David's Fearless Response in the Face of Enemy Attack

Amen. We are fallen Finite. Failed creatures who often struggle with fear, sinful fear. There are countless reasons for the fear that arises from within. We have these inward struggles, these inward battles with fear, but then from outside of us we live in a fallen world and, and the world in which we live arouses and it feeds our fear with messages designed to trip us up and to make us fall. Do you recall the last time that you struggled with fear? The last time that you felt afraid. Are you struggling with fear right now? What are you afraid of? You're a young person. Perhaps you are afraid of the dark. Getting hit with a baseball, making an error and striking out to lose the game. Are you afraid of the future? Finances, financial struggles, your job situation, disease. Dying Death. Do you fear the loss of a loved one, rejection, abandonment, isolation? Do you fear being known? Being truly known, being fully known. Are you afraid of what others might think about you? Do you fear the condition of your soul? And like Martin Luther, who we know before he experienced being justified by faith in Christ, are you running the treadmill of works righteousness to make yourself acceptable to God, and are you afraid you will fail to measure up? Our fears reveal much. About ourselves who we trust. What we trust Our desires, our wants, our beliefs, our values, our hopes, our dreams, our commitments, so often we struggle with a sinful fear that leaves us exposed and such sinful fear results in attitudes and actions that bring harm to ourselves as well as oftentimes to those around us. Today's passage intersects with and it helps us to address the topic of, of fear and so I wanna ask you to turn in your Bible please to Psalm 27. That we do not know exactly when David penned the Psalm. We do know that David was facing enemy attack and thus he had ample reason to fear. We do know that he had felt the sting of being abandoned by father and mother, and again he had reason to be afraid. The question is this though, how, how did David respond? This is the question our passage answers for us this morning and along the way, we are instructed how to respond to enemy attack. We, we learned how to fearlessly handle hardships that come our way and so I am entitling my message, David's Fearless Response. In the face of enemy attack, we could call it, David's trust in the Lord despite what is going on around him. We're gonna be looking at 6 responses to enemy attack that God's people do well to embrace, 6 responses when we feel ourselves to be under enemy attack. And so let us begin with response number 1, trust the Lord. And do not fear man. Trust the Lord. And do not fear men. Listen to what the psalmist says beginning in verse one. The Lord is my light and my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the defense of my life, and whom shall I dread? Other translations read, of whom shall I be afraid. When evildoers come up upon me to devour my flesh, my adversaries, and my enemies, they stumbled and they fell. Though a host in camp against me, my heart will not fear. The war arise against me. In spite of this, I shall be confident. This text reveals a view of Yahweh that shapes David's attitude regarding his enemy. And so consider his view of Yahweh. Yahweh is light. Light. This is the only verse in all of the Old Testament in which the Lord is called light. Job refers to heaven as the abode of light. Job 38:19. The psalmist says that God wraps Himself in light as with a garment. Psalm 104:2. A few verses from the Old Testament affirm that the Lord turns my darkness into light. Psalm 18:28 is an example. Psalm 36:9 declares, in your light we see light. Verse one of this Psalm is the only place in the Old Testament where the Lord is called light. In First John chapter one, we read that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. In calling the Lord light, one commentator says David is referring to that which is good. True. Warm, beautiful, life-giving, peaceful. And safe Context indicates the understanding that God is the light who has power to dispel the fearful darkness one experiences in the face of enemy attack. The psalmist says Yahweh is salvation. This word speaks of deliverance, escape from danger, rescue. In context, David is referring to deliverance from his enemies, his physical enemies. David does not say that the Lord is light and salvation. Take note of the personal pronoun. He declares the Lord to be my light and my salvation, saint. Of God I submit to you a world of difference between the light. And my light Thus salvation. And my salvation. You and I can take ownership of the fact that the Lord is my light and the Lord is my salvation. David follows with a rhetorical question. Whom shall I fear David is convinced he has no need to fear anyone or anything, and he seems tuned to the fact that fear flees in the face of Yahweh because Yahweh, Jehovah is His light and salvation. David concludes he has no cause for fear. In 1 John we are told that God is love and in 1 John 4:18 we read, there is no fear. In love, perfect love cast out fear. What are you afraid of? That the love of God for you. Does not address. Wrap yourself in the love. Of your God The point to be made is that we who have fled to Yahweh have reason not to fear. David continues with yet another reason for us not to fear. He says, the Lord is the defense of my life. The word conveys safety, protection. Refuge, stronghold. This third description of the Lord gives way to another rhetorical question. He, he's asking, whom shall I dread or, or whom shall I fear, of whom shall I be afraid? David's view of Yahweh leads him to the conclusion he can trust in Yahweh, and he has no reason for sinful fear. This theme is again highlighted as we continue in verse 3. Note what David says. When evildoers came upon me, speaking of a past instance, when they came upon me to devour my flesh. David likens the evildoers to a, a pack of hungry animals seeking to devour his flesh to eat him alive. They are David's adversaries, his enemies, and he presents their outcome. He says they stumbled and they fell and remembering a past situation when the Lord stepped in and protected David from enemy attack, he is emboldened yet again in the face of present attack. He goes on to say, though a host in camp against me. My heart will not fear. This is a 3rd reference to fear. Whom shall I fear Of whom shall I be afraid? My heart will not fear. David concludes this portion of the Psalm with a declaration of confidence. He says, Though war arise against me. In spite of this, I shall be confident. In viewing Yahweh as my light and my salvation and the defense of my life, David concludes he has no cause for fear. He can trust in the Lord and remain fearless in the face of difficult situations, fearless in the face of enemy attack, fearless in the face of a feeling of abandonment. In commenting on this section, James Montgomery Boyce has this to say. Although in this setting, these three images for God all probably have to do with military deliverance and protection. They also rightly suggest even greater meanings to us, speaking to us as New Testament believers, us as constituting the church. Boyce says that light speaks of spiritual understanding, salvation points to the greatest of all deliverers. Namely deliverance from sin by the death of Jesus Christ and stronghold refers to that spiritual refuge from the pains and buffetings of life which God Himself is for his people. He is a refuge for His people. John Stott states simply, The Lord is my light to guide me, my salvation to deliver me. And he is the stronghold of my life in whom I take refuge. David's context is war, physical war. You and I are engaged in war. As well A spiritual war. We battle against the spiritual forces of wickedness in high places. Ephesians 6:12. The devil roams about like a roaring lion seeking to devour the people of God. First Peter 5:8. His demon followers also seek our destruction, and in the face of enemy attack we do well to put our trust. In the Lord, looking to Him as our light, our salvation, and our defense, whom shall we fear? Of whom shall we be afraid? David's first response in the face of enemy attack is to trust the Lord and fear not. And so let us now turn to response number 2. Desire the Lord. Desire the Lord above all things. Verse 4 reads one thing. One thing I have asked from the Lord that I shall seek. That I may dwell in the house of the Lord all of the days of my life to behold, to, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord. And to meditate in his temple. Within the broader context of enemy attack, David gives voice to his one desire, his greatest passion, his most valuable prize, the one thing at this moment that is on his mind, he says, one thing I have asked from the Lord, one thing. What is most important, David, he goes on to ask for deliver, does he go on to ask for deliverance or protection from the enemy? No. And if he were to do so, would we fault him for that? Of course not. David goes on to say he, he will seek what it is that he is asking and what is he asking? He says that I may dwell in the house of the Lord, all of the days of my life. The temple has yet to be built. The reference is the earthly tent, and David's primary concern is to be at the location where the Lord's special presence is experienced. He sees the house of the Lord as the place where he can behold the beauty of the Lord. Shaza, the Hebrew word means to see, to perceive, to look at, to behold. His greatest desire is to fix his eyes upon the beauty of Yahweh. He knows that the Lord is beautiful. Nothing, no one compares to Yahweh. The Lord is by far the being of greatest beauty, infinite beauty, magnificent beauty, and David, more than anything else, desires to be in the place where he can experience the presence of the Lord and to gaze upon his beauty. He then wishes to meditate upon the Lord. The word carries the idea of seeking, inquiring, considering, and his desire to behold the beauty of the Lord and to fix his attention squarely upon the Lord. That's his desire. I want to encourage you from this verse to highlight the four groups of the, the, the 4 groups of words from this verse. Group number 1. One thing. That is important, one thing. Group number 2 Action words. Ask, seek, dwell, behold. Meditate. Group number 3, all of the days of my life. All of the days of my life. And number 4, the beauty. Of the Lord Is the Lord your greatest desire? Or does something or does someone else stand between you? And Yahweh. What are you asking for? What are you seeking after? What do you spend your time beholding? Whether you're meditating upon. Again I ask, is the Lord your greatest desire, a proper understanding of the beauty of the Lord will help fuel our desire for Him. And so let us grow in our understanding that the Lord is beautiful. Let us this morning be reminded of the beauty of the Lord. Take time to dwell upon the beauty. Of your triune God. What a beautiful word that captures something that is magnificent and should draw us to a place where our hearts are warmed and fueled with this desire that the one thing we seek rest your thoughts upon God the Father. God the Son And God the Holy Spirit. Remember that our God is intensely relational and that helps us to capture to a degree how beautiful he is. He is intensely relational. The beauty of our God is reflected in his very relational, joyful, loving being, and we have biblical terms designed to shape our thoughts about our God. Holy Eternal Infinite Self-sufficient. Perfect, pure. Our God is love. Joyful, peaceful, patient, kind, he is good, gentle, faithful. Sovereign Merciful, compassionate. These are but a few descriptions that help us capture the beauty. Of the Lord Such beauty serves as reason enough for us to desire the Lord. Above all things, oh Lord, you are beautiful. And your face is all that I seek. We all know that David is described in scripture as a man after God's own heart. That's the description given to David. What a wonderful, I wish it could be said of me that I am a man after God's own, the man after God's own heart. But that description was given to David and, and I think this passage serves to illustrate that point. One thing I ask of the Lord. His one desire is to experience and enjoy the beauty of the Lord as he soaks in his presence despite the fact that he's got trials coming against him. But let us not forget. David was no perfect man. He was not immune to sin. In fact, it is likely that this psalm was written prior to David's historic fall. the story, David, the man after God's own heart, he would later sin in grievous ways. Lust gives way to adultery. Adultery yields an unplanned pregnancy. The pregnancy was addressed by murdering the father of the baby, and this entire narrative is peppered with lies, manipulation, and attempts to cover up. David kept his sin under wraps as best as he could until a year later when the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to confront David regarding his sin. This confrontation was a grace from God, and Nathan's rebuke resulted in the greatest song of repentance ever recorded. Psalm 51. Is proof that David's desire for the Lord was sincere. In his heart of hearts, the one thing he ever wanted. Was the Lord But there did come a time in which indwelling sin got the better of David and he foolishly succumbed to the sinful desires that at the writing of Psalm 27 were dormant in his heart. Let us be warned that our commitment to and love for the Lord is no guarantee. That we will never sin. In fact, because of the remnants of indwelling sin, we can guarantee ourselves that it will be a struggle and a battle that will take us to the grave. And on the other side of the grave, when we are glorified with perfect bodies, no longer will we ever have the ability to sin in want, desire, thought, word, and deed. We will be at that point perfected even as in Christ right now we are complete. Let us also be encouraged to know that our gracious God is pleased to confront us in our sin in order that he might restore our fellowship to Himself as he one day does with David. Yahweh has covenanted with his people. he has through the blood sacrifice of his beloved Son, redeemed us, forgiven us, washed us, purified us, cleansed us. He has clothed us in his righteousness. The triune God has entered into a relationship with his people, and as the church of the living God, we know. He will complete his work in us. Philippians 1:6. There is nothing. That can separate us from the love of Christ. Romans 8:35. Jesus tells us that none whom the Father has given to Him will be lost. John 6:37. We will be raised up on the last day. John 6:39, and all who call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Romans 10:13. David had more than enough reason to desire the Lord above all things in the face of enemy attack, and may I suggest that we as the church of the living God through the gospel have been given even greater reason to desire the Lord above all things. And so let us now turn to response number 3. When in the face of enemy attack, acknowledge the truth, acknowledge the truth about the Lord and regarding what He will do. In verse 5 we read, David says, for in the day of trouble he will conceal me in his tabernacle, in the secret place of his tent. He will hide me. He will lift me up on a rock, and now my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me. The psalmist has already referred to the Lord as my light, my salvation, the defense of my life. Here in verse 5, the psalmist acknowledges more of what he believes to be true about the Lord and what the Lord will do for him. He says he will conceal me. Safan, the Hebrew word, can be translated to conceal, to hide, to, to treasure or store up. David affirms that Yahweh is his personal protector. He knows that the Lord treasures him and will hide him in his oh hell tent. David continues with greater specificity, he says, in the secret place. In the secret place of his tent, he will hide me. The secret place of his tent is, is the most holy place. It is the holy of holies, the, the inner sanctuary. It was understood that folks dare not enter the most holy place for dread. Of destruction, such a place was reserved exclusively for the high priest. He served as the mediator between God and His people, and only once a year on the day of atonement would the high priest enter this place to offer sacrifices for God's people, the unblemished, pure, spotless lamb offered. As a picture of what Christ the Lamb of God would do when he offered Himself at Calvary's cross for our sin. In this verse David sees himself in this place, and there David is Sahar by the Lord. The word means to hide or conceal, and he envisions himself in the secret place where he is hidden by the Lord. It is there in the presence of Yahweh that he feels safe. He feels protected. He is a man of faith with great boldness, and with that boldness he believes that Yahweh will bring him into the most holy place from where he will find this safety and protection. So David declares that Yahweh will conceal me and he will hide me. He presents another description of what the Lord will do. he will lift me on a rock. At the very least this speaks of a sure and steady foundation. It speaks of a place of elevation. David goes on to say, and out my head will be lifted up above my enemies around me. David believes that the Lord will elevate him. Above his enemies. And even as we think about this. We catch a glimpse of Calvary's cross. Where the Lord facing His own enemies, had his head lifted up and elevated above all of his enemies. That surrounded him. But here directing our attention to the lesser David. He believes that the Lord will elevate him above his enemies and so in the section of the Psalm, David acknowledges the truth about the Lord and what the Lord will do, conceal me, hide me, lift me up on a rock. His trust appears un. There is no double-mindedness as James talks about in chapter one. There is no instability. His confidence and trust in the Lord are rooted in truth, the truth about the Lord and what he believes the Lord does for his own people. And so we do well, brothers and sisters in the face of enemy attack as we engage the spiritual battle to set our minds on truth. We must reject lies and embrace truth. we must embrace the truth about who our God is and what he promises to do for us. Like David, we can say that the Lord conceals us. He hides us and he lifts us up upon a rock. We learned last week from Colossians chapter 3 that we have died. Our life is now hidden with Christ in God. We learned that we have been raised up with Christ. He is the rock of our salvation. It is upon Christ, the solid rock we stand, and we know that all other ground is sinking sand. Indeed we are grounded in the good soil of the gospel. And we do well to remember and embrace gospel truth in the face of enemy attack. The devil may harass us, bring accusations against us, and condemn us for sin. But the truth tells us. There is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. Romans 8:1. Satan may seek our lives to destroy, but the truth that Jesus tells us is he who has the Son has life. Whoever hears my word and believes Him who sent me, he has eternal life. John 5:24 and 5:12. The evil 1 may tell us that we are alone. But Jesus declares, I am with you. I am with you always. Matthew 28:20. Paul the apostle says that the Lord is near. Philippians 4:5. The enemy whispers, You're worthless. You are valueless, but the truth loudly proclaims you are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus. I am fearfully and wonderfully made, and my soul knows it. Cross reference Ephesians 2:19 in Psalm 139:14. The accuser seeks to bring God's character into question, but the truth reminds us that our God is good. He is gracious, merciful, compassionate, loving, and kind. The liar may well say you are hopeless, and truth tells us we have been born again into a living hope that cannot perish, spoil, or fade. First Peter 1:3. E Lucifer commands, give up. Give up. You cannot continue. You are and you always will be a failure, but in the truth of God's precious word we read, I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. Philippians 4:13. saint of God, when in the face of enemy attack we do well to reject the lies and humbly receive the truth of the word implanted, we must embrace the truth, the truth about our God, along with what He will do and His precious promises that He has made to us. As a result of acknowledging encouraging truths about the Lord as well as what David and faith believes the Lord will do, he moves in the direction of exalting the Lord, and this brings us to the next response to enemy attack that we as God's people do well to embrace. Response number 4, exalt the Lord. Exalt the Lord in the place where He dwells. David says, and I will offer in his tent sacrifices with shouts of joy. I will sing. Yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. David envisions himself in the tent of God offering sacrifices. The Old Testament sacrifices included burnt offerings, peace offerings, sin offerings, grain offerings, and, and guilt offerings, and David envisions himself offering sacrifices to God, in the temple and in the tabernacle, and he says with shouts of joy. There is no holding back. Amazing. Even against the backdrop of war, he will shout. Joyful shouts to Yahweh without holding back, he will be unashamed in his expression of emotion to the Lord. His joy will be expressed with loud shouting. Additionally, he says, I will sing. Yes, I will sing praises to the Lord. Might I say to you that it is appropriate for us as God's people to open our mouth and through our lips to let praises to the Lord go forth. It is a staggering thought that David sees himself in the immediate presence of a holy God, offering sacrifices with joyful shouts. And singing But this is what we read any fear of man and and what man can do evaporates in the presence of a God who welcomes his people with a smile. To quote our dear brother Paul Kumamoto. One of the things that I love is it seems like when we pray so often, the vast majority of times, he's always thankful to the Lord who welcomes us. Into his presence. With a smile Because we are in Christ, there is no frown. There is no askance look. There is no furrowed brow. He welcomes us into his presence with a smile. Brothers and sisters, young and old, lift your heart and your voice. To the Lord, sing praises to God even in the face of enemy attack when times are difficult. When fears arise, do not allow anyone or anything to hinder you from singing praises to the Lord. exalt the Lord. Now please don't misunderstand me. I know there are other psalms. There is a place for lament. There is a place for baring your broken heart to God and crying out to Him with cries of desperation. There is a place for lament, but here in this Psalm it seems that David, even in difficult times, he is confident in the Lord. He is fearing no one. He is fearing nothing. His trust is in the Lord. And so when we gather as the bride of Christ, let us not shy away from appropriate shouts of joy as well as songs of praise and out of the overflow of the heart and through the lips of our mouths in the face of enemy attack, may we feel the freedom to shout for joy and sing praise to God. we are learning from David that against the backdrop of enemy attack one does well to respond by trusting the Lord, desiring the Lord, acknowledging the truth about the Lord and what he will do, and exalting the Lord. And so let us now consider 1/5 response to enemy attack. Response number 5, petition the Lord, petition. It's a fancy word that means pray to, pray to the Lord with the prayers you pray to Him in verses 7 through 12, this is a bigger chunk of this Psalm, the Psalmist praise to the Lord. Child of God, perhaps you find yourself in troubling times. You're confronted with enemy attack, and there are various ways by which the attacks may come for David. Evil doers sought to devour his flesh. Soldiers sought to wage war against him. Trouble came knocking at David's door. Enemies surrounded him. he will later speak of being forsaken by father and mother. But let us not be ignorant of the fact that such attacks are not limited to those that David here in this Psalm describes. There are other types of attacks. Satan assaulted Eve in the garden and his attack came in the form of deception, and he prevailed upon Eve to doubt. Devalue, distrust, disobey, and ultimately deny God and His word. Satan's attack against Job included the stealing of livestock. The senseless slaughter of servants, natural disaster resulting in the death of his children, all of his children, physical pain in the form of boils all over his body, a beloved wife reeling from her own suffering, and friends who through their lips heaped condemnation upon Job by telling him he was suffering because of sin in his life. These are some of the many ways by which the enemy attacks. Against the backdrop of such attacks we may be tempted to withdraw, but this is not what we see the psalmist doing. Rather than retreat, he runs toward the Lord. He, he prays to his God, and in verses 7 through 12 we observe 8 specific petitions the psalmist presents to the Lord. Petition number one. Hear me. God hear me, hear me, O Lord, when I cry with my voice. This indicates a belief that the Lord is near and He will in fact listen to him. Petition number 2, be gracious to me and answer me. He says, and be gracious to me and answer me. He's asking the Lord to respond to his cry graciously, mercifully, favorably. He seeks a favorable response to his prayer, and, and we already know of the one thing that he asks of the Lord. He wants to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord, and we should have no doubt that such a request is within God's will, and it is to be granted. David's longing for the Lord is evident yet again as we look to petition 3. Reveal yourself to me. Reveal yourself to me. This is in agreement with his earliest one thing I have asked, and now he is saying, Lord, reveal yourself to me. Verse 8 reads, when thou didst say this is Yahweh speaking to him, and he says, when you spoke to me and you said, seek my face. My heart said to thee, Thy face, O Lord. I shall seek Do not hide thy face from me. He acknowledges that Yahweh is the one who initiates fellowship with Him. Yahweh speaks and he says to David, Seek my face. And then David obeys the Lord's command to seek his face. His heart is drawn to Yahweh, and so he responds by seeking the face of Yahweh. And let us remember that our Lord is pleased to beckon us to Himself during his visit here on earth. The Lord commanded, Come. To me this is a command that goes out to all people. He says, come to me all and then he says, who are weak and heavy laden, and I will give you rest. In the book of Revelation we hear the Lord saying, behold. I stand at the door and knock. If any man hears my voice, and no doubt the voice of the Lord is saying, come, the voice of the Lord is saying, seek my face. The voice of the Lord is saying, come to me all who are we? and so I stand at the door. I knock. If any man hears my voice, and then he opens the door. I will come in to him, and I will dine with him speaking of fellowship, intimacy, relationship. Friendship With the Lord Our Lord desires fellowship with sinners such as you and I, and he gave his life at Calvary's Cross to bring us into a relationship with Himself. The scripture tells us he takes no pleasure in the death of the wicked. It is not his desire for any to perish, but for all to come to eternal life. He beckoned sinners to come to him. And he beckons those who are saints who have accepted him to draw nearer to him. Perhaps you are here today and you have never come to Christ for salvation. You are yet dead in your sin and in your transgression. The Lord has never opened the eyes of your understanding where you behold the beauty of the Lord and you say that is what I want. I, I want you, Lord. I want you, Jesus, perhaps that has never happened in your life. It could be that he is doing that right now and he is speaking to your heart and he's saying come to me. Might I encourage you to come to Christ? Will you cry out to him. Today, now. And perhaps you have cried out to the Lord for salvation and you've been born again and you are a child of God. are you seeking his face? Are you responding to his invitation and are you saying your face, Lord? I shall seek David declares, your face, O Lord. I shall seek As sure as the Lord is calling you this morning through His word to seek Him, respond positively to the Lord by doing so, even now. Right now Seek after him. Set your gaze upon him. David goes on to say, do not hide your face from me. David desires more than anything for the Lord to reveal Himself, and his request perhaps indicates his fear that the Lord might hide his face from him, but his fears. David but David fears more. Then the Lords simply hiding his face, and we see this in his 4th petition says do not turn me away in anger. Do not turn thy servant away in anger. Thou hast been my help. Here David wrestles with fear of the Lord turning him away in anger. It is true that the Lord's wrath falls upon those who reject Him, but David is not rejecting the Lord. He is, in fact, turning to the Lord for divine help. He desires the Lord above everything else, and in his heart of hearts he knows that the Lord has been and always will be his help. Commenting on this verse, Charles Spurgeon declares. The prince of preachers says God puts many away for their supposed goodness but not any at all for their confessed badness. David's fear of God's anger reveals an understanding of his own sin and his own shortcomings. The Lord does not reject those coming to him with such an understanding. The Lord serves as their helper. David's concern is repeated with the use of different words, and we see this as we come to petition 5. Do not leave me alone. Do not abandon me nor forsake me, O God of my salvation. His fear of being abandoned is real in our flesh. We struggle with such fear that we think that the Lord might turn us away in anger. We fear that the Lord will or has abandoned and forsaken us. That's a very real fear that even the saints of God may struggle with from time to time. Have you ever struggled with that, Lord, where are you? Lord, why are you not listening to me? Oh Lord, have you abandoned me? Have I been forsaken? Lord, am I truly saved? Have you ever wrestled with these thoughts that the Lord has left you alone? It seems as if on some level David does, but then tune your ear to what he goes on to say, oh God of my salvation, our God is a saving God, delivering God, a rescuing God. He saves. He is the God of salvation, David says, and he describes him as the God of my salvation. There is this assurance that he has that he is saved by God. This is his understanding and it should be ours who believe in Christ as well. Though others might abandon us, we must remember our Lord. He, he will never leave us. He will never forsake us, and this is precisely what he goes on to say in verse 10. He says, for my father and my mother have forsaken me. Other translations say, though my father and mother forsake me, he goes on to say, but the Lord, he will take me up or the Lord, he will receive me. In other words, I know that he will never reject me, he will receive me. Some of you relate to his words you have been forsaken by father or mother. Or perhaps both. You understand the sting. Of being forsaken by mom, dad, or both, such abandonment is extremely painful. It is hurtful, and I am sorry for those here who have suffered such neglect, abuse, and abandonment by your earthly parents. But take note, he declares, the Lord. Will lift me up. The Lord will receive me, and we too can rest assured that our Lord will, he'll never abandon us. He'll take us up. He will take us up into his care and keeping. When we feel alone as we live life in this fallen world, take heart remembering he is our helper, our savior. He takes us up into his care regardless of the attacks coming our way, no matter the testing that comes into our lives, despite the difficult days we experience, our God is for us. Being that he is for us, we can turn to Him in our times of testing. This brings us to petition 6. Teach me verse 11, he says, Teach me thy way, O Lord. And here in this passage, he is positioning himself as the student, as the learner. He recognizes his need to be taught by the master teacher. There is a humility in him coming to the Lord and saying, Oh Lord, teach me. he knows that he has a need for learning. He, though he is a man of great ability, great influence, he is not a know it all, and he finds himself in a difficult situation, and he seeks instructions from the Lord to have the wisdom that he needs to navigate his way through the choppy seas of life, and this leads us to his next petition 7 lead me, he says, lead me in a level path because of my foes. I'm gonna hasten a bit, petition 8. He says, do not deliver me over to my enemies. do not deliver me over to the desire of my adversaries, he says, for false witnesses have risen against me and such as breathe out violence. We have seen that his greatest desire is to behold the beauty of the Lord, but this does not hinder him from seeking the Lord's protection from his adversaries at this point of the Psalm. He describes his enemies as violent, false witnesses. They seek his utter destruction, and so he petitions the Lord to protect him from his adversaries. Likewise, you and I, we do well to petition our God to protect us from our enemies. Lord, protect us from human enemies. Protect us from spiritual enemies. Protect us from the attacks of the devil. Protect us from his demonic followers. And so, having petitioned the Lord in the midst of being attacked, we come to David's final response. number 6. Wait. For the Lord Wait for the Lord with expectation of good to come. It's not as if his troubles go away. But he has found a refuge in Yahweh. And he is in a good place spiritually. And so we come to his final response, and it's a response of just simply waiting. Sometimes we have to wait for the Lord. We're in these situations and we just, we, we just gotta wait. We gotta be strong. We gotta take heart, we gotta wait on the Lord. Verse 13 reads, he says, I would have despaired. This is an acknowledgment, right? Like, like this is a confession. I would have despaired unless I had believed and know how important belief is. Notice how important truth is unless I had believed I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. And then in verse 14 he says, wait for the Lord, be strong. Yes, let your heart take courage, wait for the Lord. David provides an admission followed by a statement of hope. He acknowledges potential for despair, discouragement, inward struggle, and stress, but he also provides the antidote, belief in the goodness of the Lord. It's not always easy to do that. When life is attacking you and you feel like things are completely falling apart and things just aren't going the way that they're going and you're pressed, big time pressed and stressed over the worries and concerns of life, and there are some very real difficult things that are happening, it's in those moments where you question, Lord, are you good? Are you good? And I know many of you have been in that place, and, and the thing that we must do is we have to affirm the fact that he is good. David is in the midst of a difficult situation, enemies rising up, forsaken by mom and dad. It's a difficult trial in his life, and here he is affirming that the Lord is good. He says, I would have despaired unless I had believed in the goodness of the Lord and that I would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Regardless of one's lot in life, it remains that the Lord is good and his ultimate plan for us is good. He takes solace in the fact he will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Commentators differ over the land of the living. Some say it speaks of seeing God's goodness in this fallen world marked by pain and suffering, and I think there is truth to the fact that we do see His good even in the midst of challenges while we live life in this fallen world. There are others who believe that David refers to heaven, the home of all of the living. Regardless, David hopes in the Lord, and such hope helps him to be strong, to take heart. And to wait on the Lord. He then directs his thoughts outward, and he commands his readers with these very sentiments he commands. Wait for the Lord. This communicates the idea of looking for the Lord, hoping in the Lord, and expecting ultimate good from the Lord. Acknowledge the truth about the Lord and what he will do. He continues, he says, be strong and let your heart take courage. He commands his readers here to be strong. The, the term coming from the Septuagint carries the idea of acting like a man, the Septuagint being the Greek version of the Hebrew scriptures, the Old Testament, and so the idea is, is act like a man. And perhaps he has his fellow soldiers in mind and he's giving command for them to be manly in the face of attack to be manly as they await attack. He then commands his readers to allow their hearts to take courage. The Lord strengthens the heart and David commands his readers to allow the Lord to do his work. That's the idea. this is supported by David's final exhortation to, to, to wait for the Lord. And again, this command carries the idea of looking for the Lord, hoping in the Lord, and expecting ultimate good to come from the Lord. And so Psalm 27 presents us with six responses. That we as God's people do well to embrace when tempted to fear and in the face of enemy attack. And trust the Lord. Rather than fear man, desire the Lord above all things. Exalt the Lord in the place where He dwells. Petition the Lord with prayers that you pray to Him and And wait patiently for the Lord with expectation of good to come. And these are the very things that we see from David. And we do well to take these responses to heart when we ourselves are tempted to fear in the face of enemy attack. And when times are difficult, Perhaps in considering these responses you recognize your own weakness and failure. I know I do. Your struggles are evident to you. You fear man Your base desires betray your love for and commitment to the Lord. You come to the place where God dwells. You gather here together week after week to hear the word of God being preached, but your heart feels far. From him You struggle with your own prayer life. You, you try to get the words out, but they just don't come. You struggle to pray. It's, it's just, you feel as if there's something not quite right there. Your pet your petitions to him, they are few and far between, and, and you long for a day in which, like when you first came to Christ, you just seem to love Him with all of your being, but now you feel like, like things have dried up inside of you, and as you stare into your future, your faith fails to see the good to come. You look at these responses and it's like, gosh. I feel beat up. That doesn't describe me. May I remind you. That this Psalm of David is the Psalm. Of the greater David Our Lord Jesus is the greater David. He was no stranger to this Psalm. This is his Psalm, and as the god man, he would have prayed through and applied this Psalm in his own life. He came into this fallen world and he faced his enemy head on. He lived a perfect life and then offered himself as a sacrifice at Calvary's Cross in our place. He received upon himself all of the punishment and the wrath that we deserved. Our Lord succeeded where we have failed. He trusted His Heavenly Father. He desired fellowship with His Heavenly Father above all. Things and so often as in the Gospels he would get away to a quiet place and there he would pray to the Father all night long. He lived solely for the exaltation of his Heavenly Father. He did only that which he saw the Father doing and he came to give glory and honor and praise to the Father. He pleased the Father. With his own life, the father says, Listen to my beloved son in him I am well pleased, and he petitioned his father by offering loud cries unto him, and he was strong, and Jesus took heart, and he waited upon his father to bring about the ultimate good that he came to accomplish our salvation. Who for the joy set before Him, he endured the cross, scorning the shame of it, so that he might bring many sons into glory. That's what he did for us. And so where we have failed, he succeeded. He lived perfectly. He did these things with absolute precision. And the Father was pleased with the sacrifice of his son, and so he raised him bodily from the dead. Our Lord appeared to hundreds, and he ascended into heaven, and he took his seat at the right hand of the Father. And from His throne on high, the good shepherd serves as our great High Priest. He is our Redeemer, Savior, brother, and friend, and he reigns over all of the affairs of affairs of man. He is the greater David. And brothers and sisters. I bring to your attention this greater David. Whose perfect obedience is applied To your account. He who knew no sin became sin for us. So that we might in him become the righteousness of God. He has taken our sin and he has in the place of our sin dressed us up in his own righteousness. In him we are complete, wholly righteous without blame, as if we have always obeyed him perfectly in our desire, in our wants, in, in, in our thoughts, in our words and in our deeds. The righteousness of Christ has been applied to us and so positionally speaking. We are holy, righteous without blame. We are saints of the Most High God, though we are sinners as well, and we long for the day when our salvation will be fully realized. And in the meantime, let us fight the fight of faith. And it is the greater David from whom we have hope and power to fight. This good fight of faith. By trusting In the Lord desiring him above all, embracing the truth about who he is and what he has done for us, exulting in Him. Petitioning him. And being strong and taking heart. And trusting in the Lord. Heavenly Father. Seal. This song To our soul. Let us be reminded. Of this song. Encouraged By this psalm. Built up and established. By things that we have learned from this song. Lord, let it be that. We fear no one, and we fear nothing. Wrap us up in your love, triune God, Father, Son, Spirit. Let us know of your love and your joy. Try you in God. And let us find ourselves. Feeling safe. In your arms of love. You are our rock, our salvation. Our fortress, our deliverer. Our stronghold, our defense. It is you who brings us into the holy of holies. It is you who commands us to come into that most sacred place and so there we are now with you, oh God. And I pray once again. Lord Help us. To reflect you. As we live life in this fallen world. Against the backdrop of attack. Help us, Lord, to be strong in the Lord. The strength of his might, help us, Lord, to wait. On the Lord to be strong and to take hearts and to wait. On the Lord, give us the confidence that we need to know that you are good. And you do all things well. And so Lord, lift us above our situation of life. And plant us on the solid grounding of the gospel. You are the gospel. Now we lift our voices to you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.