Recently I read a story in the news about a man who was lost in a state park for several days. He was out hunting squirrels with some friends and got separated from them in the dense forest. For five days, he wandered to and fro, his only supplies being his clothes, gun, squirrel call, and two bottles of water. He lived off of worms and muddy water, and as he said later, he just “tried to stay calm.” Eventually, he found a road and some of the people out searching for him.
Can you imagine what it would be like to be in a situation like his? What would you think about? What would you define as your greatest need at that moment? You know, I doubt any of us have been stuck out in the wilderness trying to survive, but I know many of us have been through trying circumstances similar to this man. You’ve not been lost and alone in the forest, but you have been in a wilderness figuratively.
Perhaps, you recently lost your job, your financial security has been stripped away, and you are not sure what is next. The job market has been difficult, and you do not know when you will find employment again. Maybe, there is conflict in your family or work. You have taken a stand for Christ and your witness has been met with ridicule, animosity, and opposition. Possibly you have recently received some unsettling news from a doctor, and you concerned for the future. It may be that you have not faced a time in the wilderness such as these yet, but God’s word tells us that all of us will experience suffering or persecution in this life. Paul says in Acts 14:22 that “through many trials and tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.” Later he writes Timothy in 2 Timothy 3:12 that all who “desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” As Christians we will face various difficulties in this life. We will all go through wilderness periods either figuratively or perhaps even literally, and we will find what we hold dear threatened or taken. The blessed thing, however, is that God has spoken in His word about these times in order to prepare us and preserve us through them. This psalm of David was written during a time of great trial in his life when he was literally in the wilderness, as the superscript tells us. At this point, David was being pursued by either King Saul or Absalom, both who wanted him dead either to insure his hold on the throne or to steal it. David was forced to flee into exile in the wilderness for fear of his life. While he was not lost as the man I mentioned before, he was not on a leisurely camping trip either. He was in a harsh wilderness seeking to hide from those who sought his life. During this time, he wrote this psalm, and from it this morning, we can see that during times of suffering, God sustains us, satisfies us, and gives us security. With this theme in mind, let us look more closely at the text of Psalm 63.
The first thing we see in verses 1-4 is that God sustains us. In the wilderness, with all stripped away, David sensed deeply and rightly his greatest need. While we might be tempted to think that it would have been food or water or shelter, David knew that more than anything else he needed God, and God was faithful to sustain him and meet that need.
In verse 1, David confesses that God is his God, and he says he earnestly seeks him. Despite his physical needs at the time whatever they may have been in the wilderness, his first thought is to turn to and seek the Lord. Furthermore, he confesses that his “soul thirsts for [God],” his “flesh faints for [God] as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” Here David is in the wilderness yet he confesses he is faint and thirsty for God, not water. Have you experienced this? I know we all know what it is to be physically thirsty or hungry. Perhaps your job involves physical labor or you’ve spent a long, hard day working around the house or in the yard, and you are hungry and thirsty. But have we experienced this deep longing for God? It is there. If we strip all away we will realize that we do desperately need God. Furthermore, if we do not sense our need for Him, we should pray that the He would make us aware of it.
How is David’s need satisfied? How does God sustain him during this hard time? Look at verse 2. David thinks back, note the past tense “have looked,” on the last time he worshipped God in the tabernacle, worships God in the wilderness in this meditation, and as we will see in a moment anticipates worshipping God again in the future. David reflects on the last time he looked on God in the sanctuary, in the tabernacle, “beholding [His] power and glory.” Now we should note here that David did not see God. The Bible speaks in many places that our God in invisible, such as in Colossians 1:15. So what was David referring to? How did he “look upon God” and “behold [His] power and glory?” I think this is a figurative seeing. Let me illustrate. Suppose someone is explaining something to you, maybe how to do something or what something is like, and you respond to their explanation saying, “I see what you mean” or “I see it more clearly now.” You don’t literally see it. It is figurative language. What you are saying is that you apprehend some truth or understanding with your mind. In the same way, David and us “see” God as we think about who He is and the great things He has done. We “behold” His “power and glory” as we think of and talk about His mighty works. For as Israelite like David, he would have probably thought back to the exodus or the conquest of the Promised Land, times when God displayed His power and glory to the Israelites, or to more personal experiences such as God giving him victory over Goliath. Yet, we have even more glorious things to “look at” and “behold” this morning, as we already have been as we heard the Scriptures read and we have sung praises to God. We know that there are even greater things that God had done than the exodus and conquest to display who He is and what He is like. We know that He sent His only son Jesus who was fully man and fully God, who perfectly fulfilled the law, as we could not do, was crucified for our sins, and resurrected three days later that we might have salvation. In this, God has done much greater works that we can “behold” and praise Him for. David was and we too can be sustained in times of trial as we “behold” our God and think about who He is, what He has done, and praise Him for it! However, verses 1 and 2 are not the only places we see this. Look with me at verses 3 and 4.
In verse 3, David confesses, “Because your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you.” In this wilderness, David will praise God with his lips because he knows God’s lovingkindness is better than life itself. No matter what we face, we cannot be separated from God’s love. Paul picks up on this blessed theme in Romans 8:38 and 39, where he says, “For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Furthermore, similarly to the greater things we can praise God for, our assurance of God’s love towards us no matter the circumstances is even greater than David’s for we know of Christ clearly while David only knew darkly. God has displayed His great love for us in the cross.
Because David knew of the certainty and goodness of God’s love, in verse 4, he says, “So I will bless you as long as I live, in your name I will lift up my hands.” Despite the difficulty of his circumstances, he knew as long as he lived, whether he would soon die or live much longer, he would lift his hands to God in praise because of his great lovingkindness towards him.
In these verses, we see that even in the darkest and most difficult of times God will sustain us, and his sustenance comes to us through worship and communion with Him. So this morning, if this is you today or when these times come, turn to the Lord, behold who He is and what he has done for you, and worship, and you will be sustained by our God.
However, this is not the only truth in Psalm 63 that David shows us we have to cling to during times of suffering. We also see that God satisfies us in verses 5-7.
In these first few verses, we see David says “My soul will be satisfied as with fat and rich food, and my mouth will praise you with joyful lips, when I remember you on my bed, and meditate on you in the watches of the night.” So what exactly is David doing here when he says this? David is expressing the satisfaction and joy he experiences when he remembers and ponders who God is in the night. Apparently, when David could not sleep or woke up in the night, he would turn his thoughts to God. Why though? Why did his thoughts go to God? If we look at verse 7, it tells us it was “for” or because “you have been my help and in the shadow of your wings I will sing for joy.” Despite his current circumstances, he knew that God had been faithful and had been His help in the past. Thinking about this, meditating on God’s works in the night brought immense satisfaction to David as well as lead him to praise as we saw in verse 5 where he said “my mouth will praise you with joyful lips.” Clearly, he is satisfied because he praises God joyfully. When we are satisfied or content with something, we express our joy in it, like a husband expresses his delight in his wife. So, not only do we see God sustaining David through worship, similarly He satisfies Him through it. Not only has our great God provided sustenance for us in times of trial but also satisfaction. This reminds us of Jesus’s words in the Beatitudes where he says, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied.” We deeply desire satisfaction, and God is the only one who can ultimately supply that need. As Augustine said, “Our hearts are restless until they find their rest in Thee.” How does this work though? Whether we are in the wilderness or not, how do we find satisfaction in God?
If we remember from verse 5, David relates the satisfaction he found in God to that which you would experience after eating a large, delicious feast, like a Thanksgiving meal perhaps. A feast satisfies at least two needs. As humans, we need food and water or drink. A feast abundantly satisfies these two needs by providing an abundance of these two things. Another need we have, which the Bible attests to and those that are saved have had their eyes open to is our need for God. We were made to exist in relationship with God and with other people. God abundantly meets this need as we spend time with Him in worship and prayer and His Word and in fellowship with the Body. These are just a few of the means God has appointed as the ways in which we fellowship with Him. David in these verses was meditating on who God was and what He had done. We do this as well when we read and meditate on the Scriptures and sing scripturally based songs about who God is and what he has done. These are some ways to find satisfaction in God. So as a feast abundantly satisfies our need for food and drink, so in worship and reading and meditating on the Scriptures and prayer and singing praises to God abundantly satisfies our need for Him.
Therefore, during times in the wilderness, like David find your satisfaction in God. Read and meditate on God’s Word. Think on who He is and what He has done. Do not forsake spending time with the Body and worshipping God together. Spend time in prayer. Earnestly seek satisfaction in God as David did, and he will surely give it, especially during times of trial.
Finally, we see that during times of suffering, God gives us security in verses 7-11.
In the last few verses, we see one more truth that we can cling to during times of trial. Not only does God sustain and satisfy David, but He also gives him security. Look closely at these last few verses.
First, in verse 7 which we just looked at, David is encouraged by the fact God has been “his help.” God is faithful, and if He has been faithful to help in the past, He will be faithful to provide help again in the future.
Second, in verse 8, David testifies that he clings to God and God’s right hand upholds him. God is his hope who he confidently holds to, and he knows that it is God that had preserved him even unto that moment. We are alive even now because God upholds us and protects us. Were it not for God’s gracious upholding, protection, and preservation of us all, we would all fall away. However, those of us that believe are in God’s hand and are never taken away.
Third, in regards to his enemies, David says they “shall go down to the depths of the earth; they shall be given over to the power of the sword; they shall be a portion of jackals.” As opposed to David, whom God upholds, his enemies will go down to death, and not just any death but death by the sword and a dishonorable being left to the wild animals as opposed to proper burial. David is assured that God will protect him from his enemies and give him deliverance.
Fourth and finally, David says that he and all those who swear by or trust in God will rejoice in Him and the mouths of liars, his opponents, will be stopped.
How did David apprehend this sense of security? By reflecting upon who God is and what He has done. David knew that God was faithful and loved him with his steadfast love and knew he would be his help. Again, we see God’s blessings coming to David as he thought about who God was and meditated on the truths He had learned about God.
In these last few verses, David expresses his assurance of God’s help; God has given him security during his difficult times. We also can share in this security during times of suffering. No matter what happens, we know that God will take care of us, and earlier as I mentioned, nothing can separate us from God’s love. Even if we should go to death, if we are Christ’s we have hope, and we will not be put to shame for God will raise us up on the last day! No matter what our circumstances and no matter what happens, we are secure in the hands of God our Father and our Lord Jesus Christ!
So, in closing, let’s review these blessed truths God has recorded for us during times of trouble by David’s pen. First, we saw that God will sustain us. Second, we saw that God will satisfy us. Third, we saw that God will give us security. And all throughout this psalm, we see that these three blessings from our God come through hearing and believing and thinking on the truths about who God is and what He has done that He has revealed to us through His Word. So, how should we as believers respond to this this morning?
Whether or not you are in a time of suffering this morning, this text calls us all to think about who our great God is and what He has done. And do not get me wrong. While I have mentioned, thinking about the truths of who God is and what He has done much this morning, this is not a cold, intellectual rehearsal of facts. This is a thinking and delighting, an apprehending and rejoicing, a meditating upon and savoring! It is the thinking of a husband of the wife he loves. He rejoices in his wife as he remembers things about her. So this morning, may our minds hearts be moved to think about and delight in who our God is and what He has done! And let us be reminded that we see this even more clearly than David. David looked back to the exodus and the conquest and other great displays of God’s greatness, and he even looked as though through a veil at the coming of the Messiah, but we have heard the gospel of Christ in all its unveiled glory! We know that the greatest display of who God is and what He has done is in the Lord Jesus Christ, who is “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation…the head of the Church… [the one in whom] all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things…making peace by the blood of his cross” as Colossians 1 tells us. God has ultimately sustained, satisfied, and given His people security in Christ Jesus, who came God in the flesh, who fulfilled the law perfectly as we could not, was crucified bearing the penalty of our sins, and who was raised from the grave three days later that all those who repent and believe might have salvation, unhindered fellowship with God, and hope of the resurrection! If God has met our greatest needs in Christ, and He has, surely He will carry us through any other time of suffering. This is what we should mediate upon and rejoice in and delight in during the good times and the bad. During suffering, find your sustenance, satisfaction, and security in the gospel!
Now, what if you are not a believer this morning? What if you are going through the wilderness? What if this hope and sustenance and satisfaction and security sound so appealing to you where you are? Well, I have good news for you. Repent, turn from your sins, and trust in Christ. Believe this gospel that I have just proclaimed to you, and God will forgive your sins, and He will sustain you and satisfy you and give you security.
Now as we close it is fitting to come to the table this morning in anticipation of the great feast we shall share with our Lord some day. Let us come and take the bread and juice and proclaim Christ’s death and proclaim that in and through Christ we are sustained, satisfied, and secured! Let us pause for a moment of silence in preparation for this meal.