All right, let's turn in our Bibles again to that psalm Brother Bob read for us, Psalm 86. This psalm is entitled, as you see there under the heading, Psalm 86, it says, A Prayer of David. A Prayer of David. So that will be the title of the sermon. of prayer of David. But this psalm is not only a prayer of David, but it's a psalm of praise as well as prayer. But really it's impossible to pray without praising God. Prayer is not prayer unless it praises God. Paul said over Let me just turn and read this to you. Paul said over in the book of Philippians, chapter 4, he said, he wrote, Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. Prayer is always coupled with thanksgiving. And then when the disciples asked our Lord to teach them to pray, they said, Lord, teach us to pray. And he gave them this model prayer. People call it the Lord's Prayer, but it's not the Lord's Prayer. It's the Lord's model prayer given to the disciples. He said, when you pray, you pray this. You pray this way. And it starts off with praising God. It said, Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. And then it goes along and it closes with praise. The closing words of that model prayer is, Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory forever. Amen. is also thanksgiving and praise. So let's look at these verses, and if we can, move all the way through this 86th Psalm. David says in verse 1, bow down thine ear, O Lord, and hear me. Bow down thine ear, O Lord, and hear me, because I'm poor and needy. Just as there's no prayer without praise, there's no prayer without humility. This is the king speaking. This is the sweet psalmist of Israel. But he says, Lord, bow down thine ear and hear me. I'm poor. I'm poor. I'm a son of poverty. I'm a son of Adam. And I was born in poverty, born in sin. And I'm a son of double poverty. I not only am poor, but I'm unable to supply any needs. I'm needy. I'm poor and needy. But our God has respect unto those that call upon him in humility and in sincerity. Let me show you two verses, one from Psalm chapter 34. Psalm 34. The Lord is nigh unto them of a broken heart. That's right. It says in Psalm 34, verse 18, The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart. Don't pray without a broken heart. Don't pray without humility. The Lord saitheth such as be of a contrite spirit, a humble spirit. Then look at Psalm 51, Psalm 51, verse 17. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart. O God, thou wilt not despise. One of the old writers preached on this first verse of Psalm 86 that I just read to you. Bow down thine ear, O Lord. Hear me, I'm poor and I'm needy. And this was his outline. He said David had a singular request. Bow down, condescend, O God, to hear me. Condescend. He had a singular plea. Hear me. Be mindful of me. He had a singular condition. I'm poor and needy. Without thee, I can do nothing. Look at verse 2. He says, Lord, this is a prayer now, preserve my soul. You know, the Lord is the giver of life to men, and the Lord is the preserver of the lives of men, all men, in a temporal sense. But the Lord is the giver of spiritual life to his elect and to the believer. He's the giver of life, he's the redeemer of our souls, and he's the preserver of our souls. I want to turn to two or three scriptures in Philippians chapter 1, verse 6. Paul says this, he says, I'm confident, Philippians 1, 6, I'm certain, confident, of this very thing, that he that hath begun a good work in you, shall perform it, he shall preserve it. That's what David's praying, Lord preserve my soul, keep me. I'm confident of this very thing that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it, he will preserve it until the day of Jesus Christ. And Jude wrote down to him that's able to keep us from Paulie. and to present us faultless before his presence with exceeding glory. And in John chapter 10, our Lord said, My sheep hear my voice, and they follow me, and I give them eternal life, and they'll never perish, never perish. And neither shall any man pluck them out of my hands. My Father which gave them me is greater than all. No man can pluck them out of my Father's hand. I am the Father alone. And that's what David's praying, Lord, keep my soul. You gave me life, now keep my soul. Now watch this in verse 2. And he gives reasons for a good hope of persevering grace. The two words, preserving grace and persevering grace. He keeps us and we'll never leave him. Preserve my soul. Now here are four reasons why he had a good hope. Here's the first one. Preserve my soul for I am holy. Now Dave is not saying that in himself he's holy. He's saying this, in Christ I'm holy. But here's the more perfect or clearer translation. I am one well favored of thee. Isn't that what's in the margin? That's what the angel said to Mary. You've found favor in the eyes of the Lord. And so he said, you preserved me, number one, because I am one whom you favor. You've given me grace. Now here's the second reason. Thou art my God. Thou art my God. I say what Thomas said when he fell at the feet of Christ. My Lord, Jehovah, my Lord, my Savior, my Redeemer, and my God. He's my Lord and my God. Now here's the third reason for his good hope. Say thy servant. I'm your servant. I belong to you. You called me into your kingdom and into your service. And here's the promise of the Lord Jesus. Listen to this over in John chapter 12. Preserve my soul because I'm one favored of thee, and you are my God, my Lord and my God, and I'm your servant. And our Lord said in John 12, 26, listen, If any man serve me, let him follow me. And where I am, there shall also my servant be. And if any man serve me, him will my Father honor. That's a promise. Any man serve me, him will my Father honor. Here's the fourth reason. Isn't that one verse? Look at it. Verse 2 of Psalm 86. Preserve my soul. You gave me life, keep me. You saved my soul, preserve my soul. Because I'm one well favored of you, you're my God, my Lord and my God, I'm your servant, and I trust you. I depend on you. I believe you. Like that psalm I read a while ago, David said, I believe. I believe God. I believe Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Don't you? I believe that. Therefore I speak. William, in verse 3, now look at verse 3, verse 3, let me show you this. It continues his prayer, and he says, Be merciful unto me, O Lord, I cry unto thee daily." William J. wrote this about verse 3. He said, I cry daily, I cry daily unto thee. Most men pray occasionally. Most everybody does, prays occasionally when they get in serious trouble. Some men and women pray often. The true believer prays daily. That's right. I thought over that very carefully before I came to speak it, but I believe it's so. David says, Lord be merciful unto me, I cry unto thee daily. Daily. Most men pray or women pray occasionally. Some people pray often. But the true believer prays daily. There is not a day which passes that his heart And his thoughts and his petitions ascend to God in some way, in some form. All men pray when they're in trouble, but the mark of God's elect is a continuous communion with the living God. And he continued, William J. said this, I cry daily because I have a great need. I need. God forgive my sins. I sin daily. I need sanctifying grace. Who shall stand in His presence? He that hath clean hands and a pure heart. I need that in Christ. I need assisting grace. I can't do anything without His strength and power. Without Christ, I can do nothing. I need His preserving grace. keeping grace. I need his guiding grace. I don't know the things for which to pray except he teach me. I've got to be guided every step I take. I need dying grace. It's all of grace. And so how can I spend the day without at some time in that day looking up and seeking His grace. You just can't do it. Verse 4, he says, Rejoice the soul of thy servant. Rejoice my soul. Unto thee, O Lord, I lift up my soul. Rejoice the soul of your servant. The great Augustine, and not many of you here haven't heard of Augustine. Saint Augustine they called him. He wrote the City of God. Augustine lived between 354 and 430 A.D. That's 1,500, 1,600 years ago. And he wrote this about this verse. Here's the verse now. Rejoice in my soul, the soul of thy servant, for unto thee do I lift up my soul. And here's what he wrote. He wrote, if you have stored your corn in the lower rooms below in your house. That's when people kept their animals in their houses back then. They kept their corn in their houses. They didn't have these huge barns. They just had little places. So if you've stored your corn in the rooms below, you better move it. You better move it to an upstairs room or it will soon grow rotten. down there below. And also the things of this earth can only give you strength and joy for a season. If you leave your thoughts on things below, it will soon perish with the years. So set your affection on things above. Set your mind and your will and your thoughts on things above, and it won't get rotten That's what Paul says over here in Colossians. He said in Colossians chapter 3, he said, set your affection. If you be risen with Christ, Colossians 3 verse 1, if you be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, the rooms upstairs, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God, and set your affection. Notice it didn't say affections, your emotions. Set your affection, that's your mind, and your thoughts, and your heart. Set your affection on things above, not on things of the earth. These things of the earth, they fade away, they fade away. One of the old timers writing about this, I don't know who this author is, but he was writing about that verse 4. Oh Lord, unto thee do I lift up my soul, my mind, my thoughts, my heart. He said the soul is not lifted up as the body is. If our bodies grow weary and depressed, Our bodies can be encouraged and elated and revived by changing its place. Like some of you this week going on a vacation, you've been working hard, you're busy, you're tired, you're going out for a few days of rest, and you'll get revived, your body will. You can revive your body, he said, you can encourage it and elate it and revive it by changing the place. But for the soul to be lifted up, and revived and made glad, there's got to be a change of the will and the mind. If the heart is right with God, you don't have to change your place. You rejoice in any place. You find contentment and joy and happiness in any place. If He's there, content with beholding His face, my all to His pleasure resigns. No changes of season or place would make any change in my mind. While blessed with a sense of His love, a palace at all would appear, and prisons would palace as proof if He had dwelled with me there. That's what I need. I lift my soul to Thee. Folks keep running around to these different meetings trying to get a little more joy and a little more spirituality. Lift up your soul to Christ. Look to him. He's our joy. He's our happiness. Wherever I am, with whomever I am, behold in his face. So rejoice the soul of thy servant. For unto thee, O Lord, unto thee I lift up my soul. I'm not dependent upon conditions or environment or encouragement from the lips of men. I'm dependent upon your presence. That's right. Verse 5, he said, Lord, for thou, O Lord, art good. Our Lord is good. ready to forgive, plenteous in mercy unto all them that call upon him. You know what David does here? He borrows the very words of God himself. Turn to Exodus 34. When Moses asked the Lord to show to Moses God's glory, The Lord descended in a cloud, verse 5 of Exodus 34. Exodus 34. The Lord descended in a cloud and stood with him there and proclaimed the name of the Lord. Are you with me? Exodus 34, 5. Now verse 6. And the Lord passed by before Moses and proclaimed the Lord, the Lord God, merciful, gracious, Long-suffering, abundant in goodness and truth. That's my name, God said. What did David say in verse 5? Thou, Lord, art good. My Lord is good. My Lord is ready to forgive. Always ready to forgive. My Lord is plenteous in mercy. Out of the depths have I cried unto thee, O Lord, hear my voice. Lord, if you should mark iniquity, who would stand? But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared. Thou art plenteous in mercy." Plenteous in mercy, you can't exhaust the mercy of God. His grace has no limit. His love has no limit. His power has no boundary. That's what he said, I'm plenteous in mercy unto everybody that will call on me. call on me. He's good. He's ready, willing, able to forgive. He's plenteous in mercy to all who call. All right, verse 6. Give ear, O Lord, to my prayer, and attend to the voice of my supplications. What is the title of our psalm again? A Prayer of David. And this is what he's saying. Lord, give ear to my prayer. My prayer. This is my prayer. This is not one I borrowed from someone else. This is not one somebody wrote for me. This is my prayer. Give ear to my prayer. Attend to the voice of my supplications. I want to show you an example of David talking about my, I, my prayer. Psalm 51. Turn over there to Psalm 51. Just a few verses now. David said, this is my prayer. This is my supplication. This is communion between me and my Lord. Psalm 51. I tried to count the number of times he said, my and our, and I just couldn't keep up with him. Listen, listen to this. Lord have mercy upon me, O God. Psalm 51. According to thy lovingkindness, according to the multitude of thy tender mercies, brought out my transgression. Watch me throughly from my iniquity. Cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, my sins ever before me. Against thee only have I sinned. I have done this evil in your sight, that you may be justified when you speak, and clearly when you judge. Behold, I was shapen in iniquity. In sin my mother conceived me. Lord, thy desires Behold, I desire truth in the inward parts and the hidden parts. I shall make them know wisdom. Purge me with hyssop. I'll be clean. Wash me. I'll be whiter than the snow. That's a lesson in prayer, isn't it? Somebody says, I want to learn how to pray. There it is. Just tell the truth. My prayer. My supplications. Genuine prayer. proceeds from a spirit of grace, it's put forth in a spirit of humility, it is in full dependence on the mercy of God, and it's attended with thanksgiving. That's prayer. It proceeds from a spirit of grace. One of the old timers said, I found it in my heart to pray for you. Boy, wouldn't that be wonderful, not just to set aside a time to pray, but to actually find a spirit of prayer within me that compels me to pray. I found it in my heart. I found this burden in my heart to pray for you. It proceeds from a spirit of grace. It's put forth in genuine humility. I'm the sinner. I'm poor and needy. It goes forth with a full dependence on the mercy of God. Lord, if you will, you can make me whole. Lord, you're coming into a kingdom, would you remember me? And it's attended with thanksgiving. Let's look at verse 7. In the day of my trouble, I will call upon thee, for thou wilt answer me. You know, it's useless to pray to a God who cannot hear. That's what our Lord said over in Isaiah 45. Listen to this. They have no knowledge that set up the word of their graven images and pray to a God that cannot hear and cannot say. That's foolishness, isn't it? To pray to a God who cannot hear and who cannot act. And that's the way the idols of this world are. They can't hear and they can't act. And listen, there's no reason to pray to a living God who will not hear and who will not act. But David says here, in the day of my trouble, and that's every day, every day. In this world you have trouble and trial and tribulation. It's every day. I will call upon thee. That's my resolve. I'll call upon thee. Listen. Thou wilt answer me." Our God hears prayer and answers it. Now listen, not always as quickly as we would like for him to, you know that. And not always does he give that which I want, but he always hears and he always answers and he always blesses us with that which is good for us and that which is glorifying And it may be down the road somewhere. But David said, in the day of my trouble, I'll call upon thee, and I know this, you'll answer me. We used to sing an old song, someday he'll make it plain to me. Someday when his face I see, all of the good providence of God and the difficult things and experiences will be made clear. And we'll see why. We'll see why. Now, these next three verses, I'm going to read them together and comment on them together, because there are two issues to be settled when we regard our God, the living God, our Savior, to whom we pray, upon whom we depend. There are two issues to be settled. The first one, is He willing to save? Is He willing to bless? Is he willing to sanctify us and glorify us? And then secondly, is he able? Now in verse 7, what we just read, he settles the issue about is he willing. Listen. In the day of my trouble, I'll call upon thee, and you will answer. He will. He will answer. He is willing. God is willing to forgive. He delights to forgive and to save and to keep. Now here, is he able? All right, listen. Among the gods, notice the little g, there are no gods, but these are idols. People have idols, they erect idols, they build idols, they battle idols, they worship idols. They have ever since man's been on earth. And he calls them gods. Man does. But among the idols, the gods that men build and make and profess, there's none like thee, O Lord. There's none like thee. Neither are there any works like unto thy works. All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name." That's what he said about Christ in Philippians 2. God hath given him a name above every name that is the name of Jesus. Every knee will bow in heaven and earth and under the earth, and every tongue of every nation under heaven will confess his Lord. There's no God like Thee. There's no works like Thine. There's no glory like Thine. In verse 10, For, Lord, Thou art great, and Thou doest wondrous things, and Thou art God alone. Let's turn to Isaiah 45. I read part of it a while ago, but I want to read a little more of it. Thou art God alone. In Isaiah 45, verse 30, and in this 45th chapter, about six times, about six times, the Lord says, I am the Lord, there's none else. There's no God beside me. I'm God only. As David said, God alone. Now look at verse 20 of Isaiah 45. Assemble yourselves and come, draw near together. Ye that are escaped of the nations, they have no knowledge that set up the wood of their graven image, and pray to a God that cannot save. Tell ye, bring them near, let them take counsel together. Who hath declared all of this from ancient times? Who hath declared the end from the beginning? Who hath declared the book of Revelation before it's ever come to pass? Who has declared this from ancient times? Who's told it from that time? Listen, have not I the Lord? There's no God else beside me. I'm a just God, a holy, righteous God and a Savior. And there's just one way that God can be a just God and a Savior, that God can punish sin and save the sinner, that God can deal righteously and justly with the guilty and yet pronounce him justified, and that's in Christ, a just God and a Savior. There's none beside me, so verse 22, so look to me and be ye saved. Just look, believe on me and be saved. All the ends of the earth, any nation, tongue, kindred, class, Old or young, rich or poor, learned or ignorant, bond or free, male or female, look to me. Anyone, all the ends of the earth, be ye saved. I'm God. I am God. And there's none else. There's no other God. There's no other way. That's what David's saying here in this text in verse 10 of Psalm 86. Thou art great. Thou art God. God does wondrous things, like God alone. There's not another God, only one God. Other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, Christ the Lord. There's none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved except Jehovah Sidkenu, the Lord my righteousness, Jehovah Jireh, the Lord will provide, Jehovah Rapha, the Lord my shepherd, Jehovah Nisa, the Lord my banner. There's just one name. It's the name above every name. It's the name God the Father gave him, Jehovah, God my Savior. There are a lot of so-called gods they've given out rules to live by. There's only one God who came down here and fulfilled his rules and gave you life in him. There's a whale of a lot of difference there. A lot of so-called gods will tell you how to dress and how to live and how to act and how many times a day to pray and do all these things and you'll wind up in heaven. What are you going to do about your sins? But this God said He loved us and gave Himself for us. He who knew no sin was made sin for us that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him. He freely forgave us when we had nothing to pay. That's the God of glory. And that's God alone. In verse 11, listen to this. Teach me thy way, O Lord. Teach me. Oh, my goodness. Teach me. Teach me thy way. John 6. Those religious Pharisees, they looked at the Lord Jesus and they said, we know him. He's the carpenter. We know his mother. Mary, we know his brothers, Joseph and Judy, we know his sisters. Whence is this business that he came down from heaven? Our Lord looked at him and said, murmur not among yourselves. Don't murmur. I said unto you, no man can come to me. Believe on me. Know who I am. See who I am. No man can come to me except my Father. which sent me." Draw him. You see, he said, it's written in the prophets, and they shall be taught of God. And they who come to me shall be taught of God. And every man who hears and learns from the Father, he'll come to me. Every one of them. This is what David said, Lord, teach me thy way. Teach me thy way. And I walk in it. Look at that verse 11. Teach me thy way and I'll walk in thy truth. And you'll unite my heart to fear, worship, reverence thy name. I read something by a man I've never read anything by him before. His name is John Hyatt, H-Y-A-T-T. He ministered in England in 1767 to 1826. This is what he said. He's writing on this verse here, teach me thy way, O Lord. Give me a knowledge of God. I want you to listen. I'm going to put this in the bulletin. I've got already marked. You put this in the bulletin. This is great. There is no point on which the world of people is more dark than that of their own ignorance of God. We might truly say people are ignorant of their ignorance. People think they know enough about God when they learn traditionally and mechanically a few principles of religion, a few doctrines of religion. And they comfort themselves if they believe in God. They believe in heaven, they believe in the hereafter. But as to knowing God, His ways, His thoughts, His mind, His holiness, His justice, His redemption, or any such things, with them this is nothing at all. But really the people of the world do not want revelation. They do not want enlightenment. They do not want divine illumination. They feel no need for it. because they have an instinctive feeling that they're already enlightened. They don't know they're ignorant. They think they're already enlightened in spiritual matters. And this newly acquired knowledge of God would interfere with their old traditions and interfere with their habits and interfere with their ways. And this is the reason why all preaching and teaching which goes beneath the surface of their present thinking is distasteful. They cannot bear to be brought into contact with the living God. That's what Israel said at Sinai. Moses, you talk to God, don't let Him talk to us. They cannot bear to be brought into contact with the living God in anything but a general way. Just general way. Don't get specific. Don't get deep. Don't get theological. Don't get doctrinal. Don't try to take me any deeper than where I've already come. Because, listen to this, is he close? The particulars of his character may not agree with the particulars of my life. But David says, Lord, you teach me your way, and I'll walk in it. Your way. If it is disagreeable with what I've thought for 50 years, you teach me your way. If it doesn't meet with the standards or Principles are traditions of my former religion. You teach me your way. I walk. If I can learn from him. Just briefly, let me give you these next few verses. I will praise thee, O Lord, my God, with all my heart, and I'll glorify your name forevermore. How can I glorify God when I praise him with all my heart? That's right. Verse 13. For great is thy mercy toward me, thou hast delivered my soul from the lowest grave. That word is translated the lowest grave and also spiritual death and also from great extreme dangers. You've delivered my soul from great extreme dangers. O God, the proud are risen against me, and the assemblers of violent men have sought after my soul and have not set thee before them. But thou, O Lord, Are they God full of compassion? And here he is going right back to that name of God in Exodus 34. Same thing. Thou, O Lord, art a God full of compassion, gracious, long-suffering, plenteous in mercy and truth. And I close with verse 16 and 17. Listen. David's request. Lord, turn unto me, turn unto me, turn thy face toward me, which will dispel all my darkness and turn my life into day." You turn your face unto me and it will be daylight. Secondly, David's character, have mercy upon me. I'm poor and needy, I'm in need of mercy. Mercy, Lord, not justice, mercy. David's occupation, give thy strength unto thy servant. Give thy strength unto thy servant. I'm your servant. I need grace and strength to magnify thy name, to serve thee, to preach thy gospel, to walk with thee. I need grace and strength. And save the son of thy handmaid." Didn't you read that? Didn't I read that in Psalm 116, the son of thy handmaid? This is the second time tonight we've read this, the son of thy handmaid. I'll try to get a little light on that. I think it did. I think it did. David's great-great-grandmother. One of the writers said this handmaid is a female slave. And David said, I'm the son of a female slave. That makes me the property of whoever owned her. The son of thy handmaid. Handmaid. See, Hagar was Sarah's handmaid. did her whatever she commanded. So I'm the son of a female slave. David's father was Jesse. Jesse's father was Obed. Obed's mother was Ruth the Moabitess. David's great-great-grandmother was a pagan, godless worshiper of idols till God saved her. brought her to Bethlehem and married her to Boaz. Oh, he says, turn to me. Have mercy upon me. Give thy servant strength. I'm the son of a pagan. But here's a request. Lord, show me a token for good. It's what all of us would like to see. The Lord move in an unusual way. That they that hate me, and they don't hate me, they hate the gospel. The world hates the gospel. Show us your power in this day. Revive us in this day. Show us a token for good that those that hate the gospel may be ashamed. And they may see that the Lord has helped us. And the Lord has comforted us. I pray that God will reveal his grace and power. Well, we're seeing that. christian i hope that's a blessing to you