you you so I'd like to welcome those that are joining us now at this time by the way of the internet. And we thank God for your presence. And we pray for you. We may not be able to see you, but I'm glad that you get to see us and hear us here. And I trust that you'll hear from the Lord today. And that's my desire, is to lift him up. And I trust this message will be a help to you, and it'll give you some hope. And the title of the message is The Battle Against You. The Battle Against You. In Psalms chapter 55, if you'd like to find your place there, and while you're finding your place, In Psalms chapter 55, I'd just like to remind you about the battle that we're in. And just remember that if you're in the battle, then the battle is not just you against it, it's it against you. And in Ephesians chapter 6 and verse 11 it says, put on the whole armor of God that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities. There's an enemy, there's a foe, there's someone that's against you, that's against me today. against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. And the Christian warfare is not a one-sided war. If you're in the battle, then the battle is against you as well. You ain't going to find what we're about to talk about and what God brings forth here out of Psalms chapter 55. You're not going to find this information on Fox News. You're not going to find it on CNN or whatever news outlet that you listen to. And you're not going to find it on Facebook either. Let's go ahead and throw that in there. but I tuned in to the local station this morning and I normally wouldn't do that, but I turned in to the local news station this morning and no one on that news station reported that there is a battle raging against you. In our passage here, we're going to join David He's been relentlessly chased. He's been lied about. He's been forsaken. He's been hunted down like a wild animal. And in his moment of weakness, in a short brief time here of weakness, he's going to say to himself, I'd be better off if I could just get out of this thing. You know, his natural reaction to what's happening against him is to flee. He's going to come to the point where he says there just briefly, I mean just briefly, but he's going to entertain the thought that if I could just get away, if I could just leave everything behind, then everything would be alright. And if we were being completely honest this morning, I think everybody in here would have to say that there's been a time in your life where you may have just felt like David. And there was some point in your life where you just said, man, if I could just get away. Man, if I just didn't have to look at this person one more time, or if I didn't have to do this, if I didn't have to do that, then things would be so much better in my life. Some may think that if I could just get a better husband or a better wife, I'd be better off. I went for jury duty this past week, and someone said they stood up, and you're supposed to introduce yourself and what you do, and then if you're married, you're supposed to tell what your spouse does for a living. And one person stood up and said that, hey, I do this, I do that, and I'm happily single. happily to be single and really she meant that she'd been divorced there and was happily not to be remarried. Some people think that if I could just get a better person or a better job or better finances or a better place to live or even some children say, if I could just get into a better school or if I could just have a better car. Can I just say I've owned a few cars in my lifetime and I've never had a car that did not develop some type of problem. Over the years, over time, parts are going to break. It's going to need new tires. Batteries are going to go dead and alternators are going to go bad and there's going to be things you're going to have to fix. When we were church planters in the country of Canada, We had to cross the border there into Vermont to pick up a few items, and while we were in Vermont, I was driving my little car, and we got through doing our shopping, and we were on our way back to the Canadian border to cross over into Canada to go back home. Well, in that time there, as we were making our way back toward the border, the pipe that comes off the engine that goes all the way back to the, the exhaust pipe there that goes all the way back to the muffler, It broke and it broke up toward the front of the car. So the whole pipe fell forward as I was going forward and immediately the sound was just awful. Now some of these young people may enjoy that, but I don't. I like a car that's nice and quiet. but it broke off due to rust and we had to pull over real quick and we had to figure out how are we gonna manage this? We're in America, we need to go to Canada, but now we've got this pipe that's hanging down, facing forward, we're gonna have to do something with this pipe and get it fixed. So I got to thinking, how can I fix this thing? How can we do this? So I thought for a minute about it, and I said, oh, I'll just use my belt. So I took my belt, and I tied it around the pipe, brought the belt, pulled the pipe and the belt over toward the car door, put it inside the car door, shut the car door on it, and it'd hold that pipe up in the air so that we could go on, even though it was making a lot of noise. And when we pulled up to the border there, boy, the border agent had a time with us. Boy, he laughed and thought that was funny, but he understood. He understood what happened and he let us go on through, thank the Lord. But you see in our passage here that we're about to read, that David wasn't dealing with a broken down car. He wasn't dealing with an exhaust pipe that broke. David had recognized that the battle that he was in was not just against the enemy, but the enemy was against him. And for a short time here, we're going to see that it's going to get the best of him. In a time of physical and spiritual weakness, he's going to say, if I could just get away, I'd be better off. But he's going to find out And so are we that there's something better that you can hope for when the battle is raging against you. You're in a battle. I'm in a battle and it's raging. Let's start reading in Psalms 55. Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me and hear me, I mourn in my complaint and make a noise. Because of the voice of the enemy, because of the oppression of the wicked, for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me. My heart is sore pain within me, and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. And I said, O, that I had wings like a dove, for then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off and remain in the wilderness, Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest. Destroy, O Lord, and divide their tongues, for I have seen violence and strife in the city. Day and night they go about it upon the walls thereof. Mischief also and sorrow are in the midst of it. Wickedness is in the midst thereof. Deceit and guile depart not from her streets. For it was not an enemy that reproached me, then I could have borne it. Neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me, then I would have hid myself from him. But it was thou, a man, mine equal, my God, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together and walked unto the house of God in company. Let death seize upon them and let them go down quick into hell, for wickedness is in their dwellings and among them. As for me, I will call upon God, and the Lord shall save me. Evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud, and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was raging that was against me, for there were many with me. God shall hear and afflict them, even he that abideth of old, Selah, because they have no changes. Therefore they fear not God. He hath put forth his hands against such as be at peace with him. He hath broken his covenant. The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, but war was in his heart. His words were softer than oil, yet were they drawn swords. Cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. But thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust Indeed. I'd like to draw your attention back to verse 18 where it says, He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was raging, or that was against me, if you would, for there were many with me. There is hope for you today from the battle that is going against you. David was being pursued. People were turning against him. The enemy seemed to be prevailing over him. He was overwhelmed and nothing seemed to be getting any better. The battle was raging from without but also from within. You may have come here today and you're going through a battle in your life. No one else around you knows what you faced today. They don't know what you faced yesterday or the past week or the past month. No one else around you today has faced the battle that you're in. No one else knows how the enemy has tried to destroy you this week. Oh, maybe you've even had the same thoughts as David. Maybe you've even contemplated quitting or getting out of the battle. Oh, maybe the enemy has even come to you and he's asked you this question, where is your God? You've been praying. You've been struggling. Nothing seems to be getting better. The enemy's been raging in your life and his words have pierced like an arrow through your heart, oh, when he's saying, where is your God? Oh, maybe the thought has crossed your mind to fly away. Oh, just to take the wings of the dove and get away. I don't know about you, but I've been dove hunting before, and I used to go with my Grandpa Gordon. He would give me a semi-automatic shotgun, and my Grandpa would use an old double-barrel shotgun. Now I have to admit, before anybody gets upset about talking about hunting, you know, and eating animals and things like that, that every time that I went dove hunting, the doves had a tremendous percentage of an opportunity to get away, I promise you. They had a great chance of survival when I was the one doing the hunting. I even think that one time I saw a dove stop in mid-flight there and point his wing at me there and just laugh. and i mean talking made it is take another shot because you know i couldn't even hit him but as the shots would be fired there as the dove was making its way across the field and that dove would pick up speed and he would come some every now and then he'd change a little bit his course but not much but he'd just pick up speed and while they may have survived getting past me and getting past the others that were with me, by the time they got to the end of the field, they would think that they made safety. that they were out of reach from the shots and they would land on an old tree at the end of the field and underneath that tree sat my grandfather with that old double-barrel shotgun and once that dove landed in the tree you'd hear that old double-barrel shotgun go off and you'd watch that bird just fall out of the tree and my grandfather would be down there laughing You see the doves, they may have flown away and got away from me, but there was someone else on the other end of the field that was waiting for them to just think that, hey, I'm safe now. Oh, I got away from it. You cannot escape your problems. You cannot escape the battle by taking matters into your own hands. Let's go back to verse 1. Here the psalmist, he's praying, he says, Give ear to my prayer, O God, and hide not thyself from my supplication. Attend unto me and hear me. I mourn in my complaining and make a noise. I tell you, this is serious. This is not a hangnail, okay? So many people think that, oh, I'm suffering for Jesus because I got a little hangnail, I had a little headache, you know. Look, that's not suffering for Jesus. That's common to every person. That happens. But here we see that it's a real battle. The battle is raging in his life and he's mourning in his complaint. He makes a noise. Why? Because of the voice of the enemy there in verse 3. Because of the oppression of the wicked, for they cast iniquity upon me, and in wrath they hate me. My heart is sore pain within me, and the terrors of death are fallen upon me. Fearfulness and trembling are come upon me, and horror hath overwhelmed me. And I said, O, that I had the wings like a dove. For then would I fly away and be at rest. Lo, then would I wander far off and remain in the wilderness, Selah. I would hasten my escape from the windy storm and tempest. Oh, David had prayed. He had mourned. It seemed like the more he prayed, the more he cried out, the louder of the voice of the enemy seemed to get. Oh, it seemed at this time in his life that the enemy was relentless, and pretty soon all the attacks that were coming from without, They're going to make their way on the inside. Verse 4, he said, My heart, that's on the inside. My heart is pain within me. The terrors of death are falling upon me. Fearfulness and trembling come upon me and horror hath overwhelmed me. Oh, so what do you do? If you can't fly away and get away from your problems, if you shouldn't take things into your own hands and try to fix things yourself, what are we to do when that battle is raging and it seems like there's no escape? Well, I can tell you what you shouldn't do. Don't fly away like a dove. Don't give up hope. Don't stop crying out. It may seem like the enemy's voice is getting louder and louder, but can I just remind you of 1 John chapter 4 and verse 4? It says, greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. While it may seem that the enemy is prevailing, while it may seem that the voice of sorrow and hurt and despair has overwhelmed your soul, you just better hold on. It's not time to flee like a dove. It's not time to take a break from praying. It's not a time to take a break from going to church and reading your Bible. It's not time to tune out the Lord, because if you tune Him out, then all you're gonna hear is the enemy. And that enemy can be real subtle. He doesn't always come out raw and rage. Oh no, the enemy most of the time, he's gonna come in a subtle way. Look at verse 12. For it was not an enemy that reproached me. Uh-oh, if it's not an enemy, then who is it? It's a friend. Someone that appears to be friendly, right? Then I could have borne it. Neither was it he that hated me that did magnify himself against me. Then I would have hid myself from him. But it was thou, a man mine equal, my God, and mine acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together and walked into the house of God in company. He'd been betrayed by a wife. He'd been betrayed by a son. He'd been betrayed by a friend. He'd been betrayed by a confidant. He'd been betrayed by an advisor. He'd been betrayed by a leader of his army. And even when he came to the priest Ahimelech's house over in Nab, there was one there that was detained before the Lord, a guy named Doeg, who would go back and run and tell King Saul about David meeting with Ahimelech. I mean, it seems like he just could not get away from anyone that was after him. The Bible says that King Saul secretly practiced mischief against David. You see, the enemy can come at you from many different ways. Satan, that old enemy, he came against Job in the form of personal tragedy and loss. He went after his health. He went after his wife and used her to try to be a discouragement to Job to keep him from even wanting to live. Then his friends accused him of sinning and then his family wouldn't even come and comfort him. You know, the enemy can be real subtle, but yet he can cause so much damage. The enemy can come also in the form of sinful advice. You better be weary of anyone that would encourage you to act upon your own lust and sin. Ask David's son Amnon if he should have listened to his friend named Jonadab. The Bible said he was a subtle man. He listened to his sinful advice and it wound up costing Amnon his life. How many young ladies and young men have failed to the enemy's advice when they heard these words, if you love me, then you'll do this or you'll do that. Can I just say time out? Real love does not demand. if you'll do this, if you'll do that. Real love gives. Read 1 Corinthians chapter 13 as it talks about charity. There's nothing selfish in charity. In 1 Corinthians 13, 5, it says, talking about charity, love doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thanketh no evil. John 3.16, the greatest definition of love in the Bible. For God so loved the world that He gave. He gave His only begotten Son that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have to have everlasting life. Romans 5, 8 says, But God commended His love toward us, and while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. You didn't have to do a thing to be loved by God. Watch out for the enemy when he says, Hey, try this. Why don't you try this? Everybody else is doing it. You see, the enemy's subtle. Oh, you don't want to be the only one they're holding out. You don't want to be the only one that's not... Everybody else is doing it. Here, read this. Hey, watch this on the internet. Hey, listen to this song. They won't nobody find out. You better go read Proverbs chapter 7. That's how that strange woman acted. Come on, let's go. The good man's gone. Nobody will know. The enemy can be very subtle. So what can the righteous do? What can you do when the battle is raging? Let's see what David did in verse 16. He said, As for me, I will call upon God and the Lord shall save me. evening and morning and at noon will I pray and cry aloud and he shall hear my voice. He hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me, for there were many with me." Oh, when that battle is raging against you, you better run to God. Why? Because He's the only one that can save you. He's the only one that is touched with the feelings of your infirmity. He knows what you're facing. He knows your limits. You may say, preacher, I've prayed. I've prayed. I've cried. What can I just say? Just keep on praying. Just keep on crying. Evening, morning, at noon, will I pray? and cry aloud because God promises that in verse 17, He shall hear your voice. It makes no difference how loud the enemy is in your life. It makes no difference how loud the battle may seem on the outside. It makes no difference those that are against you and how loud they can be. No matter how deep a mess you may have found yourself in, you have the promise of God that he will hear your voice. And he's gonna do more than just hear. Look at verse 18. That he hath delivered my soul in peace from the battle that was against me. In the battle that's raging against you. You know what God's gonna do? He's gonna give you some peace. Oh, there's someone here today, there's someone that's listening on the internet. You need some peace. You're facing something that only God can save you from. Oh, would you just cry out to Him? Would you just come to Him one more time? knowing that He hears your voice and that He alone can give you the peace that you're looking for. Flying away is not going to help you. Listening to the wrong advice will not help you. But crying out to God, that will save you. He'll give you peace from the battle that's raging against you. Maybe you feel overwhelmed today. Maybe it's a family problem you're facing. Maybe it's a personal problem. Maybe it's a health problem that you just can't seem to get over. Maybe it's a financial problem. Maybe it's some sin problem in your life. Maybe you just need some peace today. There's a God in heaven that loves you and He wants to save you today. Romans 10.13 says, For whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved. Hey, would you call on the Lord today? Oh, maybe you're here today and you need to be saved. You need to be born again. Hey, would you come to Him? Would you be set free from your sin? In Psalms 55 and verse 22, it says, cast thy burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain thee. He shall never suffer the righteous to be moved. You don't have to fly away. God will suffer that you don't have to be moved, but thou, O God, shalt bring them down into the pit of destruction. Bloody and deceitful men shall not live out half their days, but I will trust in thee. You have a choice to make today. You can either cast your burden on the Lord and He promised that He'll sustain thee, He'll save thee. You can either trust in Him or you can be brought down to the pit of destruction. God wants to save you. God promised that He would hear your voice. He loves you. Would you come to Him and would you find help for your soul?