A Call for Rescue: Psalm 140

Do you have any memorable gifts that you got for Christmas when you were a kid?

I remember tearing the wrapping paper off of a Rescue Heroes tower. Rescue Heroes were toy action figures based off a TV show; the rescue personnel would save lives across the world amid natural and man-made disasters.

It was the perfect plot line for young kids, especially boys. You had Billy Blazes and Wendy Waters the firefighters, Jake Justice the police officer, Rocky Canyon the mountain climbing specialist, and these were just a few of them. This idea that these heroes could overcome horrific circumstances to save people, it was appealing and desirable to be apart of.

Thankfully there are lots of people across the world who are trained in these fields of work.

But, that being said, there is only one person capable of saving you.

The life David lived is one of the most documented in all of the Bible, the youngest of eight boys, a Sheppard who is anointed to become the second-ever King of Israel. He has his share of struggles and even near life death experiences, but at the heart of it all he becomes the greatest King because he chooses to be rescued by God, even in his darkest hours.

The first verse of this Psalm, "Rescue me, O Lord, from evil men; protect me from men of violence" appears like a clause from the Lord's prayer in Matthew 6. God is the only person who can disable violence from your life. He has the power.

The circumstances that David is in as he reveals in this Psalm appear to be excruciating, and gnawing. Notice the repetition in verse 4 "protect me from men of violence who plan to trip my feet" and verse 5 "Proud men...have set traps for me along my path."

A lot of people had it our for David. But, God didn't.

In fact, David says that He shielded his head in the day of battle (Psalm 140:7). Just think about all of the times David was victorious in battle; his defeat of Goliath was just the beginning of his many triumphs.

"The shield of the Eternal is better protection than a helmet of brass" (Spurgeon).

In verse 10, David pleads for his adversaries to fall into miry pits, never to rise. Yes, this sounds like a death wish, but it's significant because of the place in which David is writing this Psalm.

David is in a miry pit.

But, as a righteous man he can be lifted out because he seeks God, whereas a perverse person cannot rise from the pit because they're only willing to get out on their own terms.

In verse 12, David says, "I know that the Lord secures justice for the poor."

In other words, God helps those who cannot help themselves.

Finally at the end of Psalm, David says, "Surely the righteous will praise your name."

David is sure, he is certain, and this is what he believes is the only reaction to experiencing God's unfailing love.

Just think how high David has climbed in this Psalm. He was chased by evil men and now he is basking in God's goodness.

That's the course of a rescue. God comes through. God overcomes all that is according to His will.

"For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all." - 2 Corinthians 4:17

The rescue doesn't just stop there. In fact, I feel bad overusing this word in my blog, but I'm doing so purposefully. I remember hearing a preacher say once that "rescue" is one of the best words to describe the gospel.

For example, this past summer my friend Cliff was a lifeguard at Myrtle Beach. I got a few updates from him and almost always his latest news was that he had saved another person. I mean, it's incredible that he could save people caught in undertows, and strapped to jelly fish. I'm pretty sure he saved close to 10 people from dying.

Now, while this is a lot like something I dreamed of my rescue heroes doing when I was a kid, God is beyond my dreams in rescue. When Cliff saved people stranded in the ocean, he came back alive with them, but when Jesus rescued you and me from our sins, he died in the process.

Jesus rescued you and me the only way possible, by taking your and my place on the cross.

The Gospel is the ultimate rescue.

The words David speaks in these eight Psalms have lifted me up so many times and helped me draw closer to God. These are probably the last Psalms recorded by David and in some ways serve as a commentary to the great Messianic promise in 2 Samuel 7:1-29.

In my first series of Blog posts for Life 100.3 I will contextualize and share what each of these Psalms means to me, with the hope that God might encourage you and direct you to the wonderful truths He reveals in these scriptures.

#rescue #Jesus #David #Psalms