Our Refuge and Strength in a World Gone Mad July 10, 2016 Psalm 46 Matt Rawlings

1 Our Refuge and Strength in a World Gone Mad July 10, 2016 Psalm 46 Matt Rawlings Throughout history, God s people have always lived distinctly, amongst a world gone mad. Prior to the flood, Noah was living in the midst of utmost evil all around him. Later in the Old Testament, the Israelites were surrounded by nations that corrupted justice openly and practiced all manner of debauchery and child sacrifice. When Jesus came to the earth, He came when the Roman Empire oppressed the nation of Israel, but he didn t seek to overthrow the government He came to inaugurate His Kingdom, which is not of this world. And although the Kingdom of God, God s active rule and reign in this world, has already been established and is actively spreading, His kingdom is not yet fully realized. After Jesus ascended, His disciples were persecuted and spread throughout the world, taking the good news of the kingdom of God, through the message of Jesus Christ to the world. But Wars and rumors of wars persisted. In Martin Luther s time, the church was allowing people to buy so called indulgences, which really was just allowing people to pay money in order to sin with impunity, in order to finance the building of St. Peter s cathedral. Martin Luther protested and re-discovered the grace of God in the Bible, but it got him into a lot of trouble. Today, the world around us is still a mess and it can seem at times, like the whole world has gone mad. No matter your political leanings, most would agree that the current Presidential politics are abysmal. Many feel that the government is largely out of touch with its citizens. Terrorism is rampant in the world. Political correctness abounds. Sins once publicly recognized as sin, are now not only embraced, but actively defended, and to speak against sin, is condemned as bigoted and hateful. People are pushing their own agendas without the consideration of others. Systemic discrimination and inequality are still big problems. There is a large segment of our society that feels marginalized because of their skin color. Blame is being thrown around by many. Everyone has an opinion and is jumping to conclusions, but very few are listening to each other. Persecution and suspicion about police officers has escalated. Those who protect and serve us and face impossibly difficult, split-second-decisions, of life and death, every day on behalf of their communities, feel wrongly judged, alone and misunderstood. We ve recently seen wrongful killing by a few cops and the horrific murder of officers of the law this past week. It has been a grievous week for all the families involved. People are concerned, confused, anxious, disconcerted, afraid, divided, opinionated, polarized and disillusioned. We can experience a broad spectrum of emotions when we see the state of the world around us some are angry, some are depressed and hopeless, some are tired and just resign themselves to evil, while others look for hope in fixing this world s systems. In times like this, we rightly grieve the way things are and grieve the fact that God s Kingdom rule has not yet fully come. But let us not only grieve. I think as Christians, we need to make sure we have a godly perspective. 1

2 As a pastor of this church, it seems to me that our local church needs perspective. I believe we need to be reminded of our true place of refuge; where our hope, where our help, where our strength comes from. So, instead of continuing our new series, I want to encourage us all from Psalm 46. Let s read this Psalm, so that we can re-orient our perspective this morning. Psalm 46:1-11 TO THE CHOIRMASTER. OF THE SONS OF KORAH. ACCORDING TO ALAMOTH. A SONG. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. 2 Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah 4 There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. 7 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah 8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. 10 "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" 11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah [Pray. Pray for those who are anxious. Pray for the families of those who have been murdered. Pray for God s kingdom to come, God s will be done.] There were dark and dangerous times during the Reformation and in those times, Martin Luther would be tempted to discouragement and depression. It is said that when he found himself there, he would say to his good friend, Philipp Melanchthon, "Come, Philipp, let's sing the fortysixth Psalm." He was encouraged by the Psalm and I believe God has encouragement for us from the Psalm as we look at three of the main ideas the Psalm teaches us. 1. God is our present help (1-3) 2. God is our peace-giving presence (4-7) 3. God is our powerful sovereign (8-11) There are times like these, when we may feel alone, we might feel confused, or like we are surrounded on all sides by a world that has gone mad. Sometimes, we can not only feel helpless ourselves but we can feel as if we cannot help. What we need to see is that God is our present help. 1. God is our present help Verse one tells us, God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. In ancient times, when an enemy force overpowered you, the citizens would look for a place of refuge. People would run to the hills and hide in caves for refuge, to find safety from the enemy. For those around Jerusalem, they would run into the safety of the walled city, where they would be protected by the army. Whose walls are we looking on are they the walls of an alarm system, of security, of government, of politics, of peace, of money, of NATO, of the United Nations, or of noble ideology? If we are looking at any of these walls, none will be sufficient to secure our peace. It is only a matter of time before one or all of these walls crack or fails in some way. Where will our peace be when that occurs? 2

3 We must take our eyes off of ourselves and our limited field of vision and look and see that there is One, whom is greater than any wall, greater than any army, than any nation, than the whole earth and the very Universe in which it exists, and that One is our redeemer, our deliverer, that One is our refuge. If our peace lies with this One we will never be dismayed. What can man do to us or what things can occur to us that are outside of the control of God, the One in whom we take refuge? Nothing! God is our refuge! I am reminded of the scene from Lord of the Rings, in the Two Towers, where Helm s Deep becomes the refuge for the army and the fearful citizens of that realm. Helms Deep was their place of refuge. Often, in mid-evil times, churches were places of refuge that none dared to attack, where those fleeing could find solace and safety. The problem is, caves were prone to being only a temporary refuge and were a vulnerable place to hide if someone really came in searching for you. Even a walled city could eventually be placed under siege and worn down. So, in some sense, there was and is no ultimately safe refuge in the world. So, when the Psalmist tells us, God is our refuge, we should grasp the significance of that. God, our Creator and the Creator of Heaven and earth. The Almighty One Himself He is our place of refuge. He is our unassailable fortress. He is our shelter that is not vulnerable, that is impervious to any attacks. He is our fortress that is also the source and giver of all life. He is our fortress, He is our strong-place in the midst of trouble. He is your place of refuge, your life cannot ultimately be taken. For those who have placed their face in Jesus Christ, you will never die, even if man takes your life here. God is the power around us. But not only that, He is also the source of our strength. God in Christ, is the power within us. 2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness." Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me No ruler, no king, no army, no person is more powerful than God. So, when we read, God is our strength, let those words encourage and comfort and calm you. God s strength is sufficient for you. There is no one mightier than God. Not only that, God is a very present help. The language here means literally, that God is very findable God can be found when needed. Matthew 7:7-11 "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. Or which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! Paul reminds us of the same thing a little differently. He says in Philippians.. Philippians 4:5-7 The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. 3

4 The Lord is at hand. He is a very present help in trouble. Maybe you feel like the country is in trouble. Maybe you are facing trouble or feeling troubled? God is not distant and He is very findable the question is only are you seeking Him? Do you know He is at hand? Are you turning to Him for refuge? Are you looking to Him for strength? I know those times when I am most fearful are when I am most aware of my own helplessness and trusting in my own abilities and strength to be enough and I get anxious, because deep down, I know I am not enough. That is good to realize that we are not enough. But we must not stop there if we want to have hope to change, confidence in our ultimate safety, strength to do what God had called us to do and help to be salt and light in the world. We must turn to God and find our daily refuge and strength and help in Him. If we do that, then we will not fear. In verse 2, the psalmist tells us, Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,. God is our refuge and strength and a very present help in trouble. Even when everything seems unstable. Even when our country s very foundation seems shaken. Even when all we thought we knew or understood gives way. When what seems solid and firm to us gives way when it is shaken, you can have an unshakeable confidence, that you are found in our unshakeable God. As a Christian, our hope is that we are found in Christ, not having a righteousness of our own that comes from our ability to keep God s laws, but having a righteousness that can never be taken away, because it depends on our never-failing God, who has given us the righteousness of Jesus Christ through faith. I was looking at pictures from Julie s grand-father s collection of his own World War 1 photos. In one of the pictures he took, you can barely see anything, because there was a huge smokescreen that they were laying down, in order to cover their movements. Sometimes, the smoke screen would be filled with mustard gas, which made it hard to breath. The smoke-screen was used to deceive, to confuse, to obscure, to make blind. Fear can be like that. Fear debilitates and obscures God like an impenetrable smoke-screen. But faith is like a fresh wind, that clears away the fog, that gives us fresh air to breath invigorates us and gives us confidence in God. Romans 8:31-32 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Because God is for us, He sent His Son on our behalf we have a proven refuge. No matter what comes on this earth. Even when we seem overwhelmed by deep seas of trouble. 3 though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah Because God is our present help, we need not fear. Not only that, in verses 4-7, we see that God is our peace-giving presence. 2. God is our peace-giving presence Right now, we need peace. We need peace personally, we need peace with those who may look different than us or have different jobs than us and we need peace in our communities. But, we need to begin with looking to God as our peace-giving presence. We must remember that knowing God is where we know peace and then bring His peace to others. 4

5 Verse 4 tells us, There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. Imagine if you lived in a land that was once a great nation but it had been split by Civil War into two countries. Your brothers to the North were members of a different country yet you were all once part of the same family. Imagine that you watch as the country to the North is overtaken by a foreign land and the people are slaughtered and the remnant are sold into slavery, while you are helpless to defend them. Now, just when things seemed peaceful, that same foreign power comes and terrorizes the cities of your country. You hear that they are coming to your city, so you flee to the capitol, where you believe you will be safest. Only the enemy surrounds your capitol too and is threatening to wipe out every last one of you. Imagine that you give the enemy army all that you have and even strip off the gold from inside the church to appease them but they will not be abated. How would you respond, what would you do? The people of Israel at the time of Hezekiah didn t have to imagine, they lived this nightmare. Most commentators believe that the context this Psalm was written in was Hezekiah s time, when Jerusalem was being sacked by the armies of Sennacherib, the King of Assyria, and there was no visible hope in sight. 2 Kings 18:19-32 tells their story. The Assyrian king s personal representative said, "This is what the great king of Assyria says: What are you trusting in that makes you so confident? 20 Do you think that mere words can substitute for military skill and strength? Which of your allies will give you any military backing against Assyria? 21 Will Egypt? If you lean on Egypt, you will find it to be a stick that breaks beneath your weight and pierces your hand. The pharaoh of Egypt is completely unreliable! 22 "But perhaps you will say, 'We are trusting in the LORD our God!' 23 "I'll tell you what! My master, the king of Assyria, will strike a bargain with you. If you can find two thousand horsemen in your entire army, he will give you two thousand horses for them to ride on! 24 With your tiny army, how can you think of challenging even the weakest contingent of my master's troops, even with the help of Egypt's chariots and horsemen F57? 25 What's more, do you think we have invaded your land without the LORD's direction? The LORD himself told us, 'Go and destroy it!'" 26 Then Eliakim son of Hilkiah, Shebna, and Joah said to the king's representative, "Please speak to us in Aramaic, for we understand it well. Don't speak in Hebrew, for the people on the wall will hear." 27 But Sennacherib's representative replied, "My master wants everyone in Jerusalem to hear this, not just you. He wants them to know that if you do not surrender, this city will be put under siege. The people will become so hungry and thirsty that they will eat their own dung and drink their own urine." 28 Then he stood and shouted in Hebrew to the people on the wall, "Listen to this message from the great king of Assyria! 29 This is what the king says: Don't let King Hezekiah deceive you. He will never be able to rescue you from my power. 30 Don't let him fool you into trusting in the LORD by saying, 'The LORD will rescue us! This city will never be handed over to the Assyrian king.' 31 "Don't listen to Hezekiah! These are the terms the king of Assyria is offering: Make peace with me open the gates and come out. Then I will allow each of you to continue eating from your own garden and drinking from your own well. 32 Then I will arrange to take you to another land like this one a country with bountiful harvests of grain and wine, bread and vineyards, olive trees and honey a land of plenty. Choose life instead of death!"don't listen to Hezekiah when he tries to mislead you by saying, 'The LORD will rescue us!' 5

6 If you were trapped inside of an ancient walled city, like Jerusalem, you would need a water supply from within, because your outside water could be cut off. So, if you had a river that sprang up within the city, it would make you glad. You would know you had a life-giving supply that couldn t be cut off. In this passage, it is talking about a physical city, but for us today, we are like the city. Jerusalem was the ancient city of God, where God made His habitation with the people in the temple. But now, we have an even greater hope through Jesus Christ. For those who have placed their faith and hope for life in Christ Jesus, you have been born again to new life and you have been given the same life-giving Spirit of God, that dwelt in Christ Jesus. Jesus told His disciples in John 14:16-17, And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you. The Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 8:11, If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you. Now, we are the dwelling place of the Most High the greatest King. So, when John told us that Jesus stood up and cried out, it takes on new meaning for us, He said in John 7:37-38, If anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, 'Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water.'" The city is now present in the nature of the church and we have the river of life within us a source of life on the inside that can never be cut off, no matter who comes against us. We can also be confident that one day, this will ultimately be realized in the new heaven and the new earth. This world is not our true home. We will one day live in the city of God, with God directly and be refreshed from the river of life that flows from the throne of the Lamb. There will no longer be any curse. 5 God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. Verse 5 tells us that ultimately, God is in His city, so we will not be moved John 16:33 I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world." Jesus said, I will build my church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it. Yes, the nations may rage, kingdoms may totter, but when God just utters His voice, the very earth melts: 6 The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. Take heart, The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. After the King of Assyria s representative said his piece, King Hezekiah prayed and God responded through the prophet Isaiah in 2 Kings 18:25,27, 'But have you not heard? It was I, the LORD, who decided this long ago. Long ago I planned what I am now causing to happen 'But I know you well your comings and goings and all you do. I know the way you have raged against me. And because of your arrogance against me, which I have heard for myself, I will put my hook in your nose and my bridle in your mouth. I will make you return by the road on which you came.' For a remnant of my people will spread out from Jerusalem, a group of survivors from Mount Zion. The passion of the LORD Almighty will make this happen! 6

7 That night the angel of the LORD went out to the Assyrian camp and killed 185,000 Assyrian troops. When the surviving Assyrians woke up the next morning, they found corpses everywhere. Then King Sennacherib of Assyria broke camp and returned to his own land. He went home to his capital of Nineveh and stayed there. God is with us. He is able to make the earth melt with His voice. Now, in Jesus, he has said that he will never leave us nor forsake us. Notice something else interesting here in Psalms, the author writes, the God of Jacob is our fortress. Remember who Jacob was? His very name meant deceiver, or supplanter. He deceived his own father and tricked his brother. He stole his brother s birthright. Jacob was weak and sinful. Later, God renamed Jacob to Israel. But I think why it says, the God of Jacob is our fortress here, is because we are meant to see that God comes to the sinful, the needy, those who are weak. God is the fortress for messed up sinful people. Now, Jesus is the ultimate fulfillment of God with us Immanuel. Jesus rushed into danger on our behalf and took the wrath of God that we truly deserved and should have feared. Because God is our present help, we need not fear. Because God is our peace-giving presence, we will not be moved. 3. God is our powerful sovereign We need perspective because we lose perspective. We need to look back and see the works of the Lord, so, the Psalmist says, 8 Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth. God is active in history. We will not panic. He controls history. Verse 9 tells us, He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. God is not only our sovereign over all of history - He orders history. But as our powerful sovereign, He also moves beyond history. He ultimately is establishing His kingdom. He will accomplish His purposes ultimately. One day, there will be no more fighting, no more trouble, no more separation. Today, God has called a people to Himself from every tribe and tongue and nation. One day, he will finally and fully unite every tongue and tribe and nation in Christ Jesus. In the meanwhile, we must do as verse 10 says, "Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!" Be still relax, stop striving, stop your fighting, be silent, desist, are how the various translations handle this command. Hebrews 4:9-10 So then, there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God, for whoever has entered God's rest has also rested from his works as God did from his. Do you rest in knowing God? I can in one sense say, that back in 1990 when I first met my wife in the grocery store, that I knew her. I knew who she was. I recognized her I knew about her. But I know now, that I didn t really know her. After 26 years of being around her, I feel like I can say now that I know her. This is the kind of close, intimate, deeply personal knowing of God that we need. We need to know that He is God not just know about, but personally know God. Ask yourself, do I know God? If not, why not? How well do you know Him? What do I need to change to know God or know Him more? Be still and know He will be exalted among the nations. Know he will be exalted in the earth. Know He is with us. Know He is our fortress. 7

8 Where are you getting your perspective? The media, television, newspapers? It is easy to get the world s perspective, where will you get your perspective? The media wants us to believe everything that they are saying. But are we firmly grounded in what God wants us to believe and have a perspective that is grounded in his Word. We need to be God-centered and not mancentered. Who is controlling your emotions? Are you fearful? Are you angry? Be still - Rest in knowing Him. That doesn t mean we stop activity here in times of trouble. We must start here though. Because it is only as we live in the good of His kingdom, that we will be able to take His kingdom to those who need it most. It is only as we understand that as Christians, we are His citizens, a new, chosen race, we are a holy nation, a people for His own possession that we might proclaim the excellencies of Him who called us out of darkness and into His marvelous light. Now, if we start here, we can go out as strangers, as sojourners, and show mercy to others as we have received mercy. We can extend forgiveness as we have been forgiven. We can have compassion as God in Christ has had compassion on us. We can be ambassadors and ministers of reconciliation in our community, as we are still and know God and take the reconciliation we ve received to others. It is from this perspective, that we can and must be agents of change, in and through the gospel, because we have been changed by God. Because we know God is the source of our strength, we can move forward in hope. Because God is our present help, we need not fear. Because God is our peace-giving presence, we will not be moved. Because God is our powerful sovereign, we can be confident in Him, no matter what. 11 The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah In these times of trouble, like Martin Luther, we can sing His adaptation of Psalm 46 and encourage our hearts with A Mighty Fortress is our God. 2016 Redeeming Grace Church. This transcribed message has been lightly edited and formatted for the Website. No attempt has been made, however, to alter the basic extemporaneous delivery style, or to produce a grammatically accurate, publication-ready manuscript conforming to an established style template. 8