Does God Meet Us With Answered Prayer, Before We Ask? Part 3

 

“The King shall have joy in your strength, O Lord;  And in Your salvation how greatly shall he rejoice!” (Psalm 21:1-2 NKJV).

 
*”When we rest and trust in this promise, we can rejoice in victory even before we go into battle.

 
Because of God’s ‘meeting’ promise, we are able to claim victory and dominion even before the battle begins.   You may wonder, ‘How could David rejoice?   He faced the most intense attack he’d ever known.   How could he have joy when he might have been wounded or killed?’

 

David answers:  ‘For You meet him with blessings of goodness:  You set a crown of pure gold upon his head.’  (Psalm 21:3 NKJV).   What David is saying here is life-changing:

 

‘I face a powerful enemy who is bent on destroying me.   But my soul is at peace.   Why?   The Lord has foreseen my struggle.   And He has showered me with assurances of His love.   My enemy may cause me to stumble or fall, and at some point in might seem I’m finished.   But God has told me that if I will just get up, I will receive His strength and win the battle.’

 
David then made this statement of faith just before going to war: ‘You set a crown of pure gold upon (my) head.’   The crown David mentions here is a symbol of victory and dominion.   David was saying, ‘I am going to war riding on God’s promise to me.   He said I would walk out of the battle wearing the crown of victory.’

 

This sums up the doctrine of God’s ‘meeting goodness’:  He has anticipated all our struggles – all our battles with sin, flesh, and the devil – and in His mercy and goodness, He has paid our debt before it can even come due.   Our victory is a done deal.

 
Yet this doctrine doesn’t apply to Christians who flirt with sin.   By refusing to part with their lust, they have already surrendered to the enemy.   Such people simply don’t want to be free.   And they have already developed a hardened heart.   They have tested God’s grace and love again and again, until finally they have come to despise it.

 

 

God’s meeting goodness applies especially to those who love Jesus and are surprised by sin.  The Lord assures us that even if we cast down temporarily, we’ll emerge from the battle standing upright, all because Jesus paid our debt.   Maybe you have been wounded and bloodied by the enemy’s sword.   You’ve failed in some way, and now you’re downcast in spirit, wondering if you will ever recover.

 

Don’t lie there wondering,  ‘Where did I go wrong?’   Get up, and stand on God’s promises of loving kindness.   Confess and lay hold of His forgiveness.   He promised that you would come out of every battle a victor, crowned in strength.   ‘Be exalted, O Lord, in Your own strength!   We sing and praise Your power.’  (Psalm 21:13 NKJV).”*

 

We will continue in Part 4.   CHRIS

 

*This teaching is paraphrased from the World Challenge Pulpit Series.   This message was delivered by David Wilkerson at the Times Square Church in New York City, February 26, 2007. “The Preventing Love of the Lord, An Encouraging Message for Those In Need of Hope”