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July 21, 2019 12:00 pm
Are you convinced this morning that this all ends with a joyful land as the songwriter said through thorny ways leads to a joyful end of your convinced this that this all ends up with a joyful land, God will give grace to you and you will persevere regardless of how thorny the way may be. That's our hope is our confidence will as we approach Psalm 42 this morning in our series on lament.
I want to ask you to transpose yourself to a doctor's office. I've been in more doctors offices in the last month and I have been in a long time so I thought of this object lesson to begin this sermon this morning when you go to the doctor's office take you into a room and you wait for the attending physician or PA or nurse practitioner or whomever and when they come in where they want to know what's her first question. Why are you here, I went to an appointment with the dermatologist this week that was scheduled six months ago. She's the one who scheduled it. She came in and said what are you here for.
I said will you use the one who scheduled this. I think it's a follow-up unless you know something I don't know they want to know if you made the appointment. How can I help you with that question designed to get to what are they looking for what brought you here and you begin with symptoms right will I feel this I feel that this that's going on. Even if you jump from symptoms to a diagnosis which doctors delight now like you diagnosing yourself they say why are you here, I think I have cancer. They still go back and start asking about symptoms. Why do you think that what's been going on in your life right when some 42 were going to be led through a series of questions questions that get at symptoms and will see some symptoms that the psalmist is wrestling with.
And then we get to beyond symptoms. We get to causes. What's it to cause of this condition that he has that is been described symptomatically, and then only after that does the divine word. Give us remedy. What's the condition where the condition is despondency that did the condition his depression.
The condition is inner turmoil are two verses in the song the repeated and they get to the heart of what's going on here with the psalmist verse five.
He's asking himself this question. Why are you cast down all my soul. Same thing in verse 11, and why are you disquieted within me that were disquieted might be translated in your drink in your Bible, why are you in turmoil the condition that he has his depression, inner turmoil, and it's something that is all pervasive. It is dominating his life. It's affecting him physically. He talks about feeling like his bones are broken in verse 10. Sleep is evading him. In verse three.
My tears have been my food day and night. It's affecting him emotionally he's morning in verse nine. I will say to God, my rock, why have you forgotten me. Why do I go morning because of the oppression of the enemy. There is tears mentioned in verse three, and then in verse seven he gives us a very interesting metaphor. He says deep calls unto deep as the noise of your waterfalls all your waves and billows have gone over me. It's up it's a word picture he saying my condition is a lie, almost stranded sailor clinging to a piece of driftwood and a raging storm and wave after wave are coming over me. I just get my breath and another wave of water hits me. I'm wondering if I'm going to survive. And then he says the very beginning. As the deer pants for the water brooks soul pants my soul for you.
Oh God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Now there's all this all these symptoms surrounding his life. But at the heart of these symptoms is a thirsting for God and we have to think about that for a moment because most of the time we think of thirsts for God, is a Christian virtue, but in this context. That's not what is the imagery here. We forget sometimes that first speaks of the absence of something in the psalmist is thirsting for the felt presence of God in the midst of all of this he has this sense that God has forsaken him. Now he's a believer there's no question about that show that to you here in a minute.
Spiritual thirst can be very painful thing thirst as a gift really physical thirst. If you're out in this heat and you don't thirst after while you're going to not perspire, you're going to expire. Know the psalmist here is struggling.
He's in back badly in need of water from the springs of the living God. He feels far away. And God seems distant, both in space and time, and he feels like an emaciated deer who wonders disoriented in search of water and the picture here with this dear. That's the only thing on the mind of this dear is finding refreshing water. It's consuming not concerned about anything else because without it, he will die. And that's the sense that of desperation. We see here in the psalmist so the Psalm here speaks to us.
The psalmist is speaking to us as a spiritual physician he's engaging in diagnosis and then he's going to explore remedies that will help us so as the deer pants for the water brooks soul pants my soul for you. Oh God my soul thirsts for God, for the living God, the top of this Psalm were introduced. It's a yearning for God in the midst of distresses. Notice it says to the chief musician or to the music director. It's a contemplation of the sons of Cora. It's a it's a contemplation it's something that were to contemplate. Here is wise counsel about trusting God through difficult times. The author is not specifically identified. It was written by the sons of Cora. Notice again. It was directed to the chief musician, so it was meant for corporate worship for the sons of Cora while they were those who produced and perform music while the tabernacle was in the wilderness and then after the construction of the temple in Jerusalem. I want you to notice this is I think very important that you see this however the author is here he is a man of some spiritual depth. Why do I say that well.
Unbelievers don't thirst for God is thirsting for God. He knows the only thing that can assuage his thirst is God the only thing that can satisfy him is God in the midst of his depression. He knows that he weeps when God is despised by his enemies. Notice verse three my tears of been my food day and night while they continually say to me, where is your God.
So as enemies are despising God and that causes him pain, emotional pain he weeps over that he pours out his soul to God in prayer. Verse four verse nine God is his rock I will say to God, my rock and also want you to know what's not said because there is causes for his depression and there are remedies for his recovery. But there is no mention in the sacred text here of sin, which tells me that this man's depression and discouragement is not because of sin.
Now not saying that that's the case. Always, there are times I'm sure that were depressed and it's because of our sin, our unconfessed sin or unrepented sin, but many many a time, we are struggling with depression and discouragement and is not rooted in sin. And when people suggest that it just adds insult to injury. It's like rubbing salt in the wound. There are some who say what you're depressed, that is a spiritual problem that is a sin. As you know not if you understand that were called to live in a broken world were living in a broken world. So what I'm saying to you this morning is that it is indeed possible and very much of the time. It is the case that Christians are indeed seeking to walk with God to live in faithfulness to him and yet sense that God is distant and to be downcast in their spirit that's what I'm suggesting to you because that's what I see here in Psalm 42 so we looked at his symptoms that he has, which again is the place to start. He moves we move in the text, the Psalm from symptoms to causes.
That's the point of the question in verse five. Why are you cast down old my soul. What is the clause of this condition. He's asking himself symptoms are important, we shouldn't ignore symptoms, we should pay attention to symptoms. In fact, in my heart condition. That's what led to the diagnosis that I have major heart blockage at a follow-up visit from with the doctor after a stress test and he said how are things and I began he said I thought your symptoms would've gone away those symptoms are most likely your heart when you to do a heart catheterization so is not wise to ignore your symptoms though.
Don't ignore them.
Don't stick your head in the sand. Don't pretend some people have a hard time just facing depression stared interface acknowledge that it's there so that you can find the cause of it.
Some people struggled year after year, year after year with the same thing because they never move from the symptom to begin to say what is causing this. What is behind this and that's what the psalmist is doing and were going to see what was causing his symptoms.
Sometimes we yield to discouragement rather than trace back it symptoms to its root.
Sometimes our discouragement and our depression can be so debilitating that it discourages us from analyzing its causes and it just doesn't go away by ignoring it. We must face it, we must learn to say, why are you there that's what the psalmist is doing here in verse five, and only then will we discover that there are there is appropriate medicine, even for our souls.
Sort of the causes of the psalmist's spiritual depression number one, it's spiritual deprivation, spiritual deprivation, he is being deprived of significant spiritual means of grace that God is given for is the maintenance of his spiritual life weeks, perhaps months have passed since he had worshiped with the people of God. Where is it, he is removed from Jerusalem. It says in verse six, I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, from the heights of Herman from the heel mitts are. We don't know why the psalmist isn't in the place of worship is not in Jerusalem but he's not there. So his circumstances have made it impossible for him to gather with the crowds for worship. He's exiled in Jordan is not participating in the songs of praise.
No fellowship with the people of God. No gathering for prayer in the instruction of God's word and in light of that, is it really surprising that his soul is spiritually undernourished is being cut off from some of the means of grace. And it reminds us of how important the fellowship of the church is to our spiritual well-being. Sometimes it is only when we have been removed from it that we realize how much we need the Lord has made us for fellowship with him and with one another. So do not be surprised if being deprived of regular worship affects your spirit individual spiritual disciplines is good and important and vital, but it is no substitute for the life of the church. It is with the church that God specifically and intentionally ministers to our souls nourishes us and strengthens us and enriches us. My reminds me of numbers of folks in our church are shut-ins that some of our shut-ins are able to participate by lifestream and were grateful for that technology but not all do and when God's providence brings about circumstances that force you to not be able to gather with the church. We need to be mindful of people in that condition that they are more vulnerable to depression and discouragement because they're not enjoying the things that were enjoying. I think of our men that carry on ministry in rest homes in the area were in. I think 16 or 17 various homes. Men go men and their wives go men, their wives and their children go and I was thinking the other day. I've been in some of those homes and I know about what the attendances and some of them but I don't know what and it is in all of them but if you were to combine the normal attendance of the combined 17 nursing homes were in our manner ministering to maybe 250 300, maybe 350 people on a weekly basis but significant people who are not able to gather for public worship in the church that they been maybe Psalm never been in church. It's a vital ministry that are men are engaged in, and I'm very thankful and grateful for them so the first clause is spiritual deprivation. A second cause is his hostile environment is hostile environment, their enemies who were taunting him. Verse three. They continually say to me where is your God again in verse 10. As with the breaking of my bones, my enemies reproached me while they say to me all day long. Where is your God is one thing for our enemies to say that is another thing for us to entertain those thoughts in her own mind is not that were denying the omnipresence of God. It's that where the psalmist is denying the gods felt presence. That's what he's longing for.
That's what he misses. He wasn't in Jerusalem. He wasn't in the house of worship.
He wasn't with the people of God. He was in a distant and strange place place inhabited by enemies and in times of depression and discouragement. There is spiritual conflict.
There are natural enemies. And then there are supernatural enemies.
We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities and powers, against spiritual wickedness in high places. So what we do when we find ourselves in this place.
Spiritual deprivation in a hostile environment. This world is no friend of grace.
Some of you are blessed to work in a Christian environment, but that's rare. Most of us have to put up with the worldly mindset that supposed to God and the authority day after day after day.
It can wear you down.
So what we say when were missing the felt presence of God, even when I cannot sense what God is doing in my situation and cannot understand his ways. We need to ask this question.
Where would I be without him even though I don't know where God is.
I don't sense him like I want to. I'm really wondering what he's doing. Where would I be if I didn't have God, where would I be and asked that question puts things in proper perspective, it leads to this conclusion. I can live for the Lord without fully understanding his ways but I cannot live without it.
I cannot live without.
And since he is God and I am not. He's not answerable to me, but he has proved his faithfulness over and over again to me. Therefore I can trust him. And in this question. Where is your God. Remember that this question was thrown at Christ when he was left to die on the cross. Remember they taunted him he trusts in God. Let God deliver him now if he desires him.
What was the truth of the matter with the truth of the matter is that Christ sense of felt presence in fellowship with the father had been interrupted because he was bearing the sins of all the elect of all the ages darkness had come over the place it over soul, but he had. He never at any other time was more pleasing to his father than he was on the cross because that was the purpose for which he came, he said. As such, in John chapter 10, he said. For this reason, the father loves me because I lay down my life that I may take it up again.
No one takes it from me so Jesus's soul was cast down. Jesus was distressed Jesus had the taunts thrown at him as the psalmist experienced. But remember this, regardless of how hostile your workplace might be your environment might be that isn't the total picture.
Christ is with you.
Christ is with you in the midst of that and then there's 1/3 cause, not just spiritual deprivation in a hostile environment but a lost role a lost role. What I mean by that.
Notice what he says in verse four to remember these things. I pour out my soul within me. I used to go with the multitude. I went with them to the house of God with the voice of joy and praise with the multitude that kept a Pilgrim feast had been a leader among God's people. He exercised a prominent ministry, but here he is far removed from the sphere of his ministry leadership, and it should not surprise us that he was sensing desolation.
No, I think ministers probably as much is anyone need the Council of not allowing their work to be so central to what they do that they lose sight of life apart from ministry, but if we give ourselves if we give ourselves and invest our lives in other people. It's it's hard to distinguish what you are from what you do. Many a man has struggled with that his life is defined by his work so he retires and then he finds himself well.
The routine that he knew before, meaning he got from his work. The significance he got from the interaction with this is different.
It can bring on a seer of a season of depression and not just men and their work are pastors and their work, but the same is true in a family context. The mother she gives her whole life to serving her family and then the children grow up and leave home and that which she gave herself 24 seven and brought meaning and significance to work. She no longer engaged in the darkness cloud often comes when a mother and a wife is widowed, no one to serve anymore struggle of the psalmist in Herman is their experience sitting in the kitchen preparing a meal for them self sitting in the living room watching television alone at night going to bed alone. It's a battle to time when depression can vary with very much manifest itself. So here the psalmist is gradually coming to recognize not only that he is discouraged and depressed, but more importantly the reasons for and he has good reason to feel this way he's experienced isolation opposition and loss of position is no longer in a place of leadership. So what we have going on here in Psalm 42. Here is a Psalm that instructs us on how to deal with depression and discouragement. We acknowledge it we don't ignore it.
We embrace it. We recognize it for what it is we analyze the reasons for its presence and then we apply the divine remedy and what is the divine remedy will there's three things about that number one right-thinking right-thinking want to listen to what Martyn Lloyd Jones had to say at this point he's drawing from verse five where the psalmist says wire you cast down, oh my soul and wire you disquieted within me. Hope in God. For I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance. Listen again to Martyn Lloyd Jones.
He says the ultimate cause of all spiritual depression is unbelief. For if it were not for unbelief. Even the devil could do nothing. It is because we listen to the devil instead of listening to God, we go down before him and fall before his attacks. That is why this psalmist keeps saying to himself. Hope thou in God.
For I shall yet praise him, he reminds himself of God. Why because he was depressed and had forgotten God so that his faith and his belief in God ending in God's power and in and in his relationship to God were not what they ought to be and then he says this. Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact the you are listening to your self instead of talking to yourself. Now this man's treatment was this instead of allowing this self to talk to him. He starts talking to himself why art thou cast down all my soul. He asks his soul had been depressing him, crushing him so he stands up and says self listen for a moment and I will speak to you. I found that interesting and helpful. He's talking to his discouraged soul. He's preaching to himself he's bringing himself under the authority of God's word.
He talks to God about his needs and he talks about the future, which had been completely obscured. He been living in the past and in the very present so the first thing I see this remedy is he refocuses his thinking is soul is discouraged and it's downcast.
But he says there in verse five.
Hope in God. For I shall yet praise him, hope in God, no hope in Scripture is not wishful thinking. It is confidence based on the promise of God is the assurance that we will experience blessings that we do not yet experience.
This man has known the living God. Verse two my soul thirsts for God, for the living God. He knew God and he turns to God he's known God as his rock even when it's interesting. I will say to God, my rock, why have you forgotten me. Why do I go morning because of the oppression of my enemy is almost like he's schizophrenic one half of his brain is acknowledging truth about God and in the other half is forgotten.
The thing that is other half of the brain, just holding know he saying soul listen to me. Have you forgotten who your God is. He's great.
He's glorious. He's a Savior he's a living minorities in Iraq. He's a refugee can be trusted.
So he says to himself, so the first remedy is refocusing his thinking. The second remedy is prayer. Notice he says verse eight, the Lord will command his lovingkindness in the daytime and in the night. His song shall be with me a prayer to the God of my life so he turns his heart away from himself and he turns toward God. He persists in his seeking after God and he's doing that by praying to God. You see, his attention has largely been focused on himself and on his note on his own needs, but we when we began to rehearse in our minds what we know about God. When God is revealed about himself to us. It's like stalking the medicine chest. Whatever ailment we've God.
We can go to and take that promise of God and apply the medicine he speaks of God's loving kindness that I that word again is God's hand, sit God's covenant faithfulness God's covenant love for his people. This not dependent on my performance is rooted in the character of God. God is going to keep his people because of of him. That's who he is.
When you remind ourselves of these things so refocus of his thinking a refocusing of his prayer life in a number three I refocusing of his perspective or his vision. What I mean by that notice he says wire you cast down who my soul and wire you disquieted within me.
Hope in God. For I shall yet praise him, where is his focus been he's looked within.
He's looked around what he sees when he looked within thirsts. Depression, discouragement, what it is he when he looked around his enemies.
The hospital environment. He was living in a looked within. He looked around and slowly he is begun to look upward and look outward. Now he begins to look to the future. That's hope is hope is faith transposed into the future hope and faith are very synonymous in their core meaning. But faith is more in the present hope is more in the future.
He's now looking forward he's looking ahead. What happens when we allow depression and discouragement to dictate the conversation. What we look inward downward and backward. But if will look upward and outward and forward that's God's remedy for us see depression tells us. We dare not think of the future only about the future you just consume with the past and its hurts and its pain in the present that lingering. But if God is the God of tomorrow. He's the same yesterday today and forever, then we must look to the future and focus on those blessings that are promise to us that have yet to be enjoyed God's word encourages us to look at the present in the bright light of the future.
These light and momentary afflictions, Paul would say wait a minute Paul light momentary affliction don't describe it. No there light and momentary affliction. When you compare them with the glory, the yet awaits us.
Was Paul doing not minimizing our affliction is maximizing the glory and when you compare what awaits us with what, regardless of how bad it is. There's no comparison. This is light momentary is what Paul does what I know about you this morning you may be like the psalmist you may have legitimate reasons to be in the place of discouragement and depression may have nothing to do with sin take encouragement that you are thirsting for God. Don't ignore that that is a blessing from God. If God didn't bless us with the first. We wouldn't seek after him. It's a wonderful God we have the creates soul first in sinners and then satisfies that first with himself. It's an amazing God that we have.
He's the one who gave you the thirst you think he's going to ignore that he's not going to come and satisfy your thirst. So despite the fact that we might be discourage.
We have more reasons to be encouraged because we know that Jesus Christ is come to share the deep discouragements of a fallen world.
You remember when his cries recorded in John 19 on the cross, Jesus cried.
I want I thirst.
I thirst.
I think that thirst is more than a physical thirst.
I think that thirst was what he sensed in himself that distance from the presence and the fellowship of his heavenly father.
And it is precisely because Jesus tasted that spiritual desolation and separation so that we never will have to that we can rejoice this morning in the promise that whoever drinks of the water.
Jesus said that I give him will never be thirsty again.
The water that I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life must be encouraged this morning that in our thirst.
We have a God who says come and drink freely. We have a spirit of God that dwells in our hearts as believers, that leads us to the spring of living water, and we have a God who creates thirst in us that directs us there if you discourage this morning, perhaps depressed, there's hope. Here in Psalm 42 spring father, thank you for your word this morning. Thank you for its help. Thank you that it meets us at our point of need and points us away from our self and our introspection and points us away to a Savior who loves us, who died for us whose provoker was made promises to be with us in the never forsake us in the meet all of our needs according to his riches in glory by Christ Jesus here assists morning seal this word to our hearts, because your word to live in us.
I pray in Jesus name, amen