Look at Psalm 38:15: "For I hope in You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God." When the psalmist David's life was being threatened, and his enemies were plotting evil against him, seeking to destroy him all day long (verse 12), David became like a deaf man and a mute (verse 13). In other words, when his enemies tried to harm him with their deceitful schemes, David shut his ears and his mouth and silently looked to the Lord.

Like David, we must learn not to listen to things we shouldn’t hear. David, surrounded by enemies who were "speaking evil" (verse 12), meaning they were "talking about destroying David" (Park Yun-sun), did not listen to their words as though he were deaf. How can we live if we listen to all the words of those who hate and oppose us? Sometimes, we need to close our ears. Specifically, we must close our ears to the voices of the world and listen to the voice of the Lord. We also, like David, need to remain silent. There are times when we must simply be silent.

David, in the face of enemies who were scheming to destroy him and using manipulative tactics to bring him down, did not open his mouth to defend himself (verse 14).

At times, we may have experienced making things worse when we opened our mouths to defend ourselves. Excuses can sometimes make the problem even bigger. The famous philosopher Plato once had a serious misunderstanding with the people around him. Even though many people spoke ill of him, he did not try to justify himself. A disciple asked Plato, "Master! Why don't you defend yourself?" Plato responded, "The way to end their accusations is not through my excuses. The only way to silence their accusations is through my righteous actions" (Internet).

As we go through life, we sometimes face criticism due to misunderstandings. We may have tried various methods to clear up the misunderstanding. However, it often does not get resolved easily, and the misunderstanding only deepens. As believers, we must learn to wait quietly for God's guidance and timing. Trying to solve the problem on our own, ahead of God, is foolish. Jesus, on this earth, faced countless misunderstandings and accusations. But He endured all of them, waiting patiently for the Father's timing. This is the beautiful life of complete obedience to God's will (Internet).

When we face unjust accusations and feel distressed, we should learn to remain silent and focus solely on the Lord. We should not be overly sensitive to the words of others. Just because we open our mouths to defend ourselves doesn't mean the misunderstandings will be resolved. Like David, we should be like the deaf and mute, blocking our ears and not opening our mouths. In silence, we should approach the Lord in prayer. Especially when we come to the Lord in prayer, we should, like David, have the certainty of His response. Look at Psalm 38:15: "For I hope in You, O Lord; You will answer, O Lord my God." This verse, when translated literally, means, "You, yes, You will answer. My Lord, my God" (Park Yun-sun). Just as David prayed with confidence in God's answer, looking solely to Him, we too should focus only on the Lord in silence.

Secondly, those who know, believe, and experience the Lord as their Savior open their mouths and confess their sins to the Lord.

Look at Psalm 38:18 in the Bible: "I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin." This is truly an interesting and remarkable thing. It is astonishing how David confesses his own sin. He must have seen the wickedness of his enemies, yet instead of focusing on their sins, he focuses on his own sin and confesses it before God. This example of David makes us reflect on our own posture of faith. In the midst of the persecution, hardships, anguish, and pain from his enemies, David did not need to open his ears to the slander or accusations of others, nor did he need to speak up and make excuses. Rather, he chose to remain silent, to look only at the Lord, and in the holy presence of God, he recognized his sin and confessed it to God. Instead of using the opposition and persecution of his enemies as an opportunity to complain or grumble, David turned it into an opportunity to examine himself before God and confess his sins. David teaches us that, like the deaf and mute, we should come before God, pour out our hearts, and use this opportunity to also pour out our sins.

In today's Bible reading, Psalm 38:16-18, we can see David focusing only on the Lord and pleading with God. The contents of his prayer can be summarized in a couple of key points.

1. The first part of his prayer is found in verse 16: "For I said, ‘Lest they rejoice over me, who when my foot slips, magnify themselves against me.’"

   David's prayer contains two elements: (a) David prays that his enemies would not rejoice if he failed, and (b) he prays that if he were to fall, his enemies would not become more arrogant and disregard God, but rather, that this would not happen (Park Yun-sun). If we examine this prayer, it can be seen as a prayer that seeks the glory of God. The reason is that, even amidst the persecution from his enemies, David is looking only to God. If God does not answer his prayer and his enemies become arrogant, thinking themselves greater than David, his trust in God and his prayer would be rendered meaningless. This would not bring glory to God but would instead dishonor Him. Therefore, David prays that God would answer his plea, even for His own glory.

2. The second part of his prayer is his confession of sin, as we see in verse 18: "I confess my iniquity; I am sorry for my sin." David acknowledges that his sin has caused him to stumble and that his anxiety is always before him (verse 17).

   Reflecting on verse 3, David was in extreme pain due to his sin, so much so that he had "no peace in his bones" (verse 3). Eventually, he sorrowfully confesses his sin to God. When the Lord's hand heavily pressed down on him (day and night), David could not help but confess his sin (Psalm 32:4, 38:2). Isn't this an incredible work of God? David could have opened his mouth and defended himself, yet God allowed David to confess his sin through suffering and pain. We must learn to remain silent before people and open our mouths only to confess our sins to God.

Finally, the third point is that those who know, believe in, and experience the Lord as their Savior pursue what is good.

Look at Psalm 38:20 in the Bible: "Those who repay evil for good oppose me because I follow what is good." Even amid the persecution of his enemies, David did not cease to seek a righteous life, confessing his sins and seeking God. He did good to his enemies, but they repaid David’s good with evil. That is, they opposed him. What an incredible faith! David's life, pursuing goodness even in the face of his enemies’ opposition, is truly remarkable. An interesting fact is that the more good we do, the more the work of Satan grows and intensifies. When David did good amidst his enemies' persecution, he saw their opposition: "My enemies are active and strong, and many are those who hate me unjustly" (v. 19). The more good we do to our enemies, the more they will hate and persecute us. If that happens, will we still pursue what is good?

This is the life of a believer who, while looking only at our Savior, continues to move forward in faith. By closing our ears to the voices of our enemies and shutting our mouths to them, we open our ears and mouths only to the Lord, to hear His voice and plead with Him. The secret to confessing our sins and living a life that pursues goodness is to trust and depend solely on our Savior. Thus, in seeking goodness, David prayed to God, asking for help against his enemies: "O Lord, do not forsake me! O my God, do not be far from me! Make haste to help me, O Lord, my salvation!" (vv. 21-22).

Within the great flow of God's salvation history, we must recognize our mission and devote ourselves wholeheartedly to fulfilling it by knowing, encountering, and experiencing our Savior daily. In other words, the stream of God's salvation history must flow through our lives as well. As we experience this flow of salvation, we must hold on to the words of Zephaniah 3:17 and, singing of the Lord's salvation, press forward toward the heavenly kingdom: "The Lord your God is in your midst, the Mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing."

 

 

 

As we quietly and faithfully look to the Almighty God, our Savior,

 

 

Pastor James Kim
(With a heart that confesses the sin of doubt)