Tuesday, May 24, 2022

Victory in the Lord (Psalm 60)

"Give us aid against the enemy, for the help of man is worthless. With God we will gain the victory" (Psalm 60:11–12a).

Calvin describes Psalm 60 as a triumphal song for David’s victories over the Syrians and other allied nations. In the first part of this psalm, David reminds the people of the confusion into which the nation had been thrown under the administration of Saul. David refers to God’s rejection not of himself but of Israel when calamities extended to the whole kingdom because of Saul. During those times David’s countrymen were his worst foes, but once he sat upon the throne he forgot all the injuries they had done to him and sought to set the kingdom on the right path.

Like the nation of Israel under the rule of Saul, all believers were once separated from God before Christ established His rule in their hearts. Each of us who has been redeemed from a life of rebellion can remember what it was like to live under the wrath of God. We were then enemies of the living God; but, by His grace, God set His love upon us, choosing to call us His people, and to deliver us from our sins. He set over us a King of divine majesty who has restored us and will bring us into His everlasting kingdom. This deliverance has come not from man, but from God. When we were trapped in the clutches of the enemy, in bondage to our sin, God Himself led us to victory. We cannot be saved by the ways of men, but only by God through Christ.

Yet, so often people look for relief from men and not from God. They recognize a need in their lives, but they do not look to the one who can truly save them. Sadly, Christians fall into this trap at times. They find themselves in trouble and look to other people for help instead of turning to God in prayer and seeking His ways in the Scriptures. David, however, realized that salvation and restoration come from God alone. “He expresses his conviction, that should God extend His help, it would be sufficient of itself although no assistance should be received from any other quarter,” Calvin wrote. Our hope should never be in men, but in the all-sufficient God. Whether it be in salvation, struggles against the enemy, or daily trials, let us never stop turning to God in prayer, for the help of man is worthless, but “with God we will gain the victory.”

How does our society distract us from depending upon God for help and restoration? What ways does Satan tempt you to rely on yourself instead of God? Write down and carry with you today verses from Scripture that will help guard you against such temptations.