David's Psalm Shows Deliverance From Despair

David is not the only person who has done this - not by a long shot. Philipp Nicolai was a Lutheran pastor at Unna in Westphalia. During this time, the plague took 1300 of his parishioners, mostly in the latter half of 1597, 170 in one week. According to what I have heard, the funeral processions went right past his window on the way to the graveyard. To comfort his parishioners, he wrote a series of meditations which he called Freudenspiegel (Mirror of Joy), and to this he appended two hymns, both of which have become world-famous. The first hymn was, "Wake, awake, for night is flying" (Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme). It uses the Parable of the Bridesmaids welcoming the Bridegroom to the Marriage Feast (Matthew 25:1-13), and of the Song of Triumph in Heaven (Revelation 19:6-9). The second hymn was, "How Lovely Shines the Morning Star" (Wie schoen leuchtet der Morgenstern). This also, with a wealth of imagery, hails Christ as our deliverer, and celebrates his triumph. We sing it during Epiphany.

Another famous Lutheran hymn writer was Paul Gerhardt. In his history, the Elector published an edict the Lutherans to join with the Calvinists in their preaching and teaching. A great number of clergy refused to sign the edict, including Gerhardt. Early in 1666 he was deprived of his congregation. Three of his five children had already died in infancy, and then he lost one of his two remaining sons. In the midst of this his wife, worn out by sorrow and anxiety, fell into a long and slow decline. When she died, Gerhardt was left with only one child, a boy of 6 years. Many of his most beautiful hymns were written at this time, and among others, "If God Himself Be For Me”. Listen to just verse one -

If God himself be for me, I may a host defy;

For when I pray, before me My foes, confounded, fly.

If Christ, my head and master, Befriend me from above,

What foe or what disaster Can drive me from his love?

These are the songs we have in our hymn book. We also sang David’s psalm this morning. The reason we have these songs is for you to express your emotions and your feelings and your faith to the Lord - and to encourage one another in the faith. This is why we teach our children these songs in Sunday School. They become a part of who we are - our very heritage. When we sing “A Mighty Fortress is Our God” we express Psalm 46 - that God is our refuge. It reminds us that God kept Martin Luther safe even in the midst of his many death threats. When we sing “I know that my Redeemer Lives” at a funeral - we are reminded of the words of Job - and assure one another that there will be a resurrection from the dead.

Did you notice what this prayer and song did for David? Do you see the sharp contrast that takes place from the beginning of the psalm to the end of the Psalm?

• Away from me, all you who do evil, for the LORD has heard my weeping.

• The LORD has heard my cry for mercy; the LORD accepts my prayer.

• All my enemies will be ashamed and dismayed; they will turn back in sudden disgrace.