A Study of Psalm 16 and 17
Psalm 16 and 17
Introduction
- Psalms broken into 5 books, covered an extensive time period
- Gathered together as songs of praise & words of encouragement/warning
- We are studying book 1, Psalm 1-41 … Info: we’ll take break for Advent
- If we apply ourselves, this could be a life changing study (exp.)
- I want us, as a church, to examine if we can’t rejoice more
- We ought to be able to praise and want more of God every day
- Read Psalm 16-17 / Pray
Point 1 – Psalm 16 (Who is your God?)
v1-4
- David’s prayer begins with the best statement ever: “Keep me safe” …
-- Then a confession: “in you I take refuge” (you are my safety)
-- And a declaration: “apart from you I have no good thing” (you are my all)
- Q: Why can’t we just be happy and fruitful in what we have?
- Q: Why do we choose wallow in misery instead of God’s joy?
- Answer: We think we are in charge and fail to worship the One who is!
v3-4
- David understand that people are noble … yet they are disturbing
-- Knew people are finicky, they are easily swayed, & they are not perfect
-- In essence, they are no different than we are today – regular folks doing life
- IMP: Our desire should be to run after God (v4); b/c other gods are empty
-- Other gods provide no joy, no relief, no growth, and no safety
-- APP: This applies to our hobbies, our preferences, and our “need these”
-- Re: What we place over God is what we worship; it IS our god! (exp.)
v5-8
- Hard truth: What God provides ought to be enough for us.
-- But, it is our rebellion that continues to pressure us to think we should have more
- Want: More recognition, more money, more power, more possessions, etc.
-- David teaches us something valuable here: says, “God is my portion” (Is he?)
- God’s boundaries (v6) are put in place for our protection
-- They cause us to hold back, to stop, to listen, to look to Him for guidance
- Ex: Puppy training … amazed at how Belle looks to us for the “Ok”
-- Why? We are her portion, we are her provider, she checks in regularly!
-- CHALLENGE: We ought to be NO different in how we respond to God!
- Even when God counsels us (v7), we ought to praise Him
-- Ex: We geet so busy considering ourselves to be in charge that we miss God
-- David says, “I will keep my eyes ALWAYS on the Lord.” (v8)
-- “I will not be shaken” … I will always have confidence in who He is
- Therefore (I’ve said how I feel, so here are my next steps…)
v9
• My heart is glad
• My tongue rejoices
• My body will rest secure
Why? (v10-11)
• You will not abandon me
• You will not let me decay
• You show me how to live
• You fill me with joy and eternal security by your power/authority
- TRANS: Do you want God’s peace in your life? Try Psalm 16!
- Now, let’s see how we start living this life, through an honest man’s prayers
Point 2 – Psalm 17 (A Focused Prayer)
- David prays for 6 specific things for God to help Him with
-- When we are struggling, I believe we can learn from David’s life
- Take a look at these things and tell me … couldn’t you do this?
-- APP: Do you need to make a change in the way you are doing things?
v1-2
Slide: See Me
- Hear me, Lord, I’m crying out to you; In my plea, my heart is honest
-- Let me be justified and made right because You say so, because I live for You
v3-5
Slide: Search Me
- Please examine my life and my heart Lord, search me for wickedness
-- Let it be proven that I have lived rightfully for You; b/c I’m devoted to You
-- APP: God will search your life; will you let Him so that you can be changed?
v6-7
Slide: Show Me
- You promise to answer me when I cry out to You, so please do so now
-- I’m calling on You Lord, please show me Your love and Your compassion
-- APP: You are the One who saved me, so let me see more of You!
v8-12
Slide: Shield Me
- Protect me, Lord, as someone You care about (it’s His promise to do so)
-- Keep me safe from those who seek to destroy me and turn my life upside-down
-- Re: There are people who want David dead … his cry is for protection!
-- APP: HELP ME! PROTECT ME! SHIELD ME! (Ex: as a parent protects)
v13-14
Slide: Save Me
- “Rise up, Lord, confront them”: God, you be the warrior here; I cannot do it
-- Use Your sword to defeat the enemy, I submit to you (soldier to a commander)
-- APP: Let them know You are powerful; let them receive what they’ve earned
v15
Slide: Satisfy Me
- All I want is to see Your face; to know that you really do care about me
-- My desire: to know you and to be intimate with you (promise for eternity)
-- My hope: to be satisfied by seeing You as You allow me to
- FACT: Gratitude flows from what you’ve received … have you received Him?
- TRANS: So, what is our take-away from these two Psalms today?
Big Idea – We need to get serious about God.
- CHALLENGE: But, when are we going to get serious about God like this?
- Tuesday: Outreach to the community, great opportunity to show Christ
-- Are you praying that you’d see God in our life so we can show Him to others?
-- Are you honestly preparing to show people what God can do? Excited for it?
- Personally … if one family comes by it is a TOTAL win
-- Why? Because I will have prepared to do it and to do it well for Him
-- Because I serve Him and I want to see Him glorified … not me or this church
- However, if we aren’t seeking after God like we just saw David expound on
-- Then, how can we be prepared to show others who He is and what He’s done?
- We’ve got to get serious about Him, else, it’s time to shut the doors
- I want to see Him lifted up and glorified
- I want to see people saved and hear angels rejoice
- I want to see our lives changed because He first changed us
- Don’t you? Re-read: Psalm 16:1-2 and Psalm 17:1
- Pray
- Prayer for salvation first … then for repentance … then for examination
