July 19, 2021 | by: Gregg Hunter | 0 comments
Posted in: Psalm 34
As David fled from Saul, he found himself alone. He went before the king of the Philistines, and, alone, needed to pretend to be a madman before the king would spare his life. He fled to a cave, alone. The whole time, he has said “I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth.”
As he is hiding in the cave of Adullam, hundreds of people gather to him. These are described in 1st Samuel 22:2 as “everyone who was in distress, and everyone who was in debt, and everyone who was bitter in soul.” These are not the choice men of Israel, for sure! But what does David do with these men? He leads them in worshipping the Lord!
Please read Psalm 34:1-3.
The first thing that we must notice about David as a worship leader is that he made his own relationship with the Lord his highest priority. We cannot lead others in worshipping the Lord unless we are first worshipping Him ourselves. Worship is not just a public matter, it is a private matter.
David endeavored to praise the Lord continually, even though he has been alone for much of his recent past. David had to act like a madman to escape his own execution, but he can say “my soul makes its boast in the Lord.” When he says “let the humble hear and be glad,” he is talking about himself: he has humbled himself to the point where spittle was drooling down his beard, and he was scratching marks on doors like a lunatic, and the king accused him of being a useless madman.
What was the result of David’s humility? His life was spared and he was free to go to the caves where people soon gathered around him and made him their commander. David could do nothing to save himself, so he gives God all the glory for this salvation.
“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you” (James 4:10). This is the good news for the humble! God will lift you up if you humble yourself in His sight.
It is small wonder that the people who gathered around David were not great kings and leaders of the people; they were the oppressed, the debtors, and those who had suffered hardship. These are the same kinds of people who gathered around Jesus when He walked this earth. These were the same kinds of people who founded the early church; the same kinds of people who have so faithfully served the church throughout the centuries, and the same kinds of people who are coming to Christ today.
God is not looking for the self-sufficient. He is looking for those who will rely on Him. When we humble ourselves before the Lord, and admit that we cannot save ourselves – we are sinners who deserve to be punished—then we can trust in the forgiveness that comes through our Savior, Jesus Christ. Only then will we be forgiven of our sin and lifted up to a place of holiness. We will be given a new name, called saints, loved by God, and we will become children of God, adopted into the family of God.
When God has done such a great work in your life, you will naturally have the desire to invite others to share in the wonderful blessing. David looks at the hundreds of downtrodden people around him, and says: “Oh, magnify the Lord with me!” Join me in praising God for His wonderful deeds! “Let us exalt his name together!” God is worthy of such incredible praise for what He has done in my life, that I cannot praise Him enough. I will praise Him continually, but it is not enough. Join me in praising Him!
Will you join David in praising God today? Will you invite others to join you? Let us exalt the Lord together!
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