Psalm 40:1-4 They Cannot Argue with Your Testimony

I recently met a man at a pastor's dinner, who had a tattoo on his bicep. It was a long Hebrew word, and my Hebrew is rather rusty. When I asked him what his tattoo meant, he said, “this tattoo tells his story of Isaiah.” He then described Isaiah’s call from Isaiah 6, and said his tattoo was the Hebrew for “Here I am! Send me.”

I asked him if he is often able to use his tattoo as a bridge to sharing the gospel with people. He said, “all the time!” He is a sports enthusiast, often playing basketball, or golf, or working out at the gym while wearing shirts that show off his tattoo. When people ask him what it means, it opens the door for him to share the story of Isaiah, which then leads to his personal testimony. He said, “people sometimes want to argue the facts of the gospel, but they can’t argue with your story because it’s your story.”

How true! Every Christian has a testimony of how they came to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Most Christians have additional testimonies of how Jesus has acted in various ways in their life. People may argue facts all they want, but they can’t argue with what you’ve personally experienced. That’s why sharing our testimony is such a powerful means of sharing the gospel.

David begins Psalm 40 by sharing his testimony. Please read Psalm 40:1-4.

We don’t know to exactly what situation David is referring in this psalm. The young shepherd must have experienced times when, all alone out in the fields, he found himself in danger of “the miry bog” with no means of escape. The brave soldier certainly fell in “the pit of destruction” when his enemies surrounded him. The wise king needed to wait “patiently for the Lord” as he faced difficult decisions that would determine the health of an entire nation. It could have been to any one of these stages of life that David is referring. Maybe it was to all of them.

Some have suggested that this psalm was not a personal psalm of David, but one that he wrote for the choirmaster to put to music, so the entire nation could join in its song. As each man of Israel began singing, he would think of his own time that he fell into the pit of destruction and required God to save him from the miry bog. He would be reminded of his own personal testimony.

All of us have a testimony like this, where God saved us from certain destruction. He led us out of the shifting sands that led to death and set our feet upon the Rock, which leads to life. He lifted us out of the gloom, where our only words were those of despair, and put a new song in our mouth, “a song of praise to our God.” If you are a Christian, then you know what I’m talking about.

Many have gone through such an experience. Many have seen God move and have “put their trust in the Lord.” They have witnessed the wonder and glory of God, and they are all the more blessed for seeing it. They have tasted that the Lord is good, and they will not put their trust in anyone else. Blessed is such a man.

If you are such a person who has experienced the life changing power of Jesus Christ, then may you boldly share that experience with others. They may argue the facts, but they cannot argue your experience. They cannot argue with your testimony.