Ps 102 ‘Hear my Cry!’
Preached at Jubilee Church by Adrian Warnock
Prophetic preaching builds peoples hopes up.
It is vital how we see things- a sunset or a sunrise?
How do we see things?
Psalms are multifaceted in application. A prayer of a man in a cerain situation that speaks for all people .
Apply it prophetically to us today as individuals, a church and the church in this land.
Ps 102
Do Not Hide Your Face from Me
A Prayer of one afflicted, when he is faint and pours out his complaint before the Lord.
Something pathetic but rather understandable about this.
Victim mentality rife today. People DO attack one another.
The church is run down and opposed- it always has been.
My rights have been wronged, and I am in an intolerable situation or God is working it all out for my good
Don’t be surprised when things go wrong, and don’t let it drain you so you are weakened.
But we so often do, it is our false expectations of everything being fine that makes us despair or complain. WE say “nothing bad will happen to me” this just simply isn’t true. What do we believe God has promised us?
:He always keeps his promises In this world you will have troubles.
If we could work on our expectations we would be less likely to get to the point the psalmist is at .
It isn’t destroying faith to be realistic about things and still trust god But God is gracious to us, his answer to this predicament is for us to cry out to him. This prayer of a weary moaner is recorded as an example for us
102:1Hear my prayer, O Lord;
let my cry come to you!
2 Do not hide your face from me
in the day of my distress!
Incline your ear to me;
answer me speedily in the day when I call!
The plea
- a help me prayer CRYING to God- much easier sometimes to pray when things going badly. We can get complacent when things are going wrong- I went through a phase of this recently, when all was going well with my life
But all is NOT well with the world and with others- if we cant feel the distress of others, if it doesn’t disturb us that the church is not as it should be something is seriously wrong.
Come quickly lord- my favourite kind of prayer! ‘God help, o God help, help O God….’
V3-11
The predicament
-God feels distant- why? Can be when in trouble, although I believe he is close to the suffering if they will have him.
Often when things are well. Has been the case for me.
But whether we are distressed or not we need God and should cry out for him. Acually it is right to be distressed. World and church are in a state.
-needing to hear from God
-life rushing by
-strength and structure threatened
-discouraged. Our hearts can fail us. Being with some people will drain us. Others strengthen us.
- bread not just food but nourishment from others and most imp the word. Do we substitute ashes for spiritual bread? Matthew 4.4. But he answered, “It is written, “‘Man shall not live by breadalone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
We live in a time of famine of the word
-unable to rest
- full of sorrow
But he doesn’t wallow instead he prays and gets a clear vision of God
When we get to the end of ourselves we can begin Gods resources
Revival in Uk illustration
BUT God
12-22
The promise
He will do it and soon
What promises are over your life?
Check them out with elders and go for it if they confirm them
May take time, but at the right time it will come quickly
V23- 28
The new position of the pay-er weakened – not relying on his own strength
but leaning on a vision of the dependable God who keeps his promises
