Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Early on in the story of The Lord of the Rings, there is an episode that didn’t make it into the movies, but is one of the most memorable moments of the whole saga.

Frodo and his friends are trying to avoid being seen by Sauron’s Black Riders, and so they take a shortcut through the Old Forest—an ancient and foreboding place full of dark, menacing wilderness.

At one point the hobbits are nearly devoured by an old willow tree that lulls them to sleep.

In desperation,

“…Frodo, without any clear idea of why he did so, or what he hoped for, ran along the path crying help!

help!

help!

It seemed to him that he could hardly hear the sound of his own shrill voice: it was blown away from him by the willow-wind and drowned in a clamor of leaves, as soon as the words left his mouth.

He felt desperate: lost and witless.”

(Tolkien, J. (2012c).

The Lord of the Rings: One Volume (50th Anniversary ed.) [E-book].

Mariner Books.)

He is interrupted by the sound of “a deep glad voice singing carelessly and happily”—Tom Bombadil, one of the most fascinating characters in all of Tolkien’s writings.

After rescuing them from the clutches of Old Man Willow, Tom takes the hobbits to his house—a place of safety, rest, food and drink, a warm fire and shelter from the rainy days and dark menace that they had been eluding.

When Frodo cried out in the wilderness, Tom heard and brought him and his friends to his refuge, where he and his wife Goldberry refreshed and strengthened them in tranquil peace, plenty and security until they were ready to continue their quest.

That story came to mind as I was reading Psalm 61 in preparation for this sermon.

Like Frodo, David was in the wilderness (“from the end of the earth I call to you”), and was at the end of his strength and his courage (“… I call to you when my heart is faint...”) Unlike Frodo, though, who did not know whether or not anyone in the Old Forest would hear him or help him, David is certain that he will be heard by God—he knows God will hear his cry and listen to his prayer and lead him to His refuge.

This is what God has brought us together today to hear in this psalm.

I don’t know what kind of week you have just come out of; I don’t know what weariness or stress or heartbreak you may be carrying with you.

But I do know that in this weary, wicked world every one of us sometimes feels like crying out, at the end of our strength, “desperate: lost and witless”.

Whether its the indwelling sin that continues to dog you or family relationships that are strained and torn because of your faith or worries over your finances in a world with five dollar gasoline or the numbing tedium of long-term grief or struggling with the consequences of being betrayed or let down by someone you trusted: If you can identify with the weariness in David’s voice in this psalm, if you have the same longing for rest, then this is what I have been praying for you today—that you will see here in this psalm the great and precious promise that

God is a sure REFUGE for the FAINTHEARTED Christian

Just as David knew he could cry out to God “from the ends of the earth” and God would hear him, so I want you to be encouraged by God’s Word this morning that He is your refuge today.

And in the first three verses of the psalm you are promised that you will

I.

Find refuge by God’s LEADING (Psalm 61:1-3)

Psalm 61:1–2 (ESV)

1 Hear my cry, O God, listen to my prayer; 2 from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint...

Right here in verse 1 is your first promise, Christian—that

He will RESPOND when you CALL (vv.

1-2; cp.

Hebrews 5:7-9)

David isn’t crying out here saying, “God I hope you will listen to my prayer...”

He is calling out to God in hope, knowing that God does hear him when he cries out.

Christian, you have a sure and certain hope that God will answer you when you cry out to Him—because He heard when Jesus cried out to Him!

Hebrews 5:7–9 (ESV)

7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence.

8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered.

9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,

Christian, because God heard His Son as He cried out to Him, He is now able to save you!

Because Jesus was heard when He cried out with loud cries and tears, God will always respond when you call—even from the ends of the earth; even in the depths of your darkness or pain or bewilderment or grief or isolation.

He will always hear you!

And when He hears you, He will do for you what you cannot do for yourself—look at the end of verse 2:

Psalm 61:2 (ESV)

2 from the end of the earth I call to you when my heart is faint.

Lead me to the rock that is higher than I...

David can see the refuge, on the top of that rock, but he can’t get there on his own.

And that’s your own experience, isn’t it?

You know where you need to go mentally or emotionally or spiritually—you know what you need, but you cannot provide it for yourself.

David knew that he needed to be on top of that Rock, and he also knew he needed God to lead him there!

Instead of flailing around in the wilderness, trying to find his own way through, finding his own ways to numb the pain or deal with the hurt or get out from under the anxiety, David cried out to God to lead him.

It is only when we surrender ourselves to Him that He will then lead us to the Rock; it is only when you place yourself into His hands that

He will RAISE you to SAFETY (v.

3; Lamentations 3:22-24)

Psalm 61:3 (ESV)

3 for you have been my refuge, a strong tower against the enemy.

Here is another reason we say that when David is calling out to God to hear his cry, he is not wondering whether God will answer him, he’s not crossing his fingers and hoping God will answer—he knows God will be faithful to answer him because He has rescued him before!

See how David says it here?

Not “you will be my refuge...” but “you have been my refuge!”

David can look back on all of God’s faithfulness in the past and say, “It will be no different this time—He will raise me to safety!”

Christian, even when you are lost in the wilderness of your stress or sorrow or anxiety, you can always look back and see how God has been your refuge in the past.

Moses says the same thing in Psalm 90:1

Psalm 90:1 (ESV)

1 Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.

Jeremiah, in the midst of his tears over the fall of his beloved city Jerusalem, is able to sing

Lamentations 3:22–24 (ESV)

22 The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.

24 “The Lord is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”

David looks around at the stronghold God has led him to and says, “Yes!

I remember being here before!

He has always rescued me in the past, and He has led me to safety once again!”

And Christian, what greater stronghold do you have than the Rock of your salvation, Jesus Christ?

When everything else is being swept away, in this day when every other source of safety and security and comfort is tottering like the thirty-ninth minute of a game of Jenga, Jesus Christ is your Rock!

Hebrews 13:8 (ESV)

8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

His love for you will not fail, His care for you will not falter, His protection will never be withdrawn, His reign over all of the kings of this earth will never for one moment be usurped or overturned—and in Him you are raised to safety—as David sings in Psalm 144:2,

Psalm 144:2 (ESV)

2 he is my steadfast love and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my shield and he in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me.

God is a sure refuge for the fainthearted Christian—you find refuge in His leading, and in verses 4-5 you see that you

II Find refuge in God’s PRESENCE (Psalm 61:4-5)

Psalm 61:4–5 (ESV)

4 Let me dwell in your tent forever!

Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings!

Selah 5 For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.

The imagery here in these verses are drawn from the Tabernacle, the tent that housed the Ark of the Covenant and represented the dwelling place of God with His people in the Old Testament.

So when David is asking God to let him “dwell in His tent”, he is asking something extraordinary: He wants to live in the Tabernacle itself!

Think of this—the Tabernacle was meant to be God’s dwelling place, not man’s!

The Levites were the only ones allowed inside, and only for specific rituals of sacrifices and offerings.

It wasn’t a bed and breakfast, and yet David is asking God if he can live there!

David never actually did live in the Tabernacle—he wanted to, but he never did.

But Christian,

You BELONG in His DWELLING (v.

4a; cp.

Hebrews 10:19-20)

in a way that David never did!

The author of Hebrews tells us that

Hebrews 10:19–20 (ESV)

19 ...we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,

The dwelling place of God is no longer separated from man by the thick curtain of the Temple—it was ripped open at the death of Christ (Matthew 27:51)!