Refuge
First, God was a refuge for David from his enemies. He is also the refuge for our weary souls when we are alone and vulnerable.
Charles Wesley wrote: Other refuge have I none, hangs my helpless soul on thee.
In Christ, the LORD is ever at our right-hand meaning that we are not alone. And we are more than just not alone...
The LORD who KNOWS our way and our way out and who sovereignly holds all things in his hands...
It is He is who is with us in any and every cave of life we might find ourselves in!
He is our refuge!
OUR Portion
The LORD is our portion meaning that He is all that I want. He is our treasure.
In Genesis, when Abram was returning from battle against the kings of the east who captured Sodom and carried away his nephew Lot —
Abraham was met by Melchizedek, priest of the most high God and gave him a tenth of the spoils of battle.
Then Abraham gave back all the remaining spoils to the king of Sodom.
After this great victory, Abraham had a net gain of zero! He was also in danger of a possible retaliatory attack from the powerful kings he just defeated.
This is when God tells him in a vision in Genesis 15…I am your shield, your very great reward.
This is the economy of the kingdom of God that
EVERYTHING — Jesus = NOTHING
Jesus + Nothing = EVERYTHING
In Christ, Jesus is the great treasure of our souls and the hope of heaven.
Sometimes people will talk longingly about heaven because of the streets of gold or the mansions they will have, or even being with the loved ones the long to be reunited with.
The reality though is that you could have all those things and yet if Jesus were not there, that would not be heaven at all.
What makes heaven heaven is the fact that Jesus is there! And we get to be with Jesus!
Because He is the great goal and hope of our faith and the treasure of our souls!
The LORD is our refuge and portion. He is also our savior...
OUR Savior
David knows that his persecutors are too strong from him. He lacks the resources to save himself. So he must entrust himself completely to the LORD who alone has the resources to save him.
OUR Liberator
David needed to be rescued but he also longed to be free from the prison of the cave he was pinned down in. It is God who is his great liberator.
God is our REFUGE, our PORTION, our SAVIOR, and our LIBERATOR!
My Prospect (v. 6-7)
My Prospect (v. 6-7)
Lastly, David the LORD is David’s prospect — his good future.
He declares with such confidence that God WILL (future tense) deal bountifully with him!
While he is alone, captive, and in danger NOW, he anticipates being surrounded by the righteous! And giving thanks to the name of the LORD in worship!
How can he be this confident in his future?
It is because he knows that God has promised to make him the king of Israel.
It is David’s rock solid confidence in this promise of God that assures him that God WILL rescue him!
So, too today while we don’t have the particular promise of kingship that God gave David we have promises too.
We have been promised, that in Christ, God is working all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purposes!
God is working behind the scenes in ALL of our circumstances for our good!
It's Paul who proclaimed so powerfully to the Corinthian church that All the promises of God find their YES in Jesus!
Conclusion
This is God’s heart for the weak and vulnerable.
He is MERCIFUL — showing goodness to the distressed.
He KNOWS our way when our way does not make sense.
He is our REFUGE
Our PORTION
Our SALVATION
Our LIBERATOR
Christ is good news for the refugee — They are so open to hearing about the hope of Jesus.
Our missionaries Matt & Nicole Paschall will be with us on Tuesday, July 13th. Don’t miss this!
They minister to refugees in Europe. I’ve heard such inspiring stories from Matt!
He told me that he knows of Muslims seeking refuge in Europe that have literally knocked on the doors of churches and asked them to tell them about Jesus!
Church, Jesus has met our greatest needs, so let us love the least of these among us because we have first been loved so profoundly by Jesus!
PRAY
BENEDICTION
We’ve been talking a lot about refugees today — the weak and the vulnerable. The forcibly displaced.
You might wonder what does this have to do with me…
I don’t feel weak or vulnerable…
I haven’t been forcibly displaced from my home.
Well spiritually speaking, the condition of the entire human race in sin and apart from Christ, is that everyone is a refugee.
We are forced out of heaven our true home because of our rejection of God.
We are in very real danger from the just wrath of God against our sin.
We are prisoners of our sin.
We lack the resources to save ourselves.
In this state, our only refuge from the just wrath of God is IN GOD!
It is by faith alone in Jesus Christ!
It is his resources alone that are able to save us!
His resources are his life, death, and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins.
And it is Jesus who is our great liberator from our bondage to sin!
Outside of Christ we are spiritually destitute, poor, and naked! But in Christ by faith we have EVERYTHING because we have Jesus. He is our portion!
Call out to him today — the LORD is near, and his promise is that all who call upon the LORD WILL be saved!
May the Grace of the LORD Jesus,
The Love of the Father,
And the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all,
AMEN