Fight For Me, O Lord!

Please take your Bibles and open them up to Psalm chapter 35 this morning.

Psalms 35 · chapter mention

! Psalm chapter 35. We're continuing on with our series this summer, walking our way through the Psalms.

Psalms 35 · chapter mention

And we found our way to Psalm 35.

And so when you found that, if you would, let's please stand in honor of the reading of God's Word this morning.

David writes,

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me.

Fight against those who fight against me.

Take hold of shield and buckler and rise for my help.

Draw the spear and javelin against my pursuers.

Say to my soul, I am your salvation.

Let them be put to shame and dishonor who seek my life.

Let them be turned back and disappointed who devise evil against me.

Let them be like chaff before the wind with the angel of the Lord driving them away.

Let their way be dark and slippery with the angel of the Lord pursuing them.

For without cause they hid their net for me.

Without cause they dug a pit for my life.

Let destruction come upon him when he does not know it.

And let the net that he has hid ensnare him.

Let him fall into it to his destruction.

Then my soul will rejoice in the Lord, exalting in his salvation.

All my bones shall say, O Lord, who is like you?

Delivering the poor from him who is too strong for him.

The poor and needy from him who robs him.

Malicious witnesses rise up.

They ask me of things that I do not know.

They repay me evil for good.

My soul is bereft.

But I, when they were sick, I wore sackcloth.

I afflicted myself with fasting.

I prayed with my head bowed on my chest.

I went about as though I grieved for my friend or my brother.

As one who laments his mother, I bowed down in mourning.

But at my stumbling, they rejoiced and gathered.

They gathered together against me.

Wretches whom I did not know tore at me without ceasing.

Like profane mockers at a feast, they gnash at me with their teeth.

How long, O Lord, will you look on?

Rescue me from their destruction.

My precious life from the lions.

I will thank you and the great congregation.

And the mighty throng, I will praise you.

Let not those who rejoice over me, who are wrongfully my foes.

And let not those who wink the eye, who hate me without cause.

For they do not speak peace, but against those who are quiet in the land,

they devise words of deceit.

They open wide their mouths against me and they say,

Aha! Aha! Our eyes have seen it.

You have seen, O Lord.

Be not silent.

O Lord, be not far from me.

Awake.

Rouse yourself for my vindication,

for my cause, my Lord, my God.

Vindicate me, O Lord, my God,

according to your righteousness.

And let them not rejoice over me.

Let them not say in their hearts, Aha!

Our hearts desire.

Let them not say we have swallowed them up.

Let them be put to shame and disappointed altogether,

who rejoice at my calamity.

Let them be clothed with shame and dishonor,

who magnify themselves against me.

Let those who delight in my righteousness shout for joy and be glad

and say evermore,

Great is the Lord who delights in the welfare of his servant.

Then my tongue shall tell of your righteousness

and of your praise all the day long.

The grass withers, the flower fades,

but the word of our God endures forever.

Would you pray with me once more?

Our Father, as we prepare to hear from you,

from your word this morning,

we ask, would you empower the preaching of your word by your spirit?

And would it bear much fruit in the hearts of all who hear this morning?

We pray in Jesus' name.

Amen.

You may be seated.

Twelve years ago in Brooklyn, New York,

Larry Thompson was at his home when he heard a knock on his door.

And to his surprise, when he opened it up,

he saw police officers and emergency workers.

They were there to inspect and also to provide medical care

for his one-week-old daughter,

who, according to their sources, had been severely abused.

What Larry didn't know was that a mentally ill relative

had mistaken diaper rash for abuse

and had alerted the authorities.

To make matters worse, when he opened the door

and simply asked what was going on

and whether or not they had a warrant to enter his home,

the officers then aggressively forced their way in.

They tackled him to the ground.

They handcuffed him.

They arrested him.

And they threw him into jail.

Now, of course, the medical exams very quickly,

immediately proved that Larry was innocent.

No abuse had taken place.

But to cover their own tracks,

the officers then charged Larry

with obstructing governmental administration

as well as resisting arrest.

Larry spent three days in jail.

And then it took three months for the case

to reach the courts,

by which time the prosecution dropped the case

because they had no case to make.

Everyone knew that Larry was innocent.

But even so, in cases like this,

the social impact remains.

His name had been smeared.

His reputation was ruined.

So what did Larry do?

Well, he decided to turn around

and instead sue the officers

for malicious prosecution.

He appealed to the Court of Justice

to right this wrong

and bring consequences on those

who had borne false witness against him.

And now this process lasted eight years.

As court after court after court

rejected Larry's case

until finally in 2022,

Larry Thompson stood before

the Supreme Court of the United States

and in a landmark decision,

the Supreme Court ruled in Larry's favor,

clearing the legal hurdles

so that he could finally receive justice.

I wonder,

have you ever been wrongfully accused?

Have you ever had someone speak lies about you?

Have you ever been betrayed

by someone that you trusted?

Have you ever needed justice

and not been sure how to get it

or even where to turn to find it?

Where should God's people seek justice?

In our passage this morning,

Psalm 35,

King David is dealing with a similar situation.

Here in Psalm 35,

King David is dealing with false accusations.

He is dealing with betrayal of loved ones.

He is dealing with gross injustice.

And in light of his suffering,

he bypasses all human courts

and he takes his case all the way up to the top.

He brings his case and makes his plea

before the judge of all the universe.

And in doing so,

he shows us how we can respond

to injustice that we face as well.

The comfort that we share with David

is that because our God is just

and he cares deeply about justice,

we can call on him to act justly.

Let's take a look.

And we'll see the psalm this morning in three parts.

This will be our outline.

If you're taking notes,

this will help you to follow along.

We see the plea of the accused king

in verses 1 through 10.

We see the problem of the accused king

in verses 11 through 18.

And we see the praise of the accused king

in verses 19 through 28.

First, let's take a look at verses 1 through 10.

Here we see the plea of the accused king.

Look, they're starting in verse 1.

Now, we don't know the exact circumstances here.

We don't know exactly what's going on,

but it must be fairly intense.

You notice David frames this whole situation

with wartime language.

In verse 1,

he calls upon the Lord to contend

with those who contend against me,

fight against those who fight against me.

Now, you know, David is a warrior himself.

He's strong.

He's experienced in battle.

He's capable of handling these sort of violent interactions

in his own strength.

But you notice he doesn't take matters

into his own hands here.

Rather, he calls upon the Lord

to go to war against his enemies.

He wants God to be his defense.

In verse 2, he says,

take hold of shield and buckler

and rise for my help.

This is David asking God to protect him

on all sides from all types of attacks.

In the ancient world,

a warrior would use different types of shields

for different purposes.

In the sanah,

that's the shield here in verse 2,

that's for long-range defense.

This type of shield is a full body,

a massive shield is made of wood

and is covered up in leather.

And a warrior would anchor this shield down to the ground

and then hide behind it

so that he would be totally protected head to toe

from flaming arrows

that the enemy would shoot from a distance.

This is long-range defense.

The buckler, on the other hand,

that's probably what you think of

when you think of a shield.

It's a smaller shield.

It's rounded.

It's more mobile.

You strap it on your arm.

You carry it with you into battle.

And you use the buckler

to keep you safe from close-range attacks

like the dagger

or like the sword.

David's using this military language here

to call upon the Lord

to be his total defense

from attacks from afar

as well as attacks at close range.

Be my defense.

But it's not only a defensive prayer, is it?

He also prays that

God would go on the attack.

Verse 3.

God, draw the spear and the javelin

against my pursuers.

Say to my soul,

I'm your salvation.

Tell me you've got my back.

Tell me that you're going to defend me

and destroy my enemies.

Assure me that you're going to take care of this for me.

He wants his enemies to be shamed and dishonored.

He wants those who devise evil against him

to be turned back and disappointed.

Let them blow away like dust,

like chaff in the wind.

In fact, God, let the angel of the Lord

chase them away down a dark and a slippery path.

David prays that his enemy would be

held back in verse 2,

turned back in verse 4,

and driven back in verses 5 and 6.

And he calls upon God to do it.

In fact, he calls for a sort of

cosmic justice here.

Some people call it karma, right?

We know better.

He calls on God to bring their own schemes

back onto their own head.

He doesn't just want relief.

He wants a full reversal here.

He wants their sin to find them out.

Verse 7.

He says,

Isn't it interesting?

Goliath was beheaded by his own sword.

Haman was hung in the gallows

that he had prepared for Mordecai.

Pharaoh, after he orders the Hebrews

to be drowned in the Nile,

well, guess what?

Now his entire army is eventually

drowned in the Red Sea.

The officials who came up with the law

to have Daniel thrown into the lion's den,

guess what?

They are eventually thrown in themselves

and consumed by the lions.

The destruction of the Son of God

is at the same time

the destruction of the great enemy, Satan.

God often works in this way.

David prays,

God, would you bring the schemes of the wicked

right back on their own head?

And the natural question is,

can we pray like this?

Right?

When we face enemies,

can we pray like this?

When we face injustice,

can we pray like this?

Didn't Jesus tell us to love our enemies?

Didn't he tell us to pray

for those who persecute us?

Is there any place

for God's people to pray

that God would take up a spear

and chase our enemies

down a dark and slippery path?

Apparently David thinks so.

But we have to realize,

for one thing,

that this isn't just anyone praying this.

This is the anointed king.

This is the one, King David,

to whom God had promised

that the forever king,

King Jesus,

the Messiah,

would come from his line.

And so in one sense,

we need to understand

that these attacks against David

were not just attacks against David.

These are satanic attacks

against the Messiah

who will come from David's line.

But even so,

we also face the same great enemy.

We also live in a world

where the dark kingdom

would seek to destroy us

and deceive us

and separate us

from the love of God

if that were possible.

So what about us?

Is there a place

for God's people

to pray like this?

I think the answer

is yes.

We should pray

that God would both

deliver and destroy.

That God would both

save us

from the schemes

of our enemy

and bring his schemes

back on his own head.

That God would destroy

and deliver God's people.

But if,

if and only if,

we share David's perspective.

Look at what he says

in verses 9 and 10.

See, David is not

praying ultimately

for his own sake,

is he?

Although he certainly

gains from God

acting on his behalf.

David's not praying

vengeance on his enemies

for his own pleasure

and his own benefit.

Why does David pray

the way that he does?

He prays this way

because his heart

is consumed with zeal

for the glory of God.

He's not praying

to destroy his enemies

for his sake

and his kingdom.

He's praying

for God's kingdom

to be established

for God's sake

and God's glory.

So Christian,

can we pray like this?

Yes, we can.

We ought to pray

for God to act

and to chase back

and even to destroy

every enemy

that stands in the way

of God's kingdom

here on earth.

whether that be

sin in our own lives

or even against

false teaching

as Paul does

in Galatians.

You remember what he says?

If anyone preaches

another gospel,

may they be accursed.

That's an imprecatory prayer.

Or against obvious

acts of wickedness

and injustice

in the world around us.

I mean,

how should God's people

pray about the abortion

industry that kills

millions of unborn

children every year?

How should God's people

pray against

militant Muslims

who want to wipe

off Christianity

from the face

of the planet?

It is not wrong

for us to pray,

God,

protect your church.

Draw them into

your church

if at all possible.

Please, God,

would you save

your enemies?

But God,

would you bring

justice swiftly?

Would you put an end

to their wickedness?

And in fact,

do you realize

every time we pray

come quickly,

Lord Jesus,

we pray

an imprecatory prayer

against the wicked?

Do you realize

every time we pray

for the Lord

to come back,

we are praying

for a moment

that will bring

swift judgment?

It's okay to pray

as David prays here,

but only if

at the center of it all.

It's not our own

selfish desire

for vengeance.

Rather,

it is a desire

for God

to be glorified

in bringing justice.

This is what he says

in verse 9.

He says,

Then my soul

will rejoice

in the Lord,

exalting in his salvation.

All my bones

shall say,

O Lord,

who is like you?

Delivering the poor

from him

who is too strong

for him,

the poor and the needy

from him

who robs him.

God is pleased

to answer prayers

like this.

Christian,

when we face injustice

and when we

see injustice

in the world,

we are invited

on the basis

of God's own

desire for his glory

to ask him

to take up arms

and act.

This is what David does.

This is the plea

of the accused king.

Second,

we see the problem

of the accused king.

We see this in verses 11

through 18.

Do you wonder,

what in the world

has David so upset?

What could be going on

in his life

that's causing him

to use such harsh

and severe language here?

What is the injustice

that he's facing?

Well, we see it here

in this second section.

Verse 11,

he says,

malicious witnesses

rise up.

They ask me

of things

that I do not know.

In other words,

they are saying

such ridiculous things

about David

that he's got

no answer to give.

He's at a loss

for words.

He doesn't even know

what to say.

He doesn't even know

what they're talking about.

Have you ever had

that happen to you?

Or someone's just saying

something so ridiculous

about you

that you're just stunned?

You don't even know

how to give a response?

I have.

In fact,

I'll tell you

a quick story.

Shortly after we

were married,

we arrived in Charlotte,

Amanda and I,

and we lived

in this apartment complex.

I haven't thought

about this in years.

We had a neighbor

named Rodney

who knew

that I was preparing

for ministry

and so Rodney

liked to try

and talk about

spiritual things.

But at the same time,

Rodney liked to drink

and so that made

for some interesting

interactions

that we would have

and one day

I was coming

to our apartment

and Rodney met me

at the stairs

and he told me

that he was a prophet

and I thought,

okay,

Jesus Christ

is the last prophet

but I'll humor you.

You can share with me

what's on your mind

and so he looked me

in the eye

and said,

the woman

that you're living with

is not your wife.

I didn't know

what to say

and so I just

pointed at my wedding ring

and I said,

I'm sorry,

try again

but I wondered,

who else is he

sharing that prophecy with?

It wasn't true

but sometimes

it doesn't even matter

whether it's true

or not.

Could you imagine

the damage that would do

if other people

in that apartment complex

thought,

hey man,

this guy who's training

to be a pastor,

he's living with somebody

that's not even his wife.

What's going on here?

These accusers

are just making things up

about David.

He doesn't even know

what to say

and these little accusations

and rumors,

these are like flaming arrows

that are shot

from a distance.

They're these little whispers

of false accusation

that have caught David

completely off guard

and so David asks God

to be his shield

because these arrows

are flying all around

and he has no clue

how to even answer them.

But it's not just

the flaming arrows

you remember.

It's also the close strike

of the dagger.

Look there at verse 12.

He says,

they repay me evil

for good.

My soul is bereft

but I,

when they were sick,

I wore sackcloth.

I afflicted myself

with fasting.

I prayed with my head

bound down on my chest.

I went about

as though I was grieving

for my friend

or my brother

and my mother.

I bowed down in mourning.

When these people

were down and out

and when they were sick,

David poured out

his heart for them.

He fasted.

He prayed.

He mourned.

He grieved.

He genuinely cared

about them.

We don't know

the exact scenario

here again

but it's hard not

to think of how

David and Saul

interacted.

When Saul was sick,

what did David do

for him?

He played his instrument.

He soothed him

with music.

When Saul needed

a warrior

to go and fight

his battles,

David was there

ready to go to war.

He loved God's

anointed king

and yet,

when the tables

turn,

what happens?

Verse 15.

At my stumbling,

they rejoiced

and gathered.

They gathered

together against me.

Wretches whom

I did not know

tore at me

without ceasing.

Like profane mockers

at a feast,

they gnash at me

with their teeth.

David has been

betrayed by those

he loves.

He's been stabbed

in the back

with a dagger.

This is heartbreaking.

David asks God

to take up

his buckler

because he's been

stabbed in the back.

So he prays,

God, I know

you see this.

Would you betray me

too?

How long

will you see

this happening

and not do

anything about it?

Would you rescue

me from destruction?

Rescue me

from the mouth

of the lions.

Would you bring me

justice

and bring it quick?

Y'all,

a miracle happened

the other day.

I don't say that lightly,

but this never happens.

I was driving down

Highway 17

right down here

and right as I got

to where the 7-Eleven is,

someone pulled out

right in front of me

coming from that street,

side street on the right,

just right out in front.

They didn't even bother

to realize

that I was coming in

about to smash

into their car

and if I wasn't

paying attention,

that's exactly

what would have happened

and so I did

what you do

in that situation.

I pressed my palm

firmly into the horn

of my vehicle

and then a few more times

as I passed by

just to let them know

you almost died today

if I wasn't attentive,

but then I couldn't believe it

as I laid on the horn.

I passed by,

I looked

and there were two cop cars

sitting right there

in the median

and I was so riled up,

honking on my horn,

that as I drove by,

I actually made eye contact

with one of the officers

and threw up my hands

to say,

will you please

do something about this?

I know you saw it.

Go get them!

And the guy turned on

his lights

and I worried

that he was coming

after me,

but instead,

both cop cars

zipped out of there

and went after that guy.

They saw what happened

and they went

to bring justice.

It was an immediate response

to my plea.

You and I both know

that it usually

doesn't work out

that way,

does it?

And more often than not,

we have to wait

for justice

to come.

Larry Thompson

waited eight years

for his case

to even make it

to the Supreme Court

before he finally

got the justice

he deserved.

Sometimes justice

comes slowly

and the hard truth

is that sometimes

on this side

of eternity,

justice never comes

at all.

And there are Christians

all over the world

in hard places

that are being persecuted

for professing

the name of Christ.

There are people

that are being slaughtered

for worshiping

Jesus Christ

and we cry out

for justice.

Lord,

Lord,

when will it come?

I know you see this.

I know you see

what's going on.

Will you please

bring justice

quickly?

The hard truth is

here on this side

of eternity,

justice often

comes slowly,

often comes partially,

and sometimes

it comes not

at all.

But even so,

the comfort

that we share

with David

is we can pray

with confidence

knowing our God

is just

and He

will bring

justice.

Maybe not now,

but soon

and very soon

at the return

of Christ.

God

is

just.

Everything

He does

is just.

And so we can pray

with David,

God,

I know you see this.

Would you please

act in accordance

with who you are?

David

believes this

with all his heart.

He believes that this God

cares about my affliction.

He sees this wrongdoing.

He does know

what's happening

to me.

He does see

the wrong

that I'm enduring.

And David believes

that one day,

and we pray

one day soon,

one day

this God

will bring

justice.

And in that day,

I will give you

thanks in the midst

of the great congregation

of the righteous.

And in that day,

I will praise you

in the mighty throng

with this chorus

of voices

from every corner

of the world

of those who sing,

this God

has delivered me.

This is exactly

what we see

in the final part

of the psalm.

Third,

here in verses 19

through 28.

Third,

we see

the praise

of the accused

king.

David

has stood

before the

supreme

court of courts.

He has presented

his case

before the highest

judge of all

the earth.

He's made

his plea.

And now,

David calls

for a final

verdict.

He says

in verse 19,

let not those

rejoice over me

who are wrongfully

my foes.

Let not those

wink the eye

who hate me

without cause.

For they do not

speak peace,

but against those

who are quiet

in the land,

minding their own

business,

they devise

words of deceit

and they open

wide their mouths

against me.

They say,

aha,

aha,

our eyes have

seen it,

but you have

seen,

O Lord.

Be not silent.

O Lord,

be not far

from me.

Awake

and rouse

yourself

for my

vindication,

for my cause,

my Lord,

my God.

Vindicate me,

O Lord,

my God,

according to

your righteousness

and let them

not rejoice

over me.

Now,

stop right

there.

Here's David

before the judge.

He's making

his closing

argument.

He's calling

for a decision

in his favor

against his

enemies.

And again,

we should ask,

on what

basis,

what confidence

does David

have to pray

such things?

How can he be

so bold as to

pray God's

judgment on

these wicked

people?

people?

He's prayed

in light

of God's

power

and his

strength.

He's prayed

in light

of God's

desire

for his

praise

and his

glory.

He's made

it clear

that he's

acted in

righteousness

towards these

wicked men,

but now as he

calls for the

judge to give

his final

verdict,

on what

basis does

he ask

God

to act?

Look there

again to

verse 24.

He says,

Vindicate me,

O Lord,

my God,

according to

what?

Your

righteousness.

Now,

he could have

said,

according to

my righteousness.

And no one

is fully

righteous.

No,

not one,

not even

David,

but in this

situation,

in this

instance,

he has done

no wrong.

He's

innocent.

He doesn't

say,

Vindicate me

according to

my

righteousness.

What does

he say?

Vindicate me

according to

your

righteousness.

David knows

that our

holy,

righteous

God

will act

in

righteousness.

If it

is right

to judge

wickedness,

and it

is right

to defend

the helpless,

and it

is right

to set

right what's

been made

wrong,

then David

believes that

this just

and powerful

holy God

will do

it,

and for

his name's

sake.

The Puritan

George

Swinock,

he says,

people might

do justly,

but God

must do

justly,

because his

will is

his law.

God

will

will

exact

rule

of all

justice

and

righteousness.

Whatever

he does

is just,

because he

is the

great

supreme

and

sovereign

of all

the

world.

God's

actions

are

occasionally

mysterious,

but they

are always

righteous.

In light

of the

great

righteousness

of God,

David

prays,

God,

would you

look at

this

injustice

and

act.

Render

a public

verdict.

Don't

let the

wicked

rejoice.

Let them

not say

in their

hearts,

aha,

our hearts

desire.

Let them

not say

we've

swallowed

them up.

Let

them be

put to

shame

and

disappointed

altogether

who rejoice

at my

calamity.

Let

them be

clothed

with

shame

and

dishonor

who

magnify

themselves

against

me.

But on

the other

hand,

render

this

verdict

in my

favor

so that

those

who

delight

in my

righteousness

would

shout for

joy

and be

glad

and say

great

evermore

great

is the

Lord

who

delights

in the

welfare

of his

servant.

And then

my tongue

shall tell

of your

righteousness

and of

your praise

all the

day

long.

Can you

imagine

that

courtroom

scene

when Larry

Thompson

finally gets

justice

and his

family

after eight

long years

finally gets

justice.

The gavel

comes down.

The false

accusers

are condemned

while the

falsely

accused

is set

free.

Now that

whole

burden

shifts

from off

of Larry's

back

and firmly

onto those

who acted

in the

wrong.

There is

rejoicing

for the

righteous

when justice

comes,

but there

is grieving

for the

guilty

when justice

comes.

This is

what David

prays God

will do.

In his

suffering,

he appeals

to the

great judge

of all the

earth and

says,

God,

would you

be my

defense?

Would you

act for

your glory?

Would you

act according

to your

righteousness?

Would you

crush the

powers of

sin and

darkness?

Would you

defend the

cause of

the helpless?

Would you

be my

shield and

my defense?

Christian,

do you

realize we

can join

David in

this prayer?

And we

can pray it

with confidence,

confidence,

even more

confidence than

David?

Because the

gospel of

Jesus Christ

teaches us

that our

God is

just and

he will

bring justice.

We may

get it here

and now and

we pray to

that end,

but we know

with confidence

we will get

it soon and

very soon at

the return of

our Lord

Jesus Christ.

The gospel

teaches us

that our

God is

powerful to

save and

to defend

his people.

And the

gospel teaches

us that our

God loves

to do so

for his

glory,

for our

good and

on the

basis of

his own

righteousness.

But should

we ever

doubt that

God cares

about

injustice?

Look to

the cross

of Christ.

Our God

has crushed

the powers

of sin and

darkness at

the cross.

If anyone

has ever

faced injustice,

it was

Jesus Christ.

Jesus was

the only

one who

was truly

completely

righteous,

not just

in one

scenario,

but inside

and out

for an

entire life.

And yet,

false witnesses

rose up

against him.

Wicked

men spread

lies about

him.

In fact,

he quotes

this psalm

in John

John 15 · chapter mention

chapter 15

when he

tells his

disciples,

the world

hated me.

You should

expect that

they'll hate

you too.

If they

persecuted

me,

they will

also

persecute

you.

Why?

He says

it must

fulfill

their word.

They hated

me without

a cause.

Jesus

Christ was

hated,

reviled,

cursed,

beaten,

and betrayed

even by his

own disciples.

Judas kissed

him on the

cheek as he

handed him

over for

arrest.

Jesus knew

what it

was like

to face

the arrows

of accusation

and the

dagger of

betrayal.

And yet,

like David,

Jesus entrusted

himself completely

to the

righteousness

and the

sovereign justice

of his

God,

the Father.

Jesus knew

that true

justice must

be purchased

at the cross

for the good

of his people

and the glory

of God.

But because

he was totally

righteous,

and praise

God,

the perfect

Son of

God,

could not

remain in

the grave.

He rose

from the

dead as

the first

fruits of

those who

would believe

in him

for eternal

life.

And as

the assurance

that the

enemy,

in the end,

does not

win,

praise God.

That sin

does not

have the

final word.

That we

face evil

and darkness

and accusations

and all

sorts of

mess in

this sinful

world,

but Jesus

at the

cross

and the

empty

tomb

says,

all of

that

has been

conquered.

And one

day soon

and very

soon,

he will

come

and bring

us

justice.

Friend,

I ask you

again,

where do

God's people

look for

justice?

Look to

Jesus.

Christ,

our substitute,

has suffered

in our

place.

Christ,

our advocate,

stands to

plead our

cause before

the Father

and to

defend us

from all

accusations

of the

enemy.

Christ,

our warrior,

our defender,

our conquering

king,

has conquered

all our

enemies and

stands to

defend us.

And one

day soon

and very

soon,

Christ,

the righteous

judge,

will come

again to

put an

end to

all sin,

all evil,

and all

wickedness.

If you're

his enemy

now,

the invitation

is come

to this

king now

in faith

and you'll

find that

Christ,

the Savior,

stands ready

to receive

you and

to forgive

you and

to show

you mercy.

And until

then,

until that

day,

Christian,

Christ,

the friend

of sinners,

listens to

your cries,

hears your

prayers,

cares about

your distress,

and promises

justice will

come soon.

Charles Spurgeon

commenting on

this passage,

he says that

all that David

prays God

will do for

him here in

Psalm 35,

Jesus does

all this for

his beloved,

for them,

for us.

He is both

intercessor and

champion.

Whatever aid

they need,

they shall

receive from

him.

And in

whatever manner

they are

assaulted,

they shall be

effectually

defended.

Let us

not fail

to leave

our case

into the

Lord's

hand.

Vain is

the help

of man,

but ever

effectual

is the

interposition

of heaven.

What is

here asked

for as

a boon

may be

regarded

as a

promise

to all

the saints.

In

judgment

they shall

have a

divine

advocate,

and in

warfare a

divine

protection.

Let's pray.

Father,

we thank

you,

God,

that you

care about

our

distress,

so much

so that

you've sent

Jesus to

enter into

our distress,

and enter into

our weakness,

and to endure

the effects of

living in a

sinful world,

that Christ

himself was

betrayed,

and suffered

from the

false witness

of sinful

man,

and yet did

so willingly

for us,

that he

might bring

justice,

and might

bring relief,

and might

reconcile sinners

to a holy

God.

And we pray,

Lord,

would you come

quickly,

Lord Jesus,

and bring

justice in a

final way here

on earth,

we pray in

Jesus' name.

Amen.

Amen.