Psalm 17 | Confident Living in the Lord
“As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness;
I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness.“
Today’s Scripture: Psalm 17
As the end of the year 2020 approached, the common refrain was heard: “I can’t wait till this year is over!” Yet, as we flipped over the calendar from December to January, what did the year’s change bring? Well, not much.
As far as the world-wide pandemic was concerned, 2021 ushered in additional variants of the COVID-10 virus. This brought into question vaccine effectiveness and dashed all hopes for a quick end to the pandemic.
And, politically speaking, any hope for calm in the new year was shattered as election protests culminated with the US Capitol building’s deadly storming on January 6 and a post-election impeachment hearing.
As we imagine what the future may hold, it seems reasonable to be uncertain about ourselves and our circumstances. Yet, the answer will not be found in a new administration, massive deficit spending, or any other quick fix. We need something more profound than man’s solutions can bring.
King David grasped this. Despite the problems in the world around him, David led a life that exhibited great confidence in the Lord. In his prayer in Psalm 17, we can be guided by his words that we may lead lives of confidence in the Lord:
A Transformed Life
As we look at David’s prayer, we see he was living a radically transformed life. As a child of God, David showed evidence of God’s ongoing purifying work. David said, “You have tried me and have found nothing” (Psalm 17:3). He was faithful in following the Lord’s precepts and steering clear of the paths of evil persons.
We also see that David wasn’t satisfied to rest upon his past spiritual obedience. Instead, he continued to seek after God on an ongoing basis. David prayed that God would “uphold my steps in Your paths, that my footsteps may not slip” (Psalm 17:5). He knew that without the Lord’s help, he was at risk of slipping up.
As we look at David’s life, we may realize just how far we fall short of his level of spiritual health. Let this motivate us to put to death the sin in our lives and love God and others more greatly.
1 John 3:22-23 says that when we submit our lives to Him, we gain confidence towards God and are assured he will listen to our prayers. Like David, let us pray with confidence, “I have called upon You, for You will hear me, O God” (Psalm 17:6).
Let God Fight Your Battles
David’s pathway to becoming King and his early years in power brought with it several significant personal and political challenges. In the case of Saul’s relentless pursuit of David, I imagine that David was frequently tempted to take matters into his own hands and eliminate this pain and uncertainty from his life.
In verses 11-12, we see one of these dire situations depicted. Saul’s arrogant, merciless men had surrounded David and began to close in on him. The threat to his life was so significant that David describes the enemy with the words, “as a lion is eager to tear his prey” (Psalm 17:12). Still, David refused to take out God’s anointed on his own. Instead, David called upon the Lord to “Deliver my life from the wicked with your sword.” (Psalm 17:13).
When we experience oppression and push-back from wicked people in our lives – we have the same decision to make as David. We may be tempted to take matters into our own hands. Many times, this can lead us to an ungodly response.
Paul said in Romans 12:19, “Beloved, do not avenge yourselves, but rather give place to wrath; for it is written, “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay,” says the Lord. In other words, we need to leave justice to the perfect judge – it’s not our job.
It is so easy to think that our role is to ensure that justice is served in our situations. However, knowing that the Lord is perfect in justice should give us the peace and confidence to let Him fight our battles on our behalf.
Have an Eternal Perspective
At the end of Psalm 17, we see that David’s eternal perspective provided him confidence and hope his enemies would never know.
As for his worldly enemies, they enjoyed “their portion in this life” (Psalm 17:14). Their bellies were full; they had many children and such wealth that even their third generation would benefit from it. But their riches would ultimately prove to be deceitful.
In his ministry, Jesus warned of the futility of worldly life with these words:
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal” (Matthew 6:19-20)
You see, the treasures of David’s enemies would ultimately be destroyed, and their destiny would be God’s judgment.
As for David and those who lay up for themselves treasures in heaven, there would be a glorious ending. David had confidence that one day his faithfulness would be vindicated. This would far exceed all the treasures and pleasures the world temporarily offered.
For David, his destiny would begin by awakening in the presence of the Lord, fully transformed into his likeness. This is the glorious future that those who trust in the Lord can confidently look forward to.
As we look around our world today, it may seem reasonable to be uncertain about ourselves, our situations, and our future. But, with a transformed life, letting God fight our battles, and having an eternal perspective, we can lead lives of confidence in the Lord.
David Goff is the Associate Pastor of First Baptist Church, Washington MI