Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Here we are with another of Psalm of David’s.

Now the timing of this psalm is unknown and unlikely to have come directly after psalm 4, but it could have and here in the book of Psalms it does.

We recognize that it does that by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.

Psalm 4 was a psalm for the night and this psalm is a psalm in the morning.

This psalm is a prayer of David’s when he was exposed to danger by wicked enemies.

David sought the Lord in His troubles expressing confidence in drawing near to God.

David desired to come to God for the strength needed to make it through the day against his many adversaries.

Let’s read along together and look closely at this psalm and learn to draw close to God to receive the necessary divine resources and direction for our days and especially in our times of need.

Start With A Passionate Plea

David starts with a plea to the Lord to listen and consider.

David in his time of trouble and adversity pleas to the Lord to listen to his words and consider his sighing.

Hear or heed and consider with understanding and paying attention to, what David says is sighing in the original language is a continual and ongoing sighing.

David perhaps has come before God previously - perhaps many times even and lays his trouble out before the Lord asking and pleading for the Lord to hear and consider.

He even says pay attention to the sound of my cry.

David is ultimately calling on God to listen and respond in conformity to the sound of his cry - perhaps even appealing to consider the earnest ways through which he prays.

Earnest prayer is a prayer of great desire.

A desire is not a simple wish but a deep seated craving and intense longing to attain.

Prayer comes from intensified desire, in fact many times the deeper the desire the stronger the prayer.

Prayer without desire is just careless words mumbled.

David is not demanding of the Lord and is not compelling the Lord but is approaching to the one place he can take his troubles.

David in a time of persecution, adversity and discouragement turns to the Lord.

In our troubles and discouragements how often do we feel we have no where to turn?

Praise the Lord we can go to Him in our times of trouble!

David says my King and my God - these are personal and possessive pronouns, “my” is found 7 times here in the first three verses.

When in our troubles we turn to our King and our God to pray, remember He is personal and not so distant; and being personal we can be personal with Him.

We dont have to try to impress with our spiritually great wordy long prayers.

We can reveal our tears and sighing - we dont have to be put together for the Lord.

It is important to see that David prayed to God - he said “for I pray to You”and this may seem elementary or basic but it is essential nonetheless.

Sometimes we come praying so full of our needs and feelings we never focus on God and sense His presence.

David was a great man of prayer because in his praying he focused not so much on WHAT he was praying but WHO he prayed to.

David makes his plea to the Lord in the morning.

The beginning of the day.

How one starts their day really sets the tone for the rest of the day, imagine the difference if the tone for the day was set by being with the Lord first.

Hudson Taylor the famous missionary to China, had trouble finding time to be alone with God.

He began to wake up at 2:00 AM and use those quiet hours while everyone else slept to commune with God.

Jesus also woke early in the morning to be alone with God the Father in prayer.

“An hour in the morning is worth two in the evening.

While the dew is on the grass, let grace drop upon the soul.”

Spurgeon

The passionate plea is insincere if it does not wait expectantly.

David says I plead my case and watch expectantly.

Fully expecting that the Lord hears, cares and acts.

After pleading your case watch for God to respond - expecting!

Pray With Sacred Perspective

David prays with a perspective that is not just proper but it is sacred.

It is not so much as coming and understanding how big our God is and having that perspective but understanding that our God is holy and does not pleasure in the wickedness.

We are not the only ones who seek to see the wicked and evil dealt with and we definitely dont desire to deal with it like the Lord God.

The story is told of a woman in nothern England who hung out her washing and was so proud of its whiteness.

She thought it glistened!

Then snow came making a beautiful blanket of white.

Seeing her blankets and snow side by side, she exclaimed, “What can a poor woman do against God’s almighty snow?” “So, in the radiance of God’s holiness we are led to exclaim, ‘what can any man or woman do against God’s holiness and purity?

God does not delight - find pleasure, nor is He amused or even entertained in wickedness.

Evil cannot dwell with the Lord - evil will not last.

The boastful cannot stand in Your sight.

None of the wicked or wickedness has a place before the Lord, none are given audience or time for the Lord God in all His holiness cannot be in the presence of such filth for He is holy holy holy as we ready in Isaiah and Revelation.

The Lord HATES evildoers, DESTROYS liars and ABHORS violent and treacherous people.

Notice here it talks about the person and not just the sin.

Until sin is dealt with one is at enmity with God.

A sacred perspective reminds us who we are, who are enemies are and who God is.

As David drew closer to God he became more aware of God holiness and man’s sinfulness.

“This is a good way to measure how well you are praying and whether, as you pray, you are drawing close to God or are merely mouthing words.

If you are drawing close to God, you will become increasingly sensitive to sin, which is inevitable since the God you are approaching is a holy God.” Boice.

Place of Humble Submission

David did not see himself different from the wicked and the sinners, just that he enters by a different door.

You cannot approach the Lord denying your own wickedness and sinfulness.

David says I enter by Your abundant faithful love.

The psalmist says I am not here because of me, but despite me.

I am here because of You, because of Your abundant and faithful love.

Davids confidence in prayer is strengthened by remembering God holiness and righteousness and the privilege by which he has been granted through God’s great love!

Because of God’s faithful love - hesed - mercy by this he could approach and by this we can also approach.

As believers we have been granted access into the throne room of heaven!

Our confidence isnt that we are righteous and everyone else a sinner but that God had mercy on us as sinners.

David says I bow down - this Hebrew word is also elsewhere translated worship.

The significance is that David takes the posture of one humble before God.

Arrogant desire to stand before God a worshiper is humbled and bows down before God in worship.

David does not base his prayers or his worship on how he feels, but on his reverence for a holy righteous but merciful God.

Seeking Proper Plan and Path

David moves on in his prayer before God to ask for the Lord to lead and guide him in His righteousness.

David says I need your help to navigate in your righteousness.

We dont automatically find God’s path of righteousness, it is not tread upon by accident.

One may cross it by accident but never walking upon it by accident.

David knows his flesh has a way to go and a path to take but it is not the straight path.

Our flesh has a path and a way to go but it does not lead where we want to be.

David says because of his adversaries he needs to know the way of righteousness.

David shows his reliance on God - for there is nothing reliable in what the people say, they speak not the truth destruction is within them and their throat is an open grave.

Literally unsealed tombs of death and decay.

They flatter - literally speak dishonest praise - making smooth or slippery) with their tongues.

Our adversaries have many ways to get us off God’s path.

Fear, intimidation, threats, lies and also flattery.

The greatest and most destructive fall comes from a big swelled head filled with flattery.

David focuses on the words of the wicked as evidence of their wickedness - what did Jesus say?

Our righteousness or wickedness will sooner or later show up in our speech - David Guzik.

David rightly identifies that the proper path is for him to leave punishment of the wicked to the Lord.

The wicked cannot succeed, they will fail by their own schemes merely for this fact alone.

Position of Praise

David finishes the psalm and his prayer by giving us the proper position for those in the Lord - PRAISE.

Those who take refuge - a place of safety and shelter - they should rejoice and shout with joy FOREVER!

Those who come for refuge in the Lord are forever protected in a position of praise forever.

May those who love your name boast about YOU! Boasting can be done but if anyone is to boast they must boast in the name of the LORD!