I used to pray with my daughters using Psalm 4. King David found himself often in tight spots, but he approached God, who had made space for him in tight spots before, and prayed, “Be gracious to me and hear my prayer!” David was approaching God. He definitely expected God to be a good listener, but he was looking for more. He expected God to answer his prayer, to come through again and help him out of the latest tight spot. David had a bold confidence in God, that God would listen and that God would answer his prayer.
Tim Keller tells the story of Alexander the Great, who supposedly had a leading general whose daughter was getting married. Alexander the Great said that he'd be happy to contribute to the wedding. He said that he knew it would be expensive, so just ask for something. The general wrote out a request for an enormous sum, a ridiculous sum. When Alexander's treasurer saw it, he brought it to Alexander and said, "I'm sure you're going to be cutting this man's head off now for what he's done. The audacity of asking for something like this! Who does he think you are?" Alexander said, "Give it to him. By such an outlandish request, he shows that he believes that I am both rich and generous." He was flattered by it.
God desires prayer that is bold, even shameless, in coming to Him. When we read the prayers of the Bible, they're bold. They often argue with God. Jesus talked about it as asking, seeking, and knocking. N. T. Wright says:
[Jesus] is encouraging a kind of holy boldness, a sharp knocking on the door, an insistent asking, a search that refuses to give up. That's what our prayer should be like. This isn't just a routine or formal praying, going through the motions as a daily or weekly task. There is a battle going on, a fight with the powers of darkness, and those who have glimpsed the light are called to struggle in prayer...
The way to respond is first to come to God with a bold confidence and expectation that He will hear you and answer your prayer. The words of David remind us of who David was in God. He finished this psalm by contrasting two ways of relating to God.
There are many who say, “Who will show us some good?
Lift up the light of your face upon us, O LORD!”
You have put more joy in my heart
than they have when their grain and wine abound.
In peace I will both lie down and sleep;
for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.
There are two ways of relating to God. The first way is dependent on circumstances. There is another way of relating to God which is not dependent on circumstances. David said, “You have put more joy in my heart than when they have their grain and wine abound.” He then said he was able to go to bed at night and sleep well despite all the problems. Why? The end of verse 8 explains, as David said, “for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.” David ultimately found his safety in God. This was enough for him. He had a deep peace despite circumstances.
Ravi Zacharias said, “Faith is confidence in the person of Jesus Christ and in his power, so that even when His power does not serve my end, my confidence in Him remains because of who He is.”
One of the most moving examples of this for me is the story of Nicholas Ridley, a British clergyman caught in controversy in England in the 1550's, where he was scheduled to be burned at the stake in Oxford for his faith. The night before his execution his brother offered to stay with him in his last hours. But Ridley refused. He said he was going to bed, and that he was going to sleep as soundly that night as he ever did in his life. That’s exactly what David says in verse 8: “In peace I will both lie down and sleep; for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.”
In Christ our Anchor.
Pastor Brown
https://youtu.be/B1nyzGR3tUE
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