Sermon for July 14th, 2019

Psalm 11:1-7

To the leader. Of David.
1 In the Lord I take refuge; how can you say to me,
    “Flee like a bird to the mountains;
2 for look, the wicked* bend the bow,
    they have fitted their arrow to the string,
    to shoot in the dark at the upright in heart.
3 If the foundations are destroyed,
    what can the righteous do?”

4 The Lord is in his holy temple;
    the Lord’s throne is in heaven.
    His eyes behold, his gaze examines humankind.
5 The Lord tests the righteous and the wicked,
    and his soul hates the lover of violence.
6 On the wicked he will rain coals of fire and sulfur;
    a scorching wind shall be the portion of their cup.
7 For the Lord is righteous;
he loves righteous deeds;
    the upright shall behold his face.

Psummer of Psalms II - Psalm 11

There's a great song by Kenny Rogers that pretty much every knows--his most famous song, called "The Gambler." The refrain of the song offers advice that is, on the surface, about poker, but also pretty clearly advice about life. Anyone remember the words? Sing it with me?

"You got to know when to hold 'em. Know when to fold 'em. Know when to walk away, know when to run. You never count your money when you're sittin' at the table; there'll be plenty of time for countin' when the dealin's done."

I think Psalm 11 could be the gambler's Psalm. It's definitely a Psalm about knowing when to run away, and when to make a stand. But first, speaking of running away...

Did you hear the one about the old church out in the country, where Satan himself showed up for worship one Sunday morning? Immediately recognizing the prince of darkness (likely the horns and the pitchfork were a dead giveaway) most of the congregation members ran screaming right out the church door, jumping through the windows, trampling over each other in a frantic effort to get away. All except for one elderly gentleman, who sat calmly in his usual spot, with a determined look in his eye.

Not used to this response, Satan walked up to the man and said, "Don't you know who I am?" The old man smoothly responded, "Yep. Sure do, Mr. Devil." "And you're...not going to run?" asked the Devil. "Nope, sure ain't Mr. Devil." Perturbed, Satan asked the man, "Why aren't you afraid of me?" At this, the man turned to face the Devil, looked him straight in the eye and said, "You don't scare me. I been married to your sister for over 48 years now."

So today we're talking about knowing when to run away, and when to make a stand. Psalm 11, in the inscription at the beginning of the psalm, tells us that it is addressed to the leader (most likely the chief musician, the music director, or the worship leader in the temple) and that it is a Psalm of David. We have no way of knowing whether King David himself actually wrote this Psalm, or whether it was simply a Psalm "in the style" of David. But either way it rings true.

Young David knew a thing or two about when to run away, and when to make a stand. In 1st Samuel 17, when all of the Israelites are running away from Goliath, the Philistine Giant, young David (against all odds) makes his stand. Armed with nothing more than five smooth stones and a profound trust in God, David defeats Goliath and becomes the hero of Israel.

And then he runs away. Not immediately, but because of David's popularity with the people, the King of Israel at the time, King Saul, becomes insanely jealous of David, and tries on multiple occasions to have him killed. So this time, rather than making a stand, David runs to the mountains, lives for a time as an outlaw, and gathers other outcasts and wanderers to himself. Eventually, Saul's kingdom falls and he is defeated by the Philistines. David gathers the people of Judah to himself, makes a stand against the Philistines, defeats them, and becomes King of Judah and Israel.

He rules for many decades...and then he runs away to the mountains again. This time, it is because his son Absolom has gained popularity with the people and rises up against him. Rather than fight his rebellious son, David runs away and hides in the mountains. Eventually David is restored to the throne

• triumphant answer of faith to cowardly counsel.
• Psalm of Trust, along with 16, 23, 27
• Throne is in heaven, temple is on earth -- or, God is active in the world, and yet God also transcends the world. God is with us, and yet God is over us.
• Summary of this Psalm: Wait. Trust. Keep the faith.
• This Psalm is an affirmation of faith, not unlike the Apostle's creed.
• Courage.