Trusting God In the Troublesome Times

Transcript

GRM 1153
04/03/2016
Trusting God in the Troublesome Times
Psalm 4
Gil Rugh

We're going to direct our attention to the book of Psalms again. We want to look at the 4th Psalm. Why the 4th Psalm? Because we've looked at the first three. One thing about the Psalms, they don't necessarily fall in any particular order like we are used to with other books of the Bible. As we've noted the Psalms are basically a collection of poems. They express something of the emotion, the fears, the hopes, the feelings of the writers. And that's one of the things that draws us to the book of Psalms. When we are going through our own trials or difficulties or times of happiness and joy, we can come to the Psalms and we identify with what is being expressed here. For all of us emotions are an intricate, inseparable part of all that goes on in our lives every day. We sometimes talk about someone, he is more emotional sometimes, sometimes less emotional. They may be expressing how our emotions are let loose, some people are more expressive with their emotions than others, but all of us go through it. We have things that bring joy and happiness to our lives and we feel that joy. There are things that are sad, discouraging, bring tears to our eyes. Sometimes we are afraid. It's amazing how our emotions can change in an instant. If you've been to the doctor’s and you're waiting for a report on a test you've had, as times goes and you wait, there is a certain fear that you have, and wonder and tenseness of what will be the outcome. And then the doctor sits down and says everything is fine, immediately your emotional feelings are changed—that sense of relief. Our emotions can be expressed physically, sometimes we get flushed in a certain case.

So the reality of emotions as pervading our lives help draw us to the Psalms, these poems that were written expressing the emotions and the feelings of the writers. And in the Psalms these emotions are always connected to the unchanging character of God and the relationship that the writer has with this unchanging God. So it's not just emotions floating out here, but it's emotions that are anchored and settled in a relationship with God and His provision. Naturally these Psalms are tied to certain physical events. And while the details of the physical events we go through may vary, in reality we can identify with what is going on and what we experience.

You'll note in Psalm 3 it was entitled ‘A Morning Prayer,’ we looked at that Psalm. And that's because of Psalm 3:5 which says, “I lay down and slept, I awoke for the Lord sustains me.” So they took the title for that Psalm from the fact that he lay down and went to sleep and he awoke. He is writing about his experience after awaking. Psalm 4 is titled ‘An Evening Prayer,’ and that's because of verse 8, “In peace I will both lie down and sleep. For you alone, oh Lord, make me to dwell in safety.” So he's talking about going to bed, going to sleep. In Psalm 3 the context was David fleeing from Absalom, that was the physical thing going on, and it focused on physical attacks. David's physical life was in danger. Those after him wanted to physically kill him, remove him from the throne of Israel, have Absalom be their king. In Psalm 4 the focus is not on particular physical danger or physical persecution, but it's on the slanderous and malicious attacks that come from the enemies of the psalmist who are trying to destroy his character, make him look bad, as we might say.

There is no necessary connection between Psalm 3 and 4. Some would see a connection but most would not. Doesn't change the Psalm, but it seems Psalm 4 stands on its own. There is no physical setting given in the title in the Psalm. It's just an evening prayer of trusting God and it's for the choir director. Psalm 3, it said it was written in the context of David fleeing from Absalom. But here there is just a musical instruction. Now it said it's for the choir director on stringed instruments. And 53 of the psalms have this same instruction—for the choir director. Or perhaps more broadly, for the music director, because we sometime think of the choir director just directing a choir with the singers. But obviously this includes the whole musical context of the singers and those who will be playing the instruments. So might be better taken as for the music director. And it's a reminder that music played a key part in the worship of the nation Israel. This is true back in the times of the exodus and following when Moses' sister Miriam came out with timbrels and so on, singing of God's great victories.

Here this instruction is for the worship of the nation Israel. And even though David writes and this comes out of his particular experiences, this is something for the nation in their worship. Something like some of our hymns do today, where hymn writers have written out of their experience. Perhaps the death of a loved one, they were moved to write of God's grace and provision. But it speaks to all of us even though the details are not the same.

Come back to 1 Chronicles, just to see something of the place that music played, singing and instruments, in the worship of the nation Israel. This was a responsibility that was part of the tribe of Levi. In 1 Chronicles 6:16 he's going to talk about the sons of Levi as this chapter 6 is about. It opened up, “The sons of Levi were,” then you come down and repeat that and you break it down. So that when you come down to verse 31, since the singing and the music was part of the worship that was centered at the tabernacle and later at the temple in Jerusalem, this was a ministry that was part of the tribe of Levi. They were the tribe from whom the priests came. And all those who had particular responsibilities with the temple and its worship service came from the tribe of Levi.

Then you come down to verse 31, “Now these are those whom David appointed over the service of song in the house of the Lord after the ark rested there.” So when the tabernacle, the temple had not yet been built, it will be built under David's son, Solomon. But the tabernacle has been set in Jerusalem and now you have the appointing of the musicians. Verse 32, “They ministered with song before the tabernacle of the tent of meeting, until Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. They served in their office according to their order.” And you have them designated. So a center of worship for the nation is in Jerusalem at the tabernacle and then later the temple. And these musicians are appointed and organized officially under David's authority.

Come over to 1 Chronicles 15:15, “The sons of the Levites carried the ark of God on their shoulders with the poles. Moses commanded according to the Word of God,” David is reviewing what happened as the nation came out of captivity in Egypt. And then you come, “David spoke to the chiefs of the Levites to appoint their relatives,” so fellow Levites, “the singers with instruments of music, harps, lyres, loud-sounding cymbals.” Some of us sometimes talk about, “is the music too loud?” God evidently likes loud sounds in the music that worships Him. “To raise sounds of joy,” this is celebration, this is a cause of joy. And so expressing that before the Lord as part of their worship with their voices, with their instruments.

You come over to 1 Chronicles 25:1, “Moreover David and the commanders of the army set apart for the service some of the sons of Asaph and of Heman and of Jeduthun, who were to prophecy with lyres, harps, cymbals. And the number of those who performed their service,” and we go down through the names and their prophesying, their teaching was accompanied with the music. And down in verse 6, “All these were under the direction of their father to sing in the house of the Lord with cymbals, harps, lyres for the service of the house of God.” Verse 7, “The number who were trained in singing to the Lord with their relatives, all who were skillful was 288.” So this was a large part of the worship going on at the tabernacle and then the temple from this point on.

And in the New Testament it is part of the church's ministry as Paul wrote to the Ephesians and the Colossians of singing hymns and spiritual songs. And the psalms expressing again the truth of God in our worship of Him, doing it with musical instruments and singing. This is not an extraneous part of the service, it's not something cut off. You'll note here it is in the context of those who would prophesy and be giving instruction to the people. And the music we've had has expressed the truths that we study in the Word of God and reminded us of them and helped set them in our mind.

So that's what we have with the Psalms, and we have these 150 psalms and basically they are the poems that would be set to music. And you see what they were singing about—God, what He has done, what He is doing, what He will do. The trials, the difficulties, the suffering, the hardships, the persecution, the opposition. And through it all God is there. And that's what happens in Psalm 4.

As we noted the focus in this psalm is not the physical enemies who are physically attacking David, but the enemies that are attacking with their slanderous, malicious accusations. Spreading lies, trying to undermine his reputation, destroy his character in the sight of people. And in it all there is a pervading confidence that David has in God, that God is the One who will care for him, protect and defend him. And in this context David is not moved to respond to the lies and slanderous comments of his enemies with bitterness, resentment, but he calls them to come and trust in the God that he serves so that they can know the joy that he has in walking with God.

So the psalm opens up with David's prayer. “Answer me when I call, oh God of my righteousness. You have relieved me in my distress, be gracious to me and hear my prayer.” Answer me when I call, oh God of my righteousness, to call upon God to be open to his prayer and he acknowledges his right to come to God. Why? I'm coming to you, the God who has provided His righteousness for me. You are the God of my righteousness, you are the God who has provided righteousness for me. And in doing that He has established a relationship with David that enables him to come and bring the desires of his heart to God. David reflects on what God has done for him in the past.
You have relieved, a word that means you brought me to a broad place. You know how it is when you are under distress, you feel pressure, pressed in. Sometimes people express, I feel like everything is pressing in on me. So the opposite of that is being brought to a broad place where the pressure is removed. And so the word relieved gives you the idea. “You have relieved me in my distress,” you've removed the distress in the past, you have responded to my prayers before. Good thing, we remind ourselves as we come to God in prayer of “Your goodness to me.” Sometimes we act like everything that confronts us is something new, never had anything like this. Well, we probably have, it may have been dressed in different clothes, but it's another pressure point where it makes us feel like our legs may not hold us up. But God has been faithful in the past. I've been through difficult times in the past and God has brought me through them, is what David has said.

“Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.” Again you see humility in David. He is being slanderously attacked by his enemies, they are spreading lies about him. But he doesn't come to God because “I have been perfect, I have been sinless.” How could they do this? He recognizes that he is righteous by the graciousness of God. God has provided righteousness for David, David hasn't earned righteousness. He comes seeking grace from God—be gracious to me, merciful to me, show your grace to me, this is something I don't deserve. Every time I come seeking your grace, hear my prayer. When he says that he doesn't mean just the audibleness of the prayer, this is a call to respond to it, get me what I ask. This is the same privilege we have. We studied the book of Hebrews, in chapter 2 we are told to “come with confidence to the throne of grace in your time of need.” That's what David is doing, he is coming to the throne of grace, claiming God's grace that he has already experienced in providing him righteousness, in bringing him deliverance before. Now God, I come again as one in need, going through difficulty, going through trials, experiencing that which is unsettling and unpleasant.

So in verses 2-5 David turns from talking to God to addressing his enemies. And in addressing his enemies he is expressing to God what he desires for them. And what he really desires is for the enemy to be brought the place they recognize the foolishness of attacking God's servant, which is really an attack against God. And turn to Him and experience the joy that only God can provide in their heart.

So verse 2, “Oh sons of men, how long will my honor become a reproach? How long will you love what is worthless and aim at deception? Selah.” And we have Selah twice in the right hand margin here of this psalm, and you had it three times in Psalm 3 and we noted when we talked about Psalm 3 that it is used many times through the Psalms but nobody knows for sure what it means. But everybody has agreed it is some kind of musical instruction. It could be a pause, some would say it is a crescendo, get loud at this point. We don't know, but it's in the context of this musical instruction to the choir director that he would know this is the response musically here as this is being sung.

How long will this go on? They persist in their lies, they persist in trying to ruin his reputation. How long will my honor become a reproach? They try to discredit him, they try to undermine his confidence. It's not that he has led a perfect life, but that doesn't mean these lies are true. They are slanderous. We know David had his failures, but these relentless slanderous attacks—how long will this persist, oh sons of men? How long will you persist in that which is worthless and aim at deception? Your goal here is to destroy me and my reputation, turn my honor into dishonor. How long will you persist in this? It is worthless. Remember we have seen this in the Psalms, back in Psalm 1 with the wicked in contrast to the righteous; in Psalm 2 the unity of the nations in their activity in opposing God. So David as a child of God is an object of this reproach and attempt to destroy him.

Come over to Psalm 31, we're not doing a lot of comparison with one psalm to the other because as you go through them you find the similarity. But come over to Psalm 31:18, this is in the context of seeking again God's deliverance and desire that God rescue him and he not be put to shame. Verse 18, “Let the lying lips be mute which speak arrogantly against the righteous with pride and contempt.” Think about it, God has declared David one of His righteous ones, He has credited David's account with His own righteousness. Why would they arrogantly speak against David? You understand why the devil is called the devil? In the New Testament that word devil, translation of the word diabolos. That's not a common word, but I do remember, and I don't remember the cowboy, but in my youth I still have memories of my youth, one of the cowboys had a horse named Diabolos. I always remembered that, I didn't know Greek then. It means a slanderer. I looked and some thirty times approximately, that's a name for the devil in the New Testament.

So when you read the word devil, come over to Revelation 12, here we are getting down toward the end time, the middle of the coming seven-year tribulation. Verse 9, Satan is about to lose his access to heaven. “The great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil.” That's the diabolos, the slanderer, “and Satan who deceives the whole world. He was thrown down to the earth, his angels were thrown down with him. I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, the authority of His Christ have come. For the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down. He who accuses them before God day and night.” In heaven and on earth Satan is about a work of accusing and slandering the people of God. That's a relentless work of the devil. Remember Jesus said in John 8 to the unbelieving religious leaders of His day, you are of your father the devil. You are liars and he was a liar from the beginning. The devil is a liar and the father of lies. So when you think, why do people say those things about you, there is an underlying basic reason—the devil hates you because you are a child of God. The children of the devil do the bidding of their father the devil, and they express that in trying to destroy your reputation. You say, I didn't do anything to them, I've done the best I could, I tried. Why would they say that? We act like this is such a total shock, but it's because we forget we are in a spiritual war. The devil never forgets. The devil and his angels and his servants don't forget who you are, what you are—a child of the living God. So their attacks on God are reflected in their attacks on the children of God. That's why Jesus said in John 15 to His disciples, don't be surprised if the world hates you. You know that it hated me before it hated you. And if I am your master, why do you think they ought to treat you better than they treat Me? If they have said and done all these wicked, evil things to Me, what makes you think, if you are My slave, they should treat you better? We get settled in, somehow we think the world will like us.

I read recently in the Omaha paper, churches there including some evangelical churches have joined together and what they want to do is make the City of Omaha aware of how many good things they are doing for the city—food pantries and everything else. As though the world will love us if we just do these nice things. And I'm not saying doing nice things is wrong, but I'm saying that's not the issue. It is a denial of the issue, it's a denial of basic biblical truth. It's the way the devil moves the church away, because he is saying, don't you think it would be better for the church if you had a better reputation? Don't you think you would get more done if the people of the city liked you? And I'm not saying we should have a martyr's complex or we should be doing things intentionally to antagonize people. Neither should we be hiding our light under a bushel so that we are disguised and they really don't know who we are. And maybe if we delude them into thinking we are just like them, they'll like us. The devil is not fooled, he is making us fools. And the psalmist is experiencing this. We sometimes read the books of martyrs and see the physical thing they suffered, we admire their testimony, but sometimes when we are the subject of malicious lies, things done to destroy our reputation and undermine people's confidence in us, maybe at our job. Why? Why do people say negative things about our church? I've never preached a sermon taking a political position. What's the problem? Everybody ought to like us because we stay out of politics. So if you are a Democrat you ought to like us, if you are a Republican you ought to like us, if you are an Independent you ought to like us, and if you don't get involved at all you ought to like us. But that doesn't mean they will like us.

So a reminder, the devil is the slanderer. Now if we do wrong things and it is pointed out, that's not slander. That is truth. And the psalmist, he did things that were sinful, David did, he didn't lead a perfect life and none of us have. But that doesn't justify all the untrue stories and accusations and things that are spread.

Come back to Romans 8 and look at verse 33, and you see the similarity between the child of God a thousand years before Christ and the child of God a relatively few years after Christ as Paul writes this to the Romans. Verse 33, “Who will bring a charge against God's elect?” And we're coming to this, God's chosen ones, those who are the objects of God's covenant love. “God is the One who justifies,” and you remember the word justifies? Same basic word as the word righteous, He is the One who declares righteous. “Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who has died, yes, who rather was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Tribulation, distress, persecution, famine, nakedness, peril, sword?” Verse 37, “In all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us.” Keep this in mind. We have righteousness from Him, we are the object of His love. This is what the psalmist is talking about. “I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor principalities, things present, things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.” As we often say, “Christians aren't perfect but they are forgiven.” And that's right. I am righteous not because I have earned it, not because I have a perfect life, but because God in His grace has declared me righteous and made me an object of His covenant love.

Come back to Psalm 4. “Oh sons of men how long will my honor become a reproach? How long will you love what is worthless and aim at deception? But know that the Lord has set apart the godly man for Himself, the Lord hears when I call Him.” Again still addressing his enemies, those slanderously attacking him. How long will this go on? You should know something. Verse 3, “The Lord has set apart the godly man.” The word godly, a word that denotes the covenant love of God, hesed, God's covenant love. The godly, those who are the objects of His love are godly, God causes that love. But it says they are set apart. Remember what we are in the New Testament? We are saints, those set apart by the electing love of God. We experience His covenant love. We studied the new covenant in the book of Hebrews, here David says I am the object of God's covenant love. He has chosen me for Himself, He has set me apart for Himself. Slanderous lies can't break that relationship, this has happened. And that's why David could speak to God as the One who has provided him His righteousness, that David can claim God's grace in verse 1. “Be gracious to me.” He has already experienced that grace. “The Lord has set apart the godly man,” the man of His covenant love for Himself. That's what we just read in Romans 8—what can separate us from the love of God? He has placed His covenant love upon us. A lot of things can be done to us, a lot of things can be said about us. Nothing in time and eternity can ever separate us from God. His love for us, that's amazing, amazing.

The Lord hears when I call to Him. We're back at verse 1, “Be gracious to me and hear my prayer.” And David had confidence He will. Why? Because he has earned it? No. God amazingly has set me apart as the object of His covenant love for Himself. We have the song, “I belong to Jesus, Jesus belongs to me. Not for the years of time alone but, some of you know, for eternity.” That's what the psalmist says. You know this confident, that's why some of the commentators title this psalm, A Psalm of Confidence in God because in it all permeates David's confidence. The Lord hears when I call Him. Isn't that what Jesus promised us? Whatever we ask in His name His Father will give us. We are to come with confidence, Hebrews 2 says, to the throne of grace to receive the help we need in time of need. Oh Lord, you know I shouldn't be coming again. I am His child, He says come, come with confidence, ask what you will. This is what the psalmist is doing. David, the man after God's own heart, not a perfect man but a righteous man, a man chosen by God to be the recipient of His love.

David's instruction to those who continue to oppose him, to tell lies about him is simple. “Tremble and do not sin.” What he is going to invite them to do in verses 4-5 is stop fighting against me, turn from your sin and worship the living God and He'll bring you joy. “Tremble and do not sin,” he wants the enemies to stop and consider and tremble in fear before the living God, stop their sin, realize why they are attacking David with these lies. It's because David is a child of God and the children of the devil hate the children of God. Stop it, consider yourself before the living God and be in awe and tremble. Stop your sin. “Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still.” You know at night when it is quiet, think through the day and you are going through your activities and they are spreading their lies. When you go to bed stop and think, you are accountable to the living God, your slanders, your accusations are an attack on the God who has provided His righteousness for me. “Meditate in your heart upon your bed,” and be still.

And the follow through on that, “Offer the sacrifices of righteousness and trust in the Lord.” I mean you recognize your sin and guilt before God and you tremble in fear of what have you been doing. You trust in the Lord and offer the sacrifices of righteousness, you join in worshiping God instead of being the enemy of God. Isn't it amazing? And David desires their salvation. He's not embittered, he wants the lies to stop. He is appealing to God to bring an end to that. But the way David would like God to bring an end to it is bring them to know God. And that will take care of it. “Offer the sacrifices of righteousness,” these are the sacrifices that come from a heart that has trusted in God and these have become the recipients of God's righteousness as David started out his prayer. Verse 1, “Oh God of my righteousness.” Now when you recognize your sin as sin against a holy God, then before Him you tremble. We call it repentance, desire to stop the sin. And you trust in the Lord. Now you can join in worshiping God instead of fighting against Him. Sacrifices of righteousness that come from hearts that have been changed.

Turn over to Psalm 51, a psalm of David, and just look at verse 17. He says in the preceding verses, physical sacrifices are not what God is looking for. Verse 17, “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and contrite heart, oh God, you will not despise.” That's what God is looking for, the heart. What did Jesus say to the woman of Samaria at the well? Where should we worship? You know people, unbelievers, are always focused if they are religious at all on the physical side of worship—baptism, communion, sacraments, the church is a holy place. Protestants and Catholics alike. Physical things, the Samaritan woman—is it better to worship at the mount in Samaria or at the mount in Jerusalem? Jesus says the mount in Jerusalem is where God appointed, but you understand that is not what makes worship acceptable. Those who worship God must worship Him in spirit and truth. Those are the ones God seeks to worship Him. Always looking to the physical—I go to church, I take communion, I've been baptized, I do a lot of good things, I'm a Sunday School . . . That's not what God is looking for, He's looking for a heart that has turned to Him, one who has been credited with the righteousness that only God can provide and now they respond with their worship. Those are sacrifices of righteousness, not because those sacrifices make a person righteous but they are an expression of a heart that is truly worshiping God. And thus are an expression of the righteousness they have received.

He continues in verses 6-8, God will provide joy and security for His people, they ought to have it. “Many are saying, who will show us any good?” And this is what the enemy says, that word many, we saw it up in Psalm 3, the many adversaries David had. “Many are rising up against me, many are saying there is no deliverance for him in God.” Here you have “Many are saying, who will show us any good.” You understand David is writing this to be sung within the nation Israel. These enemies are enemies, he's not thinking here of people in other nations, in other places, primarily. This is to be sung at the temple or the tabernacle in Jerusalem for the worship of the Jews who come there. “And many are saying, who will show us any good?” You know the slide over and as the Jews would happen to the Jews. God had made clear to them it's by faith, told their father Abraham, he “believed God and he was credited with righteousness.” Told them they had to have a circumcised heart, this sin of the heart, it's evil. The heart which is desperately wicked there has to be removal of that sin. The Jews slid into thinking, we have the Law, we try to keep the Ten Commandments, we go to the tabernacle or the temple, we offer sacrifices, we sing the songs led by the musicians, we listen to the Law being taught. Therefore we are saved. Now David, you ought to be showing us some proof because it looks like you have a lot of trouble in your life. A godly man, a man who is the object of God's love wouldn't have that. That's why the health and wealth preachers are so popular—God doesn't want you poor, God doesn't want you sick, God doesn't want you going from one difficulty to another. They say what we would like physically.

I was reading one this past week and he was asked the question, “they say you never talk about sin.” “I don't talk about sin, people have enough trouble in their life, I just want to talk about good things.” I don't want to talk about the Bible, he didn't say that, I did. But that's what he is saying. The psalmist here, those guilty of slanderous accusations against God's people are attacking God, now they want some physical proof. David's response is to call upon God. “Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, oh Lord.” And that comes from Numbers 6, the priests' blessing pronounced on the people when they came up. Let me read just the verses, Numbers 6:24, “The Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make His face shine on you and be gracious to you. The Lord lift up His countenance on you and give you peace.” David is praying, “Lift up the light of your countenance upon us, oh Lord.” Bring your blessings, be gracious to us. You have put gladness in my heart. I believe you will bring your peace, deliverance and blessing and answer to my prayer, Lord.

“You have put gladness in my heart.” It's a greater joy and gladness than when their grain and new wine abound. Those attacking him, they are glad when everything is going good, when they are prosperous. We had a great harvest, we are materially prosperous. That brings joy. It’superficial. But you know what God has done, He has brought joy to David's heart, a greater joy than the enemies of God can have when they have abundance of material things.

And so David closes with a statement of his confident trust in the Lord. “In peace I will both lie down and sleep, for you alone, oh Lord, make me to dwell in safety.” Isn't it great? All of us can identify, all of us know what it is like to have gone to bed with things on our mind and two hours after we're in bed we're staring at the dark ceiling and our minds are going a hundred miles an hour. And we are trying to sort out, and we're afraid about this, and how is this going to work out, and what happened here, and how will this go here, and what is going to happen if this continues, and what if that lie is believed by my boss and I end up losing my job, and what if this . . . Do you know what David says? I'm going to bed and go to sleep. Why? Well he just called upon the Lord. We'll get to this in our study in 1 Peter 5, “cast all your care upon Him because He cares for you.” Here Lord, you can have it. “In peace I will lie down and sleep.”

That's a good test, what am I doing awake tonight? Do I have some sin in my life I better take care of? Then maybe I better get out of bed and talk it over with the Lord. If I don't and I'm just worried and concerned about whatever, maybe I ought to say I better get up and read Psalm 4. “You alone, oh Lord, make me to dwell in safety.” Good to remember. Your life won't be destroyed by the slanderous lies, malicious intent of the unbeliever because no one else's sin can frustrate God's plan for you. My ministry will never be destroyed by the malicious lies of unbelievers. I can rest secure in that. It doesn't mean they won't do damage in one way or another, doesn't mean David, he feels the pressure. But God can relieve it and he moves on. We need that confidence so we can go to bed at night and sleep.

Now I talked with someone recently. I said, “it is easy to talk about this in my office. The hard thing is to do it.” And you know there are times when I have gotten up at night, no sense in laying here and looking at the ceiling any longer. Maybe I'll go over and sit at my desk. Do you know where I go? I go to the Psalms. Then I say, “here I am Lord, it's the middle of the night. I could be getting some good sleep and I'm here because I'm not trusting you. No sense in having a cover-up here. You know, Lord, my heart is in turmoil, you know I'm an emotional wreck and you know I need to trust you. Lord, it's all before you, you are the only one who can deal with it. If it's other people, Lord, I turn them over to you, I'd like them to have it resolved with you, whether it's their salvation or what. Lord, I want my heart to be right. I belong to you, I am your child by your love so I leave it with you. Now I'm going back to bed and I'm not going to think about it. Good night.”

So I've made four observations, I was going to say a couple of things but it's a couple of things a couple times. So quickly. First, we should not be surprised by slanderous and malicious attacks made against us. If you are believer you will have them to one degree or another and the more the Lord may use you the more you can be sure of attacks. Secondly, our first recourse is to go to the Lord in prayer, we seek His protection and deliverance. My first recourse is not to talk to someone else. That may be a help somewhere along the line, but you know we sometimes bypass the first step. We first think, I need someone to talk to. Well, take it to the Lord in prayer, as the song says. Maybe the first thing, Lord, before I talk to anyone else, I want to talk it over with you, I want to talk to you, I want to bring it to you because it is His work. If He uses someone else who is going to help me through it, that's fine. But it's not going to get done without Him. So go to the Lord first. Thirdly, we should call upon our enemies to turn from their sin and trust the Lord. I don't want to be driven to bitterness, hatred, animosity, that settled I can't get over it position. Get over it, I have to get over it. I want them to come to know the Lord. If they are a child of God, I want them to get right with the Lord; if they are not saved, I want them to experience the same forgiveness I have, that will bring God's righteousness to them, they'll recognize the miserableness of sin. They can experience the peace and joy and safety that comes to those who belong to the Lord. We want that for them, that's what we have. Lastly, our confidence is in the Lord. He has provided and protected us in the past, He'll keep us safe in the present and the future. Don't forget past blessings.

If you have been a believer very long you've realized there is somewhat of a cycle and all the trials, no matter whether they are slanderous, no matter whether something physically is done to you, no matter . . . It all comes back to the same thing, first of all they drive me to the Lord so I learn to trust Him, so I build endurance in my walk with Him, so that I am not moved off my foundation of firm trust in Him. Then get a good night's sleep. If you don't get a good night's sleep, that just adds to our problem. Some people just need to get a good night's sleep. Leave it with the Lord. If He doesn't want to remove it, it will be there for you in the morning. He'll give you the wisdom, then you can go back and read Psalm 3 for a morning prayer. Just keep it going until it is done.

Let's pray together. Thank You, Lord, for Your grace. Thank You for all You've provided for us. Lord, we are gathered in this auditorium and for the most part we are here because of Your grace in saving us. There may be some here who are here by Your grace to hear the message of Your salvation. But Lord, You are a great and gracious God. How privileged we are that You have placed Your love upon us, then in Your grace we turn from our sin, we tremble at the thought of our guilt before we trusted You. You cleansed us, credited us with Your righteousness, now we can lie down in peace, rest secure. We belong to You. We give You praise. In Christ's name, amen.