Sermon Tone Analysis

! Climbing

 

*Psalm 121*

A song of ascents.

/1// //I lift up my eyes to the hills—/

/where does my help come from?/

/2 //My help comes from the Lord,/

/the Maker of heaven and earth./

3 He will not let your foot slip—

he who watches over you will not slumber;

4 indeed, he who watches over Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—

the Lord is your shade at your right hand;

6 the sun will not harm you by day,

nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—

he will watch over your life;

8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going

both now and for evermore.

Do you ever quarrel over what TV programme you will watch?

A few weeks ago my wife and I had as usual sat down to our evening meal pretty much to the accompaniment of the six o clock news – but recently she had taken to switching channels before the local news  to watch /“Extreme Dreams”/ and I had been obliged to watch them battling up the slopes of a volcano in the Atacama dessert.

Most readers of this psalm will think that the author is wondering if his help comes from the hills.

Perhaps the prospect of Jerusalem where the pilgrims are heading suggests to him that his strength comes from there?

I want to suggest that he may be looking to the hills *with apprehension*.

How am I going to make it?

As someone who is notoriously unfit and overweight the thought of even climbing one of our local hills Crook Peak doesn’t appeal any more.

How can I possibly climb it?

In support of my view that the psalmist is anxious about the climb I point out that he goes on to hear *a second voice* in verses 3-8

 

 

3 He will not let your foot slip—

he who watches over you will not slumber;

4 indeed, he who watches over Israel

will neither slumber nor sleep.

5 The Lord watches over you—

the Lord is your shade at your right hand;

6 the sun will not harm you by day,

nor the moon by night.

7 The Lord will keep you from all harm—

he will watch over your life;

8 the Lord will watch over your coming and going

both now and for evermore.

This voice speaks about feet slipping (3) the hot sun and the moonlight night – “all harm” (7) and the difficult pilgrimage of “coming and going” (8)

 

Life can be an uphill struggle.

This morning I have a very simple thought for you :  We may feel that we do not have the strength for what lies before us – but our Lord provides an inner strength that will make it possible for us to cope with the *hills of life.*

The pilgrims chant this psalm as they approach Jerusalem.

(Indeed I am told that Hebrew passengers sing it as they descend in an aircraft to Jerusalem!

I guess to them it is a psalm of DESCENT!)

The Psalm is full of God’s watchfulness.

All the way He watches over me!

 

/1// //I lift up my eyes to the hills—/

/where does my help come from?/

/2 //My help comes from the Lord,/

/the Maker of heaven and earth./

In order to expand this thought I want to remind you of three people who climbed up in the strength of God:

 

·        Climbing for the last time (Moses) 

·        Climbing into enemy territory (Jonathan and his armour bearer) 

·        Climbing to the place of prayer (Elijah)

 



!

MOSES – climbing for the last time    Deut 32:48  33:27

 

 

48 On that same day the Lord told Moses, 49 “Go up into the Abarim Range to Mount Nebo in Moab, across from Jericho, and view Canaan, the land I am giving the Israelites as their own possession.

50 There on the mountain that you have climbed you will die and be gathered to your people, just as your brother Aaron died on Mount Hor and was gathered to his people.

51 This is because both of you broke faith with me in the presence of the Israelites at the waters of Meribah Kadesh in the Desert of Zin and because you did not uphold my holiness among the Israelites.

52 Therefore, you will see the land only from a distance; you will not enter the land I am giving to the people of Israel.”

….

 

27 The eternal God is your refuge,

and underneath are the everlasting arms.

It is immensely hard for us to understand how Moses felt about this.

So many great things had happened to him on the mountains of Sinai – but now he must make his last climb – and the mountain stretches before him.

From there he will view the land – but never enter it.

Will this sour Moses’ relationship with God?

And yet – whilst still looking away to that mountain and knowing all he does about what it means for him – he is able to leave behind a series of blessings in Chapter 33, including those beautiful lines in the promise to Jeshurun:-

 

*27 **The eternal God is your refuge,*

*and underneath are the everlasting arms.*

Moses does not harbour resentment in his heart as he approaches his final climb.

He has taken time to prepare Joshua his successor.

Moses has a relationship with God that transcends this final disappointment.

He understands the reasons.

But still he has to make this final ascent – to climb for the last time.

How must he have felt?

Whatever our circumstances just now – facing whatever uphill struggle – He who made heavens and earth is the one who provides the SUFFICIENT STRENGTH.

I will lift up my eyes to the hills – where does my strength come from?

!

JONATHAN climbing into enemy territory   1 Sam 14:7-

 

 

7 “Do all that you have in mind,” his armour-bearer said.

“Go ahead; I am with you heart and soul.”

8 Jonathan said, “Come, then; we will cross over towards the men and let them see us.

9 If they say to us, ‘Wait there until we come to you,’ we will stay where we are and not go up to them.

10 But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands.”

11 So both of them showed themselves to the Philistine outpost.

“Look!” said the Philistines.

“The Hebrews are crawling out of the holes they were hiding in.” 12 The men of the outpost shouted to Jonathan and his armour-bearer, “Come up to us and we’ll teach you a lesson.”

So Jonathan said to his armour-bearer, “Climb up after me; the Lord has given them into the hand of Israel.”

13 Jonathan climbed up, using his hands and feet, with his armour-bearer right behind him.

The Philistines fell before Jonathan, and his armour-bearer followed and killed behind him.

14 In that first attack Jonathan and his armour-bearer killed some twenty men in an area of about half an acre.

Throughout history there have been conspicuous acts of bravery.

I’m sure it happens in Afghanistan as I speak.

Jonathan and his armour-bearer make their assault up a steep ravine in the sure knowledge that the enemy is waiting for them at the top.

It seems reckless.

It is *a climb into conflict.*

And what makes that attack possible?

Jonathan tells us, as he speaks to his armour-bearer:

 

*“Climb up after me; the LORD has given them into the hand of Israel.”*

This hill is steeper but closer – it is rough and inclined – it needs to be approached on hands and feet.