Telling God My Complaints and Problems
Psalm 88:1-18
You can listen to a full recording of this message at http://www.nec.org.au/listen-to-a-sermon-series/responding-to-god-psalms/
Introduction to Reading
We are up to our sixth sermon in this series on the Psalms. Through this series we have learnt how to interpret the different “Genres” or types of Psalms which are in the Scriptures. The seven genres are:-
Hymns
Confidence
Remembrance
Kingship
Lament
Thanksgiving
Wisdom
This morning we are going to look at the family of Psalms known as Laments. In a Lament the Psalmist brings his complaints and problems to God. A Lament is also an occasion when the faithfulness and care of God is questioned.
Laments are very depressing, but they are also very real. They express the raw emotion of people who are disappointed by God and His actions. Many people can relate to the laments as they think about the activities which they have gone through. Some laments in the Psalms include:-
Psalm 3
Psalm 22
Psalm 42
Psalm 43
Psalm 44
Psalm 69
Psalm 80
Psalm 88
Psalm 109
The key to understanding these types of Psalms is to recognise that God allows us to express our emotions – even when those emotions question His faithfulness.
Today we are going to consider Psalm 88 which is perhaps one of the most depressing Laments. Usually, in a Lament, there is some sort of expression of confidence that God will respond. However the last word in the Hebrew version of Psalm 88 is “darkness”. As we read through this Psalm we might be surprised at the strength of the language used – but we cannot doubt that this Psalm gives expression to how we can feel at times.
Series: Responding to God
Telling God My Complaints and Problems
A sermon on Psalm 88
Read straight away.
A more literal way to translate the last verse of this Psalm would be:-
You have put loved one and neighbour at a distance from me, my acquaintances … darkness …
It doesn’t get much more depressing than that – does it? The Psalm starts with a small measure of hope. O LORD the God who saves me. But you soon get the sense that hope is a long way off.
A candle light in a sea of despair.
A tattered umbrella in a raging storm.
All this Psalm basically has to offer is verse after verse of grief, complaints, questions and doubts. In the end … darkness.
It is the most extreme example of a Psalm of Lament.
And it is so helpful for us, because it is so real.
Let’s use this Psalm this morning to see why Psalms of Lament are so important in our own walk with God … especially when our walk is one of disappointment. There are three ways that these Psalms help us.
Psalms of Lament remind us that God is big enough to deal with our complaints and questions.
Christians can be a strange lot sometimes. I have sat in conversations where a person has poured out their heart. They feel that God has let them down. They are worried about the future. They feel lonely and afraid. After conversations like this I encourage the person to pray. The pray just doesn’t match the moment.
“We praise You God for being so wonderful. You have provided all our needs. I am so thankful that You are in control.”
That is how the prayer will go. And it is all true. But it in no way reflects the emotions of the moment. It’s like people are afraid to tell God what is really going on. That somehow God will be offended by our honesty.
That is not what is going on in this Psalm at all.
• You have put me in the lowest pit, in the darkest depths.
• Why, O Lord, do You reject me and hide Your face from me?
• I have suffered Your terrors and I am in despair.
Isn’t it Your job to look after me? Shouldn’t I feel secure and have real hope? Didn’t You promise to walk with me? So why does it feel like you have forgotten me and You don’t care about me?
Now, of course we know that God is going to be there. And He is in control. And He is never going to let us go. We know in our mind that this is true … but it sure doesn’t feel like it sometimes.
Situations arise in our lives and we feel like our lives are falling apart.
We have made plans, but the plans come to nothing.
Relationships which were supposed to last for the long term have fallen into a hole.
Loved ones die … sometimes prematurely.
Our children don’t live as we had hoped.
There are 1001 reasons that might cause us to think that God doesn’t care. What do we do?
When life is getting you down tell God about it … HONESTY
Here are some examples from other Psalms of Lament.
My tears have been my food day and night, while men say all day long, “Where is your God?”. (Psalm 42:3)
Why must I go about mourning, oppressed by the enemy? (Psalm 43:2)
You have made us a reproach to our neighbours, the scorn and derision of those around us. All this happened to us, though we had not forgotten You or been false to Your covenant. (Psalm 44:14, 17).
Basically all of these Psalms are giving God a serve.
Yet God takes it.
And God has allowed such words to appear in the Scriptures.
Why? Because we have a God who knows that we need chances to express our disappointment and complaint. God wants a real relationship with us – and there are times when relationships go through rough patches.
Don’t hide from God what you are feeling … because God wants to know what is happening in your life. He is big enough – and He wants to hear from you. Which brings us to our second statement.
Psalms of Lament are the tools God uses to help us take off our masks and show who we really are.
Imagine if you ran into someone from our congregation and you asked them how they were going and they answered like this:
• My soul is full of trouble and my life draws near to the grave.
• I am confined and cannot escape; my eyes are dim with grief.
• Darkness is my closest friend.
This is really morbid stuff. Basically what he is saying is that it feels like he might as well be dead. Life is just all too much. It’s all so overwhelming.
Is that how we talk when we are going through difficult times? Do we share at this level? Or does something else happen? Where we put on a brave front and don’t think it is necessary to share our difficulties with others. We find it hard to hang out our dirty laundry and share our struggles. We will battle on by ourselves.
Why do we do it? I think there are many reasons why. The more important question at this time is, “Should we do it?”
Should we act as if everything is OK?
Should we put on a brave front?
Should we walk though our times of battle and doubt alone?
If we use this Psalm as an example then our answer has to be no. God wants us to be honest about how we feel … and express that to each other.
Why is honest so important?
Stop and think about a fire for the moment. One of those fires which has lots of coals in it. Now imagine that one of those coals rolls out and it is sitting by itself away from the rest of the flames.
What is going to happen?
Well eventually that coal is going to go out.
It needs the support of the other coals to be able to keep going.
That is why honesty about our struggles is so important.
We need to be honest because it is only when we are honest that we can really help one another in our spiritual journey.
I think there is a time when we all do it. We sit in this church building and we look around at everyone else.
Everyone else’s family seems to be in reasonable order. Everyone else seems to be coping with life quite well. Everyone else seems to have a pretty struggle-free life and, if it is not struggle-free, they are dealing with it with great spiritual maturity. Everyone else seems to have it all together … except for me. We all think that everyone else is going through life OK – and we are the only ones with problems.
We may not see it that way but that is how it happens.
The people you are sitting next to are not necessarily the people you think they are.
Those who you feel have great spiritual maturity are not necessarily firm in their faith.
The family which seems to have it altogether could be a family going through real struggles.
We all wear masks. We all hide behind what who we are supposed to be. We all try and live up to our reputations. It happens … but it shouldn’t.
Have a closer look at the title of this Psalm and you will see that it is written by Heman the Ezrahite. Let me read from 1 Kings 4:29 which is talking about the wisdom of Solomon. (Solomon) was wiser than any other man including Ethan the Ezrahite
You will notice that Ethan wrote Psalm 89.
(Solomon) was wiser than any other man including Ethan the Ezrahite—wiser than Heman, Calcol and Darda, the sons of Mahol.
Heman was no slouch when it came to wisdom. People used him to get an idea of the wisdom of Solomon. To be able to do that he must have been pretty well known. Yet it is this man who is having so much trouble and is really wrestling with God.
Heman took his mask off and revealed who he really was and what he was really struggling with. As a result we have a Psalm which expresses in a biblical way how we feel at times. We need to be honest in our spiritual journeys – the lamenting Psalms challenge us to have that honesty. Let’s look at one more statement to see another challenge they give us.
Psalms of Lament remind us that when life gets difficult we still need to be in communication with God.
As we read through this Psalm we could be under the impression that the Psalmist has basically given up on God. After all you don’t talk like this to God unless there are some real serious issues. But if we were to come to this conclusion we would be mistaken.
• O Lord, the God who saves me, day and night I cry out before You (verse 1).
• I call to You, O Lord, every day; I spread out my hands to You (verse 9).
• I cry to You for help, O Lord, in the morning my prayer comes before You (verse 13).
Yes it is true that the Psalmist is going through a really rough time. And it is also true that he has many doubts and questions. But Heman has not allowed this situation to stop him from coming before God in hope.
As believers we will go through difficult times … stressful times … faith testing times. When we go through those times one of our common defence responses is to withdraw and stop.
We withdraw from worshipping with fellow believers and we stop seeking their company.
We withdraw from our regular Bible reading and we stop our communication with God.
We withdraw from Christian company and we stop seeking their help and encouragement.
So often this is our response.
We might do it because we don’t want to feel like a hypocrite. How can you worship properly when you are feeling down or having struggles?
We might withdraw because we think others are judging us or because we assume they think less of us.
We stop our Bible reading and prayer because we feel that God is far away and there is no purpose in going on.
It is a common response … but the Lamenting Psalms caution us against such an approach.
God wants us to be honest. God is looking for honest communication. Why is that the case?
Even when we have complaints God wants us to communicate with Him because, ultimately, He is the answer to our problems.
To the people in the Old Testament the Lord said, I will be your God and you will be My people. God continues to say the same to us. And He says it to us through the cross of Calvary.
Those who are undeserving are given life.
Those who are deemed unworthy are given hope.
Those who are classified as unacceptable are given peace.
Those who have questions are given answers.
Those who have doubts are given a sure footing.
Those who have complaints are shown God’s ultimate care.
We can have our times of lamenting … wondering what God is doing. But even then we have to come back to the one who has it all in His hands and that he will be the answer to our darkness.
When it all goes wrong know that God is big enough to deal with our complaints as we take off our masks and communicate honesty with God and with others from the depths of our heart. That is what the Psalms of Lament teach us.
Prayer
