Psalm 25:1 To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
2 O my God, in you I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me.
3 Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame; they shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
4 Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths.
5 Lead me in your truth and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long.
6 Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love, for they have been from of old.
7 Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of your goodness, O Lord!
8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore, he instructs sinners in the way.
9 He leads the humble in what is right and teaches the humble his way.
10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
11 For your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great.
12 Who is the man who fears the Lord? Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
13 His soul shall abide in well-being, and his offspring shall inherit the land.
14 The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him, and he makes known to them his covenant.
15 My eyes are ever toward the Lord, for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
16 Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely and afflicted.
17 The troubles of my heart are enlarged; bring me out of my distresses.
18 Consider my affliction and my trouble and forgive all my sins.
19 Consider how many are my foes, and with what violent hatred they hate me.
20 Oh, guard my soul, and deliver me! Let me not be put to shame, for I take refuge in you.
21 May integrity and uprightness preserve me, for I wait for you.
22 Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles.
David was a King with troubles all around. His kingdom was quite a bit larger than a generation before him. He was a warrior for King Saul, his predecessor. He was the one who would lead the battles against the nations around Israel, conquer their lands, and bring them under the leadership of King Saul. Then David became King. The nations around Israel wanted their freedom back and sought for David's demise. He had troubles around him.
I am sure he had troubles within Israel also. David was anointed the King of Israel before Saul was ready to give up the throne. For years, David wandered around the country, hiding from Saul and his other enemies. It wasn't until the next generation, under Solomon that the country greatly expanded its borders and Israel found a sense of peace for a few years.
So, David is drawing a distinction between the enemies and the followers of God. And as often is done, that distinction is vivid and exaggerated. The enemies are evil, and the others are those who seek the LORD, Yahweh, the God of Heaven.
Those who seek the LORD are painted in a picture that glows with a picture of God's love and mercy. His followers find forgiveness of all sins, from the sins of youth to the sins of the King himself. Verses 9 and 10 make it sound like there are no troubles in the pursuit of the LORD, that He will protect the seeker from all ills; and verse 13 says they will abide in well-being and inherit the land. The description David lays before his listener is one of peace and joy and wonder and contentment. Being with God is fabulous.
Then in the next verse (18) he asks the LORD to help him in his affliction and trouble. Wait! I thought the picture David was painting had no ills for the seeker of the LORD. But David now mentions his own troubles, foes, and those who hate him.
Christians often make it sound like following Jesus is a life filled with days of bliss. In some ways they are, but not in the way it is often portrayed. I look back on my life with Jesus, since 1967 and before, over 50 years and can tell you I have never been disappointed I made the choice to follow after Jesus. But I have been disappointed. I have experienced sorrow and pain. I have known the troubles of life, the loss of people and things, the loneliness of perceived and even real isolation. Life with Jesus does not mean a life without struggle.
What I have. What all Christians have is faith, hope, and love.
Faith that God is available for us to call upon. That we can lay every single concern before Him and He will listen and answer our prayers. Will He always give us what we want? Definitely not! But will He give us what is good? Always. How do I know? I have trusted in Him for over 50 years and never been disappointed. I sometimes had to wait longer than I wanted but when all was said and done, I knew that He had provided for me something better than I could have ever acquired or achieved on my own. There is a God to call upon in times of sorrow and in times of calm.
Hope comes from my faith. I have seen God work in my life and in the lives of others. I have had the blessing of seeing lives transformed from addiction to wholeness. I have witnessed clear healings, where people were on their death bed and the next morning they stood up and went on to live another 20 years. There have been times of powerful transformations in demonically crazy people to calm and loving followers of Jesus. Instant changes and long gradual changes, but changes that I have had the privilege of witnessing. People who now have hope who did not before because Jesus came into their lives.
Hope also comes in the form of an eternal hope. Even if, actually, when, I lose the battle for life itself, I have hope because there is another life more glorious than this one. Don't get me wrong, I love this world with all of its opportunities and beauties. But there is a place I long to be that I am told if far more glorious and wonderful than anything I or anyone else can even imagine in this world. And I have seen a lot of imaginations of what life could be. Heaven is even greater. Oh, what glorious hope that even when I or a loved one loses their life in this world, they will in Jesus move on to another place where Jesus dwells.
And love. I can't forget the love of God. He is my help in time of need. He brings me what I need. I am continually amazed at the ways God prepares the way for me to walk. Before I even know what it might be that I need, I can see it unfolding before me. Is that just for me because I am a preacher? Not a chance! It is the way Go works in each of our lives, we just don't always take time to see the little things that God has done for us. Or we arrogantly take credit for them ourselves, thinking we made it happen without the help of God.
When I look around my life, I see one situation after another where God has laid the groundwork for me to walk in His path and find the smoothest possible direction. But I am also tempted by the things this world has to offer. I want more than what God has to offer because it appears the other man's grass is always greener. But it is not, especially if the other man is evil and centered on the things of this world.
David ends the Psalm today with a request of God to guard our souls and bring deliverance. I pray that for our church family, for Bonny Doon, for our friends, for our nation and for our world. I pray that the whole world, each and every person would find refuge in this time of trial in Jesus. I pray that all would put their faith, hope, and love in Him alone and find the peace that comes from following Him and definitely the peace that is available after this life is over. I pray that God would redeem this world, our nation, our area of the country out of all our troubles.
May Jesus bless you richly, with peace, comfort, friendships, and hope as we all traverse the next few weeks and possibly a bit more.
Pastor Edd
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