Psalm 71: A Psalm of Mature Christian Experience

1. An Affirmation of Faith in God                          Psalm 71:1-5

Text: “In Thee, O Lord (Jehovah Lord God), do I put my trust: let me never be put to confusion.”

Psalm 71:1.

Good morning mature senior Christian!  Your maturity is gauged, not in length of time and years alone, but in the depths of Christian experience and service to Christ wherein you have been blessed. 

Christian maturity has little to do with how long one has professed faith in Christ, but what one has actually been engaged in, throughout that period. 

‘Mature senior Christians’ have spent quality time in the study of God’s Word, in obedience to His Word – and sought at all times to apply what he/she has learned there while living our daily lives for Christ. 

‘Mature senior Christians’ have striven for many years to “…show themselves approved of God, workmen/work-women that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth.”

“Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth.”  (2 Timothy 2:15)

Praise God for ‘mature senior Christians!  Of such is the backbone of the true and genuine Bible-believing, born again Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. 

Psalm 71 has been called “The Prayer of the Aged Believer”.

“We have here “The Prayer of the Aged Believer”, who in holy confidence of faith, strengthened by a long and remarkable experience, pleads against his enemies and asks further blessings for himself.  Anticipating a gracious reply, he promises to magnify the Lord exceedingly.”  (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 305)

Untitled Psalms:  Psalm 71 falls into the category of “The Untitled Psalms”, of which there are some thirty-four Psalms contained within the Book of Psalms: 1; 2; 10; 33; 43; 71; 91; 93; 94; 95; 96; 97; 99; 104; 105; 106; 107; 111; 112; 113; 114; 115; 116; 117; 118; 119; 135; 136; 137; 146; 147; 148; 149; 150.

“Psalms Book 2: Psalms 42-72:  Psalms 42-50 are of Asaph – King David’s main worship leader (or the descendants of Korah).  Psalms 51-70 of David.  Psalm 71 is untitled. Psalm 72 is of Solomon.” (storage.cloversites.com/bethanybaptistchurch3/documents/Psalms.… · PDF file)

Verse 1. “In Thee, O Lord, do I put my trust. From the very outstart of this Psalm, the Psalmist affirms the fact that true believers in Jehovah Lord God have our faith and trust completely in Him alone – knowing that all else cannot be given that heart trust, for all else, if we wait long enough, will fail us in our time of need. 

Our full trust and faith can only be placed in the Triune Lord God Almighty, Jehovah - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – for it is He alone Whom, in His Sovereign grace, has seen fit to grant us His gift of faith in the first place! We come to God Almighty in the Name of Jesus Christ our Saviour and Lord.  Praise God we have One in Whom we can completely trust.  Glory to His Name.

“For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that (faith) not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: not of works, lest any man should boast.  For (a conclusion) we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.”  (Ephesians 2:8-10)

Verse 2. “Deliver me in Thy righteousness.  We, having no righteousness of our own, and deserving of Hell for our vile sins, can only be delivered from our sin, and from all our enemies by the imputed righteousness of our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.  It is HIS righteousness that grants us full access into Heaven, and into the Presence of our Holy Lord God at His throne of grace in prayer.  We have the righteousness of Christ Himself.  Wow!

“For He (God the Father) hath made Him (God the Son) to be sin for us, Who knew no sin; that we (Hell-bound sinners) might be made the righteousness of God in Him.”     (2 Corinthians 5:21)

Verse 3. “Be Thou my strong habitation whereunto I may continually resort. The Psalmist here confesses his fallibility, his human weaknesses and constant need, by pleading with the Lord God to be his ‘strong habitation whereunto he may continually resort’, we come to the Lord God’s throne of grace boldly in times of constant need.

“Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.”  (Hebrews 4:16)

Verse 3. “Thou hast given commandment to save me. Destruction cannot destroy us; famine cannot starve us; but we laugh at both, while God’s mandate shields us.”  (C.H. Spurgeon, Treasury of David, page 305)

Verse 3. “For Thou art my Rock and my fortress. God the Father revealed this truth unto the apostle Peter, when he confidently affirmed the full Deity of the Lord Jesus in Matthew’s Gospel, Chapter 16, and verses 16 and 17: “And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ the Son of the Living God.  And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-jo`-na: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in Heaven.”  Christ Jesus is our Rock and our fortress.  Glory to His Name!

“The churches’ one foundation, is Jesus Christ, her Lord.  She is His new creation, by water and the Word…”  (Hymn by Samuel J Stone,1839 - 1900)

Verse 4. “Deliver me, O my God, out of the hand of the wicked…the hand of the unrighteous and cruel man. Mature senior Christians know this verse of Scripture very well, for we have often been compelled to plead it earnestly, when opposed, hindered, and oppressed by the world, the flesh, and the Devil, over a period of many years of Spiritual conflict as soldiers in the army of the risen Lord Jesus Christ.  He has never failed us!

Verse 5. “For Thou art my hope, O Lord God: Thou art my trust from my youth.  The Psalmist again assures himself, and all who will later sing, or hear his Psalm that, the Lord God alone is his hope; that, as he has trusted the Lord God from his youth, so will he have the full confidence to trust the Lord God now, when he/she is a ‘mature, senior Christian’.

Throughout all the years of mankind’s history, one thing has remained firm and constant in the hearts of God’s elect people – we have a Lord God we can fully trust, our hope is assured in the full Atonement of the Living Lord Jesus Christ.  Glory to His Holy Name!

Thought: Stand firm, mature senior Christians – the Lord returns real soon.  Glory!