Amen.
Please take your Bibles and open them up this morning to the book of Psalms.
And we are today in Psalm chapter 25.
!
Open a copy of God's Word.
Open and read along with me as I read.
Let's stand when you found it in honor of the reading of God's Word.
Psalm chapter 25.
David says,
To you, O Lord, I lift up my soul.
O my God, in you I trust.
Let me not be put to shame.
Let not my enemies exult over me.
Indeed, none who wait for you shall be put to shame.
They shall be ashamed who are wantonly treacherous.
Make me to know your ways, O Lord.
Teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth and teach me.
For you are the God of my salvation.
For you I wait all the day long.
Remember your mercy, O Lord, and your steadfast love,
for they have been from of old.
Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions,
according to your steadfast love.
Remember me for the sake of your goodness, O Lord.
Good and upright is the Lord.
Therefore, he instructs sinners in the way.
He leads the humble in what is right
and teaches the humble his way.
All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness
for those who keep his covenant and his testimonies.
For your name's sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great.
Who is the man who fears the Lord?
Him will he instruct in the way that he should choose.
His soul shall abide in well-being,
and his offspring shall inherit the land.
The friendship of the Lord is for those who fear him,
and he makes known to them his covenant.
My eyes are ever toward the Lord,
for he will pluck my feet out of the net.
Turn to me and be gracious to me,
for I am lonely and afflicted.
The troubles of my heart are enlarged.
Bring me out of my distresses.
Consider my affliction and my trouble,
and forgive all my sins.
Consider how many are my foes,
and with what violent hatred they hate me.
O guard my soul and deliver me.
Let me not be put to shame,
for I take refuge in you.
May integrity and uprightness preserve me,
for I wait for you.
Redeem Israel, O God,
out of all of his troubles.
The grass withers, the flower fades,
but the word of the Lord endures forever.
Lord, we praise you for this psalm of confidence,
for this prayer of trust and dependence on you.
We pray, Lord, as we read it,
that you would shape in our hearts,
trust and dependence on you.
We pray this in Jesus' name.
Amen.
That you may be seated.
Everyone knows what it's like to face trouble,
but not everyone knows where to turn
when we face trouble.
In fact, I think that you would agree,
most people tend to respond in one of four ways.
I wonder if you could place yourself
in any of these four responses.
One way that people tend to respond
when trouble comes,
when storms arise,
when they face trials,
when life gets hard,
they respond by looking to a different day.
Maybe it was yesterday.
All my troubles seemed so far away.
Maybe it's a day sometime in the future.
Maybe things will get better.
This too shall pass.
They just kind of hunker down.
If they are a ship in a storm,
then their ship has no rudder.
The storm blows.
The wind blows.
They just kind of float
and hope that eventually someday
the storm will pass
and they will wind up on a beach somewhere.
That's one response.
Another response,
another way people tend to respond to trial
is with distraction.
Maybe this is you.
They're going through some sort of hard time,
and so instead of dealing with it,
they distract themselves in some way.
Maybe they turn to some sort of vice.
Maybe they distract themselves with alcohol
or pornography
or food
or television
or entertainment.
They do whatever it takes
just to take their mind off of the situation.
They're in the storm,
but they don't want to look up at the storm,
and so they just duck down.
Maybe they start polishing the boat instead.
Or a third way,
people tend to respond.
Some of you are wired this way
is that you respond with determination.
Things get hard around you,
and so you say,
I'm just going to get through this.
I'm going to try harder.
I'm going to push harder.
I'm going to push my way through.
They see the storm coming,
and so they just row and row
and row and row
harder and harder and harder
until eventually what happens?
They wear out.
Or still another way.
People tend to respond.
A trial is in defeat.
A trial comes.
The affliction hits.
Everything gets hard,
and they say,
this is just how things are for me.
I can never catch a break.
I always get the short end of the stick.
They respond with this sense of defeat.
They see the storm coming,
and they just toss their oars into the water,
and they give up.
I wonder which one of these sounds like you.
David, here in Psalm chapter 25,
he shows often afflicted people like us
a better way to respond in times of trial.
In the midst of affliction,
David responds in dependence upon the Lord.
This psalm is an expression of deep-rooted dependence
that is based on the character
and the covenant of the Lord.
Here's the big idea for us this morning
from Psalm 25.
God's people can depend on the Lord
because of his character and his covenant.
I'll say that again.
That's our main message this morning.
If you get this, then I'm satisfied.
God's people can depend on the Lord
because of his character and his covenant.
So let's take a look this morning.
We'll see it in two parts this morning.
First, we see the cry of the afflicted.
And second, we'll see the character
and the covenant of God.
First, we see here the cry of the afflicted.
Psalm 25 is an interesting psalm to study.
It's very intentionally arranged.
It's really creative the way that David composed it.
It's actually, it's an acrostic poem.
In the Hebrew, each line begins
with the next letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
It's almost a complete acrostic
except it's missing just a couple of letters
for some unknown reason, unbeknownst to me.
But it's also composed in such a way
that it has the main idea right in the middle
and it's sort of like a sandwich.
Both the beginning and the end of the psalm,
we have David crying out to the Lord and his affliction.
But right there in the middle is the why.
And that's the main idea.
That's the main point.
He cries out because of the covenant
and the character of the Lord.
And so we're gonna take those two parts,
but it's gonna be a little bit different
because we're gonna do the beginning
and the end together
with the cry of the afflicted.
And then we'll focus in on the character
and covenant of God.
Why is David crying out to the Lord?
He does this a lot, doesn't he?
All through the Psalms,
David is crying out to the Lord.
Let's look and see why.
For one, it seems clear he's crying out
for physical protection.
David has enemies, doesn't he?
We see that in verse two.
He cries out,
let me not be put to shame.
Let not my enemies exalt over me.
And again, in verse 19 at the end,
he says, consider how many are my foes
and with what violent hatred they hate me.
David has enemies.
And maybe you know what it's like to have enemies.
Maybe people at work really don't like you too much.
Homeowners associations make your lives miserable.
Well, here in the month of June,
maybe in pride month,
you have enemies that hate you
because of your refusal to participate
in things that are going on around you.
Christians throughout the world
and in more dangerous places
than where we live here,
who live in oppressive and dangerous places,
they face enemies who want them dead.
It's dangerous for them to do
what we're doing right now.
We all need physical provision and protection.
And so here, David cries out for this protection.
Lord, help me from my enemies.
But it's not only physical protection he wants.
He also cries out for comfort.
David has real emotional needs here as well, doesn't he?
David is in emotional distress.
He's in turmoil.
Verses 2 and 3,
he's worried about being put to shame.
He doesn't want his enemies to exalt over him
and gloat over him.
In verse 16,
it says he's lonely.
He's afflicted.
The troubles of his heart are enlarged.
He cries out,
bring me out of my distress.
And I know you've felt like this before.
How many of us have felt lonely and afflicted?
You've probably felt this weighed down heart
that David feels here.
This is normal experience here on this side of the fall.
We live in a world that's weighed down
by the effects of sin in the world.
We feel often emotional distress.
We feel often lonely and afflicted.
And we all need,
sometimes more than others,
we all need comfort,
relief,
rest,
encouragement.
David takes these emotional experiences,
these emotional needs to the Lord as well,
independence.
Lord, help me.
But not only that,
a third reason he cries out.
Here in verses 4 through 6,
David cries out for guidance.
David cries out for direction from the Lord.
Look there to verse 4.
He says,
Make me to know your ways,
O Lord.
Teach me your paths.
Lead me in your truth and teach me.
For you are the God of my salvation.
For you I wait all the day long.
It seems like David needs some direction here,
doesn't he?
He is not sure what to do.
He's not sure where to go.
He's in this situation
and he doesn't really know how to proceed.
And I'd be willing to bet,
again,
that each one of us has faced this before.
Sometimes we need direction.
And we wrestle with this.
How do we know what God wants from us?
Now,
I want to just camp out here for a minute
because this is important.
For one thing,
if you want to know the paths of the Lord,
if you want to know the will of the Lord,
if you want to know the ways of the Lord,
you must open up your Bible
and come to the Word of the Lord
in a posture of humble dependence,
saying,
Lord,
teach me.
Lord,
help me to understand.
Lord,
by the power of your Spirit,
would you illuminate your Word for me
so that I can walk in your ways
and understand your paths
and trust what you've written in your Word.
We believe that the Word of the Lord
is sufficient
for all faith and practice,
for all life and godliness.
This is how the Lord speaks to us.
This is how the Lord guides His people.
Some people are just sitting around
waiting for God to speak to them
and to guide them
and tell them what to do,
but their Bibles are somewhere on a shelf
collecting dust.
That is not how this works.
We seek the will of the Lord
with an open Bible.
The Word is a lamp to our feet
and a light to our path.
It is sufficient.
And yet,
here's our problem,
it is not exhaustive,
is it?
The Word of God is sufficient,
and yet,
it is not exhaustive.
You will not find anywhere in your Bible
telling you who you should date,
what college you should go to,
what job you should apply for,
what shirt you should wear to church this morning,
and what you should cook for dinner tonight.
We seek the will of the Lord in all things, right?
And we want to follow the ways of the Lord
in all ways,
in all things,
and yet,
the Word does not specifically address
particular instances,
particular specific decisions
that we all have to make every single day.
So what do we do?
We do as David does here.
We pray,
God,
would you lead me?
God,
would you show me the next step?
God,
would you teach me?
I don't know what to do,
so I pray that you would make it clear.
Ultimately,
this is a prayer for wisdom.
James tells us,
God is pleased to give wisdom
to those who ask.
And what is wisdom?
Wisdom is being so shaped by the Word of God
that you are able to go live it out
in your day-to-day situations.
You know by the grace of God,
by the power of His Spirit at work in you,
how to take what is clear in His Word
and apply it to what is often unclear in your life.
That's what wisdom is.
Church,
we need to pray daily for wisdom
and direction and guidance from the Lord.
I'll give you an example.
Four years ago,
I did not know where all in all South Carolina was on a map.
I couldn't tell you where it was,
but now,
here I am.
Right?
How did that happen?
I knew that God had spoken clearly,
several clear truths in His Word.
He has promised to build His church.
He has promised to use the preaching of His Word to do it.
He has promised to spread His glory to the ends of the earth,
even to all in all South Carolina.
I knew that as a Christian,
I was called to be a part of this work in some way.
Those are the clear truths, right?
That's what God has said in His Word.
What's less clear over here is,
how am I in particular called to be a part of that?
How does this clear truth play itself out in my life?
That requires wisdom.
I had this desire in me,
bubbling desire to pastor,
a desire to preach,
a desire specifically to replant a church.
And where does that come from?
I believe that came from the Lord.
But that desire doesn't necessarily mean that it's God's will.
And our desires,
our intuitions,
our feelings are not authoritative.
God's Word is authoritative.
I had this desire,
and so what do I do?
I call others around me.
Others who have the Spirit of God in them as well.
Others who are also seeking the wisdom of the Lord,
and they speak into the situation,
and they affirm those desires.
That still doesn't mean,
I know what I'm doing,
where I'm going,
but we pray,
and we ask,
Lord, would you guide?
Lord, would you direct?
Lord, would you show us your paths,
open up the right doors,
open up the right conversations,
and then we took a step forward.
As the time seemed right,
we opened the door to have conversations.
God never once spoke outside of His Word
to say, yes, this is it.
God never once spoke clearly, audibly,
to say, no, don't go there,
no, don't go there.
God never once spoke to me,
once during the entire process,
and yet,
through the counsel of others,
through providential opportunities
that He put in front of us,
through the shaping and changing
of my own desires,
through the Word of God,
and the wisdom of God,
He guided our steps,
brought us here.
Friend, if you are seeking
the will of the Lord
for some particular issue,
particular circumstance,
particular decision,
let me just encourage you
to do a few things.
For one,
open up the book.
Read His Word.
Shape your life
around the Word of God.
Conform your mind to the Word.
Romans tells us,
do not be conformed
to the patterns of this world,
but be transformed
by the renewal of your mind.
Then you will be able
to test and discern
what is the will of God,
His good and pleasing
and perfect will.
Let the Word,
by His Spirit,
shape your thinking.
Let every decision
flow from there.
And then pray.
Seek counsel.
Pray.
Seek counsel.
Pray.
Seek counsel.
And then take a step forward.
And trust that the Lord
is in control.
David seeks guidance
from the Lord.
That's not all.
One more here.
David cries out
for forgiveness.
Look there to verse 6.
He says,
Remember your mercy,
O Lord,
and your steadfast love,
for they have been
from of old.
Remember not the sins
of my youth
or my transgressions.
According to your steadfast love,
remember me
for the sake of your goodness,
O Lord.
Don't remember my sin.
Remember your mercy.
Don't remember my sin.
Remember me
and your steadfast love.
Remember me.
Verse 11,
he says,
Pardon my guilt,
for it is great.
David stands in need
of forgiveness.
King David,
just like you and me,
is a sinner.
And would you notice
just how quickly
he moves here
from physical issues,
physical needs,
to spiritual issues
in prayer?
In fact,
I think this seems
to be primary for him.
Doesn't it seem
primary to you?
He has enemies
wanting him dead
over here.
He feels lonely
over here.
But what seems
more pressing to him?
It's his sin.
It's his need
for guidance.
This seems to be
the bigger issue
for David.
David cries out
to the Lord
for forgiveness.
Lord,
don't remember
my sin.
David recognizes
his own guilt.
He remembers
the sins of his youth.
David remembers
how sinful
he has been.
He remembers them well.
But he prays,
Lord,
you don't remember them.
You remove them
from me as far
as the east
is from the west.
Church,
I wonder,
do you pray like this?
Do you ever
cry out to the Lord
for protection
and comfort
and guidance
and forgiveness?
Some of you,
I'd be willing to bet,
tend to respond
to your troubles
by looking forward
to a different day,
by distracting yourself,
by determining
just to get through it
or just by giving up
in defeat.
David shows us
that we must
depend fully
on the Lord.
To you,
O Lord,
I lift up my soul,
he says in verse 1.
Oh my God,
in you
I trust.
I take refuge
in you,
he says,
verse 20.
I wait for you,
he says in verse 21.
And in our second point
this morning,
I just want to ask,
why?
Why does he do this?
Why does David
depend on the Lord?
And maybe that you've
gone through something
in your life
and you have
other friends,
family members,
non-believers around you
see how you respond
in dependence
on the Lord
and they say,
why?
What is it about
the Lord
that leads you
to trust in him?
David
answers by
pointing us
to his character
and his covenant.
So second,
second,
we see the character
and the covenant
of the Lord.
You all know
that we've been
in the process
of fostering
and we had to
go through training
and watch
a lot of videos
and go to classes
in order to become
licensed foster parents
and one thing
that we learned
during the training
process was that
children who have
been neglected
sometimes don't
cry out
as often as
other children
may
and people tend
to think,
well man,
these babies are just,
they're just great
sleepers
but really,
what it is
is that they have
been conditioned
not to cry out
because when they do,
nobody comes
to their help.
So what's the point
of crying?
It's tragic,
isn't it?
David shows us here
in the rest of the psalm
that God's people
cry out to him.
Why?
Because of who he is,
his proven goodness,
his proven faithfulness
to them
and because he's brought
us into this
abiding,
everlasting,
covenant relationship
with him.
And notice here
how David roots
his prayers
in the character
of God.
He is the God
of his salvation,
verse 5.
So that's why
he prays for protection
and deliverance
from his enemies.
He is a God
of mercy
and steadfast love
and so that's
why he prays,
God remember
your mercy
not my sin.
He is a God
who is good
and upright,
therefore he instructs
sinners in the way.
That's why David
prays for guidance,
verse 8.
David roots
his requests,
he roots
his prayers,
he roots
his cries
out in God's
character.
Why cry out
if God isn't
a good God
of salvation?
Why cry out
if God is not
a God of mercy
and steadfast love?
We're wasting
our time
if he's not
who he says he is.
In fact,
David seems
to be reflecting
on God's own
self-revelation
to Moses
in Exodus
chapter 34.
You remember
what God
said to Moses
in Exodus 34
as he revealed
himself.
It says,
The Lord
descended in the
cloud and stood
with him there
and proclaimed
the name of the
Lord.
The Lord
passed before him
and proclaimed,
The Lord,
the Lord,
a God merciful
and gracious,
slow to anger
and abounding
in steadfast love
and faithfulness,
keeping steadfast love
for thousands,
forgiving iniquity
and transgression
and sin,
but who will
by no means
clear the guilty,
visiting the iniquity
of the fathers
on the children
and the children's
children to the
third and the
fourth generation.
It's like David
looks at this
text on one
hand,
and then he looks
at his circumstance
in the other hand,
and he says,
God,
I believe what
you have said
about yourself.
I believe
that you are
merciful.
I believe
that you are
forgiving,
and so now
I'm asking you
to show yourself
to be merciful
to me.
I'm asking you
to be forgiving
to me.
I believe it
because you said
it in your word.
I believe
that you are
gracious
and slow
to anger,
and I believe
that you are
abounding
in steadfast love.
I believe
that you are
faithful.
you have
said it
about yourself,
and so now
would you
be slow
to anger
with me?
Would you
abound
in steadfast
love
to me?
David is
asking God
to act
in accordance
with who
he has said
that he is.
I wonder
if we pray
this way,
church.
Don't you
just love
to hear
somebody pray
who you can
just tell
is saturated
with the word
of God?
It's like
that's just
the language
they speak.
They slip
in and out
of quoting
scripture
as they pray.
Their requests
are rooted
in who God
has said
that he is
and what God
has promised
that he will
do.
That is how
we ought
to pray.
We anchor
our prayers
in his character.
God,
you are good.
God,
you are merciful.
God,
you are patient.
God,
you love
to show
sinners the way.
God,
you lead
the humble
in what
is right.
And so,
God,
would you
do this
for me?
Would you
lead me?
Would you
make me
humble?
Would you
show your
steadfast love
to me?
Would you
make me
obedient?
All the
paths of
the Lord
are steadfast
love and
faithfulness
for those
who keep
his covenant
and his
testimonies.
We call
out to
God
because of
who he
is.
Not only
this,
David also
cries out
to the
Lord because
of his
covenant.
I want you
to think
back to
Exodus 34
again with
me,
just for a
moment.
Let me
read it
again.
The
Lord,
the
Lord,
a God
merciful and
gracious,
slow to
anger and
abounding in
steadfast love
and faithfulness,
keeping
steadfast love
for thousands,
forgiving iniquity
and transgression
and sin,
but who
will by no
means clear
the guilty,
visiting the
iniquity of
the fathers
on the
children and
the children's
children to
the third
and the
fourth
generation.
That second
part is a
big problem
for us,
isn't it?
That second
part is just
as much a
part of the
character of
God as the
first part.
God is just
as much full
of wrath and
holiness and
will not clear
the guilty as
he is full
of steadfast
love and
mercy and
slow to
anger.
How can
we be
certain that
God will
remember mercy
and steadfast
love and
not remember
our sins?
You see the
issue?
How can
David pray
this way,
say,
God,
remember your
steadfast love,
don't remember
my sins?
It is only
because God
by his own
doing has
brought David
into covenant
with himself
and has
promised of
his own
initiative to
bless David
and to be
David's covenant
God and to
wipe away his
sins and to
be his Lord.
That's the only
confidence David
has to pray
this way.
Look there,
starting in
verse 10.
says,
all the paths
of the Lord
are steadfast
love and
faithfulness for
those who
keep his
covenant and
his testimonies.
For your
name's sake,
O Lord,
pardon my
guilt,
for it is
great.
Who is the
man who
fears the
Lord?
Him will he
instruct in
the way that
he should
choose.
His soul
shall abide
in well-being
and his
offspring shall
inherit the
land.
The friendship
of the Lord
is for those
who fear
him and he
makes known
to them his
covenant.
My eyes are
ever toward
the Lord for
he will pluck
my feet out
of the net.
This is
covenant
language.
All of these
prayers of
David,
everything he's
asked for,
protection from
his enemies,
comfort in
his affliction,
guidance in
his indecision,
forgiveness of
sin,
these are all
blessings of
being in
covenant with
God.
His steadfast
love,
his mercy,
his patience,
his kindness,
his goodness
towards us,
these are all
covenant blessings.
Not everyone
gets to
experience these
blessings.
Because not
everyone is in
covenant with
the Lord.
David prays
this way because
he is in
covenant with
the Lord and
he knows that
the Lord has
brought him into
covenant with
him.
The Lord has
promised these
good things,
these good
blessings to
David.
God's covenant,
his promise has
brought David and
his people into
covenant relationship
with the Lord.
And so,
David prays.
In fact,
he calls to mind
God's covenant
promises to
Abraham in
Genesis 15.
Did you notice
that?
Verse 13,
he adds,
the one who is
humble,
who fears the
Lord,
who walks in
covenant faithfulness,
his soul will
abide in
well-being and
his offspring
will inherit
the land.
Ask yourself
who that might
be.
Does anybody
you know fit
this description?
one that perfectly
fears the
Lord,
is perfectly
humble?
Anybody you
know that
perfectly walks
in all his
ways?
Certainly it
wasn't David,
not perfectly.
It wasn't
Abraham or
Moses,
not perfectly.
the only
one to
perfectly
fulfill
God's
covenant
and to
perfectly
walk in
humble
dependence
all the
days of
his life,
to walk in
all his
ways and
all his
paths,
is none
other but
the Lord
Jesus Christ.
Christ
Jesus
is the
true and
better son
of David.
He is the
true and
better Israel.
He is the
one,
only one,
to perfectly
keep God's
covenant and
he's the only
one who by
right has
earned all
of these
covenant
blessings that
David prays
for and by
grace he
gives them
freely to
sinners like
us.
As Christ
prepared to
give his
life in
place of
covenant
breakers like
you and
I,
he lifted
his glass
and instituted
a new
covenant
saying this
cup is the
new covenant
in my
blood
so that
now any
who are
in him,
Jew and
Gentile alike,
any who are
in him by
faith are
now brought
into covenant
with the
Lord.
How can
you know
for certain
that God
is for
you and
not against
you in
your sin?
There is
but one
way.
Come to
Christ Jesus
by faith.
How can
you know
for certain
that God
will protect
you ultimately
from all
your enemies?
There is
but one
way.
come to
the Lord
Jesus
in faith
who died
to save
us from
all our
enemies.
How can
you know
for certain
that God
will guide
you and
lead you
all the
days of
your life?
Come to
Christ who
is himself
the way
and the
truth
and the
life.
No one
comes to
the Father
but by
him.
Where do
we look
to find
comfort
in our
affliction?
It is by
coming to
Christ Jesus
by faith.
How do
we know
that God
will forgive
you of
every sin?
There is
but one
way.
What can
wash away
my sin?
Nothing
but the
blood of
Jesus.
What can
make me
whole again?
Nothing
but the
blood of
Jesus.
Nothing
can for
sin
atone.
Nothing
but the
blood of
Jesus.
Not of
good that
I have
done.
Nothing
but the
blood
blood of
Jesus.
If you
are in
Christ by
faith
we trust
for his
name's sake
he will
lead us
safely home
to the
true promised
land.
In the
new heavens
and the
new earth
who is
it that
is in
covenant
with the
Lord?
Galatians
3 tells
us it
is those
of faith
who are
the sons
of Abraham.
So then
those who
are of
faith are
blessed
along with
Abraham the
man of
faith.
in Christ
Jesus the
blessing of
Abraham might
come to
the Gentiles
so that we
might receive
the promised
spirit through
faith.
Church as
his covenant
people
we can cry
out to him
in full
dependence and
confidence in
every circumstance
in every
affliction trusting
that the Lord will
teach us and
lead us and
forgive us and
protect us in
Christ Jesus
our Lord.
But not
just us
individually.
I want you
to look there
to the end of
the psalm in
verse 22 and
notice how he
finishes this
psalm.
It almost seems
out of place
doesn't it?
You would
expect after
all of these
individual requests
of David that
maybe he would
finish by saying
something like
redeem me out of
all my troubles
God.
Would you
come and
help me
redeem me?
What does
he say?
Redeem Israel
oh God
out of all
his troubles.
This is not
just a prayer
for himself.
He extends
it as a
prayer for
all those
who are in
covenant with
the Lord.
All his
covenant
people.
In church as we
think about how
to apply this
psalm each and
every one of us
ought to be
encouraged.
If you are in
Christ by faith
you ought to be
encouraged to
cry out to him
individually for
all of the many
problems that you
face every single
day but not
just for yourself.
Are you crying
out on behalf
of the church?
Are you crying
out on behalf
of all of God's
covenant people
those who are in
Christ by faith?
Are you so
invested in one
another's lives
that you know
what each other
needs and what
the afflictions of
one another's heart
is?
What's weighing
one another down?
Are you praying
for one another
for protection
for comfort
for guidance
for forgiveness?
forgiveness?
David shows us
here how to cry
out to the Lord
in dependence
not just for your
own troubles
but for one
another's troubles
rooting our cries
and our comfort
in both the
character and the
covenant of God.
So listen to this
from 2 Corinthians
chapter 1 as we
close.
Paul writes
blessed be the
God and Father
of our Lord
Jesus Christ
the Father of
mercies and God
of all comfort
who comforts us
in our affliction
so that we may be
able to comfort
those who are in
any affliction
with a comfort
with which we
ourselves are
comforted by God
whereas we share
abundantly in
Christ's sufferings
so through Christ
we share abundantly
in comfort too.
If we are
afflicted
it is for your
comfort and
salvation
and if we are
comforted
it is for your
comfort
which you experience
when you patiently
endure the same
sufferings that we
endure.
Our hope for you
is unshaken
for we know that
as you share in
our sufferings
you will also
share in our
comfort.
As you look
around and
you hear the
needs around
you the
troubles that
each other
goes through
throughout our
lives.
For those who
are prone to
just hunker
down and wait
for a different
day to come
would you point
them to the
present faithfulness
of the Lord
with them now?
For those who
are prone to
turn to
distractions
prone to
wonder
would you
point them to
their need for
the Lord above
all else?
For those who
are prone to
just grit
through it and
be determined
and be strong
and push their
way through
would you point
them to the
Lord's strength
on their behalf?
For those who
just feel defeated
ready to toss in
the towel
would you point
them to the
Lord's victory
on their behalf
in the coming
day when he
will return and
wipe away every
tear from every
eye?
Let's pray.
Lord
we want to be
a people who
walk in
complete
dependence on
you.
We have more
needs than we
can count and
even the ones we
can count are
just the beginning
Lord of our
true state our
true need.
Father we need
forgiveness we
need comfort we
need protection we
need guidance we
need your presence
with us but
Lord we pray
asking for these
things in confidence
because you've
promised them to
us in Christ.
We praise you
for the gospel of
Jesus that that
brings us sinners
like us into
covenant with you
and gives us full
access to the
blessing of knowing
you and walking
with you in this
life.
We love you Lord
we pray this in
Jesus name.
Amen.