God is our Security
Psalm 33v16-21
30th August 2024
We continue our study of Psalm 33.
Psalm 33v16-19
No king is saved by the size of his army;
no warrior escapes by his great strength.
A horse is a vain hope for deliverance;
despite all its great strength it cannot save.
But the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him,
on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,
to deliver them from death
and keep them alive in famine.
Every government will, quite rightly, try to ensure it has a strong enough army to defend itself. Every warrior will, quite rightly, try to survive the battle. We don't use horses in battle much these days; we tend to prefer tanks. But a tank, or any other vehicle, cannot save us in battle. Only God determines who will live and who will die, in battle or anywhere else. Only God can protect us. And the eyes of the Lord are on those who fear him. Verse 13 told us that the Lord... sees all mankind. But when God considers those who fear him His attitude is one of protectiveness, not judgement. In modern English, we might say the Lord looks after those who fear Him.
The fear of the Lord results from understanding who God truly is - the creator and ruler of the universe, the almighty One. He has the fate of all mankind in His hand. He is the judge of all the earth (Genesis 18v25). He gives and He takes away (Job 1v21). The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge (Proverbs 1v7) and of wisdom (Proverbs 9v10). Another way of saying that is the person who does not fear God knows nothing and understands nothing. We Christians are blessed that we have the fear of God in our hearts. We know what He can do. God is good, God is kind, God forgives those who believe in Him, but God is also awesome. Paul understood this:
Philippians 2v12
Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed - not only in my presence,
but now much more in my absence - continue to work out your salvation with fear
and trembling
Some who do not fear God consider themselves very clever, too sophisticated to bother with such things. Psalm 14v1a tells us, The fool says in his heart, "There is no God." I can think of nothing more foolish that pretending to oneself that God doesn't exist. Who exactly created the universe? We will answer to Him when we depart his earth. He offers full, free forgiveness and eternal life to all who turn to Him. Why would anybody prefer to deny God, when we can experience His love, power and wisdom?
God looks after those whose hope is in his unfailing love. God is eternal, and His attributes are eternal, including His love. It will never cease. It would be foolish to pin our hopes on our own strength, or our own wisdom, or the force of our own personality. They will fail, but God's love will never fail. He is faithful, even when we are not.
God is able to deliver [you] from death, as we see in Daniel Chapter 3, for example, when he delivered Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego from the fiery furnace. God can keep [you] alive in famine, as he did for Elijah, when the ravens fed him. God can do anything. God can win any battle. God can defeat any foe. As Isaiah 59v1 tells, us, "Surely the arm of the Lord is not too short to save, nor His ear too dull to hear". His purposes for your life will come to pass. God has already decided the day of your death. He did that before time began. He will preserve you until the day appointed for you go to be with Him. There's no point in worrying about it.
Once, a vast army from Moab, Ammon and Edom attacked Israel:
2 Chronicles 20v14-15
Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jahaziel son of Zechariah, the son of
Benaiah, the son of Jeiel, the son of Mattaniah, a Levite and descendant of Asaph,
as he stood in the assembly.
He said: "Listen, King Jehoshaphat and all who live in Judah and Jerusalem!
This is what the Lord says to you: 'Do not be afraid or discouraged because of
this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God's'".
We respond to all this with these words:
Psalm 33v20-21
We wait in hope for the Lord;
he is our help and our shield.
In him our hearts rejoice,
for we trust in his holy name.
The only real security we have is security in God's love. We will look to the Lord. We will pray. We will wait for Him to act. He is our help. He is our shield – our protector. We who wait for Him to act wait in hope, because God is trustworthy, wise and strong.
Whatever happens, whatever doesn't happen, we will rejoice in God. It's fitting that we do so (verse 1). God is worth celebrating. He has done great things for us. We are saved for all eternity. The day will come when our earthly troubles seem very small compared to the glory we will experience with Him for ever. We trust in God. We trust in His name - His well-deserved reputation for being powerful, truthful, faithful, loving and good.