A Prayer for Personal Protection (Psalm 141)

This sermon was preached on 11/8/2013

R. E. Prothero, in his interesting book called The Psalms in Human Life, informs us that in the days of the early church, when the Lord’s people faced intense persecution, they turned to the Psalms and used them regularly, with Psalm 141 being designated the psalm for evening worship. It is good for us as we sit here to imagine those little groups of our spiritual ancestors singing the same words as we have just sung nineteen centuries later. No doubt, this psalm was selected for this purpose because their leaders regarded it as containing suitable themes for evening reflection in difficult times. And since we live in difficult times, it may be helpful for us to spend a few minutes each evening in the next week or so reviewing the words here of David as he drew near to God.

Urgency (v. 1)

The first aspect that the psalm reveals is the urgency that can mark prayer at times. It is clear that the psalmist wants immediate help, that he is in a situation of difficulty in which he requires divine aid. Yet as we look a bit closer at his urgent petition we can see that what he desires is divine company (‘hasten to me’). It is possible to pray for a thing without requesting the presence of God. After all, it is easy for the Lord to deal with an issue from a distance without coming himself to ease the situation with a sense of his presence. The psalmist longs for the presence of God to be experienced as well as for the power of God to be exercised.

David uses a familiar word picture when he asks the Lord to give ear to his voice. What image comes to mind through this illustration? I think it is that of a parent listening attentively to a child, of a mother or a father bending down to hear what the child desires. This is a reminder that prayer can be the simplest activity of a Christian. Is this not how Jesus instructed his people to pray? They are not to use the manipulative methods of the Pharisees or the meaningless repetitions of the pagans. Instead they are to speak to their heavenly Father about the desires and longings of their heart.

             

Of course, we are aware that all true prayer is spiritual. While there will be times when spiritual prayer will be little more than a groan, normally prayer is straightforward. It includes reverence and confession of sin, gratitude and intercession. Yet each of them can be expressed simply. Using big theological terms in prayer is no proof of spirituality. It is far better to be simple and straightforward when speaking to the Lord.

Acceptance (v. 2)

David obviously wanted his prayers to be accepted by God. We can see this from the two references he makes to the sacrificial system connected to the Tabernacle. In particular, David was thinking of the evening worship taking place there. Every morning and evening the priest would burn incense (Exod. 30:7-8) and every morning and evening a lamb was sacrificed at the door of the Tabernacle (Exod. 28:38-42), along with a grain offering and a drink offering. The sacrifice of the lamb itself was a burnt offering, which was a picture of total consecration. When the offering was made, the Lord promised to meet with his people.

                       

We can see the points that David was making with this request for acceptance. One was that he wanted the Lord to regard his prayer as very fragrant, a second was that he was dedicating himself to his God, and a third was that he wanted his God to come and meet with him in order to help him.  And we should want the same features to be present when we pray. With regard to what makes a prayer fragrant, we know that it should be offered in the name of Jesus, it should be marked by faith and love, and it should included expressions of penitence and humility. It is helpful for us to check if those features mark our prayers. If they are, God will accept them because they are the work of his Spirit.

Protection (vv. 3-4)

David seems to be conscious of the possibility that he may say something wrong as he prayed. After all, he was still a sinner. He knew he could make selfish requests, he knew he could offer insincere worship, and he knew he could speak hastily against his opponents or against divine providence. So he knew himself, which is a great benefit as we pray. But he also knew the best help he could find for dealing with his speech, and that was to have the Lord himself guard the door of his lips. David needed protection from wrong words. Henry Smith, a Puritan preacher, observed about this verse: ‘The fear of the Lord stood at the door of their souls, to examine every thought before it went in, and at the door of their lips, to examine every word before it went out, whereby they escaped a thousand sins which we commit, as though we had no other work.’

Further, David needed protection from wrong desires within his heart.  He sensed his capability to participate in the delights of the ungodly. The power of temptation came upon him at times and he felt the allurement of wrong things. David here reminds us that there is a little pleasure in what the wicked do, but they do not practise what is good for a believer. So David here is praying against the deceitfulness of his own heart.

David was aware that as long as there are wicked people he would face the temptation to join them. After all, they have a measure of happiness and sometimes believers can be like the psalmist in Psalm 73 who was envious of the wicked. The answer to such temptations is earnest prayer.

       

Fellowship (v. 5)

Fellowship takes many forms, and here David mentions one of the rarest ways to help other believers, yet one of the most essential and helpful. He says that if he begins to go astray he wants another believer to speak very strongly to him – the word ‘strike’ means to hit hard. If we saw a person heading unwittingly into danger we would should loudly at him. Such shouting is not evidence that we dislike the other person. Indeed it is a sign that we care. In a far higher sense, when a believer rebukes another for allowing temptation he is expressing brotherly love.

One example of a believer speaking in this way was Paul when he rebuked Peter for not eating with Gentiles because he was afraid of what the Jews from Jerusalem might think of him. Peter had given in to temptation and was denying by his behaviour important truths about the equality all believers share. So Paul gave him a public rebuke. No doubt, Peter was embarrassed, but it did not create long-term hostility in his heart. Indeed he refers to his corrector as ‘our beloved brother Paul’ (2 Pet. 3:15).

An example from the life of David is Nathan the prophet whom God send to confront the king over his sins regarding Uriah and Bathsheba. Did David resent the honest words of Nathan? He knew they were true and he knew they were said for his spiritual good. They did not destroy his fellowship with Nathan but strengthened it. After all, he could trust Nathan to tell him the truth.

Clearly, this verse calls us to be straightforward with one another. More importantly, it calls us to be watchful over one another. This watchfulness is not snooping; rather it is based on loving concern. David may here be alluding to shepherd practices when he mentions the anointing of oil on his head. A shepherd anointed a sheep with oil for two reasons at least: one was to soothe any sores and the other was to get rid of any insects that were affecting the sheep’s eyesight. He may be saying that his sinful tendencies are like those insects, but the warnings from his friend are like the oil that restores vision.

The fact is, we should be able to give and to take such spiritual correction. The last thing that we should want is what happened when Paul and Barnabas had their quarrel over Mark. It looks as if Barnabas had been tempted by the sin of family preferences and did not take kindly to Paul’s objection. In doing so, he was wrong and destroyed a beautiful partnership. And since it happened to a believer with the stature of Barnabas, we should deduce that it could easily happen to us. We should never let personal pride get in the way of a loving rebuke.

Victory (vv. 5b-6)

These words are not easy to understand. It is obvious that David is determined to pray against those who are opposing him. He anticipates a time when he will speak after their judges have been punished, although he does not know when that will be. If he composed this psalm during the time when he was on the run from Saul, then perhaps he is saying that those who are currently being ruled by those judges will yet hear good words from his lips. Or he could have written the psalm when Absalom and the judges who followed him in his rebellion opposed him. In describing his response to the followers of his opponents David could be referring merely to words connected to good government. Yet he also could be saying that they will hear what he has to say about God. When his prayer for deliverance was heard by God, he would be able to speak about God to others and say what a wonderful Saviour and Friend he is. After all, one of his roles as the king of Israel was to know God’s Word and communicate it.

The example of David here is one that we should imitate. Whenever the Lord helps us we should be willing to tell others about what he has done for us, and do it in such a manner that stresses the beauty and graciousness of his actions on our behalf. Our experiences of life should increase our understanding of God and give us more reasons for commending him to others. Our words can encourage those already his people and challenge those still opposed to him.

Safety (vv. 7-10)

Although he had expressed confidence that he would yet enjoy deliverance by God, David was also aware that in the meantime he and his followers were in great danger (v. 7).  So he prayed for protection from the snares and traps that his enemies had set (v. 9). Once again he asked the Lord to come very near and be his personal Protector.

In verse 8, we can see that David anticipates divine help – he is looking towards his Lord similar to how the members of a besieged city would scan the horizon to see if rescue was on the way. Sometimes it has been suggested that our response in times of trouble should be to pray about the matter and then leave it with the Lord and get on with other things. Frequently another word for such a response is forgetfulness rather than faith. If we ask God for something, our faith will show itself by looking for the answer.

David also told the Lord what life felt like. His current circumstances made him fell defenceless, like a refugee without a secure place to live. David knew that God could be his refuge, so he sought for this spiritual privilege. He did not merely assume that he would be protected, but made it a matter of urgent prayer. In his prayer, he was asking the Lord to keep his promises.

David was also aware of what his opponents were doing. They were hunting him like a defenceless animal. Their actions were sinful and he asked the Lord to deal with them in his providence and keep him safe. Sometimes the price of the safety we desire involves the judgement on those whose lives are cruel. We have to be in the situation of danger before we can analyse their motives. As Spurgeon commented on verse 10, ‘It may not be a Christian prayer, but it is a very just one, and it takes a great deal of grace to refrain from crying Amen to it; in fact, grace does not work towards making us wish otherwise concerning the enemies of holy men. Do we not all wish the innocent to be delivered, and the guilty to reap the result of their own malice? Of course we do, if we are just men. There can be no wrong in desiring that to happen in our own case which we wish for all good men. Yet is there a more excellent way.’