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May 2026EDITOR’S NOTE: Previous parts of this series can be found on the Wisconsin Christian News website.
We see another point, though, in verse one — the second point that I gave you in the last part of this message — and that’s this: the believer, the Christian man or woman, takes refuge in God before trouble happens. Notice that he says here, “O Lord my God, in You I have taken — I have taken…” So that answers some questions for us, doesn’t it? Why does trouble happen in believers’ lives? Well, because it happens to everybody; we’re not immune to that. But why does trouble seem to camp out in some believers’ lives? Well, here’s my theory — you may have a different one, but think about this: I think it’s because they’re not taking refuge in God. Oh, they’re going through all the motions, they’re saying all the right things, doing some of the right things, but really deep down, they’re far, far away from God. They’re not living under the shadow of God’s wings.
And when trouble comes, what happens to that believer who has not taken refuge under the Lord? They’re shipwrecked. They’re shipwrecked. And then, arrogantly, “Oh God, why has this happened to me?”
“What are you talking about? You haven’t walked with Me for a good long time, and now you’re asking why this is happening to you? Isn’t it obvious?”
So, we take refuge in God before trouble happens. And we can do that when we recognize what it means to be in Christ, because that’s what David has said here in verse one: “O Lord my God, in You — in You I have taken refuge.”
What does it mean for New Testament Christians to be in Christ? I gave you several things in the last article; I’m not going to rehash them again, other than just mentioning them. We are chosen in Christ (Ephesians 1:3-4), we are redeemed in Christ (Matthew 1:21), we are regenerated (Titus 3:5), we are justified (Philippians 3:9), we are sanctified (1 Corinthians 6:11). We are raised with Christ — already but not yet. We live in the Kingdom now, but also the Kingdom to come (1 John 3:2). So we have all of those things as a benefit to us.
Now, one other thing I want you to see here in these first couple of verses is this: the believer’s integrity and the believer’s innocence have nothing whatsoever to do with the trials that may come their way. Because here’s what I do know: liars, thieves, and sinners will always, always come to the most heavily laden tree — the most heavily fruit-laden tree — to steal, kill, and destroy. So don’t equate troubles that you may be going through necessarily with the fact that you’ve gotten off course. Maybe it’s because you are walking by the Spirit and you’ve become a target for evil.
Proverbs 3:5-6 says that we are to trust in the Lord with all of our heart and not lean on our own understanding. If we do that, in all our ways acknowledge Him, He will make our path straight, it says.
Third point from the last message is this: the believer, the Christian man or woman, takes a right assessment of every situation. No sugar-coating, no bargaining with God.
Where do you see that, Mike? Well, that’s verses one and two combined. “O Lord my God, in You I have taken refuge; save me from all those who pursue me and deliver me.” Verse 2: “Or he (referring back to all those who pursue me) will tear my soul like a lion, dragging me away while there is none to deliver.” Sometimes, we don’t take an accurate evaluation of a situation. We don’t see the danger we’re in. We think we can handle it; we think we can deal with this. Or we think, “Well, God certainly wouldn’t allow trouble in my life. He certainly wouldn’t allow a shipwreck; He’s going to save me before I lose this or lose this, or my marriage goes to the rocks, or I lose all my money.” Well, not necessarily. Not necessarily. It’s going to depend on your response to God’s will and calling.
You see, the Holy Spirit is going to speak to us in the midst of our trials and struggles, and whether or not we listen to Him is going to determine a number of things. One: how long we stay in the fire. Number two: the extent of the consequences. I could point to you a long list of people who, by the world’s standards, had it all as a believer and then left the reservation, got off the railroad tracks, and they ended up poor, homeless, nearly destitute. Now, I know that flies in the face of some theology out there that says God would never let you go there. Experience says otherwise. The truth is that we can toss away all of God’s blessings in our lives by the way we live.
So, the godly believer, the Christian man or woman, takes a right assessment. No sugar-coating, no bargaining with God.
Points Four Through Eight - Honest Self-Evaluation Is Key
Here’s your fourth point: The Christian — the believer, the man or the woman who trusts in Christ — examines himself honestly. Verses 3 and 4: “O Lord my God, if I have done this, if there is injustice in my hands, if I have rewarded evil to my friend or have plundered him who without cause was my adversary…” So, take an examination of your life.
Now, what does this say to us? This says to us, brothers and sisters, that there is no room for justifying our behavior when it’s contrary to the Scriptures. Now, why would that need to be said? Because we do, don’t we? We do. We do not like being under the glaring light of God’s holiness and righteousness that says, “You are wrong.” Man, we run from that like a cockroach when the light is turned on.
But here we see David crying out to the Lord, “If I have done this thing, if there is injustice in my hands, if I have rewarded evil to my friend or have plundered him without cause who was my adversary…” He’s taking an evaluation of himself honestly.
And then look at verse 5, the fifth point here: The godly man doesn’t stop right there. How many of you know that you can deceive yourself? Verses 3 and 4, it seems that David is opening himself wide up, and he is to his own evaluation. “Lord, if I am doing this, if I’m doing this, if I’m…” So, he’s evaluating himself. But this point here, look at verse 5: “Let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life down to the ground and lay my glory in the dust.”
Again, verses 3 and 4: “If I’ve done this, if there’s injustice, if I’ve rewarded evil, or if I’ve plundered without cause, let the enemy pursue my soul and overtake it, and let him trample my life down to the ground and lay my glory in the dust.” What’s David saying here? He’s saying, “I’m evaluating myself, Lord, but I know I can deceive myself.”
We’re blind to many things about ourselves, brothers and sisters, and we don’t want to admit them, and we will not admit them. But David goes a step further. He recognizes his own weakness and his own flesh, and he says, “Lord, it’s not enough for me to examine myself and say, ‘Oh, I’m innocent.’ I want you to examine me, and You declare that I’m innocent.” See, that’s the fifth point: the godly man asks God to examine him so that no self-deception keeps him from deliverance.
You wonder why you’re in the fire sometimes, and God’s not answering your prayer and not delivering you from the fire...because you’re deceived. You’re excusing your behavior. It’s an easy answer, but it’s hard to arrive at.
So David says, “God, You examine me. You tell me what’s going on because I can’t trust myself.” Wow. Wow. That’s a good step in the right direction, isn’t it?
And then, a sixth point: the believer, the Christian man or woman, once he evaluates or she evaluates herself, asks God to evaluate. And what’s going to happen, brothers and sisters, what’s going to happen when you ask God to evaluate you? Well, first of all, let me back up. How much courage does it take for you to ask God to evaluate you? How many of you know God doesn’t play? How many of you understand that God will give you the straight scoop? So, it takes a lot of courage to do that, first of all.
But when we do that, brothers and sisters, God will give us a very clear picture of where we’re at. Now, what is the purpose of that? The purpose of that is for deliverance, isn’t it? We cry out, and we want to be delivered from something, some kind of oppression, or some kind of evil. And we cry out, and if we do that, and we ask God to give us clarity of understanding, and if there be anything in us, to point it out — He will do that. He will do that. And then, you are delivered. Once you are delivered, you can see straight then, and you can see clearly.
And that gives us a seventh point, in verses 6 and 7, and it’s this: the believer, the man or woman who desires to live a godly life, asks God to act against injustice and recognizes that God’s judgment is an outpouring of His holiness. Look at this: verses 6 and 7. So, after examining himself and asking God to examine him, David says in verse 6, “Arise, O Lord, in Your anger.” We don’t read that much in the New Testament, do we? But David says, “God, arise in Your anger.”
Now, what does that mean? Well, it’s in a context. So, notice: “Lift up Yourself against the rage of my adversaries.” In other words, against their behavior, God — in Your anger, in Your holiness — that’s what he’s referring to. In Your holy judgment, God, rise up. Lift Yourself up against the rage of my adversaries — in other words, against their behavior — and arouse Yourself for me. You have appointed judgment.
I think it would be good for churches to teach through the Old Testament because you see things just like this. Churches that only focus on the New Testament, one of the things that they’ve excluded from a correct teaching about God is judgment. They’ve completely whitewashed judgment out of the picture.
Now, I’ve got to tell you something, brothers and sisters — judgment’s coming. My personal opinion is that judgment has already arrived in America. We’re already under the hand of God’s judgment. Well, how do you know that? Open your eyes. And it’s only going to get worse, by the way. My personal view is America is on the decline. We’re not plateaued; we’re definitely not on the ascendancy. We are in decline.
Now, we could argue about how steep that decline is. Are we in a free fall? All I know is that the only thing that will save us is if we have a nationwide outbreak of repentance. Some of you know what my view is on that — that isn’t going to happen. I don’t see it. I think the Scripture is clear. It gives us a picture of the end times being a time of apostasy, not revival.
Now, there will be a great revival in the end times. It’s going to be after the rapture of the Church when there’s 144,000 Jewish evangelists out sharing the gospel. It will be a great revival, but salvation, at that point, will likely cost people their lives because they will be living under the rule of the Antichrist.
Be that as it may, I think the Church would be much better off if we would teach the Old Testament today, too, because you see these kinds of pictures: that God rises up in His holy anger to judge evil and sin. You don’t hear about that much in churches today.
David is calling on God to judge injustice, to act against that. David recognizes that God is a God of judgment. That’s a good note for us to keep in mind. Notice verse 7: “Let the assembly of the peoples encompass You.” Doesn’t that give you the picture of a trial? The court? God is holding court, calling all the peoples together.
Now, if it’s a picture of heaven, then all these people here, the people that encompass God around the throne, that’s you and me. That’s you and me, believers. David says, “And over them return on high,” so have authority, have dominion, have rule. That’s a beautiful picture.
In the next section, point eight, we’ll unpack this slowly because it traverses verses 8 through 16 — almost all of what is left. Now, let’s read it together first, and then we’ll go back.
The eighth point is this: the godly person, man or woman, will rest in God’s sovereignty. We must rest in God’s sovereignty. What does that mean? It means this, brothers and sisters: at the end of the day, God has got you. You’re not going to perish and be cast away from God. Now, it may seem like you’re about to perish, and listen, I’m of the opinion, based on my understanding of the Scripture, that you can live a life so displeasing to God that He’ll take you out. He’ll cut your life short.
And I know that’s not popular either, but I think on the basis of what the Scripture teaches us that it’s true. God loves His children, and He disciplines those whom He loves. But notice verses 8 through 16. Let’s read these, and then I’ll unpack them.
“The Lord judges the peoples. Vindicate me, O Lord, according to my righteousness and my integrity that is in me. O let the evil of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous, for the righteous God tries the hearts and minds. My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart. God is a righteous judge, and a God who has indignation every day. If a man does not repent, He will sharpen His sword. He has bent His bow and made it ready. He has also prepared for Himself deadly weapons. He makes His arrows fiery shafts. Behold, he (notice little ‘h’) travails with wickedness, and he conceives mischief and brings forth falsehood. He has dug a pit and hollowed it out and has fallen into the hole which he made. His mischief will return upon his own head, and his violence will descend upon his own pate.”
What do those verses mean? What David is saying here is we need to rest in God’s sovereignty, knowing a number of things. Number one, knowing that God is in control of all things, including the final disposition of evil, which is judgment. Folks, nobody is getting away with anything forever.
We look out there, and we see folks, and it’s like, “man, how can they do that or get away with that?” Well, listen — the day is coming. The day is coming when that’s going to come to an end, brothers and sisters. Nobody gets away with anything. The Lord judges, notice verse 8, “the peoples.” What does that mean? That means all people. All people. God will judge. Nobody is going to slide and get away with it.
We see the same thing in verse 9: “Let the evil of the wicked come to an end, but establish the righteous.” When does “establish the righteous” happen? Well, that happens at the Bema seat, doesn’t it? God judges; it’s coming. We see it in verse 11: “God is a righteous Judge and a God who has indignation every day.” Context? Against evil, against sin. So, folks won’t get away with things forever.
Three Things Concerning God’s Sovereignty
God is in control of all things. That appeals to His sovereignty, brothers and sisters. The second point under this general heading of God’s sovereignty is this: God is our defense. God is our defense, and that includes a defender of our name and reputation.
Where do I see that at? Well, that’s verse 10: “My shield is with God, who saves the upright in heart.” Now, what does that mean for the believer who says, “The Lord is my shield,” but they’re living like the world? It means that your name and your reputation are going to get dragged through the mud.
How important is your name and reputation, brothers and sisters? Your name and reputation are of the utmost importance when they are connected or associated with God. When people know you’re a believer, that you claim to be this, but you’re doing that, not only is reproach brought upon the name of Christ, but so is your name and reputation. Once lost, a reputation is a very hard thing to recoup. Very hard.
How many of you know this by experience? You can spend months, if not years, witnessing to someone and blow your testimony in front of them in 30 seconds. I know that by experience. I have a feeling some of you do too. But we serve a God who restores. How wonderful is that? So, God is our defense.
The third point under God’s sovereignty here: We rest in God’s sovereignty, knowing that by God’s love and in His love, He has issued the call to be saved to the whole world. He has issued a call to be saved to the whole world — that’s verses 12 and 13. Notice it says, “If a man does not repent, He” (capital ‘H,’ that’s God) “will sharpen His sword. He, God, has bent His arrow and made it ready. He, God, has also prepared for Himself deadly weapons. He makes His arrows fiery shafts for all of those who will not repent.”
TO BE CONTINUED NEXT MONTH
Dr. Mike Spaulding
P. O. Box 3007
Lima, OH 45807
