Psalm 25 - The Only Path!!!
King David lived nearly 3000 years ago as both humble shepherd boy and as king of an expanding nation. He knew what it was like to suffer from the elements in nature, to suffer through plots against his life and to face death as his enemies (and the enemies of the nation of Israel) surrounded him and the nation he led.
So when he speaks from the heart, describing how he feels in such turbulent instances, it should resonate with us because the words that David writes in the psalms he wrote are common to the human experience.
In these turbulent times that we currently live in where there is an ever growing level of conflict within our nations, and between nations. Godly wisdom and influence is being cast out of our communities and our nations - and the world is starting to reap the whirlwind that it has sown by doing so.
In Psalm 25 we see David crying out to God (Yahweh) about the predicaments he finds himself in, and the troubling times he is seemingly experiencing over and over again. Yet, there is a common thread throughout the psalm and it ties David and his humanness to his faith in God (Yahweh) - it is a thread that holds a mirror up to our own faith even as we struggle through life’s difficulties.
Psalm 25 says…
Verses 1-3: “O Lord, I give my life to you. I trust in you, my God!
Do not let me be disgraced, or let my enemies rejoice in my defeat. No one who trusts in you will ever be disgraced, but disgrace comes to those who try to deceive others.”
King David starts this psalm off by giving worship and praise to God, and by acknowledging that he puts all his trust in God.
David then goes on to offer up a plea that many of us have echoed over the millennia since David wrote this psalm - “God please help, I am being attacked by my enemies!”
Yet, even with this plea David acknowledges that God will protect those who put their trust in HIM, and that it is the evildoers that will be punished and destroyed.
It is interesting to note that David mentions those that deliberately go out to deceive others. In today’s world this is ever the more true - where the forces of evil spew their lies and their deception to try and create a spirit and environment of fear in people for the aim of controlling them.
Verses 4-5: “Show me the right path, O Lord; point out the road for me to follow. Lead me by your truth and teach me, for you are the God who saves me. All day long I put my hope in you.”
In these next couple of verses David links the previous notion of deceivers and brings it into the light of God’s truth. David connects the fact that God is the source of truth and that by following the path of God for his life then he will be saved and guided by the Lord.
part of the actions of following God and HIS path for David (and for us) was to place our ‘hope’ in God. Now many Christians will get this mixed up with western ideologies and worldview.
The hope that David is referring to is not just linked to physical things but also spiritual things. Our future hope, our eternal hope - the hope for our soul resides in God alone.
David was not solely talking about being protected from those that sought to harm him.
In today’s world many Christians are taking the hope of God (Yahweh) to mean that HE is a magic genie that will give us our desires if we plead enough like spoilt toddlers. We want the high paying job, the nice cars and houses, the expensive clothes, the leisure time (etc) - those are the hopes what people are having - which is not the hope that we should have. All of these things can be taken from us in an instant, so too can our life.
Our hope - gained through our faith in Jesus Christ as our saviour and Lord - is that we shall live forever in the presence of Almighty God for eternity. It is not about the momentary pleasures we seek here on Earth.
Following the right path is this… Romans 12:2 “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.”
Verses 6-7: “Remember, O Lord, your compassion and unfailing love, which you have shown from long ages past. Do not remember the rebellious sins of my youth. Remember me in the light of your unfailing love, for you are merciful, O Lord.”
Repentance is key to fully placing our trust in God (Yahweh) - it is the sign of true trust in God and true humility before God.
God’s love - HIS unfailing love provides forgiveness for us.
Romans 5:15 informs us that… “But there is a great difference between Adam’s sin and God’s gracious gift. For the sin of this one man, Adam, brought death to many. But even greater is God’s wonderful grace and his gift of forgiveness to many through this other man, Jesus Christ.”
So, perhaps we should be like King David and ask for forgiveness for the things we do, say and think that are counter to God’s will for our lives.
Verses 8-10: “The Lord is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way. The Lord leads with unfailing love and faithfulness all who keep his covenant and obey his demands.”
King David knew what it was like to go astray - he knew what it was like to do things so wrong that other people suffered because of it. I’m sure that many of us can relate to that as well.
David also knows that the only place one can find forgiveness for their sins is through God’s mercy and grace - not in the completion of animal sacrifices or going out and doing a great amount of good things for others.
And when one asks for forgiveness from God, and is truly repentant - then that person will be led by God into the purpose that the Heavenly Father has for them in this lifetime.
Verses 11-15: “For the honour of your name, O Lord, forgive my many, many sins. Who are those who fear the Lord? He will show them the path they should choose. They will live in prosperity, and their children will inherit the land. The Lord is a friend to those who fear him. He teaches them his covenant. My eyes are always on the Lord, for he rescues me from the traps of my enemies.”
It is only after we put our faith in God, that HE can work in our favour in this life. HE will guide us to act wisely, so that we can provide for our families.
God has a covenant with the people of Israel, just as HE has a covenant with the gentile believers (us). The New Covenant that is brought forth from the time of Christ and the New Testament encompasses both groups and is grounded in the belief that Jesus of nazareth is the messiah and the Lord of all.
When we have our eyes fixed on that - then God is able to show us where we will go wrong, and where others are aiming to do harm to us, and cause us problems. Our focus needs to be on Christ and Christ alone.
Verses 16-21: “Turn to me and have mercy, for I am alone and in deep distress.
My problems go from bad to worse. Oh, save me from them all! Feel my pain and see my trouble. Forgive all my sins. See how many enemies I have and how viciously they hate me! Protect me! Rescue my life from them! Do not let me be disgraced, for in you I take refuge. May integrity and honesty protect me, for I put my hope in you.”
In these few verses we see the depths of David’s despair and his worry.
He calls out to God in regards to his circumstances. His phrases “I am alone and deep distress. My problems go from bad to worse” sounds familiar doesn’t it? At least once, if not more times we have felt exactly the same. It is a common cry to humanity living the lives we do in this dark fallen world.
The thing is that our adversary - Satan - wants us to feel alone and isolated, especially from Jesus/The Father/The Holy Spirit, as well as from each other as the body of Christ. We are not alone, all we have to do is cry out to God just as David did.
We need to call our like David and say - “God you are my only hope for surviving this life, so much is going on right now and I feel weak, useless and alone. You are righteous and merciful, may your love protect me from evil in these days:”
Verse 22: “O God, ransom Israel from all its troubles.”
In some of King David’s psalms it is common to see him plead and petition the Lord on behalf of his kingdom, and the people within it.
What is interesting is that this is a short foreshadowing of the same sort of prayer that Jesus offers up to the Father prior to HIS ascension to heaven that is found in John 17.
A good leader, a godly leader will always pray for the people they lead. A good leader will always try to put the struggles and trials of the people they lead at the feet of Jesus so that God’s mercy and grace can be shown in their situation.
For those of us who are in positions of leadership we need to ask the of ourselves - “Do we pray for our people enough?” - I know from personal experience that the answer is often “Probably not as much as we should be.”
May the words of King David ring true for you in these times, and may they encourage and strengthen you. May you seek a path guided by the Lord, where you set aside the things of this world and focus on the things of the Kingdom of God so that others may be guided to the truth of Jesus Christ.