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Psalm 22:22-28, NIV
22 I will declare your name to my people; in the assembly I will praise you.
23 You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you descendants of Jacob, honor him! Revere him, all you descendants of Israel!
24 For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.
25 From you comes the theme of my praise in the great assembly; before those who fear you I will fulfill my vows.
26 The poor will eat and be satisfied; those who seek the Lord will praise him; may your hearts live forever!
27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him,
28 for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.
It’s the first Sunday of 2023 - a day of reflection, looking back, resolving to do better, thinking about changes that need to be made. It’s a day of looking forward, promise, hope, and celebration. It’s a day very much like this Psalm. Psalm 22 begins as a lament - a desperate plea to God from someone who knows how much he needs God. The terms are clear - without God there is no hope. With God there is always hope, and David gives us a map here, finding hope when challenges are all around us
There are many stories of people who have come back from the bottom of where sin and deceptions of the enemy take us. Peter came back from three denials. David came back from adultery and murder. Abraham came back from lies and attempting to manipulate God. John Mark came back from a fearful abandonment of the mission. One thing all of these comeback stories have in common: God brought them back when they surrendered to Him.
For 21 verses David pours out his lament before God. He doesn’t brag about being a king, or the exploits of his mighty men. He doesn’t write beautiful poetry here - he cashes it all in and declares himself bankrupt before God. (Note some of the phrases…)
Why have you forsaken me?
Why are you making me endure this anguish?
I wait for you but don’t hear you, I cry out but I don’t see you
I am a worm of a man, scorned, despised, mocked, insulted.
I am encircled by the enemy, lions are seeking to devour me
I’m exhausted and famished, close to giving up.
I NEED YOU TO HEAR ME, HELP ME, DELIVER ME, AND SAVE ME. I KNOW WHO YOU ARE. I KNOW WHAT YOU HAVE DONE, for the world, for your people, and for me! I will praise you no matter what.
Maybe for some of you, this will be a comeback year - or a time when you remember what you’ve come from - to where you are now - to where you want to be. That won’t happen in your own power but in the power of God. And he is always there for you.
The new direction, new life, and new year principles that follow will help us rebound and restart our Christian journey and commitment.
Four actions that empower our lives in this new year:
1. TALK
Psalm 22:22-23 ESV 1“I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise you: You who fear the Lord, praise him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify him, and stand in awe of him, all you offspring of Israel!
Talk About your deliverance, the Lord, Jesus, with each other.
Talk about the transformation.
Saul on the road to Damascus- this event became the seed for his witness
The woman at the well- Come and see this man who saved me
Nehemiah 2:18 - the hand of my God that had been upon me for good.
This is the familiarity, the relationship, the closeness of God in our lives through His son Jesus, and in His body, the church. We pray, we spend time in the Word, and this flows from us in how we speak, and behave. We are not trying to sell it (the gospel) to others, instead, we can’t resist trying to give it to others.
It is our deliverance and self-awareness as David expresses in this Psalm. The deliverance that God has provided/promised for you- is what is most impactful. Talk about Jesus with others, but talk about what it means to you. Why do you love Jesus? Why do you commit to a body of believers? Like David in Psalm 22:19-21 (strengthen me, rescue me, deliver me) we can give an answer to those who ask the reason for our hope (1 Peter 3:15).
2. TEACH
Psalm 22:24 NIV For he has not despised or scorned the suffering of the afflicted one; he has not hidden his face from him but has listened to his cry for help.
Part of having an extraordinary year is to take advantage of the opportunities to help people understand who God is. This can be described as Teach/Instruct/Guide/Mentor.
In his own struggle, David affirms some things about God. He hasn’t ignored the suffering of those who hurt. He hasn’t abandoned those who struggle. He has listened to their cries for help.
There were some in the Bible who believed that if something bad happens to you - you must have done something wrong. Job’s friends had a perspective that his troubles came because he sinned and would not repent. In John 9 the disciples encounter a man born blind and their first question is: “who sinned?” Sometimes people talk about Karma - a doctrine of the Buddhist and Hindu religions. Today people feel abandoned by God in their most difficult trials. It is our job to help them come to know the God we know. A God who loves, not despises, leads, not abandons, and listens, not ignores.
Psalm 22:24 The MSG “He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening.”
3. SERVE
Psalm 22:25-27 ESV From you comes my praise in the great congregation; my vows I will perform before those who fear him. The afflicted shall eat and be satisfied; those who seek him shall praise the Lord! May your hearts live forever! All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before you.
Live the Jesus Life Out Loud! Make a Global Impact
In this Psalm, David is not in a negotiation. David isn’t making any promises to fulfill if God holds up his end of the bargain. At the beginning of this passage, he basically says my life is in shambles, I can’t hold it together on my own, I need deliverance, and whether you hear me or not, I’m going to praise you, I’m going to praise you in public, I’m going to speak lift your name and glorify you in front of everyone, and although I’m a wreck, people will know who YOU in spite of me and my shortcomings.
And here David says he is going to make sure the afflicted are cared for.
Of course, as you read this you can see all of the prophecies, maybe inadvertent prophecies of things that Jesus would say at Golgotha, but you can also see that David is responding to his salvation by caring for God’s people, the meek, afflicted those who struggle to care for themselves.
If you look at the life of Jesus on earth, it ends with him calling out to God for deliverance in the face of scorn, pain, mocking insults, and casting lots for his garments. After his resurrection and before his ascension he gives his disciples instructions. The gospel of Matthew and Mark end with “Go into all the world”. John ends with Jesus telling Peter, in front of the disciples “If you love me feed my sheep”. Luke’s gospel ends with the ascension but in Acts, we get details on what Jesus said before he ascended, and he tells them to “be witnesses”.
Go, Do, and Be
David, in the midst of a grueling kingship in which his people have turned on him, his enemies surround him, and he is near the end of what he can bear, embraces a mission. I’m going to praise you Lord, I’m going to shout your name, I’m not going to quit, I’m not going to hide, I’m not going to forget who I am.
2 Samuel 7 David had been established as King, God sends a message to David through Nathan that says (in a nutshell) you will usher in an eternal kingdom, my love for you will be steadfast and faithful, even though you will experience some discipline for poor choices, but you will know that I am the Lord. David responds with a vow of his own- I will always praise you, I will tell others of your greatness, and I will be your servant.
Now, you and I have a covenant with God, who has delivered us and invited us into an eternal kingdom. Worship is the natural reaction, the overflow of recognizing what God has already done in his steadfastness and faithfulness. But our end of the bargain is to follow Jesus, his steps, and his words. Like David, we are servants.
As Jesus said…I did not come to be served but serve (Matthew 20:28). Go into all the world, feed my sheep, witness, tell others, and show others of my love.
In the past, God has shown his deliverance, to David, and to me, so I will tell others.
We talk, we teach, and we serve God’s children, in our everyday environment, in places close by, in places where we have enemies, and in places we may travel one day. There is no organized ministry you have to sign up for. You are chosen, saved, and equipped! The waiting is over and opportunities abound. No training is necessary, just remember God’s work in your life, tell others of what is to come, and love others as yourself.
4. PRAISE
Psalm 22:27-28
All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, 28 for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations.
Following David’s example here is crucial to having an extraordinary year - to learn to praise God in desperate and difficult times is to recognize His power, strength, and presence - far beyond our own. So we Honor/Praise/Worship/Glorify God, even when things are not going as we would like them.
Psalm 22:27-29 The MSG “From the four corners of the earth people are coming to their senses, are running back to God. Long-lost families are falling on their faces before him. God has taken charge; from now on he has the last word. 29 All the power-mongers are before him —worshiping! All the poor and powerless, too—worshiping! Along with those who never got it together —worshiping!”
God moves us from the bottom of our struggles to the reality that we are his Children, He is our King, and He can give every nation hope in Christ. Praise Him for who he is, what he has done for you, what he can do for those you talk to, teach, and serve -that he uses you to spread the word of the Kingdom … so the poor and powerless can all worship Him together.
Conclusion
This year Forsythe Church should continue to seek to be a church that Loves, Serves, Grows Together! Actions that lead us: Talk, Teach, Serve, Praise. For Forsythe Church to be engaged in this way, every individual member and attender must seek to be engaged in this way.
In Romans 12 Paul urges every Christian to be active in talking, teaching, serving and praising:
We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is prophesying, then prophesy in accordance with your faith; if it is serving, then serve; if it is teaching, then teach; if it is to encourage, then give encouragement; if it is giving, then give generously; if it is to lead, do it diligently; if it is to show mercy, do it cheerfully. - Romans 12:6-8
The simple principles of talking, teaching, serving, praising will make for an extraordinary year. What first steps do you need to take today, on this first day of the new year?
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Here is an interesting article from Psalm 22 you might enjoy studying as a follow-up to this lesson:
5 ALLUSIONS TO PSALM 22 AT CHRISTS CRUCIFIXION
https://www.logos.com/grow/5-allusions-to-psalm-22-at-christs-crucifixion/
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