Psalms 11:3 “When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do ?”

I noticed a very important detail as I was reading this just now, and that is that is that this is the end of a quote that starts in the last line of verse one. This isn’t a statement of God’s truth, it is an attempt to discourage the righteous. In a “divine accident” this morning I read Psalm 12 first, though the listing was clearly for Psalm 11, and that describes precisely the sort of situation in which the devil says this sort of thing into our ears. In it, David starts by saying, “Help , Lord, for the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men,” and he ends by saying, “The wicked freely strut about when what is vile is honored among men.” (Psalm 12:1, 8) That sounds all too familiar and contemporary to us today! Things that were once acknowledged as perverted, in line with what the Bible says about them, were first pushed to be “accepted,” then admired and honored, signs of pride and privilege. The devil wants us to give up, so he says things to us like the quote in the first part of this Psalm. We have no reason to accept such nihilistic nonsense! As David says in direct response to it, “The Lord is in his holy temple; the Lord is on his heavenly throne.” (Psalm 11:4) The rot that we see and hear today is strictly temporary, because God is eternal, and He is perfectly holy and righteous. In the US today, and even in places around the world, we are seeing the stirrings of genuine revival, of people seeking God above all else and crying out to Him. We are even seeing a political movement to expose the lies and deceptions that have been so rampant in recent years. There is every reason to lift our heads and expect great things of God. If our expectations are placed in people we will be disappointed, because everyone is weak and flawed, but God is an expert at using even such as we are to accomplish His purposes, and that is where our hopes should be. What will transpire in the near future remains to be seen, but we can have total peace and confidence that the ultimate outcome will be God’s rule and reign, even as He has told us to pray.

I have certainly heard voices of discouragement many times in my life, and I am very grateful the Lord has brought me through them. The devil wants every believer to throw in the towel, to give up, but the Bible consistently cautions us against that. Even when we don’t see the victory in this life at all, we still experience the total victory of Christ in eternity. God has given me assurance of that, even though my current situation might not seem very “victorious” to an outside observer. In recent weeks I have been seeing all sorts of signs of God’s plans in action, and it is exciting. At the same time, I’m not to try to impose my timetable on what God is doing. I am to keep myself available for however God might want to use me, but I’m also to stay out of the way when He wants to use someone else. Above all I’m to keep my eyes on Christ Jesus my Lord, and not be distracted by everything else. That is the way to true peace, victory, and joy.

Father, thank You for this reminder. Thank You for causing me to read Psalm 12 first! Thank You for Your hope that overrides everything else, including martyrdom. May I be Your servant, Your agent to do Your will at all times, for Your glory. Thank You. Hallelujah!