Psalm 64

A psalm of David.
¹ Hear me, O God, as I voice my complaint; protect my life from the threat of the enemy.
² Hide me from the conspiracy of the wicked, from that noisy crowd of evildoers.
³ They sharpen their tongues like swords and aim their words like deadly arrows.
⁴ They shoot from ambush at the innocent man; they shoot at him suddenly, without fear.
⁵ They encourage each other in evil plans, they talk about hiding their snares; they say, Who will see them?”
⁶ They plot injustice and say, “We have devised a perfect plan!” Surely the mind and heart of man are cunning.
⁷ But God will shoot them with arrows; suddenly they will be struck down.
⁸ He will turn their own tongues against them and bring them to ruin; all who see them will shake their heads in scorn.
⁹ All mankind will fear; they will proclaim the works of God and ponder what he has done.
¹⁰ Let the righteous rejoice in the LORD and take refuge in him; let all the upright in heart praise him!

Two things that David is asking here: I voice my complaint and protect my life. As we look at the way David dealt with Saul, we see the principle of Rom 3:5-9 come into play. “But if our unrighteousness commends the righteousness of God, what shall we say? Is God unrighteous who takes vengeance? (I speak as a man) God forbid: for then how shall God judge the world? For if the truth of God hath more abounded through my lie unto his glory; why yet am I also judged as a sinner? And not rather, (as we are slanderously reported, and as some affirm that we say,) Let us do evil, that good may come? whose damnation is just. What then? are we better than they? No, in no wise: for we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin.” How do we handle situations that others have forced upon us such as Saul forced upon David in a Godly manner? By looking at David’s life we can see how a man after God’s own heart handled them. First David took his issue to the Lord to deal with and did not deal with it himself. The second thing that David did was to ask for God’s protection.

As I read the second half of verse six “Surely the mind and heart of man are cunning” I think of the church of Laodicea in Revelation chapter three. When studying the seven churches of Revelation from a historical standpoint the church of Laodicea is the last church. Its name in Greek means “Laos = People and dike = principle, decision” or the right of the people. This church is pictured as a church that has works that are neither hot nor cold but are lukewarm. It is a church that is not rejected by the world but is rejected by God (I will spew thee out of my mouth). It is a church that Christ is knocking on the door to enter. This church could be the synagogue of Satan that was described in verse nine of this chapter as the ones that came to the doors of the church of Philadelphia and worship God and to learned that God loved them. As I study the role of the church in society today and look back to the role that church played in my youth, I see two different churches. It is to the church of Laodicea that he warns “I come quickly: hold fast that which thou hast, that no man takes thy crown”. This crown is not given because of good works, but for remaining faithful in the mist of trails:

• James 1:12 Blessed is the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.
• Revelation 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you; the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
• I Thessalonians 2:19 For what is our hope, our joy, or the crown in which we will glory in the presence of our Lord Jesus when he comes? Is it not you?
• II Timothy 4:8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing
• I Peter 5:4 And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away.

So, as mankind looks at the lifestyle that we live will they fear God and proclaim how powerful he is your life, or will they see your live and proclaim how well you have done for yourself? The believers of the church of Laodicea were comfortable with their lifestyle and their standing with the world around them. They were more involved in enjoying life than knowing the Lord. They lost the real vision of the church and served themselves instead of others. They were held captive to the fulfillment of their worldly desires and not the desires of the Lord. The final warning to this church was to hear the knocking of the Lord on their heart’s door. Are we listening to that knock today?