His Provision handles our enemies

Contend, O LORD, with those who contend with me;Fight against those who fight against me. Take hold of buckler and shield And rise up for my help. Draw also the spear and the battle-axe to meet those who pursue me;Say to my soul, “I am your salvation.” Let those be ashamed and dishonored who seek my life;Let those be turned back and humiliated who devise evil against me. Let them be like chaff before the wind,With the angel of the LORD driving them on. 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 soul. Let destruction come upon him unawares,And let the net which he hid catch himself;Into that very destruction let him fall. And my soul shall rejoice in the LORD;It shall exult in His salvation. All my bones will say, “LORD, who is like You,Who delivers the afflicted from him who is too strong for him,And the afflicted and the 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,To the bereavement of my soul. But as for me, when they were sick, my clothing was sackcloth;I humbled my soul with fasting,And my prayer kept returning to my bosom. I went about as though it were my friend or brother;I bowed down mourning, as one who sorrows for a mother. But at my stumbling they rejoiced and gathered themselves together;The smiters whom I did not know gathered together against me,They slandered me without ceasing. Like godless jesters at a feast,They gnashed at me with their teeth. Lord, how long will You look on?Rescue my soul from their ravages,My only life from the lions. I will give You thanks in the great congregation;I will praise You among a mighty throng. Do not let those who are wrongfully my enemies rejoice over me;Nor let those who hate me without cause wink maliciously. For they do not speak peace,But they devise deceitful words against those who are quiet in the land. They opened their mouth wide against me;They said, “Aha, aha, our eyes have seen it!” You have seen it, O LORD, do not keep silent;O Lord, do not be far from me. Stir up Yourself, and awake to my right And to my cause, my God and my Lord. Judge me, O LORD my God, according to Your righteousness,And do not let them rejoice over me. Do not let them say in their heart, “Aha, our desire!”Do not let them say, “We have swallowed him up!” Let those be ashamed and humiliated altogether who rejoice at my distress;Let those be clothed with shame and dishonor who magnify themselves over me. 2Let them shout for joy and rejoice, who favor my vindication;And let them say continually, “The LORD be magnified,Who delights in the prosperity of His servant.” And my tongue shall declare Your righteousness And Your praise all day long. Psalm 35

I love the faithfulness of God when it comes to His provision over His redeemed. In the 28 verses of this powerful Psalm, we can learn that in His care, we can seek Him during times of persecution and harm from our enemies. I’m sure if we were to examine our lives, we can see that there are some people that just don’t like us. I’ve been at Summit now for close to 4 years. In that short time, I’ve observed some that just don’t like me. It happens. Ministry and faithfulness to the Lord doesn’t always bring fantasy happiness. Often times, when we are faithful to His Word and enjoying His presence, there will be some that oppose. I invite you to take time to read what Jesus spoke of this matter in the greatest sermon ever preached (Matthew 5-7).

So..what can we gather from this rich text today? I believe what we can gather is the privilege of faithful prayers. When we know of others in our lives that oppose us, dislike us, and make efforts to discredit us, our response should be immersed in prayer. Our flesh can be an ugly monster. Our natural tendency (given to us from earthly parents…Romans 5:12), is to lash out and protect our claimed territory. However, I see in this text the importance to surrender our rights of defense to the Holy One that can mightily defend. The Psalmist begins in the first verse with a cry for the Lord to fight the battle…not the writer. What joy and assurance to know that we don’t have to put the weight of opposition on our shoulders! We can trust in His provision and care in leading us to be wise in any given situation. Anyone opposing you or attacking you today? Have you given the right to respond over to the Lord?

The last part of this rich Psalm is how I want to close this morning. “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” (Psalm 35:27-28). What glory and riches! It ties in so well with what our Savior told us in Matthew 5:16…about letting our light shine for the glory of the Father. I believe in our passion to find satisfaction in God above all the evil pleasures of this world, the result can naturally be a righteousness in us that leads to praises all day long for His great name. I’d marry Matthew 5 with James 3. Take time to see how even the words of your mouth can be a testimony today to the expanding of corporate worship here in this world. May all that comes out of our mouths today not be in defense to accusations or attack, but may they tell of the righteousness of our great Lord.