Sermon(Ps 28): The blessings for the trustworthy man

The original Korean text: https://blog.naver.com/stevision/50025255687

 

 

>> 1 To thee, O Lord, I call; my rock, be not deaf to me, lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like those who go down to the Pit. 2 Hear the voice of my supplication, as I cry to thee for help, as I lift up my hands toward thy most holy sanctuary. 3 Take me not off with the wicked, with those who are workers of evil, who speak peace with their neighbors, while mischief is in their hearts. 4 Requite them according to their work, and according to the evil of their deeds; requite them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward. 5 Because they do not regard the works of the Lord, or the works of his hands, he will break them down and build them up no more. 6 Blessed be the Lord! for he has heard the voice of my supplications. 7 The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts; as I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. 8 The Lord is the strength of his people, he is the saving refuge of his anointed. 9 O save thy people, and bless thy heritage; be thou their shepherd, and carry them for ever. (Ps 28) <<

 

If an evil man gets into political world? He will take power with all kinds of evil tricks, ruthlessly purge political opponents, oppress the people, and die, leaving an infamous name in history. This wicked man is good at betrayal against his friends. If there is a person whom he needs for his rising in the world, he makes him his man with all kind, sweet and flattering words. However, once the goal has been achieved, he deserts him. This man at first approaches his opponent as if he were his best friend. But if his opponent reveals his weak points at any time, he stabs him into the back with a dagger. How many evil politicians of this kind have appeared in history!

 

Saul, king of Israel, was that kind. He appointed David, his loyal soldier, general of his army. But he began to be alert on David when David had distinguished himself in a lot of battles. In your life, however, you can meet a man more competent than you. What should you do then? You must deal with him conversely to the way Saul did. A stupid man like Saul makes his competent subordinate his enemy, and, as a narrow-minded man, tries to remove him, but loses his place to him. If you have a subordinate more competent than you ...? First of all, you must thank God. No gift is as good as a capable person to you in the world. If you have received such a good gift from God, you must give thanks to him. We must think of everything from the God-centered point of view. If you live in God and in his love, a competent man coming to you is 100% a precious gift of God for you. You are a man of ingratitude and foolishness if you think that God has sent a man to you to torment you, when God has sent a capable man to you to make up for your shortcomings. There was a mean leader who made his subordinates compete with one another and kill one another, so eliminated them, smart and good subordinates. How wicked and foolish!

 

But the matter deserving our attention is that Saul was deserted by God because he was an evil king who did not fear God. Saul heard officially from Samuel that God had deserted him. He knew that the Spirit of God had left him and instead sometimes an evil spirit was controlling his mind. Once Saul believed that he was abandoned by God, he began to doubt everyone around him. He thought that all men around him could be his enemies, for they could be his opponents whom God, hating Saul, had sent to him to get rid of him. You do not believe in the good God if you do not trust in those who are friendly to you and are willing to help you. Those who think they are deserted by God doubt all people and try to break off relations with them as soon as possible rather than to keep good long relationships with them. He who thinks himself abandoned by God tends to be hypocritical, defensive, neurotic, and sometimes aggressive. The Holy Spirit had left Saul, and he was dominated by an evil spirit, so that he, without normal understanding, became a schizophrenic tyrant. He gave David his daughter in order to get a chance to kill him. What a hypocritical and evil thought! "They speak peace with their neighbors, while mischief is in their hearts. (v. 3)"

 

David had many competent and faithful men. In chapter 23 of 2 Samuel, there are many David's outstanding soldiers. They must be really good warriors considering that they were named in the Bible. Some of them, or three soldiers, at the risk of their lives broke through the defense line of the enemy to a well by the gate of the enemy's camp, and brought some water to their king David when he suffered from thirsty in the battle. David dared not drink the water, but offered it to God. How they trusted and followed David, so that they voluntarily sought for water when they could die! David had said just this: Who can bring me some water? At this cry, three of his soldiers came forth to undertake the task. It was natural for them to do so because they deeply respected David. God loved David, and David loved God out of gratitude for his love and obeyed his words. My brethren, your life is in the right and good direction if you live the life of obeying God's words and loving him. But if you begin to disobey God, so that God departs you, you begin to live the life of self-destruction. A man whom the Holy Spirit has departed hates others and has aggressive character, to take a way of his destruction. Humans whom the Holy Spirit has left get lustful and ruin their life, committing adultery and rape, indulging in sexual perversion and going to the eternal hell. But those who love the God and receive the Holy Spirit into heart, whom, of course, God helps much, have good and beautiful heart, so they revive themselves and succeed in life by their good personality. Therefore the best gift of God for us is the good and beautiful mind. A man with such good personality can be the best person in the world and go into the kingdom of eternal life. David loved God without fear of loss of his life, so God sent him many brave men who served him without fear of loss of their lives. Saul betrayed God to the advantage of himself; so his heart became corrupt, and he deserted such a loyal man as David, and one of his men betrayed his son who succeeded Saul as king.

 

Of course, some of David's men were crooked. Joab, for example, was an excellent general, but he killed a general who had been David's foe but who came to David now to help him. Why should David have no troublesome men? However David relied on God. There were far more generals who obeyed David thoroughly and respected him deeply than those who didn't. God completely removed those who would harm David, and didn't allowed crooked men to threaten him. Joab had some defects but was an essential man to keep David's throne. So David didn't eliminated him rashly. Actually, Joab committed such sins to remain a right-hand man of David. He, as a general, killed his rival out of a kind of jealousy. At least David didn't betray those who trusted and followed him. David, handing over this throne to his son Solomon, told him to punish Joab's sins, not because he wanted to betray Joab but because he wanted to establish justice.

 

David saw many people who liked to speak words of peace and to flatter others in public, but when they had a good chance, they put their evil hearts into action and unexpectedly inflicted a fatal strike on them. David himself suffered such attack several times. David prayed to God about them. "Requite them according to their work, and according to the evil of their deeds; requite them according to the work of their hands; render them their due reward. (v. 4)" "He (God) will break them down and build them up no more. (v. 5)" They are base fellows indeed who are evil and double-faced. Their conscience is completely corrupt, so they show such behavior. My brethren, have you ever seen a man who used to be a base swindler but who, repenting his sins with tears, has become a good Christian? There are many kinds of sinners in the world, but the worst sinner is he who, after winning the trust of others with deceitful words and deeds, betrays them. They are the children of Devil, the father of all lies. Therefore, some people showing such personality hardly repent their sins to believe in Jesus and to become a new person. Achan lied, Ananias and Sapphira lied, and the Devil (the snake) lied in the Garden of Eden. Wicked lies and deceptive deeds come from a rotten heart beyond curing. David, knowing the incurable deceptive mind of the wicked, prayed God to punish them according to their deeds. Some children of Devil, the father of lies, go to church, play the good Christian to win confidence of other Christians, then borrow a lot of money from them, crying out 'brotherly love!', and then disappear with the money. They never repent and become a new creature. False works and deeds are such serious symptoms. Look at the heretic cult leader M * * who loved lying always. He couldn't repent to be a new man because he committed the sin of telling numerous lies. (And how can an inveterate liar do a genuine repent?) We can't say that he, a good man originally, became a wicked man when he lied. But we can say that he became a leader of a heretical cult when he loved lying as a son of the Devil. My brethren, do you see a liar? Never trust him completely. If you've been fooled once by his lie, don't trust him again. If you, deceived by his tears, think such a man to be a new creature of God, appoint him deacon or exhorter or elder, or ordain him pastor, you're making a big mistake. You're not qualified to be a servant of God if you liked to cheat on exams or to submit reports drawn up by other students at the Theological Seminary.

 

Who can pray to God? Can it be he who disobeys God all the time and leads a false Christian life? Perhaps he will pray to God only to hear from him, "Stop praying, you liar!" Liars or betrayers can never pray to God. Such a man as David who is faithful and pure in heart to God and man can pray to God. "Hear the voice of my supplication, as I cry to thee for help, as I lift up my hands toward thy most holy sanctuary. (v. 2)" Will he not hear the prayer of those who have a mouth that always speaks truth, gives thanks to God and man, and praises the grace of God? And God will hear those who pray with clean hands that have done a lot of good works. Isn't it funny to pray to God with ‘the hands stretched out to God’ that have shed a lot of blood of the righteous people, and with the lips that have told a lot of lies? For what fame will he answer the prayers of such cruel liars? (Will he answer the prayer of the cruel liars only to gain the name of 'the supporter of the wicked'?)

 

David says, "He (God) has heard the voice of my supplications. (v. 6)" It's a very confident saying. On the contrary, God didn't hearken to Saul's voice, not a word; so Saul went to a female medium in order that he might meet Samuel through her, expecting some propitious words from him. But Saul heard from him nothing but the curse that he should die in the war he was waging. David also says so. "He (God) will break them (the wicked) down and build them up no more. (v. 5)" God is never compatible with those who like telling lies and betraying others. God sweeps away such people from the holy land and keeps them away from the heaven. Whenever Saul thinks of God who opposes him, he can't even breathe. But David feels encouraged whenever he thinks of God who loves him. "The Lord is my strength and my shield; in him my heart trusts; as I am helped, and my heart exults, and with my song I give thanks to him. (v. 7)" Get away lies and wicked thoughts from your heart, and you'll have strength from God. Do you want to succeed in what you do and be saved to obtain the eternal life? Keep yourself away from lies and wickedness, serve God honestly, deal with people with pure heart, and never betray them all.

 

May you all become sincere Christians to God and people, and receive great help and love from them.

 

Chong Tack Kim

                                        - Dongtoma Sunshine Church -