Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - 4 Truths for Fighting Enemies | The Writings | Psalm 83

Episode Date: July 9, 2024

The Bible says, as a follower of Jesus, you have enemies. But how can you recognize them? And how do you fight against them? In today's episode, Tanya looks at Psalm 83, reminding us of 4 important truths as we follow Jesus in a hostile world. Read the Bible with us in 2024! This year, we’re tackling a group of Old Testament books traditionally known as “The Writings”— Psalms, Chronicles, Proverbs, Daniel, Ruth and more! Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter @TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Psalm 83

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life in the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmeth. So there are some songs that we probably wouldn't choose to have read at our wedding, or we might not always put up for Sunday worship, but they're still incredibly relevant because they're real. They address the real struggles we face as God's people, and Psalm 83 is one of those. It's a prayer for God's people who are in a threatening situation,

and it's meant to sustain them while they grow through this very, dark and hard time. It is one of the very few Psalms that doesn't end on a high note. I'm going to read you just the first two verses and the first or the last two verses of this Psalm. And I hope that you make time to find the middle part sometime later today. It says, oh God, do not keep silence. Do not hold your peace or be still, oh God. For behold, your enemies make an uproar. Those who hate you have raised their heads in the last two verses. Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever. Let them pay perish in disgrace, that they may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the most high over all the earth. It's a prayer for God to not be distant or silent, but to be with his people

and help them by thwarting the plans of their enemies who pursue things that are against God and against God's people. It's a prayer that the enemy's plans will not be successful, but that God will bring them to their knees so that they will ultimately know him and his glory. There are four things we can learn from this Psalm. Number one, we will have enemies. Number two, God does not withhold his peace. Number three, there will be justice. And number four, God's name will be known to everyone. First, we will have enemies. What? Well, before we belong to God, we have but one enemy. God is our enemy. Remember that enemy is our greatest enemy, but God is also holy and just. Yes, he's full of wrath for disobedience and injustice,

but he is compassionate and merciful and loving. And at the point of justification, we are no longer enemies with God. And that is really good news. Romans 5-1 says, therefore, since we're justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is really comforting because we're transferred from a place of enmity to a relationship of peace. There's no barrier between us and God. We're welcome in his presence. He desires a relationship with us, and by his power, we desire a relationship with him. We no longer then have one great enemy, but we now have many enemies. The difference is that God is far more powerful than all the other enemies combined. If you think you don't have enemies, I ask you to ponder your thoughts, your temptations, your words.

The enemy sometimes pursues us visibly from the outside, like it sounds in this psalm, or often more silently, behind the screen of what we put forward. There are opposing spiritual forces at work throughout the Bible. Jesus was preparing the disciples for his crucifixion. He talked about what it means to be in the world, in John 1633. He said, be holy hours coming. Indeed, it has come, when you will be scattered, each to his own home and will leave me alone. Yet I am not alone for the Father is with me.

I have said these things to you that you may have peace. In the world, you will have trouble, but take heart, for I have overcome the world. When Jesus talks about the world, it's that which won't last. It's real power right now, but power that will be destroyed. Our expectation should be that in this world we will have trouble. And yes, we do have enemies. The second thing we learn from this Psalm is that God does not withhold his peace. God's presence is always available to us.

Regardless of the situation, the enemy will conspire against us. It may look like we've chosen the wrong side. Probably this is what the disciples were thinking when they stood at the foot of the cross. But remember the resurrection. God's kingdom come to earth is counterintuitive to the world and to our flesh. We want to feel powerful. We want to be respected. We want to be rewarded.

and we would actually like all of those things right now. But Jesus puts a hole in this thinking. He says in Matthew 20, 26 to 28 that we should expect the opposite. When the disciples were arguing about who would receive the special place of power, he said, it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant. And whoever would be first among you must be your slave. Even as the son of man came not to be served but to serve

and to give his life as a ransom for many. We're going to feel real discomfort. as our flesh fights to have its own way. But even in the midst of what looks like we're losing, God will not withhold the most important thing we need. His peace. We have this peace because we have fellowship with Jesus. We don't have to worry about the one thing that causes our soul so much trouble because we know we're right with God. Now, the third thing we learn from Psalm 83 is that there will be justice. Sometimes we have to pay for the things we do, whether they're accidental or purposeful, and sometimes we don't. If we hit another car, we pay for the damages,

or we let our insurance pay for it, and our premiums go up, right? But sometimes we get off. When I pulled 15 of Eric's asparagus plants that take two years to grow out of the ground, because I thought they were weeds, he forgave me, bought new ones, and replaced them himself. For example, those who reject God will not ultimately get off. They will ultimately get what they want. and eternity without God, without His presence, without His peace. When we are unjustly hurt, we can trust God, and we can trust His will. Hebrews 413 says, Nothing in all creation is hidden from God.

Everything is naked and exposed before His eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable. If this is scary, it doesn't have to be. Adam and Eve were naked and hiding from God in the Garden, but God called out to them and provided the first sacrifice, so they would have clothes to wear. We have the sacrifice of Jesus to clothe us in what the Bible calls robes of righteousness. This takes us back to the first thing we learned.

Jesus has solved the problem for us. We are no longer enemies with God. And the fourth. The last thing we learn from Psalm 83 is that God's name will be known to all. Psalm 83 was a community prayer of lament. And the writers asking God to make the enemy feel misery and shame so that they will come to know the Lord. This is a prayer for God to intervene against the enemy. So the enemy will not succeed in destroying the faith of God's people.

And so the enemy will come to know the glory of God's name. When we believe what's written in Philippians 210, we can pray the same. It says, every knee shall bow in heaven and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of the Father. So what's my purpose then, knowing these four things from Psalm 83? Is it to condemn people who are against me, to judge them, to ensure justice is always given, or is it to let his name be known? By the way I act, by what I say, by the way I treat others, to find my peace in Jesus,

to pray for people who are without that peace. I think the way Psalm 83 ends is for me or for us as well, that we may know that you alone, whose name is the Lord, are the most high over all the earth.