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Past Ponderings

Sunday, August 26, 2018

PONDERING... How Do You Pray? Part 1 (Psalm 17)

How Do You Pray? Part 1 (AM Sermon Notes)
GIST: When you understand your position with Jesus, you should pray confidently, and it should change you.
SCRIPTURE: Psalm 17
This will be one of our last Sundays in the Psalms. Lord willing, we will wrap up with Psalm 18 next week and begin our next book study right after Homecoming.
I believe this is our twelfth week working through this precious song book, and it has been an incredible journey. Each week, I’m blown away by how much I have needed to hear these lessons. This one is no different.
"1 A Prayer of David. Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit! 2 From your presence let my vindication come! Let your eyes behold the right! 3 You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will find nothing; I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress. 4 With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent. 5 My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped. 6 I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me; hear my words. 7 Wondrously show your steadfast love, O Savior of those who seek refuge from their adversaries at your right hand. 8 Keep me as the apple of your eye; hide me in the shadow of your wings, 9 from the wicked who do me violence, my deadly enemies who surround me. 10 They close their hearts to pity; with their mouths they speak arrogantly. 11 They have now surrounded our steps; they set their eyes to cast us to the ground. 12 He is like a lion eager to tear, as a young lion lurking in ambush. 13 Arise, O LORD! Confront him, subdue him! Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword, 14 from men by your hand, O LORD, from men of the world whose portion is in this life. You fill their womb with treasure; they are satisfied with children, and they leave their abundance to their infants. 15 As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness."
Like many of the psalms, this is a prayer. Yet, it is among a smaller group than you’d think that is actually given this simple designation: a prayer of David. It’s not exceptionally long, but I want to divide our discussion into two parts because there is a lot to take in. He is praying with confidence because he understands his position. He then cries out knowing he’s heard, but desperately needing reminded of that; and he’s looking for God to move because he understands the difference between futility and fulfillment! While it could be done, I thought that might be too much to really digest in one setting. Therefore, this morning we’re only going to address the first five verses, so our gist is: When you understand your position with Jesus, you should pray confidently, and it should change you.


I. HE IS PRAYING WITH CONFIDENCE.
The Context of the Content. "1 A Prayer of David.” We don’t need to spend an exorbitant amount of time here, but it is important to start with this recognition. This isn’t just poetry like we write it today, David is praying. He is directly speaking to God, the same God who created the entire universe, the same God who knit David together in his mother’s womb, the same God who continues to be sovereign over all the affairs of man, the same God who, undeserving as we are, loves us anyway. Prayer is a wonderful privilege, and Jesus calls all of us to do so. Yet, and I know I’ve address this before, we tend to neglect this privilege...and I’m including myself amongst that “we”. Too often, we limit our prayer time--when we get up, when we eat, when we go to church, when we go to bed...etc--and we only add to this pattern if something really terrible happens. Look at the length of the psalter. That was not the habit of David, the man after God’s own heart. Look at the life of Jesus, it wasn’t the habit of God in flesh either! We were created to be with God, so we were made to be always praying.
Sorry if that sounded a bit like a tangent. That might have been more for me than you☺️.
The Confidence of the Content. That being established, look at the opening tone of this prayer. “1 Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry! Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit!”
Doesn’t this sound bold? Maybe even too bold, right? He’s coming before God asking to be heard...and claiming to be clean. He calls his cause just and refers to his lips as free of deceit.
He doesn’t stop there either. Look at verse 2,  “From your presence let my vindication come! Let your eyes behold the right!” The word translated vindication here means judgment. It’s likely translated vindication because that is the implied verdict. He is calling God to judge him and expecting to be declared innocent. “God, You be the judge! Your eyes only see right! And I know what you’ll see!”
Taken in isolation, this would seem to fly in the face of what the rest of Scripture teaches. We don’t approach God based on our own merits! Neither did David. That’s why it’s so important not to take passages out of context. Not only does the rest of the book of Psalms shed light on these words, we are made clean by God, but the rest of this psalm clarifies his heart, as well. He prays with confidence→


II. BECAUSE HE UNDERSTANDS HIS POSITION
These next few verses give us the reason for his confidence.
1. He Has Already Been Judged. “3 You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night, you have tested me, and you will find nothing…” In Scripture, groups of three are used to provide special emphasis. There are three words for judgment used here to hammer home his point. He has been tried, which implies examination. He has been visited by night, which actually implies close observation. The at night portion likely points to his time of weakness, when he is most susceptible to temptation. He has been tested, which is a word typically used in the refining process, testing for purity by the melting away of impurities. He can approach God with confidence because he has already been judged, and the process was complete!
What is he talking about? How was he able to withstand God’s thorough judgment and be found clean? Look at Paul’s observations in Philippians 3:9, "9 and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith--. His confidence isn’t in himself. He has been made clean by God! And we now know what David only looked forward to, that that cleansing was ultimately secured by Jesus’ sacrificial death and resurrection! So he can approach God because the judgment has already taken place→
2. And He Has Purposed To Live Upright Since. Again, not by his own strength, but by the One who has transformed him. This might make you think of last week’s message (if you can remember back that far☺️). He has been cleansed and changed. He points out what he has since been striving to do because these actions are not natural for him. Therefore, he has purposed to→
Guard his lips. “3b… I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.” His watches what he says. He uses his words to build up, not tear down. I know I mention this a lot, but the prevalence of this sin is so wide and so corrupting. It does not matter how juicy the gossip is: it is sin, and it is destructive. I live in the “real world” just like you. I get up every morning and go to work and am surrounded by this, too. So, I need reminded of this as much as you do. We have to flee its influence, stand against its use, and refuse to be part of its promulgation!
So, he proposed to guard his lips and→
Guard his actions by the Words of God’s lips! 4 With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips I have avoided the ways of the violent.” This reminds me of Psalm 119, “9 How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. 10 With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! 11 I have stored up your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.” How was David able to keep from living like the world around him? He was steeped in God’s Word! He lived in the same dark world, but he was holding the flashlight! Let’s not miss this point. Yes, here we go again. You want to live a bold Christian life in this sin saturated world? Pray and Love His Word! Dig daily into the Bible. Let those words flood your heart. Let them guide your steps. Let them become the substance of your prayer life as out of the overflow of your heart your mouth speaks!
So, he proposed to guard his lips and his actions and to→
Keep His foundation.  “5 My steps have held fast to your paths; my feet have not slipped.” I capitalized the “H” in the word His here on purpose because David’s foundation is not his own, but it is 100% God’s. I love Spurgeon’s summary of this verse: God holds now my path, so I won’t slip (paraphrase). David was kept by God on God’s foundation.
It is only because of that that he can approach the throne of God with confidence. He understands his position. He is a sinner saved by marvelous grace!


TAKEAWAYS
1. You should pray.
Make a point to pray intentionally. There is much to be said about having deliberate time set aside to pray. Be intentional in the when, and be intentional in the what. Don’t just mummer meaningless words to say you’ve prayed. Pour out your heart. Confess your own sins and needs. Pray for those of others, and praise God for all He is and everything He does!
Make a point to pray continually. Make sure you have times set aside for daily prayer, but don’t let those be the only times you pray. All throughout the day, we should be speaking with God. You talk to yourself, right? Maybe not audibly, but you are still talking in your head. You can and should constantly be speaking to God. What an opportunity! Don’t neglect it.


2. You should pray confidently.
Remember your position. If you have been saved by the blood of Jesus, if you have given Him your life, you are forgiven! No matter what others tell you about your worth. No matter what you tell yourself, never forget you are loved! He died to save you; you can approach Him having already been made clean in His sight.
Pray Specifically. This is going to be more addressed this evening, but I didn’t want to miss a chance to make this observation. Too often we worry in details and pray in generalities. You have specific burdens on your heart, pray for them specifically, not just in general.


3. Prayer should change you!

1 Corinthians 15:33, - "33 Do not be deceived: "Bad company ruins good morals."" The people we spend the most time with, influence us. We are very likely to start talking like they talk and acting like they act. That’s why Church family is so important. We still love those who are lost, but we need the influence of God-fearing friends. How much more should constant communion with God change our lives? Guard your lips and your actions by wholly devoting yourself to HIS lips and trusting in HIS direction.


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