Sermon Series: A SUMMER IN THE PSALMS
WHERE TO FIND PEACE
Psalm 46
"God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging. SELAH
There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place where the Most High dwells. God is within her, she will not fall; God will help her at break of day. Nations are in uproar, kingdoms fall: He lifts His voice, the earth melts. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. SELAH
Come and see the works of the Lord, the desolations He has brought on the earth. He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth; He breaks the bow and shatters the spear, He burns the shields with fire.
BE STILL, AND KNOW THAT I AM GOD: I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress."
Message:
Isaiah writes: "You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You. Trust in the Lord forever, for in Jehovah the Lord, is everlasting strength." (Isa. 26:3-4)
"This is what the Lord says—your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; "I am the Lord your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.
If only you had paid attention to my commands, YOUR PEACE WOULD HAVE BEEN LIKE A RIVER, your righteousness like the waves of the sea." (Isaiah 48:17-18)
The great hymn of the Church should reveal the condition of our heart and mind in perilous times...
"When peace like a river attendeth my way,
When sorrows like sea billows roll;
Whatever my lot, Thou hast taught me to say,
It is well, it is well, with my soul."
Another hymn sings these words...
I am resting today in this wonderful peace,
Resting sweetly in Jesus' control;
For I'm kept from all danger by night and by day,
And His glory is flooding my soul.
What a treasure I have in this wonderful peace,
Buried deep in the heart of my soul;
So secure that no power can mine it away,
While the years of eternity roll."
This Psalm 46 has an interesting background!
The dreaded Assyrian army had come marching out of the north, pushing southward through Syria into Israel and on south to Judah. Before them the fields were green, or golden with grain; behind them they were bare, swept clean by foraging troops or wantonly burned to the ground. Before them the great cities of Syria and Israel and the outposts of Judah stood, strong and sturdy, built of native stone and wedded to the rocks beneath; behind them were smoke-blackened ruins, strewn with the corpses of the dead, haunts of the birds of prey.
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They had marched on to Jerusalem and drew up in battle array before its towering ramparts. Hezekiah first sought appeasement by paying enormous tribute to buy the invader off: then Sennacherib had second thoughts—how could he afford to leave in his wake, as he marched to further conquests, such a formidable fortress as Jerusalem ungarrisoned by loyal Assyrian troops? How could he afford to leave behind a vassal of such doubtful loyalty as Hezekiah?
He decided he could not do so and sent Rabshakeh with a demand that Hezekiah open the gates of Jerusalem and submit to the Assyrian army. Buoyed by the inspiring messages of Isaiah the prophet, Hezekiah refused to comply with the demand. We know what happened!
Rabshakeh mocked and taunted Hezekiah and the Jews, and the Assyrian army surrounded Jerusalem. Then God sent down an angel to deal with the besieging army. One angel! One night! And the mighty army was no more! It perished where it stood, and Jerusalem was saved. The jubilant city rang with hymns of thanksgiving and praise.
To commemorate the victory this hymn of praise was penned, perhaps by Hezekiah, perhaps by Isaiah, perhaps by an unknown poet laureate of Judah. But there is little doubt it was written to immortalize the triumph of the angel of the living God over the mighty army of the foe.
So great and glorious was the victory and so marvelous the deliverance that Jew and Christian alike have turned instinctively to Psalm 46 whenever disaster strikes and it seems that all hope is lost. For this psalm assures us that God can handle, in His will, in His own good time and way, things which seem like total disaster to us. In the midst of our storm, He gives us peace!
Almost everyone associates Martin Luther with the Book of Romans, particularly Romans 1:17, "The just shall live by faith." We tend to forget that Luther was converted not only by his study of Romans, but also by his study of the psalms. Luther taught the psalms for years and loved them very much, even late in life. His favorite was Psalm 46. It is said of Luther that there were times during the dark and dangerous periods of the Reformation when he was terribly discouraged and depressed. But at such times he would turn to his friend and co-worker Philipp Melanchton and say, "Come, Philipp, let's sing the forty-sixth Psalm." Then they would sing it in Luther's own strong version:
A sure stronghold our God is He,
A timely shield and weapon;
Our help he'll be and set us free
From every ill can happen.
We know it as "A MIGHTY FORTRESS IS OUR GOD."
Luther said, "We sing this psalm to the praise of God, because God is with us and powerfully and miraculously preserves and defends His church and His Word against all fanatical spirits, against the gates of hell, against the implacable hatred of the devil, and against all the assaults of the world, the flesh and sin."
It is in the knowledge of His presence there is peace that flows like a river! Remember the words of Isaiah..."You will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on You. Trust in the Lord forever, for in Jehovah, the Lord, is everlasting strength."
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"God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble." The word for TROUBLE literally means "in tight places." This verse looks to God for two kinds of help, indicating that He is: (1) a stronghold into which we can flee and (2) a source of inner strength by which we can face calamities. Sometimes God shields us from what is going on around us and it can be said of us, quoting the later psalmist, "A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked" (Psalm 91:7-8). In such times God is our fortress...but we do have a fortress and that should fill our hearts with peace!
At other times we are afflicted and do suffer. Then we find that God is our help. We are able to say, "God is my strength, my ever-present help in trouble." The whole spirit of this noble psalm is condensed in this one phrase— "God is our Refuge." The Hebrew, as the margin of our Bibles shows, has a different word in verses 7, 11 from verse 1, signifying "a high place" or "a high tower —a retreat beyond reach of foes. The word in verse 1 means "somewhere [or 'some one'] to trust in. These two thoughts--trust and safety——are well expressed in our word "refuge." In trouble, we need a refuge. In bodily sickness and weakness, healing ministry, careful, watching, an arm to lean on. In perplexity, a wise counselor. In want, danger, or misfortune, timely succor. In sorrow, sympathy and comfort. Under the sense and guilt of sin, we need someone who can forgive us.
The Hebrew for 'very present' means literally 'greatly found;" not far to seek, but nigh at hand; not difficult to find, but offering Himself; found by experience to be all that He promises, all that we need. Now that should give us peace!
Human ministry can do much in the lesser troubles of life; it is God's appointed way of help. But when "the mountains" are removed—in the great crises and overwhelming sorrows, dangers, burdens of life, nothing will serve short of this—"underneath are the everlasting arms."
When trouble drives us to our Refuge, it fulfils its mission. The curse becomes a blessing, and sorrow bears fruit in joy. In fair weather the ships pass gaily by the harbor of refuge; in the storm they make for it. It is easy to stand at the helm with a fair breeze and smooth sea...easy to stand sentry in time of peace...easy to trust God with a well-spread table and home bright with happy faces. In the tempest; in war, when the bullet sings through the dark night, and the blast is freezing to the bone; or by the bed of a sick, perhaps dying child, not so easy! But then it is that God's help is "found" by those who trust Him! What peace to know that He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us...He is close at hand...ready to respond to our cry as a gracious and loving Heavenly Father.
Our Psalm continues: "Therefore we will not fear, though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam and the mountains quake with their surging." SELAH. The word for "earth" here can also be translated "land," and that word for "give way" or "removed" can be translated "change" or "change hands." So the verse could be rendered: "Therefore will
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not we fear though the land change hands. In other words, our refuge in God is so secure that we have nothing to fear though invasions come. And that is what had come Judah. Although the enemy invader threatened the city, Hezekiah's refuge was just as permanent as before. This verse sets before us a picture of a land in upheaval. Earthquakes rip it apart, the very mountains seem to stagger into the sea, and the sea responds by sending up massive tides and angry waves. It is a vivid, symbolic way of telling us not to fear even insurrections and invasions. Never fear...for our refuge is secure and in this truth we can find peace!
We have a refuge that is secure in the worst imaginable calamities of life! Consider the story of Elisabeth Elliot. She suffered the loss of two husbands. The first, Jim Elliot, was killed by the Auca Indians in Ecuador while trying to reach them with the gospel. The second, Addison Leitch, was slowly consumed by cancer. In relating what these experiences were like, she referred to this psalm, saying that in the first shock of death "everything that has seemed most dependable has given way. Mountains are falling, earth is reeling. In such a time it is a profound comfort to know that although all things seem to be shaken, one thing is not; God is not shaken!" She added that the thing that is most needful is to do what the psalmist does later, to "be still and know that God is God. God is God whether we recognize it or not. But it comforts us and infuses strength into our faltering spirits to rest on that truth.
"Be careful for nothing; but in every thing by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:6-7)
Verse 4 in our Psalm reads:
"There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacle of the Most High." Psalm 46 is divided into three stanzas, each ending with the word SELAH, which probably indicates a pause in the music or a pause for contemplation. In addition, the second and third stanzas end with the refrain, "The Lord Almighty is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress." Stanza one (vv.1-3) is a general statement stressing that God alone is our refuge, even in the worst calamities. In the next stanza (vv.4-6) the poet emphasizes the defense of God's city. This has two points of reference. The first is the earthly city of Jerusalem. The immediate occasion of the psalm was probably some great intervention of God to destroy enemy armies that were marching against Jerusalem. In this time of danger those who resided in Jerusalem were secure, because God was in their midst. He was with them. In this setting the "river" of verse 4 is the stream of Siloam, the only natural supply of fresh water in Jerusalem. The "holy place" is the temple mount. Thus, with great poetic beauty, right against the picture of chaos in verses 2-3, comes the picture of perfect peace and safety of Jerusalem in verse 4. This probably explains why the refrain following verses 7 and 11 is left out here, where it would otherwise belong.
Most commentators of the Bible suggest that the meaning of these verses, not only have an application to the historical setting to which we have referred, but they have a great spiritual application as well.
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"The City of God" is a major theme of the whole of Scripture and concerns not only the security of earthly Jerusalem but also the nature and safety of the people of God throughout history. It has its culmination in the new spiritual Jerusalem, a symbol of heaven, which has been prepared by God as the final dwelling place of the saints. Rev. 21 says: "And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people, and God Himself shall be with them, and be their God."
So the "city of God" speaks of that spiritual habitation of the believer, but our psalm says that there is a river which makes the inhabitants glad.
Speaking concerning that "river," John Phillip makes these comments in his excellent commentary: "Our history books tell us to which river the psalmist refers. The word means "constantly flowing river," not just a creek which carries a flash flood and then dries up to nothing. Knowing that sooner or later the Assyrian army would besiege Jerusalem, Hezekiah had taken wise and practical steps to insure that Jerusalem had an unfailing water supply, no matter how long the siege. The spring of Gihon, located below the eastern hill of Ophel in the deep Kidron Valley, Jerusalem's most ancient water supply, was exposed to enemy attack. Hezekiah diverted the spring through a conduit, 1777 feet long and hewn out of a solid rock, into a reservoir inside the city's walls. He then completely covered the ancient spring so that the enemy would not know it was there. Throughout the fearful siege there was "a river, the streams whereof made glad the city of God."
There was something else, however, that occupied the psalmist. There was not only that MARVELOUS RIVER, there was also the MYSTERIOUS RESIDENT! "God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved. God will help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved; He uttered His voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our refuge" (46:5-7)
The Hebrew reader would immediately recognize the person that is being referred to, for the word "with us" is immanu, from which comes the great messianic title IMMANUEL--"GOD WITH US!
Think, for a moment of the marvelous river we have within. In the Bible, God the Father is set before us as a fountain of living water. Jeremiah, rebuking the back-slidings of Israel, records this sad word from God: "My people have committed two evils; they have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water" (Jeremiah 2:13)
God the Son is set before us as a well of living water.
Speaking to the Samaritan woman Jesus said: "Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst, but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life" (John 4:13-14).
God the Holy Spirit is set before us as a river of living water. On that last great day of the feast Jesus stood and called to the people: "If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture
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hath said, out of his inner man shall flow rivers of living water" (John 7:37-38)
AS BELIEVERS, WE HAVE THAT MARVELOUS RIVER WITHIN! The Holy Spirit has come down from the throne of God to fill our hearts and provide us with a deep, unfailing reservoir of spiritual supply. No enemy, no circumstance, no calamity...can stop Him from flowing into us and through us! We have within also the same mysterious resident who dwelt in Jerusalem so many years ago. Jesus said: "If any man hear My voice and open the door, I will come to him, and sup with him, and he with Me." The Lord Jesus Himself has come to take up His residence in our hearts and lives. We can shout: "Emmanuel; God with us! The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge" SELAH!
WHERE IS IT WE FIND PEACE, LASTING PEACE?...The answer! In God! "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed on thee; because he trusteth in thee. Trust ye in the Lord for ever: for in the Lord JEHOVAH is everlasting strength." (Isaiah 26:3-4) "The Lord will give strength to His people; the Lord will bless His people with peace" (Psa. 29:11). "And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children" (Isa. 54:13).
"Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled,' neither let it be afraid." (John 14:27) "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). "Now the God of peace be with you all" (Romans 15:33).
The Psalmist concludes this great poem of praise with a two fold challenge. "Come, behold the works of Lord, what desolations He hath made in the earth." The historical setting suggests that the psalmist had looked down one morning from the battlements of Jerusalem and he had seen the dead corpses of the Assyrians! The spiritual application is equally stirring, for we are engaged in a deadly struggle with principalities and powers...with wicked spirits in high places.
But thank God we can claim the victory of Calvary and the power of the blood and we are able to engage victoriously in the spiritual warfare Paul describes in Ephesians 6.
In verse 10 of our Psalm we find these words: "Be still and know that I am God." One of Satan's traps is to get us so involved in activity that we have no time to be still in the presence of God. Sometimes God must force us to be still! God has had to put many a person flat on their back before He can get them to listen. Sometimes He must let us use up all the rope and come to the end of ourselves before He can get our attention! We must take time to be holy! In His presence, there is peace and joy. Remember the verse from Isaiah which we started our lesson..."0 that thou hadst hearkened to My commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea." Note! PEACE IS THE BY-PRODUCT OF OBEDIENCE. "Be still" is not an invitation to tranquil meditation but a command to allow God to be God, to do His work in His time His way! He will be exalted in the earth. "Though Satan should buffet, though trials should come, Let this blest assurance control, that Christ has regarded my helpless estate, and hath shed His own blood for my soul! "So I am resting today in this wonderful peace, resting sweetly in Jesus’ control; For I'm kept from all danger by night and by day, and His glory is flooding my soul!