Bowed But Not Beaten
Jeff Strite
Psalm 56:1-12
OPENING: A minister was making a wooden trellis to support a climbing vine. As he was pounding away, he noticed that a little boy was watching him. The youngster didn't say a word, so the preacher kept on working, thinking the lad would leave. But he didn't. Pleased at the thought that his work was being admired, the pastor finally said, "Well, son, trying to pick up some pointers on gardening?" "No," he replied. "I'm just waiting to hear what a preacher says when he hits his thumb with a hammer."
APPLICATION: That boy was watching to see how the preacher would respond to pain. How he would deal with pain. How he would handle hurt. The World is a lot like that little boy. It watches how we (as children of God) act when faced with suffering, injustice, and unfairness. The world expects to see anger, resentment, bitterness, and rage. But that's not what the world WANTS to see. The world wants to see people who can face difficulties in life with grace and inner strength and thus give them hope for their own struggles.
Too often we fail - I fail - to live up to the potential that God has placed within us to meet those challenges. And yet God understands.
I. That's why He's given us the example of David.
Psalm 56 is a portrait of David as a victim: he's been attacked, slandered, conspired against, and yet this Psalm is a psalm of praise and glorification. It's a reaffirmation of God's faithfulness.
Where was David? Verse one of this Psalm says he'd been seized by Philistines. This refers back to the incident that's recorded in I Samuel 21. David's life has been one of continuous change up to this point. He started his life as shepherd guarding his family's sheep, then was anointed by Samuel to be the next king of Israel, then faced and killed the Giant Goliath and ended up being the hero of the people because of his successes at war. They begin singing a song of how Saul has killed his 1000's but David h ...
Jeff Strite
Psalm 56:1-12
OPENING: A minister was making a wooden trellis to support a climbing vine. As he was pounding away, he noticed that a little boy was watching him. The youngster didn't say a word, so the preacher kept on working, thinking the lad would leave. But he didn't. Pleased at the thought that his work was being admired, the pastor finally said, "Well, son, trying to pick up some pointers on gardening?" "No," he replied. "I'm just waiting to hear what a preacher says when he hits his thumb with a hammer."
APPLICATION: That boy was watching to see how the preacher would respond to pain. How he would deal with pain. How he would handle hurt. The World is a lot like that little boy. It watches how we (as children of God) act when faced with suffering, injustice, and unfairness. The world expects to see anger, resentment, bitterness, and rage. But that's not what the world WANTS to see. The world wants to see people who can face difficulties in life with grace and inner strength and thus give them hope for their own struggles.
Too often we fail - I fail - to live up to the potential that God has placed within us to meet those challenges. And yet God understands.
I. That's why He's given us the example of David.
Psalm 56 is a portrait of David as a victim: he's been attacked, slandered, conspired against, and yet this Psalm is a psalm of praise and glorification. It's a reaffirmation of God's faithfulness.
Where was David? Verse one of this Psalm says he'd been seized by Philistines. This refers back to the incident that's recorded in I Samuel 21. David's life has been one of continuous change up to this point. He started his life as shepherd guarding his family's sheep, then was anointed by Samuel to be the next king of Israel, then faced and killed the Giant Goliath and ended up being the hero of the people because of his successes at war. They begin singing a song of how Saul has killed his 1000's but David h ...
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