Now last month I talked about how to pray in faith, but I wanted to use even more Scripture to clarify this point, specifically Psalm 54. David, who wrote this Psalm, is certainly a man who believed God would answer his prayers. His prayers often include both his request and his confident declaration of God’s answer (before he actually sees God answer).
First off, what is David praying about in Psalm 54? He starts with the cry, “Save me, O God.” I am very familiar with this prayer, that cry of desperation. “Please God, please help me.”
Next, after asking God to save him by His power, David says, “Hear my prayer, O God; Give ear to the words of my mouth.” These words reveal a fervency of spirit. An attitude that says, “You must hear me Lord, for what good is my prayer if you don’t?”
In verse three we learn the circumstances prompting David’s request for God to save and vindicate him. People are hunting David down to kill him. Yikes! And not enemies or people he has wronged, but strangers—violent men who want to kill David though he has done nothing wrong. These men were the spies of King Saul, who were seeking to kill David because of Saul’s jealousy.
Now that David has set forth his request, a plea for God to hear him, and his predicament, he moves on to believe God will answer: “Behold, God is my helper; The Lord is the sustainer of my soul. He will recompense the evil to my foes; Destroy them in Your faithfulness” (Psalm 54:4-5).
“In the fourth and fifth verses, [David] becomes his own prophet, promising himself victory.” J. Dolben, in a Thanksgiving Sermon, 1665.
David was confident God had both the ability and the willingness to save him. He knows God will not only save him, but repay his enemies for what they have done.
By verse 6, David is already ready to sacrifice to the Lord and thank Him for answering his prayer. Remember, the answer hasn’t yet actually come. David just KNOWS it will. And so he is already thanking God.
Oh, this is how I want to my every prayer to be.
One reason for David’s confidence should be noted. David is certain he is on the Lord’s side. In vs. 3, David tells us about his enemies, saying that these men have not set God before them. In contrast, David praises the Lord, and in doing so, he is setting God before his mind, to sacrifice and thank him. He knew he was on God’s side and his enemies weren’t. And this made him all the more certain God would answer his prayer.
We can have the same confidence David had because God’s character DOES NOT CHANGE. He remains faithful and cannot deny Himself. Just like David, we know vengeance belongs to the Lord and He will repay. God is just, and He repays men on earth for their wickedness according to His justice. It would be unkind to those who suffer at the hands of the wicked to not punish the wicked.
By the end of the Psalm, David is no longer afraid of his enemies. He thinks of them with satisfaction as he is confident of God’s power to repay them for their wickedness. David remembered times God formerly delivered him, and he believed God would again answer his prayers.
David wasn’t rejoicing over his enemies because of personal revenge, but he rejoiced that justice was going to be done. The unfounded violence of his enemies would be stopped by God’s holy hand.
It is David’s familiarity with God’s character that led to his confidence. David knew God saves the righteous and defends them. He also punishes the wicked and wipes them away. Because David knew God, he realized God would answer the prayers that aligned with God’s character.
From this Psalm, we are given this model of prayer:
a) First, ask for your request
b) Second, explain the circumstances (this is probably for us—part of pouring out our hearts before the Lord)
c) Third, be confident (certain, absolutely sure, convinced) that God will answer your request (making sure your prayer aligns with God’s character)
d) Fourth, remember a time or times when God has answered a past prayer, and express your thankfulness for that. Now, thank God for this current situation.
This is a Scriptural model for praying in faith. It is so beautiful to me that God tells us what to do, but then He shows us how to do it. Thank you Lord.
