Turning Points

Psalm 3:3-4

O LORD, how many are my foes!
Many are rising against me;
many are saying of my soul,
there is no salvation for him in God.

...............

After seeing the temptations of Christ in Matthew 4, it is a little easier to understand why Jesus might have been a big fan of the Psalms. Aside from many of the Messianic references, the majority of the Psalms are technically classified as "laments." While Jesus was not well known for his melancholy, he was a "man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief" (Is 53). In fact, it was to the Psalms of lament that he turned when he was hanging on the cross, betrayed by his closest friends and bearing the curse of sin for those he loved (see Mt. 27:46, quoting Ps. 22:1, and see Gal. 3:13 about the curse).

The beautiful thing about the Psalms is that they almost always have a turning point of hope. After beginning with a prayer of desperation in Psalm 3, the writer immediately turns to what he knows is true, and this changes everything:

But you, O LORD, are a shield about me,
my glory, and the lifter of my head.
I cried aloud to the LORD,
and he answered me from his holy hill.

I admit, there is something romantic about wallowing in your problems. Human nature takes a sick delight in self-pity, and we must be aware that this in not the pattern in the laments of Scripture. There must always be a turning to what is outside of oneself (a pointer to the objective beauties of the gospel, especially the finished work of salvation accomplished by Christ - go to Romans 8 for a refresher). The psalmist gains hope by (forcefully, if necessary) reminding himself of what he knows is true, based on God's former actions and the promises He has made. Let this be a pattern we also follow when we are facing life's many trials: a prayer of desperation, followed by a declaration of truth to match.