Message of the Week

The Little White Community Church

Scripture:  Ps. 42     Nov. 10, 2024

Message: “In Honor of the Persecuted Church!”

by Pastor George Gnade

Intro.: 1. Every year on either the first or second Sunday in November, Christians are encouraged to celebrate the International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church. I would like to do that today.

2. I felt led to use Psalm 42 to lead us in this study. 

A. We will begin by considering the depth of his feelings. 

1. In vs. 1-2, it says: “As a deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for thee, O God. My soul thirsts for the living God.”

a. When everything is going well, we enjoy God but we often take His blessings for granted. But when everything seems to go wrong, our need for God multiplies.

b. When Christians are persecuted, it often feels like God is miles away. The heart begins to thirst for Him. It is like the need for a cold glass of water on a very hot day, on a day when water seems to be nowhere to be found.

2. In vs. 3, it says: “My tears have been my food day and night, while men say to me: ‘Where is your God?”’

a. When everything seems to go wrong, the world uses this as an excuse to deny the reality of God. When Christians go through times like this, it often tests the genuineness of our faith. 

b. Then how much more often do Christians struggle when they are being persecuted and no relief is in sight?

B. That is a good reason to remind ourselves of good experiences with God in the past.

1.. In vs. 4, the writer finds himself looking back to the days when he freely worshiped with others and enjoyed every minute of it. He writes: “I used to go with the multitudes, leading the procession to the house of God, with shouts of joy and thanksgiving among the festive throng.”

a. In many countries of the world, churches are being burned down and the freedom to worship denied. 

b. Worse yet, Christians are often abused or injured, even killed, just because of their love for the Lord. 

2. That is when depression can often set in. That is when Christians need to fight the depression by holding on to their faith. Many times remembering how God helped us in the past enables us to trust Him as we face the future.

C. This is where our faith comes into the picture. 

1. In vs. 5, it says: “Why are you cast down, O my soul?  Why are you so disturbed within your heart? Put your hope in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.”

2. Have you ever talked to yourself? Have you ever given yourself a pep talk? That is what the writer is doing. You can do that too! Just put your name in the place of the author and it might surprise you how well it fits into the text!

3. In vs. 5, he turns his concerns into a prayer. He writes: “My soul is downcast within me; therefore, I will remember you from the land of the Jordan, from the heights of Hermon – from Mt Mizar.”

a. Joshua led Israel across the Jordon River. It was God’s way of confirming His promise that He would go before them into the land.

b. And the mountains that God had made were also an inspiration to those seeking the Lord. In Ps. 121:1, it says: “I will lift up my eyes unto the hills, from whence comes my help. My help comes from the Lord who made the heavens and the earth.”

D. But the mountains also reminded the writer of the water falls. 

1. I have always enjoyed watching a beautiful water falls. It certainly can remind us of the power of God. But it is not beautiful if you find yourself in “deep water” under the falls. 

a. Christians often describe their problems as being “in deep water.”  In vs. 7, it says: “Deep calls to the deep in the roars of your waterfalls; all your waves and billows have swept over me.”  This is as low as you can get!

b. But that is exactly where faith steps in! In Eph. 6: 16, Paul writes: “Take up the shield of faith, with which you can quench all the fiery darts of the evil one.” 

2. This is also where Jesus comes into the picture. In Ps. 22:1, the Psalmist wrote: “My God, my God why have you forsaken me?” 

a. Jesus quoted this verse as He hung on the cross. Ps. 42: 7 is a prophetic picture of what Jesus experienced on the cross. “All the waves and billows” of God’s wrath fell on Jesus as He died for us on the cross for our sins. . But He rose triumphantly.

b. He died in our place, so that we might always have the assurance that when we go through “deep waters,” Jesus is still with us and He has promised us the victory.

3. In Ps. 42: 8, the psalmist says: “By day the Lord directs His love, at night His song is still with me- a prayer to the God of my life.” In hard times, keep praying, keep singing, and keep on believing.

a. In faith, do what the psalmist did. In vs. 9 he says: “I say to God my Rock, ‘Why have you forsaken me? Why must I go on mourning, oppressed by the enemy?’” 

b. In vs. 10, he continues: “My bones suffer mortal agony as my foes taunt me saying: ‘Where is your God?’”

c. As Christian are persecuted, that is exactly what the enemy often does. The sufferings of mankind are why they do not believe and why they challenge and tempt us to not believe. 

4. But the sufferings of Christ upon the cross and His victory over death are the very reasons why we do believe!

a. He died in our place and our death only results in eternal life with Jesus Christ our Lord.

b. That is why the psalmist closes with these encouraging words: “Put your trust in God, for I will yet praise Him, my Savior and my God.” 

c. We often wish God would work faster, but in faith we believe and we will continue to praise Him.

In Conclusion: 1. So whether you are being persecuted or just facing extremely challenging trials, either way don’t let your trials destroy you or undermine your faith. 

2. In Christ, we are on the winning side. Always remind yourself: “This life is not my home. I am just a passing through. If heaven’s not my home, O Lord, what would I do?” 

3. Praise God, we are promised in Phil. 3:20,”Our citizenship is in heaven where we eagerly await our Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who by the power that enables Him to bring everything under His control, will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body.”  

4.  The world has no hope and dies without hope. But our hope is in the Lord Jesus Christ. We offer that hope to all who have a thirst to know God better.  Amen.