Pastor Ed's Series of Psalms

Psalm 1 | Psalm 2 | Psalm 3 | Psalm 4 | Psalm 5 | Psalm 6 | Psalm 7 | Psalm 8
Psalm 9-10 | Psalm 11 | Psalm 12 | Psalm 13 | Psalm 14 | Psalm 15
Psalm 16 | Psalm 17 | Psalm 18 | Psalm 19 | Psalm 22 | Psalm 23
Psalm 27 | Psalms 28-30 | Psalms 31-32 | Psalm 33 | Psalm 34
Psalm 35 | Psalm 36-37 | Psalm 38 | Psalm 39 | Psalm 40 |
Psalm 41 | Psalm 42-43

Psalm 3
11/15/09

Tonight we'll be continuing with our Psalm series with Psalms 3. Psalm 3 has been called a morning Psalm – and it could be linked historically to Psalms 4 and 5 because 4 is called an evening hymn, and 5 is another morning prayer. This is speculation because only Psalm 3 is tied specifically to a historical event, but as we work our way through 4 and 5 it seems reasonable that they are linked together.

The title of Psalm 3 is A Psalm of David. When he fled from his son Absalom.

You might be asking why is David fleeing from his son Absalom? Isn't David the king of Israel. Isn't he a mighty warrior? Why would he be fleeing?

Let's review the life of David to help answer those questions. You might remember that David was selected by God to be the next king of Israel by Samuel. Samuel had selected David from the family of Jesse after all the older brothers were rejected. David was just a shepherd boy out tending the sheep – but the Lord told Samuel to not reject the new king by his height or appearance, but that the Lord looks at the heart.

1 Samuel 16: vs 12 tells us that when David appeared before Samuel, the Lord said: Rise and anoint him, he is the one. And from that day on, the Spirit of the Lord came upon David with power.

David began his ministry actually serving Saul – who was the first king. The spirit of the Lord had left Saul, and David would come in and play his harp to comfort him. Then came the episode with Goliath, and David began to grow in stature and reputation.

He became a mighty man in battle. And when Saul was finally killed in a battle with the Philistines, David was made king and he began serving in Hebron as king of Judah when he was only 30 yrs old. Nathan the prophet told David about his promise for him - the Lord said that he would be with him wherever he went, and that he would make his name great, and to cut all of his enemies before him. The Bible says that the Lord gave him victory wherever he went. He had a commander in chief named Joab, and there are accounts of his army striking down, 40,000 soldiers of the Arameans, 18,000 Edomites. 2 Samuel 8:15 says that David reigned over Israel doing what was just and right for his people.

So what was he doing running from Absalom?

There was an event in David's life that occurred next – can someone tell me what it was?

That's right, he had his encounter with Bathsheba. David's future dramatically changed after that encounter.

The prophet Nathan, the same man who pronounced blessings on David, pronounced this word from the Lord to him:

I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you from the hand of Saul! I gave you the house of Israel and Judah, and if all of this had been too little, I would have given you even more. Why did you despise the Lord by doing what is evil in his eyes? You struck down Uriah the Hititte with the sword and took his wife to be your own. Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house. Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity upon you.

His son Absalom turned out to be that person to bring calamity. Absalom was described as being handsome - “from the top of his head to the sole of his foot there was no blemish in him.”Absalom had an ambition for the throne, and he started to hang out by the gate at the edge of Jerusalem. He made promises to the passers by and gained favor among the people.

He became so popular that eventually a messenger told David that the hearts of the men of Israel are with Absalom. David, the strong warrior, said we must leave immediately or risked being overtaken by Absalom.

So the anointed king of Israel is now fleeing for his life. H e was weeping as he went.

David is wondering where he stands with God. He's asking – should I even be the king anymore? Does the Lord have any plans for me? After Bathsheba, David's world completely changed.
He is suddenly in deep trouble.

So what does David do? He cries out to God in a Psalm. He is out the end of his rope, and he composes a Psalm for his choir. He finds a sense of spiritual strength through it all.

We pick up verse 1: O Lord, how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, God will not deliver him. Selah

The word selah means to lift up – since the psalm is put to music, it would be a pause, before a crescendo in the music. There had been soft music playing and then Boom – a roar to the music to draw attention to what is being sung. God will not deliver him! Selah!

David is saying what do you mean God will not deliver me. There is not salvation in God – no help in God? No righteousness, no forgiveness? Selah! David is remembering that he still knows God. And proclaims that in the next verse.

But you are a shield around me O Lord; you bestow glory on me and you lift up my head. To the Lord I cry aloud and he answers me from his holy hill.

David is in a tough emotional state, but He remembers the word of the Lord – that he had a covenant with God and that God would not break his covenant no matter what his feelings told him. The same God who put him on the throne could put him there again.

It's important for us to remember God's covenant with us. No matter how we feel, when we accepted Christ as our personal savior, we have according to God's word:

Salvation, Forgiveness, the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are his children and we have the promise that he will never leave us or forsake us, no matter what we're going through. I want to encourage you today to hold onto God's promise, his agreement with you, no matter how you are feeling.

The Lord answers me from his holy hill – Selah!

I lie down and sleep I wake again because the Lord sustains me. I will not fear the tens of thousands drawn up against me on every side.

David had a huge army against him camped a short distance away – but he was able to find peace and rest and go to sleep. He had the assurance that God was stronger than any foe.

Arise O Lord! Deliver me O my God! Strike all my enemies on the jaw; break the teeth of the wicked. From the Lord comes deliverance. May your blessing be on your people – Selah!

David has a burst of confidence in his faith with the Lord. That he will defeat Absaloms army like he had so many times before in other battles. Breaking of the teeth refers to the teeth of a Lion – no teeth, no fear!

Let's try to get the feel of what this Psalm sounded like with the musical crescendo.

When I say the line, repeat the word Selah as if you are playing the instruments loudly

Many are saying of me, God will not deliver him Selah
To the Lord I cry aloud and he answers me from his holy hill Selah
From the Lord comes deliverance may your blessing be on the people Selah

Let's put our trust in him tonight – that he wants our concerns and burdens.
In Genesis 18:14 – when Sarah wanted to have a child and was well past the age of childbearing, the Lord said to Abraham and said – Is anything too hard for me?

In Jeremiah chapter 32, Jeremiah prays to the Lord after he bought the field in Israel. To him, this was a sign that the Lord would deliver the Jewish people after they had gone into captivity. He says:

Ah, Sovereign Lord, you have made the heavens and the earth by your great power and outstretched arm. Nothing is too hard for you.

And then the Lord answers him in verse 26 – the word of Lord came to Jeremiah, I am the Lord, the God of all mankind. Is anything too hard for me?

Then, the word of the Lord came to Jeremiah a second time in 33:2: This is what the Lord says, he who made the earth, the Lord who formed it and established it – the Lord is his name. Call to me and I will answer you and tell you great and unsearchable things you do not know.

Jesus told his disciples in Luke 18:27 – What is impossible with men is possible with God.

Phil 4:13 – Paul said that I can do everything in him who gives me strength.

I would love to share stories with you about answered prayer. On caution:We need to come openly and honestly before the Lord, and pray for his answer, not ours. That through a difficult situation our spiritual lives are strengthened. The rule of the kingdom is to ask for God's will to be done. Give Him your burdens and cares tonight.