Of Righteousness and Overcoming

“Lead me, O LORD, in thy righteousness because of mine enemies; make thy way straight before my face.” (Ps 5:8 AV)

For every saint, there are three common enemies.  There is the world.  The world is all of lost humanity, the systems which they create, and the temptations they offer.  There is the flesh.  The flesh is that part of us that desires to be pleased more than to please God.  Then there is the devil.  He and his minions can make life rather difficult.  They are limited by the permissive will of God.  God allows their influence so that we might learn many lessons we would not otherwise learn.  These three are common to all saints.  But there are other enemies that could perhaps be grouped with one of these three.  This morning, my enemies are discouragement and weakness.  They could be lumped in with the flesh.  Unlike David, our enemies are not always physical.  He fought the Philistines and his other neighbors.  He fought Goliath.  He fought Absalom.  He fought armies and individuals who would compromise the peace of Israel.  We, on the other hand, wrestle with principalities and powers and rulers of darkness.  As I said, discouragement is a great enemy to face!

David’s answer is to live in righteousness.  This may sound odd.  David is a warrior.  What does righteousness have to do with wielding a sword or spear?  What does righteousness have to do with battle strategy?  Isn’t the whole point of warfare to destroy everything in your path?  The same could be said of discouragement, fear, envy, frustration, or any other unhealthy emotion.  What does righteousness have to do with our emotional state?  Everything!  Aside from the obvious, by living in the righteousness of God we live in the strength of the power of God.  We can no more live right by our own strength that we can face the giants of discouragement or anxiety.  By living in the strength of the LORD for one, we also receive the strength of the LORD for all others.  Let’s face it.  Our battles come from many different directions and often many are faced at the same time.  Discipline of the flesh to avoid sin and fighting discouragement often go hand in hand.  Discouragement has a way of evaporating hope so that we see no point in living right before God.  Therefore, being led in the way of righteousness has everything to do with receiving strength against the enemy.

If we see no point in what we are doing, then we will not care how we do it.  That is David’s point here.  All he can do is battle to the best of his ability.  He cannot control who or what is at enmity with him.  His enemies will vary.  They will come from different directions, with various numbers, and for no reason other than he and Israel exist.  He cannot control their feelings about him or his nation.  They are what they are.  What he can control is his dependence on God.  He can control his walk with God by seeking strength through righteousness.  That is our goal.  We cannot predict or battle enemies that we cannot see on the horizon.  Try as we may, we can study and pray, but the enemy will still come.  Weariness in well-doing is a real thing.  We cannot relinquish our well-doing.  We must remain steadfast in doing well.  Righteousness is the key.  By asking the for the LORD’s strength and leading into righteousness, then enemies we cannot see will diminish.  Eventually, they will be defeated.