There are many things in this life that we cannot control. This past week where I live we were reminded that we cannot control the weather. Meteorologists can somewhat predict the weather, but we cannot change it. In a farming community, we are well aware of our need for rain. Farmers prepare the soil and sow the seed, but ultimately God causes the growth.
In life, there are many circumstances beyond our control. In Psalm 4, King David was being maligned and attacked. It seems that the nation of Israel was experiencing a time of famine and drought and some people began to question God’s ability to provide for his people. They wanted to seek out other gods of the pagan peoples around them.
In times of distress, how do you respond? Psalm 4 gives us a model for how to respond during these times. In this Psalm, David appeals to God and gives counsel to those who would seek relief outside of God.
Sermon Text: Psalm 4
In times of distress, call out to God (1)
Answer me when I call, O God of my righteousness!
You have given me relief when I was in distress.
Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!
In v. 1, David gives general instructions of what to do when you’re in distress. Call out to God! David says that we should call out to God because:
- God will act righteously.
- God will give you relief.
David remembered how God had delivered him in the past (“You have given me relief when I was in distress.”).
How has God helped you in troubled times? Cling to the remembrance of God’s deliverance. As you remember the past, you’ll have strength for the present.
“Hear my prayer.” – When no one else is listening, when everyone else is asleep, when you’re alone, God hears you when you cry out to him.
In times of distress, find your worth in the Lord (2-3)
2 O men, how long shall my honor be turned into shame?
How long will you love vain words and seek after lies?
3 But know that the Lord has set apart the godly for himself;
the Lord hears when I call to him.
In v. 1, David is addressing God. In vv. 2-3, David is addressing the men who are defaming him. Verse 2 explains the reason for David’s distress–men were lying about David to defame him and they were questioning his leadership.
David was leading the people to turn to God and to stay focused on him during a time of distress (v. 7). Meanwhile, these men were looking for answers in other places. The NIV says in v. 2 that these men were seeking after false gods (“How long will you love delusions and seek false gods?”).
That’s what people during times of distress. They get mad at God and look for relief elsewhere. They seek comfort in sex, alcohol, drugs, or money. Like David, maybe the people you work with poke fun at your Christian faith. Maybe there are people in your life that seek to shame you and defame you. Maybe someone at work has lied about you to get a promotion.
I wonder, how are you handling that? Friends, you cannot control what others are saying about you. You can, however, control how you respond. Look at verse three. David knows that no matter what others are saying about him, the Lord knows David’s heart.
David doesn’t have to defend himself to these men because he isn’t living for their approval.
Matt 5:11-12
“Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”
If others are defaming you, lying about you, shaming you, you have a choice.
Will you be controlled by their words and actions, or will you find your worth in knowing that you are a child of God? I’ve heard it said that if you live for the approval of others, you will die by their rejection.
If you live for the approval of others, you will die by their rejection.
Ever so often we hear about presidential approval ratings. These approval ratings are supposed to reflect how the American people think the president is doing. Though a king and not a president, David wasn’t concerned about his approval ratings. He was concerned about being faithful to the Lord.
That is what should concern us as well. Do not worry about the approval of others more than the approval of God. You will not stand before them on judgment day. You will stand before God almighty.
In times of distress, point your enemies to Christ (4-5)
4 Be angry, and do not sin;
ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.
5 Offer right sacrifices,
and put your trust in the Lord.
In vv. 4-5, David gives further instructions to these men who are lying about David and tearing him down. This is not our usual response. Usually, we do not point our enemies to Christ but rather tear those people down in return.
David essentially says to his enemies in vv. 4-5: “You need to get right with God.” What does it look like to point your enemies to Christ in times of distress?
David told his enemies to not sin in their anger. He was saying, “You may not like your circumstances but doesn’t mean you should rebel against God.” Instead of getting angry, David encourages them (and us) to have the right perspective.
- Be silent and thank about your situation in silence with God. (“ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent”).
- Worship God (“offer right sacrifices”). To offer right sacrifices means to recognize that God is worthy of our worship. For us, this would mean that even in tough times we will attend church and worship with God’s people rather than hating our enemies.
- Put your trust in the Lord.
In times of distress, look to the Lord for joy (6-7)
6 There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?
Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord!”
7 You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
You can sense the desperation of the people. David had heard many people say, “Who will show us some good? Lift up the light of your face upon us, O Lord.” They had cried out to the Lord and yet wondered why the Lord had not blessed them.
We are so often like these people. We only think God is present or cares if things are going well. We think that if God isn’t “shining his face upon us” then he doesn’t care or worse that he is mad at us. Then we conclude that God is distant and we end up seeking alternative means of comfort such as money, sex, drugs, etc.
The truth is that many people treat God like a genie in a bottle. They want God’s gifts more than they want God himself. It seems from v. 7 that there might have been a drought, resulting in the loss of crops. And because of this, many people were questioning God’s goodness.
Some things never change. We still have people like this today. There are many people that think if things aren’t going well then God is ignoring them but if they are healthy, wealthy, and well-liked, then God has blessed them. These men didn’t care about a relationship with God. They just wanted to have grain and wine.
We are not promised good health, material wealth, or that we will be liked. God is more concerned about our holiness than our happiness. He will use every experience and relationship in our lives to make us more like Christ (Rom 8:28-29).
Jesus says it this way:
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” (Matt 5:6)
Yes, we need food and drink to live. But as Christians we should be even more concerned about hungering and thirsting for righteousness. When tough times come, we should seek the Lord even more.
Look how David responds to those who have a fickle faith. David says that knowing God is more satisfying than his blessings of material abundance (v. 7; Ps 16:11).
David was the king! David had more grain and wine than these men and yet he said that true joy is found in a relationship with God (v. 7). As Christians, we too should find our joy in our relationship with God. Even when things are hard. Even when others seem to prosper more than us, we should have more joy because we know the one who gives abundant joy. True and lasting joy is not found in food, drink, or material prosperity. True and lasting joy is found in knowing God through his son, Jesus Christ.
True and lasting joy is not found in food, drink, or material prosperity. True and lasting joy is found in knowing God through his son, Jesus Christ.
Psalm 16:11
You make known to me the path of life;
in your presence there is fullness of joy;
at your right hand are pleasures forevermore.
In times of distress, you can experience peace in the Lord (8)
In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for you alone, O Lord, make me dwell in safety.
You will never have true peace until you have been reconciled (or made right with God) through Christ. David could sleep peacefully, knowing that the Lord would keep him safe. How was David able to experience peace in the Lord during a time of distress?
- By calling out to the Lord in his distress.
- By finding his worth in the Lord and not his reputation.
- By pointing his enemies to God rather than focusing on his circumstances.
- By finding joy in God’s presence, not material blessings.
Friends, when you’ve spent time with the Lord and you know that you have peace with him, there is nothing more for you to do than to lie down and sleep. Our enemies may attack us, but the Lord remains on our side. “If God is for us, who is against us?” (Rom 8:31).