Psalms 42

As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?

As the thirsty deer pants for streams of water, my soul so thirsts for the living God. When can I go and meet with my God. What a thought. The deer typically goes to the lake or the ponds in the morning just at sunrise to get it’s thirst slaked. It is the very first thing that the deer does in the morning. Once it’s thirst is satisfied then it goes about it’s daily activities.

 

Think about it, is your desire first to meet with God, then to go about the rest of your daily routine. What is your first and foremost desire?  

I have given it a great deal of thought lately and I think that many of us can say that this is not true of us. Oh we want to go to heaven and be with Him, especially when the rapture takes place but what about today, what is your desire right now? Think about it. Let’s go back and look at the song in Psalms 42.

I don’t know who wrote this piece whether it was David or the sons of Korah but what is significant is that we understand the authors passion. He was in deep distress and searching for serious answers to a question that was plaguing him so severly that he couldn’t do anything but dwell on it. He was so distressed in fact that he says he cried day and night. When he poured out his soul it came from deep within him and he was searching for answers to his hearts cry.  

 

Some of this is prophetic of Christ during those days just prior to and during His trial. I think that probably this is a song by David during the days when he was in exile.

 

Have you recently been wondering, where is God? Have the cares of the world and the problems that we face from day to day get you to ask that question? I know that it has me recently and I think that it is a healthy question. It is good to reflect and to ask questions. It is part of an intimate relationship to ask questions and to consider those things that make for good memories. The Psalmist says, I remember when… I was thinking today about the past and I was saying to myself I remember when things were different. I remember the times when I came to know the Lord as Savior and I remember when I had a desire to read the Word continuously day and night. I remember when I couldn’t talk about anything else.  

The Psalmist remembered when it was for him his greatest joy to lead the procession into the temple to worship God. What about you, what is your greatest joy? Do you look forward to praise and worship? Do you look forward eagerly to meeting to praise and worship God, to study His Word and to fellowship with the Saints?

There is in the middle of this Psalm a pause or a parentheses. The Psalmist now looks at where he is right now and he asks this simple question. Why are you downcast, O my soul? Why so disturbed within me? I’ve been asking myself this question recently and I wonder if maybe some of you aren’t doing the same. The question, “why?” normally causes you to look back for the reasons or the causes and so the Psalmist was asking himself, “why, why are you downcast, why are you so disturbed?”. As we shall see this was somewhat of a rhetorical statement, because he knew the answers to his question, but what about you? Have you recently asked the question to yourself, why?

The Psalmist was being honest here. He was saying, “My soul is downcast within me. But notice what he says immediately after that thought. “Therefore I will remember you from the land of Jordan, the heights of Hermon from Mount Mizar.  

I will remember your wonderful works, I will remember you and all that you have done. I will remember your works, back when, I will remember your great deeds in Illinois, and when I remember I will have hope, I will praise my God with all that is within me. Sometimes our only prayer is simply, cause me to remember Lord your wonderful deeds, your tremendous love and all that you have done for me.

My soul is pressed down and overswept by the cares of this world and sorrow. Like great waves and breakers the troubles sweep over me and I come close to drowning as the waves crash down on me…. Ah, but, by day the LORD directs His love, and by night His song is with me. Do you know instinctively that when you are at your lowest God is right there with you and that He loves you immensely and do you hear a song in your heart at your greatest moment of despair? It’s God, He’s right there with you. You may be feeling down and out but He is never down or out and He cares for you.

The Psalmist now repeats His concern and comes to a final confrontation with his despair. Let’s look.

 

One last time he undertakes to submit to the depression, and he says, “Why have you forgotten me? Where is your God?” These two verses were prophetic of Christ, but I would venture that they may be our questions at times as well.  

He knows the answers to these questions, it’s really quite simple.

We have a great Hope, we have reason to praise God. He is God my savior. He is the unshakable foundation, the rock upon which the waves come crashing only to slip away back into the ocean, because they cannot prevail against the rock of our salvation, Jesus Christ.

Peter understood this message and delivered this same comfort to those to whom he wrote. Let’s look.

1 Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ,   

To God's elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, 2 who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood:  Grace and peace be yours in abundance.    

Peter was writing at this time to a persecuted church and yet he speaks about hope and inexpressible and glorious joy. Do you have that joy? If not then do as the Psalmist did, remember and when you remember, dump that depression, and give into hope and joy and express it. Let the joy of the Lord be expressed from your lips. Let’s just look at one more passage.