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[ Music ] He left his mighty throne of glory To bring to us redemption's story Then he died but he rose again

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Just for me, oh, what I'm glad So glad he did He left his mighty throne of glory To bring to us redemption's story

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Then he died but he rose again Just for me, oh, but I'm glad So glad he did I don't know why Jesus loves me.

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I don't know why he cared, why he cared. I don't know why he sacrificed his life. Oh, but I'm glad, so glad he did. I don't know why Jesus loves me.

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I don't know why he cared, why he cared. I don't know why he sacrificed his life. Oh, but I'm glad, so glad he did. ♪ Oh, but I'm glad, so glad He did ♪

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♪ Oh, but I'm glad, so glad He did ♪ ♪ Oh, but I'm glad, so glad He did ♪ - Amen, amen. Our scripture.

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is Psalm 54, verse one and two. Psalm 54, verses one and two. Save me, O God, by thy name,

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and judge me by thy strength. Hear my prayer, O God. Give ear to the words of my mouth. Would you repeat after me?

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Save me, O God, by thy name, and judge me by thy strength. I wanted to read this passage from another translation, the Living Bible paraphrase.

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Come with great power, oh God, and save me. Defend me with your might. Oh, listen to my prayers. And there is still another translation

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which reads in this manner. Champion my right with thy might. Champion my right with thy might. The subject of the message,

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the might of right, the might of right. Champion my right with thy might. This is the prayer of the Psalmist. Lord, fight my battle.

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Manifest your power in my defense. Champion my right with thy might. Notice that the psalmist says, "My right." We live in a time when there is concern for rights.

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People in all walks of life are concerned about their rights. We talk about states' rights. We talk about the rights of the nations.

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We talk about civil rights, about our legal rights, about human rights. America was established to preserve individual rights. The Declaration of Independence states that all men

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are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. those of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. When an individual speaks of his rights,

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he often means that he or she has the right to do what he or she wants to do. Sometimes the individual means by that the right to do wrong The Psalmist's prayer to God is,

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"Lord, champion my right with thy might." Every one of us can identify with the Psalmist when he says, "Champion my right." Every one of us would understand what he means by calling upon the Lord to fight for his right.

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We want what is ours. We want what we are entitled to. Yet sometimes it seems that we are just a tiny speck on the cosmos. Our concerns do not seem to matter. Seems that the odds are against us.

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Overwhelming circumstances seem to hinder and defeat us. The psalmist here is in a crisis. He is caught in the cruel clutch of circumstance. Look at that psalm and you'll see this superscription, so to speak.

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It'll help us to understand the predicament of the writer. It says a Psalm of David when the Ziphites came and said to Saul, "Doth not David hide himself with us?" In other words, it's a time of trouble in David's life.

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That's what this Psalm is based upon. Saul the king seeks to take David's life. David is now in hiding. He hides in the forest among the Ziphites. He eludes Saul for a time but the Ziphites go to Saul and say to him, "David is hiding among us, come to our land O King and we will work

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with you so that David will be in your hands." The place where David has gone for security turns against him. He's hiding in the forest, but now those who have been considered by him as his friends turn against him and they go to Saul and promise to help the king in efforts to apprehend David. You know that's the way

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life is. Those whom we trust turn traitor. That on which we depend for security seeks to destroy us. King Saul says to the Zephyrites, in order for you to help me you must make special preparation. Now tell me where David is hiding and who has seen him there. I want to know the exact location of his whereabouts. Give

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me a description of his hiding place. In fact, says the King, I want to talk with the person who has seen him there. You see we've got to study David's movements because I understand that David is very crafty when his whereabouts have been established with certainty then I will go with my men and we will search and

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flush him out and we will not rest until we have him in our hands. Now it's such a your time is this, that David makes the prayer to the Lord, "Champion my right with thy might." Have you ever been up against it? Have you ever had overwhelming forces to crowd into your life and have you ever felt that you were in a trap?

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And that the forces on which you relied were your enemies. Well that's the way David is. He said now Lord I'm limited. My resources are small. I don't have a large army. I don't have the resources to compare with Saul the king. I'm on the run. I'm in hiding. Now those among whom I have

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been hiding have been reporting my movements to the enemy. Now Lord I know I can't make it through this dark night without your help. I have some men but they're not enough. I have some swords but they're not enough and I need help from above. Champion thy right with thy might. Well you know we live in a world

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that says might makes right. Oh yes, the kind of world we live in. And in fact that's what the summit is all about. They call these nations together the superpowers. They call them the superpowers if they have more weapons, more men, and so they can overwhelm the weaker nations of the world and the one

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who has the largest army, the largest navy, the largest air force, the largest store of nuclear weapons, these are the most powerful nations. And so if you can take it from me, if you got the power to take what you want from me, then that might makes it right.

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kind of world we live in. And if you've got it, there are always those who want it. They say hand it over. So might makes right. And in fact, in fact, in fact, Plato says that justice is the rule of the stronger. So whoever is stronger and able to rule, that's what justice is. That's the world we live in. And here, here, here is a subject of the king who has very meager resources. He's up against the king.

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And what the king says goes, and the king has everything that is necessary, all of the power that is necessary to enforce his will. So he's able to say I am the king and might makes right. Egypt, Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, Germany, Italy, all of them have built their kingdoms

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upon this basic principle of might makes right and we have seen them in the course of history. If you read history you see they have risen and they have fallen. Might makes right. This is the rule among nations. If might makes right whoever has the largest army and the best so to speak military weapons may

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win because it makes right. Whoever has the biggest gun in the Middle East should win if might makes right. If might makes right that means that the white majority in South Africa even though it may constitute just 20% of the population if might makes right just because they have more nuclear weapons

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They have enough nuclear weapons the white majority in South Africa They have enough nuclear weapons to defeat the whole continent of Africa. Let me repeat that They have enough nuclear weapons to defeat the whole continent of Africa And if if if my mates right then they have the right

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to take all of the land and To deprive that 80% of their dignity and freedom. If might makes right.

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If might makes right, then David is doomed. He's without hope. If might makes right.

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If military might makes right, then the poor will remain destitute. There is no help or hope. Where is the help for the destitute and the forsaken?

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Where is the help for the persecuted and the disinherited? Where is the help for the disfranchised? Where, where, where? And I hear, I hear a voice that thunders

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Across the centuries saying not by might, not by power, but by my spirit says the Lord of hosts. But you don't make it by military might. And he's speaking to a small nation. He's speaking to the Jewish nation. But those words are not only addressed to the Jewish nation, but they address to all of us, but we can

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somehow recognize that this tiny nation, this tiny nation just just just made up of a few million people and yet there are some 80 million people all around them that are their enemies and that has been the predicament of the Jewish people throughout history but somehow God God speak saying that. That's not the way, it's by my spirit. David says Lord champion

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my right with thy might. I can't win without you. I can't make it. You know what really we need to understand is what right is, what righteousness consists of. You know it's real dangerous for some people to have power. You know you give them a little power, put them over one person and they don't know how to act. It's real dangerous for some people to

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have power. Somebody has said that power corrupts. A person can be good until they give him a little power, and it corrupts him. It's gone on to say that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Power. But the Psalmist is saying, "Champion my right." In other words, what he's doing is, is that he is lifting that battle to a higher level. He's not right down here on

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the human level, but he has lifted it up to the divine level, and he now speaks to God. Say, "Lord, you champion my right with your might." He's speaking to God because he has lifted the battle to a higher level. It's in the awareness that God is concerned about what is right. In fact God himself is our righteousness. A lot of times

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people know what's right, so you know this is right but you know I can't afford to do this because what somebody else is gonna say. You know it's right. And many times when something, when a crisis develops, people who know what's right go into hiding.

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Say, "I won't get involved in that." They know what's right, but they go hide. They don't want to be involved. They want you to fight.

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They want you to report, but they don't want to become involved. But what this teaches us is that the person who is with God,

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the person who really takes a stand for right, who knows in his heart of hearts that what he is doing is rooted and grounded in God, can cry out in the midst of the darkness,

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Lord, champion my right with thy might. You know why David could do that? is because he was doing what God had ordained. God had said to him, that you ought to be the king.

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He was abiding by God's will and God had David anointed as king by his prophet and it caused David much trouble. But whenever you are standing firm on what God ordains,

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following his will and way, Then when you find yourself in a crisis, you cry out to God. That's what David is doing. Champion my right with thy might.

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Lord, I know you can do it, because I've had some experiences with you. When I was keeping watch over my father's flock, wolves came. By your power, I drove the wolves away.

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But more than the wolves came, while I kept watch over the flock, a lion came and you gave me the power to overcome the lion. While I watched the flock,

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a bear came and you gave me the power to overcome the bear. I know you have the power. I know you have the power. So you've enabled me to fight against

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the destructive beasts of the forest, and I need you now. Lord, you have the power, steady my life with your stability, champion my right with thy might.

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You see, divine justice is the hand that is above that invades and interrupts human history. It invades and interrupts human history. That's divine justice.

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And you see, God has control. He's still in charge. It may look like he's not. David's in hiding, but God's still in control. It's still God's will. And David somehow recognizes that God is the Lord of heaven and earth, and so he appeals to to him for help.

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And you see, justice is a critical corrective. I'll try to deal with this briefly. It's a critical corrective. When you read the Psalms and you read these Psalms that we're dealing with now, they're

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called the imprecatory Psalms. And they're very, very human. other words the psalmist said now look Lord, my enemies have risen against me to do me evil so you do some evil to them. That's what that says. And we said oh

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that's so terrible that's the way most of us think right now. I'm gonna get you back. I'm not gonna take the last lick. I'll get you if it's the last thing I do do, I'll get you. That's where many people live right now. Get even with Stephen, get even with Stephen. And really, really what is happening here is that the

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Psalmist is lifting it to a high level, Lord! I'm turning it over to you, I'm not gonna try to handle this, I can't, it's too big for me. I'm turning it over to you. You take over now. And you see, in divine justice God makes a critical a critical a critical corrective it's a matter of life and death that David is in and he can't do it himself and so he looks to God and God is able to make a critical correction. Doesn't matter how many men they have over there God can

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handle it you know what he did if you know the story of David you know what he did? He gave David the best friend that he had, human friend, in the camp of the enemy. Now God does that. Jonathan, the king's son. David's closest friend and Jonathan is coming out to the forest reporting the

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movements of the king to David. God has a way of giving you a friend in the camp of the enemy. He'll do it. He'll do it. He'll do it. So the enemy is reporting, but you see God has a critical corrective. They go and they say, "Now Saul, we know where he is. We'll tell you what to do. Saul, you go back. You get the house. You get everything arranged. I'll come. I'll

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get him." They say, "All right." And so they do that. And they come to get David. And as they come to get David, the Philistines come to fight Saul. And when the Philistines come to fight Saul,

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Saul has to concern himself with fighting the Philistines. So he turns, and he has no time to fight David. The Lord does that. Yes.

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The Lord. That's the critical correction. God does that. So really what God is saying, even through this experience,

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just leave it to me. Vengeance is mine. I will repay, I'll correct it. Leave it all out, I'll fix everything all right.

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If you just trust in me, I will deliver you. I'll do it, I will make everything all right. Champion my right with thy might. If you're right, God will fight your battle.

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If you're right, because he has promised to make the crooked straight. He has promised to make the high places low and the rough places plain.

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God himself has promised to do that. Thanks be to God that we can trust in him with all that we see happening in our world, to be able to lift up our voices and say,

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this is my father's world. Oh, let me now forget, although the wrong seems all so strong, God is the ruler yet. Champion my right with my might.

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We come now to the hymn of invitation. We invite you to accept Jesus Christ as Lord of your life. Make the commitment now. You're gonna let God fight your battles.

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You're gonna trust in him. Knowing full well that he is able to champion your right when it's rooted and grounded in him with his might.

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(soft music) [ Music ] ♪ Beams of heaven ♪ ♪ As I go ♪

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♪ Through this wilderness below ♪ ♪ Guide my feet ♪ ♪ In peaceful ways ♪ ♪ Turn my midnight ♪

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♪ Into day ♪ ♪ When in the darkness I would grope ♪ ♪ Faith always sees a star of hope ♪ And soon from all life's griefs and danger, I shall be free someday.

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I do not know how long 'twill be, Nor what the future holds for me, But this I know, if Jesus leads me, I shall get home someday. ♪ Harder yet ♪

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♪ May be the fight ♪ ♪ Right may often ♪ ♪ Yield to might ♪ ♪ Wickedness ♪

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♪ The wild may reign ♪ ♪ Satan's cause ♪ ♪ May seem to gain ♪ ♪ There is a God ♪

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♪ That rules above ♪ With the hand of power and heart of love. If I am right, He'll fight my battle. I shall have peace someday.

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I, I do not know how soon it will be. ♪ Now what the future holds for me ♪ ♪ But this I know ♪ ♪ If Jesus leads me ♪

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♪ I shall get home ♪ Amen. Join in that chorus. And we're going to ask that Sister Boyd and her son

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will join us. [MUSIC - "HOW WONDERFUL"] [Music] ♪ How ♪

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♪ How long have we ♪ ♪ Travelled from here ♪ ♪ For this I know ♪ ♪ Here Jesus be free ♪

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♪ I shall be ♪ ♪ So free ♪ [Music] [BLANK_AUDIO]