Sermon
Help of The Helpless
July 13, 2003
Pastor Donald Sheley

I'm going to ask you to take your Bibles. We're going to turn to other Psalm today, Psalm 116. I love the Lord. That's the way our Psalm starts. Only one other Psalm, Psalm 18, has a similar commencing sentence. The verb is a little different he says I will love the Lord in Psalm 18. Here it says I love the Lord because...because He heard my voice and He answered my prayer; He heard my supplication. He turned His ear, He inclined His ear to me, therefore I will call upon Him as long as I live.

So he's expressing gratitude to God for hearing his prayer, and he doesn't tell us what he has prayed about. We don't know the problem that he was dealing with, but he sure describes it. Look at how he describes it in verse 3, he said, The pains of death surrounded me, and the pangs of Sheol laid hold of me; I found trouble and sorrow, then I called upon the name of the Lord: "O Lord, I implore You, deliver my soul."

Gracious is the Lord, and righteous: yes, our God is merciful. The Lord preserves the simple; I was brought low, and He saved me. Return to your rest, O my soul, for the Lord has dealt bountifully with you. For you delivered my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my feet from falling. I will walk before the Lord in the land of the living. I believed, therefore I spoke, "I am greatly afflicted." I said in my haste, "All men are liars."

What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me? I know, I will take up the cup of salvation, and call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord now in the presence of all His people. Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints. O Lord, truly I am Your servant; I am your servant, the son of Your maidservant; You have loosed my bonds. I will offer to You the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the Lord. I will pay my vows to the Lord now in presence of all His people, in the court's of the Lord's house, in the midst of you, O Jerusalem. Praise the Lord!

Let me just give you some thoughts from this great portion of Scripture. The psalmist is saying, God, I want You to know that my heart is filled with love towards You because when I prayed in my deepest need, You heard me. And look at how he describes his hurt, he said, it was like the pangs of death. Now most of us have stood beside people who are dying, and it's really hard for us to enter in to the tensions, and the emotions, and the pain that's going through that person as they make their transition from this life into the next. And I think most of us would agree the pain and the anguish and the tensions that are surrounding a deathbed probably are the worst that we'll ever have to witness in this life.

So the writer of our Psalm is liking his problem to the pangs and the pains and the anguish and the terror that surrounds a person when they are dying. I've often stood beside a deathbed and thought to myself, what presently are they going through? I know the doctors have fed them all of this morphine and all the rest but there's pain that they can never tell us about. And so the writer to the Psalm is saying, just like a person that's dying, even though I've never experienced the pain of that, yet my pain must be something like that. Terrors and sorrows surrounded me.

What he is saying is I've gone the ultimate in life's experiences with hurt, and then I called unto the Lord and He heard my prayer. And notice that he says when He heard my prayer He delivered me and I found that He's gracious. He delivered my soul from death. He took the tears from my eyes. He placed my feet upon solid footing and my feet no longer are falling, so I'm going to walk before the Lord in the land of the living.

Then he comes to verse 12 and he says, you know, God You've been so good to me I'm really trying to figure out...I don't know how to say thank you. What do I render to God who's been so good to me? Aren't there times when you've received a gift from somebody so thoughtful, so loving, so gracious and the question you have is, what can I do to say thank you? How do I say thank you for such a lovely gift? And the old psalmist is saying, God, You heard me when I was hurting so deeply and You took away the tears from my eyes and You saved my soul, and You placed my feet on solid footing and I'm not slipping anymore; and I'm going to live for You, but I don't know how to say thank you.

Look at verse 13. He said, I will take up the cup of salvation, and I will call on the Lord, and I will pay my vows. I want to get to that in just moment. He's simply saying, God, I'm just going to drink from Your cup of grace and forgiveness, and I'm going to take my religion very serious. I have made some vows and I haven't been very diligent about keeping them. I made them in those deep moments of life, I said, God if You'll healed me I'll spend the rest of my time serving You, but after I got healed I forgot my vows. So he said God, I'm going to start taking my faith serious. And then he tucks that verse 15 in there, and I've always found that one to be fascinating: Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of His saints.

There is a phrase that keeps appearing in that Psalm, did you see it? In the name of the Lord -- in the name of the Lord -- in the name of the Lord -- I'll call upon the name of the Lord -- I'll pray in the name of the Lord. And you'll find when you read through the Psalms you'll find that phrase appears frequently -- in the name of the Lord, in the name of the Lord, I will pray in the name of the Lord, I will call upon the name of the Lord, I will rejoice in the name of the Lord. It seems to be a constant phrase used in the old Testament.

In New Testament there's a phrase that very similar, in fact, it's parallel and we say in the name of the Lord Jesus -- in the name of the Lord Jesus. Go with me to the bottom of Page 3: Then I called upon the name of the Lord! Jesus said: "And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name (there it is), that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask any thing in my name, I will do it."

Now you've noticed even when we prayed today, remember what James says, you anoint them with oil and then you pray in the name of the Lord. And here it says if I ask any thing in the name of the Lord Jesus, He will do it. Now maybe David addressed Almighty God as Adonai or Lord...but we as Christians in our times of deep distress we call upon the name of Jesus. He's our Lord, our God, and our Master. And over and over again in the Scriptures we read, "In My name," "In Jesus' name," or "In His name." Jesus told His disciples that "even the devils are subject unto us through His name."

Top of page 4: so let's take a moment and let's think about what it means to pray "in the name of Jesus." You remember when Peter and John after the day of Pentecost they've gone up to the temple to pray and there's a man and that's been lame and they say, in the name of Jesus, silver and gold have we none but whatever we have; In the name of Jesus rise up and walk.

When they give the explanation a little later he says, through His name faith in His name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know. There are many other verses, but Colossians 3:17, And whatsoever you do in word or in deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by Him.

Now let me suggest that a basic understanding of what it means to pray in Jesus' name will not only serve to prevent wrongful praying, but also will open the door into a level of prayer henceforth unknown to most of us. And here's what I'm saying; that most of us use that almost every day in our prayers. Remember we say our prayer and we say, now in Jesus' name, amen. It's just something that flows naturally from us. But most of us have never taken time to think through what we're really saying. What does it mean to say, in the name of Jesus?

You know, there have been times as your pastor when I have come face to face with problems and I have not known how to pray. I just say, in Jesus' name, in the name of Jesus, in the name of Jesus help me. It's a short prayer, but it's a powerful prayer. And I'm using 3 illustrations. Notice the first one. I'm in the middle of page 4 now. Illustration #1 we pull out of the Old Testament out of Exodus, and it has to do with Moses.

Remember Moses has been called to go back to Egypt to deliver his people from their bondage, and in verse 1 of chapter 4 of Exodus he said, God, I've been gone for 40 years. They don't even know who I am, so who am I going to tell them that sent me?. How am I going to prove that I'm here authentically and I'm on an assignment from You dear God? And God says, what's that thing you've got in your hand? It was a shepherd's staff known as a rod. God said take that rod and throw it down. He took the rod and threw it down and it became a serpent, and he started running.

No, God said, go back and take it by the tail and pick it up, and when he picked it up it became a rod again. What God is saying, now you have a symbol of authority. That's your credential and I want you to use that, and when you read Exodus 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 over and over again Moses is going to use that rod as his credential of authority. He walks into the Pharaoh's palace and he said, let my people go. And the Pharaoh said, who told you? He cast his rod on the palace floor and it becomes a serpent.

And old Pharaoh says, well that's nothing. He calls in the magicians; cast your rods down; the magicians cast their rods down and they became serpent too. But all of a sudden Moses' rod swallowed up all the rods, all the serpents, of the magicians. Now, now the Pharaoh knows he's got a power far superior to his that he's going to have to confront. And over and over again Moses takes that rod and in verse 17 of the same chapter it's now renamed 'the rod of God'.

In your notes down about two-thirds, that rod in the hand of Moses now is a credential of authority, calling what God was into the situation. With that rod, and all that it implied, Moses defeated the magicians of Egypt, brought the plagues upon the land, opened the Red Sea for that miraculous crossing, brought water out of the rock, and defeated Amalek in the Valley of Rephidim.

And may I suggest that all that the rod was in the hand of Moses, the name of the Lord is to us. It brings all that God is in Christ into the situation prayed for, as well as the one who prays it. When you say, in the name of Jesus, you're using divine authority and you're claiming His authority -- in the name of Jesus. What we're saying is, Jesus, into this situation, whatever it is, however You want to work according to Your divine plan, You're the one in charge. In Your name Lord Jesus, You intervene.

The next illustration comes from marriage. It's customary in most lands that the bride bear the name of the husband. In the marriage ceremony she is legally placed into the name of her husband. So let's suppose that a bride is very poor. She has no money in the bank, no real estate, no borrowing power, no earning power, no record of any monetary worth, but the moment she becomes "Mrs." she moves out of the realm of her past and into all that the name of her husband means.

As a little guy I heard the story of Cinderella, and it's been so long I forgot just how it ends, but if I wrote the story I think Cinderella got everything the Prince had. Right? That's my point. The little poor girl becomes Mrs. Prince and all of a sudden she now has all the wealth of her husband.

Look at the top of page 5. You say, how does that fit in this? Let me show you. For the purpose of my illustration, I am suggesting that this poor girl married a very wealthy person who now makes her a partner in all the wealth. As I was preparing this a few weeks ago I had a wealthy friend from Southern California who lives in Malibu, and he spends single for many, many years and now he brings this lovely little lady who came from almost nothing. I was thinking of this sermon and here's the little lady, because I know he loves her and loves Christ, she's no longer the poor little girl from wherever she came from; she's now a wealthy lady from Malibu -- she's Mrs.

You say how does that work as Christians? As Christians, we are the bride of Christ. Now you've got to think spiritually. For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones. For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh. This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and His church. So Christ is the Bridegroom and we are the Bride of Christ as Christians.

Look at what the Bible says. Paul writes, "I am jealous for you with a godly jealously. I promised you to one husband, to Christ, so that I might present you as a pure virgin to Him." Look at what it says in Revelation, "Let us rejoice and be glad and give Him glory! For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and His bride, that's the church we've arrived in heaven and it's time to start celebrating. John sees that great celebration in heaven in Revelation 19:7.

Look at what Romans 8 says, "The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God's children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs-heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ." So everything that Christ has we conjointly have together. All He has I'm a co-heir with Him. Now let me say this reverently, and you've probably never heard this before in a church service: but the Church (the Bride of Christ which are the born-again Christians) betrothed to become Mrs. Jesus, if you please, has been authorized to operate in the name of Jesus.

Because my wife is Mrs. Sheley, wherever she goes she says Pastor Sheley is my husband, and by that authority that I carry is her authority too. Right? Now what I am suggesting, that as Christians that authority that He has, we're co-heirs with it. That is a powerful thought folks, but when you begin to understand that.

Look at the number 3 illustration. This illustration comes from the legal field-the power of attorney. As you know this is a legal arrangement whereby one person may represent another in his absence in certain or all matters which require his signature. Now I have a power of attorney so that when I travel to Borneo, wherever I go, that power of attorney is all-inclusive -- it's a document. It's been authorized, notarized, signed by the attorneys and so forth. So in the event of my absence, or should I have an accident and not come home, my wife by taking that slip of paper she becomes me in my absence and she can sign my name on anything that appears. She now operates in my absence with my full authority. Got it? Power of attorney -- many of you folks have that.

In our notes I suggest Jesus has given every believer unlimited and general power of attorney in all matters and with this the right to use His name, His authority in matters that are purposed to bring honor and praise and glory to His name. We are His representatives here on earth. Paul calls us ambassadors. We are His hands. Paul says, for me to live is for the life of Christ to be relived in my living. And what happens as Christians, we're here on this earth to do the work of Jesus. We're His representatives. He's gone; He's in heaven, but we're here and by that designation that we are Christians, we have the power to represent Christ. That which brings honor -- we are His voice, we are His hands, we are His feet, we are Him -- representing Him now in this world. And because we bear the name of Christ, we bear the authority of Christ as His ambassador.

When an Ambassador goes to another country and represents their country, they say I'm from the United States and the president has given me this authority, and under that authority he speaks for the president. You and I as Christians in our world we speak for Jesus. We live for Jesus. We do His work with our hands. We fulfill His ministry, and He's given us that power -- His name.

So here's the conclusion to the matter: when we say in Jesus' name, we're saying Lord Jesus, into this situation whatever it takes to fulfill Your divine purpose and to bring glory and honor to You, You now act with divine authority and I bow to that authority. As we prayed all this week, I kept praying in Jesus' name may it be Lord that as the folks gather this weekend a marvelous sense of Your presence will fill this house and as people are prayed for, in Jesus' name, You touch their bodies. And what I was simply saying -- Jesus, however You choose to manifest Your glory, however You choose to demonstrate Your power, You in Your divine authority act in our midst this weekend in Jesus' name, in Jesus' name.

Now when you pray, when you say that phrase, you realize it's a powerful phrase. Jesus, I'm submitting all that I prayed to You. I'm not asking for my will. I want Your divine will. I want whatever takes place to bring honor and praise and glory to You, and Your name, in Your divine authority You do it. And David says I called on the name of the Lord and He heard me.

Father, we love You today and in Jesus' name I ask You to touch every family, every person here, and You do in their lives and their families and their hearts all that will bring honor and praise to You in Jesus' name, in Jesus' name, in the name of the Lord. Amen. God bless you all. God bless you.