When was the last time you longed for or desired to be vindicated or declared innocent? When was the last time you longed for protection from something or someone? When was the last time you longed for full deliverance from something that was afflicting you? When was the last time you found yourself seeking shelter from all that is unholy in this world or all that is unholy within you?
When was the last time you found yourself sad and depressed because of a broken relationship and you just simply longed for a friendship that would not be broken by the effects of Satan, Sin, and Death? When was the last time you felt that overwhelming sense of true joy? When was the last time you cried out to God to rescue you from. The oppression of the enemy? These are the heart cries of our Psalmist today: He is longing to be vindicated, protected, delivered, sheltered, befriended, filled with joy, and rescued.
1Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me! 2For you are the God in whom I take refuge; why have you rejected me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? 3Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling! 4Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise you with the lyre, O God, my God. 5Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.
Psalm 43 is believed by most scholars to be part of Psalm 42. Scholars believe this because Psalm 43lacks an author’s note while adhering to a similar language structure as Psalm 42; namely with its final verse being an exact carbon copy of Psalm 42:5, 11; and you may notice that both Psalms 42 and 43are deeply rooted in our desperate need for hope amidst the darkness of oppression and suffering.2 Nevertheless, while some commentators deal with both Psalms together as a whole, I thought it would be good to deal with each one separately so that we could hone in on the different aspects of our search for true hope.
We talked about this last week; about how important hope is for us as broken humans who are navigating our way through this broken world. You might remember how we talked about hope as being absolutely vital to our existence. Hope is the thing that gets us through the chaos of difficulty. Hope is the essence of the promise of better days. Hope is the dream of a better future. Hope is the refreshing drink of water to a soul that has been dehydrated by the sudden onset of great difficulty.
And I would also add this week, that hope is the sliver of light that gets us through the darkness and it’s also the ounce of truth that dispels the confusion of the dark seasons we often walk through. There are times in this world when the dark storm clouds of suffering and oppression can overtake us, and it can feel like there is no end in sight; like the clear blue skies of sunny days are a distant fog; like the mushroom clouds of enemy bombs are erupting all around us.
In the blink of an eye, the marriage can go on tilt, the health issue can become deadly, the friend can turn against you, the abuse from the past can overwhelm you, the bottom can drop out of your job security, the beloved family member can become an enemy, the sin pattern you once enjoyed victory over can come back with triple the force, the fear, the anxiety, the shame, the guilt, the anger, the depression, the sense of worthlessness… all of these things can overtake you and leave you feeling like you are wandering around in the darkness. Have you experienced some dark seasons like this lately?
These are dark days where you and I will need to find hope in the midst of the darkness. These are days when we will long for vindication, protection, deliverance, shelter, friendship, joy, and salvation. The only way to persevere through the hardship that our enemies (Satan, Sin, and Death) throw at us is to have light in the darkness and to have truth amidst the confusion that the darkness brings with it.
This is exactly what our Psalmist is longing for – he is searching for hope in the darkness of opposition, and he knows that the light and the truth of God’s presence are the only things that will provide the hope he needs to get to the other side and back to the clear blue skies of sunnier days. Notice the rhythm of the Psalmist’s heart as he searches for hope in the darkness.
#1: THE RHYTHM OF A HEART THAT IS SEARCHING FOR HOPE IN THE DARKNESS
In verse 1, our Psalmist is crying out to God to vindicate or to prove him blameless, to defend him from the attacks of his enemies, and to deliver him from evil people and liars who do not care about what is right or wrong. When you and I are searching for hope amidst the darkness and the confusion of the enemy’s attacks, we are often longing for the kind of hope that promises full vindication, full protection, and full deliverance.
In verse 2, our Psalmist confesses his faith in God as the one whom he finds shelter in or hides behind when bullies are trying to intimidate him, but he also confesses how alone and abandoned he feels and how depressed he is because of his enemy’s continued attacks. We must remember that our faith becomes the most real when we are at our lowest and our loneliest. When you and I are searching for hope amidst the darkness and the confusion of the enemy’s attacks, we are often longing for the kind of hope that promises shelter in our loneliest and most vulnerable moments.
In verse 3, our Psalmist approaches God in prayer as he asks for the light and the truth of God’s presence to lead him and guide him through this dark and confusing season; he literally asks God to lead him out of the darkness and confusion of his enemy’s attacks and into the presence of God on his “holy hill” and in his “dwelling” place or home. Have you ever felt so scared and so confused by the darkness around you that you just wished you could find the comfort of the presence of a close friend at home?
That longing for the safety of close friendship is an indicator of our deeper heart’s desire to be in the safety of God’s presence; someone who will never fail you, reject you, forsake, you, or leave you. When you and I are searching for hope amidst the darkness and the confusion of the enemy’s attacks, we are often longing for the kind of hope that promises the faithful and eternal presence of the God who is the friend of sinners.
In verse 4, our Psalmist continues to dream about being in the perfect presence of the living God as he expresses just how overwhelmingly joyful it would make him to be with God praising him at the altar of worship. The excitement and joy that you and I feel when we are getting close to a visit with an old friend or family member is similar – albeit far less – to the immense joy we can find in God’s presence. When you and I are searching for hope amidst the darkness and the confusion of the enemy’s attacks, we are often longing for the kind of hope that promises overwhelming joy in the presence of God as we praise him for who he is and what he has done.
Finally, in verse 5, our Psalmist returns to the refrain of Psalm 42:5, 11 as he cross examines the condition of his soul by asking: “Why am I a wreck?” and then he preaches to his soul when he says: “Put your hope in God who is the foundation of your salvation, and you will soon be praising him”. As our Psalmist searches for hope amidst the darkness, he literally finds what he is looking for in the presence of his saving God. When you and I are searching for hope amidst the darkness and the confusion of the enemy’s attacks, we are often longing for the kind of hope that promises eternal salvation from all that is broken and evil in this world.
The Psalmist’s enemy is an ungodly, evil, lying, oppressive enemy who hates what is right and his unrelenting oppressive presence has caused our Psalmist to grope around in the confusion of the darkness for an ounce of hope. He knows that his enemy is prowling around like a lion, seeking to devour every last ounce of hope he has.
So he makes his way to the God of his salvation as he begs God to prove him blameless, to defend him against his enemy, to deliver him from the darkness, to shelter him from the hellfire that is raining down upon him, to give him a glimmer of light and truth to lead him into God’s presence where his joy will once again overflow from the fountain of true hope as he enjoys the presence of the God who is the friend of sinners.
Do you know what it is like to find true hope as you fumble around in the darkness and as you face the confusion of your enemy’s attacks? There is a place where you and I can find hope in the darkness and confusion of the enemy’s attacks.
#2: THE PLACE WHERE YOU AND I FIND HOPE IN THE DARKNESS
The place where you and I can find hope in the darkness amidst the confusion is at the foot of the bloody cross, it’s at the doorway of the empty tomb, it’s in the light of the promise of heaven. All of the hope we need to make it through the darkness and the confusion of our enemy’s attacks is found in the person and work of our crucified, risen, and returning Jesus.
Our enemy will stop at nothing to steal our hope and to feed us tidbits of imitation hope that promises pleasure amidst the pain, acceptance amidst the rejection, and control amidst the chaos. The reality is that our spiritual enemies – Satan, Sin, and Death – they are the forces behind any physical enemies we have. Whether it’s a broken marriage, a lost job, a failed friendship, a deadly health issue, a traumatic experience, or the temptations that you cannot seem to resist, all of our physical struggle is tied to our invisible enemies.
Satan condemns, coerces, shames, guilts, deceives, and leads us into darkness. Sin tempts, offers hallow promises, enslaves, and hardens our hearts. Death taunts, terrifies, weakens, confuses, and seeks to silence our hope. When our enemies level their full – frontal attack against us and leave us on our knees in the darkness and the confusion of those dark clouds of oppression, our hearts become like sponges; looking to soak up any ounce of hope we can find.
In these moments we long for the kind of hope that promises full vindication, full protection, and full deliverance. In these moments we long for shelter, we long to come into the presence of the God who is the friend of sinners, we long to be filled with overwhelming joy, we long for the kind of salvation that will put an end to all that is broken and evil within us and within this world that we are traveling through.
Thanks be to God; our Savior has demonstrated that nothing can stop him from coming through on his promises; we can hope in Christ Jesus for all that our hearts long for. When God promises to crush the head of Satan, he does it with a cross, an empty tomb, and the promise of heaven. When God promises to deal with the penalty, power, and presence of sin, he does it with a cross, an empty tomb, and the promise of heaven. When God promises to make death look like nothing more than a doorway into his eternal presence, he does it with a cross, an empty tomb, and the promise of heaven.
CONCLUSION…
In conclusion my friends, if you feel like you are barely getting by or if you feel like you have been groping around in the darkness amidst the confusion of your enemy’s full-frontal assault, you can find the hope you have been longing for in the light and the truth of the gospel of our crucified, risen, and returning Savior.
At the cross, Jesus declared “It is finished”. All of the work that needed to be done to cleanse you from sin was done at the cross whereby we hear these words: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1). The bloody cross of Jesus is where we find the kind of authentic hope that promises full vindication, full protection, full deliverance, safe shelter, eternal friendship with the friend of sinners, true and abiding joy, and assurance of salvation.
At the empty tomb the angels declared “He is not here. He has risen”. All of the work that needed to be done to give you safe passage through the doorway of death was accomplished when the stone was rolled away, and our Savior rose in victory over our enemies once and for all. In these moments, Jesus crushed death under his resurrected feet.
The victorious empty tomb of Jesus is where we find the kind of authentic hope that promises that we too will rise from death fully vindicated, fully protected, fully delivered, completely safe in the shelter of our risen Savior, living for all eternity in the presence of the best friend who will never leave and will never forsake us, as we are filled with true and abiding joy, because we are fully assured once and for all of our completed salvation.
In the promise of heaven Jesus declares that he will return as a rider on a horse with lightning bolts coming out of his eyes, a sword coming out of his mouth, clothes drenched in the blood of the saints who were slain, and a tattoo on his leg proclaiming that he is the King of kings and the Lord of lords (Rev. 19). In the return of Jesus, we have the hope of heaven where all our enemies have been dealt with for all of eternity and we get to enjoy the presence of our saving God where there is no more mourning, tears, sin, death, and no more sickness!
The promised return of Jesus is where we find the kind of authentic hope that promises complete vindication, complete protection, complete deliverance, complete safety in the shelter of the Most High, complete friendship with the lover of our souls, complete joy that can never be tampered with again, and complete salvation from all the effects of Satan, Sin, and Death.
If you have been fumbling around in the darkness and confusion of the attacks of Satan, Sin, and Death, I pray you will find a sliver of hope in the light and truth of the gospel of our crucified, risen, and returning Savior because our only hope is the found in the God who vindicates, defends, delivers, shelters, befriends, and leads us into the light with the truth of his presence so that we might praise him with everlasting joy as our Savior.
If you walked in here in the darkness, I pray you walk out of here in the light of the truth of the gospel, kneeling at the foot of the bloody cross, sitting in the doorway of the empty tomb, standing in light of the promise of heaven as you hold fast to the hope of your salvation in Christ Jesus. In Christ alone is where you will find vindication, protection, deliverance, shelter, friendship, joy, and salvation. – Amen!
1 Unless otherwise specified, all Bible references in this paper are to the English Standard Version Bible, The New Classic Reference Edition (ESV) (Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, 2001).
2 Richard D. Phillips, Psalms 42 – 72, (Phillipsburg, New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2019), 3 – 12.