Your Steadfast Love is Better than Life

Psalm 63

At some point, every believer must decide what kind of Christian they desire to be.  There are some who are nominal, that is Christian in name only.  These nominal Christians can be likened unto the 5 foolish virgins who did not really know the Lord, even they thought they did, and were rejected by Him.  

Others still follow Jesus “from a distance” like the apostle Peter at the time Jesus was arrested.  And yet some others view Christ as a great “teacher” but they come to inquire of Him during the darkness of night, so they will not be seen with Jesus by day like Nicodemus.

But very, very few are as one wise gentleman says, “in storm and sunshine, cleave to Him and enjoy daily communion with Him”.  These people are like king David, they desire God, they long for Him with great intensity, because they know only God alone can satiate the deepest longings of the human soul.  This is the secret to David’s incredible life, he desires God above all else and the 63^rd Psalm is a testament to that.

1. Historical Context — there are only 3 possibilities for the setting of this Psalm: 
   1. When David was in the wilderness fleeing from King Saul
   2. When David was fleeing from his own son Absalom
   3. We don’t know…
   4. Notice the words of verse 11 “the king”
   5. We believe letter B is the correct answer here.
   6. As David’s life is in danger at the hand of his own son, he pens one of the most heartfelt songs in all the Psalter.  Notice the phrase; “my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you”.   
   7. It has been written, “There may be other songs that equal this outpouring of devotion; [but there are] few if any that surpass it.”
2. Desiring God — The dry deserts of the middle east are the perfect place to express what he feels when he is apart from God.  David uses the desert as an object lesson to teach what life is like apart from God — “in a dry and weary land where there is no water”.  David is physically longing for God like a weary traveler might feel at the end of a debilitating journey.
   1. This intense physical longing is what caused C.S. Lewis to write:  These poets knew far less reason than we for loving God. They did not know that he offered them eternal joy; still less that he would die to win it for them. Yet they express a longing for him, for his mere presence, which comes only to the best Christians or to Christians in their best moments. They long to live all their days in the temple so that they may constantly see “the fair beauty of the Lord” (Ps. 27:1). Their longing to go up to Jerusalem and “appear before the presence of God” is like a physical thirst (Ps. 42). From Jerusalem his presence flashes out “in perfect beauty” (Ps. 50:2). Lacking that encounter with him, their souls are parched like a waterless countryside (Ps. 63:2). B. Do we long for God like this?
3. Satisfied with God
   1. God Alone — The only thing that can quench David’s thirst is God.  David said his trust was in “God alone” in Psalm 62.  Therefore, he says Gods “love is better than life” in Psalm 63.  Can I honestly say God’s “love is better than life” …if not, could it be because my faith is not in “God alone”?  We say if it works it’s good…but if it’s not producing people who say with all they are that Gods “love is better than life” then it’s not working good enough… B. David is satisfied with, in and by God.
      1. Life is precious.  People will do anything to gain more life.  Satan says in Job 2:4 — “Skin for skin! A man will give all he has for his own life”.  For most people, life is the most precious of all possessions.
      2. God’s love is infinitely more precious.  This point stresses the eternal faithfulness of God and His covenant love.  God’s love is unchanging and can never be lost.  Paul says “For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38–39).
      3. In view of such staggering love, why do we spend so much time trying to satiate ourselves elsewhere?
      4. Shouldn’t we be spending far more time enjoying the everlasting love of God?
      5. “You have made us for Yourself, O Lord, and our hearts are restless until they rest in You” — Augustine
      6. Illustration — In Philadelphia P.A. there is a fountain spring