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100718 A Psalmists Personal Testimony Psalm 116
- 1. Psalm 116:1-7I lovethe Lord, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.
- 2. Psalm 116:1-7The cordsof death entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was over- come by trouble and sorrow.
- 3. Psalm 116:1-7Then Icalled upon the name of the Lord: “O Lord, save me!” The Lord is gracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion.
- 4. Psalm 116:1-7The Lordprotects the simple-hearted; when I was in great need, He saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the Lord has been good to you.
- 5. Psalm 116Deliverance: APsalmist’s Personal Testimony
- 6. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DevotionPsalm 116:1-2
- 7. I love theLord, for He heard my voice; He heard my cry for mercy. Because He turned His ear to me, I will call on Him as long as I live.vs. 1-2
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- 15. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DilemmaPsalm 116:3-4
- 16. The cords ofdeath entangled me, the anguish of the grave came upon me; I was overcome by trouble and sorrow. Then I called on the name of the LORD: “O LORD, save me!”vss. 3-4
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- 23. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DependencePsalm 116:5-7
- 24. The LORD isgracious and righteous; our God is full of compassion. The LORD protects the simplehearted; when I was in great need, he saved me. Be at rest once more, O my soul, for the LORD has been good to you.vss. 5-7
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- 30. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DeliverancePsalm 116:8-11
- 31. For you, OLORD, have delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, my feet from stumbling, that I may walk before the LORD in the land of the living. I believed; therefore I said, "I am greatly afflicted.” And in my dismay I said, "All men are liars.”vss. 8-11
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- 39. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DecisionPsalm 116:12-15
- 40. How can Irepay the LORD for all his goodness to me? I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the LORD. I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.vss. 12-15
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- 48. The PsalmistTestifies ofHis:DedicationPsalm 116:16-19
- 49. O LORD, trulyI am your servant; I am your servant, the son of your maidservant; you have freed me from my chains. I will sacrifice a thank offering to you and call on the name of the LORD.vs. 16-19
- 50. I will fulfillmy vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people, in the courts of the house of the LORD— in your midst, O Jerusalem. Praise the LORD.vs. 16-19
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- 58. Psalm 116Deliverance: APsalmist’s Personal Testimony
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Editor's Notes
- #6 We all know people who’ve had brushes with death. Accident; heart attack or stroke; terminal illness; declining health. Crises evoke fears, but also provide a fresh way to God.Theme of Ps 116 is death & deliverance.Psalm is mixture of complaint, petition & thanksgiving. Not a literary work, but a personal devotion that later took written form. Continual use of the first person singular pronoun reinforces this suspicion. Author & date unknown. Like so many others, he has received life out of death. This is central to the gospel and finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Himself.Moves from Devotion (vss 1-2) to Dilemma (vss 3-4), to Dependence (vss 5-7), to Deliverance (vss 8-11), to Decision (vss 12-15), to Dedication (vss 16-19).Psalms is OT song book – so I thought of some of our songs along the same lines.
- #7 Devotion: Why HePraysThe beginning of this psalm is a unique expression of love for the Lord, an expression that came from someone delivered by God. Because of this, the psalmist resolved to call on Him as long as he lived.
- #8 The simple expression of love for God is rare in the Old Testament, although it is the fulfillment of the greatest commandment, to love God(Deu6:5). This love arises because the living God is intimately concerned with the crises of our lives. Psalmist cried out to the Lord, and God intervened. Death came knocking and went away empty-handed.No foxhole, private faith. When we experience God's work in our lives, it affects our entire lives.
- #16 Dilemma: His Condition & ResponseHe identifies the crisis that evoked his prayer.He recalled how he was on the verge of dying (vs3).
- #17 He found himself figuratively staring into his own grave.As a result, the psalmist found "trouble and sorrow" (vs3). His response is neither denial nor rationalization. He confronts the truth of his situation, and his emotions are appropriate. In face of his crisis, he turns to God. He prays to God using God’s personal name YHWH.Significance of YHWH – the ineffable name – Third command – Jews would not pronounce, but substituted Adonai “Lord”.Direct and to the point. He knows what he wants and asks for it.
- #18 Sing all four verses, then the refrain.
- #24 Dependence on the God who HearsDivine help comes in the context of human pain. The question is not if we will have crises, but how we will respond to them. We can live in denial & rationalize our situation, or we can medicate ourselves against the reality. Psalmist's response is to face it squarely & turn to the only one who can help him, the living God.
- #25 We are the only beings who can transcend ourselves. Conscious of our own existence, we can reflect upon who we are, address ourselves & enter into the inner dialogue that is displayed here. Death came knocking but God intervened and delivered the psalmist. The reason that his soul is now at peace is that "the LORD has been good to you".
- #31 Deliverance by the God Who ActsHe draws lessons from his experience for others to follow. First, God delivers His people (vs 8). Second, God delivers them so that they may live obediently before Him (vs 9).Third, God is the only One who is completely trustworthy (vss 10-11).
- #32 What God has done in answering the psalmist's cry is clear. He has delivered him "from death." Pain is gone, eyes free "from tears" & feet “from stumbling" (into the grave? Vs 8). God is no distant Creator who wound up universe & walked away. No God of nature locked out of our lives by closed universe. No mystical blur, aloof from our physical pain, who calls us into nebulous “spirituality.” He is living God, Creator, Preserver & Redeemer. When we call, He answers. When in pain, He cares. Arm not too short to save, nor ear too dull to hear (Isa 59:1).The psalmist has been disappointed by others: knee-jerk reaction, 'All men are liars.' Hasty response – should’ve known from the start that men could not help. When death knocks, his case is only for God Himself, and it is God who has delivered him (vs8).
- #40 Decision: His ResolvePsalmist, in response to God’s deliverance, vows to praise Him in the congregation. Others would hear him and be edified, which is one of the purposes of public praise.
- #41 First, “lift up the cup of salvation” (drink offering, Num28:7). Second, “call on the name of the LORD” in praise & worship (vs13). Third, fulfill “vows to the LORD” (sacrifice he promised to offer) “in the presence of all His people” (vs 14). NT response: offer selves as living sacrifices which is “spiritual act of worship” (Rom12:1).Footnote in vs 15 : “Precious …” When one we love dies, we feel abandoned. But God has called them into His presence.Matt 10:28-31 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell. (29) Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father.(30) And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. (31) So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
- #42 New, so will sing it twice.
- #49 Dedication: His CommitmentThe death of a saint is not something the Lord considers as cheap; He does not let His people die for no reason. Here the deliverance of a saint from the brink of death resounded to God’s praise and the edification of saints for ages to come. Knowing that the Lord cares intensely about the death of His saints, he will praise Him publicly (vss 16-19). The psalm ends with Praise the Lord (halelû-yāh).
- #51 Building on his resolve, the psalmist offers him self anew as God's "servant" or slave. God is King; he is God’s subject. Restates promise to offer “thank offering” & call on His "name" in worship & pay his vows publicly. Restatement of promise in vss 13-14. Restatement indicates total commitment to do what he says.Worship becomes witness. God has delivered him from death, and everybody will know it. No wonder the psalm concludes "Praise the LORD!“ God's people will join in giving glory to His name.
- #52 New & short, so will sing it three times.
- #59 Theme of Ps 116 is death & deliverance.Psalm is mixture of complaint, petition & thanksgiving. Not a literary work, but a personal devotion. Moves from Devotion (vss 1-2) to Dilemma (vss 3-4), to Dependence (vss 5-7), to Deliverance (vss 8-11), to Decision (vss 12-15), to Dedication (vss 16-19).
- #60 Life out of death. This is central to the gospel and finds its ultimate fulfillment in Jesus Himself.God is so responsive that you can always reach him. He bends down and listens to your voice. This writer's love for the Lord had grown because he had experienced answers to his prayers. If you are discouraged, remember that God is near, listening to every prayer and answering each one in order to give you his best.