 Chastening. It is a term we don’t use much in modern Christianity. Some would view the teaching of God chastening us as a negative teaching - one that is thrown out with things like legalism and law. But the fact of God’s chastening is something that is not just an Old Testament truth that went away with the Gospel and the New Testament. God chastens those He loves and He scourges every son He accepts. Those words come straight out of the twelfth chapter of Hebrews, where we are warned not to despise when God comes to us in this way. It is proof that He loves us. David writes for us a chastening song - to help us grasp how we are to walk through these times of God’s discipline and displeasure with us.
DAVID’S PITIFUL CRY “O LORD, do not rebuke me in Your anger, Nor chasten me in Your wrath. Be gracious to me, O LORD, for I am pining away; Heal me, O LORD, for my bones are dismayed. And my soul is greatly dismayed; But You, O LORD—how long?” Psalm 6:1-3 First we should probably identify when this most likely happened. This is one of seven “penitential psalms” that David wrote during the time when he was dealing with his sin of adultery with Bathsheba, and the subsequent cover-up where he sent her husband Uriah to his death in battle. David was dealing with a horrific sin he had committed - and was struggling to come to grips with repentance and receiving God’s forgiveness. His first cry is for God’s mercy - that the Lord would not rebuke him and chasten him in anger and wrath. This is something we just don’t grasp as well as we should in this current day. God is angry with sin - every day. God’s wrath is not something that comes when He supposedly loses it over our sin. It is a settled disposition that He has always had toward our choice to disobey and embrace sin in our lives. David feels the displeasure of God very consciously in his heart and spirit. He cries out for God’s grace as he is “pining away.” This word speaks of a weakness and despair that seizes us when we grasp when God’s powerful hand begins the process of chastening us. David also complained of problems he felt physically. Not all sin leads to or causes sickness - but in this case David here and in other places speaks of how his health was affected by his sin. His bones were dismayed. That word means to disturb or to terrify - and speaks of something that comes upon a person suddenly. Possibly for David an illness he could feel in his bones came upon him with a suddenness that terrified him. But the malady in his physical body was nothing compared to what was going on in his soul. David used the same word again to speak of how his soul was greatly disturbed. His soul was filled with an even greater sense of being terrified and sick. He was a mess both spiritually and physically. The cry of his heart at the thought of all that was rightfully coming upon him was this - But You, O Lord — how long? David finishes this first section with a literary device called aposiopesis, “sudden stop.” It is a dramatic stop in something said - and it reveals just how devastated David is as he faces God’s chastening and realizes his sin which brought it to pass. DAVID’S 3-FOLD PLEA Return, O LORD, rescue my soul; Save me because of Your lovingkindness. For there is no mention of You in death; In Sheol who will give You thanks? I am weary with my sighing; Every night I make my bed swim, I dissolve my couch with my tears. My eye has wasted away with grief; It has become old because of all my adversaries. Psalm 6:4-7 David, after initially reacting to the chastening of God, makes a three-fold request of God. He first makes a plea based on God’s grace. He calls for God to rescue and save him because of God’s covenant love. The word “lovingkindness” speaks of God’s grace and the covenant He made with His people. David appeals to this covenant and cries out for God’s grace in light of it. When we deal with chastening it is wise for us to follow David’s example and cry for mercy on the basis of God’s grace in Jesus Christ. The second plea of David was that God would rescue him and give him a second chance to serve God and honor Him. David speaks of death, which would be his eventual end if God refused to heal him. David’s life and voice would be silenced by death - and in the place of the dead (Sheol) there would be no opportunity to serve and honor God. We too should plead with God for a gracious second chance (or third or fourth, etc.) so we can honor and glorify Him as He deserves. David’s third plea was one based out of grief over sin. We could call it the deep repentance plea. David speaks of how his sin has made him grieve - sighing and weeping over his godless behavior. He used a strong figure of speech in stating this - saying that he has so many tears that they dissolve the couch upon which he sheds them. Here is where I want to take a moment to ask us to consider David’s example. Too often I hear preachers and teachers say that crying, tears, and weeping are not necessary for us to experience repentance. In principle I agree with this - because becoming upset does not necessarily mean that we’ve come to repentance. But - with that being said - I am concerned that we are encouraging a tearless repentance and confession as the norm. What I see in Scripture seems to disagree with that premise. When I read of those experiencing confession and repentance in the Word - I see people weeping and experiencing tears of sadness and grief. Could it be that we are setting ourselves up for failure by not embracing the grief that should be attending our realization and confession of sin? I fear the answer to this is seen in the current spiritual condition of the church. DAVID’S BREAKTHROUGH Depart from me, all you who do iniquity, For the LORD has heard the voice of my weeping.The LORD has heard my supplication, The LORD receives my prayer. All my enemies will be ashamed and greatly dismayed; They shall turn back, they will suddenly be ashamed. Psalm 6:8-10 One of the dangers of sinning is that rather than repenting and responding to God’s chastening, a person would turn away from God further and begin to embrace the lifestyle of those who live their lives in sin and iniquity. David responded to the chastening of God in a way where he saw the folly of this kind of choice. There is a radical change in this psalm where David experiences a breakthrough with God. He turns and finds mercy, grace, and forgiveness. He begins by telling those who want him to come over to a sinful lifestyle to depart from him. He has broken through the to LORD and knows that God has heard his voice, heard his weeping, heard his request. Rather than be rejected by God - David knows that God has accepted him and receives his prayer! What a glorious thing to remember in times of chastening! God hears us as we pray and weep before Him. We don’t need to heed the siren call of the devil and the world when we find ourselves far from the Lord due to sin. That call tells us there is no hope - and that we might as well hang it up and quit. Nothing could be further from the truth. God disciplines and chastens those He LOVES! The very chastening the devil says means God hates us is actually proof that He loves us. He is using it to lead us to repentance and bring about a return to Him. God receives our prayer! He accepts us! He welcomes us back in our repentance! That is a truly glorious truth we need to embrace! David also knows that his enemies, who saw his sin and spiritual demise as an opportunity to bring him down, will be turned back by his restoration to God. They saw this as a chance to not only bring David down a few notches - but also to bring his God down as well. But when God restores us and revives our hearts our enemies take a huge shot that will dismay them. The world’s thought is this - you mess up - you are done. A mess like David’s must surely mean his is history - washed up - over. But God’s grace and forgiveness changes everything. We are restored - and our enemies are ruined. They see God’s work and are dismayed that He receives us again. They turn back from their attack - and are dismayed at grace. Chastening seems bad at first to all who receive it. Even Hebrews 12 acknowledges that. It is not pleasant to be chastened - it hurts. Oh, but what wonderful fruit it brings to us. What a marvelous harvest of forgiveness and grace is ours as God’s chastening plows our hearts, plants the seeds of repentance, and waters them with our tears. Knowing this should make us far more receptive to God’s love in the future when, due to our sin, our spiritual welfare requires that we sing the chastening song.
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 Here is a great part of a Psalm that is very instructive to those who are angry. It is even more instructive if your anger is against either elected officials – or even officials like a pastor, elders, or deacons in a church. Bet I got your attention with that statement, didn’t I.
Psalm 4 is part of a unit with Psalm 3 – and both of these songs arose out of David being betrayed by his son Absalom. Just a short review of this is in order. After David committed adultery with Bathsheba and then killed her husband through a horrific military mismanagement on purpose – God said that David would face some serious consequences for his actions. The first of those came as his son Amon fell in lust with his half sister (whose brother was Absalom). He then connived so as to get her into his house – raped her – and then threw her out wanting nothing to do with her after his crime. Tamar, the half sister who was raped, was devastated and lived a desolate life in her bother’s household. Amon was not punished – and his half brother Absalom fumed with rage at what he had done. Absalom would have his day of vengeance at a feast he threw for all David’s sons. At a high point in the festivities he arose and had Amon killed. He then withdrew into a self-imposed exile. Through a series of events Absalom was restored to the kingdom, but David would not see him personally. That led to Absalom being bitter at his father – which also led to him stealing the hearts of the people of Israel by saying that David wasn’t caring for them as he should (something Absalom felt just about every day due to their very sticky situation). In time a conspiracy grew to the point where it was clear Absalom was going to declare himself king (and probably his first act would be to kill David and those who supported him). Just for the record – this was a bona-fide mess in every way. There was enough sin to go around for just about everyone in this situation. But – it did not merit rebelling against the king God established – and then seeking to kill him. Just an aside here for our benefit is in order. We live at a time when men are furious with whatever president we have – regardless of which party he comes from in the political world. The press keeps us enraged so that our anger is always brewing beneath the surface. One can easily see where this may one day end in a coup and a rebellion to overthrow just about anyone who is in office. In light of our equally sticky situation in this day – it would be wise for us to consider the admonition given in this “Mad-as-all-Get-out” song. Tremble and do not sin; Meditate in your heart upon your bed and be still. Selah Offer the sacrifices of righteousness And trust in the LORD. Many are saying, “Who will show us any good?” Lift up the light of Your countenance on us O LORD! You have put gladness in my heart, More than when their grain and new wine abound. In peace I will both lie down and sleep. For you alone, O LORD, make me to dwell in safety. Psalm 4:4-8 David began this song by crying out to God for help in his distress. He wanted God more than anything in this distressing situation – which was good. When we face distressing situations it would behoove us to remember that God is better than anything, anyone, or any position that is available now – or – even will be available. David was king – deposed at the moment – but he was not crying out for a return to power. He was crying out for more of God in the midst of this mess. That is a sure sign that God is working in your mess – when you want Him more than you want relief from your problems. Many of the Jewish scholars say that by this time David was across the river and was in a relatively safe place. People were gathering to him in larger numbers – and he was no longer in grave danger of losing his life any minute. God was turning things – and eventually Absalom’s rebellion would be put down – and the young man Absalom would be killed. It is in this sense of God turning things that this part of the song was written. Go Ahead – Be Angry . . . But Tremble in verse 4 means to tremble with anger – and later this verse is quoted in Ephesians 4:26 as “Be angry and do not sin.” It is one thing to be angry about the sin and failings of others – but it is quite another to allow that anger to turn into bitterness, gossip, discontent, and arrogance. That is where Absalom went and it led him into murderous revenge, rebellion, gossip and lies, and even raping 10 of David’s concubines in public (the very sin he despised in Amon). When we don’t deal with our sin, as God would have us to deal with it – we wind up eventually sinning in similar ways ourselves. When it comes to anger – be very careful what you describe as “righteous anger.” If your anger leads you to other sins – it isn’t righteous. Oh what wise counsel is given to us when David says our response should at least include time lying still meditating on our beds. I’ve noticed in my own life when I get angry that if I do not consciously do something to calm down – my anger will only escalate. Telling others about my anger leads to things like gossip, rebellious statements toward authority, judgmental statements toward authority, and arrogant statements about 99% of the time. It is better to shut down the anger – and lay down to take some time to meditate on matters. The word for meditate means to “speak within your own heart.” When we do this – and combine it with being still before God – it does wonders for our “mad-as-all-get-out” moments. David offers another wise piece of advice. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness. The phrase can also be translated, “Offer righteous sacrifices.” Cling to God’s righteousness – but also cling to the way the Righteous One shows mercy to those who offend it as well. A righteous sacrifice could also mean dealing with our own sin – even as we are so keenly aware of the sin of others in that moment. Remember that we prefer God to show mercy – when we are the ones being stupid and sinful. We might want to offer that same mercy to others in the midst of their mess too. Go Ahead - Be Cynical . . . But What is fascinating at this point is that what others are saying it brought into this equation. They are saying, “Who will show us ANY good!” (Emphasis mine) There is a tendency in moments like this to see the human sinfulness of these situations and want to throw up your hands in frustration. Is there any good out there? Can anyone make any sense of the mess between Absalom and David? By the time it is over the whole situation is like a three-dimensional puzzle that is beyond solving! With the prospect of no good at all – some become cynical and throw up their hands saying that there is no hope. There is no justice. There is no answer. Therefore we can’t even begin to come up with what is right. Therefore we either quit – or we just look after ourselves and give up on the rest of humanity. David’s answer is priceless! Lift up the light of Your countenance on us O LORD! The human factor alone will lead us every time to hopelessness – because mankind is hopelessly bound in sin and selfishness. That is why we need to lift our gaze off of man – and put it on God. I’m losing all faith – until – I cry for God Himself to lift up the light of His face upon me. That is where hope – and more specifically redemption – is found. They are in HIM! When we look into the light of His face – the things of earth grow strangely dim – and we learn wisdom and what makes for true righteousness, justice, and change. Wisdom is to fear Him. Righteousness is His gift to us in Jesus Christ. Justice is what He did at Calvary, taking the sin of the world upon His Son and paying it in full. Jesus bore the penalty for all the sin of mankind. It is all answered in Him – but remember – only in Him. David further reminds us that gladness comes from Him by His merciful grace to us. There is a gladness that abounds through Him – and that can beat any earthly possession or desire. Finally we see that we can lie down in peace and sleep – undeterred by the failings of men – by the foibles of politics – and by the frustrations of human leaders. God is the One who will give us such peace. We can even sleep peacefully. Imagine David – only a day or two out of being exiled from his kingdom. Imagine that he is only hours from fearing for his life – as he crossed a flowing river and scrambled up a mountainside to shelter. Yet now – after calling on the LORD – he is sleeping peacefully. HOW!? He took the situation and left it in the presence of God. He prayed – and possibly even sang to the God who promised to protect and keep him. This is truly amazing. So what do we do when we are in a “Mad-as-all-get-out” moment singing a blues song about how ticked off we are at another person – another politician – another spiritual leader who we learned has clay feet? For starters – we don’t give anger a wide berth in our lives. We narrow it to God’s righteousness – and temper it with God’s mercy (even as we remember more than a few times when God withheld wrath and showed mercy. Then we take time to talk to ourselves in a peaceful, meditative moment with the Lord. Then we ignore the naysayers who want to fill our minds with hopelessness – with cynicism – and with recrimination against those who have failed us. Instead, we fix our eyes on the Lord Himself. We find what is good and holy in a fixed gaze upon Him. Then we remember that what is best is He Himself and what He provides. And we surrender to God taking us out of our “mad-as-all-get-out moment and introducing us to His view of things where even as sin abounds – mercy abounds as well. |
Pastor John LawrencePsalms for Life . . . God moved on several people to write the Psalms. This is a book of songs and poems written by people who were seeking to be devoted to God as they walked though their lives. This is a collection of songs and poems that express the true, wonderful, and often raw emotions that we have as we journey through life with God. I hope you will be blessed and encouraged as you read. But more than that I hope that these expositions and writings will help you to seek Him in the midst of the life you live in this world. It will be at times comforting and encouraging, while at others it will be challenging and awkward. Regardless of where you find yourself on this spectrum as you read, it will be a reminder that God invites us into His presence to truly walk with Him, know Him, and at times, pour out emotions of joy, sorrow, frustration, anger, and everything else you can imagine. He not only invites you to do this - He delights in it too! Hope you enjoy your journey! Archives
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