Surely God is My Help: Psalm 54-Supplication through the Scriptures

Surely God is My Help

Psalm 54

What matters the number or violence of our foes when HE uplifts the shield of his omnipotence to guard us, and the sword of his power to aid us? Little care we for the defiance of the foe while we have the defense of God.
Charles Spurgeon

Surely. This year I am coming to love this word found in the Scriptures on numerous occasions. The word surely is “used to emphasize the speaker's firm belief that what they are saying is true and often their surprise that there is any doubt of this” and this word is used to express assurance and confidence. In today’s psalm, Psalm 54, we find this word at the beginning of verse 4, “Surely God is my help, the Lord is the one who sustains me” (NIV). In the ESV this word is translated “behold” which also expresses strong feelings, hopeful expectation, certainty and a call to our attention. And to what is David calling our attention? What is he certain is true? “Surely God is my help.”

The backdrop of this psalm is found in 1 Samuel 23 where David is fleeing and hiding from Saul. David finds a place to hide in Horesh, but the men of that place report to Saul that David is hiding among them. As Saul pursues David, David is surrounded by Saul and his men, and it seems capture is imminent. But then Saul hears a report of the Philistines’ attack on the land and he must turn back from pursuing David. The Lord rescues David and the place is called the Rock of Escape (1 Samuel 23:25-28).

David, pursued for no wrong he had done, surrounded by his enemy, hemmed in on every side, “shifts from worry over the arrogant to a confident trust in the Lord. Triumphantly the psalmist exclaims, ‘Surely God is my help!’” (VanGemeren) David confidently, with assurance and firm belief, knows God is his help in this time of trouble. God Himself is the Rock of Escape.

What assurances are you in need of today? 

Assurance of His goodness?
“Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life, And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever” (Psalm 23:6 NASBS).

Assurance of His care and grace to you?
“O people in Zion, inhabitant in Jerusalem, you will weep no longer. He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry; when He hears it, He will answer you” (Isaiah 30:19 NASBS).

Assurance of His help and upholding?
“Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, Surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand” (Isaiah 41:10 NASBS).

Assurance of His sacrificial love?
“Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, and afflicted” (Isaiah 53:4 NASBS).

Assurance of His watch care over you?
“Behold, He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep” (Psalm 121:4 NASBS).

Assurance of His wise providence in the midst of uncertain circumstances?
"Behold, I will do something new, Now it will spring forth; Will you not be aware of it? I will even make a roadway in the wilderness, rivers in the desert” (Isaiah 43:19 NASBS).

Assurance of our future hope?
“And He who sits on the throne said, ‘Behold, I am making all things new.’ And He said, ‘Write, for these words are faithful and true’” (Revelation 21:5 NASBS).

Let us remember that for the promises of God, we need no “surely” or “behold” to know with certainty that all He has promised He will perform. All He has said, He will do. He is still the faithful God of whom Joshua said, “Now behold, today I am going the way of all the earth, and you know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one word of all the good words which the LORD your God spoke concerning you has failed; all have been fulfilled for you, not one of them has failed” (Joshua 23:14 NASBS). 

Has He said, and will He not do it? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? (Numbers 23:19). Surely, He is our help for whatever and wherever we are in need. He is the sustainer and upholder of our lives. Let’s pray through Psalm 54 with confidence and assurance that “God is my helper” (54:4).

Hear My Prayer

54:1-3 O God, save me by your name, and vindicate me by your might. O God, hear my prayer; give ear to the words of my mouth. For strangers have risen against me; ruthless men seek my life; they do not set God before themselves. Selah 
Let’s pray:
▫️The Lord would bring us to a place of safety protected from the lies, schemes, and injuries from others. He would protect us as with a shield.
▫️The Lord would provide His compassionate aid in this time of need, and He would vindicate us by His great power. 
▫️The Lord would give ear to the words of our mouths as we rise before the dawning of the morning to cry for help, and we would hope in His Word (Psalm 119:147).
▫️We would rest in the Lord’s vindication on our behalf and keep ourselves free of bitterness, resentment, unforgiveness, or vengeance.
▫️We would recognize and rest in the Sovereign rule of God in hard and unjust circumstances, unlike those who have come against us who have not set God before them.

My Helper and Upholder

54:4-5 Behold, God is my helper; the Lord is the upholder of my life. He will return the evil to my enemies; in your faithfulness put an end to them. 
Let’s pray:
▫️Our faithful Father would be our helper this day in our time of distress. When tempted to sin, He would help us honor Him. When tempted to fear, He would help us to remember He is always near and will never forsake us.
▫️The Lord would be our helper in the unjust circumstance we face. He would turn the evil for our good and He would thwart the schemes of those coming against us.
▫️As He is the upholder of our lives, He would uphold us yet another day and sustain our oftentimes weary hearts. He would uphold us by His Word that we would live and not be ashamed of our hope (Psalm 119:116).
▫️He would uphold us so we would be safe (Psalm 119:117).
▫️He would be faithful to His great name and His righteousness and not let injustice or evil prevail, and we would have a calm assurance that our God, our Rock, will defend and protect us.

His Name is Good

54:6-7 With a freewill offering I will sacrifice to you; I will give thanks to your name, O Lord, for it is good. For he has delivered me from every trouble, and my eye has looked in triumph on my enemies.
Let’s pray:
▫️This situation would be an occasion for many thanks and much praise to be given to the Lord, not only by us, but also from those who have joined with us to beseech God’s help.
▫️We would trust in the goodness of God. Though our circumstances may not be good, or seem good, He is doing good in and through us to bring about His good purposes.
▫️We would rest and rejoice in the Lord’s deliverance of us from every trouble. Though our afflictions are many, He will deliver us out of them all (Psalm 34:19). 

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

Psalm 54 quoted from the ESV.
Photo credit todianasimumpande

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

A Mother’s Longing

Image
A Mother’s Longing “…in your faith you are standing firm.” 2 Corinthians 1:24 It is not surprising that 3 John 4 is so often quoted by Christian parents in their deep desire for their children, “I have no greater joy than this, to hear of my children walking in the truth” (NASB). This is the deep longing of my heart as a mother. I want my children to truly know Christ, to walk in His ways, to love His Word, and to be committed to His church. I desire to be able to say to them, “in your faith you are standing firm” (2 Corinthians. 1:24). Am I being a faithful steward of my role as a Christian mother? Are my actions reflecting this deep desire to see my dearly loved children walking in the truth?  As we head into this new year, it is wise to both look back and look forward. The new year offers us many possibilities to grow and change and also to continue to persevere in the things that God, by His grace, has enabled us to carry out faithfully. If one of my deepest longings is to see ...
Read more

A Piercing that Drives Us to Our Knees

Image
A Piercing that Drives Us to Our Knees: to the mothers of the brokenhearted and the wandering Where there is a praying mother there is always hope. J.C.Ryle From the time our children are a positive line on a pregnancy test and then placed in our arms for the first time, our hearts as their mother are intricately intertwined with theirs. The first cry brings tears and joy, such inexpressible joy. And then they grow, and we love to see them exploring, learning, and developing their personalities. But the moment they come home having faced rejection for the first time, or they struggle with a mental illness that leaves us feeling deeply inadequate, or we get an email from the school that they’ve been caught cheating, each taste of sorrow and sin that they taste, we experience as well. The words spoken to Mary could be the gentle warning each mother must heed, “and a sword will pierce even your own soul”(Luke 2:35).  I’m not sure our children will understand until they become parents ...
Read more

Don’t Give Up, Mom: when mothering makes you weary

Image
  Don’t Give Up: when mothering makes you weary Therefore, having this ministry by the mercy of God, we never give up… 2 Corinthians 4:1 ESV, NLT Mothering can have seasons where weariness and discouragement lie right at the surface. Perhaps it’s a physically exhausting time, maybe spiritually you’re struggling or a child is, maybe it’s just busier than normal and it’s hard to juggle everything without feeling stressed out, or maybe it’s hard to even find a reason why you’re struggling. It can be so many little things, or big things and little things, and you just want to give up, even if only for a little while. You wish you could run away and rest, clear your mind and breathe. How can we faithfully persevere through motherhood, each of its season, and each season’s hardships?  As I studied 2 Corinthians 4:1-6, I wanted to see how Paul could say, “we never give up.” Studying this book, I have come to appreciate the tenacity of Paul and his steadfastness through so many diffic...
Read more