“Soul Talk: When They Want to Bring Me Down”
Ps. 27
It was a tough period in ministry. A discovery was made that demanded we release a staff person for moral, spiritual, biblical, and safety reasons. Because of the sensitive and potential legal ramifications of the situation, it took us a few days to get our ducks in a row and announce the dismissal to the congregation. In the meantime the staff person, knowing it was coming, made a pre-emptive strike. He put a resignation letter in the church mailboxes of some, but not all, church members; he put it in the boxes of those closest to him who were as yet unaware of what was happening. In the letter of resignation he said he was resigning because of my lack of support for him and he could no longer carry on ministry because of it. Suddenly a clear cut case of staff dismissal became, on the part of some, a crusade against me. Suddenly I was under review for job performance, and attention was diverted from the crucial situation at hand. This staff person had, apparently, decided that if he was going down, so was I. He wanted to bring me down.
Perhaps that’s why I have a special love for Psalm 27. While it is often pointed to as a Psalm dealing with the subject of fear, I believe it was written for those facing opposition, those dealing with others who want to bring them down. That’s precisely what David was facing.
DAVID FACED OPPOSITION. (2-3, 12)) “When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident…false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations.” The opposition was doing everything they could to discredit David – spreading rumors, telling lies, bringing false charges, speaking with malice. They were trying to bring him down.
OPPOSITION IS ALL AROUND US. A pastor sent some of his associate pastors into a village. They evangelized by knocking on doors and as God brought healing and deliverance into these families, they would come to Christ. They once knocked on the door of a policeman, a very active member of one of the political parties that is very much against Christianity. He arrested them on the spot. They were arrested for this horrible crime of praying for people, taken to the prison.
The pastor heard about this and he went to the jail to convince that they were not doing anything wrong. But before he got there, there were about 50 people waiting. They beat him up and knocked him unconscious. Some friends of his saw him there and took him to the hospital.
Opposition is all around us. In 2006 executives at NBC added Veggie Tales—a popular and thoroughly Christian cartoon—to its Saturday morning lineup. But Bob the Tomato and Larry the Cucumber got nuked, as many of the pertinent references to God and Scripture were deleted from each episode. Initially, NBC stated that the cuts were simply a way to fit each episode into a tight, 23-minute slot. But as Christians began to investigate, it soon became clear that there was more to the story. After being pressured from several organizations to explain its leeching of biblical content, NBC released the following statement: "NBC is committed to the positive messages and universal values of VeggieTales. Our goal is to reach as broad an audience as possible with these positive messages, while being careful not to advocate any one religious point of view." Phil Vischer, the co-creator of Veggie Tales, expressed deep disappointment in the edits. "It's a mistake to pitch VeggieTales as just values," he said, "because fundamentally it's about God." Bob Bozell, the president of Parents Television Council and the Media Research Center said, "Today, no one in network TV fears what the children are watching—unless it makes them think about God." (1)
Opposition is all around us. The Institute for Jewish and Community Research surveyed 1,200 professors from a cross-section of colleges, seeking "their attitudes toward various religions." The research was originally aimed at gauging anti-Semitism, but something else was discovered. The professors stated they had positive feelings toward Jews and Catholics, but 53 percent said they possessed unfavorable feelings toward students who were evangelical Christians. In his article "Why Christians Feel Unwelcome on Campus," David French offers his own conclusion on the matter: "For evangelicals, it came through loud and clear. The academic establishment has long dismissed stories about bias against Christians as mere anecdotes. But now we have concrete evidence of sheer bigotry. Our colleges clearly have a religion problem, and faithful students and professors are paying the price." (2)
Facing opposition David had to CHOOSE FAITH OR FEAR. Opposition is all around us. Where have you seen it? Who or what has tried to stop you dead in your tracks, and sought to bring you down? A co-worker? A boss? A fellow board member? A friend? A competitor? A loved one? What or who is the enemy you’re facing? Which perspective will you choose - faith or fear?
David took stock of what he had on his side and in his possession and CHOSE THE PERSPECTIVE OF FAITH. Verse 1: “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear?” The first thing God did when He created the earth was bring forth light. Why? Because light is the source of life – and as such throughout Scripture it comes to be the source of salvation, deliverance, rescue, and well-being. David reasoned that if God was light HE WAS THE SOURCE OF HIS LIFE - his deliverer and source of well-being, so there was no need fear. After all, he could find refuge in the Lord. “The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?” This perspective enabled David to choose faith; he believed that even if his enemies brought an army against him, he had a far greater power in His side.
This perspective MAKES ALL THE DIFFERENCE IN HOW WE HANDLE OPPOSITION. Following Sunday worship services on January 8, 2006, five young men attacked and threatened to kill a Protestant church leader in Turkey's fourth largest city. Kamil Kiroglu, 29, had just left his church in Adana when he was ambushed and beaten so severely that he fell unconscious twice. "They were trying to force me to deny Jesus," Kiroglu said. "But each time they asked me to deny Jesus and become a Muslim, I was saying, 'Jesus is Lord.' The more I said, 'Jesus is Lord,' the more they beat me." One of the attackers pulled out a long butcher knife and threatened to kill Kiroglu if he did not deny his Christian faith and return to Islam. Kiroglu refused. After the incident, he said, "I am praising God—not because he saved me from death, but because he helped me not to deny him in the shadow of death."(3) “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?”
Jim Caviezel was thirty-three when he played Jesus in The Passion of the Christ. Caviezel has said his faith is his guide, both personally and professionally, and that God "called" him to the acting profession. Before casting the actor to play Jesus, Mel Gibson (the film's producer and director) told the up-and-coming actor that the role might cost him his career. Caviezel, a confessing Christian, wanted to honor his Lord by portraying his life and death. So he responded to Gibson, "We all have a cross to carry. I have to carry my own cross. If we don't carry our crosses, we are going to be crushed under the weight of it." In fact, Caviezel's decision to "carry the cross of Christ" has definitely cost him career opportunities. Following his role in The Passion of the Christ, Caviezel's credits have been anything but impressive. He starred in the little-known thriller Unknown, had a supporting role in the Denzel Washington's film Deja Vu, and had the leading roles in Outlander, and The Stoning of Soraya M—both of which were panned by the critics. Not until the fall of 2011 did Caviezel land a part that resulted in a positive buzz. His role in the CBS television series Person of Interest has been well-received. But Caviezel said he doesn't worry about the career price he paid with that film—a global box-office smash that led to fewer, not more, film offers for him. "The awards, the hall of fame" that actors get into here on Earth, he said, don't matter to him. His reward, he said, will come in heaven. Caviezel said, "Jesus is as controversial now as he has ever been. Not much has changed in 2,000 years …. We have to give up our names, our reputations, and our lives to speak the truth."(4) Like David, Jim Caviezel chose faith. “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?”
The Apostle Paul had the same foundation for faith. (Rom 8:31-34) “In view of all this, what can we say? If God is for us, who can be against us? Certainly not God, who did not even keep back his own Son, but offered him for us all! He gave us his Son—will he not also freely give us all things? Who will accuse God's chosen people? God himself declares them not guilty! Who, then, will condemn them? Not Christ Jesus, who died, or rather, who was raised to life and is at the right side of God, pleading with him for us!” Why fear the opposition? Christ died for us, He is in the position of power at God’s right hand, and He intercedes for us! . “The LORD is my light and my salvation—whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life— of whom shall I be afraid?”
In David’s perspective, God was the source of life, and therefore THE FOCUS OF HIS FAITH. (4 & 8) “One thing I ask from the LORD, this only do I seek…” ONE THING. It’s critical to focus on the one thing, the critical thing that will makes the difference in life. Remember Mary & Martha hosting the Lord Jesus? (Lk. 10:42) Jesus said, “Martha, Martha! You are worried and troubled over so many things, but just one is needed.” And recall Paul, while in prison, writing (Phil 3:12-14), “I don’t mean to say that I have already achieved these things or that I have already reached perfection. But I press on to possess that perfection for which Christ Jesus first possessed me. No, dear brothers and sisters, I have not achieved it, but I focus on this one thing: Forgetting the past and looking forward to what lies ahead, I press on to reach the end of the race and receive the heavenly prize for which God, through Christ Jesus, is calling us.” Our Lord Jesus knew the one thing as well. “I have come to do my Father’s will.” It was His one thing – so much so that when he wrestled in the Garden of Gethsemane with His impending crucifixion, He ended His prayer with “Nevertheless, not my will but yours be done.” One thing. What, for you, is the ‘one thing?’
For David that one thing is “that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple… My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, LORD, I will seek.” David wanted to BE PRE-OCCUPIED WITH GOD’S PRESENCE IN AND WILL FOR HIS LIFE. In fact, he saw that as his place of refuge (5): “For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock.” In the ancient Near East, when a visitor entered his host's tent, the host was personally responsible for his protection and provision, and the flimsy tent became a fortress. David knew that God was his tent – that God would protect and provide. That’s why David prayed (11) for God to teach him the right, the holy way to live.
For us this desire is FULFILLED IN CHRIST; He calls us to abide in Him and promises to abide in us (John 15:4). The Greek verb for “abide” means “to dwell, to remain.” When we receive His Spirit we dwell in Him, and His presence remains with us for eternity. Our dwelling is to remain in Christ and to allow His Spirit’s presence to fill us unceasingly. He teaches and empowers us to live in the right, the holy way.
By choosing the perspective of faith David STRENGTHENED HIS FAITH. Even as he began his Psalm, so he ends it - with his profession of faith. (13-14) “I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” Note his CONFIDENCE: “I will see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.’ The King James Bible translates it this way: “I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.” David said that without his faith he would never had made it. David knew that God’s goodness and presence were not just a future blessing, but a current reality. He repeats it in Ps. 31:19-20 (MSG): “What a stack of blessing you have piled up for those who worship you, Ready and waiting for all who run to you to escape an unkind world. You hide them safely away from the opposition.
As you slam the door on those oily, mocking faces, you silence the poisonous gossip.” David deposited his life in the hands of God, confident that he shared in the blessings God has stored up for those faithful to Him. Through the prophet Malachi God tried to instill the same confidence (3:10 NLT): “Bring all the tithes into the storehouse so there will be enough food in my Temple. If you do,” says the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, “I will open the windows of heaven for you. I will pour out a blessing so great you won’t have enough room to take it in! Try it! Put me to the test!” CONFIDENCE MOVES US FROM FEAR TO FAITH!
The pine cones of the lodgepole pine are not easy to break to let animals and birds gather the seeds as with some of the other pine cones. Their seeds come out only under extreme heat. Lodgepole pines are designed by God to reseed the forest after a fire. In other words, they are specifically created by God for opposition. The seeds are dormant until they are needed after a crisis. The opposition of the extreme heat brings about the release of the life-giving seeds so that the reforesting can begin. (5) David chose faith and was willing to endure the heat so his life could release life-giving seeds. THROUGH FAITH FIRE PRODUCES SEEDS OF LIFE.
It was this confidence and commitment that led David to say (14,) “Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.” It determined David’s CONDUCT. Pray, meditate, worship, be quiet! Don’t hurry God. Come to think of it, that was Jesus attitude and faith. There were many who tried to bring Him down. (Is. 53:7 GNT). “He was treated harshly, but endured it humbly; he never said a word. Like a lamb about to be slaughtered, like a sheep about to be sheared, he never said a word.” From David and Jesus we learn to DEPOSIT OUR LIFE IN THE HANDS OF GOD AND LET HIM WORK.
Not long before his death, Henri Nouwen wrote a book called Sabbatical Journeys. He wrote about some friends of his who were trapeze artists, called the Flying Roudellas. They told Nouwen there's a special relationship between flyer and catcher on the trapeze. The flyer is the one that lets go, and the catcher is the one that catches. As the flyer swings high above the crowd on the trapeze, the moment comes when he must let go. He arcs out into the air. His job is to remain as still as possible and wait for the strong hands of the catcher to pluck him from the air. One of the Flying Roudellas told Nouwen, "The flyer must never try to catch the catcher." The flyer must wait in absolute trust. The catcher will catch him, but he must wait. (6) On the cross, Jesus let go and lifted up His arms and waited for God to catch Him. And when God did He lifted Him to the seat of glory and power so that at the name of Jesus every knee shall bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
When they want to bring you down, God is waiting to catch you and lift you up. Will you let go of fear and reach up in faith?
(1) David Slagle, Atlanta, Georgia; source: "Culture Clips,"PluggedInOnline.com (10-2-06), from preaching.com
(2) David French, "Why Christians Feel Unwelcome on Campus," The Week (5-18-07), p. 12; submitted by Ted DeHass, Bedford, Iowa, from preaching.com
(3)Lee Eclov, Vernon Hills, Illinois; source: Compass Direct(January 2006), from preaching.com
(4) Greg Asimakoupoulos, Mercer Island, Washington; sources: Roger Moore, "'Passion' star Jim Caviezel talks about Mel Gibson's troubles, and his own, at Orlando church," Orlando Sentinel (4-30-11), from preaching.com
(6) From SermonCentral.com
(7) John Ortberg, from sermon "Waiting on God," Preaching Today #199
