Jan. 24th Devotion
Facing Fear with Praise – Chuck Swindoll
As David faced his fears and expressed them to God in Psalm 27, he began with worship, celebrating the power and faithfulness of his God.
Declaration of Praise
The key to the entire song is verse 1. It consists of two similar sentences, each ending with a rhetorical question.
"The Lord is my light . . . my salvation . . . the defense of my life." Interestingly, David says God is all of this. The Lord doesn't simply give these things. In other words, the psalmist laid claim upon God Himself rather than His works. David knew Him personally. To David, the Lord was a very personal, ever-present Friend and Helper, not some distant Deity—an impersonal, abstract, theological Being who hid Himself high above the clouds. No, David saw the Lord as a faithful companion.
Because of the Lord's presence, which meant more to David than anything else, the composer asks: "Whom shall I fear . . . whom shall I dread?"
Here the Hebrew term for "fear" is a common one: yarah. But the term for "dread" (pachad), meaning "to be in awe, to be filled with dread," is less common. The Lord God was so significant, so impressive, so overwhelmingly important to David that nothing and no one else inspired awe.
I find it encouraging that Psalm 23 declares, "I shall not want," and Psalm 26 states, "I shall not slide" (KJV). And now Psalm 27 says, I "will not fear." In each case, the composer finds what he lacks only in the presence and provisions of God.
Having considered the sufficiency of his God, David recalls the Lord's past victories over his enemies.
When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.
Though a host encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
In spite of this I shall be confident. (27:2–3)
Note the specific occasions of potential fear: "evildoers . . . adversaries . . . enemies . . . a host . . . war." What a dark scene! And you'll notice that these things weren't mere possibilities; they were realities. He says, "when" not "if." He actually faced these dangers.
Take note of two observations. First, look at the intensity of the conflict: the evildoers came "to devour" (27:2); the host had come to "encamp against me" (27:3); war had risen "against me." This was no slight affliction. Second, look at the psalmist's response in the last phrase of verse 3. In spite of these dangers, both past and future, "I shall be confident." The Hebrew says, literally, "I am confident!" Dangers had come before and danger remained imminent. Pressure mounted. Severe days lay ahead. David had every reason to be shaking in his sandals . . . but he stood firm!
The Hebrew term used by David, translated "confident," does not mean self-reliant or brave, humanly speaking. In Hebrew, it means "to trust, to be secure, to have assurance." Its Arabic counterpart is "picturesque": "to throw oneself down upon one's face, to lie upon the ground." The point I want to get across is that the source of David's confidence and stability was not his own strength—but God. His Lord was his only foundation for rocklike stability. What an unshakable foundation!
While living under intense pressure and difficulty, the courageous missionary to inland China, Hudson Taylor, once wrote: "It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies—whether it comes between you and God, or whether it presses you nearer His heart."
As David faced his fears and expressed them to God in Psalm 27, he began with worship, celebrating the power and faithfulness of his God.
Declaration of Praise
The key to the entire song is verse 1. It consists of two similar sentences, each ending with a rhetorical question.
"The Lord is my light . . . my salvation . . . the defense of my life." Interestingly, David says God is all of this. The Lord doesn't simply give these things. In other words, the psalmist laid claim upon God Himself rather than His works. David knew Him personally. To David, the Lord was a very personal, ever-present Friend and Helper, not some distant Deity—an impersonal, abstract, theological Being who hid Himself high above the clouds. No, David saw the Lord as a faithful companion.
Because of the Lord's presence, which meant more to David than anything else, the composer asks: "Whom shall I fear . . . whom shall I dread?"
Here the Hebrew term for "fear" is a common one: yarah. But the term for "dread" (pachad), meaning "to be in awe, to be filled with dread," is less common. The Lord God was so significant, so impressive, so overwhelmingly important to David that nothing and no one else inspired awe.
I find it encouraging that Psalm 23 declares, "I shall not want," and Psalm 26 states, "I shall not slide" (KJV). And now Psalm 27 says, I "will not fear." In each case, the composer finds what he lacks only in the presence and provisions of God.
Having considered the sufficiency of his God, David recalls the Lord's past victories over his enemies.
When evildoers came upon me to devour my flesh,
My adversaries and my enemies, they stumbled and fell.
Though a host encamp against me,
My heart will not fear;
Though war arise against me,
In spite of this I shall be confident. (27:2–3)
Note the specific occasions of potential fear: "evildoers . . . adversaries . . . enemies . . . a host . . . war." What a dark scene! And you'll notice that these things weren't mere possibilities; they were realities. He says, "when" not "if." He actually faced these dangers.
Take note of two observations. First, look at the intensity of the conflict: the evildoers came "to devour" (27:2); the host had come to "encamp against me" (27:3); war had risen "against me." This was no slight affliction. Second, look at the psalmist's response in the last phrase of verse 3. In spite of these dangers, both past and future, "I shall be confident." The Hebrew says, literally, "I am confident!" Dangers had come before and danger remained imminent. Pressure mounted. Severe days lay ahead. David had every reason to be shaking in his sandals . . . but he stood firm!
The Hebrew term used by David, translated "confident," does not mean self-reliant or brave, humanly speaking. In Hebrew, it means "to trust, to be secure, to have assurance." Its Arabic counterpart is "picturesque": "to throw oneself down upon one's face, to lie upon the ground." The point I want to get across is that the source of David's confidence and stability was not his own strength—but God. His Lord was his only foundation for rocklike stability. What an unshakable foundation!
While living under intense pressure and difficulty, the courageous missionary to inland China, Hudson Taylor, once wrote: "It does not matter how great the pressure is. What really matters is where the pressure lies—whether it comes between you and God, or whether it presses you nearer His heart."
Recent
Archive
2024
January
January 1st DevotionDecember 31st follow-upJanuary 2nd DevotionJanuary 3rd DevotionJanuary 4th DevotionJanuary 5th DevotionJanuary 8th DevotionJanuary 7th Follow-upJanuary 9th DevotionJanuary 10th DevotionJanuary 11th DevotionJanuary 12th DevotionJanuary 15th DevotionJanuary 14th Follow-upJanuary 16th DevotionJanuary 17th DevotionJanuary 18th DevotionJanuary 19th DevotionJanuary 21st follow-upJanuary 22nd DevotionJanuary 23rd DevotionJanuary 24th DevotionJanuary 25th DevotionJanuary 26th DevotionJanuary 29th Devotion1-28-24 follow-upJanuary 30th DevotionJanuary 31st Devotion
February
February 1st DevotionFebruary 2nd DevotionFebruary 5th DevotionFebruary 6th DevotionFebruary 4th Follow-upFebruary 7th DevotionFebruary 8th DevotionFebrtuary 9th DevotionFebruary 12th DevotionFebruary 11th Follow-upFebruary 13th DevotionFebruary 14th DevotionFebruary 15th DevotionFebruary 16th DevotionFebruary 19th DevotionFebruary 20th DevotionFebruary 21st DevotionFebruary 22nd DevotionFebruary 23rd DevotionFebruary 26th DevotionFebruary 27th DevotionFebruary 28th DevotionFebruary 29th Devotion
2023
January
January 2nd DevotionFollow-up to January 1st teachingJanuary 3rd DevotionJanuary 4th DevotionJanuary 5th DevotionJanuary 6th DevotionJanuary 9th DevotionFollow-up to January 8th teachingJanuary 10th DevotionJanuary 11th DevotionJanuary 12th DevotionJanuary 13th DevotionJanuary 16th DevotionJanuary 17th DevotionFollow-up to January 15th teachingJanuary 18th DevotionJanuary 19th DevotionJanuary 20th DevotionJanuary 23rd DevotionFollow-up to January 22nd teachingJanuary 24th DevotionJanuary 25th DevotionJanuary 26th DevotionJanuary 27th DevotionJanuary 30th DevotionFollow-up to January 29th teachingJanuary 31st Devotion
No Comments