…Hi Everyone, And welcome to trainingforliferedeemed. I’m here with my father David Jackson I’m Dan. We I continue to look through the Psalms. Dad you going to read us Psalm 54.

0058 David

Psalm 54

⁰ For the director, with stringed instruments,

A maskil of David.

When the Ziphites came and said to Saul, “Isn’t David hiding among us.”

Calling on God to Save

¹ God, in your name, Save me!

and with your power, issue judgement for me.

² God hear my prayer,

and please give ear to the words of my mouth.

³ For strangers rise up against me,

and those who strike terror seek my life.

They do not set God before them.

Selah

Proclaiming God’s Salvation

⁴ Behold, God is a helper to me,

My Lord with those supporting my life.

⁵ Return the damage to my enemies.

In your reliability annihilate them.

⁶ With a voluntary gift I will sacrifice to you.

I will praise your name, Yahweh,

For it is good.

⁷ For from every distress he delivers me,

and my eye sees [my deliverance] among my enemies.

01.45 Dan

Well Dad, the psalm begins by setting the scene for us Yep. So we’re looking at a time basically when Saul is hunting David. We talked last week about how Psalm 53 was a hinge point in this book shifting from the calls to people to now specifically looking at Saul and David stuff. Now for the next few psalms at least.

So here we have David running away from Saul, he’s hiding amongst someone?

02.17 David

 He’s in Judah, Judah Judah in his own tribal area Yup Yup.

02.19 Dan

And then they’re going to tell us all that he’s there hiding so for him to come and try and hunt him.

David 2.27

Yeah. So David’s. we’ve gone through that period We were in the area of 1 Samuel 19 to,. where did we get up to, about 29? That period when David’s got to run away from Saul and hide and he’s in the bush.

And gradually a whole bunch of ragtag, drop out men come and join him. Men who would otherwise probably be bandits or gang members or something. They all end up coming with David.

David uses that time to protect the farms of the people of Judah of his tribe. Oh from the raiders that are coming in either from Edom in the east or from the Philistines in the west.

So he and his little mob of two or three hundred fellows.

will turn up, and ambush anybody raiding your farm. You can give him a few sheep and off he goes, Yeah. It’s sort of…a bit of a. You know how do you use your time wisely when you’re stuck out in the bush and everybody wants to kill you, but here he’s in this. We talked about the atheist.

people who have no higher authority over them than themselves. And here’s our first example. His own tribe and tribal members want to betray him to the king. So they’re more afraid of Saul than they are of God. This is God’s man. And so where does that leave him?

And he says, you know I’m alone. these people who don’t set God before them. I can’t trust them. And so here I am I’m all alone. I’m in the bush. Everybody hates me. I can’t trust anybody. What do I do with this? And so I asked the question, Why is this in the Bible?

And the short answer is well, this is. This is what people who belong to God’s kingdom can expect, from the world. And so we think of Jesus in Galilee. constantly.There’s people there who will tip off the people in Jerusalem as to where he is. So you see Jesus jump in a boat and get out of town. He’s safer. It was fascinating I did a little search, he was safe in Egypt. Safer with the Phoenicians entire and Sidon. He was safer with you know the Gadarene demoniac. He was, anyway in Jewish territory. So it’s his own people who would betray him and kill him. Nazareth they’re trying to throw him off a cliff…

Then you. Jesus turns around and says okay if you want to follow me, expect the same treatment. Hmm. So your own family. your own clan, tribe. your mates from school there. These are the people who. You know some of them. There is no God. And they’ll, There’s no loyalty there. Yep…

05.49 Dan

Well Dad, the first section here has David calling on God. Yup. to come in to save him with his power all the rest of it. Yeah. It starts off with this phrase God in your name. Which is said quite frequently these days Yeah. You hear people say things in God’s in the name of Jesus or in God’s name or whatever. but then they try to do something that requires the Holy Spirit and power or something that requires and relationship with God or something. so. Can you just explain what does it mean to be in God’s name.

06.25 David

Yeah David is God’s chosen anointed king. He knows that. He has been given the Holy Spirit has come on him to empower him, to get him through all of this crisis. So he knows it doesn’t depend on him. He is in God. He’s in God’s kingdom. When…

That phrase throughout the Bible, we need to look at more seriously. You take the name; You come into having the name of being a Christian, Of being a member of God’s forever family. At your baptism. So this is the point where you commit. this is the covenant ceremony. this is like the wedding between the person who’s been converted and God. as…the like the metaphor is of a wedding. So from that moment on you bear the name of Christ If you do something that it reflects on his reputation and character.

07.30 Dan

Just like. Traditionally a wife would take on her husband’s. Yeah.

07.35 David

If you adopt a child the child takes your surname. Yeah. So it’s it’s this family concept. And so God is saying David is saying, I’m in your name? I’m in your family I bear your name. Save me.

Hey Dad, help. it’s exactly that sort of a scenario. What I think is. That’s been absorbed or remapped into effectively animism. In a lot of the ways people who call themselves Christians use the phrase.

08.10 Dan

Explain animism.

08.12 David

Magic. Okay. So if you if you watch some church traditions, they will throw water at you and say in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the magic water is going to do the magic job. I’ve heard some people go around and you know, like you’ve got cancer. I rebuke it in your name, and you think well there’s the show. You know there’s what’s his name and Lord of the rings. who’s the big wizard. Gandalf Gandalf there’s Gandalf with his big stick going in your name touch bang your healed. you know? It, we, we can use the phrase as if it was a magic mantra. Yeah.

But what David is doing is saying I have been saved by grace. I am in your family. I bear your name. And therefore from that position I am speaking to you. Otherwise I’d be your enemy And I couldn’t. Yeah.

09.16 Dan

That’s all about. In the olden days when they used to marry. You know, the King’s daughter would marry the other person’s son to there are two nations where then united by name. and then they would say, yeah you’d call out to the bigger country and say we’re being attacked, come and save us.

That’s where we’re kinsmen. Yeah. Kinsmen. We’re family. That’s kind of what David’s doing here He’s going, I’m the anointed one.

You anointed me Yeah. I’m in you’re fairly I’m following you.

09.46 David

This is the covenant deal the great king the lesser king Yeah. You know I get into trouble Your army comes to rescue. So in verse four, behold God is a helper to me.

And that word helper is the word for ally. God is my ally. So if you betray me, are you prepared to take God on? Hmm. That’s what he’s saying. If you’re going to attack God’s anointed; if you’re going to attack God’s people,

There’s some great lines in the Bible: He  who touches you touches the apple of my eye. Says God. I never understood what an apple in your eye meant. when I look up the Hebrew. It’s a pupil. You know so you don’t go around sticking your finger in a lion’s eyes. Or a dog’s You want to try God? You’re an idiot. So. I’m in your name? And these people who don’t recognize God and want to do their own thing don’t realize that they are provoking the one who has committed himself to be my ally. And he’s going to March to my rescue, which means you’re in a lot of trouble.

10.59 Dan

Is that let’s say where this is, where they’ve got originally makes Eve too that she’s his ally.

11.04 David

Yep. Yup. Yup Your ally is your wife. And let me tell you that’s a scary thought…

Yeah And we’ve got to realize that. The word helper. Is used I think 110 times in the Pld Testament. it’s the word ’ezer from Ebenezer rock of my help. And 88 times out of the 110 God is the helper. You know a couple of times the woman is Adam’s helper. He’s created a helper for us. I love it because it means, okay. God created me as a bloke. And he created me with things I can’t do. Hmm. He created. Yeah. We need her.

We need her. Yeah and she’s not the slave in the kitchen pregnant barefoot washing the floor on her knees. That’s not what a helper is. A helper is when I get stuck. She unstucks me. When I’m an idiot, she’s got the wisdom. And when you put those two things together, God is my helper. He’s stepping in as my ally. We have a psychology in Australia We were always depended on Britain or America to come and rescue us. Which is a bit sad. Given the number of wars they’ve lost and started and started. You look at this and you go, God is my helper. And he is going to bring down on his enemies, complete destruction and because we honour him as our health are we going. Bring it on.

Yeah And so the second half of this psalm might be hard for some Christians to sing  but he is going to he says I’ll bring a voluntary gift and sacrifice to you. What he’s talking about is, when you have destroyed my enemies. Hmm. We’re going to have a party. I’m going to bring. Tribute. Yeah I’m going to bring the feast. And God and God’s king and God’s family are going to sit at table going all our enemies are did it pass the wine in.

13.21 Dan

Ancient warfare, isn’t it I need help. The larger army comes down to rescue me. And while they’re there just after they’ve rescued me we chuck a party for them That’s right. At the time they saved us. Yeah.

13.36 David

And you’ve got, we’ve got to change the way we think about the temple. and the tabernacle. When you go through the sacrificial feasts, the first one is covered your guilt and your burn the whole animal. but the next ones are all about bringing food. Yeah And having a party and some of it’s with the priest. But the final one is the peace offering or the fellowship offering where everybody sits together with God in his temple. And just celebrates what he’s doing. And God even says at one point you know the three big feasts in the year, you know bring whatever you like bring your wine, bring your beer, He actually mentioned wine and beer. Bring all your food. Come down here to Jerusalem and let’s put on a party.

And so I think of you know you. You go out to battle. And if you’re one of God’s family, you sit on the hill with your little flag. You know, or your walking stick and you go. I’m pointing to God. Yeah. And then you watch your enemies hack each other to bits. And then you all go home and crack a keg. It’s, it’s it’s that sort of a scene and David in the middle of the wilderness with nobody out there except a few blokes that are hanging with him. And they’re all betraying him and he’s he’s looking forward to the party. Hmm. Because you don’t believe God’s there. Yeah. I’m going to sit back and watch what happens to you when you don’t believe God’s there and you think you can have a doubt me. Yeah. And at the end of the book of 1 Samuel, you’ll see that God keeps his promises.

15.12 Dan

But that’s the end of this psalm it’s a short thumb today. Thanks for your wisdom.

If you’d like to come and grab the study notes for this psalm you can head over to a trainingforliferedeemed.com/110. If you haven’t hit the subscribe button please do that today as well. We look forward to giving you another episode next week when we look at Psalm 55. See you then.