Thirsting For the Living God

Are you thirsting for the living God? Noel explains our need for God as he continues his series from the Psalms.

Thirsting For God

As we continue studying Psalms 42 and 43, we move on to Psalm 42:1.

As the deer pants forth of flowing streams, so pants my soul for O God.

The deer dwells in the wilderness. Israel is a wasteland, and most of it is in the wastelands in northern Israel. But yet it floods, the Jordan floods, and many of the lowland pockets fill up with water. And as the heat of the summer dries on, those pockets dry up. And the deer, who is thirsty, pants and struggles to find the next pocket of dry water that he can search for. So he’s looking for that flowing river, a river that would just flow all the time, not just in the wet season.

So you can imagine this deer and place yourself as that deer panting for the waters. Our desire is to seek a living God. And we see that later on in the passage, my soul thirsts for God, the living God.

False Gods and Idols

There are many false gods, many idols, many things that seem like a God, but they’re not going to satisfy your thirst. Only the living God will satisfy that thirst. Jesus himself experienced thirst. On the cross, he said, “I thirst,” and was given vinegar in mockery.

We can consider this moment and another instance in the wilderness when Jesus had neither food nor water as the devil taunted him. Further on in Psalm 43, the presence of the deceiver is evident in verse 1,

“Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people.” Psalm 43:1

From the deceitful and unjust man, deliver us. All people face temptation and struggle. The deceiver is always seeking, as a roaring lion. Jesus also encountered this great deceiver and prevailed using the words of scripture.

Thirst For Freedom

In a similar vein, we can also see the great thirst for freedom as the Israelites desired deliverance from slavery, and recognize the turmoil it involved. Many of us face turmoil in our lives as well. Whether it be Egypt, the wilderness, slavery, oppression, sins, or general life challenges, such circumstances can cause significant stress.

This stress can ultimately only be fulfilled by the Lord Jesus Christ.

My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. Psalm 42:2

Whom shall come and appear before God? It is a wonder that Jesus opened the floodgates so that we can go straight to him.

We can go before the throne of the living God and go directly to him. This leads us to the idea of coming out of Egypt and exile, fleeing with the purpose of worshipping God in person. In doing so, they brought their sacrifices to the altar, where God dwelt among his people.

Today, it is a glorious thought that God continues to dwell among his people in living tabernacles. My tears have been my food day and night, while they say to me all day long, where is your God? Not only do the tears flow, but they are his substance. You can’t eat, you can’t drink, you can’t sleep. All you have is your tears and the mockery of those around, asking where your God is.

Where is Your God?

We could see these lines in men like Jonah and Job, who looked around and mocked the idea of where God is. We think specifically of Job and his journey of losing all three major things in his life, and yet he held on to the one that would be his redeemer, his hope. This psalm is particularly about hope. Where is your God? Not only is that saying so common, but it is what was placed upon Jesus. He hung upon the cross, and they mocked him.

Others you can save, but you can’t save yourself. Matthew 27:42

Where is God? These things I remember as I pour out my soul. How would I go with the throng and lead them to the procession to the house of God with a glorious shout and songs of praise, a multitude keeping festival? That’s the true joy of every Christian, to be with the throng of Christians remembering the living God, and that too was the joy all through the generations of humankind. Going up to worship the Lord together.

Meeting With the Lord’s People

It should be a great memory, and when your life is in turmoil, and things aren’t going right, think of the blessing of going to meet with the Lord’s people, up with the throng, and worshipping the living God. David recalls with joy the days of close fellowship with God. David wanted to build that temple. He wanted to be even closer to God, to go up with the people with joy. God forbade him from doing it, from building the temple, but he did have a tabernacle, and David remembered those days. David travelled up with his family to Jerusalem to celebrate the Lord.

Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Psalm 42:11

Hope in God, for I shall again praise him for my salvation. The key answer is hope. Hope in God. You must remember the past so that you can get through the present and hold on to the future. The hope is the eternal thing that every Christian should hold on to. The hope of their salvation. The hope of the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. So many of us self focus, and sometimes it’s hard to stay focused on hope. Sometimes the turmoil is so great that life becomes overwhelming and hope can be lost. And if you focus on yourself, you will lose that hope. You must open your eyes and always look to Jesus, for hope is found only in the living God.

David’s Hope

David always kept up this hope. David wandered through the wilderness multiple times, once with Saul, and later when his own son kicked him out of Jerusalem. But he always remained hopeful, casting his care and hope always on the Lord Jesus, his Saviour. In light of all this, we too should continue to hope. Our souls may be deeply dejected. It’s easy to feel cast down, especially in challenging times.

There are many things that cause us to cast down our spirit. Why are you cast down, oh my soul? And why is there turmoil within me? These are good questions. If you see it here today with a cast down spirit and a troubled spirit, these are very valuable questions, and the Lord wants to answer them for you. Some of you might have a cast-down spirit because you’re not right with God.

Perhaps you haven’t bowed the knee and professed him as the Lord and Saviour, so that he can be your living God. Or perhaps today you’re struggling with sin, and it needs to be confessed. Or perhaps you’re in turmoil, and life is just looking so crazy and dizzy, and there are so many things happening in your life, so many sadnesses and discouragements, that you feel turmoil within you and your soul is feeling cast down. Then I tell you to put your hope in God so that again you may praise the living God, your salvation. It’s very hard to praise him if you’re cast down, but you must lift up your eyes regardless of the living God.

Are you thirsting for the Living God? In what way? We would to hear from you. Comment below or contact us at HopeStreamRadio.