Life is a Privilege

1 I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. 2 He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. 3 He has put a new song in my mouth— Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the Lord.

Psalm 40:1–3 (NKJV)

Lloyd John Ogilvie tells in his book The Other Jesus, of an interview he had with James Stewart, the great Scottish Presbyterian preacher. This was at a time of feverish activity, stress, and great demands in Ogilvie’s life. His wise preacher friend gave him some sound advice. “Lloyd,” he said, “do what you can in any day. Expect the Lord to intervene with supernatural power, and live life as a privilege.”

The psalmist had his ups and downs in life. Sometimes he wondered about God’s goodness. He questioned whether life really was a privilege. During a time of trial the psalmist penned the words of the 40th Psalm. 1 I waited patiently for the Lord; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry.

The word inclined in the KJV is turned in the NIV. The Hebrew word used here meant “to bend the ear in careful anticipation, wanting desperately to hear what another has to say.” God is keenly interested in what we have to say.

David tells us that the Lord heard his cry. God not only heard David’s prayer, but He responded to David’s need. What did God do for David?

I. GOD LIFTS US UP WHEN WE’RE DOWN ON LIFE, Psalm 40:2a

He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay,

The psalmist painted a graphic picture of David’s trials. He described his life situation as sinking in a pit with little hope of being rescued. Life was overwhelming him. Demands were greater than he could bear. He actually thought he was going to die, but God lifted him up. (I actually have a sermon from Psalm 40 I call “From the Mire to the Choir.”)

Aren’t you glad our God is the author of life and not of death! John 10:10.

Joel Gregory tells the story of two men, Tony Chain and J.R. Hounchell who went duck hunting the first day of duck season in 1981. They were in the area called Duck Flats, northeast of Anchorage, Alaska. Hours before, 10 feet of tidal water had covered the gully where they anchored their boat. As they made their way through the thick mud, Tony’s left wader stuck fast. He struggled to free himself, but both feet became stuck . Every effort to free himself only caused him to sink deeper.

Tony’s frantic call, “J.R., help me,” startled his companion. Both men knew about Alaska’s glacial silt-like quicksand. This quicksand, formed by grains as fine as talcum powder, looks like dark gray mud: but its deadly. J.R. tried to pull his friend out with his belt, but J.R. felt the spongy surface beneath him grabbing at his own feet. If he got caught, both of them would drown. J.R. pulled loose and ran for help, knowing that time was against him. Alaskan tides are among the fastest and most dangerous in the world.

J.R. reached Elmendorf Air Force Base where a rescue team scrambled to help Tony. Numerous rescuers tried to help, but they too, began to sink. Next, the rescuers passed a strap attached to a helicopter beneath Tony’s arms. As the helicopter tried to hoist him up, the pain was so severe they had to stop for awhile. By 1:45 p.m. the mud was up to Tony’s armpits. The tide could come in any minute. Finally, as the helicopter began to pull again, Tony felt a slight movement upward. Little by little, the waders slipped off his body and disappeared in the mud. He was pulled free just in the nick of time.

Like Tony Chain, David found himself in serious trouble. At the most critical point, God lifted him up out of the pit.

In the hymn “In Loving Kindness Jesus Came,” the words say it all.

From sinking sand he lifted me,

with tender hand, He lifted me.

From shades of night to plains of light,

O praise His name, he lifted me!

In Ephesians 2:1-5, the Bible describes God’s rescue of sinners when it says,

1 As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2 in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3 All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions -- it is by grace you have been saved. (NIV)

God loved me enough that He lifted me up out of the horrible pit of sin and the muck and mire of this world and placed me in His family. I can live life as a privilege because I have life, abundant life, eternal life, through the grace of Jesus Christ.

T/S God not only lifts us up, but He plants our feet as well.

II. GOD PLANTS OUR FEET ON A SOLID ROCK, Psalm 40:2b

And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps.

David said the Lord placed his feet on a solid rock. He gave him a firm place to stand. I can imagine David beginning to sing that old hymn we love so much,

“On Christ the solid rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand,

all other ground is sinking sand.”

That rock stands for security. When I am on the rock of Christ, I have complete security. Jude 24 says,

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, (KJV)

The Greek word translated keep was used to speak of sentries guarding cities against attack. It’s the same word used in Philippians 4:7 in reference to the peace of God keeping or guarding our hearts and minds. God keeps us, or guards us in the same way. We are secure in Him.

An old proverb says, “God will not lead you were He cannot keep you.”

The rest of verse 2 says, He established my goings.

(כּוּן kûn: A verb meaning to set up, to make firm, to establish, to prepare. The primary action of this verb is to cause to stand in an upright position, and thus the word also means fixed or steadfast. It signifies the action of setting in place or erecting an object. [1] This verb occurs in nearly every Semitic language (not in biblical Aramaic). Kun appears in the Bible about 220 times and in all periods of Hebrew.

So God places our feet on solid ground and provides sure footing where previously we had no footing at all.

T/S God lifts us up. He plants our feet. And He puts a new song in our hearts.

III. GOD PLACES WITHIN US A NEW SONG, Psalm 40:3

He has put a new song in my mouth— Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the Lord.

All who have ever known the touch of God’s grace can give the same testimony as did David,--a new song.

Nothing sounds worse than a piano out of tune or a singer off key. But a skillful piano tuner or a trained singer can with the slightest adjustment turn what was once bitter into the sweetest notes of harmony.

In the same way, God can take your life, that’s out of tune with Him, and with the master’s touch, he can lift you out of the pit, place your feet on a rock and put a new song in your mouth.

CONCLUSION:

God must love music. It’s amazing how many times the Bible speaks of music, of song and of praise. So many of you have some musical ability and giftedness. If your talented, God wants you to use that talent for His glory.

Although I could speak of many people, I cannot help but think of Nathan Childers. Tell the story of how Nathan and Cecelia were saved and how Nathan who use to sing in a Rock Band now sings for the glory of the Rock of Ages!

When we have a new song in our hearts we want to sing praise to God. Revelation 15:3 declares, And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. (KJV)

We can live life as a privilege because God has lifted us up from the pit of sin, planted our feet on the Rock, and put a new song in our hearts.

Close with the story of the deaths of Robert Ingersol and D.L. Moody.

“Proclaim” magazine, Jan-March, 1997, page 29.

[1]Warren Baker and Eugene E. Carpenter, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: Old Testament (Chattanooga, TN: AMG Publishers, 2003), 499.

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