O God!
(Ps. 61:1-8)
Pastor Seung Yoon Shin
Psalm 61 is the poem that David wrote while fleeing to Mahanaim to avoid Absalom, who chased David to kill him. Even Ahithophel, Davids best friend and counselor and the people David protected risking his life turned their backs on him and followed Absalom. On his urgent and desperate way, David stopped to cry out to God. And he wrote one of his greatest poems inspired by Gods presence in this critical situation. Like David who laid down his anger and fear before God and cried out to Him, we need to turn our trials into a channel of intimate relationship with God. Lets see what David did in his critical situation.
1. He cried out. David cried out to God, not human beings. He accepted that his fear and predicament was due to his sins that he coveted Bathsheba, another mans wife abusing his power and that he overlooked his son Absalom, who killed his half-brother Amnon for raping his sister. David recognized that he brought everything on himself, not others. Thats why he prayed that God would have mercy on him. He didnt pray that God would punish them and resolve his problems. The more we cry out to the world, the deeper our bitterness. Yet if we cry out to God with repentance, we will be lifted by God onto the lofty rock higher than the hill of problem-solving, as the one that the world is not worthy of. What incident is your critical situation now? To whom are you crying out? I came to Wooridle Church after being betrayed by my big brother over money. Later I heard that someone was pestering my mother, a pastor of a new small church. Exasperated, I went down to Suweon station to x-out the rascal. On my way, however, I remembered our senior pastor Kims tearful sermon and small group members who shared their tearful life story with one another. Going to and from the station four times, I cried out to God. Nothing has changed with my mothers situation. However, in response to my crying, God opened my heart with his words and enabled me to repent of my sins. This was the key of David for me.
2. He found his refuge. In verse 3, David confessed that God was his refuge. We cant take God as our refuge as long as we have our own resources like money, brilliant children, friends and parents. Thats why God sometimes pulls down what we rely on. Being betrayed by our idols is definitely distressful. However, its also graceful if we find our eternal refuge in God because of that incident. Once we dwell in God, our watch tower, we will be protected from any external or internal attack by helping us recognize the sins within us through the Word. What is your best shelter where you feel safe and comfortable? Do you admit that the best blessing is listening to the Word and sheltering in the shadow of Gods wings? A few weeks ago, I visited a Vietnamese drug rehabilitation center with our youth members. There the worship assembly was held three times a day. One guy confessed that he was able to cut off his addiction after meeting God. May God bless those currently waging their tough battle and experience his presence.
3. He remembered the vow that he had made in his crisis. David held on to Gods promise to him in 2 Samuel 7 and was sure that the Lord would preserve his life and throne. Thus by holding on to the Word, we can find our shelter under the Lords wing, asking for his protection whatever comes to us. All we need to do is praise his name and keep our vows to him. The nature of a vow is to lower ourselves and raise the Lord. Without our practical application of the Word, we are not able to break through our crisis merely with our intellectual power. The true listener of the Word humbles himself and praises God wholeheartedly in response to the Word. I didnt have any idea of this. As a pastor, I inadvertently revealed my inferiority complex about my little education through my sermon forming a faction in our community. As a result, I was disciplined by our church. We are so prone to stumble over our sinful nature that we consciously need to struggle to raise our Lord in his throne. What is the vow that you offer to the Lord our Refuge, who listens to your crying?
'Hear my cry, O God listen to my prayer.' (Ps 61:1)
