One of the greatest values of the Book of Psalms is in it we have godly men stating their experiences, and giving us an account of things that have happened to them in their spiritual life and warfare.
In fact, throughout history, the Book of Psalms has been a book of great value for God’s people. Again and again it provides us with the kind of comfort and teaching that we need and is essential to our lives.
What we find from the beginning to the end of the Bible is the account of God’s dealing with His people. He is the same God in the Old Testament, as in the New; and these Old Testament saints were citizens of the kingdom of God even as we are today. We are citizens of a kingdom which already contains such people as Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
To regard the experiences of these people as being exactly the same as our own, and the fact that they lived in the old dispensation, really makes no difference. We are no different today than people who lived in the time of the Old Testament. If any of you are tempted to feel like there is a difference, I would invite you to examine, inspect, survey, and study the Book of Psalms; and you just might find yourselves saying that you have experienced some of the same problems of this Psalmists, because obviously this Psalmist have had some family issues, because remember when he said, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the Lord will take me up? He must have had some days that the enemies tried to discourage him because he said. As the hart panteth after the water brooks, (and a hart is a male red deer) so he says As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. He must have been through some tough times because he said, The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want.
When we read the Psalms and the statements made in them, and I think you will agree that these men were children of God, and that there were some days that they had some trials and some tribulations.
However, the book of Psalms along with the book of Proverbs is considered to be a recipe for life. Here in our text today we find one of the greatest recipes for life.
There are biblical principles other than those of faith and healing that we as Christians need to hear. We all know that Faith is the Substance of things Hoped for and the evidence of things not seen. We all know that. And we are familiar with healing. For the bible says that by his stripes we are healed.
Certainly, we need to know about faith and healing because the Bible says, the just shall live by faith and healing belongs to us in Christ Jesus.
But there is a whole lot more to living for God and serving him than getting our needs met. For God is not some slave of ours where he moves at our command. But we are his people and the sheep of his pasture and we are to do his will not that of our own.
However, God does want to meet our needs. That is His will. Phil 4:19 says "But my God shall supply all your need according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus." But it is also God’s will that we practice the principles of faith.
And it’s in our text that we find our recipe.
One of the greatest secrets we can learn in life is the secret of making a total commitment to God’s Word and learning to completely commit each problem in life to the Lord in faith. Actually, there can be no faith without commitment. The kind of faith that perseveres is the faith that stays committed to God’s Holy written Word.
To commit means to stay the course. In other words, if we commit something to the Lord, that means we completely obligate ourselves to the end, and with the greatest confidence that it’s going to be taken care of.
If your car was broken and needed repairing and you took to the mechanic to have it fixed, you would be committing it to the mechanic’s care. If he said to you, "I can fix it; your car will be ready next week, you would return the next week, expecting it to be fixed. You wouldn’t spend the entire week worrying about the details involved in repairing your car. And you wouldn’t call the repairman the next day and ask "Do you still have my car, and is if fixed yet? No, you would have confidence in the mechanic’s ability to fix your car.
This is the kind confidence should we have in the Lord, the One we call King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The God who owns the cattle that sit out on the hills. The same God who knows our needs even before you ask. The same God, who is more than enough to meet our need.
When we pray to God about out problems or needs, instead of begging Him about it in unbelief, we should totally depend on Him to take care of it. We need to put our problems in God’s hands and allow him to fix them. In fact I heard you all sing trouble in my way, I have to cry sometimes, I lay awake at night but that’s alright because Jesus will fix it after while. Proverbs 3:5 Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding." Psalm 55:22 "Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee: he shall never suffer the righteous to be moved."
So, in order to get an answer from God, we must commit our problems to God and totally surrender them to Him.
Then and only then will we possess the answer to the problem and experience the victory that is ours in Christ Jesus. But, if we continue to hold on to our problems, it will remain a problem because God is not going to wrestle with you to get your problems away from you. God’s Word and his ways are not complicated. He said that the way is so plain that a blind man can see the way and a fool will not error. We need to get our eyes off our problems and look unto Jesus, who is the Author and Finisher of our faith. Turn it over to Jesus and he will work it out.
We need to learn to be still and wait on God. Continue to listen to what God is saying to us through his Word and his Holy Spirit. If you will wait on God, then even though Satan might try to hinder you, but you will be able to claim the victory.
So let me give you the recipe and I’m going to get out of
here.
Psalm 37 is a response to the problem of evil, which the Old Testament often expresses as a question: why do the wicked prosper and the good suffer? Some has called this the great riddle of the prosperity of the wicked, and the affliction of the righteous.
So, David gives us the perfect recipe for a blessing, and here is step one.
Pull out your pans and add two cups of fret not thyself because of evildoers, and a cup and a half of Neither be envious of the workers of iniquity.
2 For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, And wither as the green herb.
Then add 3 lbs of Trust in the LORD, and do good. Add
4 ounces of Delight yourself also in the LORD, And He shall give you the desires of your heart. Then add 5 tablespoons of Commit your way to the LORD, Trust also in Him.
Then let it sit and rest for a few minutes because verse
7 say’s Rest in the LORD, and wait patiently for Him; Do not fret because of him who prospers in his way, Because of the man who brings wicked schemes to pass.
Then add 3 teaspoons of Cease from anger, and forsake wrath; Do not fret--it only causes harm.
9 For evildoers shall be cut off; But those who wait on the LORD, They shall inherit the earth.
10 For yet a little while and the wicked shall be no more; Indeed, you will look carefully for his place, But it shall be no more.
11 But the meek shall inherit the earth, And shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace.
But notice these last two thing in verse 12 and 13 that says
12 The wicked plots against the just, And gnashes at him with his teeth.
But verse 13 just wore me out when it said The Lord laughs at him, For He sees that his day is coming.
Remember that we walk by faith and not by how we feel. You may say that I don’t feel like a victor. I don’t have a job. I am behind in all my bills.
But no matter how you feel, the Word of God says you are on the winning side because you are in Christ Jesus. We are more than conquers in Christ Jesus. Regardless of how you feel, God will make a way where there seems to be no way. God will open doors that are closed in your face. God will make your enemies your footstool. Get your eyes off your problems and look to Jesus.
Mark 11:23-26
We walk by faith and not by sight." If I was you today, I would turn it over to Jesus and let him work it out.
