Do You Have A Persistent, Eternal Perspective? (Psalm 40:11-17)
GIST: Jesus will be merciful and faithful, even though I will continue to need deliverance, so I want the world to see this hope we so desperately need.
This morning, we’re going to finish up our look at Psalm 40. We’ve broke this down into four chunks. The first two psalms we looked at this summer saw David crying out because his own sins had led to punishment and despair. From the beginning, I’ve called this psalm one of deliverance. It picks up with David on the other side of God’s rescue. It starts by outlining what that rescue looks like, then dives into why that rescue is possible (through Jesus), and then hits how it should result in bold proclamation on our part. I wanted to make sure to remind you that this whole psalm has been about David experiencing deliverance, because reading the last six verses… that can be easy to forget.
“11 As for You, O LORD, You will not restrain Your mercy from me; Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness will ever preserve me! 12 For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me. 13 Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me! 14 Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether who seek to snatch away my life; let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt! 15 Let those be appalled because of their shame who say to me, "Aha, Aha!" 16 But may all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation say continually, "Great is the LORD!" 17 As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!”
I know we’ve been camping out in this psalm for a month now, but I really hope you’re not experiencing too much fatigue from that because there is something really beautiful here. My driving question for us this morning is “do we have a persistence, eternal perspective?” because this psalm wraps up by reminding us...we’re going to need one ☺️! There will be times when we are stuck in picks of despair, like Psalms 38 and 39, but there will also be times when we experience God's incredible deliverance, like in Psalm 40. And those moments are awesome, and those moments are encouraging, and those moments prepare us for the moments when things aren’t so great again. And often, it’s not long after deliverance that we are reminded that we still need rescuing. This is our final Psalm 40 gist: Jesus will be merciful and faithful, even though I will continue to need deliverance, so I want the world to see this hope we so desperately need.
I. Jesus Will Be Merciful And Faithful (11)
Honestly, verse 11 is key to understanding the perspective of the rest of this psalm, so if you’re tempted to fall asleep, try to grab this first ☺️. We can face a roller-coaster life because we don’t serve a roller-coaster God. And I mean roller-coaster in the sense of constant ups and downs. God definitely brings the thrills and excitement, but He doesn’t change.
Look at verse 11 again: “11 As for You, O LORD, You will not restrain Your mercy from me; Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness will ever preserve me!” Amen! Last week, we saw David saying that he had not restrained his lips, but was bold in his proclamation of God’s salvation. Now he’s saying God doesn’t restrain that salvation! He’s not holding back mercy. He’s not holding back love. He’s not holding back faithfulness. If you belong to Him, you’re in His arms. Period. We can rest in that amazing assurance.
This remains true→
II. Even Though I Will Continue To Need Deliverance (12)
And I’m not just being hard on myself, you’ll continue to need deliverance too ☺️. Look at verse 12. “12 For evils have encompassed me beyond number; my iniquities have overtaken me, and I cannot see; they are more than the hairs of my head; my heart fails me.” If you were reading this psalm honestly and came to this verse, it would be hard not to ask: wait, isn’t this a psalm of deliverance? What happened? Everything was going so well, and now we’re back in Psalm 38 and 39 territory ☺️.
I’m not trying to be doom and gloom with this point. I told you last week Christians should be absolutely joyful people. I’m not contradicting that now. We should rejoice, but we need to rejoice while facing reality, not by ignoring it. Why is there a sudden shift in this psalm? Because David lived the same kind of life we do. Let me just make three observations from this verse. First, we live in a→
Broken World. Evils encompass beyond number. Guys, we’re surrounded by sin. Bad stuff is everywhere. In fact, we live in a world where evil is so often called good that trying to stand for what Jesus tells us is right is almost completely counter-cultural. We shouldn’t be surprised when we see this brokenness. It’s been around since Genesis 3, and so has this second point. We’ll continue to need deliverance because we live in a broken world, but also because we have→
Sinful Hearts. Notice that David says he feels overtaken by his iniquities which are more than the hairs of his head. You still need rescue because you’re still a sinner. Here’s the deal. If you have never given Jesus control of your life, you’re stuck. You’re stuck in sin and you need Him to rescue you, and He will! If you come to Him for salvation, and surrender your life to Him, He will save you. Once you are rescued, you’re no longer held responsible for your sin. He has covered you in His righteousness, but you still have that battle within your heart. Your sin nature will be at war with the new creation Christ brings. So you will stumble, and you will fall, and sometimes, guys, it will lead to an→
Overwhelmed Spirit. David said his sin was so much that he couldn’t see and his heart was failing. Can you relate to that? I can. I know what it feels like to just be overcome by brokenness.
So we need a heavenly perspective because even though my life will continue to lead me in directions from which I will need deliverance, Jesus will be merciful and faithful. →
III. So I Want The World To See This Hope We So Desperately Need (13-17)
Let’s look at the next few verses here. “13 Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me! 14 Let those be put to shame and disappointed altogether who seek to snatch away my life; let those be turned back and brought to dishonor who delight in my hurt! 15 Let those be appalled because of their shame who say to me, "Aha, Aha!" 16 But may all who seek You rejoice and be glad in You; may those who love Your salvation say continually, "Great is the LORD!"
It is easy to read passages like this and get hung up on the fact that David seems to be asking God to treat some people poorly. I don’t want to avoid that. I just want to make sure we look at it in its proper context.
Before anything, we need to understand that what David is asking of God is something that is true of God. It’s in His character. → He is pleased to deliver you. If you doubt that, look at Hebrews 12:2, “... Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.” The cross meant taking on the shame of a Hell Jesus did not deserve, He faced it with joy because He knew that it meant conquering sin for you.
So, what we have in these, almost, concluding verses is a set of contrasting perspectives. We’ll look at the positive side here first because it’s stated most clearly. Those who seek & love Jesus’ salvation will experience His greatness. This is a picture of Heaven, and the words used here, really, should make us pause. The picture of those who will experience His hope is one of real commitment. They are seeking Him. They love His salvation. They are continually praising Him for His greatness. This isn’t a “I sometimes go to church” thing, or a “I come up with sermons to preach” thing. This is a “Jesus is my everything”... thing. Don’t misunderstand me. I’m not saying this level of commitment is how we earn our salvation or become “really saved”. When Jesus rescues you, He rescues you completely, and you don’t add to that by your works. However, this level of commitment is the goal of our relationship. It’s a sign that we’re actually walking with Him. And it’s the perspective that faces the onslaught of a broken world with hope. That’s the hope we need, and the hope we should want to share.
What’s the flipside perspective? Those who reject this deliverance will face shame, that is, be ashamed. Ultimately, this shame is a picture of Hell. It’s a picture of pursuing self and losing your soul. It’s a picture of proudly putting all your eggs in the wrong basket. Why do I think that? David starts the picture of those who are loving and seeking Jesus, with the phrase “But may all” which implies this is something the previous group isn’t doing. They are rejoicing in David’s stumbling, but they’re not seeking God’s deliverance for themselves.
David isn’t trying to make much of himself and less of others. He’s just stating reality. Those who come to know Jesus will experience hope. Those who run from Him won’t. And David knows this isn’t something that makes him special. It just points all the more to God’s amazing grace! Look at the last verse of Psalm 40 (I know… finally ☺️.) → “17 As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God!” I need you, and you’re thinking of me. Oh, come Lord Jesus, come!
Three quick→
TAKEAWAYS
We need deliverance every day.
Jesus wants to give it to us.
Keep that perspective & share that hope!
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