My Enemies Trample
Psalm 56:1-4 ESV
Be gracious to me, O God, for man tramples on me; all day long an attacker oppresses me;my enemies trample on me all day long, for many attack me proudly.When I am afraid, I put my trust in you.In God, whose word I praise, in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can flesh do to me?
Jesus Christ, when he lived
on this earth, told his followers that they would be hated and persecuted for
righteousness’ sake and for the sake of the name of Jesus and his gospel
message. Yet, this would be their opportunity to bear witness for Him. He told
them that they would even be delivered up for persecution by family members and
close friends, and that even some of them would be put to death (See: Lu.
21:10-18; Jn. 15:20). And, because of this, they were blessed (See: Matt.
5:10-12).
But, they were not to get
even with those who treated them badly. Instead, they were to love their
enemies, pray for them, do good to them, and bless them (See: Lu. 6:27-28).
And, then Paul, one of Jesus’
apostles, gave us, the Lord’s followers, many words of encouragement with
regard to how we are to respond to such persecution as this. We are to bless,
not curse our persecutors (Rom. 12:14). In other words, we are to hope for them
what is for their best, according to what is God’s best for them. We are to
endure such treatment from our enemies for the sake of Jesus and his gospel,
and for the sake of the salvation of human lives (1 Co. 4:12). And, this is so
that the life of Jesus may be revealed in our lives (2 Co. 4:7-12). “Indeed,
all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted”
(2 Tim. 3:12).
And, we are not to be afraid
of what humans may do to us or what trials we may have to endure for the sake
of following Jesus Christ, and for the sake of his gospel (Matt. 10:25-27; Lu.
12:4-5; 2 Tim. 1:6-8; Heb. 13:5-6). But, we are to trust in the Lord, to keep
following him and obeying him, and to keep sharing the gospel of our salvation
so that many will hear, and so that many will believe and will turn their
hearts and lives over to Jesus Christ. For, our enemies may be able to do us
harm in this life, but they cannot take Christ away from us, so we need to
remain steadfast and pray to God.
Will They Escape?
Psalm 56:5-7 ESV
All day long they injure my cause; all their thoughts are against me for evil.They stir up strife, they lurk; they watch my steps, as they have waited for my life.For their crime will they escape? In wrath cast down the peoples, O God!
The sad reality of all of
this is that there are many people who will never trust in Jesus Christ as Lord
and Savior of their lives. They, throughout their lives, will remain Christ’s
enemies, and therefore they will treat us, his servants, as their enemies, as
well. They will oppose all that is of God, including his gospel message and all
those who are sharing that gospel message, too. For these enemies of God serve
Satan, whose goal it is to destroy us and the gospel of our salvation.
And, unless they turn their
hearts to Jesus Christ, and submit to his Lordship over their lives, and follow
him in walks of obedience, they will not escape the wrath of God at the end of
time when he judges those who chose to continue to walk in darkness, who denied
the truth, and who followed after the lie, instead.
My Tears
Psalm 56:8-11 ESV
You have kept count of my tossings; put my tears in your bottle. Are they not in your book?Then my enemies will turn back in the day when I call. This I know, that God is for me.In God, whose word I praise, in the Lord, whose word I praise,in God I trust; I shall not be afraid. What can man do to me?
Because we are human, mere clay
in the Potter’s hands, and we live in flesh bodies, we have human emotions. We
cry when we hurt, or at least some of us do. In fact, it is healthy to cry, for
we need to get that emotional release, and we need to cry out our suffering to
God and lean on him and his strength, and then rest in his comfort and healing.
Even if our faith in our Lord
is strong, and our commitment to him and to his service is steadfast
(unwavering), we are still human, and as humans we experience pain and
suffering. And, when troubles and hardships and persecutions come our way, we
will, at times, battle with those in our minds, and we will, thus, call out to
God in our suffering, and pray for understanding and wisdom to know how to
respond to our persecutors and unjust treatment.
When I read this part about
our enemies turning back when we call on the Lord in our suffering, it brought
this scripture to mind:
In that day the Lord of hosts will be a crown of glory, and a diadem of beauty, to the remnant of his people,and a spirit of justice to him who sits in judgment, and strength to those who turn back the battle at the gate.Isaiah 28:5-6 ESV
I believe this “turning back the battle at the gate”
has to do with those who have resisted Satan’s lies, deceptions and temptations
in their own lives, as well as this represents those who are actively involved
in sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ.
When we resist Satan and his
attacks against us, and we refuse to be intimidated by him, and we continue in
the love of God, and in sharing the gospel, we turn back this battle that Satan
is waging against God’s people, and at the gate of human’s hearts, so that people
can be saved, so they can be free from the power of Satan and sin over their
lives, and so that they no longer allow Satan and sin to overcome them. We stop
it at the gate.
For those who have done this,
i.e. for those who have “turned the battle back at the gate,” God will be our
refuge and strength. This does not mean we will not suffer or even die for our
faith in Jesus Christ and for his gospel, but it means that he will be with us
even in death, and he will bring us safely into his glorious presence. Amen!
My Vows to God
Psalm 56:12-13 ESV
I must perform my vows to you, O God; I will render thank offerings to you.For you have delivered my soul from death, yes, my feet from falling,that I may walk before God in the light of life.
What is essential here is
that we do not allow Satan to defeat us, but that we remain faithful to our
Lord, and that in his power and strength, we are victorious over all Satan’s
evil schemes against us, and there are many.
So, daily we resist Satan, we
flee temptation, we draw near to God, and we put on the armor of God with which
to fight Satan’s evil attacks against us, and he does use other humans as his
instruments of warfare against us, too.
One of Satan’s biggest weapons
against us is fear. If he can get us to be afraid, then he can defeat us in
battle, at least in some scrimmages, he can. So, we must fight against fear by
rejecting his lies and by putting on truth and by trusting in the sovereignty
of God over our lives. We must remain faithful to God and not give way to fear,
but to continually walk in faith and do what the Lord says, and then trust the
Lord to work his will and his ways in our hearts and in the hearts and lives of
our enemies, too.
We also need to keep an
eternal focus, realizing that this world and our flesh bodies and all that is
of this life on this earth is temporary, except for our relationships with
Almighty God and our trust in our Savior Jesus Christ and His Word. When we
keep our focus on God, and on what is eternal, rather than let the things of
this life get us down, then we can live in victory over our enemies, and even
love them with the love of Jesus Christ.
Not Our Home
Jonathan and Emily Martin
We are making our exodus
Out of this world of sin and
death
We are making our exodus
Into the life that he’s
promised
Oh… this is not our home
Oh… we’re headed for the
kingdom…
Wednesday, May 30, 2018, 1:30
a.m. – Thank you, Jesus, for these encouraging words. Help us, Lord, to remain
faithful to you in all things and to be strong in the Lord and in his strength
in our battles against the enemy of our souls. And, I pray, too, for all who
are in this battle who are living in defeat, that they would know that you have
come to set them free!
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