Taste and See

Come, my children, listen to me.

I will teach you the fear of the Lord.

Whoever of you loves life and desires to see many good days,

keep your tongue from evil and your lips from telling lies.

Turn from evil and do good.

Seek peace and pursue it.

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous,

and his ears are attentive to their cry.

But the face of the Lord is against those who do evil,

to blot out their name from the earth.

The righteous cry out, and the Lord hears them.

He delivers them from all their troubles.

The Lord is close to the brokenhearted

and saves those who are crushed in spirit.

The righteous person may have many troubles,

but the Lord delivers him from them all.

He protects all his bones.

Not one of them will be broken.

Evil will slay the wicked.

The foes of the righteous will be condemned.

The Lord will rescue his servants.

No one who takes refuge in him will be condemned.

One of the first things as I was looking at this psalm

that just really stood out to me

is that in this entire thing,

David doesn't ask God for anything.

There's not a single request here.

And as I got looking at it,

I realized that this is a very different psalm

than the ones that we've looked at so far.

The ones we've looked at have been very personal.

David has addressed them directly to God.

In this one, David's not talking to God.

He's talking very much about God,

but he's talking to people.

It's not a prayer.

It's a poem or a song.

It's actually an acrostic.

It's got the different letters of the Hebrew alphabet

start each line.

But surprising to me.

I mean, with all that David has been through,

and he doesn't ask God for a single thing

in all of this prayer,

in all of this thing that he writes, this psalm.

So what does he say?

The first thing that he begins with

is an expression of his desire to worship the Lord.

He says, I will extol the Lord,

which means to elevate,

to lift him up.

I will extol the Lord at all times.

His praise will always be on my lips.

I will glory in the Lord.

David is ready to worship.

And you get the sense that this is not just a one-moment thing.

He says, I will extol the Lord at all times.

His praise will always be on my lips.

You are worthy of my worship and honor and glory,

not just today, but at all times and always.

And at this point, David kind of turns and says,

I don't want to just worship the Lord by myself.

I want you to join with me and worship him with me.

He says in verse 3, glorify the Lord with me.

Let us exalt his name together.

Let's give him honor.

Let's give him glory.

Let's give him praise.

Let's do it together.

And his invitation is not just to those who are,

for whom everything is going well

and who are really feeling it.

At the end of verse 2, he says,

let the afflicted hear and rejoice.

Are you feeling afflicted?

Do you have some afflictions in your life right now?

David wants you to hear what he is about to say about the Lord

and to come to the place where you too are ready to join in

and praise and celebrate and rejoice.

Which kind of brings us to the question,

well, what's got David so eager to worship?

Why is he just ready to give it

and to get as many other people as he can to praise the Lord?

Well, it's very personal for David.

In verse 4, this is what he says.

He says, I sought the Lord and he answered me.

Verse 6, this poor man called and the Lord heard him.

Do you hear how David describes himself?

This poor man.

There I was sitting in a cell of the Philistines with nothing.

Everything that I once had back home in Israel, gone.

I had nothing, nothing but fear of what they're going to do to me.

And I sought the Lord.

I called out to him.

In verse 4, he answered me.

Verse 6, he heard me.

And what did the Lord do?

David says, he delivered me.

Verse 4, from all my fears.

Verse 6, he saved this poor man out of all his troubles.

What really strikes me is that word all.

Not just some of my fears.

Not just some of my troubles.

All of them.

Everything that I was afraid of, I'm not afraid of anymore.

The Lord has dealt with that.

Everything that was a problem for me that I was worried about,

I'm not worried about anymore.

And this is amazing because we know that David's troubles are not over.

I mean, now he's escaped from the Philistines

and he's headed back to his home country as a wanted fugitive.

And yet the Lord has done something amazing for him.

And that's why he's ready to worship and praise.

He's got him out of the situation he was in.

His very obvious, tangible, physical troubles.

His enemies right there.

Him in a prison cell.

But he's also done a work in here.

And dealt with his fears.

His perspective has changed.

As I go back home, I'm not worried.

I'm not afraid.

Not in this moment anyway, because the Lord is with me.

If he can get me out of here, he can get me out of the next thing.

He can deal with my problems.

He can deal with my troubles.

We know from the story that David actually did something to get out of this.

He pretended to be mad.

And I would have loved to have been there just to see that.

Especially knowing that it was all something that he was putting on.

But David doesn't take any credit for it whatsoever.

He refers to himself as a poor man with nothing.

Who got him out of there?

The Lord.

He delivered me.

If it weren't for him, Abimelech never would have bought it.

He gives God all the credit and all the glory.

This is a wonderful story for David.

David.

But David wants us to know that this is not just something that God does for him.

Because David was God's favorite.

David wants us, as we've just seen, to join with him and worship with him.

He wants us to think about the troubles that we have in our lives and what God can do about those things for us.

So that we might experience his deliverance too and come to the place where we're ready to join with him.

And worship.

And praise.

And so David, at this point, kind of takes up the role of a teacher in this psalm.

The rest of this psalm, you could almost call it a wisdom psalm.

He's going to share with us some of the things that he's learned.

And many of these things are rooted in his own experience that he has been through.

But we also know that these are, don't just come from David.

These are words that come from God himself.

This is God's wisdom, which comes by his spirit through David to us.

And so what does David have to say?

Well, all of it has to do with how things are between the Lord and his people.

Let's look at verse 18 first.

David says,

The Lord, Yahweh, is close to the brokenhearted.

He saves those who are crushed in spirit.

David knows what it's like to feel brokenhearted.

As we just talked about, he's had everything ripped out of his life, torn away from him.

All the people he loves.

His wife.

His wife.

His family.

His best friend.

And what has David discovered in his brokenheartedness?

That the Lord is with him.

And not just with him, but close.

Do you have some brokenheartedness in your heart this morning?

Do you know that the Lord is close?

If you do.

David says he saves those who are crushed in spirit.

You can just picture David sitting in that Philistine cell with nothing.

Wondering what they're going to do to him.

Just feeling crushed in spirit.

And yet the Lord saw how he felt.

And what was David's experience?

He saves those who are crushed in spirit.

Not just David, but all of his people who are in these places.

In verse 15, David says,

The eyes of the Lord are on the righteous.

And when we hear that word, the righteous,

there might be a tendency to think,

well, does that include me?

Have I lived good enough to be considered the righteous

and get that blessing or that promise?

I'm not going to go too deep into this,

but we all know that there's those verses that say,

no one is righteous, not even one.

But the way that the righteous is being used here

and often is used in the Psalms and Proverbs

is not to refer to people who are sinless or perfect,

because of course nobody is.

Nobody except Christ.

It's used generally to refer to the Lord's people.

To those who consider Yahweh, the Lord, Jesus,

to be their God.

To those who trust in him.

To those who look to him for help.

To those who generally obey his commands

and live rightly.

And when they don't and when they mess up

and they blow it like Psalm 103 talks about,

they trust him for his compassion

and mercy and forgiveness.

Those are the righteous.

And if there's any doubt whether or not

we make the cut or we're in,

all we need to do is look to Jesus.

Because if there's anybody that was righteous,

it's him.

He lived perfect.

He lived a sinless life.

He's the son of God.

And he and the apostles make clear for us

that those of us who receive his gift,

we are in him.

We become in Christ.

And so the good things that are for the righteous,

we get through Christ because we are in him.

Paul actually says this in his letter to the Corinthians.

He says all the promises that are made

are yes in Christ for us.

And so these statements about the righteous,

they're for us.

Those of us who belong to Jesus,

who are in him.

David is talking about how it is

between the Lord and his people.

He says the eyes of the Lord are on the righteous

and his ears are attentive to their cry.

Verse 17,

the righteous cry out and the Lord hears them.

He delivers them from all their troubles.

I love these words.

Isn't it a comfort to know

that the Lord's eyes are on his people?

He is watching over you.

He notices the things that are happening in your life.

He is looking out for you.

His ears are attentive to their cry.

I love that phrase.

I couldn't help but think of

those moments where I'm over at somebody's house

and I'm visiting with them

and my kids are playing with all the kids

in the other room

and there's lots of noise in both rooms

and all of a sudden in that moment

I hear somebody cry out

and I know exactly who it is.

It's my daughter.

And how do I know?

Because amidst all the noise

I know my daughter's cry.

I know her.

She's my daughter.

My ears are specially tuned in

to that cry.

It's not a perfect picture

but it's a helpful one I think

of how God's ears are attentive

to the cry of his people.

He knows his people.

And he's a better father than I am.

In many cases for me it's

well I hope they're alright.

We'll give it a couple minutes

and we'll see.

We'll see how long they keep going.

It doesn't sound like they died

or anything like that.

That's not what David's experience was though.

He says that the Lord's ears

are attentive to their cry.

The righteous cry out.

The Lord hears them.

He delivers them from all their troubles.

He doesn't just sit back and say

oh we'll see how they do.

You know.

He delivers them from all their troubles.

He steps in

and brings them out.

And that's really one of the things

that David wants us to understand

about the Lord

and his people.

I mean we don't have the same troubles

as David did.

We've got all kinds of different problems

and troubles in our lives.

But David is speaking in general terms

so that we will connect the dots

to our own lives.

To our own troubles.

The Lord can deal with

and help us through

those troubles too.

In fact David

he wants us to get this so much

he says it again

in verse 19.

He says

the righteous person

may have many troubles

but the Lord delivers him

from them all.

All of them.

It's an amazing statement.

This is how it is

between God and his people.

And we don't know

how long David was sitting

in that Philistine cell.

It may not be

immediately

that he delivers us from it.

And David's troubles

are far from over.

But he does

deliver his people

from all

their troubles

in his perfect time

and in his wisdom.

Up in verse 5

David says

those who look

to the Lord

are radiant.

Their faces

are never covered

with shame.

I was thinking

about that this week

like what a statement.

Those who look

to the Lord

are radiant.

Their faces

are full

of joy.

That's quite something

to say

after David

has said

that he was

a poor man

and crushed in spirit

and broken hearted.

Something to really

meditate on

in those moments

where I'm not

radiant

and joyful.

Perhaps it's because

I haven't been

looking to the Lord.

I've been looking

instead at my circumstances.

I've been looking

at the problems

in my life.

I've been looking

inward

into my own soul

and listening

to my own thoughts

and anxieties

and worries.

those who look

to the Lord

are radiant.

Verse 7

The angel

of the Lord

encamps around

those who fear him

and he

delivers them.

I love the picture

that we get

from this.

I,

just in my own

imagination picture,

you know,

here we are out

camped

with the army.

The enemy armies

are camped

all around

and we don't know

when they're going

to strike.

We don't know

where they're going

to come from

at what time

of the day

and the night.

But one thing

we can be certain

of,

David says here,

is that we are okay

because around us

the angel

of the Lord

is encamped.

They're going

to have to go

through him

first

to get to me.

So I don't need

to be afraid.

I can rest easy.

the angel

of the Lord

may be unseen,

but this is the

Lord we're talking

about.

All of this

kind of stirs

in our own minds

the question

that I think

we need to all

think about.

What are the

troubles that

you're going

through right now

in your life?

what are the

problems that

you're facing?

What are those

things that are

weighing on you?

Be they

circumstantial,

be they

relationships.

What will you

do about those

things?

What have you

been doing

about those

things?

We all have

a decision

to make

and David

is aware

of that as

well.

will we

try to

manage

these

things

on our

own?

Will we

just try

to make

a plan

and deal

with them

as best

as we

can?

Or

will we

turn to

the Lord

and do

as David

did and

call out

to him

and cry

out to

him for

his help

and ask

him to

come and

deliver us?

It's a

choice that

we all

need to

make in

each one

of the

different

troubles

and

difficulties

that we

face.

And David

kind of

comes to

this moment

in verse

eight,

which is

kind of the

centerpiece of

this whole

psalm where

he says

this.

He says,

taste and

see that

the Lord

is good.

Blessed is

the one who

takes refuge

in him.

I love

that metaphor.

Taste and

see.

There are

some things

in life

that we

can never

fully

understand or

appreciate or

enjoy until

we taste

and see.

I don't

care how

good a

poet you

are or

how good a

musician you

are, but

your words

and your

music can

never

describe what

I just

experienced

there in

all of his

fullness and

all of his

goodness.

So it is

with the

Lord.

Until we

take that

step and

entrust

ourselves to

him, our

problems to

him, call

out to

him, we'll

never know

just how

good he

is and

how well

he takes

care of

his people.

as David

has been

talking about

here.

Taste and

see that the

Lord is

good.

You need to

come and

experience this

for yourself

so that you

can join

with me in

worship and

glorify the

Lord with

me.

So do it.

Blessed is the

one who takes

refuge with

him and

trust yourself

to him and

trust your

problems to

the Lord and

see for

yourself just

how good he

is.

How wonderfully

he takes

care of our

needs, just

how aware

he is of

everything that's

going on in

our lives and

how he is

faithful to

deliver us in

every situation.

It's a

wonderful invitation.

Taste and

see.

It's a

delightful

relationship that

we can have

with God.

But it's

also a

serious reality

when we

take a step

back and

think about

it for a

moment.

This is

God, the

creator of

the universe,

holy,

righteous,

good, and

we are

human beings.

We're his

creatures and

we're sinful.

We're rebels

at that.

And so

David follows

up taste and

see that the

Lord is good

with this.

Fear the

Lord, you

his holy

people.

Take the

Lord seriously.

Don't treat

him lightly.

Treat him

with deep

reverence and

respect as

is fitting for

who he is.

He's the

Lord.

He's God.

But as

quickly as he

urges us to

do that,

he reminds

us of

the good

things that

the Lord

does for

those who

fear him.

Right away,

he says,

fear the

Lord, you

his holy

people, for

those who

fear him

lack nothing.

The lions

may grow

weak and

hungry, but

those who

seek the

Lord lack

no good

thing.

God takes

good care of

his people

such that

they lack

nothing.

That's an

interesting thing

for David to

be saying

right now

when he has

nothing and

he has just

barely escaped

from the

Philistines.

Those who

fear the

Lord lack

no good

thing.

I don't

have anything,

but I

believe it

and I

know it's

true.

This is

one of

those things

that is

easy for

us to

doubt.

Is that

really how

it is

between God

and his

people?

Those who

seek the

Lord lack

no good

thing?

That almost

sounds too

good to be

true,

doesn't it?

If we go

back to the

beginning,

we remember

that's kind

of what

Satan used

with his

conversation

with Eve.

Is the

Lord really

good?

Does he

really care

about you?

Did God

really say

that you

can't eat

out of any

of the

trees in

the garden?

What a

stingy guy.

What a

selfish guy.

He doesn't

care about

you.

Oh, just

one tree.

Just one

tree he

said that

you couldn't

eat.

Well, you

know why

he said

that, right?

Because he's

withholding

something good

from you.

He knows

that if you

eat it,

you'll become

like him.

You'll know

something good.

You'll become

something good.

God doesn't

care about

you.

He's not

good.

He's withholding

something good

from you.

David says

exactly the

opposite.

Those who

seek the

Lord lack

no good

thing.

The lions,

they may

grow weak

and hungry.

The Lord

doesn't just

take care of

his people

with slim

pickings.

You know,

just enough

for us to

eke out our

existence like

weak and

starving lions

that are

looking around

in the desert

and they can't

find anything

to eat.

That's not

the way

the Lord

takes care

of his

people.

They lack

no good

thing.

They lack

nothing.

He's generous

and he's

abundant in

his provision.

He gives

and he gives

and he gives.

Why wouldn't

he?

I mean,

we just

celebrated

what the

Lord has

done for us

this morning

and isn't

that what

Paul said?

he who

did not

spare his

own son

the best

most precious

thing that he

had but gave

him up for

us all.

How will he

not also

along with

him give

us all

things?

Everything

that we

need.

Everything

that's good

for us.

Do you

believe that?

Oftentimes

when we

don't get

what we

desire,

when our

plans are

frustrated,

we question

God, we

doubt his

goodness.

But he's

already given

us the most

costly gift

of all.

It proves

that he's

willing to

give us

everything

that's good

for us.

And so

if he

hasn't given

us something

good, then

perhaps it's

because he

knows it's

not good

for us to

have.

Or maybe

not at this

time.

we have

to trust

his wisdom

in that.

And so

I want to

ask you

again this

morning,

as we

bring this

to a

close,

what are

your

troubles?

What

problems are

you facing

right now?

In the

honesty of

your heart,

what is

it?

what are

you going

to do

about it?

If there's

one thing

that we

hear from

David in

this psalm,

it's this

invitation

to entrust

your problem,

your troubles

to the

Lord.

Try it

out and

see for

yourself

just how

good he

is and

how he

will take

care of

you in

your situation

and your

problem.

Taste and

see for

yourself.

And when

you see,

then come

glorify the

Lord with

me.

Let us

exalt his

name

together.

Let's

pray.

Amen.

Father in

heaven, we

thank you for

these precious

words and

it is amazing

how you speak

to every

issue in

our lives

so clearly,

so powerfully.

You're an

amazing God.

We thank you

for these

words.

We ask that

you would

guard them,

that you

would cause

them to

take root

in our

hearts,

and that

you would

help us to

truly take

you up on

this offer

all week

long,

no matter

what difficulties

come.

we want

to see

just how

good you

are.

We ask

this in

Christ's

name.

Amen.

Amen.

We'll be right back.