September 16, 2019 - Suggested Reading Psalm 18 for the September 22nd message on Jonah in our worship service at 10:00AM

“I love you, LORD, my strength.”

Psalm 18:1 (NIV) 

This psalm teaches us that David loves God because God first loved him. God is his strength because God was his strength.

As we read this psalm, we marvel at the descriptions of God coming from His temple to help a human on earth, and we wonder how many times did this happen in David’s life? When we cast our minds over the written history of David in the Scriptures we can immediately think of several times where David would have been killed if God didn’t come from His temple to intercede.

I wonder how many times in your life friend - would you have perished if the Lord had not heard your prayer and moved heaven and earth to save you?

What drew me to Psalm 18 was the similarity between verses 4 and 5 in this psalm; “The cords of death entangled me; the torrents of destruction overwhelmed me. The cords of the grave coiled around me; the snares of death confronted me.” and verses 2,5 and 6 of Jonah 2; “In my distress I called to the LORD, and he answered me. From deep in the realm of the dead I called for help, and you listened to my cry. The engulfing waters threatened me, the deep surrounded me; seaweed was wrapped around my head. To the roots of the mountains I sank down; the earth beneath barred me in forever. But you, LORD my God, brought my life up from the pit.”

No doubt Jonah had read Psalm 18 many times, and as he remembered God while his life was ebbing away, he offered the Words of Scripture from his heart to His Lord.

Powerful way to pray!

Verse 20 through 24 of Psalm 18 bring fear to my heart, for if the LORD dealt with me according to my righteousness, He would never deliver me. But then I cast my mind to Christ and realize that God answers my call for salvation based on who His Son is, for I am joined by faith to His Son. Not only that, but the forgiveness offered to me by His Son, cleans my hands, takes away my guilt, and makes me blameless.

Oh, how good it is to think on my position in Christ and to continually seek forgiveness from my sin in His Name!