Part 20: How To Have God's Peace In Horrible Times Series

Great Prayers of the Old Testament

Part 20: How to Have God's Peace in Horrible Times

Psalm 37:1-11

Sermon by Rick Crandall

(Grayson Baptist Church - November 7, 2012)

(Revised March 27, 2025)

BACKGROUND:

*Anyone who has read a good portion of God's Word knows that there are a lot of prayers provided for us in the Bible. The Dake Annotated Reference Bible lists 222 different prayers in the Bible: 176 prayers in the Old Testament, and 46 prayers in the New Testament. (1)

*Today we continue a series on some of these great prayers. But first, have you ever wondered why there is so much pain and evil in the world. Many people do wonder about the pain and evil. If God is perfectly good, and He certainly is, why is there so much pain and evil in the world? John Phillips called his study of Psalm 37 "When Wickedness Triumphs on Earth" And Phillip's said, "King David wrote this psalm in his old age. It deals with a persistent problem, one that has puzzled people throughout history. How do we account for the fact that the lawless are often prosperous, and the godly often face the greatest possible hardships? (2)

*God's Word helps us understand what's going on, and what we should do when the hardships come our way. Let's get started by reading Psalm 37:1-11.

MESSAGE:

*Do you ever fret? -- Charles Spurgeon tells us that to "fret is to worry, to have the heart burn, to fume, to become vexed" (angry, irritated, agitated, annoyed). (3)

*Anybody who's been paying any attention to what's going on in our world has plenty of reasons to fret. And even if you aren't fretful about what's going on in the world, -- you can fret about your family, your friends, your job, your checkbook, or your health.

*Everybody gets fretful at times. But God wants us to stay up in the down times. And in this Psalm, God's Word shows us how to have God's peace in horrible times.

1. ONE THING WE MUST DO IS RUSH TO THE LORD FOR REFUGE.

*This is David's message to us in vs. 1-3, where the KJV says:

1. Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity.

2. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb.

3. Trust in the Lord, and do good; so shalt thou dwell in the land, and verily thou shalt be fed.

*The NKJV says:

1. Do not fret because of evildoers, Nor be envious of the workers of iniquity.

2. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.

3. Trust in the LORD, and do good; Dwell in the land, and feed on His faithfulness.

*David also tells us to trust the Lord in vs. 5, and in both cases the idea behind the original word for "trust" is rushing to someone for refuge and safety.

*Mary and I are pretty big dog lovers. And we have had at least one dog for most of our 50 years together. As far as I'm concerned, our dog, "Freckles" was the best dog in the world. And in all my years, I've only had a couple of bad experiences with a dog.

*One was in the first grade. It was summertime, and our next-door neighbors had gone on vacation, so, they asked me to feed their great big, mean-looking boxer. No problem, -- at least for the first two days. But on that third day for some reason, as soon as that dog saw me, he started growling. And I started backing up. When I got to the front yard, I started running as fast as my skinny legs could run. Half-way across, I glanced back and saw him coming. He was gaining every second! -- Yaaaah!

*I got to the screen door just in time. And as it slammed shut, I could feel his hot breath on my bare foot. I sure am glad that door was unlocked. Running for safety, running for your life: You will never find a safer place to run than to the Lord Jesus Christ. So we should trust in the Lord.

*And in the middle of Psalm 37:3 David reminds us that we should trust God enough to follow Him and walk in His ways. Or as David simply said: "Do good."

*"Do good." This is God's simple and sure command for us. Church, remember what Paul said about good works in Ephesians 2:8-10:

8. For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God,

9. not of works, lest anyone should boast.

10. For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.