A PLACE CALLED WIT’S END

TEXT: Psalm 107:23-27

Introduction:   In this psalm, the place called "wit's end" is on a ship's deck in a storm-tossed sea. Giant waves carry the ship up to the heavens, and then drop it down to the depths. Powerful winds toss it back and forth so that none of the sailors can find their "sea legs" – 27. They stagger across the deck like drunken men. The sailors have to struggle just to hold on. It looks like it's all over for them, and they're in total despair. They are helpless and vulnerable to the power of the elements. They are unable to stop the storm, and powerless to save themselves. These sailors have come to a place called "wit's end"

    It is a condition that afflicts all Christians at one time or another. This phrase means, "To have come to the place where there is no perceived way out". It is the end of all human ability and resources. There is no escape, no help, no deliverance, other than in God Himself

I.           many have already arrived at wit’s end

A.        Like the sailors on the ship, we were going about our business, then out of nowhere a storm hit, the waves of trouble crash down on all sides

1.      Life's troubles seldom come one at a time

2.      They are like the waves of a storm, they come one after another, fast and furious

3.      Like the sailors, our "soul is melted because of trouble" - 26 (melted means fainting with fear)

B.        We must notice that it is God who initiated this storm – 25

1.      He is the One who brought the sailors to this place

2.      He is the One raising the wind, stirring up the waves, tossing the ship; it is all His doing

C.        In this there can be great encouragement for our faith

1.      Whenever troubles hit us from all sides, we have the knowledge that all storms in life have been ordained by God

2.      The Lord brings us to wit's end, and He has a purpose in it all - I Peter 1:6-7, 4:12-13

3.      God is not surprised by our ordeal

4.      It happens because He wants to produce something in our heart, to reveal His glory in us

D.        When did the storm stop for the sailors, when did God bring them into their desired safe haven

1.      First, the sailors came to their wits' end, they give up on all human hope or help – 27

2.      They said, "There's no way we can save ourselves, nobody on earth can get us out of this”

3.      Second, they cried to the Lord in the midst of their trouble, they turned to Him alone for help – 28-30

4.      Our battle will not end until we give up trying to figure it all out, and throw ourselves completely on God's care

5.      Until He has accomplished His eternal purposes in us, our troubles will continue to rage

6.      We keep the storm raging, when we refuse to put a childlike trust and confidence in Him

II.         God keeps bringing us to wits end, until we learn to trust Him completely

A.        This happen time after time with the children of Israel in the wilderness

1.      God brought them to wit's end, to test them, to see if they would trust Him; but they often failed

2.      God had brought them to wit’s end immediately after leaving Egypt, by leading them to the Red Sea

a)      He had shut them in; the sea in front, the mountains on both sides, and Pharaoh behind

b)      God had actually led them to a place of human hopelessness; to wit's end

3.      If they would have trusted God, they could have been free of all fear and worry

B.        We find ourselves in a hard place, with a storm brewing; ask, how did we get there

1.      Did the devil put us there - Psalm 37:23

2.      No matter what storm we are going through, God has put us in that place, at wit's end

C.        God is never caught by surprise

1.      He does not have to ad lib His divine direction whenever troubles befall us

2.      He does not flip some coin to determine His actions on our behalf

3.      Long before Israel left Egypt and arrived at the Red Sea, God's plan for them was already set

4.      He had known all along exactly what He was going to do

D.        God has a plan to bring us out of our storm

1.      In fact, He has devised a plan long before our trouble even started

2.      He will hold it back to the very last moment, waiting for us to trust Him

3.      He wants to see if we will put our life into His hands and say, "Live or die, I will trust the Lord”

E.        Israel failed this test; they became fearful and fainting at wit's end

1.      God still did for them what He had planned all along, He delivered Israel with a mighty miracle

2.      The result was, the people sang their song of faith on the wrong side of the Red Sea

3.      If they would have simply trusted God, they would have passed the test

F.         If we panic at wit's end, as Israel did (fainting, accusing God of not caring), He will move in at the last moment and deliver us

1.      Afterward, He will take us to another wit's end experience, because we did not come through the last one trusting in Him

2.      Just three days after their Red Sea deliverance, Israel was back in the middle of another big crisis

a)      The people were hot, exhausted, and overcome by thirst

b)      Their scouts came back saying, "There is water ahead at Marah, but we can t drink it, it's too bitter”

c)      Once more, the people were at wit's end, and what a wailing went up from the camp

d)      They made awful accusations against Moses and God, "You've brought us here to die"

3.      Did God know these waters at Marah were bitter; of course He did, but He had a plan (a tree)

4.      God has already planted a tree of deliverance for us

a)      He knows exactly what to do about our problem, and the exact hour He will do it

b)      All He wants from us is a quiet trust

G.       If we do not learn to trust the Lord in simple, childlike faith when we are being tested, He will bring us back to another testing ground, and we will go from one test to another

H.        God has always had a plan for His people, and He has a plan for us right now

III.       when we are at wit’s end, one of two things will happen to us

A.        Every Christian emerges from wit's end either trusting in man, or trusting fully in God

1.      They are either cursed or blessed

2.      Which way will you respond in your time of trouble - Jeremiah 17:5-8

B.        Consider those who trust in man - Jeremiah 17:5-6

1.      He takes matters into his own hands, making his own plans, He is always scheming, planning, manipulating

2.      Spiritual dryness will set into this person's life [he shall be like the heath (shrub) in the desert]

3.      He will never partake in the joy of being delivered by God's hand

4.      Everything he thinks looks good, turns into misery

5.      He is isolated, existing only in "parched places," he keeps withering away always frantic

C.        Consider the one who trusts God in the hard places, at wit's end – Jeremiah 17:7-8

1.      This Christian is "planted"

a)      He has roots, stability, and a reservoir of Living Water

b)      He is always "spreading out," fruitful and green with fresh life

2.      When things get hot and bothersome, he won't be afraid (“careful” means worried, fearful, or sorry)

3.      This person says, "Jesus, I turn to You alone, You are my only keeper, my only hope, and I look to You to bring me out of this"

a)      The Lord desires this kind of faith from us in every matter

b)      God says, "Trust Me, and you will be blessed"

D.        Let us all surrender our wills, and our personal agendas; when we come to this place called wit's end

E.        Let it become a place of renewed faith and trust in our loving Father