SPIRITUAL DIARY FOR
5/23/2012 10:35:48 AM
My Worship Time Focus: Faith in God—The Hidden Life
Bible Reading & Meditation Reference: Psalm 91:1-4
Message of the verses: Today we will begin to look at Psalm 91 by looking at several introductions from different Bible Commentators.
“This Psalm is without a title, and we have no means of ascertaining either the name of its writer, or the date of its composition, with certainly. The Jewish doctors consider that when the author’s name is not mentioned we may assign the Psalm to the last named writer; and, if so, this is another Psalm of Moses, the man of God. Many expressions here used are similar to those of Moses in Deuteronomy, and the internal evidence, from the peculiar idioms, would point towards him as the composer. The continued lives of Joshua and Caleb, who followed the Lord fully, make remarkably apt illustrations of this Psalm, for they, as a reward for abiding in continued nearness to the Lord, lived on "amongst the dead, amid their graves." For these reasons it is by no means improbable that this Psalm may have been written by Moses, but we dare not dogmatize. If David’s pen was used in giving us this matchless ode, we cannot believe as some do that he this commemorated the plague which devastated Jerusalem on account of his numbering the people. For him, then, to sing of himself as seeing "the reward of the wicked" would be clean contrary to his declaration, "I have sinned, but these sheep, what have they done?"; and the absence of any allusion to the sacrifice upon Zion could not be in any way accounted for, since David’s repentance would inevitably have led him to dwell upon the atoning sacrifice and the sprinkling of blood by the hyssop.
“In the whole collection there is not a more cheering Psalm, its tone is elevated and sustained throughout, faith is at its best, and speaks nobly. A German physician was wont to speak of it as the best preservative in times of cholera, and in truth, it is a heavenly medicine against plague and pest. He who can live in its spirit will be fearless, even if once again London should become a lazar-house, and the grave be gorged with carcasses.” (Charles H. Spurgeon)
“This psalm describes God’s ongoing sovereign protection of His people from the ever-present dangers and terrors which surround humanity. The original setting may be that of an army about to go to battle. Most of the terrors mentioned in this psalm are left undefined, no doubt intentionally, so that no kind of danger is omitted from application. Believers in every age can read this psalm to learn that nothing can harm a child of God unless the Lord permits it. However, in light of the many references in the Psalms to the future messianic kingdom (cf. especially Pss 96-100), this psalm must be read as being literally fulfilled then. (John MacArthur Study Bible)
“Psalm 90 focuses on dealing with the difficulties of life, but the emphasis in this psalm is on the dangers of life. The anonymous author (though some think Moses wrote it) warns about hidden traps, deadly plagues, terrors at night and arrows by day, stumbling over rocks, and facing lions and snakes! However, in view of terrorist attacks, snipers, reckless drivers, exotic new diseases, and Saturday night handgun specials, the contemporary scene may be as dangerous as the one described in the psalm. The saints who abide in Christ (vv. 1, 9) cannot avoid confronting unknown perils, but they can escape the evil consequences. Moses, David, and Paul, and a host of other servants of God, faced great danger in accomplishing God’s will, and the Lord saw them through. However, Hebrews 11:36 cautions us that ‘others’ were tortured and martyred, yet their faith was just as real. But generally speaking, walking with the Lord does help us to detect and avoid a great deal of trouble, and it is better to suffer in the will of God than to invite trouble by disobeying God’s will (1Peter 2:18-25). The psalmist described the elements involved in living the life of confidence and victory.” (Dr. Warren Wiersbe)
Faith in God—the Hidden Life (vv. 1-4): “1 ¶ 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.”
“1 ¶ Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 This I declare about the LORD: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. 3 For he will rescue you from every trap and protect you from deadly disease. 4 He will cover you with his feathers. He will shelter you with his wings. His faithful promises are your armor and protection.” (NLT)
The psalmist seems to be speaking about the cherubim that are in the Holy of Holies when he writes about hiding in the shadows of the Almighty. God will at times hide us in times of trouble in order to teach us while we are hidden so that He can then send us out to do the work that He has for us to do. Dr. Wiersbe writes “The most important part of a believer’s life is the part that only God sees, the ‘hidden life’ of communion and worship that is symbolized by the Holy of Holies in the Jewish sanctuary (Ex. 25:18-22; Heb. 10:19-25).
The safest place that we can find is in a shadow, if that shadow is the shadow of the Almighty. Jesus spoke in the book of Matthew and also in Luke about how protected the wings of a mother hen are to her children: “"Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, the way a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were unwilling.” “34 "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, just as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you would not have it!”
Now let is talk about the different names of God that are written in this section in order to better understand what the author is saying. In verse one we read: “1 ¶ He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.” Most High is the word Elyon and this name is also found in Genesis 14:18-20, “18 And Melchizedek king of Salem brought out bread and wine; now he was a priest of God Most High. 19 He blessed him and said, "Blessed be Abram of God Most High, Possessor of heaven and earth; 20 And blessed be God Most High, Who has delivered your enemies into your hand." He gave him a tenth of all.” Almighty is the word “Shaddai” and this is speaking of the all-sufficient God and He is adequate for all situations. Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD appeared to Abram and said to him, "I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless. (Genesis 17:1) In verse two we see the word LORD and this is Jehovah and speaks of God being the covenant keeping One who is always faithful to His promises. We also see the word “God” in verse two and this is the word “Elohim” meaning the powerful God whose greatness and glory surpass anything we can imagine. Dr. Wiersbe writes “This is the God who invites us to fellowship with Him in the Holy of Holies.”
I want to quote what Dr. Wiersbe has to say about the word “bulwark” or “rampart” that we find in verse four. “Some translations give ‘bulwark’ or ‘rampart’ instead of ‘buckler.’ The Hebrew Word means ‘to go around’ and would describe a mound of earth around a fortress. But the message is clear: those who abide in the Lord are safe when they are doing His will. God’s servants are immortal until their work is done (Romans 8:28-39)”
Spiritual meaning for my life today: I want to take another angle at what Dr. Wiersbe wrote in his commentary “This hidden life of worship and communion makes possible the public life of obedience and service.” I truly believe that this is true and when I have great hidden communion with my Lord it has a great affect on my public life. The other angle comes from a statement that I heard a while back from a former Pastor who said that a lady gave him a framed quotation that went something like this: “When your are alone, what you are doing is who you really are.” When I am alone I want to be doing things that are pleasing to the Lord and not displeasing to the Lord.
My Steps of Faith for Today: Trust the Lord to fill me and guide me, especially when I am along.
5/23/2012 11:58:59 AM
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