SERMON OUTLINE:
(1). What David should do (vs 1)
(2). What the enemy does (vs 2)
(3). What can the righteous do? (vs 3)
(4). What God will do (vs 4-7)
SERMON BODY:
Ill:
• The year was 1606.
• The Scottish Covenanters were a group of people in Scotland;
• Opposed to the interference of the monarchy in the affairs of the Presbyterian Church.
• They had been hoping and praying that the new king of England;
• Would give them more religious freedom.
• Instead, King James VI took away what freedom they had.
• The foundations of law and order were being shaken and on the verge of collapse.
• In October of that year,
• The new regime had thrown John Welsh and his small group of Covenanters into prison.
• After being summoned to a night time trial,
• The prisoners marched to the court-room singing Psalm 11 from the Scottish Psalter,
• Beginning with the words, "I trust in God."
• Question: Why sing Psalm 11 when many of the Psalms encourage us to trust in God?
• Answer: Because Psalm 11 specifically contains faith's response to fear's counsel.
Psalm 11 comprises faith's reply to fear's advice.
• As you read this short Psalm;
• You soon discover that the psalmist is in danger from the wicked,
• Verse 2 tells us they are stringing their bows and shooting at him,
• These may be literal physical arrows or symbolic images,
• But either way the Psalmist is under attack and in danger;
• Someone is advising him to run away.
• "Fly to the mountains," they say;
• But the psalmist rejects their advice,
• Stating that his true refuge is found in God alone.
This Psalm teaches us we must choose:
• We must choose between fear i.e. walking by sight.
• Or we must choose to trust i.e. walking by faith.
• We must choose between heeding human counsel or divine counsel.
Ill:
• Two explorers were marching through the jungle;
• When suddenly a ferocious lion jumped in front of them.
• The first explorer whispered;
• "Keep calm, remember what we read in that book on wild animals?
• If you stand perfectly still and look the lion in the eye, he will turn and run."
• The second explorer replied:
• "Sure, you've read the book, and I've read the book. But has the lion read the book?"
• TRANSITION:
• Well you and I are able to read the book – to read this Psalm;
• May God grant us the wisdom to know when and where to advice given in in this Psalm!
Note: There are four parts to Psalm 11.
(1). What David should do? (vs 1):
“In the LORD I take refuge.
How then can you say to me:
“Flee like a bird to your mountain”.
• We do not know what particular crisis was in David's life;
• But by the descriptive language used it was distressing and dangerous one.
• He uses imagery of hidden enemies out to get him!
• He is given advice by his counsellors to flee Jerusalem as soon as he can;
• He should head for the safety of the mountains.
Ill:
• One of Aesop’s fables;
• Tells of an old man and his son bringing a donkey to the market.
• Passing some people on the way, they hear someone say:
• “Look at that silly pair - walking when they could be riding comfortably.”
• The idea seemed sensible to the old man,
• So he and the boy mounted the donkey and continued on their way.
• Soon they passed another group of people who said:
• “Look at that lazy pair, breaking the back of that poor donkey,
• tiring him so that no one will buy him.”
• The old man slid off, but soon they heard another criticism from a passer-by:
• “What a terrible thing, this old man walking while the boy gets to ride.”
• So they changed places,
• But soon heard people whispering,
• “What a terrible thing, the big strong man riding and making the little boy walk.”
• The old man and the boy pondered the situation;
• And finally continued their journey in yet another manner,
• They decided to carrying the donkey on a pole between them.
• As they crossed the bridge, the donkey broke loose, fell into the river, and drowned.
• Aesop’s moral: You can’t please everyone!
• TRANSITION:
• David did not have to please everyone – he was out to please just one – God;
• And he knew that advice telling him (and his court to flee);
• The verb ‘flee’ is in the plural.
• Was not good advice, it was unwise council and should therefore be rejected!
(2). What the enemy does (vs 2):
“For look, the wicked bend their bows;
they set their arrows against the strings
to shoot from the shadows
at the upright in heart.”
• The N.I.V has the word ‘Look’ in verse 2;
• And although not all translations use this word – it is helpful.
• It suggests that these advisors, these counsellors speaking to David;
• Are advising, are ‘looking’ at the situation from a human perspective.
• The panic that launched this Psalm was from the well-meaning advisors;
• It did not come from David!
• The mood of the advisors, the counsellors is one of extreme anxiety;
• The mood of David is one of peace and calmness.
• The statement in verse 1: “In the Lord I take refuge”.
• Is so definite that it would appear the Psalmist had already made up his mind;
• Before he sat down to write this Psalm.
Notice:
• David’s advisors are not malicious, they are not mischievous;
• Because ‘fleeing to the mountains’ or running to the hills meant safety!
• And David and his men knew that from past experience.
• There had been many times when David fled for his life;
• But on this occasion he knew that he must react differently!
• Note: These advisors are not wicked or deceitful men;
• They are well meaning friends who want the best for David;
• But their advice is flawed;
• Because they are looking at the situation from the wrong perspective.
• Again we can say that they are making choices driven by fear i.e. walking by sight.
• Whereas David will make choices based on trust i.e. walking by faith.
Ill:
• Someone asked Daniel Boone (American pioneer, explorer, and frontiersman);
• If he had ever been lost?
• He replied, “No, I have never been lost…
• but for about three days one time, I was thoroughly confused.”
• TRANSITION:
• For David the solution to his situation was not location;
• The important thing was attitude.
• His safety did not depend on his geographical location;
• His safety depended on his trust in the Lord.
Ill:
• Muriel Crooke and Rosamund Bond were two amazing British pioneers,
• These remarkable women organised the training of the first four British guide dogs,
• They started in 1931 and worked from a humble lock up garage in Merseyside.
• A few years earlier American Morris Frank,
• Brought the first Seeing Eye dog to the United States in 1927.
• The dog’s name was "Buddy,"
• And she was a beautiful German Shepherd from Switzerland.
• When they arrived in New York, they were met by a group of curious reporters.
• Morris described to them what Buddy could do,
• But all of the reporters refused to believe him.
• They challenged Morris to be led by Buddy across any street in New York,
• And he gladly accepted the challenge.
• The reporters choose West Street,
• A wide street roaring with speeding cars,
• Which amounted to a freeway in the middle of Manhattan.
• When Morris approached the noisy street, he could hear the wave of cars passing by.
• Holding tightly to the leather harness connecting him to Buddy,
• He literally put his life into her hands-or rather her paws.
• Listen to how one author described their incredible journey across that deadly street:
Quote:
• Buddy calmly stepped into the thundering maelstrom of trucks and cars.
• She darted, side stepped, leaped between and around & in front of the racing juggernauts.
• Horns sounded, brakes squealed, alarmed drivers leaned out and cursed,
• But Buddy and Frank made it to the other side.
• As they reached the curb, a taxi drove up; out of it stepped a press photographer.
• He had been forced to take a cab in order to follow Buddy and her master.
• The rest of the reporters were still on the opposite side of the street.
• Not one had had sufficient courage to make his way through the stream of traffic;
• That had been safely negotiated by a blind man and a dog!
• TRANSITION: Now that is trust!
• Morriss Frank was willing to put his life in the guiding animal called "Buddy,"
• His faith was not faulty or unsound;
• Because he knew that “Buddy” was trustworthy!
• For David the solution to his situation was not location;
• i.e. fleeing to the hills and mountains.
• The important thing for him was attitude.
• He knew his God and he knew his God was trustworthy;
• His knew also that his safety depended not on men but on God.
(3). What can the righteous do? (vs 3):
• N.I.V.: “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
• N.L.B.: “The foundations of law and order have collapsed. What can the righteous do?”
• G.N.B.: “There is nothing a good person can do when everything falls apart.”
• Verse 3 contains an important, a crucial question:
• “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
• I guess it is a pertinent question for us today:
• As we see laws being passed by our government;
• That we can clearly see run contrary to the Word of God.
• What shall we do when morality is undermined and evil sweeps on unchecked?
• What shall we do when the Bible is undermined and its teachings disregarded;
• What shall we do when even churchmen seem to support the rising tide of secularism?
• What shall we do when family values are crumbling?
• What can we do when everything around us seems to be giving way?
• Well in this Psalm;
• David's response was to ‘take refuge in the Lord’.
• The Oxford dictionary defines refuge as:
• ‘Shelter or protection from danger, from trouble’.
Ill:
• In 1776 a young man was walking through a gorge of Burrington Combe,
• A Mendip gorge close to Cheddar Gorge in England.
• When suddenly a terrifying storm swept down out of the sky.
• He was far away from the nearest village and he had no shelter,
• As he looked around for somewhere to hide,
• He saw a large rock ahead of him and thought that,
• If he leaned against it, he might escape some of the storms violence.
When he got to the rock he saw that it had been split open.
• And there was a crack into which he could fit
• He went in and was sheltered from the storm.
• While he was hiding inside the rock,
• He thought about God’s coming judgement;
• And of the fact that Jesus the Rock of Ages was broken by God;
• So that sinners like ourselves, who choose to hide in him, might be safe.
• Struck by this thought,
• He found a playing card that had been lying at his feet and wrote a hymn:
• The man’s name was Augustus Toplady;
• The hymn he wrote was “Rock of ages, cleft for me, let me hide myself in thee”.
• TRANSITION:
• David's response was to take refuge in the Lord;
• To discover him as a rock in which he could hide.
• Note: No-one can be certain of the background to this Psalm;
• David was often in danger and many of these Psalms were written as a result of that fact.
• But whatever the danger David found God a refuge in which to hide.
• The answer to the question posed in verse 3 is simple:
• “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?”
• The answer is simple: They can go on being righteous.
• And they can stand against the evil of their society,
• The one thing they must not do is "flee to the mountains."
Quote:
• The 35th President of the United States. J.F. Kennedy (Known by his initials JFK):
• “One person can make a difference and everyone should try”
Quote: Helen Keller the blind American author, political activist, and lecturer:
“I am only one; but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; I will not refuse to do something I can do.”
• So the answer to the question posed in verse 3:
• When everything in our world is going wrong and all seems evil;
• The man or woman of God, can go on being righteous.
• And they can stand against the evil of their society,
• The one thing they must not do is "flee to the mountains."
• They should not run away and hide! But stay and make a difference!
Quote: Jesus himself said: Matthew chapter 5 verse 13:
"You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot.
ill:
• One of the main purposes of salt is to slow down corruption.
• Connie an elderly lady telling me over a meal once,
• How they used to buy salt in blocks,
• A wagon would come round the streets of Eastleigh;
• Her parents would buy a block to rub in and preserve their meat.
• One of the main purposes of salt is to slow down corruption.
• Quote: "For wickedness to spread all it requires is for good men to do nothing".
Quote:
• Jesus went onto say in the next verse: Matthew chapter 5 verse 14:
• "You are the light of the world (not the Church). A town built on a hill cannot be hidden
Quote William Barclay:
"This may well be the greatest compliment that was ever paid to an individual Christian,
For in it Jesus commands the Christian to be what he himself claimed to be,
"The light of the world"".
Quote:
My life shall touch a dozen lives before this day is done;
Leave countless marks for good or ill, ere sets the evening sun.
This is the wish I always wish, the prayer I always pray:
Lord, may my life help other lives it touches by the way.
(4). What God will do (vs 4-7):
The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD is on his heavenly throne.
He observes everyone on earth;
his eyes examine them.
5 The LORD examines the righteous,
but the wicked, those who love violence,
he hates with a passion.
6 On the wicked he will rain
fiery coals and burning sulphur;
a scorching wind will be their lot.
7 For the LORD is righteous,
he loves justice;
the upright will see his face.
• Having answered the question in verse 3 (''What can the righteous do?");
• This next section is a reminder of where the righteous should look!
• When you look around you will see the problems;
• When you look up you see the Lord.
• And by faith we see the ultimate answer to those problems around us.
Quote: Charles Wesley knew it. He wrote of such times:
“Other refuge have I none,
Hangs my helpless soul on thee;
Leave, ah! leave me not alone,
Still support and comfort me.
All my trust on thee is stayed,
All my help from thee I bring;
Cover my defenceless head
With the shadow of thy wing”.
• This is what David does, he looks up to God.
• And verse 4 tells us what he sees:
• Three things are brought to our attention.
• God is still "in his holy temple" and he is still "on his heavenly throne"
FIRST: David reminds us that God is still on the throne – he is all powerful! (vs 4a)
• Notice the descriptive language he uses:
• “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne.”
• The temple represents God’s presence.
• The throne represents God’s authority and power!
• The temple represents God’s presence.
• Notice David looks to the Lord, who is "in his HOLY temple,"
• He is looking to the Lord as the moral standard;
• By which the thoughts and intents,
• Words and actions of all men and women will be judged.
• The throne represents God’s authority and power!
• The throne is the place from which God, the judge of the earth,
• Will render judgment – not a question of ‘if’ but of ‘when’.
SECOND: David reminds us that God is aware of the situation – he is all-seeing! (vs 4b):
“He observes EVERYONE on earth;
his eyes examine them”.
Ill:
• God is omniscient:
• A group of children was lining up for lunch in the cafeteria of a church primary school.
• At the head of the table was a bowl of juicy apples.
• The supervising nun wrote a note and placed it next to the apples:
• "Take only ONE. God is watching."
• At the other end of the table was a large pile of chocolate biscuits.
• A child had written a note and put it next to the plate:
• "Take as many as you want. God is watching the apples."
• TRANSITION:
• This Psalm remind us that from heaven Almighty God;
• Looks down upon men and women and he examines them.
• He observes all that people do.
• Quote: Proverbs chapter 15 verse 3:
• "The eyes of the LORD are everywhere, keeping watch on the wicked and the good."
Ill:
• This is particularly apt in a psalm that began with a warning in verse 2:
• Regarding those who shoot their arrows “from the shadows."
• They might be hiding in the darkness so that they might not be seen.
• And although David and his friends may not see them,
• The all-seeing God sees them.
• Their deeds are as apparent to him as if they were performed in bright daylight.
THIRD: David reminds us that God is judge of all – he is just! (vs 5-7):
• In these final verses he describes two contrasting scenarios:
• God judges the wicked;
• God rewards the righteous.
GOD JUDGES THE WICKED:
• David describes their judgement with two powerful images:
• Fire & brimstone – “He will rain fiery coals and burning sulphur”
• Similar to what the Lord sent on Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19:24);
• A blistering gale – “A scorching wind”
• Similar to what often blew from the desert.
• By using these images David maybe reminding himself that God's judgments do come,
• Though they may often be delayed.
• i.e. Sodom is a great biblical example of judgment.
GOD REWARDS THE RIGHTEOUS:
• David describes their reward with another compelling image:
• “The upright will see his face.”
• For someone to turn their face away from us means rejection or displeasure;
• But to turn your face towards someone means acceptance and approval.
Ill:
• How many of us love the priestly benediction used in the book of Numbers:
• (Numbers chapter 6 verses 24-26):
24 “‘“The LORD bless you
and keep you;
25 the LORD make his face shine on you
and be gracious to you;
26 the LORD turn his face toward you
and give you peace.”’
A persons face is very revealing:
• Ill: Often we can tell the emotions of people by the looks of their faces.
• Ill: You can tell when someone is not happy because their face will be “downcast.”
• Ill: if you were happy – it was aid that your face would “shine”.
Ill:
• Think about the difference between rainy days and sunny days.
• Rainy days can often seem very unpleasant; dark, cold, windy & miserable.
• And yet that same day if the sun comes out;
• It is able to be transformed into something beautiful.
• How good it is to know that when the stormy weather of life hits us;
• When we find our spirits are dampened by the sadness of unfavourable circumstances,
• We can have God’s face shine upon us?
• His light helps us to see clearly,
• Brightening our understanding of what is going on;
• And how He is in control working out His purposes.
• David describes their reward of the righteous with this compelling image:
• “The upright will see his face.”
• To “Turn your face” is to show pleasure, delight;
• It means you have been accepted and valued!
