54. Flight To God.

I flee unto thee to hide me. - Psalm 143:9.

WHAT a mercy it is for us all that David was not an untried man! We have all been enriched by his painful experience. He was:

A man so various that he seemed to be not one, but all mankind's epitome.

May it not be a blessing to others that we also are tried? If so, ought we not to be right glad to contribute our quota to the benefit of the redeemed family?

David may be our example; let us flee unto God as he did. We shall profit by our foes if we imitate this prudent warrior in his habitual way of escaping from his enemies.

The great point is, however, not only to see what David did, but to do the like promptly, and constantly. What, then, is essential in order to our copying the man of God?

I. A PERCEPTION OF DANGER. No man will flee if he is not afraid; there must be a knowledge and apprehension of danger, or there will be no flight.

1. Men perish in many instances because they have no sense of danger. The noxious air is not observed, the sunken reef is not seen, the train rushes to collision unwarned. Ignorance of danger makes the danger inevitable.

· Men will dare to die without fear of hell.

· Men will sin and have no dread of any ill consequences.

· Men will play with an evil habit and will not believe in its power to enslave them.

· Men will toy with a temptation and refuse to see how certain it is to lead them into actual wrong-doing.

2. Every man is really in danger. The sinner is asleep on the top of a mast. Young and old are both in jeopardy. Even the saints are in peril of temptation from many sources.

3. Some dangers are slowly perceived. Those connected with sweet sin, those which grow out of a boastful mind, those which are countenanced by the example of others, etc. The more dangerous the serpent, the less likely to be seen.

4. The spiritual man is led to perceive dangers by inward monitions, by a spiritual sensitiveness which is the result of devotion, by experience, by perceptible declensions, or by observing the effect of certain things upon others.

II. A SENSE OF WEAKNESS. No man will flee for hiding if he feel able to fight the matter through in his own strength.

1. We are all weak and unable to cope with sin.

2. Some think themselves mighty men of valor, but these are among the very weakest of the weak.

3. Past failure should teach us not to trust our own strength.

4. In a deep sense of weakness we are made strong; in fancied strength lies the worst form of weakness.

III. A PRUDENT FORESIGHT. "I flee unto thee to hide me."

1. He would not venture into the danger or wait till it overtook him; but he took time by the forelock and fled. Often this is the highest form of courage.

2. Escape through fear is admirable prudence. It is not a mean motive; for Noah, "moved by fear, prepared an ark."

3. While we can flee we should, for time may come when we shall be unable. David says, "I flee"; he means, "I am fleeing, I always do flee unto thee, my God."

A man should not live like a beast, who sees no further than the meadow in which he feeds. He should foresee evil and hide himself; for this is common prudence (Prov. 22:3).

IV. A SOLID CONFIDENCE. "To thee to hide me. He was sure:

1.That there was safety in God.

2.That he might flee to God.

3.That he might flee there and then.

V. AN ACTIVE FAITH. He did not lie passive, but aroused himself.

This may be clearly seen:

1. In his fleeing to God. Directness, speed, eagerness.

2. In his after-prayers. "Teach me to do thy will; lead me; quicken me." See verses following the text.

· Expect your share of enemies, and prepare for them.

· Secure your best friend. Be reconciled to Him in Christ Jesus

· Make constant use of Him. Flee to Him at all times.