THE LIES OF THE ENEMY

September 2, 2019 | Psalms 3–4

DEVOTIONS

This Month’s Issue

Sam Johnson was a fighter pilot in Vietnam. On his 25th mission, he was shot down and spent the next seven and a half years as a POW in the “Hanoi Hilton.” About half of that time he spent in solitary confinement. The only people he ever saw were the guards and enemy officers who came to interrogate him. He was eventually released and would serve as a member of the US Congress for almost three decades.

I call out to the LORD, and he answers me from his holy mountain.

PSALM 3:4

King David also found himself surrounded by enemies. “Lord , how many are my foes! How many rise up against me! Many are saying of me, ‘God will not deliver him’” (Ps. 3:1–2). The preface to the psalm informs us that it was written when David’s son Absalom had usurped the throne and drove David out of Jerusalem. How jarring it must have been for David to see most of the nation turn on him and follow his rebellious son. He found himself back on the run in the wilderness as he had been in the days of Saul. How easy it would be to believe the taunts of the crowd that God was not with him.

But David turned his eyes away from his enemies and onto the Lord. “But you, Lord , are a shield around me, my glory and the One who lifts my head” (v. 3). He was able to sleep in peace because he knew his life was in God’s hands (vv. 5–6). In faith, he asked God to defeat his enemies and “break the teeth of the wicked” (v. 7). This striking metaphor shows that David wanted his enemies to be powerless. A lion or a snake without teeth is not a threat. David ended by affirming that “from the Lord comes deliverance” (v. 8).

APPLY THE WORD

This psalm teaches that our identity is not found in the acclaim or ridicule of the crowd, but in our relationship with God. Da- vid refused to be defined by his enemies. Do you find yourself believing the words of people who are trying to harm you? Today, find your identity and hope in the Lord who promises to deliver us.

Post Credit: Today in the word