Psalm 10 - 2007.08.25

"Why standest thou afar off, O Lord? why hidest thjou thyself in times of trouble?" — Psalm 10:1

Trouble in the life of a believer, when it comes, as it inevitably will, comes for various reasons and in various forms. The psalmist here was troubled by reason of the opposition of the ungodly ( v.2ff). Believers in the early church were troubled by persecution. Throughout history Christians have been troubled by the afflictions that are "common to man," illness, poverty, heartaches.

Sometimes we are troubled by others who oppose us. Sometimes we are troubled by our own weaknesses. Sometimes we are troubled by what men call "natural disasters." Sometimes we are troubled by the hand of the Lord Himself, when He must get our attention because of some sin in our lives. All trouble, of course, traces its roots to the catastrophe in the Garden of Eden when Adam chose to ignore God and destroyed divine order in this fallen creation.

The most troubling trouble of all is that which tempts us to conclude that God has abandoned us. Job's troubles were quite different from those experienced by the psalmist, but his reaction was similar: he lost the sense of God's presence in the midst of his affliction. "Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him: he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him [Job 23:8-9]." And here the writer says, "Why do You hide yourself in times of trouble?"

Most of us can recall some phase of our Christian experience when we could identify with these moments of despair. The soul longed for respite, and the heavens were silent. Where was/where is God? Such times demand that we recall and believe God's pledge to His own, "I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee," to which we made reference last week (Heb. 13:5b). Daniel, troubled, mourned and prayed for twenty-one days before he got a response from God, yet was assured, "Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before God, thy words were heard… [Dan. 10:12]." The heavens, indeed, were silent, but God was not indifferent to his cry.

The ultimate reason for unrelieved trouble, when the believing soul cries out in the darkness and God seems very far away, is the refining of our faith. Speaking of our salvation, the apostle Peter said, "Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness through manifold temptations: That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ… [I Pet. 1:6,7]." There are reasons in the heart of God that make it "need be" that our testings continue, and the heavens seem as brass. It is in such circumstances that faith is affirmed and God is glorified.

We tend to live with the idea that a good God will not leave us to suffer alone, for long. Meditation on Calvary should correct our thinking. The Savior said with unwavering confidence, "The Father loveth the Son" (See John 3:35; 5:20), yet on the cross, His suffering unrelieved, He cried out, "my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" In God's eternal purpose and infinite wisdom, even the Son of God felt abandoned! That "abandonment" was the necessary precursor to our eternal salvation.

So in our case. Some purpose beyond our comprehension is being wrought in the counsel of heaven while we feel forsaken. Let faith rise to the test, and the enemy of our souls will suffer defeat, and God will get the glory, "at the appearing of Jesus Christ." Someone has suggested that "it is not what the trouble is, but where the trouble lies," that makes all the difference. If trouble lies between us and our Lord, we are in serious straits. But, if we stand between the trouble and the Savior, the heavier the burden, the more it will crowd us to Christ.

"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me… Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." — John 14:1,23

For God's glory and our good,

"Pastor" Frasier

Psalm 9 - 2007.08.18

"The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble. And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee." — Psalm 9:9-10

"Times of trouble" are as common to the human situation as sunrise. Today most of those who read this little meditation are either in trouble of one sort or another, or troubled over someone whom they know and love who is in trouble, be it relative or friend. Job said, "Although affliction cometh not forth of the dust, neither doth trouble spring out of the ground; Yet man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward [Job 5:6-7]." And again, "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down: he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not [Job 14:1-2]." Thanks to Adam's folly, we live in a "troubled" world.

But, thanks to God's grace, we are not without recourse in this troubled world. Years ago we had in our record collection a "country gospel" song, the chorus of which asked the pertinent question, "Where could I go… ?"

Where could I go, oh where could I go
Seeking a refuge for my soul;
Needing a friend to help me in the end
Where could I go but to the Lord?

Where, indeed, but to the Lord? The psalmist declares, the Lord is a refuge in times of trouble. That truth applies in both temporal and eternal matters. But, as our advertisers are in the habit of saying, "certain restrictions apply."

There are two pre qualifications suggested in the next verse. The promised refuge is those "that know Thy Name." The implication here is not satisfied by merely knowing the title by which the Lord is to be addressed. My wife asked me a day or two ago if I knew a certain personality who had been mentioned on the evening news. My reply was, "I know his name, but I have never met him; I do not know him personally." Far too many who are familiar with the name "God" or "Lord" know nothing more. To know Him as implied here requires much more than that. Spurgeon suggested, "By knowing His name is also meant an experimental acquaintance with the attributes of God, which are every one of them anchors to hold the soul in seasons of peril." To "know" God's name means to know Him personally, and to have cultivated a personal relationship with Him, first by calling upon His name for salvation from sin, then by developing fellowship with Him by "listening" to His word and communing with Him in prayer.

The second pre qualification is the exercise of faith in God. "They that know Thy Name will put their trust in thee." The apostle Paul declared, "… I know Whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day [II Tim. 1:12b]." Knowledge precedes faith, or faith is blind and sterile; but, knowledge without faith is impotent. If you know Him, you will trust Him; if you do not trust Him, you do not really know Him. "Without faith, it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him [Heb. 11:6]."

Finally, there is the affirmation of the psalmist that amounts to a promise to you and me: "For thou, Lord, hast not forsaken them that seek thee." This wonderful verse is echoed in the Savior's promise to His own, quoted by the author of the epistle to the Hebrews, "He hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee [Heb. 13:5]." Come what may this side of heaven, this promise will hold good for those who put their trust in Him who is "able to raise [us] up, even from the dead [Heb. 11:19]."

Oppressed? Troubled? Seek the Lord and put your trust in Him who has never forsaken those who have come to know Him through faith in the Son of His love, Who died for us and rose again!

For refuge and rest,

"Pastor" Frasier

Psalm 8 - 2007.08.11

"What is man, that Thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that Thou visitest him?" —Psalm 8:4

The question before us in our text for today is sufficiently profound that it is somewhat presumptuous to address it in a short one page article such as this. However, we may be able to give some "starter thoughts" that will enable those interested to advance on their own.

First, note the perspective: The psalmist was contemplating the glory of God as reflected in the magnitude and magnificence of creation. "When I consider thy heavens, the work of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars which Thou hast ordained… [ v.3]" Without the benefit of the telescope, the writer was awestruck with the majesty of the Creator by reflecting on His handiwork. With science no more advanced, the apostle Paul considered the same phenomenon when he wrote of man's accountability to God, "… that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse [Rom. 1:19-20]."

Over against this incredible evidence of the glory of God, David sees "man" in the generic sense, and, I believe, himself— a man— in the particular sense, and the contrast is so great that he is overwhelmed at the thought that the Creator has a particular interest in man, or a significant interest in any particular man. Add the telescope and the microscope, and the magnitude of the creation is raised to a level whereby every man should be moved to ask the same question: "What is man that Thou art mindful of him?"

What distinguishes man, of course, and makes him significant in this vast and complex creation, is found in his origin: "…God created man in His own image [Gen. 1:27]." Whatever that means, it accounts for the fact that man is important to God. Dimension does not necessarily define value. Diamonds are tiny compared to granite boulders, yet the value we impute to them is many times greater.

In the beginning, man was made superior to all the rest of this creation. He was by divine design "king of the hill." God said, "Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth [Gen. 1:26]." Man as created was, in fact, vice regent of the planet, "the god of this world." That is why, when man surrendered his authority to Satan, the devil became the god of this world (cf. II Cor. 4:4) and the whole world fell into chaotic disarray. So significant was man that when he sinned, the whole creation suffered in consequence, from then until now.

"Then Jesus came." "What is… the son of man, that Thou visitest him?" It seemed incredible to the psalmist, and It should seem no less incredible to us, that God would visit this polluted planet and its corrupted occupants. Nothing more emphatically underscores the significance of man than that God would "visit" us, in the Person of His Son, and for the purpose of our redemption and restoration to our former glory.

Man is important to God. Over against the vastness of this creation, individual men are important to God. This side of heaven, we will never understand why, but the incarnation, crucifixion and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, the man Christ Jesus; the last Adam, "the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person," prove it so!

We live still in a day when God is not important to man. Most men would rather regard themselves as the offspring of a baboon than the handiwork of a personal God. But, individual men are still coming to the Savior and finding meaning and significance in an otherwise incoherent world. Are you one of them?

God is mindful of man, and He has visited us. Believe it; stand in awe, and worship Him!


For God's glory and our eternal good,

"Pastor" Frasier

Psalm 7 - 2007.08.04

"I will praise the Lord according to His righteousness: and will sing praise to the name of the Lord most High." —Psalm 7:17

The Psalm from which our text is taken, and for which it forms the conclusion, is essentially a song of distress. The writer complains of injustice, protests his own righteousness and solicits divine intervention in his behalf. He is the victim of what many have faced over time, a sense that life is "just not fair;" at least, not always! The tone throughout, despite the affirmation of his theology of divine justice, is in a minor key. That is, until this last verse when, without any change of circumstance, there is a decided change of tone.

The key to this abrupt change is simple: "I will praise the Lord!" Unable to change the circumstances, and unwilling to be devoured by them, he purposes in heart to change his perspective and focus on the One who is Lord of every circumstance. The focus of his praise becomes the Lord's righteousness and the Lord's Name.

Each of us brings with us to every situation his own sense of justice. And with that sense of justice comes a sense that "something should be done," and that right soon! It behooves us to surrender our own small screen to the divine panorama, and praise the Lord according to His righteousness. Under admittedly different circumstances the Lord declared, "the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart [I Sam. 16:7]." He knows the end from the beginning, works all things after the counsel of His own will, and as "judge of all the earth," will surely do right (cf. Gen. 18:25). His righteousness involves His omniscience and His time. Sometimes, it would seem, His righteousness involves restraint as He is "longsuffering, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance, but the day of the Lord will come… " in His time! (Cf. II Pet. 3:9-10) Let us suffer the circumstances, if need be, and rise above them to praise the Lord according to HIS righteousness.

And, in the worst of times let us "sing praise to the name of the Lord most High." His Name is the key to salvation. Looking forward to this age of grace the prophet Joel declared, 'And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in the remnant whom the Lord shall call [Joel 2:32]." Enlarged in the New Testament it reads, "And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved [Acts 2:21]." Glory to His Name! "We will rejoice in Thy salvation, and in the name of our God we will set up our banners… [Ps. 20:5]."

And, in the name of the Lord is security. "The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe [Prov. 18:10]." "Some trust in chariots, and some in horses: but we will remember the name of the Lord our God [Ps. 20:7]." In this present evil world, the storm may not pass by, but the child of God has a Precious hiding place, the Name of the Lord.

Finally, the name of the Lord is supremacy. In the song of Moses we read, "… I will publish the Name of the Lord: ascribe ye greatness unto our God. He is the Rock, His work is perfect: for all His ways are judgment: a God of truth and without iniquity, just and right is He [Deut. 32:3-4]." And in the New Testament this glory is transferred to our Lord Jesus Christ, to Whom God has given "a name which is above every name: That at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father [Phil. 2:9-11]."

If life seems not to be treating you fair, it is not wrong to take it to the Lord in prayer; David did. But don't linger in the shadows. The believer can have confidence in the righteousness of God, and find reassurance in the salvation, security and supremacy that are comprehended in His high and holy name. "I will praise the Lord!"


For God's glory,

"Pastor" Frasier