Psalm 60 - Our Final Victory

INTRODUCTION:

Before I begin the sermon this morning, let me take just a moment to let you know the plans for September. Next week, of course is Labor Day weekend. I, along with several other church families, will be at our annual Family Retreat. Pastor Aaron will be preaching next Sunday morning to those of you who are not going on the retreat.

For the rest of September, though, we are going to take a break from both our series in Psalms in the morning and our series in 1 Timothy in the evening. I have planned a 6-part series for the month to address the question of What Kind of Church Are We to Be? This series really is the outworking of my major project I have been working on for the past year as the final step in my doctoral work. I have spent a lot of time looking at what the Bible says in answer to this question. I believe it is important for us as a church to give a hard look to Scripture to see where we might need to adjust be faithful to God’s revealed purposes for His church. I’m very excited about series and would encourage you to plan on being at all 6 parts—Sunday morning and Sunday evening throughout September.

Interest:

This past week has presented some pretty grim pictures of another natural disaster. Hurricane Laura hit in Louisiana with devastating effects in several communities. Buildings were damaged, homes were destroyed, and lives were lost. Even though we now possess the ability to track the massive storm and forecast it’s landfill, I can only imagine how devasting it would be to have your life—your house, your family, your job—in the path of such devastation.

This past week has also presented us with grim pictures of unnatural disasters; homes and businesses destroyed by violent protests and looting. In these cases, the disasters were not forecasted in advance. The people directly affected were unable to prepare in any fashion. Yet, I have no doubt that the destruction is equally devasting to those who were caught by in Kenosha, WI, or Minneapolis, MN.

Some of you may have experiences in your past that you can look back on in which you too were caught by unexpected disasters.

Illustration

I remember a woman in my home church growing up. She told the story of being nearly caught trying to flee from the Russian army during World War II. As a young woman, possibly even a teenager I believe, if she had been caught, she knew horrible things would have happened. She fled. At one point she was spotted by a patrol and hid in a house by climbing up the chimney. Soldiers searched the house, but never looked up the chimney where she was hiding. Eventually she made it to the US, really without anything other than her life left to her. I’m sure at her young age, her flight from home and family was an unexpected disaster. I’m sure she went through many days and months of hardship and fears.

Involvement:

Unexpected disasters happen; they come into our lives leaving us distraught and depressed. At times we may be nearly paralyzed. In fact, we may feel as if our God has abandoned us completely. When such unexpected, devastating events intrude, what are we to do?

What are we to do? That really is the question that our psalm addresses this morning. Which way can we turn when our world had collapsed around us? How can we move forward when we have no idea where the next step should be? Why should we even try when God seems to have walked away from us?

Context:

Psalm 60, as many of the psalms in the second book of the Psalter that we have been looking at for the past few months, is attributed to David.

Preview:

This psalm is laid out so that we really don’t learn its lesson until we get to the end; it develops the lesson as it goes. My plan is to follow the same approach by working our way through the three sections of the psalm and discovering the points David makes in each section which develops the lesson that God has for us this morning.

Application

As we do, it might be helpful for you to keep in the back of your mind an unexpected disaster that you have lived through…a time when you questioned, even if momentarily whether or not God was really there. I expect that we have all had that experience to some degree. I know I have. Compare how you responded in that experience to what David shows us in this psalm. I don’t want us to make the comparison so that we feel guilty if we responded wrongly. Rather, I think making the comparison in our own minds will help us learn the lessons of this psalm better by bringing things from David’s ancient world to our world.

Transition from introduction to body:

The first section of our psalm is contained in verses 1–5. The lesson that we learn in these five verses is that…

BODY:

I. Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to God with pleas.

I trust you have your Bibles open to our psalm. Let’s read the first five verses of our psalm read Ps 60:1–5>.

“O God” begins an emphatic plea from David. He is calling out to God. You may notice in your Bibles that there is a fairly large superscription in this psalm. The information there alludes to a timeframe in which David was expanding the kingdom of Israel. The expansion is traced in 1 Sam and 1 Chron. According to the records there, David was victorious in all his campaigns, but it is possible that his victories were not always immediate. It is possible that he lost individual battles. Specifically, there appears to have been a time when the army was fighting in the north that Edom rebelled to the southeast. The implication is that Edom was initially successful in launching an attack against Israel. We know from 1 Sam 8 and 10, as well as 1 Chron 18, that Edom’s rebellion was ultimately squashed.

I bring this out because we can probably imagine the setting in which the nation had been extremely victorious, rapidly expanding its influence. They saw their expansion as proof that they were God’s chosen nation and David was God’s chosen king. In their minds, nothing could stop them because God was on their side. Nothing until David suddenly received word that Israel had been invaded and suffered a crushing defeat. How could this happen?

Illustration

How could this happen? Does that question resonate with you? How could God allow my loved one to be diagnosed with a devastating disease? How could God allow a friend’s child to die? How could God allow a church to split? How could God allow me to lose my job and then my home? How? How? How? How could this happen?

Transition:

David faced that question and turned to God with his pleas. As he does, we can see from his example two things that we should do when we are forced by disasters to plead with God.

First,…

A. We plead in our suffering

“O God.” David calls out to God with three quick verbs in verse 1: “You have rejected us, You have broken us; You have been angry.” These three verbs quickly form a powerful protest to God. “God, how could You?!” It looks as if God is angry with Israel for some reason and has abandoned His nation. But without God, there was hope. Life for Israel was meaningless without God. So, while he certainly doesn’t understand the situation; David pleads with God in his suffering; calling out in his pain.

Application

We have seen this before, but apparently, by the many times it keeps showing up in these inspired psalms; it is something that we need to see repeatedly: We should cry out to God in the pain of our suffering. Even if we have reason to believe that God is angry with us, we can still plead to Him in our suffering. We can let God know how helpless we feel. We can let God know how isolated and hopeless we feel. We can let God know our confusion and our doubts. Have your found yourself doing that when an unexpected disaster strikes in your life?

Transition:

Unexpected disasters should cause us to plead with God in our suffering. Second,…

B. We plead for our security

Verse 4 creates an image that may be a bit strange to us, the raising of a banner. It would not have been strange to the Israelites of David’s day. Remember, warfare in that day was essentially hand-to-hand combat, augmented by bow and arrow. When an army was being routed, the king or general or champion warrior, would find a place to rally and raise a flag—a banner. That banner represented a place of refuge. Soldiers could flee there and find comrades in arms. The champion would organize things so that a stand could be made. The banner represented hope for security.

David augments this picture by calling on God to be their divine Warrior, to be the One to deliver them from their desperate situation. He calls for this because, he reminds God, Israel is God’s “beloved.” “Beloved” That is a term that we expect to find in love poetry like the Song of Solomon. It is not a word we expect in the midst of unexpected defeat. Yet, it is the perfect term. David is making a plea to the strongest of bonds, the most ardent of relationships—Israel is God’s beloved. Because of love, David expects God to secure him.

Illustration

There is a lot of ugliness on display right now in our nation. Yet, I saw a great picture of this idea of securing a beloved one in the midst of it. Thursday night, after President Trump made his speech at the White House, there was a husband and wife, I don’t actually know who they were, who had been at the White House for the speech who were then caught in the middle of an angry mob as they tried to walk back from the White House to their hotel. There was one particular person, a young lady wearing a ski mask, who was particularly threatening. It appeared that she kept trying to hurl vile insults at the wife, looking to prompt a reaction from the wife. What was most notable was how her husband kept placing himself physically between his wife and this hostile woman. He never responded with any hostility himself, but he functioned as a means of security for his beloved.

Application

Do you know Jesus as your Savior? If so, you are a child of God…the Bible says so. You are loved by God because you are saved by His beloved Son. Col 1:13 says that you are placed into the kingdom of God’s “beloved Son.” You have every right then to plead with God for your security. His banner, if you will, was raised for you at the cross. He has beckoned you to a place of safety. Unexpected disasters do not change that. Plead with God. Seek deliverance from Him. Plead with Him.

Transition:

Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to God with pleas. Weplead in our suffering. We plead for our security. That is what we learn in the first section of this psalm. In the second section, verses 6-8, we learn that…

II. Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to God’s proclamation

Follow along as I read…<read Ps 60:6–8>.

Our psalm is inspired poetry, but verses 6–8 are not giving us new revelation. Look, David writes, “God has spoken…” David is remembering what God has revealed in times past; He is referencing recorded revelation from history. He knows that God has spoken out of His own holiness when He has given his revelation in the past. (I know that a few English versions like the NIV translate “holiness” in the first line of verse 6 as “sanctuary, but I think “holiness” fits the context better). God has spoken and David is going to hold on to what He has said now as he faces this unexpected disaster in his and the nation’s life.

Application

Friends, do unexpected disasters cause you to turn to the Word of God. This is where we can find what God has said. This alone if the true read on the situation. This is reality; not what we think is happening.

Transition:

Unexpected disasters should cause us to turn to God’s proclamation. As we do that, we should look for, at minimum, two things that David considers in his review of God’s revelation. First, we should notice as we investigate God’s Word anew because of our troubles, that…

A. God proclaims His sovereignty

That is the idea behind verses 6 and 7. David is looking back to the time when several hundred years earlier God had divided the Promised Land among the nation as well as several hundred years before that to the time when God began to fulfill that promise through Jacob when Jacob returned and dwelt at Shechem and Succoth. The references that David gave are shorthand ways by which the nation would think of God’s promises that He was even now bringing to fulfillment through David. God is a sovereign God. He is accomplishing His purposes, even in the unexpected disaster that David was experiencing.

Application

You know, it is not an empty platitude to remind ourselves…and each other…that God is sovereign over all of life, even the unexpected disasters. The Scriptures, both OT and NT, assure us that our circumstances are not happening by chance. Even though our experiences may be painful, they are nonetheless carefully planned and intended by God. The pain is real, but so is the promise that God will receive glory and we will grow in Christlikeness if we respond with faith in His sovereignty.

Transition:

God proclaims His sovereignty. Second, we should also notice that it is clear in God’s word that…

B. God proclaims His power

The references to Moab, Edom, and Philistia point to the enemies that threatened Israel in David’s day from the East and the West. Picturing Moab as a “washbowl” places them in the status of a servant, one who would bring the basin for his master to wash up when he arrives home. Throwing the shoe at Edom puts them at the same level, a servant to whom the warrior would throw his shoes to have cleaned before the next day. Both images are pictures of God’s power over the nations that oppressed Israel, God’s ability to subjugate them to His chosen nation.

Application

When we investigate God’s word as it applies to our situation, we need to allow ourselves to be struck by His power. We are not experiencing our situations because God has been unable to prevent them from occurring. Nor do we need to worry that promises of preserving and protecting us from the evil one will prove too difficult for God. His power is seen from the first page where He speaks creation into existence to the last page where He dwells with His children for all eternity in the new Jerusalem within the new heavens and earth, having eliminated sin completely. God’s power is everywhere in these pages. He has proclaimed it to us!

Transition:

Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to God’s proclamation. There, God proclaims His sovereignty and His power. As we continue to the final four verses of this psalm, we learn that…

III. Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to God’s promises

Having remembered the themes of sovereignty and power—themes of hope—David again addresses God, verse 9…<read Ps 60:9–10>.

Transition:

David knows that his situation will only change if God leads the nation to victory. For that reason, he appeals to God based on His promises. First, he remembers that…

A. God promises His presence

Look at all the first-person pronouns found again in these verses: me, us, our, we. The verses are chocked full of them. God has made very personal promises to be with David and Israel. David is appealing to those promises, to God’s promise of His presence. David does not expect the current circumstances to be the end of the story. What he does expect is that God will be with him as the story continues.

Application

Do you have the same expectation? If you find yourself in the middle of an unexpected disaster at this point in your life, do you expect that your story will continue? Do you anticipate God’s presence to be with you as your story continues? God has promised that He will always be with His children. David could rely on that promise. So can we…assuming of course, we are one of God’s children. To be a child of God we must accept Jesus, God’s Son, as our Savior. When we know Jesus, we can draw strength on the promise of God’s continued presence.

Transition:

David remembers God’s promises His presence. In the final verse, David also remembers that…

B. God promises our victory

David anticipates reengaging with the enemy, apparently Edom from what verse 9 says. The defeat that the nation had suffered was a setback. Even though it appeared from the disaster that God was angry with the nation, David knew that God’s anger was only for a moment when it was directed toward His chosen people. God would direct anger toward them for chastisement, but He would never abandon them. Rather, God promised victory. David knew that they would have victory “Through God.” “Through God” stands emphatically in the final verse in contrast to David’s “O God” in the first verse. God would certainly tread down their adversaries because the adversaries of Israel were the adversaries of God.

Application

We too need to remember that God promises our victory. We cannot fail. We may be knocked down by things in life. We may be knocked down by our God as He is forced to chastise us. But as children of God, we will never fail. God will ensure that we stand once again because our ultimate victory is His victory.

Transition from body to conclusion:

Unexpected disasters cause us to turn to turn to God’s promises. God promises His presence. God promises our victory.

CONCLUSION

God’s promises are what really brings us to the main idea that we can take away from this psalm this morning. If we put it all together, the main idea is that Unexpected disasters can never hinder our final victory in Christ. Unexpected disasters can never hinder our final victory in Christ.

Think about that statement. Whatever we might experience, regardless of how dark the day may seem, our final victory is guaranteed.

Illustration

We might be able to think about our unexpected disasters a bit like a mis-matched tennis match. Imagine a match between a world-champion tennis player and a very good college player. Remember, a tennis match is made up of sets composed of games. A very good college player may win a few games early on. After all, the chance to play a champion will really get the college player psyched up. He may fly back and forth making some amazing shots and great saves. But we can readily anticipate that world-champion will control the play overall. Over the course of the match, the discrepancy in their abilities will be obvious, the world champion will win.

Well, because of Christ, we are the world-champions. Not because we are worthy, but because He is. He defeated Satan’s every attempt to terminate His mission prematurely. He died for our sins. Our faith places us in His righteousness. He rose from the grave. He is returning. He is returning for us! We cannot be defeated. Any unexpected disaster that we experience between now and then is temporary, just a momentary setback before the ultimate victory arrives. Unexpected disasters can never hinder our final victory in Christ. That is the truth that must ring out in our lives, the truth that must govern our emotions, that must rule our actions.

In our lives, there will be hurricanes bringing destruction. There will be protests, riots, and all kinds of other unrest. There will many tribulations bringing unexpected disasters into our lives. But none of those can possibly hinder our final victory because our final victory is in Christ.