Week 1 Faith begins with a foundation.
Week 2 Faith is building on what you remember.
WEEK 3 Faith Must Be Spoken.
Text: Psalm 116:10 I believed, therefore have I spoken…
Historical Context
This psalm is a thanksgiving song after near death. The psalmist survives not because of silence, but because of the confession.
This verse is simple, but at the same time it’s heavy.
The writer is saying something very important from the time he started in vs.1 to vs. 10
In verses 1 and 2 he says, I love the Lord, because he hath heard my voice and my supplications. He heard my request and he heard my cries.
Because he hath inclined his ear unto me, therefore will I call upon him as long as I live.
The writer who is not named (but many think that it is David because of the language) doesn’t say I love the Lord because I was taught to love him.
He says, I love Him because He listened.
Here it is. God didn’t ignore his prayer.
God did not turn a deaf ear to him, but instead he heard him.
In fact, God leaned in (and inclined His ear).
God did not ignore his cry; He leaned in and answered.
He wasn’t praying into silence, he was praying into the ears of a listening God.
He discovered that heaven responds when faith calls for help.
Here is the Principle:
Love for God deepens when prayer becomes personal and answered.
Psalm 116:3 even when death felt close.
The sorrows of death compassed me, and the pains of hell gat hold upon me: I found trouble and sorrow.
This is a moment of extreme distress, and possibly illness, persecution, or emotional collapse.
Sorrows of death equals life-threatening pressure.
The pains of hell equal overwhelming anguish, and it seems like there is no strength, no escape, no solution
This verse gives language to believers who are barely holding on.
But can I tell you with Jesus on your side you will make it.
Psalm 116:4 teaches us that Prayer as a last lifeline.
The writer said. Then called I upon the name of the Lord; O Lord, I beseech thee, deliver my soul.
He didn’t a whole lot of fancy words.
He didn’t preach a long sermon.
All he had was a desperate cry.
I believe that somebody needs to desperately cry out tonight.
Because whatever you need, heaven can supply.
And this shows us something powerful:
We don’t need polished prayer, we just need honest prayer
Calling on God is what we do when everything else has failed.
And Psalm 116:5–6. Teaches the The character of God.
Gracious is the Lord, and righteous; yea, our God is merciful. The Lord preserveth the simple: I was brought low, and he helped me.
The psalmist now reflects on who God is.
1st he teaches us that God is Gracious. He gives what we don’t deserve.
Then he teaches us that God is Righteous. In other words, He does what is right.
But also, he teaches us that God is Merciful. Here it is He withholds judgment.
Understand that the simple doesn’t mean foolish, it means humble, vulnerable, and stripped down.
When the psalmist was at his lowest, God stepped in.
Have you ever been down to your lowest and God stepped in? Have there ever been a time where you could not make ends meet, and God stepped in? He’s still an on time a God, yes he is.
Have you ever felt like you were about to lose it all and God stepped in? He’s still an on time a God, yes he is.
But the vs 7 says. After you’ve been through, after you have had heart aches and pains, verse seven says Rest after rescue.
Here it is right here. Return unto thy rest, O my soul; for the Lord hath dealt bountifully with thee.
This is self, pep talk.
The soul had been anxious, panicked, restless.
So, now the psalmist says: It’s safe to breathe again.
God didn’t just save him—He restored his peace. And he will do the same thing for you.
Come here verse eight, 8 tells us that there is complete deliverance.
For thou hast delivered my soul from death, mine eyes from the tears, and my feet from falling. That’s enough to shout about.
God’s deliverance touched every area.
It touches the soul from death (spiritual rescue)
Our eyes from tears (emotional healing)
And our feet from falling (that’s stability for the future).
This is holistic salvation is not partial help.
Psalm 116:9 shows us a changed way of living.
I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living.
Because God saved him, the psalmist commits to:
Living openly before God, and now he walking faithfully while he’s still alive.
Deliverance isn’t just about survival, but it’s also about how you live afterward.
Here’s where I have been trying to get to, verse 10. Faith that speaks even in pain
I believed, therefore have I spoken: I was greatly afflicted.
Even while afflicted, the he kept on believing.
And because he believed, he kept speaking, and he kept testifying, praying, declaring.
This verse teaches us that, faith doesn’t deny pain. Faith speaks in spite of pain
The Big Picture and Message here is that God hears desperate prayers.
Faith is forged in affliction. Deliverance leads to devotion. Testimony flows from survival
This psalm says: I almost didn’t make it, but God stepped in, and I’ll never be the same.
Faith didn’t stay locked inside my chest. Instead he’s saying faith demanded a voice.
He didn’t say, I believed, therefore I stayed quiet.
He didn’t say, I believed, therefore I waited until everything looked better.”
He said, because I believed, therefore I spoke.
In Scripture, belief and speech are connected. What you truly believe will eventually come out of your mouth. Silence can hide doubt, but speech reveals faith.
The Reading-Aloud Principle
A child learning to read does not grow fastest by reading silently.
Silent reading hides mistakes.
Silent reading avoids correction.
Silent reading feels safer.
But when a child reads out loud, something powerful happens:
You hear the words
You stumble, then adjust
You gain confidence with every sentence
Your brain, ears, and mouth work together
Reading aloud accelerates growth.
Let me close this thang. Faith that stays silent shrinks.
Our belief fuels speech.
Our speech reinforces belief. But our silence feeds our fears.
Our mouth becomes the construction site of our faith.
Therefore I speak. Faith must be spoken.
