Written by: Kevin McGlade - The 29th Chapter
Psalm 40 v 11-12
LORD, do not hold back your mercy from me; let your love and truth always
protect me.
Troubles have surrounded me; there are too many to count.
My sins have caught me so that I cannot see a way to escape.
I have more sins than hairs on my head, and I have lost my courage.
Notes
"Desperation" might be the best way to describe the feelings of the
psalmist in this passage. He was entirely conscious of the bad decisions he had
made and the hurt his actions had caused himself and other people, so much so
that he felt caged and powerless, with no one else to blame except himself.
However, he declared at the beginning of the passage a need for God's mercy, truth and love. He was aware that it is only in God's forgiveness and love (that makes all things new) that he could find a way to escape the daily torment of his sins. In the midst of his desperation, the psalmist had a hope, and that hope was God. Whilst he felt he had more sins than hairs on his head, he was loved by a God that had every hair on his head counted.
God always provides a way out, because He loves us. If you search scripture you will see the countless amount of times God has shown men and women a way out of desperate situations. Perhaps you feel like you are crying out in desperation and there's no escape. Be encouraged - like the psalmist, there is a faithfulness expressed in crying out to God. "Lord, do not hold back your mercy from me; let your love and truth always protect me." There is also vulnerability in crying out to God as your only hope, and it is in this vulnerability that God can move freely in your situation. If all you have to offer God is your sin, then offer it to Him. God's words to the Apostle Paul concerning his struggles were: "My grace is enough for you. When you are weak, my power is made perfect in you" (2 Corinthians 12 v 9).
Prayer points
• Feeling desperate? Invite God to be present and let go.
• Come to the foot of the cross and seek His face.
• "We love because God first loved us" (1 John 4 v 19). Be still
and receive His love in a quiet place.
Psalm 40 v 13-17
Please, LORD, save me.
Hurry, LORD, to help me.
People are trying to kill me.
Shame them and disgrace them.
People want to hurt me.
Let them run away in disgrace.
People are making fun of me.
Let them be shamed into silence.
But let those who follow you be happy and glad.
They love you for saving them.
May they always say, "Praise the LORD!"
Lord, because I am poor and helpless, please remember me.
You are my helper and saviour.
My God, do not wait.
Notes
The psalmist seemed to be quite panic-stricken at the start of this passage.
He called out: "Hurry, Lord, to help me." This was the result
of the different attacks, three in all, that people were levelling at him.
People were trying to kill him, hurt him and make fun of him. He was feeling
overwhelmed and it seemed momentarily that his confidence had been knocked
and that all may have been lost. So he brought the situation before the Lord,
petitioning Him to come through for him.
As the psalmist pleaded to God it was like he moved into a realisation of who he was, whom he served and therefore what he was entitled to.
"But let those who follow you…" - who he was.
"…be happy and glad" - what he was entitled to.
"They love you for saving them" - whom he served, a God that has the power to grant salvation.
What began as a cry of fear, then became a cry of praise and thanksgiving. "May they always say, ‘Praise the Lord!'" The psalmist was not subject to fear and threat from the world, because he had a divine and powerful saviour.
Perhaps you are feeling attacked from all angles. Like the psalmist, you need to remember who you are and who your leader is in the midst of the battle. "You are my helper and saviour." Your helper is the Holy Spirit, someone you can call upon to guide you and comfort you when you are under attack. Your saviour is Jesus Christ. He has already won the battle and it is in Him and through Him that you receive eternal life. Romans 8 v 37 reads: "But in all these things we have full victory through God who showed his love for us."
Prayer points
• Begin to ask God to show you your identity in Him, both through His word
and in prayer.
• Invite the Holy Spirit into your daily battles.
• Praise the Lord for the victory he has given you now and in eternity.
Psalm 41 v 1-6
Happy is the person who thinks about the poor.
When trouble comes, the LORD will save him.
The LORD will protect him and spare his life and will bless him in the land.
He will not let his enemies take him.
The LORD will give him strength when he is sick, and he will make him well
again.
I said, "LORD, have mercy on me.
Heal me, because I have sinned against you."
My enemies are saying evil things about me.
They say, "When will he die and be forgotten?"
Some people come to see me, but they lie.
They just come to get bad news.
Then they go and gossip.
Notes
The psalmist was speaking from the experience of knowing what it was like to
be poor and sick and then to receive God's mercy and rescue. The Old Testament's
understanding of "salvation" meant more than the forgiveness of
sins. It was the promise of an abundant and holistic life under the leadership
of God the rescuer. The psalmist in this passage described three guarantees
of this rescued life.
Protection - "The Lord will protect him and spare his life…"
Provision - "…and will bless him in the land."
Strength - "The Lord will give him strength when he is sick, and he will
make him well again."
The psalmist saw the most endangering sickness as the sickness of the spirit. Our spirit is where everything is birthed and given life. Its condition affects both our physical and mental health and therefore its health is paramount. The psalmist recognised that it was only when he had been healed from his spiritual infirmities - caused by his abusive living towards himself, God and other people – that he could walk into the fullness of a salvation lifestyle.
The psalmist then lamented over the attacks made by his enemies and those around him. However, rejection of man in no way reflects rejection by God. Romans 8 v 33 says: "Who can accuse the people God has chosen? No one, because God is the One who makes them right." As Jesus is precious to God, so are we who are united in Him. Jesus became the cure for our spiritual infirmities when He died on the cross. You are cured and are one with Christ. You were dying and now you are going to live for ever. Therefore you are entitled to the fullness of salvation, which not only encompasses forgiveness but abundant life.
Prayer points
• Are you living life in abundance?
• Whose voice do you hear more loudly: God's or man's?
• Give thanks to God for sending His Son Jesus, that you may know your
creator personally.
Psalm 41 v 7-13
All my enemies whisper about me and think the worst about me.
They say, "He has a terrible disease.
He will never get out of bed again."
My best and truest friend, who ate at my table, has even turned against me.
LORD, have mercy on me.
Give me strength so I can pay them back.
Because my enemies do not defeat me,
I know you are pleased with me.
Because I am innocent, you support me and will let me be with you for ever.
Praise the LORD, the God of Israel.
He has always been, and he will always be.
Amen and amen.
Notes
There is a strong feeling of rejection and abandonment in the psalmist's words.
Not only were his enemies whispering about him, but also his best and truest
friend had turned against him. The only place he had left to find comfort
and hope was in the presence of God. Again we see the psalmist crying out
for God's mercy and for the strength to defend himself against these attacks.
However, one thing the psalmist was confident in was the faithfulness of
his relationship with God. "I know you are pleased with me. Because
I am innocent, you support me and will let me be with you for ever." Despite
the very instant and crushing feeling of pain that comes from the rejection
of those close to us, the psalmist knew the love of a God who honours His
faithful children. He desires to walk with them now and for ever, in an intimacy
even greater than that found in a human relationship.
When Jesus was arrested, false witnesses came forward and made unfounded accusations against Him. Peter, His closest companion, denied Him three times. Jesus was then stripped, whipped and tortured. He hung on a cross for nine hours receiving taunts from the very people He had come to save. Jesus knows what abandonment feels like; He knows what it feels like to be rejected by the people you love. However, in the midst of it all His eyes were firmly fixed on His heavenly father from whom He enjoyed unrivalled intimacy and love His entire life. His strength and assurance came from God.
Jesus wants to walk with you in your times of loneliness and abandonment. He has walked the road of rejection and pain and He came out victorious. He invites you to share in that victory.
Prayer points
• Do you feel abandoned or rejected by someone or some group? Ask Jesus
to walk with you right now. Invite His Holy Spirit to come and fill you and comfort
you.
• "I will never leave you or forsake you" (Hebrews 10 v 5).
God never breaks His promises.
Psalm 42 v 1-4
As a deer thirsts for streams of water, so I thirst for you, God.
I thirst for the living God.
When can I go to meet with him?
Day and night, my tears have been my food.
People are always saying,
" Where is your God?"
When I remember these things,
I speak with a broken heart.
I used to walk with the crowd and lead them to God's Temple with songs of praise.
Notes
The psalmist used the image of a deer thirsting for streams of water to express
his desperate need and thirst for God. Often an animal such as a deer thirsts
for water after a predator has relentlessly pursued it or it has wandered
a dangerously long way from the sanctuary of the stream. It pants for the
stream's cool water that provides refreshment and restoration.
The psalmist was being pursued by his enemies, who had chased him into exile and were taunting him with the question: "Where is your God?" This only served to demoralise the psalmist further, as he himself was seeking an answer to that very question. "I used to walk with the crowd and lead them to God's Temple with songs of praise." The psalmist remembered a time when he led his people into God's temple praising and he himself enjoyed a deep intimacy with God. However, now he found himself lost, hunted and thirsting for an authentic encounter with the living God.
Maybe there was a time when you used to lead God's people in songs of praise. Or perhaps you find yourself reminiscing about times when God used you powerfully and you enjoyed intimacy with Him. However, you currently find yourself in a very different place. Perhaps you have wandered a long way from God or you have allowed the world to place its pressures on you, making you run until you are weary and wander until you are disillusioned and lost.
Like the psalmist you now speak with a broken heart. However, Jesus came to bind up the broken-hearted. He is calling you to Himself once again. He is the only place you will find quenching for your thirst. Come and bathe in His stream to once again know His love.
Prayer points
• The Bible teaches that God is near those with a broken heart.
• Jesus said: "...but whoever drinks the water I give shall never
be thirsty" (John 4 v 14).
• Perhaps there are spiritual gifts you used to move in. Maybe you need
to learn how to use them again.
Psalm 42 v 5-8
Why am I so sad?
Why am I so upset?
I should put my hope in God and keep praising him, my Saviour and my God.
I am very sad.
So I remember you where the Jordan River begins, near the peaks of Hermon and
Mount Mizar.
Troubles have come again and again, sounding like waterfalls.
Your waves are crashing all around me.
The LORD shows his true love every day.
At night I have a song, and I pray to my living God.
Notes
The author of this psalm was one of the "Sons of Korah". It was
his job to compose songs and poems to teach the people of Israel how to relate
to God. However, the psalmist was far from his people and unable even to relate
to God himself. This section begins with the solemn words: "Why am I
so sad?" These words are repeated many times throughout this psalm.
The psalmist seems spiritually depressed - "Troubles have come again and again" - and he feels as if "Your waves are crashing all around me", weighing him down and throwing him into despair. The source of this spiritual depression was that he had put his hope in God and yet it seemed he was getting no answer. All he was faced with were setbacks and attacks. The only thing he had to hold onto was his experiences of God in the past and his belief that God is ultimately in control.
Our individualistic culture teaches us that "our" feelings are the only guide to reality. However, God teaches us to also base reality on His promises. The first step to overcoming spiritual depression is to follow the example of the psalmist and openly voice your hurts and disappointments to God and trusted friends. Do not be ashamed at being disappointed in God. However, be willing to challenge the validity and source of your thoughts and feelings.
On the cross Jesus cried out: "My God, my God, why have you rejected me?" (Matthew 27 v 46). Jesus was in the depths of despair, but He persevered. He knew the reality of God's love, despite the fact that He couldn't feel it. He also knew that His suffering was nothing compared to the glory that would follow.
Prayer points
• Follow the example of the psalmist. Express yourself and make your disappointments
known to God.
• Remember what God has done for you in the past.
• Let God know that your hope is in Him alone and ask Him to guard your
heart and protect your mind.
Psalm 42 v 9-11
I say to God, my Rock,
" Why have you forgotten me?
Why am I sad and troubled by my enemies?"
My enemies' insults make me feel as if my bones were broken.
They are always saying,
" Where is your God?"
Why am I so sad?
Why am I so upset?
I should put my hope in God and keep praising him, my Saviour and my God.
Notes
"I say to God, my Rock..." This opening phrase reveals the psalmist's
resolve in putting his hope and trust in God alone. He had accepted God as his
rock and foundation, despite the fact that his enemies continued to undermine
him and he remained sad and upset. The psalmist said for a second time in this
psalm: "I should put my hope in God and keep praising him, my Saviour and
my God."
The word "saviour" can simply be translated as "rescuer". It seems that God was taking the psalmist to the depths, in order that the psalmist may hold out his arms in a child-like act of reliance and be rescued by the loving arms of God. The psalmist had come to a place where he was no longer striving or able to save himself. He was fully reliant upon God to do that for him. This was a very vulnerable and counter-culture position to be in as a human being, but it was exactly how God wanted it.
"I'm tired I'm frustrated I'm not capable I'm not motivated I'm terrified I'm not ready I'm not encouraged I'm selfish I'm lazy I don't want to fail.
"He's strong He's comforting He's capable He's motivating He's powerful He's ready He is encouragement He's ready He's selfless He's pursuing He will never fail.
"I don't know I don't care I can't touch people I'm not strong I'm not loving I'm guilty I'm ashamed.
"He knows all He cares about all He can touch lives He's mighty He loves abundantly He's pure and He's perfect.
"I am human.
He is God. And His strength is made perfect in my weakness.
"I am therefore completely dependent and that's exactly how He wants it."
(marcy burnham)
Prayer points
* Do you need God to rescue you from a situation?
* Are you fully reliant on God?
* "No one has ever seen this, and no one has ever heard about it. No
one has ever imagined what God has prepared for those who love him" (1
Corinthians 2 v 9).
word-on-the-web uses the Scripture text taken from the Youth Bible, New Century Version (Anglicised Edition) copyright 1993 by Word Publishing Milton Keynes