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There are certain similarities between Psalm 3 and 4. For example, Psalm is sometimes labeled a morning Psalm. 

Psalm 3:5 "I laid me down and slept; I awakened; for the Lord sustained me" 

While Psalm 4, has been called theevening Psalm. 

Psalm 4:8 "I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for Thou Lord only makest me to dwell in safety"

In both, David is besieged with sufferin,in justice. Additionally, Psalm 4 also exhibits the changing of attitudes of the worshiper in his most difficult circumstances. David's movement will be from anziery to assurance, as he travels down the road of prayer and trust in God 1  

I think if we follow David's pattern can expect to experience similar results. Here in Psalm 4, we see 4 keys to go from anxiety to assurance. 

  1. Run to God "hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness." Vs 1a
  2. Remind yourself of what God has done for you thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress" Vs 1b
  3. Remember that the world us cinubg ti ab end Vs 2-5
  4. Restate the promises of God Vs 6-8

Run to God

Psalm 4:1a "Hear me when I call" 

The word "hear" is always used in the senseof trying to get someonen to pay attention, inessences what he is saying is, "listen to me, grant me an audience."

One of the things about prayer that often goes unnoticed is the fact we can pray to God at all. 

No one here deserves an audience with almighty God, the fact that we can pray to God at all.

No one here deserves an audience with almighty God, the fact that we can bring our request to God is because of His mercy. 

                       Martin Luther said this, 

"God wants us to pray, and He wants to hear our prayers not because we are worthy, but becuase He is merciful."

Here we see David come to God with boldness, he has great confidence that not only will God hear his prayer but give him what he is asking for.

As Believers, we can be just as confident, not because we are important but becuase of what Jesus did on our behalf. 

When you think about it, most of the things we come to God about are things when you consider the grand scheme of the things trivial. 

                    A guy by the name of Time Keller made this point: 

" The only person who dares wake a king at 3:00 a.m. for a glass of water is a child. We have that kind of access." 

God listens to us not becuase we are important in the way some dignitary is, God listens to us becuase we are important in the same way a child is important to a parent. 

                       The content of David's conversation with the Lord

David didn't come to God talking about all the things that he had done for God, instead he remembers what God has done for Him. Which brings us to our second key....

Remind yourself about what GOd has done for you. 

Psalm 4:1b "Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness, thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress"

The phrase "thou hast enlarged me" is meant to point to the fact that there was I time that David was pressed down, and confined, or trapped, hence the use of the word "enlarged," which meant literally to make room for. 

             He felt that God had rescued him before. 

Some of us make the mistake of thinking that our Christian life is all about the things we do for God. 

Part of the reason that David was able to so bold in his faith is because he was always remembering how God had provided. 

Question, 

When is the last time you remembered what God has done for you? 

The Bible says that we are to "lay aside every weight, and the sin that doth so easily beset us" (Heb 12:1) 

The word "beset" is a word that was used in the military that meant to lay siege to something. It hasthe idea of being constricted, of being trapped. 

What David is doing here ispointing to the grace of God. He's not saying that GOd is on his side because he was such a fin up-standing man, he's laying hold of God's mercy. He knows that he doesn't deserve the kindness that God has shown him, he points to God's mercy.  Notice the last part of vs 1

                   The source of David's confience

Psalm 4:1d "Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness, thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress, have mercy on me, and hear my prayer"

David's present confidence was based on God's past performance. 

Some of us, God has rescued us from some dark things, and yet we are still struggling to trust him with our present. 

The fact that God has saved us in the past, should give us confidence in the fact that He will deliver us here and now. 

      Question: deliver us from what?

Any and everything! God didn't save us so that we can defeated by the world, the Bible says that we are "more than conquerors through HIm who loved us" (Rom 8:37)

Again, notice the source of our confidence, "through Him who loved us". That's what faith is, trusting God based on how He has acted in history. 

What Paul is talking about in Romans was the death burial and resurrection of Jesus. What David is talking here in Psalm 4 is the fact that God has shown him mercy repeatedly. 

Recap

Before we move to our next point, I want us to notice something about David's conversation with God. 

I want us to notice the content,heasked for deliverance. Here wer don't see him trying to figure out things on his own. He goes to God with confidence. 

In other words, he puts anxieties in God's hands. Remember, this Psalm is known as the "Psalm of the evening." 

When your lying-in bed trying to go to sleep there's not a lot you can do about your bills or family situation. The best thing you can do for yourself to rest knowing that God is watching over you. 

Remember the world is coming to an end Psalm 4:2-5

Psalm 4:2 "O ye sons of men, how loing will ye turn my glory into shame? How long will you love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah"

All the world's plans and schemes will in the end fail because they are:

  1. Pointless "how long will you chase after vanity." 
  2. Delusional "how long will you seek after leasing," 

Ultimately their plans will fail because they are fighting against God! David has been set apart for God. 

God had given him a task, and there isnothing his enemies could do to stop him because God had a plan for his life. 

It is a Bible fact that what God plans, comes to pass,

Ecc 3:14 says " I know that whatever God does, it shall be forever, and nothing can be added to it, nd nothing taken from it,"

Eph says that God "works all things after the counsel of His will"

Psa 4:3 "But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him."

The word "godly" meant someone that was truly pious, the idea here is that "God had appointed him for God's own great purposes, so that real aim of the rebels was to oppose Yahweh; and the purposes in wheich they were engaged could not, therefore, be successful.2  

Psa.4:3b "the Lord will hear when I call" 

Again, the source of David's confience is God, why will God listen to David? Because, David is engaged in His battle. 

The same could be said of us,  just like David, you and I are appointed to perform a service for God, so we may confidently say that GOd will hear us when we call. This means that we are unstoppable. 

Restate the promises of God. 

(The Bad News)

Psa. 4:4 "Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still"

The phrase "stand in awe" meant to "tremble" quiver, here he isinviting us to a holy terror. 

David is rigthfully reminding us of the fact that God is holy, and that He will judge sin! (Heb. 10:31)

Some of you are thingking that doesn't sound very comforting or assuring. It's not comforting or assuring to people who are in rebellion to God. 

Until, we conclude that we are without any hope apart from God, we will wallow in our own sinfulness and never get saved. 

The pointhere is that are to restate to ourselves daily God wins. 

(The Good news)

Psa: 4:5 "Offer the savrigice of righteousness, and put your trust in God" 

There is no good news with out bad news, the last verse pointed to our natural state before we accept Christ as our only means of salvation. "There is nothing that keeps wicked men at any one moment out of hell, but God's mercy" Vs 5 points us to the way of salvation, 

  1. 5a "Offer the sacrifice of righteousness" this is a picture of what Jesus was going to do on the cross, " When the Jew offered a sacrifice righteously, that is, in a spiritual manner, he thereby set forth the Redeemer, the great sin-atoning Lamb; there is, therefore, the full gospel in this exhortation of the Psalmist. O sinners, flee ye to the sacrifices of Calovary, and there put your whole confidence and trust, for he who died formen is the Lord Jehovah.3 "   
  2. 5b "and put your trust in God" It's not enough that we are aware of Christ has done for us, we must trust it. 

Because of the promises of God, David can rest

Psa: 4: 6-8 "There will be many that say, who will show us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Thou has put gladness in my heart, more htan in the time that their corn increased. I will lay me down in peace, and sleep for thou, Lord, only makest me to dwell in safety" 

The world is looking for good, something that can give them assurance of any kind, however apart from God there is no good. 

When we rid ourselves of God, we rid ourselves of all His gifts. Notice vs7 "Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased." The world has everything, and still is not satisfied, the point that David is making here is that the world will never be able to satisfy us because what the world has to offer is temporal. Therefore, we can rest assured in God vs 8 "I will both lie down in peace, and sleep; for you alone oh Lord make dwell in safety" because we are trusting in an eternal perfect plan. 

 

                              
1 I've taken this from "The Macarthur Study Bible" page 745
2 Albert Branes Psalm 4
3 C.H. Spurgeon "Treasury of David"