| Introduction Have you ever had times in your life when God seems distant? I have had times when God seems distant. Usually when that happens, it's because of my lack of faith or sin. But there also are times in the life of every Christian, when even though you are walking by faith and there is no known sin in your life, God seems far away. You pray, but God doesn't answer. You read the Bible, but it does not speak to you. You seek God, but it seems as if he is hiding. When that happens, you are in good company. David, the man whom God at one point called "a man after my own heart," had that experience. He describes it in this psalm. Out of the depths of his heart David repeats four times the haunting cry, "How long?" There is no indication in these verses that David had sinned. But his enemy was about to get him. In spite of David's repeated prayers, God seemed unavailable. Have you ever been there? You desperately call out to God, but he seems to have taken an extended vacation. Psalm 13 tells you what to do when God seems distant. The psalm falls into three stanzas of two verses each: The stanzas seem to decrease in their magnitude or turmoil. At first David cries out in anguish. Then he offers a gentler petition. Finally, he rests in the joy of knowing that God will answer him. "This song as it were casts up constantly lessening waves, until it becomes still as the sea when smooth as a mirror, and the only motion discernible at last is that of the joyous ripple of calm repose." Franz Delitzsch In a sentence, the psalm is saying: When God seems distant, we must call to him, trust in his unfailing love, and cling on to what he says concerning his grace toward us in Jesus Christ. At those times when it seems as if God has turned his back, we must deliberately trust the fact that he loves us with an unfailing love, and that he will not forsake us, even though it may seem that way for a while. I. The Problem: God Seems Distant (13:1-2). A. It seemed as if God had forgotten David, had hidden himself from him, and as if it would last forever. 1. It always seems as if a time of intense trial lasts forever, doesn't it? 2. The hard thing about waiting is that you have to wait! 3. Waiting is especially hard if you don't have much to do while you wait. a. If this psalm was written when David was being pursued by Saul, then David had a lot of time on his hands. b. He was holed up out in the desolate wilderness of Judah. c. About all he and his men had to do was to get their daily provisions and keep watch. d. The hours, days, weeks, and months dragged on as David waited for God to act. B. Sometimes it seems as if God moves so slowly! 1. We live in a day that says, "Hurry, hurry, hurry!" 2. But so often God says, "Wait! Wait! Wait!" 3. Most of us can relate to a comment by the New England preacher, Phillips Brooks (O Little Town of Bethlehem). a. Normally, he was a calm man. b. But one day he was clearly agitated. c. He paced the floor like a caged animal. d. A friend asked him, "What's the trouble?" e. Brooks replied, "The trouble is, I'm in a hurry, but God isn't." C. Have you ever noticed the difference between God's timetable and ours? 1. We think in terms of minutes, hours, and days, but God often works in terms of years. 2. Do you remember the story of Joseph? a. God wanted him in a position of influence in Egypt. b. How did He get Joseph there? 1) First, he had him sold into slavery by his brothers when he was a teenager. 2) He was hauled off to a foreign land. 3) Then, he had him falsely accused by Potiphar's wife and thrown into prison. 5) I think it is fair to suppose that Joseph was praying fervently, "God, get me out of here?" but God didn't seem to hear. 6) Finally, an opportunity came to interpret the dreams of a couple of fellow inmates. a) To the one man, the king's cupbearer, who would be released from prison and restored to his job, Joseph pleaded, "Remember me and get me out of here!" b) The cupbearer assured him that he would, but he forgot! c) The next verse (Gen. 41:1) casually reads, "Then it came to pass, at the end of two full years, that Pharaoh had a dream...." Two years! d) Think back to two years ago in your life. e) For two more years Joseph languished in prison. f) Couldn't God have given Pharaoh his dream sooner? Why the long wait? g) As it was, Joseph spent the better part of his twenties either as a slave or in prison in Egypt. 3. Or take the Apostle Paul. a. He was God's greatest apostle to the Gentiles. b. There was so much work to be done for the Lord, and so little time to do it. c. Paul wanted to go to Rome and then on to Spain with the gospel. d. How did God get Paul to Rome? 1) He had him imprisoned on a false charge. 2) The governor in Caesarea heard his case and knew that he was innocent, but he kept him in custody because he knew that Paul had some influential friends and he hoped for a bribe (Acts 24:26). 3) Acts 24:27 reads, "But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus; and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned." Two years! 4) God's great apostle was confined in Caesarea. 5) People were perishing without Christ! 6) Why didn't God do something? Why didn't he move the governor to release Paul? Wasn't Paul walking by faith? Wasn't he praying? Why did he have to sit there for more than two years? D. That's what David was going through. 1. He had been anointed as king by the prophet Samuel when he was a teenager. 2. But Saul was pursuing him like a partridge in the mountains (1 Sam. 26:20). 3. David was perhaps now in his late twenties. 4. This had been going on for years! 5. Where was God? Had he forgotten about David? E. David himself was in turmoil (13:2a, b). 1. At night David made his plans, and by day he tried them, but they were all futile, just causing him more grief. 2. David had gone from hope to despair so many times that he felt like he was on an emotional roller coaster. 3. He was like a rat in a maze with no exit – God had dropped him in and walked away. F. David's enemy seemed to be winning (13:2c). 1. Saul was still the king. 2. He was enjoying the comforts of the palace, while David was sleeping in caves. 3. What made it worse was the fact that Saul was the bad guy! a. He wasn't seeking the Lord – David was. b. Saul was trying to kill David without cause, even though David had spared Saul's life. c. Didn't God know what was happening? Couldn't he do something? Had he forgotten about David? 4. Sooner or later you will be in a similar situation! - You are in an extended time of trial – you call out to God, but he doesn't answer.
- You try to figure out how to get out of your circumstances, but nothing works.
- You go from the heights of hope to the depths of despair so many times that your stomach can't take much more.
- Meanwhile, those who aren't following the Lord are living the good life in the palace while you are seeking the Lord from the cave – at least it feels that way.
- There are two vital lessons to remember at such a time:
1) God has not forgotten you! Is. 49:14-15– But Zion said, "The LORD has forsaken me, and my Lord has forgotten me. Can a woman forget her nursing child, and not have compassion on the son of her womb? Surely they may forget, yet I will not forget you." a) You may suffer for years, but that is not because God forgets you. Heb. 13:5– He Himself has said, "I will never leave you nor forsake you." b) But God does seem to forget some of his choicest servants, as we have seen. i. Joseph, Paul, David – all of them were shut up in unpleasant circumstances for years during which it seemed that God had forgotten. ii. Do you know what was happening during that time? · God was building maturity into those men as they learned to trust him. · Just as it takes years to grow a sturdy oak tree, so it takes years to build the godly character qualities needed to be an effective servant of the Lord. 2) That's the second lesson: there is no such thing as instant godliness. a) We have instant everything in our society, but there is no instant godliness. b) David was anointed as king in his teens. i. He had a strong faith at that time, as seen in his victory over Goliath. ii. Did God put him on the throne when he turned twenty-one? No. Twenty-five? No. Twenty-six? Twenty-seven? Twenty-eight? Twenty-nine? No. iii. Through all those years of running from Saul and living in caves, David learned to wait upon God. iv. God was developing his man. c) That's so out-of-sync with our rush-rush world, but that's how God works. i. If God has placed you in some frustrating circumstances, and you have racked your brain trying to figure a way out, but nothing has worked; ii. and you see the godless prospering while you suffer, and it seems like God is far away – hang on! iii. Let God do his perfect work in you. iv. He hasn't forgotten you. II. The Petition: Call to the Lord (13:3-4). A. One of the reasons many Christians do not grow to maturity and are not used by God in a mighty way is that when God seems distant to them, instead of calling out to him, they just shrug their shoulders, say "Oh, well," and go back into the world. B. Or, they go buy the latest self-help book that promises to fix their problem, but it doesn't help them to trust in God alone. C. David didn't do that. D. When God seemed distant, he called on him to answer him. E. Instead of turning from God, he turned to God. F. Instead of complaining to men about God, David complained to God about men. G. Matthew Henry wisely observes, "We should never allow ourselves to make any complaints but what are fit to be offered up to God and what drive us to our knees." H. Four lessons from 13:3-4: 1. Our prayers should be concerned for God's glory, not just for our happiness. a. David wasn't just praying for deliverance so that he could escape from his problems and be happy. b. His fear was that the enemy would rejoice, 4. c. Since David was God's anointed king, if he died at the hands of his enemies, it would make God look bad. d. God's honor was tied up with David's deliverance. e. In a time of trouble, you can call out to God to rescue you, not just for your relief, but for God's glory. f. God delights to honor such prayers. 2. We must seek God especially when he seems distant. a. David wanted to sense the presence of God in his life. b. If he lost the sense of God's presence, he went after it with a holy fervor. c. The test of our faith is not when God's presence is real, when we see God at work in our life. d. The real test of our faith is when God seems distant. 2) Seek God especially when he seems distant. c) Especially the corporate worship of God 3. We must keep an awareness of God and the enemy before us at all times. a. We need to keep both realities before us as the factors which motivate us to holiness and put us on guard against sin. b. As Christians, the honor of our God is at stake through us. c. If we fail him, the enemy will rejoice. d. Satan is trying to drag the name of our Savior through the mud by getting us to forsake the Lord or fall into sin. e. We need to keep God and his honor and the reality of our unseen, evil adversary before us at all times so that we will not disgrace our Lord. 4. God allows us to come to the end of ourselves so that we must rely on him. a. David was fearing for his life. b. He was convinced that it had to be God to rescue him, nothing else. c. Sometimes God seems distant and allows us to go right to the brink, to come to the end of ourselves, so that we learn to trust him more. 1 Pt. 1:6-9– In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, 7that the genuineness of your faith, beingmuch more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ, 8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him,yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, 9 receiving the end of your faith—the salvation of yoursouls. "When through fiery trials thy pathway shall lie, My grace, all sufficient, shall be thy supply; The flame shall not hurt thee; I only design Thy dross to consume, and thy gold to refine." Author unknown d. Whatever their intensity, all trials are designed to bring us to a deeper trust in the Lord. 1) If we dodge them without learning that lesson, we missed what God had for us. 2) David came to that point of trust. {TRANSITION: Thus, we see that David's problem led to his petition which led to his praise.} III. Praise: Trust in God's Unfailing Love (13:5-6). A. David has not yet been delivered, but he trusts in the lovingkindness (NKJV = "mercy") of God, and a calm assurance comes over him. B. Please note that David's circumstances had not changed one bit from the start of the psalm, when he felt confused, depressed, and forsaken by God. 1. David was still hiding in caves; Saul was still on the throne, trying to kill David. b. From focusing on himself and his problems at the start of the psalm, David shifted his thoughts to God's loyal love and salvation. c. That shift in focus moved him from confusion and depression to joy and praise! 3. It didn't happen accidentally, either! a. "But I" (v. 5) is emphatic (in Hebrew) and points to David's deliberate choice to rely on God's loyal love. b. He chose to interpret his circumstances by God's love rather than to interpret God's love by his circumstances. c. In a time of trial, Satan tries to get us to doubt God's love. d. But we have to resist that temptation and affirm with God's Word that he "causes all things to work together for good to those who love God" (Rom. 8:28). e. With Joseph, we must affirm that even though those who wronged us meant it for evil, God meant it for ultimate good (Gen. 50:20). f. So, we deliberately choose to trust in God's loyal love. ConclusionCharles Spurgeon was walking through the English countryside with a friend. He noticed a barn with a weathervane. At the top of the vane were the words, "God is love." Spurgeon remarked that this was an inappropriate place for such a message, because weathervanes are changeable, but God's love is constant. But Spurgeon's friend disagreed. "You misunderstood the meaning," he said. "That weathervane is stating the truth that no matter which way the wind blows, God is love." When God seems distant, join David in deliberately trusting in God's unfailing love, however the winds of circumstance are blowing. As David wrote in Psalm 103:11: "For as the heavens are high above the earth, sogreat is His mercy toward those who fear Him…." You can count on it, even when your circumstances seem contrary. He is only taking you through the difficulty to develop maturity and godly character. "But it's been months! Years!" Yes, that's the way he works. He builds things to last, and that takes time. But the finished product is so much better in quality than quick imitations that don't develop trust in the living God.
If you are distant from God because of known sin, the answer is the same: Call out to him and put your trust in his unfailing love as supremely demonstrated in the cross of Jesus Christ. That is something that David only had as a shadow of things to come. But we have it as the full revelation of Jesus Christ. We know about the cross with unveiled eyes. What David hoped for, we have in fullness as God gave us his own Son.
http://olympiabp.blogspot.com/2019/08/when-god-seems-distant-ps-13.html
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