Thursday, April 16, 2009, Part 1

"In the Lord I put my trust. How can you say to my soul, 'Flee as a bird to your mountain'? For look! The wicked bend their bow, they make ready their arrow on the string, that they may shoot secretly at the upright in heart. If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do? The Lord is in His holy temple, the Lord's throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men. The Lord tests the righteous. But the wicked and the one who loves violence His soul hates. Upon the wicked He will rain coals; Fire and brimstone and a burning wind shall be the portion of their cup. For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness; His countenance beholds the upright" (Psalm 11).

IDEA: We can misrepresent God when we use a sentence in the Bible out of its context.

PURPOSE: To help listeners to look at who is speaking as well as at what is said.

Is everything in the Bible true?

Is every use of the Bible accurate?

When can the Bible be misused?

I. Sometimes a sentence in the Bible seems to say one thing, but it really says another.

There is a danger in taking the words of a text without studying the meaning of the text.

If I say, "Go shoot yourself," would you assume that I was urging you to commit suicide? Before you took my advice, what would you want to know?

II. Sometimes well-meaning people quote Psalm 11:3 to say something that the psalm itself may not be saying.

The question in Psalm 11:3 is "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"

This is sometimes quoted in political settings or in settings in which we want people to be aware that our nation's values may be crumbling.

What is the implication of that question: "If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"
 
If the answer is, "They will not be able to do anything, so they must secure the foundations," then that application may say things that the Bible doesn't say.

III. It's important to notice who says what in the Bible.

In Psalm 11:3, these are the words of an enemy. Look at the context:

Someone is counseling David to flee because the wicked are conquering the righteous and the foundations are destroyed. 

They are asking, "Flee as a bird to your mountain . . . what can the righteous do?" They are counseling despair.

But David says, "In the Lord I have put my trust."

When everything seems to be crumbling, the righteous can still trust in the Lord.