Title: “Choose to Trust in God.” Scripture: Psalm 56:3-4
Type: Expository Where: GNBC 7-26-20
Intro: The last several months have given cause to increase the anxiety levels of everyone. Church attacks, in America and around the world are increasing exponentially. The Covid pandemic has seen a resurgence. The violent rioting of the BLM protesters and their Antifa associates has shocked the nation. Millions have been economically distressed due to the virus response and shutting down of jobs. Schools are anxious attempting to figure out how to reopen. Both Republicans and Democrats are already accusing the other side of stealing the election that won’t take place for another four months. The opiate of sports and entertainment has been all but taken away from us as a nation. Violent crime rates, especially in the major cities, have grown exponentially. What do you do with that? Hide out? Immigrate (Where?) Panic? I suggest that the Bible tells us there is a better alternative:
Prop: In trying times we need to choose to trust in God.
BG: 1. Ps. 56 is a beautiful Psalm. Is a Psalm of David’s.
2. like all the Psalms, was put to music to be sung.
3. Was a “Miktam” Ps. 16, and 56-60. All Miktams. Uncertain what meant.
Prop: As we examine Ps. 56, I want to encourage you to trust God during these trying times.
I. In Times of Adversity, Choose to Trust in God.
“When I am afraid, I will put my trust in Thee”
A. Trusting in God is a matter of personal faith.
1. King David, in times of distress, shoes to trust in God.
a. David was a tough guy. He was a warrior. He was a man of battle and bloodshed. He killed lions and bears as a teenager. He added to his resume by knocking of giants and battling armies. He was courageous. Yet, look at this incredible admission: “When I am afraid…”David afraid? Yes! So are you sometimes and so am I.
b. Illust: You know that feeling. The pit in your stomach, pounding of your heart, and rush of your thoughts as you go from just the possibility of a job loss to starving and being homeless on the streets—all in a matter of seconds. Gripped by fear, although an imagined one. Fear is a normal human emotion designed by God to alert us to danger so that we will take action against it. It has a purpose. It tells us to take precautions, to be wise in our dealings with strangers and strange situations. We need to think of it as a gift. We also know fear has a dark side as well. Just watching the daily news can panic us. But, what did she mean by fear-driven? Why would fear drive us? And, what does fear drive us to do? Fear can drive us to run from God and seek to be our own deliverer or provider or savior.
2. What was the occasion and setting for this Psalm?
a. Now, we actually know the occasion or inspiration for the writing of this Psalm. “When the Philistines had seized him at Gath”. I Sam. 21:12 tells us that David was very afraid of the King of Gath. Yet, despite this obvious fear, David told himself, “I will trust God and not be afraid.” David was choosing to trust God despite all reasons to the contrary.
b. Christian, there is no question of the presence of God with His children. Yet, we need to CHOOSE to recognize His presence. Ps. 16:8 David says: “I have set the Lord always before me. Because He is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” To “set the Lord before me” is to recognize His presence and constant help with me.”
B. Trusting in God in Times of Adversity is a Cognitive Choice of the Will.
1. Choose to Trust God whether you feel like it or not.
a. Illust: Margaret Clarkson stated of the acceptance of adversity in our lives: “Always it is initiated by an act o the will on our part; whereby we set ourselves to believe in the overruling goodness, providence, and sovereignty of God, and refuse to turn aside no matter what may come, no matter what we feel.”
b. Let me also say this, God is glorified when we trust in Him. Christ is exalted, regardless of our circumstances, when we trust in Him.
2. Operating by faith in the face of Adversity is a Fruit of the Spirit.
a. Trusting God is a mater of faith, and faith is the fruit of the Spirit (Read Galatians 5:22). “You see, the Holy Spirit can make His Word come alive in our hearts and create faith, however, we can choose to look to Him to do that or we can choose to be ruled by our feelings, anxiety, or resentment or grief.” ( Trusting God, Bridges, p. 210)
b. Illust: John Newton pastor and hymn writer, tells of experience watching his beloved wife slowly die of cancer. About three months before she died Newton called out to God: “The promises of God must be true; surely the Lord will help me, if I am willing to be helped.” “Lord please help me.” God poured out His grace to Newton in an amazing way. He noted in his diary that from that point onward, he never allowed her sickness or even death to rob his joy or keep him from performing his required duties, even preaching her funeral service. How was John Newton helped? First, he chose to be helped. He realized it was his duty to resist inordinate grief and self-pity. Then, he turned fully to the Lord for help and God helped him.
C. Applic: Have you chosen to trust in Christ for your salvation? Are you trusting in Him daily?
II. In Times of Adversity Determine that God is Completely Trustworthy.
“In God, Whose Word I praise, In God I have put my trust.”
A. God’s Trustworthiness is rooted in His Character.
1. David, in times of Distress, knew that God was trustworthy.
a. “In God, whose Word I praise, in God I trust.” Illust: David trusted in the Word of God, even when it would appear to not be favorable for him to do so. In 1st Samuel 24-28 we see several opportunities that David had, when on the run from the raging/deranged King Saul, to kill his tormentor. Yet he did not and he commanded his men not to as well. David flees from a psychotic Saul to En Gedi where he hides in a cave. The king comes into the cave to relieve himself. David’s friends tell him this is his chance to kill the wicked king, and yet all David does is stealthily cut of a corner of the king’s robe. David’s reply to his 600 followers: “The LORD forbid that I should do such a thing to my master, the LORD's anointed, or lift my hand against him; for he is the anointed of the LORD.' With these words David rebuked his men and did not allow them to attack Saul. And Saul left the cave and went his way." (24:6-7). In chap 26 a similar scenario presents itself again, and once again, David does not kill his oppressor. The expedient thing would have been to kill Saul. However, according to God’s Word, it was not the right thing, and David chose to obey God’s Word, even at apparent cost to himself.
b. Often you and I are tempted to do the expedient thing rather than the right thing. We are tempted by power, by money, by sex, and when an opportunity comes to advance our own cause we take it. That's what Satan's followers do, not Christ's disciples. David who is a type of Christ, provides an amazing Old Testament example of Jesus' obedience to the Father.
2. What is God’s character like?
a. The only way we can know what God’s character is like is to see His Self-revelation in the Bible. In many religions their “gods” are capricious. God is not capricious. In many religions their “gods” are unknowable. The God of the Bible is knowable. In many religions their “gods” are always changing, NOT the God of the Bible. Mal. 3:6 tells us: “"I the LORD do not change. So you, the descendants of Jacob, are not destroyed.” The Bible tells us that we are made in His image: Gen. 1:27 “So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.” The problem is many people want to create God in their image. The result of this is that when that person dies, so does their “god”.
b. Illust: Years ago the late AW Tozer wrote a wonderful book entitled: The Attributes of God. In that book, Towzer highlighted 10 glorious attributes of Awesome God. 1. God is Infinite. Infinity cannot be measured. CS Lewis illus. infinity as “Have a sheet of paper running infinitely extended in all directions. Take a pencil and scribe a line 1” long on it. The beginning point is the beginning of time. Lifting it off the end of the 1” is the end of time. All the rest, infinitely extending in all directions…is God! Towzer goes on to highlight God’s Immensity, His Goodness, His Justice, His Mercy, His Grace, His Omnipresence, His Immanence, His Holiness, and His Perfection. All with Scriptural support. Pretty heavy reading? Correct? Well, it is but primer on the Attributes of God!
B. How do we apply this Truth to our Lives When we are facing Adversity and Fear?
1. As believers in Jesus Christ, trusting in Him will result in praising Him.
a. “In God whose word I praise” – Listen to what Charles Spurgeon said about this passage: “Faith brings forth praise. He who can trust will soon sing. God's promise, when fulfilled, is a noble subject for praise, and even before fulfilment it should be the theme of song. It is in or through God that we are able to praise.”
b. Psalm 117: Praise the Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the Lord! Shortest chapter in the Bible! English translation, this psalm comprises 28 words—28 rich words of worship to God. It is compact and precise, balanced in brevity, potent in praise. We can see how Psalm 117 is a biblical pattern for short bursts of praise. Not all times of praise need to be long periods. When those longer times of study are available, definitely make use of them. But don’t make them the only spiritual meals on your pilgrimage home—there is a time for feasting (Ps. 119), and there is a time for war rations. If you only wait for longer chunks of time to worship your God, you may find yourself squandering shorter moments during which we could glorify God.
2. David Confidently Stated his loyalty to God.
a. Illust: David “struck his colors” to the mast of God’s character. “In God I have put my trust.” It did not matter what the world was going to throw at him, David had come to know and trust God and he was not about to turn away when the next cause of fear or anxiety invaded his life. Are we trusting God in all areas of our lives? Salvation. If you doubt your salvation then you are doubting the character of God, unless you never have truly been born again! Some of us are fearful cause put our trust in Dr. Fauci. Some are fearful because put trust in Pres. Trump or VP Biden. Some are because put trust in our bank account or our stockpile of food or bullets. I love the last recorded words of the ancient Church Father, Polycarp when asked to recant before being burned at the stake: “86 yrs I have served Him and He has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King and my Savior?”
b. Cling to timeless promises that exalt God’s trustworthy character: Hebrews 13:5
“Never will I leave you never will I forsake you.” (In this passage in the Greek, it contains 5 negatives and could read: “I will not, not leave thee; neither will I not, not, not forsake thee.” I Pet 5:7 “Cast all of your anxieties upon Him because He cares for you.” Job 23:10 “But he knows the way that I take; when he has tested me, I will come forth as gold.”
C. Applic: Do you trust in the WOG for ALL areas of your life? Do you allow anxieties to overrule your trust in the WOG?
III. In Times of Adversity Realize it is Difficult to Trust, but Trust Anyway.
“I shall not be afraid. What can mere man do to me?”
A. Fear is Banished when faith is Exercised.
1. David makes a declaration of faith in the midst of fear: “I shall not be afraid.”
a. We read about this event in I Sam.21. David was running from Saul and decided to go to Israel’s enemy, Gath. There he offered his services to Achish, the King of Gath. We read in those verses that the king’s advisors were leary of David. They knew that he was a mighty man of valor. They had heard the songs the women of Israel had sung to celebrate David’s victory over Goliath of Gath: “Saul has killed his thousands and David his tens of thousands.” The king’s advisors thought it was a ploy. They wanted the king to kill their enemy. I Sam. 21:12 “David took these words to heart and was very much afraid of Achish king of Gath.” So do you know what David did? He feigned insanity! That time period and culture. Mentally/spiritually troubled person often left alone for fear if harmed them same would happen to you! David followed his fears and imitated insanity.
b. Fear is a tool the devil uses against us to make us miserable and destroy our lives. It begins as a thought and then creates emotions that can rule us. It often becomes a strong, intense feeling that tries to move us to make a foolish action or tries to prevent us from doing something that would be good for us. Because it's such a common way that Satan attacks people's lives, I think of it as a tool he uses to manipulate people and keep them from walking victoriously in Christ. Fear is the opposite of faith. God wants us to walk by faith, and Satan wants us to walk in fear. When we learn to live by faith and not let fear dictate our lives, we can live a fulfilling, satisfying, peaceful and joyful life in Christ. Fear begins with a thought. Proverbs 23:7 tells us that "as [a man] thinks in his heart, so is he" (NKJV). You can think of it like this: Where the mind goes, the man follows. Faith or fear?
2. There can be times more difficult to trust God in than adversity: When all is well.
a. Although it may be difficult to trust God in times of adversity, other times can be even more difficult in which to trust Him. What would those times be you may ask? Well, when everything is going well for us. During times of blessing and prosperity and health we may be very prone to trust in all of those items rather than the God Who bestowed them on us!
b. Let me ask you a question: “Was David more secure and closer to the Lord here, when he was being taken by the King of Gath, or II Sam. 11:8 “One evening David got up from his bed and walked around on the roof of the palace. From the roof he saw a woman bathing. The woman was very beautiful…” David was at the height of his power, wealth, prosperity, and influence. About as pleasant of circumstances as could want. Yet, very dangerous spiritually.
B. Consider the Extent of Harm Anyone Can Ultimately do to You and Me.
1. David encourages himself by considering the worst that can actually take place.
a. ”What can mere man do to me?” Don’t interpret this incorrectly. David is not claiming to be Superman and that he was indestructible. Rather, he was saying that at the end of the day, the worst that the King of Gath could do is kill him. We are often anxious because we overestimate the strength of the enemy and the power they have to punish us. We can become emotionally unhinged from the truth of God’s Word and believe lies rather than the truth.
b. Mt. 10:28 Jesus said: “Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.” We need to fear God more than anything or anyone else because ultimately, the consequences are greater. Illust: I want to compassionately ask you, whether here or by video, “What are you fearing today more than God?” Covid? I am not making light of this dreadful sickness. We have seen over 100k in our nation alone die from it. Do you fear it more than God? Repent!
2. What difference does any of this make to us?
a. Pastor Aaron Garriot writes: “While beholding the Statue of Liberty for the first time, I received a phone call from my sister. My grandfather—had been given hours to live upon the discovery of an aneurysm. As my sister held the phone to his ear while on the hospital bed, we prayed together and said our tearful goodbyes. Within an hour, he passed. I had hoped I would make it home in time to say goodbye face-to-face. As it was, death beat me to him. Death is an ever-present reality, but, as Calvin marveled, humans have an astonishing incapability to solemnly consider death even when forced to face its consequences, such as witnessing a funeral. Only minutes after being forced to face death we can dismiss the reality of it. But some moments in life prove too formidable to allow us to avoid considering death. In times like these, we begin to fathom, though imperfectly, the fact that our day is coming too, and that each day we live, we are another day closer to the day when we will breathe our last. Since the fall, we live in the looming shadow of death even if we choose not to recognize it. In reality, there will be a last lunch shared with my dear colleagues. There will be a last laugh shared with my wife. There will be a last kiss for my daughter’s cheek. All good things in this world come to an end. Even worse, death has no regard for our preferred timeline.
b. Ultimately my friend, you and I can only not be afraid and fully trust in God when we know Christ as our Savior. As D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones famously said, the thing that is going to make Christianity attractive to the world is how different Christianity is from the world,” He suggests that Christianity has always thrived most when the prevailing culture was against it. Christians are called to live in unity and have shared values with one another, not with the entire world. “In the spirit of Lloyd-Jones I think that it’s time to return to New Testament Christianity in which persecution for our faith is something we expect versus something that shocks us. Being obedient to Christ will be different from the world. The sky is not falling. And, blessedly, the only thing we have to fear is not fear itself, but rather, the Lord. He knows that we are weary and heavy-laden. He knows we have many cares. And He is marvelously equipped to lift our spirits, to endow us with hope, and to cast vision for a future glory that is immeasurably more than all we can ask or imagine.
C. Applic: The world isn’t safe — and the God Who reigns over it all does not minimize or dismiss our fears. Psalms 56:3 says, “When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.” This assumes there will be fear on our part. What it does not assume is your choice: Fear or Faith?
