We're not told explicitly what David's crisis was. There's one suggestion that I'm personally comfortable with. Is that of David fleeing the wrath of Saul? Saul has thrown the javelin at David and attempts to kill him. And all of David's friends are saying to him, you have got to get out of here. You are not safe, your life is going to be taken from you, and you need to flee. If you know anything about David, as I believe we're learning more about him reading and studying the Psalms, you know that that is cold comfort from loyal friends. Run is this not in David's vocabulary. To flee, he might even question his friend, leave the nation that serves, leave the people that I love. Like a refugee. You think I'm going to run away and be like a refugee abandoned by my nation and hated by my king and sought after by his armies. And then there comes the advice from David's beloved friend, Jonathan. You remember the story after shooting the arrows in the field and he shot the arrows beyond David and he said to the last, are not the arrows beyond you, which was the message to David that you're not safe. And when David and Jonathan told Jonathan that it is for real David, he even tried to kill me. So you need to run. And David did. He took his advice and he ran to the mountains with his entourage, but it's in that context that David cries out in this first verse when he says, how can you say to my soul, flee as a bird to your mountain? So the reason David can question why they would even say that to him, why Jonathan would tell him or give him this advice, and the reason why David's response is something similar to this. I can't believe my ears. I can't believe you're telling me to do this. The reason David reacts that way is because the first part of verse 1 when he says in the Lord I put my trust, it's because that's true in David's life, because he indeed puts his trust in the Lord that this advice from his friends is demoralizing at best. As if he say in to his friends, I know that your advice is well intended, but I just don't find any comfort from them. I know you don't want me to die, but flee from danger, as if he said, that's just not me. flee from my homeland, flee from my king, and then in verse 3 says, if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? Now what in the world does David mean by that? What does he mean when he says the foundations are destroyed? What's he contemplating when he says that? Well, you need to know that Saul's court, at this point, his court is going crazy, and it's going crazy because Saul is going crazy. He's not establishing justice, he's not establishing righteousness, the wicked are being rewarded, the wicked are prospering, the good are being hunted, the nation is being assaulted by his enemies. Things are crazy in Israel, and David loves Israel, and so because of what he sees, because of the sad fate of affairs in Israel, he's depressed by his very discourage, and so he said, if the foundations are destroyed, if the foundations of our city are undermined, then what can we do? What could be worse than having the foundations destroyed, perhaps the present day, paraphrase or what David would be saying to us is wherever the foundations of a society are undermined when the leadership, when those that are in authority ignore honor, and they ignore justice, then what are the Christians to do? What are the righteous to do? I mean, God, that's the very reason why God has appointed judges, and he's appointed rulers, and he's appointed this leadership over nations, is that they reward the just, and they punish the wicked. Now, when that scenario is reversed, then what do we do? What do the righteous do? Is that sound familiar? What do we do? Christians, when panic sets in, because our society calls able good and good evil, when we're tempted to despair, when we're tempted to question or even disrupt God's providence, what is a Christian do when society, when their society disintegrates? A society that was at one time known for justice, known for fairness, and David is our model, as always, David sets an example for what we're to do, where we're to find our confidence, where we're to get comfort in times like this, even as Christians, Americans, and David is saying to us, although I'm running to the mountains, I may be fleeing to escape the wrath of Saul, but please understand that my comfort does not come from the mountains. My comfort, my refuge, is in the Lord. Now, how does David come to that point? What comfort does David have to be found in the wilderness? What proof about God does he contemplate and therefore receives comfort? And that's what really the entire second half of this song is about. It's about who God is. It's a celebration of God and his character and his attitude and his acts. So that's what we're going to look at in the second part of the sermon, which is the second part of the song, a few of these comforts in verses four to seven. The first being in verse four, where we find that David takes comfort in the fact that God is sovereign. God's providence is what we need to be reminded of as well. Remember the scenario, the correlation here in the application. We need to take comfort in the fact that God is sovereign. Notice the words in verse four that point to the sheer sovereignty, the security that we have in the fact that God reigns that God rules. Verse four, the Lord is in his holy temple. The Lord's throne is in heaven. In other words, things may be crazy in Israel, but things are very much in control in glory. As far as God is concerned, as far as heaven, as far as God's throne room, everything is in complete control. That's one of the things that strikes me as I read. And perhaps you pick up on this as well, that the content of verse four absolutely dwarfs what you find in verses one to three. When you're reading verses one to three, it's almost like you have this tunnel vision. And all you can see is this feverish flight from the wickedness that David is pursuing. And all of a sudden you get to verse four and it's like you go from this tunnel vision to this panoramic vision of what's really going on. Because you have this in this view from God's throne. And you realize that God is in control. You realize that the king is in residence. The king has not fled. He's not run away. It's free to work. What do I do that all the time? Am I going to do this my whole life? He has not fled. That is awarded. He's not in flight. Is that right? That's also my corrective name. Go ahead. Oh, Fred, thank you, counselor. That's the word moving along. Remember that God's city has foundations. No matter the state of affairs in Montgomery, no matter the state of affairs in these United States. God is on his throne and God is in control. And the foundations of God's city are never ever destroyed. Effort. Now this would add with some fear and trepidation, but there's truth to this that when the house that is built on the sand, collapses, and it will collapse when the house that's built on the sand collapses, though it'd be distressing to you and to me, still that is God's door being opened. The door is open for God to do an even greater work, and that may be true in a nation. Our nation, let's say our nation builds its house on the sand, it will collapse. And we may find that to be very distressing, and yet we need to understand its Christians that God is sovereign, and all it does is open the door for God to do an even greater work in our nation. It may be true in the city, it could be true in a church, it could be true in an individual life. And that may be very well, may be the way that God works in your life or has work in your life. And you found it very distressing, and you come to find out that God has done a greater work in your life because of it. Do you take comfort in that? Are you always keeping this, that the reality, this understanding that God is sovereign, that God is in control, is it always in the forefront of your mind? When you hear the nightly news, does the nightly news run through that grid in your mind, in your heart, that God is on his throne, and that nothing surprises him? If you're familiar with Revelation chapter 5, you've ever joined John there in that chapter, where you have to realize that John is writing this as his very good friends are falling like flies in the sense that by the sort of evil emperors they're being murdered, he himself is exiled on Katmos. But you get this view of the world in Revelation 5, and it's not the view that everything in human history is in disarray, but it's the understanding that God is in control, and there is nothing that is happening, except that which God has ordained to happen. The question, do you find that comforting in your life? Again, no matter how distressing the circumstances are, there is nothing that happens outside the will of God. There's nothing that torts his good plan. And David is saying, eye for one, take comfort in knowing that God rules. Another thing that David takes comfort in is God's watchfulness in the second part of verse 4, where it says, his eyes behold, his eyelids test the sun, test the suns of men. David loves to know that God sees everything that's going on, and that's very comforting for the Christian. It can be very disheartening for the unbeliever. But David takes comfort in knowing that there is nothing that gets by God. He sees everything, and though there's this craziness that's going on in the court of Israel, some may be fooled all the time, or all may be fooled some of the time, but God is never ever fooled. Because God sees everything. He sees everything that's going on in the heart of a man. Matthew Henry said, God not only sees men, he sees through them. That's a very solemn thought. It's a very sobering thought to understand that God sees the heart, and he knows everything that goes on. He's the heart's searcher. Even last night in the wedding, I was taken back myself and haven't used the words many times in weddings, but particularly last night to say to that couple, do you realize before we even go any further in this marriage ceremony that you are standing in the presence of God, the one who searches the heart, the one who knows the secrets of your heart, and have you considered that before you make this covenant? But that's the way we plan to do anything, and I'll do you realize that before you make this decision, or that decision, that God searches the heart, and this heart's searcher takes no pleasure in fools. He will not trifle, and he will not be trifled by any. And David takes comfort in that. He takes comfort in the fact that the Lord discriminates. But that's not a word we like in our society, and we don't look upon that word favorably, but the psalmist actually celebrates the fact that God discriminates, because the fact is we're not all the same. There are the wicked, and there are the righteous, and God acts accordingly. And David loves the fact that God acts accordingly, that God is not asleep, that God is not apathetic toward the fact that there really are righteous people, and there really are wicked people. It loves the fact that God distinguishes between good and evil men. Look at verse 5. It says, the Lord casts the righteous, but the wicked, and the one who loves violence, his soul hates. There's a very strong word. When you preach through books of the Bible, you come across strong language like this. When you go through the song, when you go through the song, you will get the whole counsel of God. You can't just skip over a verse like that and say, we're not going to talk about the fact that God hates wicked people. You can't come to a song like Psalm 11 and say, I'm just looking for a field good sermon. I'm looking for some field good poetry. I think I'll turn to Psalm 11, because you'll not find it here. And though these words are so very strong, again, David is comforted by them. He's comforted by the fact that God is not inactive, and that God is actually patiently testing the sons of men. Michael read this verse earlier for us to meditate on during the offeratory that Paul says in Romans 8.31, if God before us, who can be against us? John Blanchard likes to turn that phrase and say, if God be against us, who can be for us? That's on the contemplate. That's something for the wicked, the contemplate. If God is against me, who can be for me? God discriminates between the righteous and the wicked. He discriminates between those who trust in him and those who do not. Those who run away from him. He discriminates between those who embrace him and those who ignore him. And turn away from him and flee from him, and he tests them. And after he tests them, he sets his love upon, and he blesses the righteous. And then the wicked, he actually, not only does he not bless them, we find in a spired scripture, he actually hates them. How do you balance the fact that God is love on the one hand, and the fact that God hates the wicked. I don't know how you did that. But that doesn't mean you run from a verse like that. It means you accept it. You say, this is who my God is. It makes it kind of hard to evangelize someone saying, God loves you. It has a wonderful plan for your life. When you read Psalm 11 verse 5, that's just something to grapple with, it's something to think about. And then David takes comfort in the Lord's judgment. In verse 6, upon the wicked, he will rain coals, fire and brimstone, and a burning wind. This shall be the portion of their cup. When was the last time you took comfort in the fire and brimstone of God? When was the last time you just sat in God's lap, and got next to his breast, and just took it in. God, I love your fire and brimstone. And yet that David knew God, that evil, that the righteous have endured on this side, in this life, on this earth, that is all in the past forever and ever and ever. When the righteous, when they, when they enter the gates of glory, they have tasted evil for the last time. Think about that. Think about heaven for just a moment. And one day you will be done with evil forever and ever and ever. And David takes comfort in that. And then he takes comfort in God's character. In verse 7, the Lord is righteous. He loves righteousness. It's just comforting to know that righteousness cannot ultimately fail. But do you know that it is equally as comforting to know that unrighteousness will not go unpunished? Why? Because God is righteous. Because God loves righteousness. Do you think about David and Saul at this point? Saul is still prophesying. As he is kicking David out of Israel, he is prophesying all the while. And all the people of Israel, some in Israel, are saying, is, is Saul among the prophets? You come to find out that David's trouble is actually coming from someone who professes faith in God. This is one of his fellow Israelites. This is one of the church members, you might say. And so it is the application to us. It's during those times, when those who profess to be on God's side, those who are members of the church and sit on you to say to you, you sit on, and they're coming at you with everything. And they want to tear you down. Or you feel like they want to tear you down. It's them that we rest in who God is. We rest in his character. And we take comfort in the fact that God never, ever delights in unrighteousness, even when it's coming from a fellow brother in Christ or someone who claims to be anyway. And then lastly, David takes comfort in the Lord's blessing. In the second part of verse 7, his countenance beholds the upright David loves God's countenance being on him. He loves the favor of God. He just loves having fellowship with God. Anybody can want to be friends with God when they're in trouble. I mean, everybody wants refuge in trouble, even unbelievers. They want to be comforted and find refuge in times of trouble. But it's when your relationship with God goes beyond that. When it gets beyond that trouble, refuge, relationship, you know what I mean? When it gets, when you really want more than that out of God, when you want to have that face-to-face fellowship with God, it's then you know that God's done a great work in your life. In other words, when you want more out of God, then simply someone to run to when you're in trouble. When you want more out of God, then simply this person that you can just go to when you're being assaulted, or when you're in the midst of persecution even, when you're willing and you're wanting to go beyond that, that's when you know that God is doing a work in your life. When you just want to have fellowship with them, you just want to find this favor day in and day out. In the city of Edinburgh, there's a monument called the Covenanters Monument. It's a great fire church yard and it's a monument that has a poem written on it about the 18,000 praise material that were martyred during the killing times in Scotland, 1660 to 1689. They died because they professed faith in God and because they would not recant. They would not recant their faith in Christ. At the bottom of the monument are written three passages of Scripture and I want to read them for you. Revelation 6 verse 9, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they held. Revelation 7 verse 14, these are the ones who come out of the great tribulation and wash their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. And then Revelation 7, 16, and 17, they shall neither hunger anymore nor thirst anymore. The sun shall not strike them nor any heat. For the Lamb who is in the midst of the throne will shepherd them and lead them to living fountains of water and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes. They went to their graves, they said they went to the dust for the sake of their king Jesus. And nobody, nobody could take away the fellowship that God had in store for them in heaven. That faith to faith, fellowship, own ark as well. That was the point there are more than them. Nobody could take that fellowship away from them. And that is our confidence, brother, that's our confidence in peril. That's our surety when we find ourselves in the midst of crisis or in the midst of panic that no one can take us away from that face-to-face fellowship with our sovereign, watchful, discriminating, righteous God. And then I want to close this sermon by reading to you. And this is more a warning for those that are outside of Christ. This psalm is an unbelievable warning to unbelievers. And so I felt to do it justice, I would at least read the way Morrison concludes his commentary on this psalm. Again, very sobering words. And when I finish reading this passage from this commentary, we're going to meditate. There's actually some questions for you to ask to meditate upon after the sermon in the outline there. It says the time of personal reflection and application of God's Word of your life. So after I read this, if you just spend a few minutes in quiet praying, and then I'll lead us in prayer after that, then we're actually going to sing this psalm. In Penitent Center, read this psalm and mark your approaching doom. To fly yourself with the hope of escape is vain. The elements of omnipotent wrath are all prepared, and the tithes which will hurl you to perdition will speedily begin to blow. Already the moral heavens are covered with threatening clouds, and the lightning's flash is seen flying around your devoted head. The gulf from beneath is yawning wide to receive you, but one more stage in impenetance, and you are undone forever. The judge stands at the door. The last call of the repentance is about to be addressed to you. The nail of judgment shall speedily be heard, and through the gloomy shade of death you shall pass into a region where the wrath of God shall be the everlasting portion of your cup. Heisen, then, of sinner to the cross of Christ. He who died on that cross welcomes you. After all your impenetance, he welcomes you. Your heart and flinty heart, he can soften and change. Your sins of crimson die. He can pardon and remove.