When There Is No One to Help

[Psalm 22:1-11]

When was the time in your life that you felt the most intense pain? What thoughts did you have at that time?
Perhaps one of those thoughts was, “No one understands me.”
Because we think no one understands us, we may also believe that no one can help us.
If such thoughts come to us, what should we do?

I often sing a gospel hymn at early morning prayer meetings called “I Will Not Trade the Lord for Anything”:
“I will not trade the Lord for anything,
I will not seek any other grace,
Only the Lord is my help in life,
I want to see Your face.
Lord, I love You with all my heart and devotion,
I want to be a faithful friend of God.”

When my heart is tired and hurting, as I sing this hymn, especially the line, “I will not seek any other grace, only the Lord is my help in life, I want to see Your face,” my heart sometimes feels deeply moved.
It’s like a child who is in pain and suffering finding comfort and peace when looking at the face of their parents.
Likewise, when we, God’s children, are in great pain, as we seek only the face of the Lord who is our helper, and our hearts fill with the hope and longing to see His face, we find comfort and strength.

Looking at Psalm 22:11 today, the psalmist David says:
“Do not be far from me, for trouble is near and there is no one to help.”
David, who was in distress, confessed that no one could help him, and he trusted in the Lord.

Based on Psalm 22:1-11, the question is: What should we do when there is no one to help?
We must trust in the Lord.
Look at Psalm 22:4:
“Our ancestors put their trust in you; they trusted, and you delivered them.”

So how should we trust in the Lord?
We can think of three ways.

First, those who trust in the Lord do not give up but cry out to Him.

Look at Psalm 22:1-2:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me, so far from my cries of anguish? My God, I cry out by day, but you do not answer, by night, but I find no rest.”

What was David’s prayer situation like?
He cried out to God in the midst of extreme pain.
David cried out to God even while feeling God’s wrath (Park Yoon Sun).
And his prayer never stopped.
He cried out to God during the day and did not remain silent at night; he kept crying out to the Lord.
Even in the difficult affliction when his prayers were not answered for a long time, David did not stop praying (Park Yoon Sun).

Though it seemed that God was ignoring David’s prayers (verse 1), David continued to cry out to God without giving up.
Even if he felt that God had abandoned him and was far away and not helping, David did not give up but kept crying out to God.

When prayers are not answered, it may seem that God has distanced Himself from the one praying.
But in reality, God does not abandon His true servants.
God only delays answering so that the believer prays even more earnestly (Park Yoon Sun).

We must not give up but cry out to the Lord.
Even though our feelings may be that God is far from us and has forsaken us, and the severe pain in our lives does not go away, and even though we are so exhausted that it is hard to endure, we must not give up but cry out to God.

We should not stop praying just because God’s answers are slow.
Also, even if we feel that God is ignoring even our groaning, we should not give up praying.

Why should we not give up but continue praying to God?
Because God surely answers our prayers.

Look at Psalm 22:3:
“But you are holy, enthroned on the praises of Israel.”

Why did David write this verse 3 after verses 1 and 2?
That is, after saying in verses 1-2 that God seemed distant and had abandoned him and despite crying out there was no answer, why did he suddenly praise God and confess that He is holy in verse 3?

The reason is that David was confident that the holy God would answer his prayer.
Praise is singing about what God has done in our lives.
David confessed that the Lord who dwells in the praises is holy because he was sure God would answer his prayer.

One of the reasons David prayed courageously and without discouragement even in difficult times was because he believed God is holy and would certainly listen to the prayers of His people (Park Yoon Sun).

Our holy Lord who dwells in the praises is the God who answers our prayers and enables us to praise His holy name.

Secondly, those who trust in the Lord recall the grace of salvation from the past.

Look at Psalm 22:4-5:
“Our ancestors trusted in you; they trusted, and you delivered them.
They cried out to you and were saved; they trusted in you and were not put to shame.”

We live very busy lives.
Even though we say we are busily working hard toward our goals, we don’t know how to pause and look back at the past.
We might make excuses, saying we don’t have the leisure for that.
However, those who trust in the Lord must know how to pause and look back.

David was a wise man who knew how to look back.
He did not dwell in discouragement or resentment remembering past wounds and pains that brought no benefit.
Rather, he remembered God, who had saved the ancestors of Israel, and held the assurance that “those who trust in God are saved.”
In particular, David recalled that when the ancestors of Israel cried out to the Lord, they were saved (verse 5).
Therefore, David also cried out to God with confidence that God would answer his prayer amid his suffering.

Moreover, he remembered that his ancestors not only trusted in the Lord and were saved, but also “were not put to shame” (verse 5).
Those who trust in God are not disappointed.

We must learn to look back wisely.
Like the Israelites during the Exodus, when facing pain, adversity, and crisis, we must not sin by blaming God or others while looking back on the slavery in Egypt.
Instead, in the midst of pain, adversity, and crisis, we should look to God.
We should meditate on the God of salvation who rescued us even in such crises and hardships in the past.

In such times, rather than being controlled by the environment of crisis, our thoughts, emotions, and will must be controlled by God, our Savior.
Dr. Park Yoon Sun said:
“Thinking about the faith journey of the saints who went before us surely gives us courage in our faith.”

David, in the midst of extreme suffering, not only trusted God and cried out to Him but also remembered God who had shown grace to the ancestors of Israel, gaining assurance of salvation and courage in his faith.
Also, David reminded himself that his ancestors had trusted God and were not disappointed, which encouraged him to trust and plead to God in his current severe suffering without despair but rather with assurance of salvation.

Lastly, thirdly, those who trust in the Lord maintain true faith in any situation.

Look at Psalm 22:6:
“I am a worm, and not a man; a reproach of men, and despised by the people.”

David was facing a situation where he was being persecuted by wicked people who regarded him as lowly as a “worm” (Park Yoon Sun).
In other words, David’s faith was being mocked by his enemies, and since he had become a stumbling block to them, he felt deeply wronged (verses 6-8) (Park Yoon Sun).

His enemies all mocked David, “They curled their lips and shook their heads, saying, ‘He trusts in the LORD; let the LORD rescue him. Let him deliver him, since he delights in him’” (verses 7-8), and they ridiculed him.
This mocking David endured reminds us of the ridicule Jesus faced when He was crucified, with people mocking that He saved others but could not save Himself.

Even in this situation, David trusted only in the Lord.
Please look at Psalm 22:9-10:
“You brought me forth from my mother’s womb; you made me trust in you even at my mother’s breasts.
From birth I was cast upon you; from my mother’s womb you have been my God.”

From the words “you made me trust” and “was cast upon” we learn what true faith is.
It is nothing other than “faith is trusting and also simultaneously dedicating oneself (being entrusted)” (Park Yoon Sun).
“Faith without dedication is not yet sure faith” (Park Yoon Sun).
If you say you trust God but have not dedicated yourself to Him, that is not sure faith.

However, David confessed that he believed in the Lord from his youth and lived by trusting and dedicating himself to Him (verse 10).
How beautiful is this faith!
David, who was dedicated to God from birth, lived trusting only in God, and even though the suffering he was facing was severe, he showed that he trusted God even more and dedicated himself to Him.

Dr. Park Yoon Sun said:
“When we are sure that we have dedicated ourselves to the Lord, we can confidently pray, expecting to receive God’s salvation and grace.
Those who want God’s help without trusting Him are like someone who tries to be healed by surgery without entrusting themselves to the doctor.”

We must trust God and dedicate ourselves to Him, praying wholeheartedly.

Let us once again meditate on the first half of Psalm 22:1:
“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me...?”

We can also hear this cry of David on the cross with Jesus:
“Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?” (My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?) (Mark 15:34).

God’s Son Jesus cried out loudly to the Father, but the Father turned away.
The Father did not “save” His Son Jesus.
God abandoned His Son Jesus, who trusted the Father and dedicated Himself to fulfilling His will even unto death.

Why did the Father do this?
Because God did not abandon us, who deserved to be abandoned and to die forever, and no one else could help us; He wanted to save us.

When we pray in Jesus’ name, God wants to hear our pleas, and so Jesus was forsaken by the Father.
The Father forsook Jesus on the cross to give us true faith.
This is God’s grace and God’s love.

Today, we also live receiving the abundant help of God’s love and grace.

Shared by Pastor James Kim
(after delivering this message at the Wednesday prayer meeting)