If Foundations are Destroyed
March 19, 2002 - 10:14
If the Foundations are Destroyed - Psalm 11
All around us the dark clouds seem to be descending on our society
and on our culture. It is clear that our children and grandchildren
will grow up, live and work in a world vastly different from our
own. It is a world that we can hardly recognize when compared
to our own youth or childhood of play, church dinners, afternoon
ball games, and family gatherings. . Both the Church and nation
seem to be in spiritual and moral decline We all know this to
be true, yet we seem powerless to arrest or slow the slide into
the abyss through our behavior, preaching, prayers or protests.
We have done well if we have been able to point our own family
to the narrow way and see them progress in the Christian faith,
even as the larger society seems headed for the ashbin of history.
David, the sweet hymn writer of Israel, wrote in a time similar
to our own. He asked a question which is on many of our minds
and resonates with us even to- day, "If the foundations are
destroyed, what can the righteous do?" David himself was
a fugitive from King Saul at the time of writing the Psalms (he
became king in a better and improved day). David answers this
question with four comforting certainties for the people of God
in troubled times.
I. Isolation from events is impossible (Psalm 11 : 1-3) David
was tempted to flee and isolate himself completely from his troubled
times. We know he did try to escape Saul's pursuit and his immediate
danger. His friends urged him to go even further away saying,
"Flee as a bird to your mountain" in the face of the
wicked who "shoot secretly at the heart" (11:1-2). They
asked, "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous
do?" (11:3). This is a good question for our day as well.
While we should provide for our personal and family's spiritual
and physical security as best we can, is it possible, or even
beneficial, to isolate ourselves completely from the trouble that
has come upon our nation and the Church? The answer is, no. There
is ultimately nowhere we can go on this earth to escape all problems.
II. Our security is in God alone (Psalm 11: 1. 4a) There is an
old saying in the Church that "man's extremity is God's opportunity."
Many are even now turning to Jesus Christ for both forgiveness
of sins, which is man's basic need, but also for a sense of hope
and personal security that this world cannot provide Even as the
dark clouds from around us, some also see a silver lining. We
must be the ones who speak the gospel and words of hope into the
face of the storm. We must provide the balm of Gilead for a suffering
people and nation. We may even be on the cusp of a new "Great
awakening." Small group evening and morning Bible study-prayer
groups are springing up in businesses and plants, on college and
public school campuses. Prayer and fasting retreats have found
their way back into the lurch. There is a "fresh obedience"
to biblical mandates, Christian families taking responsibility
for the education of their own children through home-schooling
and Christian schools. Many are seeking God. Many will be saved
as the storm clouds brew. Troubled times could add to harvest
times. We are reminded by this psalm "that the Lord is in
is holy temple" and "his throne is in heaven" (11:4a).
Is this text telling us that God is remote, distant and uncaring?
No, this is a principal text to remind us of His ruling sovereignty
in the universe. We are secure because he is sovereign. God cannot
be touched by the sinfulness and rebellion of man. He is in a
safe place; He is secure. He is security and safety Himself, and
because he is all these things, we also are safe and secure. God
will be triumphant in the end, and we reign with Him now and forever.
Whatever our lot, we are secure, and we have already won the final
victory. Our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, has gone on ahead
of us to prepare a place for us. And we have a mediator seated
at the right and of God, ever living to make intercession for
us through prayer, "we may boldly approach the throne of
grace to find mercy and obtain help in time of need" Hebrews
4:16).
III. God's justice will prevail (11 :4b-6) "In the Church
we have largely emphasized God's mercy and grace because that
is our own personal experience, but God is also holy and just.
He has a wonderful plan for us, but His justice will be meted
out to those who reject Him and flaunt His Word and Law. Isaiah
says wrath is His strange work," but it is real nevertheless.
Sometimes we even see it acted out; we see His justice operating
in this life, here and now. But, if we do not see it in the present,
it will certainly come in the eternal future. We are to pray for
mercy and grace for ourselves and our enemies as did Stephen.
He was the first martyr, in Acts 7:60, who prayed, "Lord,
do not charge them with this sin." In some cases, we are
to pray against the "institutionalized" enemies of God.
(See Acts 4:27-31). Also, in some rare cases, Paul the Apostle
prayed and actually spoke against specific individuals who were
harming the Church (See 1 Timothy 1:20, 2 Timothy 2:17). ) Our
first requirement is to pray for the repentance and salvation
of "those who despitefully use and persecute us" (Matthew
5:44). Still, there are also several imprecatory psalms on which
we could model our prayers on certain rare occasions (See Psalm
58; 68:21-23; 69:23-29; 09:5-19; 137:7-9). These texts might apply
to false religions and movements, not individuals, that aggressively
persecute Christians and seek to destroy the Christian Faith.
IV. The righteous will be rewarded (Psalm 11 :7) God is able
to care for His children in rough and troubled times as well as
He can in good times. We have all experienced deliverance from
the hand of he Lord in protection from illnesses and accidents.
Sometimes He takes us through the fire, but it does not burn our
hearts and souls. We are purified and made more holy. This psalm
reminds us that "He loves righteousness and His countenance
beholds the upright" (11:7). Our obedience to the commands
of Christ and our personal holiness cause our Lord Jesus Christ
to reveal Himself to us and make us His personal abode John 14:21,
23). His intimacy is reserved or those who live obedient and holy
lives. He will come to us and provide grace at the very moment
it s needed. And, of course, "our light affliction, which
is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and
eternal weight of glory" (2 Corinthians 4:17).
Conclusion
We need not fear, then, during times of cultural and societal
disintegration, when there are wars and rumors of war, when we
become victims of injustice or find ourselves in harm's way as
a result of our testimony for Christ. God is in control. He sees
all things, and He sees us. He loves us just as much in the midst
of affliction as in the midst of plenty and peace. Prayer opens
the door to His presence and blessings. Jesus said to His disciples
as He walked on the water toward them in the midst of the storm,
"Be of good cheer. It is I, do not be afraid" (Mark
6:50).
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