Desiring God's Presence and Wait On Him

Psalm 27

Introduction

Under what circumstance did David write Psalm 27?

David was fleeing from King Saul. He was forced to leave his parents and run for his life into the wilderness. Then, Doeg accused David for rebelling against Saul and that he was ambitious enough to usurp Saul’s kingship（refer to 1 Samuel 22:9-23）.

Therefore, David’s life was threatened, abandoned and in a grievous situation. However, he did not panic nor fear, nor was he desperate, because he had learned to trust in God, and to wait on the Lord to keep him secured.

He actually ran to Nob, where there’s a sanctuary and a priest—Ahimelech (1 Sam 21).

Affirming God is Our Stronghold of Life (vv.1-3)

“The Lord is my light and my salvation— whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life—of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident.”

We really need light in life! For light brightens our paths! People tend to be fearful in darkness, but when light shines forth, our fears will vanish.

Bible has highlighted many times that light is the presence of God. We shall receive God’s salvation with His presence in our lives, and we shall have new life. This new life comes with joy, comfort and guidance from God.

“The LORD is the stronghold of my life”, it originally means “strength of life” and it refers to God’s omniscience and omnipotence. He is who He is (refer Romans 8:31-32). With such a powerful God in our lives and with His presence, there is no need for us to be fearful towards any enemy.

David reminisced his past experience of defeating Goliath. When these wicked enemies advanced against him to devour him, God caused his enemies to stumble and fall.

David was not fearful even when he was outnumbered by his enemies, for he knew that God was his stronghold and strength, and He would wipe off the enemies for him!

Desire to Rest in the House of God and Praise Him (vv.4-6)

 “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple. For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me; at his sacred tent I will offer sacrifice with shouts of joy; I will sing and make music to the Lord.”

David was known as a man who was “after God’s heart”, because there was one thing he sought, i.e. to “dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of his life”. David’s greatest desire was to be in God’s presence daily. He desired very much to enter God’s presence and to gaze on His beauty, and he would then be at rest.

David would like to seek God in His temple; therefore, he was exalted by God over all his enemies. Because of this, David offered his sacrifice of thanksgiving in the temple of God, and He sung praises to the Lord.

What is our hope in life this day? What is the thing you value the most?

David did not seek comfort and food when he was pursued by his enemies and deserted by all his family members and friends. He sought the presence of God.

David knew that there was rest in God, and he was able to go through difficult days with God’s presence. With God, he was able to lift up his head, and that meant his prayers were answered by God, and he had overcome his difficulties or enemies.

Nowadays, people are busy with life and they are unreasonably fearful all the days of their lives, no matter whether they are successful or in failures. We do not have contentment and rest in our hearts and spirits!

We try to fill life with materials, wealth, knowledge, romance, etc., but we just can’t fill it. It is only when we allow God to fill our lives, that we are able to have rest and contentment!

St. Augustine had a famous saying and it goes to say, “God puts a “God-shaped void” in the heart of man in His creation, and only He can fill it.”

We are not merely receiving our rest and contentment, but we overcome difficulties and attacks of our enemies in God’s presence. God will do us justice. He will prepare a table for us before the presence of our enemies, so that we can lift our heads up on high!

We need to draw near to God and not to distance from him when we are busy with our life or when we are in the midst of crises. Let us come into the temple of God to worship Him, and have the experience of God hiding us in the shelter of His sacred tent and setting us high upon a rock, and to remain forever in His grace.

Those who are willing to dwell in the presence of God daily enjoy the sweetness of His presence forever. They will naturally offer themselves to be used by God, and to praise Him aloud in songs and hymns. If we don’t open our mouth to praise God, the stones will do so!

Pleading for God’s Grace and Forgiveness (vv. 7-10)

“Hear my voice when I call, Lord; be merciful to me and answer me. My heart says of you, “Seek his face!” Your face, Lord, I will seek. Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior. Though my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will receive me.”

David was honest enough to confess to God his needs, and he cried out to God to be merciful and gracious to him.

“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.” – This is “The Jesus Prayer”, a spiritual tradition practiced by the Eastern orthodox. In fact, “ask God for grace and mercy” should be our lifetime prayer.

God has set forth His requirements for us in the first place. He requires us to seek His will and to fulfil His heart’s desire. Our prayers should comply with God’s intentions, and be prepared to satisfy the heart of God at all times. Therefore, David said, “Your face, Lord, I will seek.”

David was aware that God forsook Saul because Saul did not obey Him. David was afraid to be deserted by God too if he had in some ways offended Him.

Though David knew from his experiences that God had been his helper, he still cried out to God and pleaded with him “do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger, and do not reject or forsake me.”

We should cultivate this sense of “unworthiness”, knowing that we are low and weak, and we may have offended God, and we know that we are only a sinner who has received the grace of God.

Many of us come from broken families, have had encountered broken relationship, or may have suffered psychological traumas because of drugs, alcohol, sex abuse or sex addiction.

Pains and bitterness persist even when we have become adults. God will not forsake us. He will heal our wounds and fill the void in our hearts. He will bring us to those who care and love us. God’s grace is sufficient for us to overcome all hurts and all guilts.

The more we recognize ourselves to be sinners who are “undeserved and saved by grace”, that whatever we have achieved are fully by God’s free grace, we will rely on Him and trust Him more and more. We will not simply take God’s grace for granted, without sense of appreciation and gratitude.

Wait for God to Walk on His Way（vv. 11-14）

“Teach me your way, Lord; lead me in a straight path because of my oppressors. Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations. I remain confident of this: I will see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Wait for the LORD; be strong and take heart and wait for the LORD.”

David prayed to God, and said, “Teach me your way, LORD…lead me in a straight path”. It was a teachable and submissive attitude, with a willingness to obey God’s will. David honored God’s sovereignty, and he was willing to accommodate God’s timing and His way of doing things.

“A straight path” means “A straight path that follows after God’s heart”, and it is a way that “keeps oneself away from the traps of the wicked ones”.

David submitted to God’s instructions by following His teaching, and he walked on the path of God, not the crooked way, nor even a short-cut. As a result, he was able to flee from the evil schemes of his enemies, and turn whatever calamities into blessings.

We should always live in God’s presence, and cultivate our spirituality to understand God’s truth, and to walk in obedience to it. God’s grace is sufficient for us, that we will definitely overcome harms from our enemies or harms caused by our bad environments, and we shall turn our curses into blessings.

We need not fear in the face of difficulties and possibility of failures. We only need to fear when we compromise to sin, when we choose a path that displeases God. This path will lead to destruction and not life.

David was so submissive to God and he waited for the Lord and chose to walk on the path God had instructed him, because he really believed that the LORD will watch over him.

David believed firmly that the LORD would not deliver him into the hands of his enemies, and nor would He allow him to suffer and undergo hardship. David believed that the LORD is a faithful and trustworthy God.

If we have walked the path of deception, corruption, violation of laws, or malicious attack towards others this day, it indicates that we do not trust in our God. We can’t wait for the Lord and we hastily rely on our understanding to take things into our own hands.

Even if his environment was still shaky, his enemies attacked him fiercely, and spouted malicious and brutal words, David remained confident that he would see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.

 “The land of the living” refers to life on earth. It was an emphasis that David would not be consumed by hardships. David believed that not only would God see him through all his difficulties, but He would keep him safe throughout his lifetime. David lived in God’s presence and he had a daily hope to live on!

In fact, 1 Samuel 21 informs us, in the sanctuary of Nob, Ahimelech gave shewbread (the holy bread) to David as food to eat and, he also gave David the Goliath’s sword as weapon for protection.

Jesus died on the cross to save us, and He will save us till the end. He promises that His presence will be with us, and He will surely keep us and help us overcome all difficulties in life. He is the faithful and trustworthy Savior. We have hope in Jesus.

If we truly trust in Jesus as a life-giver, we won’t be fearful no matter what bad circumstance we may be trapped in. Those who have faith shall see God’s goodness, even though they might encounter very difficult moments in life.

Ask God to grant us eyes of faith so that we can see that His grace is sufficient for us and all our needs shall be met in this life on earth.

Conclusion

David was anointed as king at about the age about 14, but he was enthroned only at the age of 30. During this transition period, he was hotly pursued by King Saul who was jealous of him.

David had to wait for the LORD to fulfill His promise for him. It is never an easy thing to wait for the Lord. Usually it seems like God is not listening to our prayers, or He does not understand our critical situations.

However, it is worthwhile to wait for the Lord. God often uses waiting as a way to renew us, change us, mold us or equip us.

Today let us wait for the Lord by coming into God’s house and entering into His presence. We wait for Him by our repentance, prayers, worship and praises. We ask God to show us the way ahead. We desire to know His heart, and hence we submit to His leading in order to allow His will to be done in us.

Prayers and Altar Call

What crisis or hardship are you facing today? Out of job? Financial problem? Health problem? Facing difficulties in your marriage or family life? Attacked by your enemies? Fear to face changes in your environment? Lost your life direction and fearful?

God is our refuge and He is our Rock, our help!

Let us come and place our trust in Him. The Lord is faithful, and those who trust in Him shall not be put to shame, and in Him we have hope. Be strong and courageous and take your heart to wait for the Lord.

God’s presence shall bring you changes. He will show you your path and give you peace!