but I'd also like you, first
of all, to go to Numbers chapter 16. So where we'll be for the
main part of the message is Psalm 42, but I'd also like you to
start off, we'll go over to Numbers chapter 16. Psalm 42, Numbers
chapter 16. In Numbers chapter 16, We have bought before us the
rebellion of Korah, who is the son of Levi, and Dathan, and
Abraham. In their pride and rebellion,
Korah and the men with him stirred up a
group of 250 men to challenge the right of Moses and Aaron
to the priesthood, which is all seen in Numbers 16. And Moses
summoned the rebellious men to stand before God and burn incense. Look at verses 16 and 17 and
18. And Moses said unto Korah, Be
thou in all thy company before the Lord, thou and they, in e'er
and to-morrow. And take every man his censer,
and put incense in them, and bring ye before the Lord every
man his censer. Two hundred and fifty censers.
Thou also, and Aaron, each of you his censer. And they took every man his censer,
and put fire in them, and laid incense thereon, and stood and
adored the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron. So God warned Moses to let the
assembly know to get away from Gor. Get away from Gor, and Death
Ann, and Burren, and their households, and the other rebels. And we see a picture of Christ
as mediator, because God was going to wipe out the whole congregation. But we see a picture, and this
isn't what I'm going to preach on tonight, but this is a whole
message all by itself. We see a picture right here of
Moses acting as a mediator, between God and the congregation, which
is a picture of Christ. Look at Numbers 16, verses 19
and 21. Korah gathered together all the
congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of
the congregation, and the glory of the Lord appeared unto the
congregation. And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, saying,
Separate yourselves from this congregation, that I may consume
them in a moment. Consume them in a moment. And we see in the next verse,
Moses intercedes for them before God, and they fell upon their
faces and said, Oh God, the God of spirits of the flesh, shall
one man sin and wilt thou be wrath with all the congregation? And here Moses typified and represented
that great and only intercessor, the Lord Jesus Christ. But then
a remarkable and terrifying event happened. The wrath of God falls
upon the rebels. Look at verses 28 to 35. And Moses said, Hereby ye shall
know that the Lord hath sent me to do these works, for I have
not done them of mine own hand. If these men die the common death
of all men, or if they be visited after the visitation of all men,
then the Lord hath not sent me. So he said, if they die a natural
death, then the Lord hasn't sent me. But if the Lord make a new thing,
and the earth open her mouth, and swallow them up, with all
that appertain unto them, and they go down quick into the pit,
then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord.
And it came to pass, as he had made man to speak in all these
words, that the ground clave asunder that was under them.
And the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed them up. and their houses, and all the
men that appertained unto Korah in all their goods." Now notice
there's Korah. Korah was like the leader of
this rebellion. They and all that appertained
to them went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed
upon them, and they perished from among the congregation. And there came out a fire from
the Lord and consumed the 250 men that offered incense." There
goes the other rebels. Now turn over to Numbers 26.
Numbers 26. And there's a reason why I'm
bringing up Korah here. Because we're going to see over
here in Numbers 26 that the children of Korah didn't die. The sons of Korah didn't die.
Look at this, Numbers 26, verses 9 to 11. And the sons of Eliab,
Nemuel, and Dathan in Abiram. This is that Dathan in Abiram
which was famous in the congregation who strove against Moses and
against Aaron in the company of Korah when they strove against
the Lord and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them
up together with Korah when that company died. What time the fire
devoured 250 men and they became a sign, notwithstanding the children
of Korah died not. They had been spared when their
father and all his company were swallowed up alive in their sin
and remission. The children of Korah were spared
by sovereign grace, beloved. Preserved by the distinguishing
grace of God. And we see mercy given as He
pleases. Their father was consumed. Going down alive into the pit. It opened and swallowed him up.
And closed right before the whole congregation. Now turn over to 1 Chronicles
chapter 6. Do you know that Samuel the prophet
was a son of Korah? He was in the lineage of Korah. Look at 1 Chronicles chapter
6 verses 31 to 38. And these are they whom David
set over the service of song in the house of the Lord. After
that the ark had rest, and they ministered before the dwelling
place of the tabernacle of the congregation with singing until
Solomon had built the house of the Lord in Jerusalem. And then
they waited on their office according to their order. These are they
that waited with their children of the sons of the Kohites. These are Korah's offspring. He meant a singer. The son of
Joel, the son of Samuel. The son of Elkanah. Elkanah, the son of Jeroham. The son of Eliel. The son of
Toah. the son of Zephah, the son of
Elkenah, the son of Mathah, the son of Amasai, the son of Elkenah,
the son of Joel, the son of Azariah, the son of Zephaniah, the son
of Taha, the son of Asir, the son of Abiasaph, the son of Korah. Samuel mentioned further up there
in verse 33 is Samuel the prophet. He's in the lineage of Korah. The son of Izar, the son of Korah,
the son of Levi, son of Israel. So with that in our minds, let's
now turn to Psalm 42. Psalm 42. Psalm 42. We will see that this psalm was
written for the sons of Korah. They were descendants of Korah,
spoken of in numbers, who was swallowed up by the earth. They
were singers in the temple. And Heman was actually one of
the chief, who we looked at in the lineage there too, was one
of the chief leaders. And we've looked at these singers
in the past in our studies and other psalms. They were singers
in the temple. So with that in mind, we see
a spirit of great gratitude and humility before our mighty God
expressed in this psalm. We do not know who the writer
is. Some say it's David, and some
say it's the Sons of Korah. But we don't know. It's just
speculation. But we see here in verse 1 that
it is written for the Sons of Korah. Now in my Bible it says
to the chief musician, Machel, for the Sons of Korah. And it
says it just above verse 1. I don't know if it says that
in your scriptures, in your Bibles, but that's what it says here
in the heading. He says, as the heart panteth
after the water brook, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. The
sons of Korah. How often is the will of God,
is it the will of God to raise up saints where they would be
least looked for? Would you expect some of God's
gems to come from the sons of Korah? From the very one who
rebelled against God? Think about that with us. Our
father, Adam, rebelled. Our parents rebelled. And here we are, brands plucked
out of the fire, beloved. Here we are. So how often it
is the will of God to raise up saints where they would be least
looked for. Who should imagine that God's saints would spring
up from he who had said, ye take too much upon you, ye sons of
Aaron. Do we not have God's distinguishing
grace right here on full display, right just in the title? The
Sons of Korah. Korah receives wrath that is
justly due. And we saw over Numbers 26, his
children are spared. Wrath falls upon one, grace falls
upon another. That's how it works, isn't it?
Even in our lives we can say that. I was talking to a dear
sister today and she was saying, me? And that's what every believer
says, me? Oh, how wondrous this grace is.
What wondrous grace this is that the believer has received in
Christ. We receive mercy. Now, several commentators bring
forth that this psalm may have been written during David's time
of flight from Absalon, so keep that in mind as well. It may
have been the occasion for composing this psalm, and we can see that
as we study this psalm, that it's a cry of a man far removed
from outward ordinances in the worship of God. And at the same
time, it is a voice of every born-again believer under depressions. Under depressions. We all go
through that. under depressions, longing for the renewal of divine
presence, struggling with doubts. How many of us struggle with
doubts? I don't even have to ask. Doubts, fears, anxieties,
we all struggle with it. All of us. This psalm is a psalm
where we can gain great strength because it shows us that God
keeps his people. And it shows us what the hope
and who the hope of the psalmist is. It's God himself. God himself. So when we go through doubts
and fears and anxieties, yet the believer holds to the ground
by faith. How? God keeps us, doesn't he?
Keeps us looking to Christ. Keeps us looking to Christ. Trusting
and resting in Christ alone. Now most of the Lord's family
have sailed upon these seas, depression, anxiety, worry, unbelief. We've all sailed on these seas
through our walk with the Lord, haven't we? One time or another,
the sea of trials and tribulations, the seas of mental anguish or
physical anguish, there's not one of us who've been spared. Sometimes people just suffer
in silence, don't say a word. So we can all see what the psalmist pens here,
I believe will be great strength for us all. One commentator says
it's good to read this psalm often because great comfort can
be drawn from it for we who are the Lord's people. So let's look
at Psalm 42, verse 1. To the chief musician, Mashel,
for the sons of Korah. As the heart panteth after the
water brooks, so panteth my soul after thee, O God. Now here we
see the breathings of a regenerated heart. The breathings of a regenerated
heart. One who's born again by the Holy
Spirit of God. They pant after God. They pant,
they desire God. No matter what the situation,
no matter what the circumstance, they desire God. And who do we
turn to but Him? We can't turn anywhere else,
can we, beloved? Nowhere else but Him. And after
a long drought, the poor fainting heart, and it may be a drought
of depression, it may be a drought of anxiety, it may be a drought
of tribulation, it may be a drought of trial, after these long droughts
and struggles that we go through. The poor fainting heart longs
for the streams. Or the hunted heart seeks after
the river. The hunted deer seeks after the
river to refresh himself. And one commentator said to escape
the dogs. And the heart is beautifully
chosen here. To represent the soul of the
believer, which after being chased by the pursuits of Satan in the
world, looks to Jesus. We look to Christ alone. We look
to Him alone. We pant after Him. For the living
streams which flow from Him, the living water which flows
from Him, and makes the city of God glad. Only in Him do we
find joy. Only in Him do we find comfort. In persecutions and trials, who
does your soul pray for? God. I know mine does. He's the one I go to every time. Right at the beginning of a trial,
and in the midst of a trial, and at the end of the trial,
I come out praising God for what He's done. We seek Him all the
time, don't we? It just doesn't stop. Oh my,
and David, now think of David here in this situation. And we
can relate this to David. David is heart sick. His own
son, Absalom, is trying to kill him. I can't even imagine that. I can't even imagine what that
would feel like. And he was not able, and then
on top of that, he's not able to partake in public worship.
He's hiding in caves and fleeing from his son. He can't even partake
in public worship. Can't even worship God with the
people of God. And think of this, how refreshing
it is for the believer when we're able to come and sit And we were
talking about having the privilege of being able to sit under the
gospel and how refreshing that is for our souls. I know when
I sit and listen to a sermon, I am refreshed. When I'm preparing a sermon,
I get refreshed. It's wonderful. It's absolutely
wonderful. live in water for our souls.
So that we who have been rescued from going down into the pit
like Korah did, we've been rescued from that, beloved. We've been
rescued from that rock. And remember how quickly they
were gone, just like that. We've been rescued, beloved.
Rescued from the pit. We can sing and join the psalmist
in singing forth the praises of our God from a heart that
pants after Him. Look at verse 2. My soul thirsteth
for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear
before God? The psalmist brings forth that
their soul thirsteth after God. Now the Hebrew word for God here,
and which is used throughout this psalm, is Elohim. Elohim. is defined as the supreme God. The supreme God. The basic meaning
behind the name Elohim is one of strength and power. Strength
and power. My soul thirsteth after Him who
has all power. Him who has all power. And Elohim,
now think of this, let this sink into your heart, beloved, our
Redeemer, Elohim, our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, God, is
infinite, all-powerful, the one true God. The one true God. And He shares this, doesn't He?
He manifests this by His works. He's the Creator, the Sustainer,
the Supreme Judge of the world. He manifests this power every
time a soul is saved. It's manifested because we're
born again by His power, by the Holy Spirit. It's on full display. Psalm 7,
verse 9 says this, Oh, let the wickedness of the wicked come
to an end, but establish the just. For the righteous God trieth
the hearts and reigns. Oh, let the wickedness of the
wicked come to an end, but establish the just. Who establishes the
just? God does, and only God. For the righteous God, oh He's
a holy and righteous God, trieth the hearts and reigns. He is
the one Elohim who probes the minds and hearts of all. He is
all powerful, all powerful. The just one, the righteous one,
And it is he who establishes the just, because we're made
just by Christ. We're not made just by anything
we did. We can't make ourselves just. Oh, he establishes the
just. We're made just and righteous
in Christ. And the one object is brought
forth that the psalmist thirsts after. Look at verse 2. My soul
thirsts for God, Elohim, for the living God. Again, Elohim.
When shall I come and appear before God? Again, Elohim. His soul, the psalmist's soul
thirsts after God. And it's one object is brought
forth that the psalmist's soul thirsts for. God. In note, in verse 2, my soul
thirsts for God, for the living God. Our God is a living God. He is
a living God. And none but those who are born
again can understand this, what's written here. And note, the psalmist
does not thirst for the temple or the ordinances, but the psalmist
craves for fellowship with God. Fellowship with God. And every
born-again believer can sympathize with him. We can. Thirsting after
God. Thirsting after He who is the
lover of my soul. Because He lives, I live. He's
the living God, it says there. He's the living God. All idols
are dead, lifeless little Jews. God, little gods. But He's the
one true God. He's Elohim. He's Elohim. All those idols that people bow
down before, and people still do it now. Bow down before a
piece of wood or a piece of stone. They're dead, lifeless. Beloved,
we bow down to the one living God. And praise God, he's revealed
himself to you and I. Because we wouldn't know him
otherwise. We bow down like everyone else
to something else. Oh, what a great God. What a
great God and King. My goodness. The redeemed sinner
pants after Christ, who is God incarnate in the flesh, and who
lives forevermore, and is now in glory, making intercession
for us. And look at verse 3. My tears have been my meat, day
and night, while they continually say unto me, Where is thy God? Now here's a striking difference
we see here between verses 1 and 2 and 3. Verses 1 and 2, we look
at the soul that God's grace has made to differ, longing after
Christ, longing after Elohim, and satisfied with nothing but
Him. Satisfied with nothing but Him. But now the psalmist has
experienced extreme grief. And his enemies are saying, where
is thy God? Where is thy God? Turn, if you would, to 2 Samuel.
2 Samuel. Chapter 15, 2 Samuel chapter
15. Think upon this in David's situation. He was driven from Jerusalem
by the rebellion of his son Absalom and taunted by his enemies. And
one of his own trusted advisors turned against him. One of his
trusted advisors turned against him. Look at 2 Samuel 15, look
at verse 12, and Absalom sent for a hithothel, the Giloite,
David's counselor. 2 Samuel 15, 12, from his city,
even from Gilo. Well, he offered sacrifices and
the conspiracy was strong for the people increased continually
with Absalom. And then look at further down
in verses 30 and 31. David went up by the ascent of
the Mount Olive and wept as he went up Well in our psalm it
says my tears have been my meat day and night while they continually
say unto me. Where is thy God? Here we see
David went up by the ascent of Mount Olive and wept as he went
up and had his head covered And he went barefoot and all the
people that was with him covered every man his head and they went
up weeping as they went up And one told David, saying, Ahitophel
is among the conspirators with Absalom. Oh, how that must have
pierced his soul. Now his son, his own son had
turned against him, and now one of his most faithful counselors
has turned against him. And David said, O Lord, I pray
thee, turn the counsel of Ahitophel into foolishness. Now, turn,
if you would, to John chapter 16. And think of our Lord, when
all had forsaken Him, when the sheep were scattered, and His enemies threw barbs in
His face with their tongues. Look at John 16, verses 32 and
33. Behold, the hour Cometh, yea, is now come that
ye shall be scattered. Every man to his own and shall
leave me alone, and yet I am not alone because the Father
is with me. These things have I spoken unto
you, that in me ye might have peace in the world. Ye shall
have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world. And in turn, if you would, in
Matthew 27. So we see there that his disciples are to be scattered.
Every man to his own shall leave me alone. And then look at Matthew
27, verses 42. to 44. And here's the religious
folks of the world of that time, the religious who's who, who
have no idea who they're mocking. Look at Matthew 27 verses 42
to 43. He saved others. Himself He cannot
save. Now little did they know that
at that exact time, There is the King of kings and the Lord
of lords. Hanging upon that cross, Matthew
27, verse 42. He saved others, himself He cannot
save. They are mocking Him while He's
dying upon the cross, saving a number that no man can number. And the whole reason he came
to earth was to give his life for you and me, we who believe.
And at this time, he's redeeming us. And these religious fools
are crying out, oh, he saved others. He can't save himself. He was born to die, beloved.
He was born to give his life for his people. He came to save His people from
their sins. He saved others Himself. He cannot
save, if He be the King of Israel, let Him now come down from the
cross and we will believe Him. He could have called legions
of angels and wiped out every single person there. He opened the ground up and Korah
was swallowed. Oh my, the long suffering of
our blessed Savior. He trusted in God, let him deliver
him now. If you will have him, for he
said, I am the Son of God. And then look at this. And we
know later on there was a great work that the Holy Ghost wrought
upon one of these thieves. But look at this verse and be
in awe and wonder. The thieves also which were crucified
with him cast the same in his teeth. Later on, one of them
These would say, Lord, just remember me. The Lord said to him today,
thou shall be with me in paradise. Mercy, mercy, beloved mercy. Oh, what mercy we have on display. Let's go back to Psalm 42. So if someone asks you, where
is your God when you're going through trials and tribulations,
you say, my God's in the heavens and he does whatever he pleases.
That's where my God is. That's where my God is. Oh my. Look at Psalm 42, verse
4. When I remember these things,
I pour out my soul in me, for I had gone with the multitude.
I went with them into the house of God with the voice of joy
and praise with the multitude that kept the holy day. So he
goes back to sweet remembrances. mingled with tears which recall
past enjoyments of grace and divine fellowship. And what can be more refreshing
in a dark hour? And every one of us go through
dark hours. They come and go, don't they?
What can be more refreshing than when all comfort seems for a
time to be withdrawn, than the recollection of God's past deliverances
in our lives, looking back? and seeing the sweet fellowship
and communion with God and His Word and in the house of God
and in the preaching of the gospel of God's free grace and what
comfort we glean, what strength we get when we're going through
things, when dark hours come. As I said, they come for everyone. They come and pass, don't they? And the Lord carries us through
them all, through them all. Look at verses 5 and 6. Now this
verse 5 is one I put to memory a long, long time ago. Why art
thou cast down, O my soul, and why art thou disquieted in me?
Hope thou in God, for I shall yet praise him for the help of
his countenance. What a wonderful verse. And then,
O my God, my soul is cast down within me. Therefore will I remember
thee from the land of Jordan and of the Hermonites from the
hill of Mizar. Now let us never forget that
God's people may be cast down at times and disquieted. Look
at that. Why art thou cast down, O my soul, and why art thou disquieted
of me? Now if David didn't get down
and depressed and filled with unbelief or anxiety, then that
wouldn't be there, would it? No. David's just like you and
I. David's just a man like you and
I. He struggles just like everyone. He's a man after God's own heart,
but he's human. Oh, my. Now, cast down in the
Hebrew there means to sink or depress. To sink. You ever been depressed? I have. I struggle with that. It's a tough one to go through,
too. But God pulls his people through. You ever struggle with
anxiety? I've struggled with that. I don't think there's one
of us who can nod our head, right? We all have. You ever have doubts,
unbelief? So did David. So did David. Hebrew, it means
to sink or to press, which is about the opposite of having
joy and praise and rejoicing. Disquieted in the Hebrew means
to make a loud sound by implication to be a great commotion or rage,
moan or clamor. This is the opposite of being
still before the Lord. We're to be still before the
Lord. Sometimes we moan and clamor. David's being honest here, or
the psalmist is being honest. And I know as a believer, we
can read this and sing it. We could sing this along with
them, couldn't we? Oh, boy. But notice how it gets turned. We see the psalmist is cast down
in Sola in verse five, but maybe he's looking inward. Maybe he's
looking at the circumstances which have occurred, and he's
like any other man or any other woman. Now he's having a conversation
with himself, though. You notice this? He's having
a conversation with himself. Now let this, let we who are
the beloved God remember how the spirit battles the flesh,
all the time. Why art thou cast down, O my
soul? Why art thou disquieted in me?
Hope thou in God. Hope thou in God. Oh, how easily
we are cast down or disquieted by the flesh, but all the psalmist
here is mourning, but where does he find strength? He finds strength by bowing his
own unbelief and turning to Elohim. Turning to Elohim. Turning to
the one with all power. Hope thou in God. There it is. For I shall yet praise him for
the help of his countenance. The psalmist here finds his strength
in Elohim. the one with all power, the one
with all strength. Hope thou in God, for I shall
yet praise him for the help of his countenance. What, shall
I be depressed and cast down when I have found God faithful
in all the past dealings with me? See, we go through the, so
next time we're going through something, then we get cast down.
Remember, look what the Lord's done for me in the past. This
mountain to me. He'll make it a mohel somehow,
and he does. He does. Will Jehovah be less Jehovah
to me than to all his people? No, he's the same God to all
his people. Why art thou cast down on my
soul? Why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God, for
I shall yet praise him for the help of his countenance. Has
the blood of Christ lost its efficacy to cleanse from all
my sin? No, all my sin's cleansed. Hope thou in God. Hope in Christ. Amen. Can His righteousness justify
me no more before God? No. It's an everlasting righteousness. I'll stand in God's presence
forever because of what Christ has done for me. Oh, hope in
Him. Hope in Him. Perish the thought. We believe in Christ and Christ
alone. We depend upon Christ and Christ
alone. We hope in Christ and Christ
alone. and in His sustaining grace, beloved, through all the
trials and tribulations which come our way. It is He who sustains
us. It is He who sustains us. He's
done it in the past, and He'll do it in the future. He'll do
it in the future. Look at verse 6, Oh my God, my
soul is cast down within me, therefore will I remember Thee
from the land of Jordan and the Hermites from the hill of Mizar. He's looking back, oh Lord, look
what you've done. Now look at verses seven and
eight. Deep calleth unto deep, and the noise of thy water spouts,
all thy waves and thy billows are gone over me. Sometimes when
we're going through something that feels like all the waves
just, we're drowning, don't we? Sometimes we do. Yet the Lord
will command His loving kindness in the daytime and in the night.
His song shall be with me in my prayer unto the God of my
life." And here we see the psalmist amidst the waves and billows
of trial or temptation, or distress or depression, again in verse
8, looking at Jehovah, the self-existent one. Now we see him use the word
Jehovah. knowing that God in his loving
kindness has ordained all these things and will sustain him. Let us ever remember that, no
matter what comes our way. It's ordained by God for the
believer. We just trust and hope in him.
And it's hard sometimes, isn't it? It's tough sometimes. But he is the sustainer of us,
of his people. Turn, if you would, to Psalm
30. Psalm 30, do you know the Lord will turn our mourning into
dancing? He'll turn our mourning into
dancing, beloved. And what that means, we're just
full of joy. And He does that, doesn't He? When He takes us
out of things, we're just full of joy. Oh, it's wonderful. And think of this, it's He who
has all power, He who sustains all things, who takes us through
all these things. And it's for our good. We don't
see that, do we? When we're going through whatever
we're going through. But oh my. He turns our mourning into dancing.
These times of sorrow which we go through draws closer to our
great God and King. Psalm 30, verses 10 to 12. Hear, O Lord, and have mercy
upon me. Lord, be thou my helper. Thou hast turned for me my mourning
into dancing. Thou hast put off my sackcloth
and girded me with gladness. To the end that my glory may
sing praise to Thee and not be silence. O Lord my God, I will
give thanks unto Thee forever. And we will when we get the glory.
We will when we get the glory. And has He not turned your mourning
into dancing when He revealed to you that you're a sinner like
Me? And that for we who believe,
all our sins are forgiven in Christ, and that we're justified
in Christ, and that He purchased our pardon. Did that not turn
our mourning into dancing? Did that not fill us with gladness,
beloved? Oh, what a Savior. What a Redeemer.
And will we not praise Him forever? Yeah, we will. We will. And one day, I love that song,
it'll be in a sweeter and nobler voice, won't it? It will be one
day. It will be. Oh my. My, oh my. Look at verse 7 in
Marvel here. Marvel here, it says, Deep calleth
unto deep as the noise of thy water spouts. All the waves and
billows are gone over me. Now Hawker pointed me right to
Christ with this. Hawker brings up Christ here.
It says, Deep calleth unto deep, but the noise of thy water swaths
all the waves, and thy billows are gone over me. There is only
One who all the waves and billows have gone over. All the wrath
of God has fallen upon Him. Only One. That's the Lord Jesus
Christ. Christ, when He bore the sins
of His people, the sinless one, bearing the justice and punishment
of God in our place. Our sins were imputed to him,
and of him only it can be said that God's ways went over him. Turn if you would to Jonah chapter
2. Jonah chapter 2. Jonah chapter 2. Look at verses 2 and 3. And further
down, Jonah says, salvations of the Lord in verse 9, but I
want us to look at verses 2 and 3 here. And Jonah is a picture
of Christ. and it says in Jonah 2, verses
2 and 3, and said, I cried by reason of mine affliction unto
the Lord, and he heard me out of the belly of hell, cried I,
and thou heardest my voice. For thou hast cast me into the
deep and the midst of the seas, and the floods come past me about,
and all thy billows and thy waves pass over me. Only Christ. And David, if we
look at this in Psalm 42, is David, David who is a type of
Christ, and it might be said that he went through some trials
and tribulations, but Christ in the place of his people, now
think of this. One commentator brought this
out, I've got to quote this. Christ in the place of his people
had the vials of God's wrath for his people which was due
them poured out upon him. as their church. So think of
that. All the wrath that was due me.
And if you're a believer, all the wrath that was due you was
poured upon you. And not just for you and I, but
for all the elect of all the ages. A number that no man can
number. And it's poured out upon the
blessed church. What a Savior! What a Redeemer! Praise God, the Redeemed of the
Lord, the blood-bought, regenerated Saints of God! Know that many
waters could not quench Thy love, nor all the floods drowned it.
Song of Solomon 8, verse 7 says this, Many waters cannot quench
Thy love. And think of all the waves of
the wrath of God pouring upon our Savior. It cannot quench
the love that He has for His people, beloved. It can't quench it. And He hangs
on that cross and cries, It is Many waters cannot quench love,
neither can the floods drown it. If a man would give all his
substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contempt.
Oh, he gave his life. He gave his life for those he
loves. And the wrath of God poured out upon him. He took it all. That's why scripture declares
greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his
life for his friend. That's speaking about Christ.
That's speaking about Christ. Oh my. What a Savior. Now let's consider
verses 9 and 10. I will say unto God, my rock,
why hast thou forgotten me? Why go I mourning because of
the oppression of the enemy? as with a sword in my bones my
enemies reproach me while they say daily unto me, where is thy
God? Turn if you would to Isaiah chapter
50. Isaiah chapter 50. Now the psalmist in Psalm 42
here, he goes to the one who is the rock. My rock. Who's your rock? The believer
says, my rock's God. My rock is God. And we lay our situations before
him. We lay our struggles before him. And he sustains us. And we hold
fast upon him, who is the rock of our souls. The Rock of Ages,
the Lord Jesus Christ. And look at Isaiah chapter 50,
verses 8 to 10. He is near that justifieth me. Who will contend with me? Let
us stand together. Who is mine adversary? Let him
come near. Let him come near to me. Behold,
the Lord will help me. All below me. The Lord is our
helper. Behold, the Lord will help me.
Who is he that shall condemn me? Now, for the believer, think
of this. Shall fellow man condemn us?
No. Shall the law of God condemn
we who are in Christ? No. No. We're justified in Christ. were
justified in Him. Who shall bring a charge against
any of God's elect? Why can't they bring a charge
against God's elect? Because all our sins are paid
for by the surety of the Lord Jesus Christ. He satisfied God's
divine wrath, that all that wrath was poured upon Him. All that
the law of God demanded, He satisfied. Who is he that shall condemn
me? Lo, they all shall wax old as a garment, the moss shall
eat them up. Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth
the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness and hath
no light? Let him trust in the name of the Lord and stay upon
his God. Let's go back to Psalm 42 and
look at what it says in verse 9. I will say unto God, my rock. He's my rock. Now in here the
psalmist says, why hast thou forgotten? Why go I mourning
because of the oppression of the enemy? As with the sword
in my bones, mine enemies reproach me while they say daily, where
is thy God? The psalmist again is clinging,
clinging to the only one who is the rock. And it says, as with the sword
in my bones, mine enemies reproach me while they say daily unto
me, where is thy God? The psalmist brings forth the
reproaches of his enemies. They're grievous to him. They
cut him. cut in his soul, as if a sword pierced through the
marrow in his bones. It brings great pain to the psalmist
to hear them say, where is thy God? The unkindest cut, the unkindest
cut of all this, when someone says, where is thy God? When
you're going through a midst of a trial and triggers. Brother
Henry Mahan, when his son died in Vietnam, someone came up to
him and said, where's your God now? Another preacher I know,
when his little boy died on the job site that he worked at, some
guy came up to him and said, where's your God now? And both
those faithful men answered, my God is in the heavens. He
ain't gone nowhere. He's not gone anywhere. Now that's
God giving them grace to say that. But that's what both those
men said. My God's in the heavens. So this
is the cut that cuts most of all. Where is thy God? cut of
the tongue aims at the, why is it the unkindest cut of all?
Because it aims at God's faithfulness. But even though men who do not
know God say this, the believer knows, my God is faithful all
the time, no matter what I'm going through. And though he
slay me, yet I'll trust him. That's what we say. That's what
we say. He's our rock. He's the rock
of our salvation. He's our God, the Lord Jesus
Christ, the Redeemer of our eternal souls. Now let's close with verse
11. It says this, Why art thou cast down, O my soul, and why
art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou on God, for I shall
yet praise him. Now it's changed here, who is
the health of my countenance and my God. Now so from verse
5, everything's the same except for the very latter part of this.
But the psalmist here is clinging to the rock of his soul. He's
clinging to God, just as we do. Just as we do, even now. Just
as every blood-brought believer does. We cling to Christ, the
Lord our righteousness, God incarnate in the flesh. We look to Him.
And when we look to Him, our fears don't seem as overwhelming
as they did when we weren't looking to Him. I know for me, when I
look at the circumstances, oh my! And then we look to the Lord.
And in the fear of those circumstances, they shrink. They do. They do. Oh, my. No, they don't
seem as overwhelming when they're shouted in clouds of doubt and
despair, right? Because when we're looking at
the circumstances, we're usually doubting or we're in despair
or we're anxious or we could even be going through a depressive
state. And we're but but we're looking at that. It just seems
so huge. But when we look to our great
god and king, Oh, hope springs in our hearts, and those things
don't seem as overwhelming as what they once appeared. I'll
ask you, who's your hope? Who's your hope? Now, believer
answers, none but Christ. None but Christ. He alone is
the anchor which keeps my soul. The one I hold on to. Now, think
of this. Hope is like the sun. It brings
light out of darkness. It brings light out of darkness.
And as we're joining towards it, as you're joining towards
the sun, it casts the shadow of our burden behind us. Oh my. Hope. Hope is like the sun. It brings light out of darkness.
And He is not only the help of the psalmist it says here it
says why are they all cast down on my soul and why are they all
disquieting within me hope thou and God so he's the hope Elohim
is his hope for I shall yet praise him who is the health of my countenance
and my God the help health and help of the psalmist countenance
was not in himself one in himself The help and health
of our countenance is not in ourselves. No. No, it's in God. We see that here. His faith silences his fears. His faith silences his depression. His faith silences his anxiety
because his hope is in Christ. His hope is in Christ. in the
midst of trials and troubles, which come the believer's way,
and they do, in times of being anxious, times of being fearful, what
silences those times? When we look to Christ. When
a believer looks to Christ. He is the hope and help of Mike
Elton's. And note, we have an addition
at the end of this verse, which is not in verse five. My God. My God. Believer says, my God. Oh, my God. The one who saved
my soul. The one who's redeemed me. The
writer was growing in confidence, one commentator said, in his
great God and king. And as his confidence grows in
his God, and this happens, think of this too, this happens to
every believer as we're going through a trial and a tribulation.
At first we're like, oh my, what's happening? Are we? And then we see God move. We
see God move. We see his mighty hand at work.
He makes those mountains into mohills. Oh, we say, my God. You're wondrous, why did I even
doubt you? Why did I even doubt you? Oh my. So the writer's growing
in confidence as he goes through the trial, coming to the end
of the trial, or the tribulation, or sorrow, or anxiety, or depression.
Oh, and these situations, think of this too. These situations
do not drive the believer away from God. No. They don't drive the believer
away from God. They strengthen their faith. They strengthen
our faith. And we may not see that when
we're going through it. And we don't, do we? We don't. But we come out on the other
side having grown in the grace of Christ stronger than when
we were at the start of that trial or tribulation or period
of mental anguish or whatever you're going through. Oh, they make us flee to our
great God. And it's He alone who delivers
us in the midst of our enemies and through all our trials and
tribulations. So we who are the redeemed, let
us leave here. We who are the redeemed of the
Lord, let us leave here remembering that our Lord has delivered us
from the biggest enemy that we ever had, our sin. arson. Praise is mine. Heavenly Father, we thank you
for your word and how it teaches us and comforts us. What great
comfort we can glean from this psalm that we looked at tonight.
David or whoever wrote it, the psalmist writing the being cast
down and disquieted in his soul. But oh, his hope turns to thee,
you who have all power and strength, our great Redeemer and Savior,
the Lord Jesus Christ. May you be glorified in the preaching
of your word, and may you use this message for your glory and
honor and praise. And we love thee only because
you first loved us. In Jesus' name, amen.