A Study in Psalms - Psalm 44

Want to welcome you back to Christ Community Church and our

summer of Psalms. And I think even though it's

still May, summer has finally arrived, isn't it?

Tonight we're going to look at Psalm 44.

You want to turn there? Psalm 44 and the title of

today's message, I hope you have an outline, is When good

Christians Suffer. Last week I took about 3 or 4

minutes to talk about Argentina. Tonight I want to talk about

Myanmar or some of the old folks.

Remember Burma? That's where Ping and I last

served. We came home at the end of 2019

and the plan was for me to go back 3-4 times a year to teach

at the Bible school there. But you know what happened?

COVID happened and then a civil war.

The civil war there's really been going on for almost 80

years, but it totally exploded in 2021 because the government

had allowed democracy to come in.

But in 2021, the Burmese army overthrew the democratic elected

government and all, the, all the Christian tribes, Buddhist

tribe, Muslim tribes revolted. And they're, they're winning the

war right now. But we haven't been able to go

back. But the reason we haven't been

able to go back is because there's a group of pastors that

Christ Community Church committed to train with a four

year Bible school. They're called the Nagas.

You may have heard of the Nagas in India.

There's 29 not a tribes in India that most of them have come to

Christ, one of the great missionary movements in the past

century. But over in Burma, there's one

tribe, the Tangsha Nagas, and nobody's working with them.

They live in the most remote area of Burma, no Wi-Fi, we

can't zoom with them. So for I think 6-7 times we took

them out of their area. They would come sometimes on bus

to Yangon. We even flew them in.

But they can't travel now because if they travel, they'll

get conscripted by the Burmese army or the rebel army.

Last time they they got to the airport and they were stopped by

the rebel army and they have letters that show their pastors

and they weren't conscripted. But both sides are so desperate

for soldiers, they wood forest them in so they won't travel.

So I don't think October I can go and teach.

We just have one more, one more, one more, three courses in one

time we could do in two weeks and finish.

Then we'd be done and they could graduate.

But we're waiting. But some of you asked about how

the situation is with the earthquake.

The the Bible school that I taught out is now an official,

the Masters Academy International.

I think they have about 16 TMAI academies around the world and

Myanmar is an official one now. It wasn't when I was there.

But the school in Yonggun is safe.

All my friends are safe. Tom Jin will be here next

Sunday. He's coming to study for two

weeks at the Masters Seminary. So you'll see a month next

Sunday. But everybody's safe in Yonggu.

But up north, it's Mandalay is the second largest city in

Myanmar. And it is just devastating.

You don't see a lot of the news for most people don't care about

Myanmar. They care about Ukraine, Russia

or Israel, Hamas. But they also the army doesn't

allow reporters in there, especially Americans.

So yesterday I was looking at a video from from Doctors Without

Borders and it was that in Lee Lake, beautiful lake and all the

houses are on stilts but virtually every house was

knocked down. And in Mandalay 70 to 90% of the

houses are destroyed and they don't have a lot of skyscrapers.

Most of the houses 3-4 stories would be the high.

But it is it's horrible there. But I was thinking at, because

you see the temples, the monasteries and those stupas,

you know, that a stupas, this large cylinder thing that they

claim that there's a piece of Buddha's body and like a hair or

a fingernail and there's millions of them, that's

impossible. But they're all destroyed.

They're sitting on their sides. And Isaiah 55, seven says, God

says I create calamity. And that is the epicenter of

Buddhism, not just in Burma, but almost that whole area of Asia.

For example, Thailand, the boys will be monks for maybe two

weeks. To honor their family, they have

to be a monk. So they'll shave their head

going to the monastery for two weeks.

They don't want to be a monk. So over half the monks in

Thailand that live full time in the monasteries are from Burma.

So I believe God sent a message to them that he is, he is the

one true God of the heavens and the earth.

And they need to repent. But, but the Bible school in

Yangon is safe and doing well. But up north, it's it's terrible

that people are there. And I talk about Myanmar because

I want to talk about the first American missionary went to

Myanmar. And I've talked about it many

times here. And that is a drone around

Judson. And last year I recommended that

you're teenagers or maybe you need to read probably the most

powerful missionary biography that's out there.

And it's called To the Golden Shore, The life of a drone and

Ram Judson. And when we talk about our title

tonight, When Good Christians Suffer, I'm just going to give

you one paragraph. A donor, Ram Judson, lived from

1788 to 1850, and he stepped onto Burmese soil.

Originally he wanted to go to India, but he arrived in the

year 1812 and India was in a war with America, so he wasn't

allowed. To stay in India.

So he went to Burma. But he arrived on the Burmese

soil with no applause, but with anguish.

For seven long years he preached without a single convert,

digging into the language like a miner seeking the gold beneath

stone. He buried his first child in

foreign soil and watched his beloved wife and waste away from

disease. And then he spent two years in

brutal imprisonment, Chain Star suspended by his feet in a

filthy Burmese death Cam. Yet even in the darkness of the

dungeon, he whispered prayers in Burmese and in scraps of

translated scripture under his thin mat, knowing that someday

someone would read them. When Judson died in 1850, he

died on a ship and was buried at sea after nearly 4.

I'm sorry. After nearly 4 decades of toil,

there were over 7000 baptized Burmese believers and more than

60 churches have been planted and a fully translated Bible in

the Burmese language. That Bible today is still used

after 200 years. His body was committed to the

sea, but his legacy lives on the hearts of people who once knew

nothing of Christ. Today if you go to Kitchen

State, there might be 2,000,000 Christians.

Now I would say a lot of those are nominal Christians because

the largest seminary there, the president doesn't even believe

the Bible. But there are a lot of born

again believers. When Judson sowed in sorrow,

heaven reaped in joy and listen to what he wrote here.

If I had not felt certain that every additional trial was

ordered by an infinite love and mercy, I could not have survived

my accumulated sufferings. Such words were not poetry, they

were scars made in the praise. Let's read Psalm 44.

Psalm 44 has a superscription that says to the choirmaster a

mass skill of the sons of kora, and I'll talk about that in a

little bit. Oh God, we have heard with our

ears, our fathers have told us what deeds you performed in

their days, in the days of old with you, with your own hand

drove out the nation's. But them you planted, you

afflicted the peoples, but them you set free.

For not by their own sword did they win the land, nor did their

own arms save them, but your right hand, and your arm and the

light of your face. For you delighted in them.

You are my king. Oh, God ordains salvation for

Jacob. Through you we push down our

foes. Through your name we we tread

down those who rise up against us.

For not in my bow do I trust, nor can my sword save me.

But you have saved us from our foes, and are put to shame those

who hate us. In God we have boasted

continually, and we will give thanks to your name forever,

Sila. But you have rejected us and

disgraced us, and have not gone out with our armies.

You have made us turn back from the foe, and those who hate us

have gotten spoiled. You have made us like sheep for

the slaughter, and have scattered us among the nations.

You have sold your people for A trifle, demanding no high price

for them. You have made us the taunt of

our neighbors, the derision and scorn of those around us.

You have made us a byword among the nations, a laughing stock

among the peoples. All day long my disgrace is

before me, and shame is covered my face at the sound of the

taunter and reveler, and the sight of the enemy and the

avenger. All this has come upon us,

though we have not forgotten you, and we have not been false

to Your covenant. Our heart is not turned back,

nor have our steps departed from your way.

Yet You have broken us into place of jackals, and covered us

with the shadow of death. If we had forgotten the name of

our God, or spread out our hands to a foreign God, would not God

discover this? For He knows the secrets of the

heart. Yet for your sake, we are

killed. All day long we are regarded as

sheep to be slaughtered awake. Why are you sleeping?

O Lord, rouse yourself. Do not reject us forever.

Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction

and oppression? For our soul is bowed down to

the dust. Our belly clings to the ground.

Rise up, come to our help. Redeem us.

For the sake of your steadfast love, let's pray.

Father, tonight perhaps in our audience there are people who

are suffering, wondering why. May this Psalm tonight help them

to understand Your sovereignty, Your Providence, Your love, and

Your mercy. And sometimes we'll never know

why till we get to heaven in Jesus name, Amen.

James Johnston wrote that our natural instinct is to think

that if we obey God and do what is right.

Things will go well. Our church will grow.

Our kids will do well. My business will succeed.

But God allows obedient Christians to go through deep

trouble. Sometimes we suffer because

we're disobedient. Israel was defeated at a high

because Eakins sinned. He kept some of the spoil from

Jericho. Ananias and Sapphira died

because they lied to God. The writer of Hebrews 12 said

God disciplines us when we sin and His purpose is to make us

holy. But sometimes God allows us to

go through hard times even when we are obedient and walking

closely with Him. Job suffered pricely precisely

because he honored God. Job 18.

Joseph went to prison precisely because he honored God.

Paul had a thorn in the flesh precisely because his ministry

was so successful. This can be hard to understand.

We understand when God disciplines us with hardships,

when we have disobeyed Him. But why do trouble and tragedy

come into our lives when we've been following God faithfully?

This is the exact situation of Psalm 44.

Let me talk a little bit about the type of Psalm.

It's a lament. Of course, the the the author is

crying out, and probably half the Psalms are laments.

But usually Psalms are written to praise the Lord for military

victories, right? But here's Psalm 44.

The worship leader in the temple is crying out for some unknown

military defeat. We don't know when this is.

I'll talk a little bit about it. But whatever war battle it was,

it was catastrophic. The Israel army had been

defeated, many were taken slaves, and the situation was

terrible. Sometime when you read Psalm 44,

make sure you read Psalm 4243 and 44 together.

They share many of the same themes.

In Psalms 42, you know that's the as the deer pants Psalm.

In Psalm 43, the king feels like God has forgotten and rejected

him. In Psalm 44, the king speaks for

a nation that feels like God has forgotten and rejected them.

We have a. Nice superscription here.

It just says to the choirmaster A maskiel.

A maskiel is a wise saying or and some type of instruction put

to music. And this one is written by the

sons of Kora. We've looked at Psalm 5 and

we've looked at Psalm 27. Both of those were written by

King David. Tonight we have a different

writer in Psalms. And the sons of Kora were the

worship leaders in the temple. So we don't know if it's one guy

who wrote the 11 of them, there's eleven of them or

different ones. The sons of Kora, though,

demonstrated in awe of God's holiness and power as expressed

in their service to the Lord of the temple and the style of

poetry they use in their psalms. Remember they wrote Psalms 42

one. Remember that as the deer pants

for the streams of water, so my soul pants for you.

They also wrote Psalms 46 verses one and two.

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help and trouble.

Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way.

They wrote Psalms 47. Clap your hands all you peoples

shout to God with voices of triumph.

They wrote Psalm 48. Great is our Lord and greatly to

be praised. They wrote Psalm 49 verse 20,

Psalms 49:20

which says man in his pomp, yet without understanding is like

the beasts of the field. And then of course that

wonderful Psalm 84 and you know verse 10 says for a day in your

courts is a better than 1000 elsewhere.

I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house.

Oh my God, then dwell in the tents of the wicked.

They also wrote Psalms 87, which we'll look at probably four or

five weeks from now, which says glorious things of you are

spoken, O city of God. They also wrote Psalms 444585

and 8811 Psalms all together. So the their poetry, the Hebrew

poetry, which we've translated in English is really beautiful.

Let's look at your outline tonight.

We have #1A prosperous past, verses 1/8 #2A painful present,

verses 9 to 22, and a positive future, verses 23 to 26.

There are some outlines if you in the back, if you didn't pick

one up, try to leave one every week.

Let's start with a prosperous past verses one day.

So God is Israel's king here on the basis of past experiences.

You know, if you read Psalm 42 and Psalm 43, you see the words

hoping God, hoping God, hoping God three times.

The psalmist is going to do that in verses 1 to 8 year,

remembering the prosperous, the glorious past that Israel had

got. 2 sub points there. They have been planted in the

land. And let's look at that.

Number one, they've been planted in the land.

So First off, we're going to have God brought them, God built

them. I think that's the only two sub

points. Yeah.

So let's talk about God. God brought them verses one to

two. OK, the psalmist says.

We have heard with our ears. They didn't have the Bible like

we do. They weren't able to read the

word of God. But they would tell stories,

grandfathers to fathers to children, would tell the stories

of the exodus from Egypt, the conquest of Canaan.

Five times here in verses 1/8, it says you, you, you.

Actually in my translation, 21 times in the Psalms, it says

you, you, you, you, of course, is God.

God did it. All of it was from God.

God gave the people his great victories.

If you'd like to turn to Joshua 24 with me, Joshua, and this is

the last chapter in the book of Joshua, He reminds the people,

the children of Israel in the last chapter, who was

responsible for the conquest of Canaan.

And in Joshua 24, I'll read verses 6 to 8 and then I'll jump

to 10 to 13. But in Joshua 24 it says, then I

brought your father's out of Egypt and you came to the sea,

and the Egyptians pursued your father's with Chariots and

horsemen to the Red Sea, and then they cried to the Lord.

He put darkness between you and the Egyptians and made the sea

come upon them and cover them. And your eyes saw what I did in

Egypt. And you lived in the wilderness

a long time. Verse 8.

Then I brought you into the land of the Amorites, who lived on

the other side of the Jordan. They fought with you, and I gave

them into your hand, and you took possession of their land,

and I destroyed them before you. Then Balak son, is a poor king

of Moab. Rose, rose and fought against

Israel, and he sent invited Balaam, son of the OR to curse

you. But I would not listen to

Balaam. Indeed he blessed you.

So I delivered you out of his hand.

And then if you go to verse 11 and you went over to the Jordan

and came to Jericho, and the leaders of Jericho fought

against you, and also the Amorites, the Perzites, the

Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgosites, the Hittites and

Jebusites. And I gave them your hand, and I

sent the Hornet before you, which drove them out before you.

2 kings of the Amorites. He was not by your sword or your

bow I gave them. I gave you a land on which you

had not labored and cities that you had not built.

And you dwell in them. You eat the fruit of vineyards

and all of orchards that you did not plant. 10 times there he

says aye, aye aye. God brought them out.

Sub point to God built them up in verse 3.

OK, he says it was not by their own sword did they win the land

nor did their own army save them.

But your right hand, your arm and the light of your face

delighted them. It wasn't by their own sword.

We just read Joshua 24 that says God did it 10 times.

You know one of my favorite passages in Joshua.

I love the book of Joshua because it's war and you know,

if you like war movies like Saving Private Ryan like that,

like me, Joshua is one of my favorite chapters in the Bible.

In Joshua 10, we have this battle where there's 5 kings led

by Adenizaetic and he's the king of Jerusalem and he went to

attack Gibeon. And remember the Gibeonites in

the previous chapter, Chapter 9 had tricked Joshua.

Joshua didn't pray. Probably the one time in the

book of Joshua that Joshua didn't seek the God's advice.

So the Gibbeonites had deceived Israel, but now the Gibbeonites

are being attacked and they cry out to Israel to help them.

And in Joshua 10, I'm sorry, Joshua 10, it says in verse 11,

as they fled before the Lord, while they were going down the

ascent of Beth Warren, the Lord threw down large stones from

heaven on them as far as he's at, and they died.

And this is, this is what I love.

There were more who died because of the hailstones than the sons

of Israel killed with the sword time and time again.

Battle and battle. God won the war, not their

armies. And notice here in verse three

that we have 3 metaphors. We have the right hand of God,

the arm of God, and the light of his face.

So he says by your right right arm.

OK, that is used 40 times in psalms.

It signifies power, signifies the omnipotence of an almighty

God. It's you.

Psalms 26 says Now I know that Yahweh saves his anointed, He

will answer him from his holy heaven with the saving might of

his right hand. Psalms 110 that great messianic

Psalm verse one says Yahweh says to my Lord, sit at my right hand

until I put your enemies as a footstool for your feet.

Then he just says your arm, your arm.

Another anthropomorphism. Anthropomorphisms are when.

The the writers of the Bible ascribe human characteristics to

a God. God doesn't have an arm, doesn't

have eyes, He's a spirit. But we have to describe them.

So we use these anthropomorphisms.

And the second one he just says, and your arm and Psalms 10/12

says arise, O Lord, O God, lift up your hand.

The third is, and the light of your face, that just means God's

gracious favor when God sheds His light for his face and you

look at Deuteronomy 9, you don't have to turn there, I'll read

it, but Deuteronomy 9, four to six, God reminds the children of

Israel. Do not say in your heart after

the Lord your God has thrust them out before you.

It is because of my righteousness that the Lord has

brought me in to possess this land.

Whereas it is because of the wickedness of these nations that

the Lord is driving them out before you.

Not because of your righteousness or uprightness of

your heart are you going in to possess their land, but because

of the wickedness of those nations, the Lord God is driving

them out before you. And that He may confirm the word

that the Lord swore to your father's, to Abraham, Isaac, and

a Jacob. So they had been planted in the

land. They had been built.

They've been brought into the land and they've been built up

in the land. Let's look at.

Subpoint number B. They have been protected in the

land, and here God decrees the victories.

God defeats the foes and God delivers them.

So First off, God decreed the victories.

Verse four, he just says you are my king.

O God ordained salvation for Jacob last week we said in

Psalms 27 in Psalms when you see the word salvation, it's the Old

Testament. It means a victory or

deliverance granting salvation. It's not the salvation of a born

again Christian of the New Testament.

We said last week, but it's crying out for deliverance and

Deuteronomy 4 verse 37 to 38 and it says and because he loved

Deuteronomy 4:37–38

your father's and chose their offspring after them and brought

you out of Egypt with his own presence and great power,

driving out nations greater and mightier than you to bring you

in to give their land as an inheritance as it is to this

day. So God decreed the victories.

Sometime if you do it you'll if you're reading your Old

Testament, obviously you'll get it.

But when you get to Joshua 12, 31 battles, it says victory won

31 times. God ordained victory.

So God decreed the victories in verse 4.

In verses 5 to 6, God defeated the foes.

OK, Now notice in verse 5 it says though you through you we

push down our foes. So most commentators think that

the people answer the king in verse 5 saying we, and then in

verse 6 we'll talk about that second.

So the people answer the king in verse 5 in the plural, saying

we. For many years the Lord had been

the invisible warrior who went before the Jewish armies and LED

them to victory. Joshua 5 verse 13 to 14 says

Joshua 5:13–14

when Joshua was by Jericho, he lifted up his eyes and look, and

behold, a man was standing before him with his drawn sword

in his hand. And Joshua said to him, Joshua

went to him and said to him, are for you.

Are you for us or for adversaries.

And verse 14 and he said, no, I am the commander of the army of

the Lord. Now I have come believe that is

the pre Incarnate risen Christ. So God defeated their foes.

And then Point C there verses 5 and eight God delivered them.

OK, so here, now the king is going to speak in plural again

in verse 7 when he says you and then the people are going to

answer in plural, we in verse 8. And God delivered them.

I'll talk a little bit in a minute about Psalm 60 and Psalm

44 are very closely aligned. And Psalm 60 says, O grant us

help against the foe, for vain is the salvation of man.

With God we shall do valiantly, for it is he who will tread down

our foes. God delivered him.

Verse 8 ends with Selah, and I haven't talked a lot in the last

four or five years about the selas.

OK, There's about 73 of them in the Psalms and commentators

argue about them. So I'll just tell briefly that

this first paragraph ends with the word Selah.

You'll notice the next paragraph begins with yet or but now Selah

is probably some type of music reflection where you pause.

Maybe it's verses 18 or 1111 chorus in the next.

Some people think it's a pause for a vocal instrument or an

interlude like a flourish. So what do we learn for these

first 8 verses? Maybe Israel had a glorious

past, right? And maybe you've had a glorious

past. Maybe you serve the Lord

faithfully. Maybe you've attended church

faithfully. Maybe you've given your ties.

Maybe everything's great. But you got to be careful

because we come to the next point.

In times of trouble, believers need to rebuild their confidence

in God by recalling the great deeds that he did in the past,

in their lifetime. That's what the psalmist did.

Before he gets to point #2 let's look at point #2 the painful

present. So as the psalmist is writing

this, there's a sad plight of Israel at the present as he's

writing it, verses 9 to 22. And you have two sub points

there. Their military disaster is real.

And the moral dilemma is really so let's look at the military

disaster is real 4 little sub points here.

They were defeated, they were deported, they were despised and

they were disgraced, defeated, departed, despised and

disgraced. So verses 9 to 10 they were

defeated. So it begins verses 1 to 8.

We have the triumphs of the past and if it ended there, this

would be a victory Psalm like many of the psalms that we have.

But verse 9 begins with the board, but and in in in maybe

you're, I think the LSB and the NASB say yet.

But you notice that it changes right now in verses 9 to 16, we

have sadness. We have defeat six times.

In verses 9 to 16, the psalmist says you, you, you.

My translation says 21 times in 26 verse it says you the you is

God. And now it seems that God is

forsaken Israel. He's forsaking his people.

He's abandoned them. The army of Israel has been

defeated and the enemy has gotten much spoil and slaves

have been taken captain, so they've been defeated.

Next they've been deported. Verses 11 to 12.

Not only has the army of Israel been defeated, but God has

allowed many to be killed, others scattered, and God has

allowed slaves to be taken for no great price.

When was the defeat? Well, when most people read

verse 11, they automatically say, aha, this is the Babylonian

captivity that is recorded when Israel was finally destroyed and

and Nebuchadnezzar took back. But that's not what Psalm 44 is

about. Commentators other there have

been other deportations. If you read we won't turn there,

but read Amos verse one 6 to 9. It talks about Edomites.

Edom and Moab had deported some Israelites.

So there have been some, but turn with me to Psalm 60 and I

mentioned they're very similar and I'm not going to take a lot

of time tonight because we got 26 verses to cover, but.

Psalm 60 and Psalm 44 are like companion Psalms you can see.

Psalm 60 verse one. Oh God, you have rejected us.

You've broken our defenses. You've been angry with us.

You made the land, the quake all through this Psalm.

It's not as long as the other Psalm 12 verses, but I want you

to look at the superscription. Everybody see the dot there?

This is the longest superscription of the 100 and

114 superscriptions that we have on the 150 psalms.

And it says there to the choirmaster, according to the

Shushan Edith, a victim of David for instruction when he strove

with a ram Naram and with a ramzo Bob when Joab on his

return struck down 12,000 of Edom in the valley of salt.

So some commentators and I would lean toward this, believe that

when he says when he strove. So it's possible that Israel had

some military defeats, probably in Second Samuel chapters 8-9

2 Samuel 8 · chapter mention

and 10 that we that God has not recorded it.

Remember the secret things belong to God, the revealed

things belong to us. So if Psalms 44 and Psalm 60 are

about some military defeat that God has not told us.

And so we just assumed David won every battle, David won every

war, but there might have been some battles that maybe he

wasn't there. They made maybe joy lost.

So that's what I think there that it is.

So remember that I don't, I don't believe it's about the

Babylonian captivity, but it's an unknown military defeat,

possibly linking with Psalm 60. But remember, it's a reminder

that the righteous can suffer. OK, Daniel was taken captive to

Babylon. Ezekiel was taken captive to

Babylon. They were made slaves there.

The righteous can suffer when God punishes the nation of

Israel. Let's look at #3 They were

despised. Verses 13 to 14.

Not only were they defeated, not only were they deported, they

were despised. The enemy nations surrounding

Israel were rejoicing that Israel had been humiliated.

They were taunting Israel. So the sons of Kora here writing

could not understand. What the Lord was doing and why

he was doing it, Psalms 4210 says as a deadly wound in my

bones, my adversaries taunt me, while they say to me all day

long, where is your God? Remember when, when in in this

time ancient times when a country won, when the

Philistines won the battle, they, they.

Attributed to their gods. So when Israel lost the war the

the the enemies would taunt Israel saying where's your God?

And our verse, it says verse 14 he's saying.

You, God, have made us a laughingstock among the nations.

It reminds us of Psalm 137. One Psalm 137 Remember that by

the waters of Babylon, there we sat down and wept when we

remembered Zion on the willows there we hung our harps, for our

captors required us songs, and our tormentors MERS saying, sing

us the songs of Zion. So that tells us when they were

slaves on the way to Babylon they were tortured and forced to

to sing songs. So not only were they, they were

despised. Verses 15 to 16, they were

disgraced. He says all day long my disgrace

is before me. Shame is covered my face at the

taunt of the tauntner and reveler at the side of the enemy

and the avenger. The psalmist was ashamed because

the enemies are giving glory to their false gods.

And he's wondering where is the one true God who gave us those

victories before? Let's look at sub point B.

The moral dilemma is reeling. And here they were.

They were dedicated. They were defeated and they were

disillusioned. So normally whenever there was

trouble in Israel, it was assumed it was because somebody

sinned, Right When Israel was defeated at a high, 36 Israeli

soldiers were killed. It was because of Aiken's sin.

That's the only battle that Joshua lost, right?

When there was a three-year famine in David's time, Second

Samuel 21, it was because Saul had slaughtered to give me

nights and God had had put this famine.

And then when David numbered the people of Israel in Second

Samuel 21 / 70,000, Israelites would die because of David's

sin. So usually it's because there's

some sin. But here the psalmist doesn't

know of any sin to be confessed. Here we have the problem of this

Psalm. Israel had remained faithful.

Israel is not, they're not claiming to be sinless now, but

they don't know why God has punished them, why God has

defeated their army, why God has let slaves be sold and the

enemies win. And he says in our Psalm here,

in these verses here, they had not forgotten God.

They had not been false to his covenant.

They've been loyal to God's covenant.

They had not turned away from God.

They had not departed from his way.

See verse 20 there OK, they knew God's search.

There's they said God, you search the hearts of men and if

there was any treachery, you would discover it God.

So they're saying what Psalms 139 verse 23 and 24 says, search

Psalms 139:23

me, O Lord, know my heart, test me God.

That's what they're saying, God test us.

We don't know of any evil sin that we've done.

We don't know why you let us lose this war.

One commentator says this Psalm is perhaps the clearest example.

Of a search for some other cause of natural disaster than guilt

and punishment. So let's look at then defeated

in verse 19. The psalmist uses darkness here.

He says you have broken us in the place of jackals and covered

us with the shadow of death. Remember that shadow of death?

Does that sound familiar? Psalms 23 verse 4 quoted it last

Psalms 23:4

week. Even though I walk through the

valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.

But here the psalmist uses darkness to depict desperate,

threatening circumstances. God has crushed them and covered

them with a shadow of death and they are in fear and then

they're disillusioned. In verses 20 to 22, you know, in

times of suffering, people evaluate their lives in attempt

to see, is this suffering from God?

Did I do some sin? And God is discipline.

But the people in Psalm. Had done that and they found

nothing warranted the calamity. They go so far to say God

wouldn't accuse them. You know so far God wouldn't.

Accuse them or send a prophet to tell them what they did wrong.

OK, he says there, for he knows the secrets of the heart their.

Strength was based on the fact that God sees.

They know God's omniscient. They know God would see.

Yet verse 22, verse 22 says, Yet for your sake we are killed all

day long. We are regarded as sheep to be

slaughtered. Does that verse sound familiar?

Paul quotes this verse in Romans chapter 8, verse 36, that great

Romans 8:36

chapter in Romans 8. So Paul takes this verse from

verse 22 of Psalm 44 to tell the Romans that, hey, some of you

may die, some of you may die, you may face death in your

trials. You know, last week I said that

God doesn't have many of us. None of us here are probably

going to be martyr unless something drastically changes.

God just asked us to live for him.

But there are countries, there are places in the world that,

that, that there are many Christian martyrs, Nigeria and

India and China and places like that.

It was in, you know, I said God doesn't ask many of us to be

martyrs, but he asks for all of us to live for him.

But it was on January 8th, 1956, five American missionaries were

killed in Ecuador. They were attempting to

evangelize a tribe called the the war Irani people.

And you probably know the story. Jim Elliott, Nate St.

Ed McCauley, Peter Fleming, Rodger Yoderin were attacked and

they were literally speared or bows and arrows were killed him

and many people thought it was such a waste.

It looked like a terrible defeat.

It was on the cover of Life magazine and it was a huge story

all around the world. Today, if a missionary dies in

the world. You know nobody.

'S going to cover it, right? But it looked like a defeat.

It looked like a waste of five young men.

But that caused thousands of missionaries to take up the

mantle to go out and spread the gospel.

The the the incident known as Operation Akua gain worldwide

attention and was covered by Life magazine.

The missionary's death led to a significant media coverage and

feel missionary interest and help send missionaries all over

the world. God is responsible for the

disaster here. God was responsible for that

disaster there and allowed it. But remember, the U21 times in

the Psalm also means that God is in control.

He allows the disasters to happen.

I quoted Isaiah 45 seven. God creates darkness and causes

disasters. The same God who gave Israel the

victories in the past is the same God who allows suffering in

the present. In times of trouble, believers

must pour out their complaint to God alone because their

affliction can bring a reproach to them and to the faith.

Let's look at, at the last point, the positive future.

And here's a prayer, just a simple 232424 verse prayer about

the future and two sub points. The psalmist is saying, God,

rouse yourself and #2 God redeem us.

And notice in verse 23 in rapid fire, the psalmist has three

questions. Awake while you're sleeping.

O Lord, why do you hide your face?

Why do you forget our affliction and oppression?

Well, he says awake while you're sleeping.

O Lord, the psalmist knows God isn't sleeping, but God is just

silent, right? Psalms 121 says He will not let

your foot be moved. He who keeps you will not

slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will

neither slumber nor sleep. We all know that God.

Doesn't sleep. God doesn't tire out like us.

He's just been silent here, but he's crying out to God to ask

for help. He says why do you hide your

face? Usually the psalmist ask God to

let your let your face shine upon us.

Psalms 80 verse 3 Psalms 80 verse 7 Psalms 80 verse 19 three

Psalms 80:3 Psalms 80:7 Psalms 80:19

times it says restore us. O God, let your face shine upon

us that we might be saved. So usually they cry out to let

the face of God shine on them, but here they don't.

They're not feeling the light of God's face, so they're crying

out to God. It seems that God is sleeping,

God is hiding his face. So the psalmist asked God, rouse

yourself and no longer ignore your people.

God, we are crushed, we are despised.

Help us. The third question, he says, why

do you forget our affliction and oppression?

Of course God doesn't forget. Not God is silent, but he knows

exactly what's going on. The psalmist is saying, God, you

helped. Us in the past, you must help us

now, but you're not helping us even though we have done nothing

to prohibit you from helping us. So help us when commentator said

the last hope. Of a faithful people is the

faithfulness of God. So they're crying out to God to

to to wake up to help them and then some point be God redeem

us. The last two verses of the

Psalm, he, he says that our soul is bowed down the dust, our

belly clings to the ground, they're saying.

We don't have any power. We don't have any strength.

But some are people. We've been killed, some are

people and taking captive OK, We have no power.

But then he says in verse 26, rise up because you God have the

power. You God need to rise up.

You need to come to our help. You need to redeem us.

And he says, for the sake of your steadfast love.

So he's crying out, calling upon the character of God, the one

attribute that he says, maybe your translation says mercies,

but I think the better translation is steadfast love,

James Boyce says about this verse.

The love of God is of such a quality that even in terrible

defeats of the precise moment are not without a purpose.

And will not even in the worst extremity sever the believing

one from God. What he's saying and what the

psalmist is doing here, he's crying out for the God.

Be true to your character. You're a God of love.

That's one of your greatest attributes.

Remember us. And for the sake of your love,

come help us Romans 8 which I mentioned earlier, Paul quotes

it. And if you want to turn the

Romans 8 verse 36, Paul quotes Psalm 42 verse 22 and he says.

Romans 8:36

As it is written, that's Psalm 4222.

For your sake, we are being killed all day long.

We are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.

So there were some in the Roman church who are being persecuted,

some who are being killed, some being jailed, some being chased

out. But then he says those great

words that in Psalm 8 know in all things we are more than

conquerors through Him who loved us.

For I am sure that neither death nor life, neither angels nor

rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, not powers, not

height nor depth, nor anything else in all of creation, will be

able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our

Lord. So some of these Israelites may

die in Psalm 44 and in Rome 8 some of them died.

And today in Nigeria, today in India, Today in China, today in

some countries around the world, God may allow some Christians

some. Good Christians to die not

because of any sin in their life, but it's just part of His

sovereignty, part of his Providence.

But nothing, not even death, will separate them from the love

of God. So if you're suffering.

If you think God isn't answering, remember the love of

God. It's all right to say Lord, I

don't understand it, but I will trust you anyway.

It's better to say thank you, Lord, for letting the suffering

come into my life because I know you're using it to conform me to

the image of your Son and to make me more efficient and more

effective servant. You know the Bible tells us that

we are to receive suffering and joy with Thanksgiving.

Not that it's easy, right? James, 11 and two, says, count

it all. Joy, my brothers, when you meet

trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your

faith produces steadfastness and.

Let the steadfastness have its full effect on you, that you may

be perfect, complete, lacking in nothing, and one more verse.

Second Corinthians 417 says for this light momentary affliction,

and you may say, well, it's not the cancer, the divorce or loss

of job is not a light momentary affliction.

Yes, it is. Because someday, when you're in

heaven, you're. Going to look back at that

momentary affliction and the last part of it says that

momentary light affliction is preparing for us and eternal

weight of glory beyond all comparison.

Somebody in heaven you will look back at that trial that you

didn't understand. It'll be that small.

So tonight in just a few minutes we have left when good

Christians suffer what should we do?

Psalms 44 doesn't. Actually give us the answers,

does it? But it tells.

But it does teach us that we just need to trust God.

Cry out for His love. Cry out for His help.

So I'm going to give you 7 quick things that you need to do when

good Christians suffer. OK number one, examine to see if

you're in the faith. Examine to see if you have Jesus

Christ in your heart. OK Second, that's second

Corinthians 13. Five says examine to see if

you're in the. Faith.

Is my trial, is my my suffering because I'm not even a

Christian. We have a president who is not a

Christian, and he has a false teacher named Paula White who is

his spiritual advisor. And I pray every day that

somehow Trump will come to the Lord, and especially that

somehow Christians around America could tell him to dump

that Paula White because she is a charlatan, a false teacher.

But there are millions of people in America and even more so

around the world who follow these false teachers and they're

not believers. They don't know the Lord their,

their promise, their kids will be healed.

The promise they get money. So they're following God like a

genie and they don't know salvation through faith alone.

So number one, I trust everybody here tonight has Jesus Christ in

your heart. But examine yourself to see if

you're in the faith #2 examine yourself to see is there any sin

in my life? And I mentioned the Psalm 139,

Psalms 139:23–24

verses 23 to 24. The psalmist says search me.

O Lord, when you confess your sins, are you willing to say

search me? O Lord, did I sin today?

Did I do something today to my wife or get mad?

Or did I have a road rage or search me, O Lord God, you know

my heart, try me. No, because you know my

thoughts. And verse 24 says, see if

there's any grievous way in me and lead me in the way

everlasting. So ask God, is there any sin in

my life? You I need, you need to expose

to me. Remember in Numbers 12, Aaron

and Miriam sinned against God and God judged and gave Miriam

leprosy. Remember in First Corinthians

11, the Corinthian believers were were getting drunk and they

were not sharing the food with the poor, and God struck some.

Of them down, that was for sin. And remember in Second

Chronicles 26, Uzziah went into the temple to offer incense.

He's not allowed to and God struck him with leprosy.

So God can cause some suffering because of.

Sin or lie? #3 chastening, chastening

Hebrews 12 And I won't go there time 'cause I don't have the

time. But Hebrews 12 verses 5 to 12

Hebrews 12:5–12

basically says the Lord disciplines those He loves.

So maybe you're not reading your Bible like you should be.

Maybe you're not praying like Psalm 5.

OK, God can chasten you. How's your walk with the Lord?

God can chasten you, which causes you to go back to Him.

And we all know that, you know, sometimes divorce causes women

or men to go back to the Lord when they weren't walking with

the Lord. So God can chasten those He

loves to draw us closer to Him. And similar #4 strengthening,

OK, God may permit suffering as a means of purifying or

strengthening the soul and godliness.

You know, the Second Corinthians chapter 12 verses 8.

2 Corinthians 12:8

I won't do the whole story, but three times Paul pleaded with

the Lord to take away, take this trial away from me, Lord, and

that should leave me. But what did God say to, to Paul

in verse nine of Second Corinthians 12?

My grace is sufficient for you. For my power is made perfect in

weakness. Therefore I will boast all the

more gladly about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may

rest upon me for the sake of Christ.

And I am content in weaknesses, insults, hardships,

persecutions, calamities. For and I'm weak and I'm strong.

God did not answer Paul's prayer.

So Paul had to, just had to suffer.

But it's strengthening him, right?

And #5 Remember the Titans? Not that football movie which I

saw a couple months ago, but the Titans.

Who are the Titans? Job, Elijah, Paul and I could go

on about Daniel, Moses, Jeremiah.

So if you're suffering, the last thing you cannot do is neglect.

Reading your Bible. So Job nobody will ever suffer

like Joe. We had a wonderful study 30

messages by Job and you can get the cassettes or listen to him

online. But remember Job and I quoted

last week Job 2310, Job says. But he knows the way that I take

and when he has tried me, that's God I.

Shall come out like gold. We need to remember Job came out

like gold and you will come out like gold.

If you just trust the Lord even though you don't know why and

how it's happening. And remember the other Titan,

Elijah in first Kings 19, he says, Oh Lord, take my life.

I'm no better than my father's. I just want to die.

And God doesn't really answer him.

He tells him, hey, you're not the only one.

I have 7000 who have not bowed the need the ball.

And then he, you know, doesn't really he says, Elijah, I got

more work for you. Go do this three things.

Go do this, go do this, go do this.

OK, And then remember Paul in Second Corinthians chapter one,

verse 8, it's Paul says, for we don't want you to be unaware,

brothers, of the affliction we experienced in Asia, for we were

utterly burdened beyond our strength, that we despaired of

life itself. I don't know what happened, but

Paul wanted to die in 2nd Corinthians 1 to 8 because

affliction was so great. He says in verse 9, indeed, we

felt like we had received a sentence of death, whatever was

going on, but that was to make us rely not on ourselves, but on

God who can raise the dead. He delivered us from such a

dilatedly peril and he will deliver us on him.

We have set our hope that he will deliver us again.

So remember the Titans, remember Job, remember Elijah, remember

Paul, how God let them suffer, but God used them in a mighty

way and he will use you. And number six, just real

simple, God is worthy of our love even apart from the

blessings he bestows. That's one you need to write

down, meditate upon. God is worthy of love.

We need to love God not because of what he gives us.

That would be a genie like giving you free wishes, right?

We need to love God just simply because who he is, OK, and not

because of what he gives us, OK? They're Christians around the

world who will accept Christ today and could be murdered

tomorrow. So God is worthy of love even

apart from the blessing he bestows.

And then #7 God's thoughts and ways are moved by considerations

too vast for our puny mind to understand.

And you know the verse Isaiah 55, eight and nine for my

thought. This is God saying for my

thoughts are not your thoughts. Neither are your ways my ways,

declares the Lord. For as the heavens are higher

than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my

thoughts than your thoughts. We can't understand what God's

doing sometimes in our world, in our lives, in our church, in our

neighborhoods, in our country, what he's doing the state of

California with our politicians and sometimes.

We got to just give it up to the sovereignty of God.

Last week, if you were here, I finished Psalm 27.

Quoting the hymn by Stuart Hamlin and a bunch of you looked

it up this week. But I just love that verse 4

says, I know not what the future holds, but I know who holds the

future. God's in charge.

He's in control. So those are just seven things.

If you're going, if you say God, why am I suffering?

Please review that. You know when good Christians

suffer. There was a British Methodist

preacher named William Sangster, and I've used this illustration

before because I have this on my phone and I read it periodically

because most of you know I have a 13 year.

Old daughter who has special needs and this has been one

thing that's helped me in times of trouble.

What this man said. But this this preacher found out

that he had muscular atrophy. And he knew he was going to die.

He was not going to get well. So he made 4 resolutions and it

says that he kept them to the end.

And I wrote I keep these in my and I memorize it.

He says #1 I will never complain.

I will never complain. I'm not going to cry about it.

I'm not going to complain about. It. #2 I will keep the home

bright and I love that because I know I have a great wife and I'm

not going to sit around and complain.

I'm not going to say poor me I know someday my daughter will

sing, someday she'll run in heaven #3 I will count my

blessings. Today Ping and I went to a House

of another special needs family and their boy has cystic

fibrosis and they have feeding tubes.

They have to get up every two hours.

They, you know, we test is pretty healthy most of the time.

So I count my blessings. So number one, I will never

complain #2 I'll keep the home right and #2 I will count my

blessings and #4 I will try to turn.

The suffering, I will try to turn it the game.

Talked to somebody this week that went through a, a tragedy,

a horrible tragedy several years ago.

And this week, last week, they got to share with somebody who

had a similar tragedy. God, man.

And those people were not believers.

It's the same thing. The house that I was at today,

the people are 7th Day Adventist and we've had conversations.

They are not born again. And so Ping and I have tried

repeatedly to talk to them. And in this week, because I'm

going to a special league conference this week, it's

called like a retreat at John MacArthur's church.

They're willing to go visit John MacArthur's church even though

they're 7th Day Adventists. So we're trying to win them

over. So number one, I'll never

complain #2 I'll keep the home right #3 I will count my

blessings and #4 I will try to turn it to game.

I will try to use my daughter's special needs to see if we can

reach other people for the Lord and use it for gain.

On the back of your outline if you have an outline.

If you don't have it, there's a chart.

This I did not write this. This is from the life

application Bible, popular Bible many 20 years ago.

And I've I've looked at this sometimes and I and I have it

printed out so I can look at it and maybe it'll help you.

There's just somewhere to get help in the book of Psalms when

you feel afraid alone, OK, when you're facing, you know,

criticism, danger or death, when you want acceptance.

So I hope that maybe you can keep this sometimes and read the

Psalms that might help you through your trial, through your

suffering. Let's pray.

Father in heaven, thank you for letting us look at this Psalm

44. And Father, I believe this Psalm

that Israel was defeated by some unknown military defeat.

And I believe it was not because they were sinning, not because

they had broken their covenant, but because you did something

far beyond what they can understand.

And Father, sometimes we Christians, we, we, we're, we're

loyal to you, Father, we're attending church faithfully,

we're tithing, we're serving, we're using our gifts.

And yet sometimes we suffer and we don't understand it.

Father, may this Psalm teach us that.

We may never understand till that great day when you call us

home to be with you or when the rapture comes.

But Father, help us to trust you.

Help us to endure the trial. Help us to persevere and help us

not to complain. Help us to, to to turn it, to

gain. Help us to count the blessings

that we have. We ask this in Jesus name, Amen.