Daily in the Psalms : Psalm 25
psalms 25CHARACTERISTICS OF PRAYERUnto thee, O LORD, do I lift up my soul. O my God, I trust in thee: let me not be ashamed, let not mine enemies triumph over me. Yea, let none that wait on thee be ashamed: let them be ashamed which transgress without cause. Shew me thy ways, O LORD; teach me thy paths. Lead me in thy truth, and teach me: for thou art the God of my salvation; on thee do I wait all the day. Remember, O LORD, thy tender mercies and thy lovingkindnesses; for they have been ever of old. Remember not the sins of my youth, nor my transgressions: according to thy mercy remember thou me for thy goodness’ sake, O LORD. Psalms 25:1-7 David’s trust in God, his many conflicts, his great transgression, his bitter repentance, and his deep distress are all given to us in this Psalm. We are able to clearly see the heart of the man that is called, “The man after God’s own heart.” I believe this Psalm is written in his old age as it makes reference to the sins of his youth and the craftiness and cruelty of his foes. It shows the mark of a seasoned Saint in that he has deep sorrow for his sins and that sorrow drives him to his God. This Psalm is a prayer for inspiration and forgiveness. David here in great wisdom shows us that God is the Teacher of the afflicted and the Guide of the erring. In verse one he speaks to God and bears his very soul. Unlike the ungodly, when David faces distress he does not withdraw from God, he does not turn to man for help, he goes straight to God and rests in His help and protection. He acknowledges that the only object of worship is God and the source of help in trouble is God. The enemies of God will never understand the faith in an unseen God and the fact that we trust Him for our help. They may not understand what we claim, but they always know when we don’t do it. They take delight when they can point out our lack of faith and they love to prophesy our utter failure. They are really rejoicing in the failure of God to deliver what we claim He will. The true child of God can hardly bear the accusation of a lack of faith in Him. The righteous have a desire to do right and that angers the wicked. When they see our failure to trust God, they readily rejoice in that failure. The true child of God should never suffer such a failure. When in prayer we draw near to God, when by faith we rest in Him, we believe all things are possible. Those who seek His guidance will not be confused and those that hold to Him in faith will not be put to shame. The Psalmist says that shame is for those that transgress without cause or those that have no faith in God. The ways of God are sometimes mysterious and fearful to us, but they are safe and will always lead us to peace and happiness. The natural man wants to make his own way and it will lead to disaster and ruin. We must always know that God’s ways are better than our own and it must be our desire to seek to have His ways revealed to us. It is not enough to be taught of men, we must seek for God Himself to reveal His ways to us. All moral precepts are based on the truths of God. The only way we can know how to act righteously is to know God’s righteous principles. To be well acquainted with His truth is the only way to experience His power in our life. The more we realize our dependence and our great need, the more we will cling to God. I believe many great blessings are lost because we do not persevere in our prayer. A lack of persistence in prayer is to risk the loss of all we may gain. Patient faith in God is the prize of the saved. Mercy has always been the attribute of God. He has always revealed Himself to man as a God of mercy and He will never change. His mercies and love are infinite and everlasting because our awful sin requires both. His love is an eternal fountain that never fails and it extends an open invitation to all that will plunge into it. Most of us would like to undo the foolishness and sins of our youth, but that cannot be done. We remember some of them and we have forgotten some of them, but God knows them all and a Holy God would never wink at even one of them. All we can do is plead for His mercy and know that His mercy is our only hope for pardon. To forget and/or ignore our past sins is to forfeit our hope for the future. Our prayer must be, “Lord, remember not my sin, remember me!” THE WAYS OF GOD REVEALED Good and upright is the LORD: therefore will he teach sinners in the way. The meek will he guide in judgment: and the meek will he teach his way. All the paths of the LORD are mercy and truth unto such as keep his covenant and his testimonies. For thy name’s sake, O LORD, pardon mine iniquity; for it is great. What man is he that feareth the LORD? him shall he teach in the way that he shall choose. His soul shall dwell at ease; and his seed shall inherit the earth. The secret of the LORD is with them that fear him; and he will shew them his covenant. Mine eyes are ever toward the LORD; for he shall pluck my feet out of the net. Psalms 25:8-15 Because God is good, He will only give His children good direction. Because He is upright, His guidance will be perfect. The value of a promise is dependent of the person that makes it. All the promises of God are based on His infinite perfection. The ways that God reveals to us as we pray lead us to His loving kindness and mercy. His ways are as old as His grace and as eternal as His truth. The more we remember His truth the more we will be motivated to pray for even more revelation. TO SINNERS - Those that err and stray from His ways have a great need for revelation. Nothing is so blinding and misleading as sin and the only way we can know our need is to know the ways of God and how far away we are from Him. The loving hand of God will reveal Himself to the sinner and draw him back. TO THE HUMBLE - Only those that are distressed about their sin will be lead in the right way. Sin will humble us and cause us to seek a way out. The proud will despise the instruction of God and He will leave them to the hardness of their own hearts. Pride and anger have no place in the presence of God. Jesus Himself is meek and lowly in heart and those that seek to know Him must also be. Those that have no sense of their own ignorance will have no desire for His knowledge. TO THE PERPLEXED - There comes a time in every life when our mind is filled with doubt and we are like a bird caught in a snare. It does not take much to plunge us into the depths of despair. This is when God comes to our rescue and lifts us out of our trouble. FOR THE OBEDIENT - Obedience is always the path to enlightenment. Studying and claiming to understand the ways of God will not produce spiritual discernment; that only comes by obedience. To know His beauty and experience His holiness is the result of obeying His Word. The keepers of the Word will be kept by the Word. Those that follow the Lord’s commands will find mercy following them. FOR THE GOD-FEARING - The great secret of all truth is hid in God. He alone can impart it and He will only do that for those who fear Him. The depths of the Heavenly mysteries and the unsearchable truths of God are opened only to the God-fearing. FOR THE EARNEST AND PERSISTENT PRAYER - The eyes of the fool are set in the things of the earth, but the humble and patient Saint will fix his gaze upon the Lord. The ugliness of this world can never compare with the beauty of the Lord and the more we know of Him, the more we want to look upon Him. Those that look to God will make the greatest discoveries and receive the greatest wisdom. The testimony of the righteous is blessed. The inheritance of the righteous is sure. The faith of the righteous is rewarded. In this life and in the life beyond, the righteous see God and there is nothing so satisfying to the soul as the sight of God. TROUBLE AND THE WAY TO ESCAPE Turn thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I am desolate and afflicted. The troubles of my heart are enlarged: O bring thou me out of my distresses. Look upon mine affliction and my pain; and forgive all my sins. Consider mine enemies; for they are many; and they hate me with cruel hatred. O keep my soul, and deliver me: let me not be ashamed; for I put my trust in thee. Let integrity and uprightness preserve me; for I wait on thee. Redeem Israel, O God, out of all his troubles. Psalms 25:16-22 The Psalmist is keenly aware of his sin. Sin has increased his troubles, his affliction, and pain. These words express his deep burden on personal sin. Sin and sorrow cannot be separated. Only the soul that is smitten with real sorrow can understand the true nature of sin. When our spirit is the most deeply troubled, when our pain is the sharpest, and when our self-reproach is the most bitter; that is when God is nearest to strengthen us and deliver us. Many times our greatest blessings have sprung out of our greatest troubles. Our enemies also multiply as our troubles increase. No man will be completely free from trouble, but the righteous have the assurance of help even in their most fierce trial. Their faith in the unseen Protector forms an all-encompassing shield around them. The presence of the Lord in our trouble will banish all fear. God will guide our steps, support our hand, and He will descend into the place of our woe. Trusting in our own strength will lead us into the valley of darkness, but trusting in the Almighty arm of God will turn our night into bright morning. Our trust is in His righteousness and will stand because it is founded on The Rock. There is always a shelter for us in God and our souls are always safe in His hands. Prayer is the way out of trouble for the troubled individual. Trouble will also give us a burden for others that may be in trouble. Those that have experienced trouble and have been delivered will have a burden for others that are in conflict. Those that pray for themselves are taught to also pray for others.
So Glad To Be So Saved
Danny "Preacher" Bezet
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