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66 lines
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<h2><a onclick="return mV('Psa',5,'all');">Psa 5</a> - A Morning Prayer</h2>
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<p><i>This Psalm carries the title,</i> To the Chief Musician. <span>With flutes.</span> <span>A Psalm of David.</span> <i>It shows David coming to the <span class="c6">Lord</span> in the morning and receiving the strength and joy he needs to make it through the day against many adversaries.</i></p>
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<p>A. Approaching God in the morning.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Psa',5,'1-3');">1-3</a>) David approaches God.</p>
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<p class="c2">Give ear to my words, O <span class="c6">Lord</span>,<br>Consider my meditation.<br>Give heed to the voice of my cry,<br>My King and my God,<br>For to You I will pray.<br>My voice <span>You</span> shall hear in the morning, O <span class="c6">Lord</span>;<br>In the morning I will direct <i>it </i>to <span>You</span>,<br>And I will look up.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Give ear...consider...give heed</span></b>: David longs for an audience with God. Using the Hebrew method of parallelism he repeats the same idea three times: "<span class="c6">Lord</span>, please listen to me."</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">For to You I will pray</span></b>: David prayed to God. This may sound elementary, but it is an essential aspect of prayer. Often we come to prayer so full of our request or our feelings that we never consciously focus on God and sense His presence. David was a great man of prayer because His prayer time was focused on God.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. "Very much of so-called prayer, both public and private, is not unto God. In order that a prayer should be really unto God, there must be a definite and conscious approach to God when we pray; we must have a definite and vivid realization that God is bending over us and listening as we pray." (<span>Torrey</span>)</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">My voice <span>You</span> shall hear in the morning</span></b>: David made it a point to pray <b><span class="c3">in the morning</span></b>. He did this because he wanted to honor God at the beginning of his day, and set the tone for an entire day dedicated unto God.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. Hudson</span> Taylor, the famous missionary to China, had trouble finding time alone with God. He began to wake himself up at 2:00 in the morning and using those quiet hours when everyone else slept to commune with God.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. "What is a slothful sinner to think of himself, when he reads, concerning the holy name of Jesus, that 'in the morning, rising up a great while before the day, he went out and departed into a solitary place, and there <span>prayed!</span>' - <a onclick="return mV('Mar',1,35);">Mar 1:35</a>" (Horne)</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. "This is the fittest time for intercourse with God. An hour in the morning is worth two in the evening. While the dew is on the grass, let grace drop upon the soul." (Spurgeon)</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">In the morning I will direct it to <span>You</span>, and I will look up</span></b>: David gives us what to do <i>before</i> and <i>after</i> prayer. Before we pray, we should <b><span class="c3">direct</span></b> our prayer. After we pray, we <b><span class="c3">look up</span></b> with expectancy to heaven, really believing that God will answer.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. The idea behind <b><span class="c3">direct</span></b> is not "to aim" but "to order, to arrange." "It is the word that is used for the laying in order of the wood and pieces of the victim upon the altar, and it is used also for the putting of the <span>shewbread</span> upon the table. It means just this: 'I will arrange my prayer before thee;' I will lay it out upon the altar in the morning, just as the priest lays out the morning sacrifice." (Spurgeon)</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. "It is manifestly a mistake to pray at haphazard. There is too much random praying with us all. We do not return again and again to the same petition, pressing it home with all humility and reverence, and arguing the case, as Abraham did his for the cities of the plain." (Meyer)</p>
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<p class="c5">iii. "Do we not miss very much of the sweetness and efficacy of prayer by a want of careful meditation before it, and of hopeful expectation after it? Let holy preparation link hands with patient <span>expectation,</span> and we shall have far larger answers to our prayers." (Spurgeon)</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Psa',5,'4-8');">4-8</a>) <span>A</span> contrast between the wicked man and the godly man.</p>
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<p class="c2">For <span>You</span> <i>are </i>not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness,<br>Nor shall evil dwell with <span>You</span>.<br>The boastful shall not stand in <span>Your</span> sight;<br>You hate all workers of iniquity.<br>You shall destroy those who speak falsehood;<br>The <span class="c6">Lord</span> abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.<br>But as for me, I will come into <span>Your</span> house in the multitude of Your mercy;<br>In fear of <span>You</span> I will worship toward Your holy temple.<br>Lead me, O <span class="c6">Lord</span>, in <span>Your</span> righteousness because of my enemies;<br>Make <span>Your</span> way straight before my face.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">You are not a God who takes pleasure in wickedness</span></b>: David meditates on the righteous character of God. Our actions matter before a God who hates <b><span class="c3">all workers of iniquity</span></b>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. As David drew closer to God he became more aware of God's holiness and man's sinfulness. "This is a good way to measure how well you are praying and whether, as you pray, you are drawing close to God or are merely mouthing words. If you are drawing close to God, you will become increasingly sensitive to sin, which is inevitable since the God you are approaching is a holy God." (<span>Boice</span>)</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">I will come into <span>Your</span> house in the multitude of Your mercy</span></b>: This is David's confidence. It isn't that he is righteous and all others are sinners; his ground of confidence is the <b><span class="c3">mercy</span></b> of God.</p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">In fear of <span>You</span> I will worship</span></b>: David's worship isn't based on <i>his</i> feelings, but on his reverence for a righteous, merciful God.</p>
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<p class="c4">d. <b><span class="c3">Make <span>Your</span> way straight before my face</span></b>: This reflects David's constant reliance on God. He needs God to lead him and to make the way <b><span class="c3">straight</span></b>. David's contrast between the wicked and the godly is humble, and he knows it is only God's power and work in him that can keep him from the way of the wicked.</p>
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<p>B. Description and destiny.</p>
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<p class="c1">1. (<a onclick="return mV('Psa',5,'9-10');">9-10</a>) <span>The</span> description and destiny of the wicked.</p>
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<p class="c2">For <i>there is </i>no faithfulness in their mouth;<br>Their inward part <i>is </i>destruction;<br>Their throat <i>is </i>an open tomb;<br>They flatter with their tongue.<br>Pronounce them guilty, O God!<br>Let them fall by their own counsels;<br>Cast them out in the multitude of their transgressions,<br>For they have rebelled against <span>You</span>.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">There is no faithfulness in their mouth</span></b>: David focuses on what the wicked <i>say</i> as evidence of their wickedness. David knew what Jesus said later in <a onclick="return mV('Mat',12,34);">Mat 12:34</a>: <i>Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks</i>. Our righteousness or wickedness will sooner or later show up in our speech.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. David felt the sting of wicked words and lies against him. Yet this prayer shows something good brought out of the attacks from the enemy. "Thus a man's enemies, while they oblige him to pray more fervently, and to watch more narrowly over his conduct, oftentimes become his best friends." (Horne)</p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">They flatter with their tongue</span></b>: "<span>Always beware of people who flatter you, and especially when they tell you that they do not flatter you, and that they know you cannot endure flattery, for you are then being most fulsomely flattered, so be on your guard against the tongue of the flatterer." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">Let them fall by their own counsels</span></b>: David prays that the wicked will come to their deserved end. As rebels against God, they deserve the "guilty" sentence.</p>
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<p class="c1">2. (<a onclick="return mV('Psa',5,'11-12');">11-12</a>) <span>The</span> description and destiny of the righteous.</p>
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<p class="c2">But let all those rejoice who put their trust in <span>You</span>;<br>Let them ever shout for joy, because <span>You</span> defend them;<br>Let those also who love <span>Your</span> name<br>Be joyful in <span>You</span>.<br>For You, O <span class="c6">Lord</span>, will bless the righteous;<br>With favor <span>You</span> will surround him as <i>with </i>a shield.</p>
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<p class="c4">a. <b><span class="c3">Let all those rejoice who put their trust in <span>You</span></span></b>: The righteous aren't made righteous by their words. The righteousness <span>are</span> those who <b><span class="c3">trust</span></b> the <span class="c6">Lord</span> and <b><span class="c3">love</span></b> His <b><span class="c3">name</span></b>. But their righteousness is <i>evident</i> in their words. They <b><span class="c3">rejoice</span></b>, they <b><span class="c3">shout for joy</span></b>, and they are <b><span class="c3">joyful in</span></b> the <span class="c6">Lord</span>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i<span>. "A touch of enthusiasm would be the salvation of many a man's religion. Some Christians are good enough people: they are like wax candles, but they are not lighted. Oh, for a touch of flame! Then would they scatter light, and thus become of service to their families. 'Let them shout for joy.' Why not? Let not orderly folks object. One said to me the other day, 'When I hear you preach I feel as if I must have a shout!' My friend, shout if you feel forced to do so. (Here a hearer cried, 'Glory!') Our brother cries, 'Glory!' and I say so too. <span>'Glory!'</span> The shouting need not always be done in a public service, or it might hinder devout hearing; but there are times and places where a glorious outburst of enthusiastic joy would quicken life in all around. The ungodly are not half <span>so</span> restrained in their blasphemy as we are in our praise." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c4">b. <b><span class="c3">But let all those rejoice who put their trust in <span>You</span></span></b>: This is a <i>permit</i>, a <i>precept</i>, a <i>prayer</i>, and a <i>promise</i>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. You have <i>permission</i> for joy. "<span>You have here a ticket to the banquets of joy. You may be as happy as ever you like. You have divine permission to shout for joy." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c5">ii. You have a <i>precept</i>, a command for joy: "<span>Come, ye mournful ones, <span>be</span> glad. Ye discontented grumblers, come out of that dog-hole! Enter the palace of the King! Quit your dunghills; ascend your thrones." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c5">iii. You should pray for joy, both in yourself and others - especially servants of the <span class="c6">Lord</span>. "<span>If you lose your joy in your religion, you will be a poor worker: you cannot bear strong testimony, you cannot bear stern trial, <span>you</span> cannot lead a powerful life. In proportion as you maintain your joy, you will be strong <i>in </i>the Lord, and <i>for </i>the Lord." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c5">iv. You have a <i>promise</i> for joy: "<span>God promises joy and gladness to believers. Light is sown for them: the Lord will turn their night into day." (Spurgeon)</span></p>
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<p class="c4">c. <b><span class="c3">You, O Lord, will bless the righteous; with favor <span>You</span> will surround him</span></b>: This is the greatest blessing of all - the <b><span class="c3">favor</span></b> of God. Knowing that God looks on us with favor and pleasure is the greatest knowledge in the world. This is our standing in <i>grace</i>.</p>
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<p class="c5">i. A <b><span class="c3">shield</span></b> does not protect any one area of the body. It is large and mobile enough to cover any and every area of the body. It is armor over armor. This is how fully the favor of God, our standing in grace, protects us.</p>
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<p class="c5">ii. When Martin Luther was on his way to face a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church to answer for what they said were his heretical teachings, one of the Cardinal's servants taunted him saying, "Where will you find shelter if your patron, the Elector of Saxony, should desert you?" Luther answered, "Under the shelter of heaven."</p>
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