Bible Commentaries
Psalms 94

Verses 1-23

1. INTRO:
   1. William Cowper Poem:
      By whom was David taught To aim the deadly blow, When he Goliath fought, And laid the Gittite low?Nor sword nor spear the stripling took, But chose a pebble from the brook. ‘Twas Israel’s God and king Who sent him to the fight;Who gave him strength to sling, And skill to aim aright.Ye feeble saints, your strength endures, Because young David’s God is yours. Who order’d Gideon forth, To storm the invaders’ camp,With arms of little worth, A pitcher and a lamp?The trumpets made his coming known, And all the host was overthrown. Oh! I have seen the day, When with a single word, God helping me to say, “My trust is in the Lord,”My soul hath quell’d a thousand foes, Fearless of all that could oppose. But unbelief, self-will, Self-righteousness, and pride,How often do they steal My weapon from my side!Yet David’s Lord, and Gideon’s friend, Will help his servant to the end.
2. TITLE ONE!
   1. ​​​​​​​GOD KNOW ABOUT YOUR ENEMIES! (1-11)
   2. (1-3) The Psalmist says, ok Lord, let’s go! Let’s move on this.
      1. He shows his impatience & insistence on the Lord to “do something about it!”
   3. Our tendency is to take things into our own hands.
      1. Moses tried that approach(smiting rock, instead of speaking to it), & it sent him into the wilderness for 40 years to learn how to trust God’s timing & method.
   4. (4-7) The wicked have a false confidence.
      1. Do they think God is dumber than we are?
      2. They fancy they can do as they like because God remains quiet.
         1. But see Ps.50:17-21.
         2. “It is not the severity of punishment that acts as a deterrent. It is its inevitability.” John Endsley
   5. (8-11) The Lord knows.
      1. He sees what’s going on in this world.
      2. He hears the cries of His own people.
      3. He knows the thoughts of man.
   6. (9) Ear - not only hearing, but the reception & response of the message.
   7. GOD WILL TEACH YOU WHAT TO DO! (12-15)
   8. Finally the flower starts to bloom in vs.12.
   9. (12) There is only one text-book for God’s whole school. (wish that was the same for college)
      1. Our children teeth on it from their earliest years; toddlers start to learn the stories; then in there preteen/teen years they start putting together how these stories apply; continuing to mature it becomes more & more “words for life”, words for every emergency, words for our thirsty souls; then in old age we learn a whole other depth & level to its meaning & beauty!
      2. It seems like those who are the simplest are the wisest.
      3. And, the deepest blessings are not in roaming the fields, but in sitting on the bench & learning what God desires to teach each soul that will listen.
   10. (13) The happy man knows that the days of trouble will pass & that the wicked will be dealt with.
   11. GOD WILL BE YOUR HELP! (16-23)
   12. (16) This is 1st & foremost the Psalmist speaking desiring help. But I’d like to ask it for vs.6 sake!
       1. Who will rise up for child prostitution; AIDS; domestic violence; abortion; refugees; child labor, child soldiers; starvation because of greedy dictators; trafficking little girls for prostitution(2 million girls ages 5-15 are introduced into commercial sex markets each year); honor killings; FGM {female genital mutilation} (teen girls sewn up till marriage/a crude chastity belt; few cases? 150 million! 2 mill added each year); the Persecuted Church; IDP’s(Internally Displaced People; 150 million in Burma alone).
          1. Maybe they’re asking: Will you rise up for me? Will you stand up for me? Will you at least get informed? Will you pray?
          2. Does Prov. 31:8,9 apply? Open your mouth for the speechless, In the cause of all who are appointed to die. Open your mouth, judge righteously, And plead the cause of the poor and needy.
   13. The answer to verse 16 is, maybe...no body! Maybe its your cry!
       1. We run to our closest friends & tell them our side of the story, secretly hoping they’ll champion our cause. Will you rise up for me? Will you stand up for me?
       2. But maybe they won’t! The bulletin board out in the shop carried this notice: IN CASE OF ACCIDENT OR INJURY, NOTIFY YOUR SUPERVISOR IMMEDIATELY. At the bottom of the notice someone scribbled, “He’ll kiss it and make it better.”
   14. But the good news & hope follows in vs.17-23. The Lord is my help!
       1. If you slip, He will hold you! (18)
       2. If you worry, He will comfort you! (19)
          1. Note his honesty, multitude of my anxieties!
       3. If you are attacked, He will defend you! (20-23)
   15. (23) God has a plan. He hears our prayers. He sees our needs. He knows exactly what is going on.
   16. Learning to trust God’s methods & timing is a lifelong course!
       1. When you need to wait on Him: 1st look to Him; 2nd lay hold of His promises; 3rd rest in His care; 4th know He knows all about your specific situation; 5th remember He always keeps His word; 6th He will act at the exact right time!
   17. When peace, like a river, attendeth my way, when sorrows like sea billows roll; whatever my lot, thou hast taught me to say, It is well, it is well with my soul.
   18. Story - Robert Louis Stevenson tells of a storm that caught a vessel off a rocky coast and threatened to drive it and its passengers to destruction. In the midst of the terror, one daring man, contrary to orders, went to the deck, made a dangerous passage to the pilot house and saw the steerman, lashed fast at his post of holding the wheel unwaveringly, and inch by inch, turning the ship out, once more, to sea. The pilot saw the watcher and smiled. Then, the daring passenger went below and gave out a note of cheer: “I have seen the face of the pilot, and he smiled. All is well.”