God's Own Cause
Arise, O God, plead thine own cause: remember how the foolish man reproacheth thee daily. Psa 74:22.
Prayer is the atmosphere that every Believer breathes; it is something that we cannot do without, if we are going to retain our spiritual life, it’s just like the body which cannot exist without air.
There are many, very many, incentives to prayer.
Prayer should be something that motivates us, Prayer gives us untapped power. It unlocks answers to our prayers, it ignites a fire inside us, it heals us, it transforms us, empowers us, and calms us.
Prayer should be the very air that we Breath!
We pray to know the Lord Jesus, to develop our personal relationship with Him, and to speak to Him about our troubles, needs, and burdens. God is gracious and answers our prayers. But just as breathing air is the most fundamental need for our physical life, receiving more of the divine life continually is the most crucial need for our spiritual life.
Prayer is the means by which we can obtain that life.
Simply put, prayer is our spiritual breathing.
What the Lord wants to give us, and our greatest need day by day, even hour by hour, is His life. The Greek word for “Spirit” is pneuma. This same Greek word is used for “breath.” The Lord went through death, and now in resurrection He is the life-giving Spirit, or “breath.”
John 4:24 says,“God is a Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship Him in spirit and truth.”
The verse says we must worship, or contact, God who is Spirit with our human spirit. Our human spirit is our deepest part. As we contact the Spirit with our spirit in prayer, we “breathe” Him in and receive Him as the divine life, breath. He is our spiritual oxygen.
You should be persuaded that God is the very Breath that you need to Breathe. Just like Worship, Prayer needs to be the air that we breathe.
Just the fact that His holy presence is living in us, that we have His very word that speaks to us, it should make us desperate for Him.
I don’t know about you but I am lost without God!?
When it comes to our prayer life we have many wants and needs to be supplied, many things and enemies to overcome, many expectations and obligations to perform; and the strength to do these very things is only obtained by prayer to God, who is the only source of our help.
Paul declared in Philippians 4:13 I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.
The Amplified Bible says,
I can do all things [which He has called me to do] through Him who strengthens and empowers me [to fulfill His purpose—I am self-sufficient in Christ’s sufficiency; I am ready for anything and equal to anything through Him who infuses me with inner strength and confident peace.]
When the Apostle Paul said that he could do all things, he meant all things which were God’s will for him to do. He had learned that the Lord’s commands are the Lord’s enablements. He knew that God would never call on him to accomplish some task without giving Him the necessary grace to do it.
There are two sides of grace and here is exactly what is in each of these two sides:
The unmerited favor, mercy, compassion, acceptance, kindness, graciousness, goodwill, and divine assistance of God.
The divine life, power, and ability of God flowing and operating through us in order to give us the supernatural power and ability for ministry and sanctification
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Every Believer, therefore, should feel the importance of prayer, and pray not only for themself; but they should also pray for others during there time of intercession.
We should be enamored, in love, infatuated in the happiness and salvation of others. We should be concerned that other believers are partaking in the love of God , and that they are joint-heirs with Him of the grace of life.
The Believer not only prays for himself and his friends according to the Word, but they likewise feel deeply concerned in the affairs of the Kingdom of God, for its welfare and prosperity as they constantly present their supplications to God.
The Psalmist in our text is presenting God with a dilemma. He is praying that God would "Arise, and plead His own cause."
He is presenting God with a cause of action - a cause of action is the grounds (such as violation of a right) that entitles a plaintiff to bring a suit. He wants God to defend Himself.
The Psalmist here is presenting the part or case of his suit based on these grounds.
As we look at our text:
This moving lament looks back to the destruction of the temple by the Babylonians under King Nebuchadnezzar.
When those who wrecked Babylon were finished, it seemed that God had forsaken His people once and for all. As they watched smoke rise from the debris, they reminded the Lord that they are still:
the sheep of His pasture (v. 1);
His congregation (v. 2);
the tribe of His inheritance (v. 2);
His poor turtledove (v. 19);
the oppressed (v. 21);
the afflicted and needy (v. 21);
They also resound the changes on the word “Remember”
Remember Your congregation (v. 2).
Remember Mount Zion (v. 2).
Remember the scoffing of the enemy (v. 18).
Remember how an impious man sneers and reviles God’s name (v. 22).
They were acting as if God didn’t know what had happened, they called God to come and see how completely the Chaldean soldiers had razed the sacred building.
Then they gave an eyewitness account of how it happened. The foreign invaders stormed right into the middle of the holy place. They set up their own banners for signs, which means that they introduced heathen rites and idolatrous symbols in place of the scriptural worship of Jehovah.
Just as thick trees go down in swift succession under the deft blows of a woodsmen, so the costly carved work and wood paneling of the temple was shattered by the axes and sledge hammers of these pagan warriors. As soon as the place was in shambles, they set the ruins on fire and they utterly desecrated God’s sanctuary.
While they were intent on making complete havoc of Israel and its worship, they burned up all the meeting places of God in the land.
They had seen and heard of the miraculous interventions of God in the past which Israel had experienced. Which was easy to see or notice. But at this time there was no Prophet available for them to receive a word.
Ezekiel 3:26 says, The prophetic voice was silenced at this time..There was no hope of rest. There was no one who knew how long there misery would continue.
They asked four questions:
How long will God allow the adversary to ridicule?
Will God allow His name to be reviled indefinitely?
Why is His hand restrained from stopping the destruction?
Why does He keep His right hand idly hidden in the folds of His robe?
The psalmist found hope and comfort in rehearsing God’s mighty power in the past on behalf of His people.
You see as Israel’s King, He had distinguished Himself by the mighty and fantastic deliverances He wrought in various places.
For instance, He divided the Red Sea by His own strength to make an impassable route passable for the Jews who were escaping from Egypt. Then when the Egyptian sea serpents Pharaoh’s soldiers, tried to follow, God caused the waters to return to normal and drowned the army in the Red Sea.
He crushed the heads of Leviathan, the monstrous crocodile that symbolized Egyptian power, and the corpses of the soldiers that washed up on the shores of the sea, became food for the vultures and beasts of the desert.
He broke open springs and brooks in the wilderness, and dried up the River Jordan so the people could enter the Promised Land.
Day and Night are under His control, and the Sun, Moon, and Stars serve by His appointment. It was God who arranged the geography and topography of the earth, and the seasons are controlled by Him.
The Psalmist here in presenting his case reminded God that He too is involved in the disaster. He says, The enemy has reproached His name; yes, a vile, foolish people has heaped contempt on Him.
But His people’s plight is desperate. So they make a request from God that He would not abandon them, His turtledove, to the wild Babylonian beast, or to forget His afflicted ones forever.
They begged Him to respect the covenant which He made with Abraham now when the dark places of the land of Israel harbored violence and cruelty. They begged Him to bring back His oppressed people in honor, not in shame, and thus give them ample cause to praise His name afresh for answered prayer.
But ultimately it was God’s cause that was at stake. They felt that God must defend the honor of His name, because the ungodly were mocking Him daily. They didn't want God to forget the swelling ridicule of His enemies which filled the air continually with challenges.
He began to ask God to remember in times past how the enemy (foolish people) mocked His name.
The psalmist was jealous for the LORD and could not bear to hear the enemy reproach or scoff at God.
Here it is these foolish people actually blasphemed the LORD’s holy name (Yahweh, Jehovah), the name by which He made His covenant with Israel. Having raided God’s house and captured His people, they then mocked His power and faithfulness to the Israelites. The psalmist brought this to God’s attention, asking Him to remember how these fools mocked His holy name. By calling on God to remember, he was not only asking God to keep it before Him but also to do something about it.
When our circumstances seem to deny that God is King over the world he has made, Psalm 74 encourages us to articulate the agony of our confusion and the ecstasy of our faith.
What we need to realize is that when there is no evidence in the present for God’s reign in our lives, sometimes we need too look back to what God has done in times past.
When we look back it reminds us to thank Him.
When we look ahead it reminds us to trust Him.
When we look around it reminds us to serve Him.
When we think about what he did in accomplishing our redemption through the life, death, and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. When our faith reaches back to God’s work of creation and redemption, we find a sure anchor for our soul.
That anchor is the heart of the message of the Psalmist and the heart of the Christian faith. This anchor that I'm talking about is Jesus.....He is able to keep us safe and secure in the storms of life.
Thats what an Anchor does in the natural it is an iron instrument thats used for holding a ship or other vessel at rest in water.
The Old Hymn said, "We have an anchor that keeps our soul steadfast and sure though the billows roll. Anchored to the rock that cannot move, founded firm and deep in my Savior's love."
Why? Because our soul is anchored in the promises of God.
Hebrews 6: 13- 20 says, When God made His promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself, saying I will surely bless you and multiply your descendants. And so Abraham, after waiting patiently, obtained the promise. Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and their oath serves as a confirmation to end all argument. So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed it with an oath. Thus by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be strongly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus our forerunner has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.
Because Jesus is the anchor for our soul. We don't get tossed by the storms. We don't get wrecked by the storms.
As the songwriter says, The BILLOWS MAY ROLL, THE BREAKER'S MAY DASH, I SHALL NOT SWAY BECAUSE?HE HOLDS ME FAST, SO DARK THE DAY, CLOUDS IN THE SKY, I KNOW IT'S ALRIGHT, BECAUSE JESUS IS NIGH!??Because MY SOUL HAS BEEN ANCHORED IN THE LORD!
Billows,” rise or roll in waves or surges it often represents (TROUBLE).” And, “breakers,” one that breaks, a wave breaking into foam (as against the shore) When we have a situation in our lives that crashes into one’s life and suddenly disrupts everything, that’s what happens with the things that dash us “dashes,” defined talk about, “to strike or fling (something) somewhere with great force, especially so as to have a destructive effect; hurl and/or an act of running somewhere suddenly and hastily.”
We don't get tossed by the storms. We don't get wrecked by the storms.
Why?Because we are fixed in a place within the veil of God where nothing not even the devil can enter; so no matter our situation we are drawn, by this Anchor ( Jesus Christ), just as ships are drawn to the place where their anchors are fixed Because our soul is anchored in the promises of God.
Thats why we can come right into God's presence. Time and time again, not only that but we can come boldly to the throne of grace that we might find mercy and grace to help us in our time of need. Because within the veil (My Anchor - Jesus Christ) we can come right into the presence of our Father, because Jesus has made the way.
My great High Priest has entered into heaven for me. By Him and through Him I can come boldly now right to the Father within the veil and stand upon the Word.
The writer to the Hebrews uses a most illuminating word about Jesus. He says that he entered the presence of God as our forerunner.
The word is prodromos (G4274). It has three stages of meaning:
(i) It means one who rushes on.
(ii) It means a pioneer.
(iii) It means a scout who goes ahead to see that it is safe for the body of the troops to follow.
Jesus went into the presence of God to make it safe for all men to follow.
As the storms of life howl around the ship all people see on the top is the chaotic effects of the storm, they just see the surface stuff but what they don't see underneath is the anchor that holds firm in the unseen world below the surface.
Just so, hope reaches through the curtain into the inner sanctuary (the true Most Holy Place) and takes hold in the presence of God himself! Our Christian hope is anchored in Eternity!
Conclusion
When we feel overwhelmed by trouble and despair, it is easy to forget what we know about God. We need to look up, to take our eyes off of our circumstances and get a glimpse of God. He is still on His throne, and He is powerful enough to deliver us from every defeat, every enemy, and every concern that holds us captive.
Furthermore, we need to look back and remember what God has done for us in the past. Focusing on His faithfulness to us through our dark valleys can guide us with hope for our present struggles.
We also need to remember that we cannot trust our emotions.
We have to reject the lies that our feelings tell us…
• that God has forsaken us
• that God does not love us
• that God does not care
• that things will never get any better
• that we cannot have victory
that we have no hope
Remember that our spiritual enemy, satan, attacks us through our minds. We need to obey the Scripture’s command to cast down every thought that goes against what we know about God and bring our thoughts into obedience to Christ (2 Co. 10:5-6; Ph. 4:8).
At the same time, we need to declare in faith what we know to be true about God (2 Co. 4:13).
By standing on the promises of God’s Word and believing what He tells us, we are resisting the devil’s influence, and he will eventually flee from us (Js. 4:7; Mt. 4:11).
2 Co. 4:8-13 says,
“We are troubled on every side, yet not distressed; we are perplexed, but not in despair; Persecuted, but not forsaken; cast down, but not destroyed; Always bearing about in the body the dying of the Lord Jesus, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our body. For we which live are alway delivered unto death for Jesus' sake, that the life also of Jesus might be made manifest in our mortal flesh. So then death worketh in us, but life in you. We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak”.
2 Co. 5:7 Says,
“For we walk by faith, not by sight”
1 Jn 5:4 says, “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith”.
So no matter the storms, no matter the problem, no matter the case that we present before God....all we need to know is that God is in control. All we need to know is that God is not a man that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good? Numbers 23:19
Whether it be with regard to things temporal, spiritual, or eternal; there is no variableness nor shadow of turning in His mind; He never forgets His word, He foresees all events, He is able to perform, and is true and faithful; and therefore whatever is gone out of His lips will never be altered, but it will most certainly be fulfilled.
SO I SAY, JUST SIT BACK AND WATCH GOD MOVE; WATCH HIM MAKE A WAY FOR YOU!
GOD DOESN'T NEED TO ASSERT HIMSELF
ASSERTION - a solemn and often public declaration of the truth or existence of something.
HE IS THE TRUTH HE IS THE SELF EXISTENT GOD HE STANDS TALL AMONG OTHER SO CALLED DEITIES OR GODS. WHEN GOD IS SILENT AND YOU CANT SEE HIM OR HES NOT RESPONDING IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT HES NOT MOVING AMONG HIS CHILDREN. JUST LIKE GOD MANIFESTED HIMSELF IN THE OLD TESTAMENT HE IS STILL MOVING BY HIS MIRACULOUS POWER THROUGH GOD ORDERED MANIFESTATIONS.
When You Feel Abandoned by God and Defeated by the Enemy And You Feel Like God Doesn’t Love You All You Need To Remember Is This:
In a mansion made of stone; In a shanty all alone, GOD Cares, GOD Cares, GOD really Cares (HE Cares for you)! Whether black or white, we all are precious in HIS Sight. To the rich or poor, to the one in need; to the beggar man and to the weak, GOD Cares, GOD Cares, GOD really Cares (HE Cares for you)! So, if in your heart, there is no song, because something in your life, has gone wrong... GOD Cares, I’m glad HE Cares, GOD really Cares for you!
When you’ve done your best and you’re criticized; When you’ve stood the test and is cast aside.GOD Cares, I’m glad HE Cares, GOD really Cares for you!
1/28/2022
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