THE PATH OF LIFE: THERE’S ONLY ONE WAY OUT

2026-04-19

Pastor Jonathan Falwell 

Psalm 16:11 (NKJV) You will show me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.

Psalm 18:1–6 (NKJV)I will love You, O Lord, my strength. 2The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold. 3I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies. 4The pangs of death surrounded me, And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid. 5The sorrows of Sheol surrounded me; The snares of death confronted me.

6In my distress I called upon the Lord, And cried out to my God; He heard my voice from His temple, And my cry came before Him, even to His ears.

Erwin Lutzer said, “Until we have learned to be satisfied with fellowship with God, until he is our rock and our fortress, we will be restless with our place in the world.”[i]

1. Knowing my path in life requires me to know my strength in life

Psalm 18:1–6 (NLT) I love you, Lord; you are my strength. 2The Lord is my rock, my fortress, and my savior; my God is my rock, in whom I find protection. He is my shield, the power that saves me, and my place of safety. 3I called on the Lord, who is worthy of praise, and he saved me from my enemies. 4The ropes of death entangled me; floods of destruction swept over me. 5The grave wrapped its ropes around me; death laid a trap in my path. 6But in my distress I cried out to the Lord; yes, I prayed to my God for help. He heard me from his sanctuary; my cry to him reached his ears.

• 9 descriptions of who God is in your life.
  • My strength – hezěq – to grow or make strong
  • My rock – sělǎ – the rocks of a cliff
  • My fortress – msûdãh – a mountain stronghold
  • My deliverer – mpalti (plt) – to be free, to bring out
  • My God
  • My strength – sǔr – a boulder, rocky ground
  • My shield – mãğēn – scales of protection
  • My salvation –
  • My stronghold – miśgãb – inaccessible, unattainable , elevated
• Abide in Jesus, the sinless one—which means, give up all of self and its life, and dwell in God’s will and rest in his strength. This is what brings the power that does not commit sin.[ii] – Andrew Murray

2. Knowing my path in life requires me to see the way out

Vss 16–19 (NLT) He reached down from heaven and rescued me; he drew me out of deep waters. 17He rescued me from my powerful enemies, from those who hated me and were too strong for me. 18They attacked me at a moment when I was in distress, but the Lordsupported me. 19He led me to a place of safety; he rescued me because he delights in me.

• The Christian life is so full of pressures and pains, we often are consumed by the danger of the moment rather than the deliverance which is promised
• To truly navigate life’s challenging moments, we must remember we have never been alone

3. Knowing my path in life requires me to seek the way-maker

Vss 20-29 (NLT) The Lord rewarded me for doing right; he restored me because of my innocence. 21For I have kept the ways of the Lord; I have not turned from my God to follow evil. 22I have followed all his regulations; I have never abandoned his decrees. 23I am blameless before God; I have kept myself from sin. 24The Lord rewarded me for doing right. He has seen my innocence. 25To the faithful you show yourself faithful; to those with integrity you show integrity. 26To the pure you show yourself pure, but to the crooked you show yourself shrewd. 27You rescue the humble, but you humiliate the proud. 28You light a lamp for me. The Lord, my God, lights up my darkness. 29In your strength I can crush an army; with my God I can scale any wall.

• This passage clearly indicates David’s reminder that while God is our refuge and strength, it does require a clear decision and intention on our part
• It is not that God will abandon you unless you do what He says but to fully enjoy the power of His presence requires our attention
• Verse 27 echoes James 4:6, 1 Peter 5:5 and Matthew 23:12:
  • James 4:6 (NKJV) But He gives more grace. Therefore He says: “God resists the proud, But gives grace to the humble.”
  • Matthew 23:12 (NKJV) And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

4. Knowing my path in life requires me to accept there’s only One who can give my life meaning

Psalm 18:30–32 (NLT) God’s way is perfect. All the Lord’s promises prove true. He is a shield for all who look to him for protection. 31For who is God except the Lord? Who but our God is a solid rock? 32God arms me with strength, and he makes my way perfect.

• “perfect” (tãmîm) – complete, unscathed, impeccable

The Message paraphrases it: “Is not this the God who armed me, then aimed me in the right direction?”[iii]

[i] Erwin Lutzer (Quoted by Edythe Draper), Draper’s Book of Quotations for the Christian World, (Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1992.)

[ii] Andrew Murray (Quoted by Mark Water), The New Encyclopedia of Christian Quotations(New Alresford, Hampshire, England, 2000.)

[iii] J. Josh Smith and Daniel L. Akin, Exalting Jesus in Psalms 1–50, ed. David Platt, Daniel L. Akin, and Tony Merida, Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary (Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2022), 132.