A VICTORY CELEBRATION, ALL PRAISE TO GOD

Psa. 18:1-6

Morning Meditation 10/6/17

Psalms 18:1-6, "<To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul: And he said,> I will love thee, O LORD, my strength. The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower.. I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. The sorrows of death compassed me, and the floods of ungodly men made me afraid. The sorrows of hell compassed me about: the snares of death prevented me. In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried unto my God: he heard my voice out of his temple, and my cry came before him, even into his ears."

We will just look at a few points in this psalm.

David is its author. He authored the psalm and gave it "To the chief Musician." I quote Dr. John Phillips on the introduction: "We know just when David wrote this psalm. The title tells us this is 'a psalm of David, the servant of the LORD, who spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD delivered him from the hand of all his enemies, and from the hand of Saul.' At long long, last the outlaw years were ended. The civil war between David and Ishbosheth, too, was at an end. A united kingdom had crowned David at last, and David's enemies on every hand, those within the kingdom and those across the frontiers, had all bowed before his footstool. Nathan the prophet had come too with a wonderful word from God--because of David's love and loyalty to Him, the Lord would establish David's throne for ever.

This psalm is found twice in the Bible--twice because the Holy Spirit wants to emphasize it. It is found in the history book of Israel in 2 Samuel 22 and it is here in the hymnbook of Israel. There are a few minor changes, changes no doubt made by David's own hand when, with the Spirit's leading, he edited the former work and submitted the psalm to the chief musician as a piece for the temple choir."-- Dr. John Phillips vol. 1 p. 135. (I highly recommend Dr. Philips commentaries on the Psalms).

Dr. Phillips looks at this as prophecy. I believe it has a twofold application. It can be viewed as history and it can also be looked at prophetically. There are some things in this psalm that prove Dr. Phillips right. However, my purpose in this meditation is not to deal with prophecy or to study it historically. My purpose is to make some personal applications that will enhance our walk with the Lord. It will be impossible to cover the whole psalm. So my purpose is a very limited look. First let's look at,

THE PROTECTION THAT GOD PROVIDED DAVID

Psalms 18:2, "The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower." We see in this verse many things necessary for a successful warrior. David says that, "the LORD is my rock" and I believe that the rock is for avoiding the enemy. It is a place to hide. It is also a place to fight from. The rock provided protection from the enemy. I believe Saul searched for David extensively. There is nothing Saul wanted more than to kill David. Though David was loyal to Saul, Saul's intense jealousy drove him to spend years as the king of Israel in search of David with the purpose of killing him.

What Saul didn't realize is that he had to come through a ROCK to get to David. And that is the kind of protection that we have today. God still protects His people.

There are many things that David brings us for which he thanks the Lord that the Lord uses to protect David. I cannot mention them all. But I do want to mention what David said in Psalms 18:35, "Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great." The word "Shield" translates the Hebrew word "magen" and means, "shield or buckler." The basic idea in this Hebrew word is to "cover over" thus protecting the ones hidden under this covering. Note David calls it "the shield of thy salvation." Is there a New Testament word that would suggest to us that we have this same protection from God? There is only one place in the New Testament where this word is used and it is in Ephesians 6:16, "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." This word is used in Ephesians of spiritual warfare. It is used by David first of all of physical warfare. The Lord many times takes a truth from the physical world to illustrate a spiritual truth. This is true here.

Remember, it is only found one time translated "shield" in the New Testament. And here it is used to describe a weapon that will shield from Satan's firey darts. All the pieces of armor here are vital for the Christian to wear. However, when the Holy Spirit says, "above all" then there needs to be special care with the meaning and use of what that word describes.

The word "taking the shield of faith" translates "analambano" and means, "to take up." This verb is an aorist active participle. The aorist tense here means, "to seize" and is a single act. I was in the army during the Korean conflict (a police action!!!). When the enemy was in the area we seized our guns in a sudden act and just as suddenly inserted live ammunition into the firing chamber. It means grab your gun and shoot anything that moves!!! The active voice of this verb indicates a volitional act. There were conscientious objectors. But we had none of those in our outfit. We knew the enemy was out to kill us and it was a matter of wining the battle and having the weapons to do it. A moments hesitation could cost you your life and a lot of your buddies.

Paul by inspiration of God said, "seize the shield of faith." There is enemy activity in the area. When Satan fires off the firey darts and you have the shield before you and you hear the dart hit the shield that is being held before you, you know that if the shield had not been held up properly that dart would have gotten you.

There is a great promise in this verse. It is according to "Ephesians 6:16, "Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked." How many firey darts is this shield able to withstand? The answer is, "wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the firey darts of the wicked." This means, "all." God has provided us with a shield that Satan cannot penetrate. But the shield has to be held up in place.

Then we must have confidence in the provision that the Lord has provided. It is "the shield of faith." Faith is what we as Christians live by. Faith in God makes God the protector against Satan. Do you believe God can protect you against the enemy? You say yes. Then you don't have anything to worry about. However, don't get careless. The shield on the ground won't protect you. It has to be carried the way shields are supposed to be carried. We hold the shield with faith that Satan cannot penetrate it. And with that kind of faith Satan is just wasting his ammunition. Praise the Lord for the shield of faith. Then next,

THE LORD'S ACTIVE ENGAGEMENT IN THE BATTLE WITH DAVID

Psalms 18:35, "Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great."

I think David is saying, "Lord, I had weak knees many times. The shield became heavy. I wanted to rest but there was no rest. The enemy was active in the area. But Lord I felt the load taken off. I suddenly had strength in my legs. That is when I recognized that 'Thy right hand hath holden me up.' I was aware that you were actively engaged in this battle with me." I believe this is what David is saying in this statement.

What does the Word of God say in the New Testament? Ephesians 6:10-11 says, "Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." Doesn't this sound like God will get personally involved in the battle we are having against Satan? Just how close is the Lord to us in the battle?

Paul says in Colossians 1:27, "To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:"

Christ has made a temple out of our body. God has incarnated the Holy Spirit within us. And all the actions we take that is according to His word and done in faith, He acts with us, and victory is as sure as the omnipotence of God. Imagine Satan coming against us when we are inhabited by the Lord Jesus Christ. Not only are we inhabited by the Spirit of Christ, we are in Christ. 2 Corinthians 5:17, "Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new." If we are in Christ, that means that Satan has to come through Christ to get to us. Christ has already defeated Satan completely and once for all.

Are you in a battle right now with Satan? Is he trying to break up you home and ruin your life? Remember you are a child of God. If you will only walk by faith you cannot be defeated by him. Jesus is inside of you. He will work if you believe and doubt not. Matthew 21:21-22 says, "Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done. And all things, whatsoever ye shall ask in prayer, believing, ye shall receive."

I want to encourage you to believe God for victory. He has already won the victory but you must believe to make the victory He obtained over Satan to apply to you. Jesus walked away from the tomb with the keys of hell and death rattling at His side. Someone hold my mules!!! Hallelujah!!! What a Saviour!!!

The Lord's active engagement in the battle with us means certain victory. The casualties lying by the roadside down the pathway of life are those who did not live by faith. They may be saved but they were not living by faith. If you want victory in your life you must live by faith. Whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

WHAT MADE DAVID GREAT?

Psalms 18:35, "Thou hast also given me the shield of thy salvation: and thy right hand hath holden me up, and thy gentleness hath made me great."

What does "thy gentleness hath made me great" mean? The word "gentleness" translates, "anvah" and means, "humility, meekness, condescension." David knew this about God. How I do not know. Christ had not at that time come and reflected out the glory of God. The "express image of God" had not yet been seen incarnated in a man. This is what happened in the virgin birth. God became a man. Jesus said in John 14:7-9, "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him. Philip saith unto him, Lord, shew us the Father, and it sufficeth us. Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and yet hast thou not known me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; and how sayest thou then, Shew us the Father?"

Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30, "Come unto me, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Here Jesus says, "for I am meek and lowly in heart." Meekness is not weakness. Meekness is like the taming of a wild animal. No one could ever hate sin more than Jesus. But He could separate sin from the sinner. The sinner is a victim of Satan's lie. Sin is what put the whole human race in a depraved state totally unable to fulfil the purpose for which he was originally created. Jesus, if He were not tamed would have on a moments notice, cast the whole of the unsaved world into a burning hell, and that would have been the end. But He loves every person who has ever been born into this world. To accomplish man's redemption, He had to be meek. That was a characteristic of God whether in the Old Testament where it is not clearly seen, or in the New Testament where His meekness is seen in its purity.

Do you want rest for your souls? The need for this is as applicable to the saved as to the unsaved. Then come to Jesus. Give yourselves wholly to Him. Do it as completely, holding nothing back, as Jesus did when He went to the cross for us. He will allow His arms to be felt by you as He draws you up in love and assures you that everything is going to be all right.

May the Lord bless these words to our hearts.

In Christ

Bro. White