Praise from the Pit

Praise from the Pit Lesson 7 Brings Boldness to the Beleagured

When I am afraid, I will trust in you. In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me? Ps 56:3-4

Lord, what a change within us one short hour Spent in Thy presence will prevail to make -- What heavy burdens from our bosoms take, What parchèd grounds refresh, as with a shower! We kneel, and all around us seems to lower; We rise, and all, the distant and the near, Stands forth in sunny outline, brave and clear; We kneel how weak, we rise how full of power! Why, therefore, should we do ourselves this wrong, Or others -- that we are not always strong; That we are ever overborne with care; That we should ever weak or heartless be, Anxious or troubled, when with us is prayer, And joy, and strength, and courage, are with Thee? Richard Chenevix Trench

Introduction If you live long enough you will experience loss, painful change, a diminishing human support base David can relate David’s losses – position (job) – wife – best friend – spiritual counselor – self respect

David’s Condition

1. Alone

2. Desperate

3. Afraid 1 Sam 21:12

For our good and His glory, God may choose to eliminate some or all of the support systems (crutches) in our life A.W. Tozer describes the condition well; The Pursuit of God; 1948

Fear and anxiety is common to all

We often try to remove it in improper ways

There is an effective way to deal with it

1 The 1 Peter 5:7 connection I. Psalm 56 For the director of music. To [the tune of] "A Dove on Distant Oaks." Of David. A miktam. When the Philistines had seized him in Gath.

Miktam – cutting or engraving; something that penetrates (substantial, enduring, fixed, so J. Vernon McGee)

The “Tune” see Psalm 55:6-8

A. The Reason Mercy is Sought

1 Be merciful to me, O God, for men hotly pursue me; all day long they press their attack. 2 My slanderers pursue me all day long; many are attacking me in their pride.

B. The fury of the attack

1 pursue - all day long - attack 2. pursue - all day long - attacking

C. A Personal Statement of Faith

3 When I am afraid, I will trust in you. 4 In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can mortal man do to me?

1. humanly speaking – a lot

2. divinely speaking – nothing

Rom 8:17 Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ

1 Peter 1:3-5 …In his great mercy he has given us new birth into … an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade — kept in heaven for you, 5 who through faith are shielded by God's power

D. A Detailed Account of the Problem

5 All day long they twist my words; they are always plotting to harm me. 6 They conspire, they lurk, they watch my steps, eager to take my life. 7 On no account let them escape; In your anger, O God, bring down the nations. 8 Record my lament; list my tears on your scroll — are they not in your record? 9 Then my enemies will turn back when I call for help. By this I will know that God is for me.

E. The nature of the problem - slander; to falsely accuse; to marshal forces against (Jesus)

F. An Expanded Statement of Faith

10 In God, whose word I praise, in the LORD, whose word I praise — 11 in God I trust; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?

2 G. Confidence in God

1. in who he is Elohim - represents God in His relation to the world at large, as Creator, providential ruler in the affairs of men, and controlling the operations of nature. Jehovah - represents God in His special relation to the chosen people, as revealing Himself to them, their guardian and object of their worship; (from The New Unger's Bible Dictionary. Originally published by Moody Press of Chicago, Illinois. Copyright © 1988.)

2. in his word (all seven books)

E. A Promise to be Grateful

12 I am under vows to you, O God; I will present my thank offerings to you. 13 For you have delivered me from death and my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before God in the light of life.

II. Psalm 34 Of David. When he pretended to be insane before Abimelech, who drove him away, and he left.

A. Praise to Lord

1 I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips.

1. No matter what the circumstances or what others do, my resolve is fixed Aids to carrying it out: prayer – scripture – obedience – The Holy Spirit of God

2 My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

2. here is what I do now in the face of difficulties

Jer 9:23-24 23 This is what the LORD says: "Let not the wise man boast of his wisdom or the strong man boast of his strength or the rich man boast of his riches, 24 but let him who boasts boast about this: that he understands and knows me, that I am the LORD, who exercises kindness, justice and righteousness on earth, for in these I delight," declares the LORD.

3. here is good news; it will work for you too

3 Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.

4. an invitation to share in the same solution

4 I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. 5 Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame.

5. this is my personal experience. Sometimes he eliminated the cause of the fear, at others he eliminated the fear of the cause; but always I changed

3 6 This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles.

6. a “poor man” who is acutely aware of his insufficiency and lack of resources. The beginning of the gospel

7 The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.

7. 2 Kings 6:8-23 17 And Elisha prayed, "O LORD, open his eyes so he may see." Then the LORD opened the servant's eyes, and he looked and saw the hills full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha.

B. Instruction to the Afflicted

8 Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. The gospel first

9 Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing. The position of a child

10 The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.

11 Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.

12 Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days, In this life and the next

13 keep your tongue from evil and your lips from speaking lies.

14 Turn from evil and do good; seek peace and pursue it.

15 The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry;

16 the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth.

17 The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles.

18 The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

19 A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;

20 he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.

21 Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned.

22 The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.

III. Psalm 57

4 For the director of music. [To the tune of] "Do Not Destroy." Of David. A miktam. When he had fled from Saul into the cave.

A. A Cry For Deliverance 1 Have mercy on me, O God, have mercy on me, for in you my soul takes refuge. I will take refuge in the shadow of your wings until the disaster has passed. 1. In Psalm 56 – hiding from enemies; in Psalm 57 – hiding in God

2. The refuge of God’s wings

Ex 19:4 You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles' wings and brought you to myself.

Deut 32:11 like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions.

Ps 91:1-4 1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the LORD, "He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust." 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler's snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart.

2 I cry out to God Most High, to God, who fulfills [his purpose] for me. 3 He sends from heaven and saves me, rebuking those who hotly pursue me; Selah God sends his love and his faithfulness. 4 I am in the midst of lions; I lie among ravenous beasts — men whose teeth are spears and arrows, whose tongues are sharp swords.

Dan 6:22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, O king.

5 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.

B. Resolve to Praise for Deliverance 6 They spread a net for my feet — I was bowed down in distress. They dug a pit in my path — but they have fallen into it themselves. Selah 7 My heart is steadfast, O God, my heart is steadfast; I will sing and make music. 8 Awake, my soul! Awake, harp and lyre! I will awaken the dawn. 9 I will praise you, O Lord, among the nations; I will sing of you among the peoples. 10 For great is your love, reaching to the heavens; your faithfulness reaches to the skies. 11 Be exalted, O God, above the heavens; let your glory be over all the earth.

Which is better, to have the wings of a dove to escape, or be victorious by the power of the one who made the dove?

“We must not trust in an arm of the flesh when engaged for us, and we must not be afraid of an arm of the flesh

5 when stretched out against us.” Matthew Henry

David realized his insufficiency

He went to the right place for help

He was humble enough to learn the lessons God was teaching – that when God was all he wanted; he would also be all he needed

He made a commitment to praise and seek God and let God direct his life

TNBS Questions Preparation for lesson 8

6 Read 1 Samuel 22 – 23

1. After reading Psalms 34, 56, and 57, what do you think the cave of Adullam symbolized? ______

2. Surely 1 Sam 21:10-15 describes the lowest point thus far in David’s young life. Name at least four ways in which God’s graciousness would have encouraged David in Chapters 22 and 23. What did He give him? ______

3. Can you think of a low point in your life when God gave you gracious gifts for your encouragement? ______

4. From Chapter 22, what kinds of people were attracted to David? Why? What were they hoping for? ______

5. EXTRA CREDIT What did those people become? ______

6. From our study of 1 Samuel 16:5-13, it seems that David was insignificant in the eyes of his family. What does 22:1-4 tell us about his attitude toward them? How are we to treat others who don’t think much of us? ______

7. From 22:6-8, what are the two prevailing characteristics of Saul’s mental condition? ______

8. From 22;6-19, what has Saul become? What sins began his downward slide? What can we learn from him? ______

9. What do the people of Keilah and Ziph tell us about human nature? Did their actions surprise you? ______

10. Why would God send David to Keilah to deliver a people so unworthy? ______

11. How does this relate to the way the gospel impacted your own life?

7 ______

12. From 23:13-29, name at least three ways that God was gracious to David in his early trials as a fugitive. ______