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I want you to turn in your Bible to Psalm 142:4, to that passage of Scripture that Dr. Chan read earlier in the service. And let’s all stand together for the reading of God’s Word. I am going to preach this morning on “The Greatest Problem Facing Young People Today.” Our text is Psalm 142:4.

David wrote these words to describe an event that happened to him years earlier, when he was just a young person. David said,

“I looked on my right hand, and beheld, but there was no man that would know me: refuge failed me; no man cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

The last six words of that verse will be my text this morning,

“No man [literally, no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

You may be seated.

King Saul had become a demon possessed madman. When the evil spirit entered him, he became a killer (cf. I Samuel 18:10-11). He became so inflamed with jealousy that he tried to murder David – and David ran for his life to escape from being killed.

“And David arose, and fled that day for fear of Saul, and went to Achish the king of Gath” (I Samuel 21:10).

But King Achish discovered who David was. He knew Saul was after him. So David had to leave that place also. David ran far away

“…and escaped to the cave Adullam” (I Samuel 22:1).

Here, in Psalm 142, David tells us about his lonely days and nights, hiding from the murderous King Saul, in the darkness of that cave. Dr. John Gill says,

The Psalm represents the troubles of David, and of the Messiah [Jesus] his antitype, and is applicable to any soul in distress (John Gill, D.D., Exposition of the Old Testament, The Baptist Standard Bearer, 1989 reprint, volume IV, p. 297).

We will take Dr. Gill’s divisions and look at these words from those different angles this morning.

“No man cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

I. First, the text represents the troubles of David.

This young man was alone. His friends were gone. King Saul was against him. David was in trouble. There seemed no way out. He felt the crushing weight of loneliness. He said,

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

Have you ever felt that way?

One college student told me, “I’ve been terribly lonely.” She felt the pain that so many young people experience today. A young man said to me, “I’ve never been able to hold on to friends. Something always happens to separate us.” A teenager told me, “I’m so lonely I don’t know what to do.” A short time later he committed suicide. What a terrible and tragic end!

According to several polls, college-age young people are tormented by loneliness. These surveys indicate that the college campus doesn’t seem to draw people together into permanent relationships. According to Dr. Leonard Zunin, a prominent psychiatrist, loneliness may well be the worst problem confronting young people in our culture. A recent Gallup poll indicates that nearly fifty percent have experienced “intense loneliness.” The other fifty percent also experience varying degrees of loneliness. Think of it! Nearly one hundred percent of college-age and high school-age young people have feelings of depression and anxiety related to loneliness!

Have you ever felt the pain of loneliness? This young man, David, expressed those feelings when he said,

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

And the Internet is not the answer! Technology cannot take the place of real living human beings! Josh McDowell said,

Today’s youth are logging on to the Internet for more than just information and entertainment. Increasing numbers of young people are using e-mail and chat rooms in an attempt to connect socially with others. Yet people who are seeking emotional and relational connections on-line are finding electronic relationships unfulfilling, a cheap substitute for in-person friendships and interaction. A study out of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh reveals that the more hours a person spends on the Internet, the more depressed, stressed, and lonely he or she feels (Josh McDowell, The Disconnected Generation: Saving Our Youth From Self-Destruction, Word Publishing, 2000, p. 9).

The Internet is truly “a cheap substitute” for real friends! Where are they when you need them? A machine cannot replace real friends! No wonder so many young people feel like David, when he said,

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

If you have felt like that, I have news for you – there is an answer! Jesus Christ is the answer to your loneliness, and fear, and sin! Come to Christ and be saved! That’s the reason we say, “Why be lonely? Come home – to church! Why be lost? Come home – to Jesus Christ and He will save you” – from sin, from loneliness, from fear, from Hell, and from the grave!

Dr. Rice was right!

Oh, what a fountain of mercy is flowing,

Down from the crucified Saviour of men.

Precious the blood that He shed to redeem us,

Grace and forgiveness for all of our sin.

   (“Oh, What a Fountain” by Dr. John R. Rice, 1895-1980).

II. Second, the text represents the troubles of Jesus, the Messiah.

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

Those words perfectly describe the suffering that Jesus went through to save you from sin and its consequences. The prophet Isaiah said,

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows”
      (Isaiah 53:4).

The loneliness that you feel was borne by Christ – in the Garden of Gethsemane, and then on the Cross.

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows”
      (Isaiah 53:4).

The night before He was crucified, Jesus went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray.

“And they came to a place which was named Gethsemane: and he saith to his disciples, Sit ye here, while I shall pray. And he taketh with him Peter and James and John, and began to be sore amazed, and to be very heavy; And saith unto them, My soul is exceeding sorrowful unto death: tarry ye here, and watch”
      (Mark 14:32-34).

But they didn’t do what He asked. Instead, they went to sleep – and Jesus was left alone, in the darkness of a deep recess in the Garden.

It was alone the Saviour prayed

   In dark Gethsemane.

Alone He drained the bitter cup,

   And suffered there for me.

Alone, alone, He bore it all alone;

   He gave Himself to save His own,

He suffered, bled and died alone, alone.

      (“Alone” by Ben H. Price, 1914).

As Jesus prayed there in the Garden, the Roman soldiers came marching in and arrested Him for preaching the Gospel.

“Then all the disciples forsook him, and fled” (Matthew 26:56).

Jesus was now completely alone, facing criminal charges. All His friends and all His Disciples were gone. They dragged Him to court.  They beat Him half to death with a whip, and then they nailed Him to a Cross.

As He hung there, dying on the Cross, He was even forsaken by God. As He died on the Cross, Jesus cried out,

“My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”
      (Matthew 27:46).

The word translated “forsaken” is from the Greek word “enkataleipō,” which means “to leave behind, to abandon” (W. E. Vine, An Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, Fleming H. Revell, 1966, p. 126). J. C. Ryle says,

There is a deep mystery in these words, which no mortal man can fathom…At that awful moment the iniquity of us all was laid upon Him to the uttermost…He bore our sins. He carried our transgressions…When he said, “Why hast Thou forsaken me?” He implied that God had for the time withdrawn from Him the sense and vision of His comfortable presence (J. C. Ryle, Expository Thoughts on the Gospel of Matthew, Banner of Truth, 1995 reprint, pp. 394-395).

The Bible says,

“He hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him”
      (II Corinthians 5:21).

Jesus died alone, cut off from His friends, cut off from God. Jesus could truly say,

“No man cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

And Jesus died alone to pay the penalty for your sins. The prophet Isaiah said,

“He was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5).

And we are also told by the prophet,

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows”
      (Isaiah 53:4).

I believe that this is why Jesus died completely alone. I believe that He bore the grief and sorrow of your loneliness. Loneliness is a by-product of sin, and Jesus bore the full weight of sin and all its by-products on the Cross.

“Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows”
      (Isaiah 53:4).

Dr. Gill says,

Christ not only assumed a true human nature, capable of sorrow and grief, but he took all the natural sinless infirmities of it…and to all the sorrow and pain arising from them; the same sorrows and griefs he was liable as we are…and hence…he healed the diseases of the soul, by bearing the sins of his people… (Gill, op. cit., volume V, p. 312).

I believe that the loneliness you feel was borne by Christ on the Cross! And Christ can heal “the diseases of the soul.” Christ can heal your loneliness – because He carried the pain of it to the Cross! He bore the grief of loneliness on that Cross – to heal you from sin and loneliness!

When you come to Christ, your sins are forgiven, and your loneliness begins to be healed! Why be lonely? Come home – to church! Why be lost? Come home – to Christ, the Son of God!

III. Third, the text is applicable to any soul in distress.

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

The two loneliest places in the universe are the grave and the darkness of Hell. And every human death is a tragedy. It doesn’t matter if you are old, or if you are a little child, or a teenager. When you die, you are alone. No one can go with you down into that coffin. No one can go with you when they burn your body in the pagan manner of cremation. You are alone when you die. And then you will be alone in Hell. In the sixteenth chapter of Luke, Jesus told about a rich man who went to Hell. He was all alone, cut off from others in that place of torment.

The loneliness of Hell and the loneliness of death are indescribably horrible. The dead can truly say,

“No man [no one] cared for my soul” (Psalm 142:4).

Often the thought of death, and the shortness of life, makes young people depressed and fills them with distress.

When my grandmother was buried, I stayed behind after everyone else left. I watched them shovel the dirt into Grandma’s grave. Her body was left there alone, under the earth. That was an unforgettable experience I had as a teenager – seeing that. The grave is a lonely place. And that is where you are going!

But here’s the positive side to the message. David was alone in Adullam cave, hiding in the darkness. But he didn’t stay there! God brought David out of that cave and took him to safety! And that’s a picture of the resurrection of Jesus Christ! David escaped from the cave Adullam! And Jesus Christ escaped from the tomb He had been buried in! God took David out of the cave, and God took Jesus out of the grave! The cave of Adullam was empty. David was gone! The tomb of Jesus was empty. Jesus was gone! The angels said,

“He is not here: for he is risen, as he said” (Matthew 28:6).

Christ is alive! Christ has risen from the dead! You can know Christ personally! You can be born again! The living Christ can save your soul from sin, Hell, and the grave.

“He is not here: for he is risen, as he said” (Matthew 28:6).

Why be lonely? Come home – to church! Why be lost? Come home – to Jesus, the Son of God. He will cleanse your sin and save your soul for all eternity! And be sure to come back tonight at 5:30.  We're going to have a big meal, followed by the Lord's Supper – and then we'll have a big party to celebrate Mrs. Salazar's 60th birthday.  You'll have a lot of fun!  Come home to dinner at the church at 5:30 tonight – and come home to Jesus, the Son of God! 

(END OF SERMON)
You can read Dr. Hymers' sermons each week on the Internet
at www.realconversion.com. Click on “Sermon Manuscripts.”

Scripture Read Before the Sermon by Dr. Kreighton L. Chan: Psalm 142:1-7.
Solo Sung Before the Sermon by Mr. Benjamin Kincaid Griffith:
“Oh, What a Fountain” (by Dr. John R. Rice, 1895-1980).