A Psalm of Salvation
Psalms 107:1-3
How to get help from God!
Psalms 107:1-3, Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever. 2 Let the redeemed of the Lord say so, Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy, 3 And gathered out of the lands, From the east and from the west, From the north and from the south. Trials are the megaphone of God’s voice. Story of a man gets stuck in island and the hut burned. Get rescued because of that. To receive help from God, you must come to the end of yourself and cry out to Him for His undeserved favour.
Background
This is written when the Judah returned from the captivity from Babylon.
The psalmist wants to teach his readers how God uses trials (like the exile) to drive us to trust Him. This Psalm has four group. Introduction V 1-3
1. Wandering or runaway caravan (4-9)
2. Prisoners (10-16)
3. Sickness due to sin. (17-22)
4. Sailors (23-32)
Summary of God’s way in the end. Plenty to Poverty V33-34 Poverty to Plenty V 35-38 Plenty to Poverty V 39-40 Poverty Plenty V41-42 Concludes with question, are you wise? Asking us to apply.
1. Wandering or runaway caravan (4-9)
V 4-9, They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; They found no city to dwell in. 5 Hungry and thirsty, Their soul fainted in them. 6 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He delivered them out of their distresses. 7 And He led them forth by the right way, That they might go to a city for a
dwelling place. 8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 9 For He satisfies the longing soul, And fills the hungry soul with goodness.
Do you feel lost? Jesus says, “I am the Way.”
Do you feel empty and hungry? Jesus says, “I am the Bread of Life.”
Do you feel thirsty to know God? Jesus says, “I will give you living Water.”
Do you feel exhausted and weary? Jesus says, “I will give you rest.” To get help from God, you must realize that you are lost, give up your own efforts to find the way, and call out to God. He will lead you to Himself.
2. Prisoners (10-16)
V 10-16, Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, Bound in affliction and irons— 11 Because they rebelled against the words of God, And despised the counsel of the Most High, 12 Therefore He brought down their heart with
labour; They fell down, and there was none to help. 13 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. 14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, And broke their chains in pieces. 15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 16 For He has broken the gates of bronze, And cut the bars of iron in two.
Many in our culture think that their modern way of thinking is far superior to the confining mentality of the Bible. Sin is always deceptive. At first it looks great, and it seems to meet your needs. But it’s like a thirsty man who quenches his thirst with amoebic water. His thirst is quenched for the moment, but it gives him a terrible case of dysentery which dehydrates him even more. His latter state is worse than his former.
When you come to the end of yourself and cry out to Him. God graciously delivers you from the sin which had you in bondage. To get help from God, you’ve got to abandon all trust in your own wisdom and seek Him and His wisdom through His Word.
Proverbs 3:5-6, Trust in the Lord with all your heart, And lean not on your own understanding; 6 In all your ways acknowledge Him, And He shall direct your paths.
3. Sickness due to sin (17-22)
V 17-22, Fools, because of their transgression, And because of their iniquities, were afflicted. 18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food, And they drew near to the gates of death. 19 Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, And He saved them out of their distresses. 20 He sent His word and healed them, And delivered them from their destructions. 21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, And declare His works with rejoicing.
The word “fool” (v. 17) in the Bible does not refer to the mentally deficient, but to the morally deficient. The fool is not unintelligent, but he is rebellious. Sin eventually takes a toll on a person emotionally and often physically.
The group 2 and 3 are not in trouble because they are lost or overwhelmed (as with groups one and four). They are in trouble because of outright rebellion. They don’t deserve God’s grace. But that’s what grace is undeserved favour.
God responds to their call for help. If you are in great trouble today and you know that the reason for your trouble is your own rebellion, you may feel that you can’t call out to God for help. Not so! Cry out to Him and He will deliver you from your sin to His glory!
4. Sailors (v23-32)
V 23-32, Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on great waters, 24 They see the works of the Lord, And His wonders in the deep. 25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea. 26 They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul melts because of trouble. 27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, And are at their wits’ end. 28 Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, And He brings them out of their distresses. 29 He calms the storm, So that its waves are still. 30 Then they are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven. 31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men! 32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in the company of the elders.
These people are confident that they can handle life and cope with life’s problems in their own strength. These men were skilled in seamanship. It was their business. But God merely spoke and raised up the wind (v. 25) and these self-sufficient sailors were brought to the end of their skills (v.
27). God put them into a situation where they were forced to abandon all trust in themselves and call out to God for deliverance. Through this trial they came to experience God’s love and grace. To receive help from God, you must abandon all trust in yourself and cry out to God for His undeserved favour. By nature, we are self-sufficient.
So, God sovereignly, graciously brings us into situations where every human crutch is knocked away. When we cry out to Him and He delivers us, we can only give thanks for His undeserved love and favour.
Cycle
Plenty to Poverty V33-34 Poverty to Plenty V 35-38 Plenty to Poverty V 39-40 Poverty Plenty V 41-42
The point is that the self-sufficient, who think they are competent, are deficient, because God is opposed to the proud. But those who know that they are insufficient in themselves and thereby call out to the Lord are sufficient, because God gives grace to the humble.
We must come to the end of ourselves to experience God’s grace and love. V 43, Whoever is wise will observe these things, And they will understand the lovingkindness of the Lord.
Conclusion
There are two kinds of problems portrayed in the psalm that
we all experience
Problems resulting from circumstances beyond our control (1 &4). These are due to our finite condition. Problems resulting from our sin (2 and 3). These are due to our fallen condition.
The first step to receive help from God is to recognize that no matter what our problems, we are not self-sufficient. We need God! If our problems stem from known sin, then of course we must turn from our sin to experience God’s blessings.
Acknowledge your dependence on Him. Watch Him deliver you in His own way and time. Then, give thanks to Him. Be sure to tell others of how God delivered you from your problems so that they will learn to turn to God themselves to experience His grace!
What are your problems? Instead of growing bitter and blaming God for them, view them as divinely designed opportunities to bring you to the end of your own resources. So that you will call out to God and experience the beautiful provision of His great love and grace.
God doesn’t help those who help themselves. God helps the helpless who cast themselves on His mercy.
You may say, “I have sinned too much! I don’t deserve God’s help!” That’s great! You are a candidate for God’s grace. Our psalm shows that the undeserving who realize their great need are the only kind of people God helps. No matter how great your problems, you will find mercy from God if you call out to Him for salvation.