Take Refuge (Psalm 11)
Take Refuge
Psalm 11
INTRODUCTION:
“God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm
Deep in His dark and hidden mines
With never-failing skill
He fashions all His bright designs
And works His sovereign will”- Bob Kauflin
God is always in control and He always does the right thing. So says the psalm which we will be studying in this lesson.
David certainly lived a life of fear, uneasiness, and trepidation. He dealt with attacks from outside Israel. Once King Saul was dead, David had to assure the family of Saul that he was not going to kill all them. It took some time for David to consolidate the entire nation of Israel under his leadership. David had to deal with the Philistines - 2 Samuel 8 gives us a summary - with the Moabites, the Arameans, the Ammonites. He also had to deal with his own family including his wife Michal, his sons Amnon and Absalom, along with Ziba and Shimei, Joab, and Sheba. And perhaps David’s worst enemy was himself, his own spiritual weaknesses.
David needed to find refuge somewhere. With someone body. And he found that refuge in his God…
REFUGE IS FOUND IN THE LORD - 11:1-3:
Back in 2 Samuel 22, we have recorded Psalm 18. It was a psalm David wrote to praise God for delivering him from all his enemies, including King Saul. He also states there that he seeks refuge in God. But it is the phrases around that concept that I want to share with you…
“The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold and my refuge; My savior, You save me from violence. “I call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, And I am saved from my enemies” (22:2-4).
Out of the 35 times this verb “to seek refuge” is found in the OT, it is found 24 times in the book of Psalms. Why should we read Psalms? Because the authors remind us that God is our refuge.
Somebody - a friend, family member, maybe just an acquaintance - encouraged David to get out of Jerusalem, to get out of his stressful environment: “Flee as a bird to the mountain…”
When Nehemiah was trying to rebuild the walls of Jerusalem, Israel’s enemies tried to get them discouraged and distracted. Nehemiah responded: “Should a man like me flee? And could one such as I go into the temple to save his life? I will not go in” (Neh. 6:10-11).
The wicked attack the righteous. The wicked - in darkness so that no one will see - shoots the upright. This word “upright” is used again in verse 7. Who are the upright? What will happen to them?
Without foundation, there is no hope for a structure. What verse 3 sounds like in this context is that David’s friend is suggesting that all hope is lost. The foundations are destroyed. Get out! Go away! Leave! Maybe they were sincere; maybe they were really thinking of David’s health and safety. But: 1) Isn’t a king supposed to be on his throne? 2) What would David’s flight teach his people about his faith in his God? What would his flight teach others about the nature of his God?
As motivational speaker Zig Ziglar says, “Fear has two meanings: ‘Forget everything and run’ or ‘Face everything and rise.’ The choice is yours.” Most of the time we forget everything we know to be true about God and his reassurances, and we do run! We run away, thinking that our fear is too big to solve or overcome. With this mentality, we make fear bigger and more powerful than God. God doesn’t want us to “forget everything and run,” but instead, with God’s help and reassurances, to “face everything and rise.”
The “righteous” are also mentioned again in verse 7. What will happen to them?
THE LORD REIGNS FROM HEAVEN - 11:4-7:
How is it that David can take refuge in God? Because God is not touched by the stress and frustrations and whims and capricious behaviors of mankind…
God’s temple is holy. That is where the Lord’s throne is.
God sees all.
God tests all. David no doubt thinks about himself; God is testing him. How strong is his faith? How debilitating are his doubts? He is being tested. But David is surely also thinking of the wicked. God will test them and when they fail the test, they will receive the consequences. Verse 5 states that God tests the “righteous” and the “wicked.”
To remind us of the words of Jesus - God calls on all mankind to love Him supremely and to serve our fellowman sacrificially. Every single human being is tested based on those two commandments every single day.
God hates the one who loves violence. God tests the wicked and God hates those who love violence. That suggests that what is troubling David is potentially violent if not actually violent. And God’s soul hates that person. It is not quite accurate to say, “God hates the sin but loves the sinner.” There are a handful of passages like this one which states explicitly that God hates sinners, at least certain sinners. And He hates the one who loves violence.
But because God tests the wicked then God will implement justice on the wicked…
God rains snares on them; fire, brimstone, and burning wind will be the cup which they drink. There is only one historical event in the OT which involved fire and brimstone: the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah in Genesis 19. It appears that the other references in the prophets are alluding to Sodom and Gomorrah. Of course, the idea that God will make the wicked drink their “portion” of the burning wind is the idea behind the bowls of wrath in the book of Revelation.
Because of God’s nature. He is righteous. Fear can get the best of us. We may fear rejection for what we believe. We may fear loneliness, not making friends, being rejected by friends or our significant other, being embarrassed in front of the entire school, or any kind of failure. Sometimes we don’t even realize how much fear is taking over. We may fear losing our parents, or our parents divorcing, or losing our best friends. We fear being alone, left behind, or abandoned. Maybe your parents are physically or emotionally abusive, and it’s frightening to go home. Maybe it’s the fear of not knowing where your next meal will come from.
He loves the righteous. Sometimes we can even experience fear at church or in our spiritual lives—fear of not being good enough, fear of failing God because we aren’t at the same level as our Christian friends. What is liberating to know is that God doesn’t compare you to everyone else. God sees you. God looks at your heart. God wants us to experience his freedom and every benefit that comes along with it! We must remember that God is our safe space, and he will never leave us. We must speak aloud God’s reassurances to us that include God always being by our side, giving us strength, helping us, and holding onto us. This is what helps us not be fearful. This helps us turn fear into “face everything and rise.”
IT is the upright who will see His face. In the movie Rio (directed by Carlos Saldanha [Twentieth Century Fox, 2011]), we are introduced to a Spix’s macaw named Blu. In the opening sequence, Blu is an adorable hatchling in a nest located atop a very tall tree. Watching all the beautiful birds who are flying, singing, and enjoying life, Blu realizes he too has the potential to fly. He wants to join in with all the birds. He begins to muster up the courage to take the leap and learn to fly. Unfortunately, before Blu could leap out of the tree to join the other birds, they are all captured, thrown in cages, and tied down with nets. Blu becomes frightened and backs away from the edge of the tree’s nest—but in all the chaos, he accidentally falls out of his nest! Blu tries to flap his wings to rise and fly, but he still doesn’t know how. Instead, he crashes to the ground and is captured by poachers. He’s shipped to the USA, where his crate falls off a delivery truck in Minnesota. He finds a new home with a little girl named Linda. From then on, Linda loves, cares, and befriends Blu. Blu continues his life without learning to fly. He tries to learn, but every time he attempts to fly, his fear and anxiety get the best of him. In the end, though, Blu is able to go back to Rio de Janeiro, where through various twists and turns and finding a new lovebird interest, he finally summons the courage and strength to overcome his fear of flight, and he soars!
In the midst of fear and anxiety in our lives, we will not soar if we “flee as a bird to the mountains,” but we will soar if we “flee as a bird” and find refuge in Jesus Christ!
Take home message: With God by your side, there is no need to fear. Stay confident in His love and guidance.