DON’T TAKE MATTERS IN YOUR OWN HANDS!

ARE YOUR ENEMIES DRIVING YOU TO GOD?

Psalm 17:1-2

Hear a just cause, O LORD; attend to my cry!

Give ear to my prayer from lips free of deceit!

From your presence let my vindication come!

Let your eyes behold the right!

God wants us to pray! And here, David is expecting the eternal, sustaining LORD to listen to his prayer. David is not taking matters in his own hands; he is approaching God with humble expectation that God will look, evaluate and respond to his needs in righteousness.

It is so easy, when we are going through hard times, to want to take matters into our own hands. We might do this by retaliating in word or in deeds, or, as it happens to me, exposing the deeds of others by complaints or accusations. What is certain in this Psalm is that David is showing total dependence on God. His behavior has remained righteous.

Psalm 17:3-5

You have tried my heart, you have visited me by night,

you have tested me, and you will find nothing;

I have purposed that my mouth will not transgress.

With regard to the works of man, by the word of your lips

I have avoided the ways of the violent.

My steps have held fast to your paths;

my feet have not slipped.

David has guarded his heart, he has purposed to watch the words of his mouth, he has not spent time thinking of human responses, and he has controlled his actions. He has followed the paths of God, and has been careful not to slip. David is describing the path to righteousness that we, too, should follow. Our first step is to inspect our hearts. Are we storing up anger, disappointment, bitterness, revenge, unhappiness? When we allow these attitudes to build up in our hearts, our mouths will eventually speak accordingly. We should be the first ones to listen to what we say. We tend to justify evil talk, minimizing it as ‘venting’ or ‘blowing off steam’. Sometimes, we prefer to appear more spiritual by asking for advice or prayer, when in truth we are seeking revenge by exposing others - not for their benefit, but to provide some kind of selfish satisfaction or relief. As we allow our hearts to go in a wrong direction, our mouths will expose this, while our minds will produce the ungodly reactions and deeds that soon will follow.

How I need to focus upon the ways of God! The problems and the people will not disappear. What I need is to go to the Lord in prayer.

Psalm 17:6-7

I call upon you, for you will answer me, O God;

incline your ear to me; hear my words.

Wondrously show your steadfast love,

O Savior of those who seek refuge

from their adversaries at your right hand.

David has no doubt that God will listen. He knows that he is loved with everlasting, faithful love. God loves His children to run to Him in the midst of their problems. Have you taken the time to reflect on the fact that God is allowing those people and situations in your life in order to attract you to Himself, and to cause you to loosen your grip on the world? God is meticulously working to bring you closer to Him, so He can wonderfully embrace you with His love. Too often, we go to God with predetermined solutions in mind. We then tend to evaluate His love, based upon the answers conforming to what we wanted. Instead, our prayers to the Savior God must be accompanied by complete trust in His will and His providence. God’s response will always show His loving care for us.

The wickedness of David’s enemies was, however, real and seemingly overwhelming.

Psalm 17:8-14

Keep me as the apple of your eye;

hide me in the shadow of your wings,

from the wicked who do me violence,

my deadly enemies who surround me.

They close their hearts to pity;

with their mouths they speak arrogantly.

They have now surrounded our steps;

they set their eyes to cast us to the ground.

He is like a lion eager to tear,

as a young lion lurking in ambush.

Arise, O LORD! Confront him, subdue him!

Deliver my soul from the wicked by your sword,

from men by your hand, O LORD,

from men of the world whose portion is in this life.

You fill their womb with treasure;

they are satisfied with children,

and they leave their abundance to their infants.

The description of these enemies is one of people who have closed their hearts towards God. They live for what is temporal. They will do whatever they can to achieve their human desires. David has not followed the ways of his enemies; he has found refuge under the wings of his LORD.

We must ask ourselves if our lives are driven in by the same desires and goals that the world has. Or are we driven by what has eternal goals and values? What is really causing our distress?

David made the wise decision:

Psalm 17:15

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness;

when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness.

David chose to look to his God, satisfied by his relationship with his Lord. Is this true of you and me? Let us emulate David, who found his pleasure and satisfaction in God, not in circumstances or people.