Mercy for the Prodigal-Psalm 5


Mercy for the Prodigal

Psalm 5

“There are two sorts of prayers—those expressed in words, and the unuttered longings which abide as silent meditations.” 
C.H. Spurgeon

I have a list of prodigals in my Bible at the end of Lamentations 5. There are twenty-two names on that list. Twenty-two! Twenty-two children, many adults now, who have grown up in godly homes and are currently rejecting the Lord. 
This morning, we will seek the Lord for our prodigal. If you do not have someone dear to you who has wandered far from the Lord, perhaps you have a friend or someone in your church whose child is rejecting the ways of the Lord. Consider praying for that prodigal on behalf of your friend. 
Let’s cry out to the Lord together for these ones who are far from the Lord. May our hearts be moved to weep with those who are weeping for the salvation of their prodigal. 

“But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him, and felt compassion for him, and ran and embraced him, and kissed him…for this son of mine was dead and has come to life again; he was lost, and has been found.”
Luke 15:20,24 NASB
 

Weeping and Watching 

5:1-3 “Give ear to my words, O Lord; consider my groaning. Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray. O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. 

Let’s read back through verses 1-3 and pray them directly to the Lord. 
Let’s:
▫️Praise the Lord that He hears and sees our weeping for our prodigal. He understands our cries, tears, and sorrows. He Himself cried to His Father with vehement cries and tears. He has wept! He came to carry our sorrows and to bear our grief. 
▫️Ask Him to know even those desires that we cannot express in words. 
▫️Pray right now for our prodigal’s salvation. 
▫️Pray that we would wait patiently for the Lord and be eagerly watching in expectation of His answer. 

Rescue from Wickedness

5:4-7 For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you. The boastful shall not stand before your eyes; you hate all evildoers. You destroy those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man. But I, through the abundance of your steadfast love, will enter your house. I will bow down toward your holy temple in the fear of you. 

Let’s pray that our prodigals:
▫️Would not delight in wickedness but would delight in the truth. 
▫️Would hate evil and not be at peace with those who practice what is evil. 
▫️Would put away arrogance and boasting and humble themselves before the Lord. 
▫️Would put away lying and deceit and would no longer be deceived by the world and the god of this world. 
▫️Would come to know the faithful love of the Lord and He would invite them to draw near to Him and be saved to love Christ and His church. 
▫️Would not think lightly of the kindness, forbearance, and patience of the Lord, and that His kindness would lead them to repentance. 
▫️By the power of the Lord, they would come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil having been held captive by him to do his will. 
▫️Would no longer love the darkness because their deeds are evil, but they would come to the Light of the world. 
▫️In Christ, they would be able to boldly draw near to God with a clear conscience, having their conscience cleansed from dead works to serve the living God. 
▫️Would bow down in reverence to the Lord. 

Rescue from Rebellion

5:8-10 Lead me, O Lord, in your righteousness because of my enemies; make your way straight before me. For there is no truth in their mouth; their inmost self is destruction; their throat is an open grave; they flatter with their tongue. Make them bear their guilt, O God; let them fall by their own counsels; because of the abundance of their transgressions cast them out, for they have rebelled against you. 
Let’s pray:
▫️The Lord would lead and guide them in righteousness for His name’s sake. 
▫️The Lord would deliver them from the enemies of their soul: addiction, sexual immorality, atheism, and any other sin or corrupting influence. 
▫️The Lord would make His way straight before them, and He would guide all their steps toward Himself. 
▫️There would be a radical heart change which would be reflected in the words they speak. 
▫️The Lord would forgive their rebellion, and Christ would be the propitiation for their sins so that they would not bear their own guilt for their rebellion. 

Refuge and Rejoicing

5:11-12 But let all who take refuge in you rejoice; let them ever sing for joy, and spread your protection over them, that those who love your name may exult in you. For you bless the righteous, O Lord; you cover him with favor as with a shield.”
‭‭
Let’s pray through this last section for both our prodigals and ourselves. 
Let’s pray:
▫️we would both take refuge in the Lord and be able to rejoice together in the goodness of God. 
▫️One day we would sing a new song of joy and praise to God both here and forevermore for the great things He has done. 
▫️The Lord’s hand of protection would be upon us, and He would give His angels charge concerning us to guard us in all our ways. 
▫️We would love the name of the Lord, our God and our King. 
▫️The Lord would crown us with His favor, blessing, and lovingkindness, and He would guard and cover us completely as a shield about us. 

May the Lord do exceedingly abundantly above all that we could ask or think, for His glory and our good. In Jesus’ name. Amen. 

“How can we expect the Lord to open the windows of his grace, and pour us out a blessing, if we will not open the windows of expectation and look up for the promised favour? Let holy preparation link hands with patient expectation, and we shall have far larger answers to our prayers.” 
C.H. Spurgeon

Psalm 5 quoted from the ESV

Photo credit to Vovik Mar

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