expectation

Lead me to the Rock

Waiting rooms are sometimes associated with difficult circumstances. One place everyone would like to avoid, but we usually all end up in is a hospital waiting room. If you have ever been in one, it might have seemed like an ominous place, one that you felt was shrouded in darkness. David said, “When my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I” (Psalm 61:2).

The word translated overwhelmed, ‘âtaph (aw – taf´) means to shroud, as with darkness (5848). The feeling of being overwhelmed comes when we are dealing with the unknown or are uncertain about our future. It can be related to a holding pattern that we have to control over and seems as if it will never end.

God’s waiting rooms may be more pleasant, but not necessarily any easier to deal with. David said, “Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from him cometh my salvation” (Psalm 62:1) and “My soul, wait thou only upon God: for my expectation is from him” (Psalm 62:5). The concept of waiting from God’s perspective may be nothing more than silence, not hearing anything from him or getting a response to your prayer.

Along with silence, when we are waiting on God, there may be a need for stillness, to not do anything. Although doing nothing is easy for some, king David was a man of action. He was regularly engaged in warfare and was not afraid to risk his life; but, when his army went out against Absalom, David found himself on the sideline, waiting to see how things turned out.

Expectation is important because often what we expect actually happens. Expecting a good outcome makes waiting easier, or at least not as stressful, and it is a sign of faith. David said, “The righteous shall be glad in the LORD, and shall trust in him: and all the upright in heart shall glory” (Psalm 64:10). A righteous person is someone who has been made right with God. The Hebrew word for righteous, tsâdaq (tsaw – dak´) is also translated as justified. “This word is used of man as regarded as having obtained deliverance from condemnation, and as being thus entitled to a certain inheritance” (6663).

One of the things David inherited from the LORD was the throne of Israel. Nathan the prophet told David, “Thine house and thy kingdom shall be stablished for ever before thee: thy throne shall be stablished for ever” (2 Samuel 7:16). Unlike Saul who was killed for his disobedience, the LORD assured David that his future was secure. “But my mercy shall not depart away from him, as I took it from Saul, whom I put away before thee” (2 Samuel 7:15).

When David said, “Lead me to the rock that is higher than I” (Psalm 61:2), he may have been referring to Jesus. David said in Psalm 62, “He only is my rock and my salvation” (Psalm 62:2). The word translated salvation, yeshuw’ah means deliverance (3444). Jesus is a Greek form of the word yeshu’ah and in 1 Corinthians it says of the rock that the Israelites drank from in the wilderness, “And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of the spiritual Rock that followed them: and that rock was Christ.”

What do you expect?

David’s life serves as an example of what a person committed to the LORD can expect in this world. David said, “Many shall see it and fear, and shall trust in the LORD. Blessed is the man that maketh the LORD his trust” (Psalm 40:3-4). David felt that he had a responsibility to tell people about his experience. David said, “I have declared thy faithfulness and thy salvation” (Psalm 40:10).

The message David’s life conveyed was primarily about forgiveness. God’s lovingkindness toward David and tender mercies were evident in the continual deliverance David had from his enemies. David said, “For innumerable evils have compassed me about: Mine iniquities have taken hold upon me, so that I am not able to look up: They are moe than the hairs of mine head: therefore my heart faileth me” (Psalm 40:12).

David’s life was not easy, and yet he spoke positively about the way God dealt with him. David had a way of seeing things that made the worst of circumstances look pleasant. David said, “But I am poor and needy; yet the LORD thinketh upon me” (Psalm 40:17). The words poor and needy depict someone without resources who has become depressed (34, 6041). The word translated thinketh, châshab (khaw – shab´) “signifies a mental process whereby some course is planned or conceived” (2803).

David had many troubles that he had to deal with and there were times when he felt trapped, unable to escape a very difficult circumstance. In those times, David cried out to the LORD and discovered that God was paying attention and always had a plan of escape waiting for him.

If you asked David, Why has the LORD has been so hard on you?, he would probably say, “So that a man shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous” (Psalm 58:11). The word translated reward, periy means fruit and also the product or result of an action (6529). For the most part, we think of a reward as a good thing. What David was implying was that people would see through his life the result of godly actions.

David’s actions did not always produce good results. Especially when he sinned, David’s actions produced bad results. He received punishment for his bad behavior. In the context of sowing and reaping, David’s life was consistent. When he did the right thing, he got a good result and when he did the wrong thing, he got a bad result. This is what a person committed to the LORD should expect in this world.