Walk Of Life – Day 04, November 2022 – Thoughts From The Book Of Psalms
Psalm 86
The title given to this psalm is Prayer for mercy with meditation on the excellencies of the Lord. The entire psalm is a prayer. Pleading for His mercies and favour. we see a prayer of a man who has a proper perspective. While he finds himself in a difficult situation he remains confident that God hears and is able to save him. He’s sure that even though his situation is dire, his God is bigger and desires to show mercy to those whom He loves.
Structure
A common feature in ancient literature is the use of structure to highlight a main idea. In Psalm 86 David uses a distinct structure to show what’s central to his thinking. While the psalm starts and ends with references to his situation and his requests for salvation, the center sections of the psalm are completely focused on God and David’s devotion to God.
This structure reveals David’s heart. He certainly wants to be saved from trouble (this is made clear in v. 1-7 and 14-17) but above all He emphasizes the character of God (v. 8-10) and his own devotion to God (v. 11-13). The situation is difficult but He is confident in His God.
David’s Request: A Humble Plea to the God who Hears His People (86:1-7)
David believes that God hears and answers prayers – In v. 1-7 there are 8 prayer requests. At first read it may seem like David is trying to persuade God, but in fact these verses reveal David’s humble confidence in God. He is praying to God with confidence that He hears and responds.
David appeals to God based on their relationship – Throughout this section David emphasizes his relationship to God as His servant. He doesn’t see God as a distant unreachable figure, but as his Lord who will care for those who are His own.
David is sure of the ways God relates to His people – In verse 5 David recounts the ways God relates to His people: God is good and forgiving and faithful in love.
David’s Praise: An Expression of Trust and Confidence in God’s Character (86:8-10)
If we read verses 8-10 in isolation from the rest of the psalm it sounds like it would be part of a psalm of praise. It’s remarkable to remember that this is included in a prayer for salvation as David is running for his life. But what’s clear is that David understands the “bigness” of God and trusts that God can save him from any situation.
God is unrivaled in His position (vs. 8a)
God is unrivaled in His works (vs. 8b, 10)
God will be worshipped by all (vs. 9; Psalm 22:27-28)
Application: How quick are you to remember the truth of who God is in the midst of a difficult time? How dialed in are you to the truth when you are going to God in prayer? Do you tend to focus on the enormity of struggle rather than on the ‘bigness’ of God?When we are really conscious of who God is then it should enable us to pray with boldness. When life gets hard our spiritual growth and the praise of God may be the furthest things from our minds, but we should want them to be front and center. We should want to love and trust God so much that even in the struggles we are asking Him to hold us close and teach us.
