Living through the Injustice
A Passion for His Presence • Sermon • Submitted
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Transcript
When you can’t win
When you can’t win
Introduction:
If you’ve ever been falsely accused of something… no matter what the circumstances.... you know that being falsely accused of something can really hurt.... it hurts emotionally.... and it can (in some circumstances) hurt financially and physically.
Have you ever been wrongly accused of something?
Identity theft? (pretty common today)
Or maybe you’ve been:
Accused of sharing a secret.... when you haven’t told anyone
Accused of stealing something that went missing...
Accused of cheating… when you didn’t
When these things happen… many times you can’t really defend yourself.... which leaves you to live through what seems like injustice.
Let me share with you a real life situation… that is going on right now.... that is not 100% the same… but is a real life situation in which the message from today’s Psalm can be applied.... — Joel Kriby, a missionary in S.A. is currently being accused… and persecuted by COVID.... He did nothing wrong to deserve this suffering… — From one perspective you could view this as a huge injustice.... Joel and his family have been serving the Lord in South Africa for years.... they have been helping the orphans… widows.... hurting people.... with the gospel as well as with their physical and family needs..... and now he is in the hospital ICU, has been recently flown to Kenya because the medical infrastructure in his area of SA wasn’t good enough to keep him breathing… — where is the justice in that? Joel is not bitter… he is not angry.... he is quoting Scripture and encouraging others to look to Jesus....
He has not given up… he is fighting… but, in the end he knows that whatever judgement is given… will be the righteous justice of a good and faithful and juste God. <— That is real folks.... Joel knows without a doubt… that the judge of all the earth will do right! There is no question in his mind!
When we are accused.... or are suffering the circumstances of injustice… will we have the same response?
When we face an injustice that seems almost unbearable... When we find ourselves in that kind of a situation and it feels like there is nothing we can do.... What do we do? How do we respond as Christians?
As David wrote Psalm 7, he wrote about this kind of situation and asks these very same questions.
As we work through this Psalm today.... I hope that the Holy Spirit will speak to your soul.... and teach you how to respond.... when you can’t win. When you have to live through the injustice.
David was in a situation where he could no longer defend himself.... and must rely on the truth of his character to speak.... and ultimately leave the situation in the hands of the LORD God to judge.
Pay attention to the superscriptions of the psalms.... these are part of the Hebrew text.... not just an added title placed here by the publishing company.
Psalm 7 begins with this title: “A Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD concerning the words of Cush, a Benjaminite.”
There is a lot of information here that will help us understand the context of this psalm… which will help us discern the main idea the author is communicating and how we should respond.
What is a Shiggaion? And Why is David writing it?
It is somewhat uncertain. There are only 2 mentions of this word in the Bible. Here in Psalm 7 and then again in Habbakuk 3:1.
It is probably a musical term referring to a passionate song with an irregular beat (syncopation) and/or rapid changes in rhythm.
The superscription tells us that this psalm is about a time when David was crying out to the LORD about a situation with a man named Cush.
Based on the Psalm… and when we think the Psalm was written.... we can understand that David was in a dangerous place in his life when a man named Cush had falsely accused him of something. We don’t know specifically what… but there is enough information in this Psalm for us to connect a few of the dots.
Cush may have been one of Saul’s men who took a strong part in opposing David with bitter words.
Saul’s tribe was Benjamin…. they loved Saul… and definitely would have taken Saul’s side against David… when they saw him as a threat to Saul’s throne.
So this man named Cush… is one of Saul’s kinsmen and he could very well have began accusing and persecuting David on his own.... or as a direct response to Saul’s leadership. (not sure which)
In 1 Sam. 22:7-8, Saul seems to rally the people of Benjamin against David. Cush’s accusing of David could have come in response to this.
We know that the people of Benjamin held a grudge against David for a long time. When David’s son, Absalom, rebelled against him, a man from Benjamin, name Shimei, cursed David as he fled Jerusalem (2 Sam. 16:7,8)
Later another man from Benjamin led a revolt against David (2 Sam. 20:1). It does not take too much imagination to see how another false accusation could have easily come from someone from this tribe… who was pretty hostile towards David.
While we can’t exactly pinpoint when in David’s life this accusation came. It seems like it might have come during a time when David was fleeing from Saul…. (1 Sam. 22:8; 24:9; 26:19).
As David ran away from Saul, he said to Jonathan...
Then David fled from Naioth in Ramah and came and said before Jonathan, “What have I done? What is my guilt? And what is my sin before your father, that he seeks my life?”
This sounds similar to what we are reading today in Psalm 7. Saul believed the worst about David.... and made it easy for others to accuse David of almost anything.
As we read this Psalm, David is appealing to a Righteous Judge… to deliver his people…
There is a rhetorical question that seems to be asked throughout this psalm....
“Will the Judge of the Earth do right?” (I want you to answer that question at the end)
What is an imprecatory psalm?
Motivated by fiery zeal for God’s glory, these sometimes provocative, often controversial psalms invoke God’s wrath and judgement upon the psalmist’s adversaries, who are, ultimately, God’s enemies. The psalmist calls upon the Lord to punish the wicked and defend him as he carries out God’s work in the midst of his persecutors.
As we turn our attention to the verses of Psalm 7, let’s keep that question in our minds… “will the judge of all the earth do right?”
David begins this song by asking God to begin by judging his own heart… as he cries out for deliverance.
I. Judge My Heart (1-5)
A. Cry for Deliverance (1-2) (Delivery and Innocence)
O Lord my God, in you do I take refuge;
save me from all my pursuers and deliver me,
lest like a lion they tear my soul apart,
rending it in pieces, with none to deliver.
As David deals with this false accusation… from a man named Cush… he first acknowledges to whom he is speaking… Lord… my God.
Yahweh… Elohim!
Yahweh: Personal, Covenant Keeping, Name of God
Elohim: All powerful, Eternal God
Notice that David calls upon the Lord by name at least 5 times. I have them highlighted in my bible..
Verse 1, 3, 6, 8, 9…
What does this tell us?
David is not calling out to a God whom he does not know. He is calling out to someone with whom he has a relationship.
He uses the person name for God as well as several aspects of His character.... this promise keeping... all powerful and righteous Creator...
David calls out to God because he knows him… and has a relationship with him.
Yahweh, my Elohim! — expresses a personal relationship...
So, David calls out for deliverance from someone he personally knows… that is the basis for his prayer… for his cry for help.
David is in the middle of a bad situation. He has tried his best to resolve the issue… but it is unresolvable from his perspective… so he runs to God… in the same way that we would run to the safe room in the event of a tornado… or crisis event…
David cries out… O Lord my God… in you do I take refuge.
Taking refuge in God means trusting that he can and will protect you. He is strong enough to shield you and faithful to guard you.
David runs to God because he knows that God does not merely protect… he himself is protection… that is why David runs to the presence of the Lord God Almighty for refuge.... for protection.
Question: Do you really know God? If so, does the God yo know protect you from real-life violence and trouble? (illustration: Liberia/ UN soldiers/ mob violence/ red light… —> Steve King’s testimony of being held at gun point by a 12 year old on drugs…)
David took refuge in a God who stands guard around his people to protect them from real danger....
You can take refuge and find protection in that very same God.... He stands guard around those who belong to Him.. and protects them from danger...
Psalm 2 gives us a promise… “blessed are those who take refuge in him”.... then Psalm 5:11 adds to that promise… “… let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy; spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you.”
When we place ourselves in God’s protection.... we will find the blessings and joy that only comes from being in the shelter of His watchful care.
— Taking refuge in God doesn’t mean that you do nothing....
David’s enemies pursued him, which implies that David ran away. He did what he could to escape, but ultimately he trusted in God to be his shield and protector. — Nehemiah set a guard when the wall was being built… but his trust was in the Lord to protect.
The principle is this: You should do what you can to protect yourself… and clear your name, if possible. But, ultimately your hope must be in God for true deliverance and protection.
If your ultimate hope is not in God then anxiety will tear you up inside when you cannot undo the injustice you see happening. False accusations will eat you up when you can’t do anything about them.
When your hope is not in God… you will often over-react.... many times making the situation worse.
But when God is your refuge.... you will do what you can to defend yourself … but since you believe that God is in control and is working for your good… you will have the confidence to be self-controlled and godly even when people lie about you.
What I thought was really interesting is that this is a psalm of judgement.... an imprecatory psalm… where the psalmist is asking God to reign down judgement on his enemies… but before David calls down judgement on his enemies.... he asks God to first examine his heart.. and verbalizes his claim of innocence.
B. Claim of Innocence (3-5)
O Lord my God, if I have done this,
if there is wrong in my hands,
if I have repaid my friend with evil
or plundered my enemy without cause,
let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
and let him trample my life to the ground
and lay my glory in the dust. Selah
We can fool most people if we try hard enough. No one can see what is inside your mind or heart. When someone has wronged you.... or brought accusations against you… it is easy to rally your friends to your side… even though you may not be as innocent as you claim.
But while we can fool others.... we cannot fool God. He knows our hearts… completely!
It is important to point out that David claims his innocence… not before those who have wronged him… but before God himself.
Three times in verses 3 and 4, David uses the word “if”. If I have done this… If there is wrong in my hands… If I have repaid my fried with evil...
These 3 “if’s” indicate the progression of the accusations brought against David. Each “if” is referring to a specific sin/ crime of which he is being accused.
So, what wrong doings was Cush accusing David of?
If I have done this: (something very specific…not general)
(David is not claiming complete innocence. He is a sinner.... that is clear by the narrative of his life. But, what he is claiming is innocence of these particular crimes) — Illustration: Court for traffic violation: You plead “not guilty” of the specific charges being brought against you..... you don’t stand up in traffic court and plead not guilty to having never broken the law. — if anyone did that… they would be guilty of perjury (lying)… as well as all the traffic laws which they have broken)
If there is wrong in my hands: David was being accused of treachery to his friends and enemies.
(This accusation would have cut deep… but should have been easily refuted because David was known for his integrity. When we pick up our study through 1 and 2 Samuel in the Fall we’ll see that David could have taken Saul’s life several times… but he didn’t.
If I have repaid my friend with evil or plundered my enemy without cause: A specific charge… most likely related to an accusation of David’s actions towards Saul and the kingdom.
David is so confident in his innocence in this matter that he tells God.... if any of these things are true… then he calls down this very graphic curse on himself in verse 5. David is saying… if any of these accusations are true (I am confident that they are not… but… if I am wrong… and I have sinned and have been found guilty by my divine judge… … my Lord and my God.... then
let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it,
and let him trample my life to the ground
and lay my glory in the dust. Selah
David uses the word “trample”, which is pretty graphic. it is the word used for smashing grapes to make wine… it is the word used that a potter uses to describe how the clay is mashed up by his feet so that it can be made malleable.... it is the word that 2 Kings 9:33 uses to describe how Queen Jezebel was trampled by horses…
David says.... if I am guilty… then I deserve to be trampled.... and crushed.... to the point where his “glory” is laid in the dust. His “glory” was being God’s anointed king with all the fame and fortune that came with it...
David is so passionate that the judge of the earth will do what is right… that he lays his own crown on the line....
David willingly calls down these curses on himself.... showcases the face that he is not guilty… but more importantly it highlights David’s confidence in the One whom he will be judged by.
David believes that he is innocent.
But… his confidence in the sovereignty and accuracy of God as both Promise Keeping Lord… as well as Divine and Just Judge.... that he is willing to cast himself before the mercy of the court.....
he does so with total confidence that whatever verdict is given… will be right.... will be just.... will be glorifying to his Lord and his God!
Wow! Just think about the amount of trust… and confidence in the Lord that this would take.
—> (Illustration)
I was probably most amazed by this part of the Psalm. Before David calls down judgement on those who are against him… he first examines his own heart.
David has a pretty good sense that he is right… that he has done nothing wrong. But, before he acts.... actually before he asks God to act… he first asks God to judge his own heart.
I need that. You need this..... we all need to keep this truth in the forefront of our hearts and minds.
God… examine my heart.... remove any wickedness that is in me.... keep me close to your presence.... make sure that I am in a right relationship with you… God make sure that my heart is right before I react to accusations.... Lord make sure that I have been judged for my wrongdoing.... before I seek to judge others...
This is such a heavy.... and important truth.... that David instructs those who would read… and sing this song.. to stop reading..... stop singing.... stop moving forward… and spend time meditating on these truths.
Verse 5 ends with a single word.... Selah.
Selah is a musical term which instructs the instrumentalists to play an interlude…
Many believe that this instruction was a time when the congregation would stop singing or reciting the psalm and meditate on the truths of the Word… as the instrumentalists played....
Meditate on this truth… before going any further… let’s pause and stand… and meditatively sing through the hymn… “Come Thou Fount”....
The Instrumentalists will play verse 1 (no singing)
As the music plays.... meditate on the deep trust and confidence that David has in His just judge.... meditate on the truth… that the Divine Judge of the Earth will do right...
—> ask God to give you the trust… and confidence to believe that what He is doing in the world… and in your life is right.... no matter your circumstances....
As we play… meditate on the truths of Scripture..... then when we finish playing through verse 1… I’ll invite you to sing verse 1 together.
---------------
After David pauses to reflect on his innocence in this event.... and meditate on the truth of God’s righteous divine justice..... he is completely confident in the Divine Judge who will pass a just verdict on all those who hearts are not right with Him.
The Psalmist has asked God to judge his heart… and has been found innocent… now David is crying out to God to deliver him by judging the hearts of those who are coming against him.
II. Judge Their Hearts (6-16)
The Psalmist issues a call for Judgement
A. Call for Judgement
David, an innocent man in this situation, calls on God to sit in the seat of judgment and bring true justice.
Arise, O Lord, in your anger;
lift yourself up against the fury of my enemies;
awake for me; you have appointed a judgment.
Let the assembly of the peoples be gathered about you;
over it return on high.
Verse 6 begins with a battle cry, drawing God’s attention to the issue at hand. David uses a figure of speech when he asks God to “Arise.... awake for me”.
We know it is a figure of speech because God does not sleep (Psalm 121:4) therefore he can never awake.
David knows that God is the judge of all the world.
Far be it from you to do such a thing, to put the righteous to death with the wicked, so that the righteous fare as the wicked! Far be that from you! Shall not the Judge of all the earth do what is just?”
In calling God to judge his enemies.... David’s great hope is that God will provide true justice from his heavenly courtroom.
Those of us who have been wronged… or wrongly accused in life may not ever be vindicated on earth. We may never be able to convince people that the slander against us is false. But… there is a final justice that comes from God himself.... he is the great judge.
God is bigger than any lie.... and in the end… Truth will reign!
David is looking forward to the judgement day! Verses 7 suggests that David is anxiously awaiting his day in court… when he will be truly vindicated from all slander… and wrongful accusations.
As David writes this call for judgment on his enemies… in the midst of a great trial.... his confidence is wholly in the Lord. He trusts that God will see through any and all false accusations… and will give him justice.
That is how he can verbalize these words to the LORD in verse 8.
The Lord judges the peoples;
judge me, O Lord, according to my righteousness
and according to the integrity that is in me.
Oh, let the evil of the wicked come to an end,
and may you establish the righteous—
you who test the minds and hearts,
O righteous God!
Does David’s boldness surprise you? It sounds like he is actually looking forward to the coming judgement.
As he looks to the coming judgement… He isn’t afraid in the least.
Why? Isn’t David a sinner just like all of us? --- Yes
While David may have been innocent of whatever accusations Cush was bringing.... he was guilty of other sins that would surely be brought out at the final judgement day. He even acknowledges in verse 9 that our Righteous God tests the minds and the hearts....
God knows everything you do… and He knows every attitude of your heart!!!
Why is David so confident? I am not so sure it has much to do with him. There is a good chance that in verses 8-9, David is getting a little prophetic… suggesting that God’s judgement points us to the Messiah! Jesus Christ!
Jesus was the One who was truly falsely accused. No one ever faced worse injustice that Jesus… no one has ever been so good as Jesus.... or treated so wrong.... or so hatefully.
As David trusts God to judge the Earth… so would the Messiah. And he did!
Peter tells us about how Jesus responded to false accusations
He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return; when he suffered, he did not threaten, but continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Jesus was not only righteous and sinless.... but He obeyed God and endured false accusations as our Savior!
If you belong to Jesus, you can face God’s judgement with confidence.
Just like David.... we are guilty of plenty of wrongdoings..... but we belong to the One who has paid the price for our failures… and our disobedience.
That is what gives us confidence in the judgement.
For those who belong to Christ… the judgement day described in Revelation 19:1-3… will be a time of joy and vindication!
As David writes… he looks forward to a final day of judgement and justice… but not all judgement is held back by God for the final days.
God also brings justice and punishment on the wicked… and rewards those who do good.... here and now… today…
Verses 10-11 highlight the character of God as well as His heart.
My shield is with God,
who saves the upright in heart.
God is a righteous judge,
and a God who feels indignation every day.
God is a shield who protects those who have a real relationship with him. An interesting fact that David highlights here is that our God… who is a righteous judge.... is also an emotionally feeling judge.
God is not an unfeeling… unemotional Spirit being who sits on high and is able to judge righteously because he is disconnected from everything.... no.... He is an emotional being....
David tells us that he feels every indignation… every sin… every injustice in the world… is deeply felt by the Lord God. — Let that sink in.
As you experience a certain amount of injustice… and accusations… remember that God feels all of it from everywhere.... all the time.
Creation groans under the weight of sin.... and God feels that weight.... and Praise the Lord He has a plan for its relief!
David begins to bring the psalm to an end in verses 12-16 with a few illustrations.
First, in verses 12-13 he describes the unrepentant man… and the judgement (sword, bow, deadly weapons… fiery arrows) that comes upon all those who reject the Lord… and refuse to repent of their sins.
The picture David creates through this call for judgement is that of an archer with his bow drawn (v.12).
All he has to do is relax his hand… and the arrow flies.
If any of you have ever used a bow before (not a compound bow.. but a long bow).... you know that you cannot hold it for too long before your arm begins to shake and your fingers start to get numb.
—> God is not far off.... God and His judgements are close at hand!
Then in verses 14-16, he describes the injustice of the one who spreads lies and falsehoods… but David also describes the reality that these people are done in by their own lies and deceit.
Behold, the wicked man conceives evil
and is pregnant with mischief
and gives birth to lies.
He makes a pit, digging it out,
and falls into the hole that he has made.
His mischief returns upon his own head,
and on his own skull his violence descends.
A principle from both of David’s illustrations is that in life… a person reaps what they sow.
Those who do evil… will some day suffer evil themselves.
Every day God brings judgement on the violent… the cheaters.... the liars...
His judgments are at work in the world as part of His divine providence.
For those who don’t know Christ… this is a huge problem! You must repent… and turn to Christ!
But, for the believer.... those who have trusted Christ.... God’s judgments today and tomorrow are a huge comfort.
It means that God is a shield for all those who truly know Him… today!
God saves today! He rescues today!
Application:
As David comes to the end of his psalm… he can’t help but close his thoughts with a call to worship.
III. Call to Worship (17)
I will give to the Lord the thanks due to his righteousness,
and I will sing praise to the name of the Lord, the Most High.
As David worships the Lord through this doxology… remember… nothing has changed in his situation.
Cush is still casting false accusations and lying about David.
While nothing has changed on the outside… David has changed on the inside.
Instead of his focus being on the problems at hand.... his heart was set on God.
David knew and believed with all of his heart that:
God’s righteousness is our hope.
Can you imagine a world where there is no final justice?
… where the powerful crush the weak with no consequence?
… where government officials get away with bribes?
… where murderers get away with it?
… where the thief never gets caught?
… where liars have the last word?
Praise God for His righteousness!!!!! In this unjust and fallen world in which we live… we can cry out to God and trust Him to judge!
When faced with false accusations… sometimes there is nothing you can do… there is no way to prove your innocence.
These are times when we are reminded that we need to bring our problems to God (this should be our first step… but often it is our last resort.._)
David brought his problems to the Lord.... the One whom he knew was a Righteous Judge.
Our God is a righteous judge! There is nothing hidden from him that will not be made known.
Commit your way to the Lord;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will bring forth your righteousness as the light,
and your justice as the noonday.
Throughout his psalm… David asks and answers this rhetorical question that all of us wrestle with as well.
When the world is in chaos.... or the circumstances of our life seems like it can’t get any worse…
“Will the Judge of the Earth do right?”
The answer is… and always will be... YES!
Main Idea:
God’s righteousness is our Hope!
The Divine Judge of all the Earth will do right!
Response:
When you are in a situation where injustice reigns.... how should you respond?
Praise God for His righteousness!!!
Focus on Character not circumstances: (your character.... God’s character)
Trust that God’s judgement in the situation is right… even if you don’t understand it.
Cry out to God… who is your only shield, protector, sustainer, deliverer, and redeemer!
We are going to close our worship service today the same way that David ended Psalm 7.... in worship.
Stand with me as we reflect on the truths of Scripture as we sing together.
As we sing these 2 songs together… reflect on the truths taught to us today.... and ask God to help you respond to His Word.
If we can help you… please speak to one of the elders or pray with someone.... even now while we are singing… go speak with them… and pray with them....
Or, you can speak with me after the service… I would love to talk with you and pray with you…
If God is working in your hear today… don’t leave without responding to Him!
