This sermon is refreshing for a lot of us, as it reminds us that we are closer to heaven than we have ever been before in our lives. Despite all the difficulties we are currently facing, whether if it’s a health crisis, financial issues, or relationship problems, we can still take comfort that God has already given us the best gift of all, as we are already saved by His grace through faith.
Imagine when we are in heaven, we will not have to endure suffering, pain, affliction, or fleshy feelings anymore. In addition, we will also be given a new body of Christ, a body that will not wear out, no strains of hair falling off, teeth falling off, etc.
Psalms 27: 1-4 The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell. Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident. One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.
We know that King David wrote this Psalm, and we understand the afflictions that he was facing because of his enemy at that time. For us Christians, we also face all kinds of enemies, including our own flesh, temptations, pain, and suffering.
It is going to be an intense battle, but we need to always remind ourselves to not have confidence in ourselves but to have confidence and faith in the Lord.
When we are in such troubled times, having confidence in the Lord sometimes is not enough, we need to also praise the Lord! We can choose to rejoice in the Lord, through singing hymns and counting our blessings. These are the positive things that we can do to fight the devil, instead of deflecting the blame onto people around us, or onto God.
3 lessons from David on how to deal with tough times.
1) Learn to comprehend the personality of God
We can still praise God when we comprehend the personality of God. If we always walk with God, we will come to know him more. The more we know Him, the more we will praise Him. One reason we do not praise the Lord as often as should, It’s because the light within us has dimmed; the light that leads us towards the Lord.
The closer we are to God, the more powerful our prayer life will be.
David declared his fear for the Lord, and that Lord was he light, his strength and salvation. We need to put our focus at the right place, and more importantly on God, not on darkness.
David’s secret to success was that he always trusted in the Lord for the victory. Despite having to face a 10 foot Goliath, he was not afraid, he managed to slew him and gain victory over the philistines. David always gave glory to God and thank God for all that he had achieved.
2) Seek the presence of God
In Psalms 27:4, David did not just live off of his past victories, or spend the rest of his life being haughty. The Bible says he continued to seek the Lord and had fellowship with the Lord. We need to always check on how often do we have sweet fellowship with the Lord. When we are troubled by difficult times, we often seek worldly solutions and remedies like drugs or psychologists, instead of seeking the presence of God.
3) Rest in the protection of God
Psalms 27:5-6 For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock. And now shall mine head be lifted up above mine enemies round about me: therefore will I offer in his tabernacle sacrifices of joy; I will sing, yea, I will sing praises unto the Lord.
David reveals seeking the Lord with all of our hearts. If we can praise the Lord confidently in the midst of the storm, knowing that he will protect us no matter what, we will experience peace and comfort as we have never experienced before, even during the worst of times.
Psalms 46:11 indicates that life will go on whether we like it or not, but it is up to us to praise God, find comfort, and get closer to Him in this sea of a storm. If we can manage to do all of that, we will be guaranteed to achieve victories just like King David.