Under His Wings
Psalm 91
It is the good pleasure of Almighty God to do
extraordinary things through ordinary people. Those ordinary
people often discover God’s power because of a trial in their
lives; they turn and run to God, and discover there the
protection of God. They are “leaning on the everlasting arms;”
they are “under his wings.” An older generation of hymn writers
knew this well; the old hymns often speak of the protective
providence of the Lord.
The Psalmist here knew the same kind of
protection. We don’t know who wrote this particular Psalm;
speculation is Moses or David. It does not matter; this is a man who
has turned to God for shelter – and found more than he needed.
Shelter for those who trust
Psalms 91:1-4 NASB
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will abide in the
shadow of the Almighty. (2)
I will say to the LORD, "My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom
I trust!" (3)
For it is He who delivers you from the snare of the trapper And from
the deadly pestilence. (4)
He will cover you with His pinions, And under His wings you may seek
refuge; His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.
Staying in the shelter
The word “dwell” is passing from our language.
It carries with it the idea of staying for a time, settling
down. The mature Christian knows that God desires his children
to stay – not run into – his shelter. Other translations use the
word “abide” – again, conveying the sense that we live in the
shelter of his arms. The key is this: abide. Don’t wait for the
crisis.
The word “shelter” can also be translated “secret
place.” This abiding is not something that is prominently displayed.
Our Lord counseled us to pray in secret; the results will be public
enough.
Proclaiming the fortress
One aspect of trusting the Lord is
“proclaiming the fortress.” Others should know in whom you
trust. And what are you to say?
· First, that he is your refuge – the
shelter in which you abide.
· Next, that he is your God – the one who
has all authority in your life.
· Finally, there is the fact that you
trust him – tell them that.
You are the leading expert on what God does for
you. In these three points are the testimony of the average
Christian.
Deliverance
He promises to deliver you if you will trust
him. He delivers us in two ways;
· He delivers us from troubles – for when
we follow his truth he keeps us from temptation and evil.
· He delivers us out of trouble – if we
will but turn to him.
His Faithfulness
Why is this so hard to accept for most
Christians? Because they don’t believe in the faithfulness
of God. But understand this: he covers you; but you have to
run to him to hide. You must make the active choice (run to
him) before he makes his active choice to cover you. Then
you will see the faithfulness of God. He is not like us; his
word always is true.
Do not fear
Psalms 91:5-8 NASB
You will not be afraid of the terror by night, Or of the arrow that
flies by day; (6)
Of the pestilence that stalks in darkness, Or of the destruction
that lays waste at noon. (7)
A thousand may fall at your side And ten thousand at your right
hand, But
it shall not approach you. (8)
You will only look on with your eyes And see the recompense of the
wicked.
Our Psalmist amplifies his previous thoughts.
This is helpful to us, for often we trust God in one thing, but not
another. Listen to his fears as they leave.
Night or Day
Those who have been soldiers know the
feeling. It’s the middle of the night, there is no one around
who is friendly, and the night seems to hold the almost visible
forms of your enemy. Alone in the dark, courage ebbs. But we are
not alone in the dark.
The day brings its terrors too – in modern times,
there is the whipsaw between being employed and being a real human
being. So often the boss is one who enjoys pushing other people
around. Such a man must rule by terror; but you need not fear him.
Your Lord is your shelter.
It makes no difference, the time of day or night
– to the one who created time.
Disease and disaster
Of all fears, that which “might happen” is
the worst. Note, please, that the Psalmist does not say you will
not get sick; nor does he say you won’t face natural disaster
(or, for that matter, any other kind). He says you will not fear
them. So, I ask you, Christian:
· What do you say to the elderly
gentleman who is worried about developing Alzheimer’s
disease, or dementia?
· Or to the relative from Ohio who won’t
come to California because of the earthquakes?
Make provision for these things; the insurance
companies need the money. But fear them? Why? Do you not know the
one who holds all things in his hands?
One in a thousand
Indeed, it appears that the Lord God Almighty
is very fond of you. He chose you before the world began to
inherit his salvation. More than that, for those who are
obedient, there is protection beyond measure. Remember Esther?
Did the fate of the Jewish nation really depend upon a king’s
insomnia? The Almighty is superior to time, and he therefore is
pleased to look after his children.
You will see the wicked get their
due
For his chosen ones, God provides the sight of
the wicked getting what’s coming to them. Why does he make such
things public?
· So that you might know righteousness.
As you see those who are wicked getting what they deserve,
you will also see the virtue of doing it his way.
· So that you might know justice. It is
not wise to assume that the loving God is also one who
ignores justice.
· So that you will know that God is
sovereign – it’s his universe. What goes around, comes
around.
The Providence of God
Psalms 91:9-12 NASB
For you have made the LORD, my refuge,
Even
the Most High, your dwelling place.
(10) No
evil will befall you, Nor will any plague come near your
tent. (11)
For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard
you in all your ways.
(12) They
will bear you up in their hands, That you do not strike your
foot against a stone.
Trust rewarded
We need to remember the words Paul wrote
to the Hebrews:
Hebrews 11:6 NASB
And without faith it is impossible to please
Him, for
he who comes to God must believe that He is and
that
He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
God rewards our trust in him. Abraham believed
God; he trusted in him and acted upon that trust. God rewarded him
by counting that belief as righteousness. But a word of warning:
such trust is not an in and out door; it is the abiding trust of the
true believer.
How can this be? No relationship of love can be
built unless both persons trust each other. (Try having a happy
marriage without trusting your wife!) That relationship is what God
wants; he is pleased to reward you when you try to establish it.
The universe is a moral place
Many have noticed lately that our business
leaders are increasingly focused upon the profits of this
quarter. That’s practically the definition of temptation: trying
to sacrifice eternal good for short term wickedness.
A personal instance. When I was young, I was
a teacher for a short period of time. During my student
teaching, my master teacher took me aside and explained to me
what he called “twenty for five.” The girls at that school
dressed to arouse (“hot pants” were in back then). He explained
it simply: statutory rape is even yet a crime; the phrase meant
twenty years in prison for five minutes of pleasure. What goes
around, comes around.
Angelic Protection
While there is much nonsense going around on
this subject (like the knick-knack that says, “Don’t drive
faster than your guardian angel can fly”), it is clearly taught
that God provides his angels for our protection. Indeed, the
basic manner in which God punishes people and nations is not so
much to strike them as to cease protecting them. But for those
who are strong in the faith, God’s protection is something to be
claimed in faith. Permit me an anecdote from C. H. Spurgeon:
In the year 1854, when I had scarcely been in
London twelve months, the neighbourhood in which I laboured was
visited by Asiatic cholera, and my congregation suffered from
its inroads. Family after family summoned me to the bedside of
the smitten, and almost every day I was called to visit the
grave. I gave myself up with youthful ardour to the visitation
of the sick, and was sent for from all corners of the district
by persons of all ranks and religions. I became weary in body
and sick at heart. My friends seemed falling one by one, and I
felt or fancied that I was sickening like those around me. A
little more work and weeping would have laid me low among the
rest; I felt that my burden was heavier than I could bear, and I
was ready to sink under it. As God would have it, I was
returning mournfully home from a funeral, when my curiosity led
me to read a paper which was wafered up in a shoemaker's window
in the Dover Road. It did not look like a trade announcement,
nor was it, for it bore in a good bold handwriting these words:
- “Because thou hast made the Lord, which is my refuge, even the
most High, thy habitation; there shall no evil befall thee,
neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling.” The effect
upon my heart was immediate. Faith appropriated the passage as
her own. I felt secure, refreshed, girt with immortality. I went
on with my visitation of the dying in a calm and peaceful
spirit; I felt no fear of evil, and I suffered no harm. The
providence which moved the tradesman to place those verses in
his window I gratefully acknowledge, and in the remembrance of
its marvelous power I adore the Lord my God.
Did you notice the key? “Faith appropriated
the passage as her own.” Spurgeon saw the providential care of
God on many occasions, and was not hesitant to testify to that
fact.
Nor is angelic protection simply a matter of
physical safety. As we see here, the problem was not only
disease, but the oppression of death. Our Lord knows your every
need; trust him for it.
Triumph of the Saints
Psalms 91:13-16 NASB
You will tread upon the lion and cobra, The young lion and the
serpent you will trample down.
(14)
"Because he has loved Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will
set him securely
on high, because he has known My name.
(15) "He
will call upon Me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in
trouble; I will rescue him and honor him.
(16)
"With a long life I will satisfy him And let him see My
salvation."
It is curious but true: it pleases God to
give victory over the strong to those who are weak – but who
trust in him. Why is this?
· So that his power might be shown;
in our weakness is his strength displayed.
· So that his purposes might prevail.
Somebody has to do it.
· So that we might be encouraged.
So God tells us what to do about it. It’s a
pretty simple thing; in the sense of logic, it is an “If-Then”:
IF
· You love him
· You truly know him, and acknowledge his
glorious Name
· You call on him in time of trouble
THEN
· He will answer you, he will
rescue you and protect you
· He will be with you, You will know his
peace; you will feel his presence.
· He promises you his rewards on earth:
honor, long life – and salvation.
You are privileged as a child of God to claim his promises to
you; if you do, you will not only shelter under his wings; he will
give you the wings of an eagle to soar.
