My Soul Thirsts for You (Psalm 143)
Dear Christian,
You are not alone. You are not alone in your suffering. You are not alone in your shame.
The devil and his army are defeated enemies. They may taunt you today. Yet, they will not prevail.
Psalm 143 is ascribed as A Psalm of David. Remember that David was a real person, with real problems. He felt pain and grief, both for his own sins and the sins of others.
Second, remember that all the Psalms are prophetic of the Messiah. Whether speaking of Jesus, to Jesus, or as from Jesus, every Psalm rings of the blessedness of our Savior.
This Psalm in particular is called My Soul Thirsts for You. Consider first how David is like you, a mere man. Whereas he is elsewhere described as "a man after God's own heart," he is self-described as "a worm and not a man." A righteous man? In one sense, yes. As one who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. Nevertheless, he is declared righteous by another who is righteous.
Next, consider Jesus, the blessed one, who came to save sinners. His enemies outnumber any man who ever lived. The Psalm begins, "Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my pleas for mercy! In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!" What desperation from the lips of David as he speaks with his God! Only God knows what he was going through.
Imagine Jesus praying this Psalm as he is beaten with whips and crowned with a crown of thorns, "In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!" Does this describe the depth of your need today? Observe the prayer of this righteous man. David does not approach God half-expecting Him to answer him on account of a righteousness he himself might bring. Rather, he throws himself on God entirely, pleading that He might answer him in accordance with a righteousness not his own.
We actually know from the next line David expects judgment from God. Why? For the same reason you or I should: for the sins he has committed against Him. "Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you." A truer statement cannot be made. Paul echoes this refrain in Roman 3, quoting from Psalms 14 and 53, "There is no one righteous, no not one."
Can you imagine Jesus waking up early to be alone with God, reciting from memory Psalm 143, "no one living is righteous before you?" As he speaks these words, he does as so through tears. He knows how greatly you and I, each and every one of us, need him to go through with the plan he and his Father set for him from before the world began. So he presses on.
And now praying, "For the enemy has pursued my soul, he has crushed my life to the ground." David would have surely felt this many times. He was pursued by one of the most powerful kings in Jewish history, King Saul. It is recorded not once, but twice, how Saul's spear was thrust in his direction. This king, upon learning of David's renown among the people, for David had slain the mighty Philistine called Goliath, conspired to have him killed.
But again, look to Jesus, how we was pursued by the greatest spiritual enemy, the devil. It says of Judas Iscariot that "Satan entered him" before he betrayed Jesus with a kiss, a signal to the Roman guards to take Jesus captive by force. And after having been struck many times and made to carry his own cross, he was hung on that cursed tree. Insults and derisive comments rang about his ears. The sinister voice of that age-old serpent from the garden could be heard, "He saved others, but he cannot save himself."
Of course he could have saved himself. He simply chose not to. The author of Hebrews tells us, "For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame." The purpose was clear. For Jesus' joy was the certain reward of eternal fellowship with his Father and "the children God has given me." We know this statement is true for it says of him, "He sat down at the right hand of God."
Psalm 143 speaks more accurately of Jesus' experience in the flesh that it could of any other human being who lived. David continues, "He has made me sit in darkness like those long dead. Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled." There are times when I feel I can relate. And so I should. This is after all a human experience, felt by David and countless others throughout history. But none has ever felt these words more acutely in their body than Jesus of Nazareth.
Yet, upon further consideration, I hear Scripture rebuking me, "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." All of Scripture is meant to point me to Christ and his condition, not my own. Isaiah prophecies, "He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain." Certainly, I can relate to him as human. But as I relate to him in my humanity I need to remember how he relates to me in his divinity.
To look to Jesus and see his wounds for what they are, the healing stripes afforded to me for my sin, is closing in on the essence of the gospel. For it says, "God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." And again, "he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."
The Lord your God offers forgiveness of sins through one man and one man only, he who is Christ. David says again, prophesying of Jesus, "I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands." We see how in Jesus' earthly life he trusts in God his Father. We also can put our trust in Him who is God, through faith in His Son.
So if you feel today as David did, "My soul thirsts for you like a parched land," I extol you, remember Christ your Savior. While hanging on the tree, he cried, "I thirst!" We are told this is to fulfill the Scriptures. In Psalm 42, it reads, "My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?" Christ Jesus has his answer! He is with God for all eternity and he desires to bring many sons and daughters to glory.
The rest of Psalm 143 speaks of the urgency with which David felt he needed rescuing. How much more did Jesus run to God whenever he was persecuted in the flesh? The example he leaves for us is without ambiguity. "Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Again, "Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!"
David concludes this Psalm by reminding himself, "I am your servant." He does not speak this lightly. If you are God's servant, His slave, then He is your Master, your Lord. He is the one to whom you owe your life and are ultimately accountable. Do not deprive your Master either of your duty to obey Him or your duty to repent and confess your sin when you disobey Him. While He rules by rod and staff, to His sheep, to those who are His by right of purchase, it is a great comfort.
Psalm 23 encourages the believer, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me." To know that the Lord leads us wherever we might go, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."
Selah.
You are not alone. You are not alone in your suffering. You are not alone in your shame.
The devil and his army are defeated enemies. They may taunt you today. Yet, they will not prevail.
Psalm 143 is ascribed as A Psalm of David. Remember that David was a real person, with real problems. He felt pain and grief, both for his own sins and the sins of others.
Second, remember that all the Psalms are prophetic of the Messiah. Whether speaking of Jesus, to Jesus, or as from Jesus, every Psalm rings of the blessedness of our Savior.
This Psalm in particular is called My Soul Thirsts for You. Consider first how David is like you, a mere man. Whereas he is elsewhere described as "a man after God's own heart," he is self-described as "a worm and not a man." A righteous man? In one sense, yes. As one who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates on it day and night. Nevertheless, he is declared righteous by another who is righteous.
Next, consider Jesus, the blessed one, who came to save sinners. His enemies outnumber any man who ever lived. The Psalm begins, "Hear my prayer, O LORD; give ear to my pleas for mercy! In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!" What desperation from the lips of David as he speaks with his God! Only God knows what he was going through.
Imagine Jesus praying this Psalm as he is beaten with whips and crowned with a crown of thorns, "In your faithfulness answer me, in your righteousness!" Does this describe the depth of your need today? Observe the prayer of this righteous man. David does not approach God half-expecting Him to answer him on account of a righteousness he himself might bring. Rather, he throws himself on God entirely, pleading that He might answer him in accordance with a righteousness not his own.
We actually know from the next line David expects judgment from God. Why? For the same reason you or I should: for the sins he has committed against Him. "Enter not into judgment with your servant, for no one living is righteous before you." A truer statement cannot be made. Paul echoes this refrain in Roman 3, quoting from Psalms 14 and 53, "There is no one righteous, no not one."
Can you imagine Jesus waking up early to be alone with God, reciting from memory Psalm 143, "no one living is righteous before you?" As he speaks these words, he does as so through tears. He knows how greatly you and I, each and every one of us, need him to go through with the plan he and his Father set for him from before the world began. So he presses on.
And now praying, "For the enemy has pursued my soul, he has crushed my life to the ground." David would have surely felt this many times. He was pursued by one of the most powerful kings in Jewish history, King Saul. It is recorded not once, but twice, how Saul's spear was thrust in his direction. This king, upon learning of David's renown among the people, for David had slain the mighty Philistine called Goliath, conspired to have him killed.
But again, look to Jesus, how we was pursued by the greatest spiritual enemy, the devil. It says of Judas Iscariot that "Satan entered him" before he betrayed Jesus with a kiss, a signal to the Roman guards to take Jesus captive by force. And after having been struck many times and made to carry his own cross, he was hung on that cursed tree. Insults and derisive comments rang about his ears. The sinister voice of that age-old serpent from the garden could be heard, "He saved others, but he cannot save himself."
Of course he could have saved himself. He simply chose not to. The author of Hebrews tells us, "For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame." The purpose was clear. For Jesus' joy was the certain reward of eternal fellowship with his Father and "the children God has given me." We know this statement is true for it says of him, "He sat down at the right hand of God."
Psalm 143 speaks more accurately of Jesus' experience in the flesh that it could of any other human being who lived. David continues, "He has made me sit in darkness like those long dead. Therefore my spirit faints within me; my heart within me is appalled." There are times when I feel I can relate. And so I should. This is after all a human experience, felt by David and countless others throughout history. But none has ever felt these words more acutely in their body than Jesus of Nazareth.
Yet, upon further consideration, I hear Scripture rebuking me, "In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood." All of Scripture is meant to point me to Christ and his condition, not my own. Isaiah prophecies, "He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain." Certainly, I can relate to him as human. But as I relate to him in my humanity I need to remember how he relates to me in his divinity.
To look to Jesus and see his wounds for what they are, the healing stripes afforded to me for my sin, is closing in on the essence of the gospel. For it says, "God made him who knew no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." And again, "he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed."
The Lord your God offers forgiveness of sins through one man and one man only, he who is Christ. David says again, prophesying of Jesus, "I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands." We see how in Jesus' earthly life he trusts in God his Father. We also can put our trust in Him who is God, through faith in His Son.
So if you feel today as David did, "My soul thirsts for you like a parched land," I extol you, remember Christ your Savior. While hanging on the tree, he cried, "I thirst!" We are told this is to fulfill the Scriptures. In Psalm 42, it reads, "My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?" Christ Jesus has his answer! He is with God for all eternity and he desires to bring many sons and daughters to glory.
The rest of Psalm 143 speaks of the urgency with which David felt he needed rescuing. How much more did Jesus run to God whenever he was persecuted in the flesh? The example he leaves for us is without ambiguity. "Make me know the way I should go, for to you I lift up my soul." Again, "Teach me to do your will, for you are my God. Let your good Spirit lead me on level ground!"
David concludes this Psalm by reminding himself, "I am your servant." He does not speak this lightly. If you are God's servant, His slave, then He is your Master, your Lord. He is the one to whom you owe your life and are ultimately accountable. Do not deprive your Master either of your duty to obey Him or your duty to repent and confess your sin when you disobey Him. While He rules by rod and staff, to His sheep, to those who are His by right of purchase, it is a great comfort.
Psalm 23 encourages the believer, "Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and your staff, they comfort me." To know that the Lord leads us wherever we might go, "Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."
Selah.
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