In the name of Jesus, David’s Son yet David’s Lord, and the One in whom we still trust today, dear Christian friends,

Sometimes we think we know better. Sometimes we think our plan is better than God’s. It happened to David. The prophet Samuel had anointed him king, but there was a problem – Saul still held the office and didn’t take kindly to someone being chosen to replace him. So he made up his mind to take David out of the picture.

In a moment of weakness of faith David lost his confidence in the Lord’s protection against Saul and fled to Israel’s enemies, the Philistines, to the city of Gath. The Philistine people recognized Israel’s hero (after all, he had just struck down their champion, the giant Goliath), so they reported his presence to their king. When David realized he had foolishly put himself in danger by trying to hide himself among the Philistines, he stooped to acting as if he were insane in order to escape. The Philistine king then dismissed him as a madman, being all too eager to get him out of his territory.

David’s foolish decision to seek refuge among the enemies of Israel brought on the fears and troubles mentioned in Psalm 34. But David also learned a valuable lesson, one he shares with us this morning through this same psalm:

“Fear the LORD, and You’ll Have Nothing to Fear!”

1. Trust in his deliverance

    

2. Tell of his deliverance

Once David had come to his senses and came back to the Lord, he was quickly reminded of how his God was always there to deliver him from danger. He acknowledges the Lord’s role in his deliverance in verses 4-7. As I read these verses, take note of how the word “fear” is used with two different meanings. “I sought the LORD, and he answered me; he delivered me from all my fears. Those who look to him are radiant; their faces are never covered with shame. This poor man called, and the LORD heard him; he saved him out of all his troubles. The angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them” (vv 4-7).

When David says that the LORD “delivered me from all my fears,” that word is used to describe those things that make us afraid. Later when he says that “the angel of the LORD encamps around those who fear him,” then the word means to have awe or reverence for someone – yes, to have faith in someone. So now you should understand our theme: Fear the Lord (have faith in him), and you’ll have nothing to fear (nothing to be afraid of).

David learned what the Lord meant when he said through the psalmist (Ps 50:15), “Call upon me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you, and you will honor me.” David was delivered and now he honors his Lord by encouraging others to also turn to him for deliverance. And so he writes (vv 8-10), “Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him. Fear the LORD, you his saints, for those who fear him lack nothing. The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the LORD lack no good thing.” David wants others to see for themselves the blessings that come when people trust in the Lord for his deliverance. Put your faith in him (“fear”), experience his power and protection, and you’ll understand why you have nothing to fear. This applies for both our physical and spiritual welfare. In his Sermon on the Mount Jesus tells us (Mt 6:33), “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things (food, clothing, shelter, etc.) will be given to you as well.” Peter reminds us that our spiritual needs are covered as well (2 Pe 1:3), “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him.”

David’s right: “those who fear [the Lord] lack nothing.”

That’s because our God is an interactive God. He doesn’t tree us as his ant farm, simply gazing down from above and watching us run around, getting in and out of our little messes, without ever attempting to intervene. No, David tells us the Lord’s not only watching, but he listens and cares and delivers (vv 15-20), “The eyes of the LORD are on the righteous and his ears are attentive to their cry; the face of the LORD is against those who do evil, to cut off the memory of them from the earth. The righteous cry out, and the LORD hears them; he delivers them from all their troubles. The LORD is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all; he protects all his bones, not one of them will be broken.”

Did you catch that last part? “A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all.” Make no mistake about it, Christians are not immune to troubles. But we do have the solution to them – “the LORD delivers.” He does this in different ways. He keeps some troubles out of our lives completely. Don’t believe me? Raise your hand if you’ve ever been bitten by a bear. I rest my case. He’s delivered you from bear bites by keeping such a threat out of your life. Other times he delivers us from troubles by taking them away. We recover from an illness or things improve at work or school – the trouble is removed. If he doesn’t take the trouble away, he promises to give us the strength to endure it. Think of chronic pain some bear or the loss of a loved one. That hurt is always there, but God “delivers” us by carrying us through it. Our final deliverance David mentions in the last verses of this psalm, described also by Paul when he wrote to Timothy (2 Ti 4:18), “The Lord will rescue me from every evil attack and will bring me safely to his heavenly kingdom.”

We’re delivered from all evil for all eternity when our Lord takes us to heaven. Hears how

David describes it (vv 21,22), “Evil will slay the wicked; the foes of the righteous will be condemned. The LORD redeems his servants; no one will be condemned who takes refuge in him.” David assures us that the wicked won’t prevail, that they will face judgement. But for those who take refuge in the Lord – those who trust in him for deliverance – they will not be condemned because they have been redeemed – bought back and brought back into God’s kingdom – through the blood and righteousness of Jesus Christ. When afflictions and troubles rain down upon us, we can take refuge under the umbrella of our Savior’s righteousness. We can trust in him to take care of our temporal troubles, knowing full well that he has already delivered us from sin, from death, and from the devil himself. Just look to the cross – the symbol of our Lord’s greatest deliverance!

Fear the Lord – trust in him and his Word – and you’ll have nothing to fear. If you’re still a bit skeptical, let me show you how God’s Word has the answer for all your fears. I went online and found a site that listed “people’s ten greatest fears.” I’m saving fear #10 for later, but let’s look at the other nine.

Fear #9 = heights. That’s an easy one, for in Romans 8:39 we’re told, “Neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Fear #8 = insects. Some people see spiders and other creepy-crawlers and instantly freak out. Even if others don’t understand the effect such a phobia may have on you, God does, and he has the solution (1 Pe 5:7), “Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you.” They might still creep you out, but now you know God cares and will help you overcome your anxiety.

Fear #7 = loneliness. If you realize you’re never truly alone, you can overcome loneliness. In Hebrews 13:5, God assures us, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” And Jesus himself promised (Mt 28:20), “And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Fear #6 = financial problems. Rewind to what I mentioned earlier from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Mt 6:33), “Seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” God promises to take care of your needs!

Fear #5 = sickness. Remember Paul’s thorn in the flesh? God didn’t take it away, and he may not take all our sicknesses or diseases away, but as he told Paul (2 Co 12:9), “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” No earthly sickness can rob us of God’s grace. And that’s all we need.

Fear #4 = flying. Scripture may not address this phobia directly, but I think Paul covers it with what he says in Philippians (4:6,7), “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Fear #3 = deep water. Moses faced the deep water of the Red Sea when Pharaoh and his army seemingly had cornered him and the Children of Israel. Not a problem, though, for the Lord. David tells us in Psalm 18 (16), “He reached down from on high and took hold of me; he drew me out of deep waters.” No matter how deep the water may be, God can still reach us.

Fear #2 = dogs. I’ll speak from personal experience here. In grade school I had a paper route which was loaded with dogs that wanted to tear me apart. Somehow, I survived. Psalm 91:11 tells us how, “For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.” God had his angels watching over me!

Fear #1 = death. Jesus has even this fear covered (Jn 11:25,26), “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die.” If the grave can’t hold us, then the fear of death shouldn’t either.

Fear the LORD, and you’ll have no reason to fear. If we’ve learned this lesson, then let’s teach it to others. If we trust in the Lord’s deliverance, then let us be eager to tell of his deliverance as well.

David was anxious to sing his Lord’s praises (vv 1-3), “I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips. My soul will boast in the LORD; let the afflicted hear and rejoice. Glorify the LORD with me; let us exalt his name together.” Notice that David encourages us to praise the Lord even when we are “afflicted” – even during the bad times. The prophet Habakkuk had this in mind when he wrote (Hab 3:17,18), “Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will be joyful in God my Savior.” Those who fear the Lord, who trust in his deliverance, will also be able to rejoice and praise his name even while waiting for his deliverance. In faith we can pass on this blessed assurance to others (v 11), “Come, my children, listen to me; I will teach you the fear of the LORD.”

But that’s not easy for many people to do, to share their faith and to speak openly about their Savior. That’s where fear #10 comes in = public speaking. In reality, sharing our faith with “the public,” with other people, can be quite nerve-wracking. But again, Scripture has the solution to our fears. What Jesus said to his disciples of his time applies to us still today (Lk 12:11,12), “When you are brought before synagogues, rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at that time what you should say.” When it comes to telling others of the Lord’s deliverance, don’t be afraid – he’ll give you the words to say and the strength to say them!

So how can we possibly be afraid of anything with the Lord at our side? “If God is for us, who can be against us” (Ro 8:31)? We have a God who loves us, who listens to us, who answers us, who is working for our eternal good, and who one day promises to deliver us to heaven. And yet our sinful nature wants us to forget that at times. So we need to stay in the Word! Use the insert, “God’s Yellow Pages,” to help you find the answers you’re seeking for any fears that may still haunt you. And commit to memory God’s promise from Isaiah (41:10), “Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.”

Amen

–Rev. Jonathan Rockhoff