July 6, 2003 Sunday Evening
Title: Psalm 11: "Whining Friends and Faithful People"
Text: Psalm 11:1-7
Introduction
As we continue our study of Psalms, we come to chapter 11.
It is certainly appropriate to study this Psalm during our celebration of Independence Day this week.
This Psalm is neatly divided in to 3 stanzas.
the first 2 stanzas are 3 verses each.
The last stanza is a 1 verse conclusion
In the first stanza, David is obviously quoting some so-called friends and they try to advise David of what to do when everything falls apart.
The 2nd Stanza expresses David’s faith in God
And the final stanza concludes with an expression of supreme confidence in the righteousness of God.
Read Text: Psalm 11:1-7
Body
1. First of all, we have what I call "the Whining Friends" vv. 1-3
Evidently David is in real trouble here.
Some commentators indicate that this Psalm was written during those years when Saul and many others were trying to hunt David down.
These friends are trying to advise David.
They are telling him to "Flee like a bird to your mountain" Psalms 11:1 (NIV)
They warn him that wicked men are trying to attack him from the cover of darkness (v. 2)
And then they ask that poignant question: When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?" Psalms 11:3 (NIV)
They ask that question rhetorically...
because in their minds; they have already answered the question...
why don’t you run and hide...because there is nothing that you can do...
you are surrounded...
the foundations are shaking...
your defense is about to collapse...
just give up...
just "run like the wind"...and get out of here.
"flee like a bird"
That’s where I see an application for us during this time of celebrating our freedom.
Freedom doesn’t come easy...
Our fight for freedom from British rule didn’t come easy...
I’m sure there were some people in that day who were like David’s "friends"...
just give up...
just run and hide...
don’t stand up to the British...
we haven’t a chance...
Thankfully, our forefathers had the backbone to stand and fight and win our freedom.
This isn’t the first time in Scripture that we see so-called friends who are quick with their advice.
In the story of Job, we see his 3 "friends" trying to advise him...
contrary to what he knows to be true about his own personal knowledge of God.
his wife was telling him to "curse God and die"...
I guess she didn’t realize that there IS something worse than physical suffering & pain...
there is death without hope...
there is a hell to shun.
And that’s not just found in Scripture...
you can find people like that even today.
people who are all doom and gloom about the church...
people quick with advice that is contrary to God’s will and God’s way.
people who will tell you that it’s okay to sin...
I spent some time with one of my dearest friends while on vacation.
we had a great time playing chess....
playing putt putt...
and other games...
but we also had time to get into some fairly deep spiritual discussions.
This is a friend from my teen years who was always very devout...
a very solid Christian...
quick to pray...
quick to witness about Christ...
I really admired him.
But during one of these discussions, we got to talking about sin...
we got to talking about one of his brothers...
now, I happen to know that his brother professes to be a Christian...
in spite of the fact that he doesn’t attend church...
doesn’t spend time in prayer...
he is divorced from his first wife...
and doesn’t have any qualms about sleeping with other women, (single, married, doesn’t matter)
So I asked my friend, "I know that your brother David professes to be a Christian, but what do you think? Do you think that David is a Christian?"
And my friend said that yes, he felt like his brother was a Christian.
I also noticed that my friend has allowed some coarse language to slip into his vocabulary.
One time, it happened in front of 2 of my kids...I ignored it, hoping they didn’t notice; and they didn’t say anything.
but just this week, Amelia asked me, out of the blue, "why does your friend go to church; but use bad words?"
Does any of this change my friendship with him?
Well, yes and no.
No, it doesn’t change the way I feel...
I still love my friend...
I will still visit with him...
and try to see him from time to time.
But on the other hand, yes, it changes quite a lot
I will no longer seek spiritual advice from him...
and if he tries to give advice...I will take it with a grain of salt.
and I will be praying for my friend...
because I feel like he has been influenced by the world...
and he has allowed those things to affect his relationship with the Lord...
With these thoughts in mind, you need to ask yourself 2 questions:
First of all, who am I listening to?
who do I go to for advice?
Is the advice that I receive supported by Scripture?
and what I know to be God’s will?
Secondly, what kind of friend am I?
Do I give godly advice?
Or do I just spout off the latest psycho-babble?
without giving prayerful consideration to the subject at hand?
2. The Person of Faith vv. 4-6
Thankfully, David knew who to listen to! (and who NOT to listen to!)
Right off the bat, in verse 1,
even before he mentions the suspect advice from his friends,
he says, "In the LORD I take refuge Psalms 11:1 (NIV)
In verse 4, he says, "The LORD is in his holy temple; the LORD is on his heavenly throne.
In other words,
God is in control!
God reigns!
Why should I run and hide when God is there to protect me?
In the face of the weak advice from his friends...
David remains a man of faith...
His confidence is in God...
No, he doesn’t need to run and hide like a whipped puppy.
David recognizes that God has His eyes on both the righteous and the wicked (vv. 4-5)
But the rightous will be vindicated...
and the wicked will experience serious punishment (v. 6)
But David is facing more than just dubious advice...
David’s had his very foundations shaken (v. 3)
He is in very real danger...
His world seems like it is collapsing all around him.
Have you ever been there?
Have you ever felt that your foundations are being destroyed?
Have you ever felt like your life was in so much turmoil?
Have you ever felt shaken to the very bottom of your soul?
I don’t know about you...
but I’ve been there...
and there is nothing that can restore your calm assurance like taking refuge in God.
and realizing that, no matter what, God is in control...
whether my daughter lives or dies...God is in His holy Temple...
whether my spouse suffered a terrible disease and died...The Lord is on His heavenly throne.
whether my friends have all forsaken me...God reigns upon high!
Yes, most of us have been there...
our foundations have been shaken to the core...
In Psalm 82:5, it says, "They know nothing, they understand nothing. They walk about in darkness; all the foundations of the earth are shaken. Psalms 82:5 (NIV)
I’m sure we’ve all felt the foundations shaken...
but we can take great confidence; because we also know:
Psalm 102:25 says, "In the beginning you laid the foundations of the earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
And Psalm 104:5 says, "He set the earth on its foundations; it can never be moved
It’s like the children’s song says,
"the wise man built his house upon the rock,
the wise man built his house upon the rock,
the wise man built his house upon the rock
and the rains came a tumbling down.
The rains came down as the floods came up,
The rains came down as the floods came up,
The rains came down as the floods came up,
and the house on the rock stood firm"
but on the other hand...
"the foolish man built his house upon the sand,
the foolish man built his house upon the sand,
the foolish man built his house upon the sand,
and the rains came a tumbling down.
The rains came down as the floods came up,
The rains came down as the floods came up,
The rains came down as the floods came up,
and the house on the sand went SPLAT"
Yes, OUR foundations may be shaken...they may be collapsing...
but aren’t you glad that GOD’S foundations hold firm!!!
"Tho the angry surges roll, on my tempest driven soul...
I am peaceful, for I KNOW, wildly tho the winds my blow...
I’ve an anchor safe and sure!!!...that can evermore endure!!!
And it holds, my anchor holds....blow your wildest, then, o gale...
On my bark so small and frail (do you ever feel small and frail?)
By His grace I shall NOT fail!!
For my anchor holds....my anchor holds!!!"
(W. C. Martin, "My Anchor Holds" #569)
3. Resting in God’s Righteousness vv.1, 7.
And in the final stanza, we return to a theme that has given us great confidence many times in our lives...
For the LORD is righteous,
he loves justice Psalms 11:7 (NIV)
No matter what, you can rest assured that God will do what’s right!
We can rest in God’s righteousness...
you can’t rest in much else...
your friends may fall away...
your world my seem turned upside down...
but no matter what...
God will do what is right....
And that very last phrase offers us the greatest encouragement I can think of...
upright men (and women) will see his face Psalms 11:7 (NIV)
"It will be worth it all, when we see Jesus...
life’s trials will seem so small, when we see Christ,
one glimpse of His dear face, all sorrow will erase.
So bravely run the race, til we see Christ"
(Esther Kerr Rusthoi, "When We See Christ", #279)
Conclusion
Sometimes life gets rough...
we may feel like our foundations have been shaken...
people may try to tell us what to do...
but we must be careful...
because sometimes our friends may not be spiritually fit to offer advice...
But in spite of the shakiness in our lives....
and the situation with so called advisors...
we can be people of faith!!
We must be like David...
instead of running to hide like a whipped pup...
we need to find our refuge and our strength in Christ Jesus.
One verse that particularly spoke to me was Psalm 11:4, "The LORD is in his holy temple"
At first read, this simply says, "the Lord is in control".
and most of the commentators agree...
and I didn’t find any commentators that agreed with what I’m about to tell you...so you can take it with a grain of salt...:)
Scripture tells us that "Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God?" 1 Cor 6:19 (NIV)
And since our bodies are considered a Temple...
and Psalm 11:4 says that "the Lord is IN His holy temple"
then we can also take courage from the fact that the Lord is IN His holy temple IN OUR HEARTS!.
We can stand; when our foundations crumble....
we can stand, when our friends are of the fairweather variety...
NOT under our own power or our own strength...
but because the Lord has taken residence within our hearts!
What situation do you find yourself in tonight?
are your foundations buckling?
are your friends hurting you?
You can find your refuge IN Christ...
and you can find strength IF Christ is IN YOU!
