Go get 'em, God! - Psalm 83

ILLUST - Worst enemy, think about that political figure you despise…ever pray and ask God to destroy him/her/them?

READ - Psalm 83 - an imprecatory psalm

imprecatory - to invoke or ask for a curse

The issue: the enemy frustrates us, invokes “not nice” thoughts from us.

How do you express them? What can you do with them?

How would you REALLY like God to deal with your enemies?

The conversation starts:

Hear me, God - 3X

Not just venting - the psalmist is persistent in taking it to God in prayer - good example of being frustrated and talking to God

1) The Complaint (vv 2-8)

The psalmist is continually aware of enemies

Who are the enemies

First, they are enemies of God

In ANE, people attributed much to deities, false gods, so to defeat an enemy was seen as defeating their gods

10 plagues on Egypt is great example

God-haters - now new

Worship themselves

Actually PLAN to hate God and His people

And behave as though there are no consequences

Atrocities then and now

Will not stop until God’s people are wiped out

Seriously, God-haters have never wanted to stop our belief and behavior, they want us destroyed, literally

God-haters are confident in their victory over God!

Calculated, sinister - examples

Herod’s plan to kill the babies

Paul in 2 Tim 3:12

2 Timothy 3:12 NASB95

Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.

Believers today - target of anti-Christian groups, God-haters

See John 15:18

John 15:18 NASB95

“If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.

The world hates Jesus, the world hates you, I call that being in good company!

The strength of God-haters is pitted against God’s strength

Knife to a gun fight = Gun to a God-fight

List of 10 nations who plotted evil on Israel

Listing Assyria = “We are surely doomed”

Ever feel that way today?

2) The Petition (vv 9-18)

Here’s what I want

God, deal with them!

Midian - Judges 6 and 8

Jabin and Sisera - Judges 4 to 5 (Jael tent peg)

And others...

The enemies are formidable - God is faithful

The psalmist relies on God’s past faithfulness to deal with the present distress

The psalmist knows he can’t defeat the enemy, but that the Lord, the LORD OF HOSTS, can

So God, hunt them down and take them out, take out the leaders of the enemies

Why does God respond (even if not immediately?)

Because God will protect His own, what’s His, what rightfully belongs to Him

That’s the God-follower

That’s you, believer!

This is personal (see v. 13) - O my God

MY GOD - a personal, covenantal relationship

Make them like dust, chaff, fire...

WHY CAN HE PETITION GOD?

Faithful, worn-out, surrounded by hostile God-haters, constantly threatened - and their greatest resource is PRAYER, prayer that is directly to God, and it is based on God’s past compassion, interaction and deliverance, motivated by a sincere desire to serve God’s glory! - HIS GLORY WILL BE SEEN WHEN HE WINS

3) Recall God’s Purpose

What is His purpose?

To have everyone see His glory through victory

How do you define victory?

Our enemies literally destroyed?

Your favorite politician winning?

$1/gallon gas

How does GOD define victory?

See 1 Cor 15:55

1 Corinthians 15:55 NASB95

“O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

See 1 Cor 15:57

1 Corinthians 15:57 NASB95

but thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

GOD HAS ALREADY WON!

SO....what is His purpose?

We must keep this in mind as we complain, as we wish for the demise of our enemies.

First, realize the enemy (one enemy) is Satan. Satan fuels the God-haters, every single one of them.

Second, we must realize God’s will is not destruction, but salvation

See 2 Peter 3:9

2 Peter 3:9 NASB95

The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.

God desires everyone to acknowledge Him, to worship Him

See Phil 2:10-11

Philippians 2:10–11 NASB95

so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Back to the illustration

ILLUST - Worst enemy, think about that political figure you despise…ever pray and ask God to send someone to them with the Gospel?

How would you like God to deal with you the way you deserve to be dealt with?

You were an enemy of God, as in Rom 5:10

Romans 5:10 NASB95

For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.

NOW…how should you pray?

Pray for God to humble HIS enemies, those who are acting in concert with THE enemy

Repentance never comes without total humbling

So God’s judgment on people who hate Him is for the purpose to drive repentance

Yes, many will ultimately reject Him - TRUTH

CLOSE/SUMMARY

The greatest resource we, believers, have, as people of God, is PRAYER

Appeals to Him directly

Is based on God’s powerful intervention and past deliverance

God does not expect us to defend ourselves, without Him, but He invites us to give our problems over to Him

For HIS defense. It is HIS name He is defending!

We defend His name, and the world, who hates Him, hates us. OK, oh well....

Their fight is not with me, but with God

People rejecting you, your church invite, your invitation to meet Jesus, are actually rejecting Him.

He’ll deal with that, someday.

REM - Even when God is silent, keep turning to Him, keep trusting in Him.

That’s the God-follower, like the psalmist

That’s the disciple!

Is that you?