How do you come to God when you are in the midst of great suffering? How do you approach him when you feel like there is a weight on your soul that is so great you cannot speak? Even worse, how do you come to God when you feel crushed in your suffering and know that in many ways you have brought this struggle on yourself? That is, how do you come to God when it may be his fatherly discipline that is pressing on you and causing your great discomfort and pain. And I do think “pain” is the right word because Hebrews 12:11 says that all discipline “seems painful” in the moment. Today if struggle and pain is real to you, and you can look and say that in so many ways your pain can be directly connected to your own decisions and your sin, how do you approach God then in reference to this pain? That is the question I want us to work through this morning because that, I believe, is our setting in Psalm 6.

Historically Psalm 6 has been regarded in the category of the “penitential psalms.” These psalms (6, 32, 38, 51, 102, 130, and 143) were used by the early church as that which made up their corporate singing on Ash Wednesday, a day which those in the church set aside to address their sins. And the reason these psalms were helpful is because they are psalms in which the author addresses his sin and confesses it before the Lord. Thus, the early church says these psalms as providing words to the church for corporately confessing their sin before God.

The one problem with this is that Psalm 6 doesn’t exactly fit the pattern of the other psalms. The psalm does begin with David asking God not to rebuke him in anger or discipline him in wrath, the same way Psalm 38 begins, for example. But whereas David goes on to confess his sin in Psalm 38 he does not do that here. Therefore, some have said that we shouldn’t put the psalm in the category of “penitential psalms” but rather a personal lament psalm.

However, what may be the case is that Psalm 6 is given to us to fit a certain situation for us in our lives. It may be that Psalm 6 does not fit the exact pattern of the others because although there are a number of times you know that your struggle is directly related to a certain sin (for example, losing your family because of adultery), there are other occasions when, though you know you have indeed sinned in differing ways, you do not know if your situation is directly related to a certain sin. You find yourself suffering, you know that you’re deserving of any kind of discipline that may come your way, but you do not know exactly why discipline is coming from God’s hand, if it is for sin at all. And in those times I believe Psalm 6 provides a help for us that maybe the other “penitential psalms” do not provide.

Therefore, what do we do with Psalm 6? That is a good question. It is one that has caused me great struggle even this week. Because one way of preaching that I do not think is the most helpful is taking, for example, the life of David and proclaiming the text which narrates his life as a list of moralisms. That is to say, preaching 1 and 2 Samuel in such a way that you simply say, “David obeyed God in not killing Saul, so we should not kill people” or “David committed adultery and murder, but we should not do these things.” Indeed, such things are true, but is David’s life given to us simply so that we might learn to do the good things he did and avoid the bad things he did? I do not think it is. Rather, I think such texts show us more about God, how he works, and how he planned and orchestrated our redemption through the work of Jesus Christ who David’s life typified.

But what then is the purpose of the psalms? Specifically, what is the purpose of Psalm 6? And after wrestling with how to preach this psalm, I have come to the conclusion that psalms such as these are provided for the church to serve us in giving us an avenue or a model for expressing our praise, our lament, our frustration, our anger, our confusion, and confession and more. Even as hymn writers have served us this morning by giving us words by which we can call one another to praise God, to declare the majesty of God, and to celebrate the work of Christ, so I believe a number of psalms were written to give us words to direct toward God in the differing circumstances of our lives. Therefore, even as the superscription which gives direction to the choirmaster shows that this psalm was meant to be used by God’s people in addressing God, so I believe it continues to serve us in knowing how to address God. Psalm 6, then, specifically helps us to know how to address God when life seems to be too heavy so that it is crushing us, we’re well aware of our sin, we know we would deserve any discipline that came our way, and yet we feel as if we’re being crushed and are helpless. How do we address God then? I think Psalm 6 provides for us one pattern for doing that.

Therefore, this morning, I want us to walk through the ten verses of this psalm and see what elements are here so that we might be better equipped to turn to our Father during such occasions of our lives, maybe a situation in life that you know very well today as you have struggled even to sing because of the weight of life and life’s circumstances on you.

First, we see that it is always right to turn to God in our difficulties and struggles and to ask for his mercy and grace.

We must turn to God and ask for mercy and grace (vv. 1-3)

As David looks at his life and the crushing weight he feels, which he sees as a part of discipline from God, he does not let this drive him from God. That is, he doesn’t say, “God is allowing great pain in my life, therefore, I will attempt to run from him.” Rather, he turns to God as his only hope in such times.

David writes in 6:1-3, “O LORD, rebuke me not in your anger, nor discipline me in your wrath. Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am languishing; heal me, O LORD, for my bones are troubled. My soul also is greatly troubled. But you, O LORD – how long?”

David’s first action in the psalm is to come to God and ask for mercy and grace. He asks that God would not discipline in anger or wrath. That is, he asks that God would not discipline him so as to crush him. David is saying that he feels as if God is against him, as if God has forsaken him, and as if God has turned to him simply in wrath or anger. David says to God, who is his gracious heavenly Father, that it feels as if he is the object of God’s hatred. Therefore, David asks for mercy.

“God this feels like it is too much,” is David’s cry. He says to God that he is languishing, that there is not much more he can take and that he needs God to be gracious to him and to heal him. He is troubled in his entire being: bones and soul. And then it’s as if he turns to say, “But God I need you” or “But God I can’t take any more” but all he can get out is “How long?”

David’s writing here is masterful, for we all no doubt know when our soul is so troubled that we feel we cannot even complete a sentence to God. We feel as if we can’t talk. I’ve had occasions in my life where I felt that if I tried to speak to God in prayer I would just break down and cry. I felt I couldn’t take any more and that things had to change.

In those times it is good and right to turn to God and ask for his mercy or grace. We should not turn to him in those times as if we deserve greater ease of life, for apart from Christ we would only deserve his anger and wrath. But turn to him to say, “God, I need you. I need your mercy, and I need your grace, for I feel like I can’t take any more.” Sometimes it may be that the goal of such discipline is to bring about just that response. It could be that the goal is to turn you back to God to seek his mercy and grace and love.

Jesus tells us that we’re evil parents compared to our Heavenly Father. So, even as one who is evil, when I discipline my own children, I do not do it to push them away from me but to draw them toward me. One of the great blessings that God has built into children, it seems, is that when you discipline they turn to you for comfort. I was amazed in seeing this with Michael and I continue to be amazed in this with Marie. Just the other day Lili had to spank Marie, and Marie’s first reaction was to lift her arms up to Lili as tears were rolling down her face. She wanted to be comforted by the very one who had disciplined her. I think that is a model for us. In discipline, do not run from God’s hand but lift your hands to him, asking for his mercy and grace, asking for his love and tender care to uphold you in your weakness and struggle.

Yet David’s prayer shows us even more. In verses 4-5 we are reminded that even in times of struggle, even as we are turning to God, remember that the greatest commandment we have received is to love and honor God. So, as you turn to God, even in such times, make your focus to love him and to seek his honor before all man.

We must seek to love God and honor him, even as we turn to him (vv. 4-5)

After David asks God for his mercy, he instantly turns to reveal his deep desire in relation to God. He writes, “Turn, O LORD, deliver my life; save me for the sake of your steadfast love. For in death there is no remembrance of you; in Sheol who will give you praise?” (4-5). Note David’s motivation in these verses. He asks God to save him “for the sake of [God’s] steadfast love.” Then David points out that if he dies there will be no one to praise him, no doubt showing that David’s hope is to praise God in the midst of other men for his care for him.

Now, you could read this as if David is attempting to back God in a corner of sorts. You could read it as if David is trying to strong-arm God. It would be like David saying, “You’ll do this if you know what’s good for you. You want praise, don’t you? Well, you won’t get it unless you do this.” But that’s not how we should read this; that’s not what’s going on here.

Rather, David addresses his concern for God’s steadfast love to be displayed before men and his desire to praise God before men because these are David’s real desires. He really does love God and desire him to be praised and honored. That’s part of the motivation of his cry for relief.

Now, I say “part” of the motivation because part of it is David’s feeling that he simply cannot take any more. However, that doesn’t mean the other motivation is not genuine. I believe he’s genuinely motivated by his feeling that he is being crushed and by his love for God.

Texts like Psalm 6:4-5 and Exodus 32:12 (where Moses prays for God not to destroy the Israelites lest the Egyptians say that God delivered his people just to kill them) are not there to show us that if you really want to get want you feel you need, then include in your prayer some way that God will be glorified in answering your prayer. These texts aren’t there to teach us some magic formula. These texts, I believe, are there to teach us that even in crying out for God to meet our needs we must love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. They’re there to show us that it is okay to address your needs to God. It is good and right to pray for yourself. However, even in those times your greatest love must be toward God; your greatest concern must be that God is loved and honored by you and others.

So, don’t look at verses 4-5 in our text as a reminder that when you take your needs to God to plead with him to be gracious and merciful that you should add a line about God being glorified. Look at verses 4-5 as a reminder that my greatest love and devotion in life must be to God, and permission to cry out to God about myself is not permission to stop loving him and being devoted to his honor in the meanwhile.

As David goes on, we see more. Namely, verses 6-7 remind us that as we turn to God in prayer that we need to cast our cares fully upon him.

We must cast our cares fully upon the Lord (6-7)

If you read through this psalm thinking David is not really telling God all that he feels, then by the time you get to verse 6 you can surely dismiss those thoughts. David prays in verses 6-7, “I am weary with my moaning; every night I flood my bed with tears; I drench my couch with my weeping. My eye wastes away because of all my foes.”

For some reason we can easily fall into a pattern where we’re very real with others in our struggles and feelings and yet never really pour out our hurts, fears, and struggles to God. David tells God that he’s tired of aching, that he has cried so much at night that he feels like he could swim in his bed, and that his foes pointing out his struggles is affecting his health.

I think this is a picture of what it means to cast your cares upon the Lord. It does not mean wording fanciful prayer to God but pouring out your heart and your hurt to him. Charles Spurgeon provides one of the best examples of this in an occasion when he had great physical pain. He writes, “When I was racked some months ago with pain, to an extreme degree, so that I could no longer bear it without crying out, I asked all to go from the room, and leave me alone; and then I had nothing I could say to God but this, 'Thou are my Father, and I am thy child; and thou, as a Father art tender and full of mercy. I could not bear to see my child suffer as thou makest me suffer, and if I saw him tormented as I am now, I would do what I could to help him, and put my arms under him to sustain him. Wilt thou hide thy face from me, my Father? Wilt thou still lay on a heavy hand, and not give me a smile from thy countenance?' ... So I pleaded, and I ventured to say, when I was quiet, and they came back who watched me: 'I shall never have such pain again from this moment, for God has heard my prayer.' I bless God that ease came and the racking pain never returned.”¹

That is a beautiful picture of pouring out your heart and hurt to God. Spurgeon is real. He lists his hurts. We should voice these things to God even before sharing them with others, for who cares more for us, our God or our close friends? Finally, we see in verses 8-10 that if you are a believer then you can be confident that God has heard you and that you will one day be vindicated before God and man because of Christ.

We can know God has heard us and that we will be vindicated because of Christ (8-10)

David ends the prayer with a faith that defies his enemies who may be mocking him in his struggles. He writes, “Depart from me, all you workers of evil, for the LORD has heard the sound of my weeping. The LORD has heard my plea; the LORD accepts my prayer. All my enemies shall be ashamed and greatly troubled; they shall turn back and be put to shame in a moment” (8-10).

David stands up to those who are mocking him and says, “Get away.” And he can say this confidently not because he knows he will never suffer again or possibly even that this suffering will let up. But he can say it because he knows that God has heard him, and he knows some day God will vindicate him.

We know even more than David knew. For us, we can say that we know that God has heard us because Jesus Christ is our mediator, our advocate before the Father. And we know that on that final day though our sins be many, we will be justified, vindicated before God and man because Christ has paid our sin for us.

Therefore, even as we sang earlier, “When Satan tempts me to despair …” we can say, when in the midst of your struggles, though you know your sins well, you can stand up and say, “Satan, though you come against me, know this: God has heard my prayer and one day Jesus Christ will declare before all men that I am justified. So, yes, I’ve sinned, but God has justly forgiven me because of the payment of Jesus Christ.” We should walk in defiant faith in the midst of those who mock us because of our sin, even Satan himself, because we know God has heard us and that we are forgiven because David’s great Son, Jesus of Nazareth died on the cross so that the penalty for our sins might be paid and so that we might be justified before our God.

Therefore, let us be faithful to cry out for God’s mercy, to love him above all else, to cast our cares upon the One who cares for us, and to walk in confident faith because we know that we are forgiven and justified because of Christ. May we therefore celebrate as we come to the table. Amen.

¹Darrel W. Amundsen, \"The Anguish and Agonies of Charles Spurgeon,\" in: Christian History, Issue 29, Volume X, No. 1, p. 24.

DESPONDENCY, DISCIPLINE, AND DEFIANT FAITH