CALL ON GOD
Text: Psalm 55:16
Who brought their cell phone tonight? Americans love their cell phones. Remember when phones were just for calling people? Now you can take pictures and movies with your cell phone, you can play games on your cell phone, or even use it to surf the net.
For young people, cell phones are a lifeline to their friends. In school, we have to make rules about cell phone usage because if we don’t the students won’t pay attention to the teacher and will spend all their time in class texting one another!
Cell phones can be a distraction too. How many of us have ever been in the middle of an important conversation with someone only to be interrupted by a cell phone? It is common courtesy to turn off your cell phone during doctor’s appointments, meetings at work, or at church.
Tonight I have asked you to bring your cell phone because I want this sermon to be memorable. Our text tonight is Psalm 55:16. I will refer to the text several times throughout the message, and every time I do I would like for you to hold your cell phone to your ear and read that verse with me. I know…some of you are thinking, “Yeah, Shawn has lost all his marbles now!” If nothing else, just humor me for a few minutes, and I promise that you will never forget what happens here tonight. Deal? Let’s practice. The text tonight is Psalm 55:16, “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” Good job! So let’s begin the sermon!
We all have cell phones at our house, but just a few years ago we debated about whether or not to get one for Heather and Holli. We finally decided to get one for emergency reasons. Heather was driving and you never know when you are going to have a flat or when the car won’t start. Cell phones are great when you need to call for help.
I want to tell you about several people in the Bible that needed to call for help. The first one is a young man by the name of David. The Bible calls David a man after God’s own heart, but he was certainly no stranger to trouble. He had lots of it! On one occasion there was a group of wicked men chasing David in an attempt to kill him. After running through thick forests and hiding in dark caves, David decides to pull out his cell phone and call for help. He dials Psalm 55:16, “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” Listen to his conversation, recorded in Psalm 86:
“Bend down, O Lord, and hear my prayer; answer me, for I need your help. Protect me, for I am devoted to you. Save me, for I serve you and trust you. You are my God. Be merciful, O Lord, for I am calling on you constantly. Give me happiness, O Lord, for my life depends on you. O Lord, you are so good, so ready to forgive, so full of unfailing love for all who ask your aid. Listen closely to my prayer, O Lord; hear my urgent cry. I will call to you whenever trouble strikes, and you will answer me.” (Psalm 86:1-7)
David knew that when he was in trouble, the best person to call for help was the Lord. God took David’s call and sent the help that he needed. David wrote, “With all my heart I will praise you, O Lord my God. I will give glory to your name forever, for your love for me is very great. You have rescued me from the depths of death!” (Psalm 86:12, 13)
The good news is that you’re in trouble you can call God too. As a matter of fact, God wants you to call Him! Listen to what God says in Psalm 50:15: “Trust me in your times of trouble, and I will rescue you, and you will give me glory."
David isn’t the only person that ever ran into trouble. In the book of Daniel we read about three boys named Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. These boys were in a strange land, far away from home. The king decided to set up a large statue downtown in the park, and hired a band to stay by it and play every now and then. He passed a law that whenever the band played everyone there had to kneel down and worship the statue. Well, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego decided that they were gonna do their own thing and not bow down to worship this statue. After all, they served the living God of Israel, and He was the object of their worship. So one day, the boys are walking downtown, and the band starts jamming. The crowd falls to their knees and, before you know it, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego are the only ones left standing. The Babylon Police Department show up and arrest the boys and take them to see the king.
The king tells the boys that rules are rules, and that he will give them one more chance to obey or he will have to throw them in a fiery furnace. The boys take a moment, take out their cell phones, and dial Psalm 55:16, “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” They turn to the king and say, “Well king, we’ve decided to not bow down to your statue. Punish us if you need to. God is able to save us, but even if He chooses not to, we’re still not going to bow down to that statue!”
The king was furious and had the three boys thrown in the furnace. The king comes by to see how things are going. He looks in the window, and says, “Hey! Wait a minute! Didn’t we throw three boys in there? Who is that fourth person in there with them? And why aren’t they being hurt by the fire?” The king gives the order to let the boys out, and when they come out, they are not burned and they don’t even smell like smoke. God had been walking in that fire with them! He took their call and sent the help that they needed! Listen to what it says in Psalm 145:18: “The Lord is close to all who call on him, yes, to all who call on him sincerely.” God was close to those boys in the furnace, and He will be close to you when you need Him most too!
One more story. Later in the same book, there was a man by the name of Daniel. The Bible describes Daniel as a righteous dude that served as a close advisor to the king. Several men were jealous of Daniel, and they wanted his job. So they devised a scheme to get him in trouble. They talked the king into passing a law forbidding anyone from praying for a whole month. They knew Daniel prayed three times every day, and that he wouldn’t stop just because this law had been passed.
Daniel hears the news, and realizes that he is in trouble. What does he do? He pulls out his cell phone and dials Psalm 55:16, “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” The wicked men see Daniel praying, and go straight to the king to tell on him. The king orders for Daniel to be thrown into a den of lions! So the Persian Police Department break into Daniel’s apartment, put him in handcuffs, and take him downtown.
Now the king really liked Daniel, and he didn’t really want to throw him in the lions den, but rules are rules, and he sends Daniel away. The next morning the king goes to the lions den to see what had happened, and something amazing takes place! Daniel is still alive! The lions hadn’t put a scratch on him! God had taken Daniels call and sent the help that he needed!
I know that David wrote it, but Daniel may have said something like Psalm 4:3, “You can be sure of this: The Lord has set apart the godly for himself. The Lord will answer when I call to him.” And you can be sure too! God will answer when you call on Him!
Sooner or later we all find ourselves in trouble. It might be for something small…your report card is in the mail, or you need help finding your math homework. It might be for something a little more serious, like you just found out that your boyfriend is cheating on you, or your friends are making fun of you because you are a Christian. Or, it might be really serious, like you are being molested by a relative, or your grandpa has just been diagnosed with an incurable disease. Whatever the problem, you can always take out your cell phone, and, just like David or Daniel, call Psalm 55:16, “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” Tell Him what is going on. Ask for His help and listen for His answer. He’s promised to help you if you call.
Before I close, let me take this opportunity to warn you about something. You may be in serious trouble right now and not even realize it. The Bible says that “no one is righteous – not even one.” (Romans 3:10) It also says that everyone has sinned, and that the result of sin is death. But listen to what the Bible says in Romans 5:8, 9: “But God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. And since we have been made right in God's sight by the blood of Christ, he will certainly save us from God's judgment.”
Remember that lie that you told last week? Sin. Remember about a month ago when you disobeyed your parents? Sin. Remember that rumor that you help to spread yesterday? Sin. And the punishment for sin is death, but Jesus died in your place so that you don’t have to. It’s already been paid for. What should you do? Call upon God.
You don’t really need a cell phone. Just bow your head where you are right now and ask for His help. Admit that you’ve sinned and that you deserve to be punished. Tell him that you want to accept Jesus’ gift of salvation. Give your life to Him and live for Him the rest of your life. Just like God helped David, Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, He will help you too. Listen to these promises in God’s Word: "Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." (Romans 10:13) “But I will call on God, and the Lord will rescue me.” (Psalm 55:16) It’s up to you – He’s waiting for your call.
