WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:06.740 We're going to be in Psalm 42. Psalm 42, if you 00:00:06.740 --> 00:00:10.419 want to turn there and kind of just introduction 00:00:10.419 --> 00:00:16.039 to this. What we've been doing this year in these 00:00:16.039 --> 00:00:19.059 evening services is to look at what I'm calling 00:00:19.059 --> 00:00:22.699 shepherding sermons. We are looking at passages 00:00:22.699 --> 00:00:26.320 of scripture that really speak to heart issues. 00:00:26.699 --> 00:00:29.859 that many of us, if not all of us, have experienced 00:00:29.859 --> 00:00:33.359 at one point or another. We began the year looking 00:00:33.359 --> 00:00:37.759 at anger, and the next month we looked at anxiety, 00:00:38.340 --> 00:00:41.539 and then the third month we looked at courage, 00:00:41.679 --> 00:00:45.679 our need for courage. Tonight we look at discouragement 00:00:45.679 --> 00:00:51.520 and depression, and we see this very plainly 00:00:51.520 --> 00:00:56.140 in Psalm 42. This is a very important psalm for 00:00:56.140 --> 00:00:59.460 us, and so I would ask that you give attention 00:00:59.460 --> 00:01:08.120 to this reading again from Psalm 42. To the Choir 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:13.500 Master, a Maskel of the sons of Korah. As a deer 00:01:13.500 --> 00:01:18.040 pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for 00:01:18.040 --> 00:01:22.560 you, O God. My soul thirsts for God. for the 00:01:22.560 --> 00:01:26.560 living God. When shall I come and appear before 00:01:26.560 --> 00:01:30.819 God? My tears have been my food day and night, 00:01:31.159 --> 00:01:33.680 while they say to me all the day long, where 00:01:33.680 --> 00:01:38.420 is your God? These things I remember as I pour 00:01:38.420 --> 00:01:43.040 out my soul. How I would go with the throng and 00:01:43.040 --> 00:01:46.180 lead them in procession to the house of God with 00:01:46.180 --> 00:01:48.939 glad shouts and songs of praise, a multitude 00:01:48.939 --> 00:01:52.859 keeping festival. Why are you cast down, O my 00:01:52.859 --> 00:01:57.599 soul? And why are you in turmoil within me? Hope 00:01:57.599 --> 00:02:02.200 in God, for I shall again praise him, my salvation 00:02:02.200 --> 00:02:07.879 and my God. My soul is cast down within me, therefore 00:02:07.879 --> 00:02:10.840 I remember you from the land of Jordan and of 00:02:10.840 --> 00:02:14.259 Hermon, from Mount Mazar, deep calls to deep, 00:02:14.819 --> 00:02:18.659 at the roar of your waterfalls, all your breakers. 00:02:19.200 --> 00:02:23.159 and your waves have gone over me. By day the 00:02:23.159 --> 00:02:25.960 Lord commands his steadfast love and at night 00:02:25.960 --> 00:02:29.319 his song is with me. A prayer to the God of my 00:02:29.319 --> 00:02:33.439 life, I say to God, my rock, why have you forgotten 00:02:33.439 --> 00:02:37.520 me? Why do I go mourning? Because of the oppression 00:02:37.520 --> 00:02:41.020 of the enemy. As with a deadly wound in my bones, 00:02:41.199 --> 00:02:44.120 my adversaries taunt me while they say to me 00:02:44.120 --> 00:02:49.430 all the day long, where is your God? Why are 00:02:49.430 --> 00:02:53.069 you cast down on my soul? And why are you in 00:02:53.069 --> 00:02:57.009 turmoil within me? Hope in God for I shall again 00:02:57.009 --> 00:03:03.270 praise him my salvation and my God and This is 00:03:03.270 --> 00:03:11.069 God's word Let us pray Father in heaven We give 00:03:11.069 --> 00:03:14.990 you thanks that your word your Bible meets us 00:03:14.990 --> 00:03:18.990 in our needs addresses the very things that we 00:03:18.990 --> 00:03:22.729 go through and so I pray Lord that if there be 00:03:22.729 --> 00:03:24.750 any here in the sanctuary who are dealing with 00:03:24.750 --> 00:03:28.969 depression or just severe discouragement Lord 00:03:28.969 --> 00:03:33.389 this would be a song that ups lifts our souls 00:03:33.389 --> 00:03:36.229 this would be a psalm of encouragement for us 00:03:36.229 --> 00:03:39.449 indeed would it encourage all of us Lord to be 00:03:39.449 --> 00:03:43.800 able to say my salvation and my God Would you 00:03:43.800 --> 00:03:46.939 grant us, oh Lord, understanding? We pray in 00:03:46.939 --> 00:03:52.300 Christ's name, amen. All right, so we are talking 00:03:52.300 --> 00:03:55.379 here about Psalm 42, and I've mentioned depression. 00:03:56.080 --> 00:04:00.280 Now just to disclaimer here, I'm obviously no 00:04:00.280 --> 00:04:03.819 doctor. I'm speaking of spiritual depression, 00:04:04.060 --> 00:04:07.960 which may manifest in our lives physically, right? 00:04:08.780 --> 00:04:11.650 Also, by way of introduction, If you were to 00:04:11.650 --> 00:04:15.090 keep reading in Psalm 43, you would see that 00:04:15.090 --> 00:04:20.449 Psalm 43 appears to be an extension of 42. Indeed, 00:04:20.509 --> 00:04:23.870 many believe that Psalm 42 and 43 were initially 00:04:23.870 --> 00:04:27.209 one Psalm together. And I think there's good 00:04:27.209 --> 00:04:30.230 reason for that because you can see that 42 begins 00:04:30.230 --> 00:04:32.610 in this way with this bit of an introduction 00:04:32.610 --> 00:04:36.209 about the sons of Korah. But if you look at 43, 00:04:36.689 --> 00:04:39.930 there is no such introduction. But even more 00:04:39.930 --> 00:04:42.509 than that, if you were to look at verse five 00:04:42.509 --> 00:04:46.050 of Psalm 43, you would see that it's the same 00:04:46.050 --> 00:04:51.170 thing as in 42 -5 and 42 -11. So there are good 00:04:51.170 --> 00:04:53.189 reasons to believe that these go together, but 00:04:53.189 --> 00:04:56.550 for the sake of time, I'm gonna keep it to just 00:04:56.550 --> 00:05:01.250 Psalm 42 for this evening. Now, when you hear 00:05:01.250 --> 00:05:04.769 that kind of first line there. This picture that 00:05:04.769 --> 00:05:08.329 you see as a deer pants for flowing streams, 00:05:08.829 --> 00:05:12.470 I wonder if that's the picture that you have 00:05:12.470 --> 00:05:17.629 in your heads. Just a beautiful scene. You've 00:05:17.629 --> 00:05:21.569 got a deer maybe standing in the water next to 00:05:21.569 --> 00:05:24.529 it lapping up. water from a babbling brook. You've 00:05:24.529 --> 00:05:27.470 got the evergreen trees in the background. You've 00:05:27.470 --> 00:05:30.170 got the sun just peering in through the trees. 00:05:30.410 --> 00:05:32.990 And it's just a beautiful scene. Matter of fact, 00:05:33.370 --> 00:05:37.269 the ESV here has these scripture journals. And 00:05:37.269 --> 00:05:40.350 on the scripture journal for Psalms is this picture. 00:05:40.449 --> 00:05:42.990 And I don't know if you can see that, but that's 00:05:42.990 --> 00:05:45.629 a deer standing in water with beautiful evergreen 00:05:45.629 --> 00:05:48.930 trees in the background. And so I wonder if that's 00:05:48.930 --> 00:05:53.420 the image that we have. I think this is the image 00:05:53.420 --> 00:05:57.220 that the psalmist wants, but I don't think this 00:05:57.220 --> 00:06:00.720 is the reality for the psalmist. The psalmist 00:06:00.720 --> 00:06:05.240 may desire such beauty and such serenity and 00:06:05.240 --> 00:06:08.639 peace, but in all actuality, as we read through 00:06:08.639 --> 00:06:11.560 the psalm, you see that he is lacking peace. 00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:15.259 Additionally, when you see that word pant there 00:06:15.259 --> 00:06:19.160 as a deer pants for flowing streams, well, when 00:06:19.160 --> 00:06:23.680 we see this used elsewhere, in scripture, sometimes 00:06:23.680 --> 00:06:27.959 it's not in the best light, especially in the 00:06:27.959 --> 00:06:34.839 book of Joel, Joel chapter one, verse 20. Even 00:06:34.839 --> 00:06:38.100 the beasts of the field pant for you because 00:06:38.100 --> 00:06:42.600 the water brooks are dried up and fire has devoured 00:06:42.600 --> 00:06:46.259 the pastures of the wilderness. And so I think 00:06:46.259 --> 00:06:49.240 that's appropriate to read because again, while 00:06:49.240 --> 00:06:52.180 the longing of the heart of the psalmist may 00:06:52.180 --> 00:06:55.439 be for something as peaceful as that, what he 00:06:55.439 --> 00:06:57.560 actually has is something closer what's pictured 00:06:57.560 --> 00:07:03.639 in Joel, of drought, of heat, of no water, right? 00:07:04.180 --> 00:07:08.959 The picture that is here in 42 is this psalmist 00:07:08.959 --> 00:07:15.879 needs God like a deer needs water. just to survive. 00:07:16.360 --> 00:07:19.300 When I read this Psalm, I get the feeling that 00:07:19.300 --> 00:07:23.120 the psalmist feels like he's on life support. 00:07:24.139 --> 00:07:30.500 He needs God that much. Do you remember, you 00:07:30.500 --> 00:07:33.920 remember that story of Jacob and Esau? Where 00:07:33.920 --> 00:07:37.579 Esau comes in and he is absolutely famished and 00:07:37.579 --> 00:07:40.019 he says, give me some of that red stuff. He wants 00:07:40.019 --> 00:07:43.670 some of the stew, right? And Jacob says something 00:07:43.670 --> 00:07:45.850 in effect of, well, you can have some if I can 00:07:45.850 --> 00:07:48.649 have your birthright, right? He's like, well, 00:07:48.649 --> 00:07:50.670 what good is a birthright when I'm dying over 00:07:50.670 --> 00:07:55.509 here, right? He is so incredibly hungry. He's 00:07:55.509 --> 00:07:59.110 famished. He needs this. And this is the way 00:07:59.110 --> 00:08:05.589 the psalmist sounds to me. He needs God. But 00:08:05.589 --> 00:08:08.949 friends, we should consider who he is. And the 00:08:08.949 --> 00:08:12.209 text doesn't tell us. very concretely, but we 00:08:12.209 --> 00:08:15.750 do see that he is one of the sons of Korah. Now 00:08:15.750 --> 00:08:18.589 who were the sons of Korah? We know this from 00:08:18.589 --> 00:08:22.269 other locations that the sons of Korah were professional, 00:08:22.269 --> 00:08:26.750 professional temple musicians. And so this particular 00:08:26.750 --> 00:08:29.050 psalmist, as he is writing this, he's showing 00:08:29.050 --> 00:08:33.139 us that he feels very far away from God. He feels 00:08:33.139 --> 00:08:36.620 far away from the tabernacle or the temple. He 00:08:36.620 --> 00:08:39.080 feels far away from the very worship of God. 00:08:39.080 --> 00:08:42.059 And this is painful for him because he's not 00:08:42.059 --> 00:08:45.940 only a worshiper of God. But this is what he 00:08:45.940 --> 00:08:51.139 does. He is a temple musician, right? He helps 00:08:51.139 --> 00:08:54.059 lead the people in worship, and now he's not 00:08:54.059 --> 00:08:56.259 able to do this for whatever reason. We're not 00:08:56.259 --> 00:09:01.120 told this psalmist here. He's like a preacher. 00:09:01.559 --> 00:09:07.039 without a pulpit. It sounds like he is some distance 00:09:07.039 --> 00:09:10.600 away, again, from the worshiping people of God. 00:09:10.940 --> 00:09:14.120 We don't exactly know where he is or why he is 00:09:14.120 --> 00:09:18.299 taken away from those people, but he indeed longs 00:09:18.299 --> 00:09:23.100 to be worshiping God. And you can see the effect 00:09:23.100 --> 00:09:28.019 that this has upon him. Look in verse 3. My tears 00:09:28.019 --> 00:09:32.909 have been my food day and night. I wonder if 00:09:32.909 --> 00:09:36.649 you've ever felt like that. I wonder if you have 00:09:36.649 --> 00:09:40.029 ever felt like, I can't eat, I can't drink, and 00:09:40.029 --> 00:09:42.370 the only thing that I'm subsisting on are my 00:09:42.370 --> 00:09:46.789 tears, right? And you can see why this is so 00:09:46.789 --> 00:09:49.690 impactful and so heavy for him, because he is 00:09:49.690 --> 00:09:52.830 being taunted for his faith in the one true God. 00:09:53.370 --> 00:09:57.590 Look in verse three. While they say to me all 00:09:57.590 --> 00:10:02.990 the day long, where is your God? He cannot escape 00:10:02.990 --> 00:10:06.470 their words. The psalmist feels like they're 00:10:06.470 --> 00:10:08.929 always with him. Do you ever have that happen 00:10:08.929 --> 00:10:12.350 with you where somebody says something that hurts 00:10:12.350 --> 00:10:15.490 you in some way and you just keep replaying it 00:10:15.490 --> 00:10:19.070 over and over in your mind? This is the psalmist 00:10:19.070 --> 00:10:22.610 here just replaying their taunting in his mind 00:10:22.610 --> 00:10:25.590 and it is overwhelming for him. Look in verse 00:10:25.590 --> 00:10:29.580 7. Deep calls to deep, at the roar of your waterfalls, 00:10:30.039 --> 00:10:32.399 all your breakers and waves have gone over me. 00:10:32.639 --> 00:10:35.879 He feels like he's, have you ever been underneath 00:10:35.879 --> 00:10:39.740 of a waterfall before? Maybe you've been underneath 00:10:39.740 --> 00:10:43.059 of a small one, but to be underneath of a huge 00:10:43.059 --> 00:10:46.120 waterfall, he's just being pressed down, the 00:10:46.120 --> 00:10:48.580 breakers and the waves going over him, this almost 00:10:48.580 --> 00:10:57.039 feels like he's about to drown. And so the question 00:10:57.039 --> 00:11:01.820 that we may have is, what do we do when we feel 00:11:01.820 --> 00:11:05.980 like we're drowning? What do you do when you're 00:11:05.980 --> 00:11:09.519 in such a tailspin? What do you do when you can't 00:11:09.519 --> 00:11:14.159 eat, can't drink, can't sleep? What do you do 00:11:14.159 --> 00:11:17.899 when the tears run out? What do you do when you 00:11:17.899 --> 00:11:21.639 feel like you're drowning? I believe this Psalm 00:11:21.639 --> 00:11:25.159 helps us in at least two ways. What do you do? 00:11:25.740 --> 00:11:32.600 You remember and you hope. Remember and hope. 00:11:33.799 --> 00:11:37.679 Specifically, he remembers worship. He remembers 00:11:37.679 --> 00:11:42.519 in verse four, the atmosphere. He remembers the 00:11:42.519 --> 00:11:45.779 people. He remembers his official function at 00:11:45.779 --> 00:11:49.200 the festival. He remembers worship that is characterized 00:11:49.200 --> 00:11:55.120 by joy and by gladness. John Calvin says here, 00:11:55.210 --> 00:11:59.450 the observance of external ceremonies cannot 00:11:59.450 --> 00:12:03.389 of itself bring us into favor with God, but they 00:12:03.389 --> 00:12:06.690 are religious exercises that we cannot do without 00:12:06.690 --> 00:12:11.370 because of our weakness. Friends, I'm so glad 00:12:11.370 --> 00:12:14.110 you're here tonight. I think that you would agree 00:12:14.110 --> 00:12:20.269 that worship waters our souls. Worship is like 00:12:20.269 --> 00:12:24.860 the best, healthiest meal for us. It is what 00:12:24.860 --> 00:12:29.259 we need. And so this psalmist here, he's reflecting 00:12:29.259 --> 00:12:31.500 upon this, he's remembering this kind of worship. 00:12:31.840 --> 00:12:34.980 It's almost like, do you ever look at old photographs 00:12:34.980 --> 00:12:38.299 of maybe just your loved ones who have passed 00:12:38.299 --> 00:12:42.159 on? And you ever look at those and maybe you 00:12:42.159 --> 00:12:46.120 cry a little bit, but at the same time you recognize 00:12:46.120 --> 00:12:50.620 those tears are good for you, right? It's good 00:12:50.620 --> 00:12:53.929 to remember, isn't it? The tears can almost have 00:12:53.929 --> 00:12:57.409 this healing quality to them. But for him, what 00:12:57.409 --> 00:13:01.830 does he got the tears about? Again, he feels 00:13:01.830 --> 00:13:05.690 distant from God and he feels distant from God's 00:13:05.690 --> 00:13:07.950 people. And I wonder if you've ever been there, 00:13:08.169 --> 00:13:12.850 done that. Have you ever been providentially 00:13:12.850 --> 00:13:16.549 hindered from being in worship for maybe a long 00:13:16.549 --> 00:13:18.629 period of time or even maybe a brief period of 00:13:18.629 --> 00:13:21.830 time? Maybe you've battled an illness that's 00:13:21.830 --> 00:13:24.590 kept you out of worship for many weeks or even 00:13:24.590 --> 00:13:28.490 months. Have you ever moved to a new community 00:13:28.490 --> 00:13:31.289 and you've had to leave behind your church and 00:13:31.289 --> 00:13:35.029 you miss it and it takes a while to find a new 00:13:35.029 --> 00:13:39.330 church? Have you had that experience? I know 00:13:39.330 --> 00:13:43.009 I've shared this before, but many, many years 00:13:43.009 --> 00:13:47.169 ago I moved to Warsaw, Poland for six months. 00:13:48.849 --> 00:13:52.549 and I was worshiping in a Polish church and they 00:13:52.549 --> 00:13:55.149 didn't speak a lot of English there. And at first 00:13:55.149 --> 00:13:58.610 I thought that was kind of neat, but then I began 00:13:58.610 --> 00:14:03.330 to really miss my home church. I began to miss 00:14:03.330 --> 00:14:07.750 worshiping in my own native tongue. And after 00:14:07.750 --> 00:14:11.350 about a month, I just couldn't take it anymore. 00:14:12.039 --> 00:14:13.980 Even with people in the church trying to help 00:14:13.980 --> 00:14:16.379 me, people sitting behind me, whispering things 00:14:16.379 --> 00:14:18.419 into my ear, which I mostly found just to be 00:14:18.419 --> 00:14:23.100 creepy, not helpful. And so one day, a man in 00:14:23.100 --> 00:14:25.700 the church, recognizing how difficult that was, 00:14:25.840 --> 00:14:28.700 said, can I take you to an English -speaking 00:14:28.700 --> 00:14:33.399 church? I said, yes, please. And we got there, 00:14:33.860 --> 00:14:36.159 and I think it was the first hymn that we sang, 00:14:37.120 --> 00:14:39.960 if it's even called a hymn, Jesus Loves Me, have 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:43.240 you heard of that one? and I felt like I had 00:14:43.240 --> 00:14:46.220 never heard something so beautiful as that. Being 00:14:46.220 --> 00:14:49.960 able to sing that song in my own language, oh, 00:14:50.299 --> 00:14:54.960 I felt restored, I felt rejuvenated, I felt nourished, 00:14:55.360 --> 00:15:00.399 right? My thirst was quenched. But here, the 00:15:00.399 --> 00:15:02.759 psalmist is dealing with something more difficult 00:15:02.759 --> 00:15:07.059 than just language barriers here. His soul is 00:15:07.059 --> 00:15:11.659 truly cast down. And it's affecting him in incredible 00:15:11.659 --> 00:15:14.519 ways, right? And that's really what depression 00:15:14.519 --> 00:15:19.399 does. Depression causes us to lose sight of God. 00:15:20.059 --> 00:15:23.480 Depression causes us to be at this point where 00:15:23.480 --> 00:15:28.320 we cannot see past our circumstances. Depression 00:15:28.320 --> 00:15:32.700 focuses on the difficult things and we can't 00:15:32.700 --> 00:15:36.559 see past them. Maybe it'd be a job loss. Maybe 00:15:36.559 --> 00:15:41.460 it'd be a breakup. The loss of a loved one, a 00:15:41.460 --> 00:15:46.659 horrific diagnosis. Maybe it's our own sin. And 00:15:46.659 --> 00:15:48.960 within these things, as we deal with them, it 00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:53.000 just crushes us, it weighs us down, and we begin 00:15:53.000 --> 00:15:56.399 to feel like Jonah when Jonah's cast over the 00:15:56.399 --> 00:15:58.980 boat into the deep. And do you remember as Jonah 00:15:58.980 --> 00:16:02.639 is sinking down and down in the weeds wrapped 00:16:02.639 --> 00:16:09.279 around his head? But then we get Jonah 2 7 when 00:16:09.279 --> 00:16:13.740 my life was fainting away. I Remembered the Lord 00:16:13.740 --> 00:16:18.139 and my prayer came to you into your holy temple 00:16:18.139 --> 00:16:22.340 This indeed is the very grace of God that God 00:16:22.340 --> 00:16:26.679 would work in us to have us to recall who he 00:16:26.679 --> 00:16:30.620 is Martin Luther said God grants us the grace 00:16:30.620 --> 00:16:34.879 and spirit to cheer the heart by reminding us 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:41.610 of his Mercy Within our severe discouragement 00:16:41.610 --> 00:16:48.429 We must remember God But there are also reasons 00:16:48.429 --> 00:16:51.269 that that's hard for us Some of the reasons that 00:16:51.269 --> 00:16:54.289 we struggle to remember God is because when things 00:16:54.289 --> 00:16:59.429 are going really well Sometimes we ignore The 00:16:59.429 --> 00:17:02.789 very things that are good for us We ignore the 00:17:02.789 --> 00:17:07.480 means of grace until a serious crisis arises. 00:17:07.880 --> 00:17:12.460 We neglect prayer. We neglect worship. We neglect 00:17:12.460 --> 00:17:16.539 scripture. We neglect service. We neglect fellowship. 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:19.700 And what all of that does is it amounts to a 00:17:19.700 --> 00:17:24.500 very weak faith. Friends, we ought not wait until 00:17:24.500 --> 00:17:27.839 the moment of crisis to commit ourselves to God. 00:17:28.019 --> 00:17:32.299 Do it now. Now, I wanna say this is not always 00:17:32.299 --> 00:17:37.960 the cause. depression and discouragement. Many 00:17:37.960 --> 00:17:42.059 faithful Christians still attend to the means 00:17:42.059 --> 00:17:46.400 of grace and yet face deep depression, that is 00:17:46.400 --> 00:17:51.299 true. But it's also true that what can lift us 00:17:51.299 --> 00:17:55.000 out of these things when our souls are downcast 00:17:55.000 --> 00:17:58.940 like the psalmist is to remember God and to remember 00:17:58.940 --> 00:18:02.339 specifically who he is, his attributes. Look 00:18:02.339 --> 00:18:08.519 at verse eight. By day the Lord commands his 00:18:08.519 --> 00:18:11.680 steadfast love and at night his song is with 00:18:11.680 --> 00:18:15.119 me, a prayer to the God of my life. Friends, 00:18:15.279 --> 00:18:20.480 is there anything more encouraging than to remember 00:18:20.480 --> 00:18:25.849 that you are loved by Yahweh? Is there anything 00:18:25.849 --> 00:18:30.269 better than that? To know that you are loved 00:18:30.269 --> 00:18:36.769 by the immutable, omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, 00:18:37.349 --> 00:18:42.710 triune, true God who created the universe by 00:18:42.710 --> 00:18:46.569 speaking it into existence. There's nothing better 00:18:46.569 --> 00:18:48.859 than that. There's nothing better than knowing 00:18:48.859 --> 00:18:51.140 that that God loves you so much that he gave 00:18:51.140 --> 00:18:53.839 up his only begotten son that you would have 00:18:53.839 --> 00:18:59.740 everlasting life. And so in your discouragement, 00:19:00.599 --> 00:19:04.339 remember Jesus. Remember what Jesus' name means, 00:19:04.640 --> 00:19:07.880 right? Yahweh saves. Remember the atonement and 00:19:07.880 --> 00:19:10.900 remember that the love that you have for God 00:19:10.900 --> 00:19:16.099 was initiated by God. He loved you first. So 00:19:16.099 --> 00:19:18.920 even when you feel far from God, you can know 00:19:18.920 --> 00:19:22.859 that God is with you. He has implanted his spirit 00:19:22.859 --> 00:19:29.940 within your very hearts. And considering location, 00:19:32.220 --> 00:19:35.480 let's understand maybe where the psalmist is 00:19:35.480 --> 00:19:40.180 geographically. Look at verse six. My soul is 00:19:40.180 --> 00:19:42.559 cast down within me, therefore I remember you 00:19:42.559 --> 00:19:46.130 from the land of Jordan. and of Hermon from Mount 00:19:46.130 --> 00:19:53.430 Mazar. Where is he? Well, seems to tell us. And 00:19:53.430 --> 00:19:56.910 if he is indeed by Mount Hermon, this is probably 00:19:56.910 --> 00:20:01.069 the northern tip of Israel at the time. And commentators 00:20:01.069 --> 00:20:04.430 have said that if he is there, that's like one 00:20:04.430 --> 00:20:07.329 of the last spots from the north that you can 00:20:07.329 --> 00:20:11.740 look back and see the holy city. Some have even 00:20:11.740 --> 00:20:14.599 said that this could be the psalmist being one 00:20:14.599 --> 00:20:18.619 of those exiles from Israel being taken away 00:20:18.619 --> 00:20:23.059 to exile. And if so, maybe this is his last time 00:20:23.059 --> 00:20:26.660 to look back and see the city, see his home. 00:20:27.119 --> 00:20:30.839 Others have said this could be David. David perhaps 00:20:30.839 --> 00:20:33.779 gave the psalm to the sons of Korah. And you 00:20:33.779 --> 00:20:36.000 know David, he would seem like he was always 00:20:36.000 --> 00:20:39.900 on the run from a member of his family. from 00:20:39.900 --> 00:20:44.859 Saul, but either way this psalmist is In a situation 00:20:44.859 --> 00:20:50.220 and he cannot fix it himself But he remembers 00:20:50.220 --> 00:20:54.740 God and he doesn't remember God just once Look 00:20:54.740 --> 00:20:59.180 in verse 9. We continue to see his struggle He 00:20:59.180 --> 00:21:03.980 says I say to God my rock Why have you forgotten 00:21:03.980 --> 00:21:08.819 me? And so it's not just that he must remember 00:21:08.819 --> 00:21:12.240 God. At times he feels totally forgotten by God. 00:21:12.460 --> 00:21:15.599 And yet he does confess God as his rock. And 00:21:15.599 --> 00:21:18.000 when scripture uses this kind of, this imagery 00:21:18.000 --> 00:21:20.440 of a rock, we're supposed to think of maybe a 00:21:20.440 --> 00:21:24.859 fortress, an immovable solid rock. And yet even 00:21:24.859 --> 00:21:28.619 as he affirms this is who God is, he still feels 00:21:28.619 --> 00:21:34.240 unshielded. And the reason for that is because 00:21:34.240 --> 00:21:38.349 sometimes, being a follower of God leaves us 00:21:38.349 --> 00:21:44.710 vulnerable. It leaves us vulnerable to the attacks 00:21:44.710 --> 00:21:48.349 of others, Christians who are criticized, Christians 00:21:48.349 --> 00:21:51.569 who are ostracized because of their faith in 00:21:51.569 --> 00:21:55.109 Jesus. But friends, while we may be vulnerable, 00:21:55.910 --> 00:22:00.450 we're also victorious, and not by our own determination, 00:22:01.210 --> 00:22:05.519 but by the cross of Christ. You see, Jesus knows 00:22:05.519 --> 00:22:08.700 what you're going through. He knows everything 00:22:08.700 --> 00:22:12.359 about you. Jesus knows what you're going through, 00:22:12.500 --> 00:22:17.640 and he went through it himself. Matthew 26, 38, 00:22:18.500 --> 00:22:22.619 Jesus's words, my soul is very sorrowful, even 00:22:22.619 --> 00:22:27.759 to death. John 12, 27, now is my soul troubled. 00:22:27.839 --> 00:22:30.299 What shall I say? Father, deliver me from this 00:22:30.299 --> 00:22:33.319 hour. But for this purpose, I have come to this 00:22:33.319 --> 00:22:36.740 hour. And of course, Isaiah 53 shows us that 00:22:36.740 --> 00:22:39.880 he is the suffering servant. He is the one who 00:22:39.880 --> 00:22:46.220 is called the man of sorrows. Do you see? That 00:22:46.220 --> 00:22:49.279 as you experienced sorrow, you can lean upon 00:22:49.279 --> 00:22:53.099 Jesus who knows exactly what that is like. We 00:22:53.099 --> 00:22:56.779 sing this hymn called Man of Sorrows. It says 00:22:56.779 --> 00:23:00.440 Man of Sorrows, what a name. For the Son of God 00:23:00.440 --> 00:23:06.880 who came ruined sinners to reclaim Alleluia what 00:23:06.880 --> 00:23:10.940 a Savior bearing shame and scoffing rude in my 00:23:10.940 --> 00:23:14.880 place condemned he stood sealed my pardon with 00:23:14.880 --> 00:23:22.359 his blood Alleluia what a Savior And so we must 00:23:22.359 --> 00:23:26.539 remember this Savior But this Savior also gives 00:23:26.539 --> 00:23:29.690 us something else that we need Look at verse 00:23:29.690 --> 00:23:34.369 5, and it's the same thing in verse 11. We must 00:23:34.369 --> 00:23:38.329 hope. We remember and we hope. Let me read this 00:23:38.329 --> 00:23:41.509 part again, verse 5. Why are you cast down, O 00:23:41.509 --> 00:23:44.970 my soul? And why are you in turmoil within me? 00:23:45.230 --> 00:23:49.549 Hope in God, for I shall again praise him, my 00:23:49.549 --> 00:23:55.250 salvation and my God. We must hope in God. But 00:23:55.250 --> 00:23:59.250 here's the thing about depression. Depression 00:23:59.250 --> 00:24:03.650 can rob our strength. And this is why our only 00:24:03.650 --> 00:24:08.250 hope is in God, not in ourselves, right? Think 00:24:08.250 --> 00:24:10.589 about this psalmist, he sounds weak, he sounds 00:24:10.589 --> 00:24:13.130 overcome. The only way he's gonna get through 00:24:13.130 --> 00:24:16.630 this is with God on his side, right? And so what 00:24:16.630 --> 00:24:19.089 does he do? He begins, it sounds like he's preaching 00:24:19.089 --> 00:24:23.789 to himself. Why self are you cast down? And why 00:24:23.789 --> 00:24:28.779 are you in turmoil? He's not belittling his discouragement. 00:24:29.359 --> 00:24:33.880 He is putting it in its proper place. You see 00:24:33.880 --> 00:24:35.619 friends, something else we need to understand 00:24:35.619 --> 00:24:40.140 about depression is that depression is a liar. 00:24:41.380 --> 00:24:45.099 Depression lies to us. Depression tries to make 00:24:45.099 --> 00:24:49.220 you feel like your feelings are the measure of 00:24:49.220 --> 00:24:53.539 truth. Depression says that if God feels absent, 00:24:53.940 --> 00:24:58.910 he must be. but it's not true. Depression says 00:24:58.910 --> 00:25:02.970 that if you feel unloved, you are unlovable, 00:25:02.990 --> 00:25:06.849 but it's not true. Depression says you cannot 00:25:06.849 --> 00:25:12.529 be forgiven, but it's not true. Christ died for 00:25:12.529 --> 00:25:19.150 this very fact. Friends, Ed Welsh said, our emotions 00:25:19.150 --> 00:25:23.529 are loud, but they do not tell the whole story. 00:25:24.170 --> 00:25:28.670 And our feelings are fickle, aren't they? Especially 00:25:28.670 --> 00:25:31.309 when we're dealing with depression, especially 00:25:31.309 --> 00:25:33.950 when we're discouraged, we might not feel anything 00:25:33.950 --> 00:25:39.589 at all. But scripture, now that's something that 00:25:39.589 --> 00:25:42.470 doesn't change. That is something that's solid. 00:25:42.690 --> 00:25:46.210 That's something you can depend upon. This word 00:25:46.210 --> 00:25:49.490 here contains the encouragement that a depressed 00:25:49.490 --> 00:25:53.660 soul absolutely needs. If God is for us, Then 00:25:53.660 --> 00:25:59.619 what? Who can be against us, right? Or consider, 00:25:59.980 --> 00:26:04.019 since Psalm 42 sounds so much like this, Psalm 00:26:04.019 --> 00:26:10.660 27, verse one, the Lord is my light and my salvation. 00:26:11.279 --> 00:26:14.960 Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold 00:26:14.960 --> 00:26:19.000 of my life. Of whom shall I be afraid? And then 00:26:19.000 --> 00:26:21.519 down to verse four, it sounds so much like 42. 00:26:21.900 --> 00:26:24.859 One thing have I asked of the Lord that I will 00:26:24.859 --> 00:26:28.339 seek after, that I may dwell in the house of 00:26:28.339 --> 00:26:32.039 the Lord all the days of my life to gaze upon 00:26:32.039 --> 00:26:35.559 the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his 00:26:35.559 --> 00:26:39.980 temple. The psalmist there just wants to be back 00:26:39.980 --> 00:26:43.680 in the very presence of God worshiping. He loves 00:26:43.680 --> 00:26:47.490 it. He needs it. And this is the same desire 00:26:47.490 --> 00:26:52.750 as in Psalm 42, to be back in God's house with 00:26:52.750 --> 00:26:57.029 God's people. But friends, if I can lift our 00:26:57.029 --> 00:27:00.809 hearts and our minds above our feelings right 00:27:00.809 --> 00:27:03.829 now, I want to say the true reason for worship. 00:27:04.750 --> 00:27:08.150 Yes, worship absolutely helps with our depression. 00:27:08.710 --> 00:27:11.849 It helps with our discouragement. That is a pressing 00:27:11.849 --> 00:27:14.900 need. But there is an even deeper reason for 00:27:14.900 --> 00:27:18.559 us to gather for worship because God is rightly 00:27:18.559 --> 00:27:23.200 to be praised. We were created for worship. When 00:27:23.200 --> 00:27:26.240 you feel homesick for your church family, when 00:27:26.240 --> 00:27:29.559 you feel homesick for worship, that is intentional 00:27:29.559 --> 00:27:32.819 because you were made to worship. It is your 00:27:32.819 --> 00:27:36.240 chief end. We were made to praise Him, to say 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:40.640 along with the psalmist, my salvation and my 00:27:40.640 --> 00:27:48.079 God. And so saying all of that, I recognize, 00:27:48.079 --> 00:27:53.079 one, how good it is for us to be together. But 00:27:53.079 --> 00:27:56.740 also I recognize this, and you do too, I'm sure, 00:27:57.740 --> 00:27:59.720 that some people will continue to struggle with 00:27:59.720 --> 00:28:02.740 depression for their whole lives. They will. 00:28:03.960 --> 00:28:07.420 God's word, though, encourages our hearts through 00:28:07.420 --> 00:28:11.819 the depression. Because our hope is not in our 00:28:11.819 --> 00:28:17.670 feelings. Our hope. is in Christ. Ed Welch says, 00:28:17.710 --> 00:28:21.130 depression can't rob you of hope because your 00:28:21.130 --> 00:28:24.769 hope is in a person and that person, Jesus, is 00:28:24.769 --> 00:28:30.970 alive and is within you. And so friends, be lifted 00:28:30.970 --> 00:28:35.150 up by the good news of the gospel. It is the 00:28:35.150 --> 00:28:38.329 medicine that we need when we are depressed and 00:28:38.329 --> 00:28:41.829 discouraged. Take heart, friends. God loves you. 00:28:42.029 --> 00:28:42.630 Let's pray.