Contending With God

With the pure thou wilt shew thyself pure; and with the froward thou wilt shew thyself froward. 
For thou wilt save the afflicted people; but wilt bring down high looks. Psa 18:26-27

Charles Haddon Spurgeon
Treasury of David

​"The sinner's frowardness is sinful and rebellious, and the only sense in which the term can be applied to the Most Holy God is that of judicial opposition and sternness, in which the Judge of all the earth will act at cross-purposes with the offender, and let him see that all things are not to be made subservient to wicked whims and wilful fancies. Calvin very forcibly says, “This brutish and monstrous stupidity in men compels God to invent new modes of expression, and as it were to clothe himself with a different character. There is a similar sentence in Lev_26:21-24, where God says, “and if ye walk contrary unto (or perversely with) me, then will I also walk contrary unto (or perversely, or roughly, or at random with) you.”

Lev 26:21  And if ye walk contrary unto me, and will not hearken unto me; I will bring seven times more plagues upon you according to your sins. 
Lev 26:22  I will also send wild beasts among you, which shall rob you of your children, and destroy your cattle, and make you few in number; and your high ways shall be desolate. 
Lev 26:23  And if ye will not be reformed by me by these things, but will walk contrary unto me; 
Lev 26:24  Then will I also walk contrary unto you, and will punish you yet seven times for your sins. 

As if he had said that their obstinacy and stubbornness would make him on his part forget his accustomed forbearance and gentleness, and cast himself recklessly or at random against them. We see then what the stubborn at length gain by their obduracy; it is this, that God hardens himself still more to break them in pieces, and if they are of stone, he causes them to feel that he has the hardness of iron. The Jewish tradition was that the manna tasted according to each man's mouth; certainly God shows himself to each individual according to his character."
​
Psa_18:27
“For thou wilt save the afflicted people.” This is a comforting assurance for the poor in spirit whose spiritual griefs admit of no sufficient solace from any other than a divine hand. They cannot save themselves nor can others do it, but God will save them. “But wilt bring down high looks.” Those who look down on others with scorn shall be looked down upon with contempt ere long. The Lord abhors a proud look. What a reason for repentance and humiliation! How much better to be humble than to provoke God to humble us in his wrath! A considerable number of clauses occur in this passage in the future tense; how forcibly are we thus brought to remember that our present joy or sorrow is not to have so much weight with us as the great and eternal future!"

Futility of Wrestling With God

These two verses give implication of what God decides to do when contending with the rebellious, and unrepentant. Verse 26 describes the perverse man; he that is crooked in his tempers and ways.​
​
Thou wilt show thyself froward -  thou wilt set thyself to twist, twine, and wrestle. If he contend, thou wilt contend with him. Thou wilt follow him through all his windings; thou wilt trace him through all his crooked ways; untwist him in all his cunning wiles; and defeat all his schemes of stubbornness, fraud, overreaching, and deceit.

My old Psalter has, With the wiked thow sal be wike. Here the term wicked is taken in its true original sense, crooked, or perverse. With the wiked, the perverse, thou wilt show thyself wike, i.e., perverse; from to draw back, to slide. As he draws back from thee, thou wilt draw back from him. It may, as before intimated, come from to seek for enchantments; leaving God, and going to devils; to act like a witch: but here it must mean as above. The plain import is, “If thou perversely oppose thy Maker, he will oppose thee: no work or project shall prosper that is not begun in his name, and conducted in his fear.”
Adam Clarke

​Rom 2:4  Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and forbearance and longsuffering; not knowing that the goodness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 
Rom 2:5  But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and revelation of the righteous judgment of God; 
Rom 2:6  Who will render to every man according to his deeds:

Rev 20:12  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

What Are the Afflicted to Do?

In every situation-God is a refuge to His people, He will hear and answer all who call upon Him, in sincerity from their heart. His promises are sure. The bible is full of precious promises, that guide and direct us to come to Him, and pour out our needs, in our times of adversity and ask for His intervention. I've never failed to see Him come into the situation-and either change it, or give me the ability to deal with the situation, and show how to do it. He has answered untold numbers of specific prayers in my life, and provided for my every need. He's shown Himself to be completely true to His Word, and has never failed me. He will do the same for you.

Psa 9:9  The LORD also will be a refuge for the oppressed, a refuge in times of trouble.
​Psa 18:2  The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. 
Psa 18:3  I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 
Psa 32:7  Thou art my hiding place; thou shalt preserve me from trouble; thou shalt compass me about with songs of deliverance. Selah. 
Psa 32:8  I will instruct thee and teach thee in the way which thou shalt go: I will guide thee with mine eye. 

Yes, these promises are true-but, He also adds these instructions:

​Psa 32:9  Be ye not as the horse, or as the mule, which have no understanding: whose mouth must be held in with bit and bridle, lest they come near unto thee. 
Psa 32:10  Many sorrows shall be to the wicked: but he that trusteth in the LORD, mercy shall compass him about.

When there is any need, God's guidance is clear and simple:
​
Php 4:6  Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. 
Php 4:7  And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. 

If you are saved, have given your life and heart to Jesus, He is there, and will hear and answer your prayer. It may not be immediate, it may take time, you may need to make some changes in your life, to open the door for Him to work. You may have to be willing to stand and wait to see the answer come, while He works to change the circumstances. But if you stand in faith, He will intervene in your situation.

Our attitude, and having a humble, grateful heart is important in seeing answers to our prayers:

1Pe 5:6  Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: 
Mat 23:12  And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted.

1Pe 5:7  Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you. 
1Pe 5:8  Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: 
1Pe 5:9  Whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world.

Check whether there is any spirit of greed, envy, jealousies you may be harboring in your heart-this will hinder an answer to prayer:

1Ti 6:6  But godliness with contentment is great gain. 
1Ti 6:7  For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. 
1Ti 6:8  And having food and raiment let us be therewith content. 

Heb 13:5  Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee. 
Heb 13:6  So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me. 

We may find we have to close the door to people who are a source of trouble, and bad influences:

Psa 1:1  Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 
Pro 2:11  Discretion shall preserve thee, understanding shall keep thee: 
Pro 2:12  To deliver thee from the way of the evil man, from the man that speaketh froward things;
Pro 4:14  Enter not into the path of the wicked, and go not in the way of evil men. 
Pro 4:15  Avoid it, pass not by it, turn from it, and pass away. 
Pro 4:16  For they sleep not, except they have done mischief; and their sleep is taken away, unless they cause some to fall. 
Pro 4:17  For they eat the bread of wickedness, and drink the wine of violence. 
Pro 4:18  But the path of the just is as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the perfect day. 
​
Checking our lives with these verses, and many other's like them that are found in scripture, opens the door for the Holy Spirit to come into our lives, and brings peace and stability to our hearts. As we align ourselves with God's direction, and apply His word to our lives, we'll begin to see circumstances move in our favor, and adversities that we've given to Him in prayer-we will find He is more than able to take care of for us. He's proven this to be true in my life, many many times. 

In all these years, He has become all He promises in His word, my Rock, my Refuge, my Deliverer, my Redeemer, a strong Tower against the enemy, my Savior and Lord. Through many adversities, and wrestling in prayer, He's proven His power and ability to answer me, and shown His love for me. Whatever He would ask me to do, I could not say no to Him, my heart is melded to His.
Lorna Couillard