Stillness in the Storm

Introduction

Two words that everybody LOVES in our community: Road Work!

We know deep down that it’ll be nice whenever the work is done, but while they’re working on the road it’s absolutely awful. Living in Ozark, they’ve been working on Highway 65 for quite a while and I’ve been told that November is supposed to be the end date for the road widening project. If you’ve ever taken Highway 65 down to Branson, you know that it’s a beautiful drive, especially in the fall. You have the hills. Trees start to change color. It’s beautiful! A few miles south of Ozark, towards the East lies a massive Castle that stands above the treetops called the Pensmore Mansion, in Highlandville. I’ve heard all sorts of rumors about this house which ranks as the 15th largest house in the entire country! It has massive rooms and a host of unique features… but one massive question stayed in my brain when I first heard about it: Why is this being built in Highlandville? The public answer is that it was built to test it’s stability during all sorts of disasters such as earthquakes, tornadoes, flooding. It’s owner said in 2015 that this home will still be standing in 2,000 years time! However, shortly after it was completed, it was discovered that the original design that was key to its strength was compromised as the concrete company took some shortcuts to save money. The owner sued the concrete company for $63 million! The fortress that promised protection was flawed from the start.

Isn’t that a summary of life? Things promise a lot, but they break down and fail. We expect some things to break down. Have you ever built a snowman in the snow? That’s a lot of work, and it’s fun to enjoy for a while! But eventually what happens? The sun comes out, the weather warms up, and that snowman melts and breaks down. But what about big things? Remember when the Twin Towers fell? That wasn’t supposed to happen. Closer to home, remember the Joplin Tornado? That wasn’t supposed to happen. We experience brokenness every single day and we deeply desire safety and security, and millions today wonder where they can find something that will truly protect them from harm.

As we read our Bible, we are given the answer. Matthew 7 tells us that the person who builds his house on God’s Word is like the wise man who builds his house on the solid rock and the house stands in the midst of the storm. Everything in this world breaks down… but God’s Word remains. God’s Kingdom lasts. Therefore, we look to God for refuge. We go to His Word for strength. We find hope and life in Him!

This morning as we continue our Summer in the Psalms series, we’re in Psalm 46 and we’ll see this morning how God truly strengthens and secures us because He Himself is our Fortress!

Psalm 46 CSB

For the choir director. A song of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth. 1 God is our refuge and strength, a helper who is always found in times of trouble. 2 Therefore we will not be afraid, though the earth trembles and the mountains topple into the depths of the seas, 3 though its water roars and foams and the mountains quake with its turmoil. Selah 4 There is a river— its streams delight the city of God, the holy dwelling place of the Most High. 5 God is within her; she will not be toppled. God will help her when the morning dawns. 6 Nations rage, kingdoms topple; the earth melts when he lifts his voice. 7 The Lord of Armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah 8 Come, see the works of the Lord, who brings devastation on the earth. 9 He makes wars cease throughout the earth. He shatters bows and cuts spears to pieces; he sets wagons ablaze. 10 “Stop fighting, and know that I am God, exalted among the nations, exalted on the earth.” 11 The Lord of Armies is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold. Selah

Nations rage, but God remains. He is our firm foundation! He is our strength. He saves us! Let’s thank Him for that safety and security, let’s pray.

God Saves His People (1)

About an hour and a half south west of Springfield lies Roaring River State Park - a beautiful camping, fishing, and hiking area. Whenever I was in elementary and middle school, my family would go camping down there usually once or twice a year with a group of friends from church. The parents would talk and play games by the campers, and us kids would float, fish, ride bikes, and go exploring in the woods. One day we’re climbing up the hillside and my friend makes one wrong step and starts to slide down the hill, dangerously close to about a 20 foot drop off… Thankfully, before he got to the edge of the cliff, one of the other boys was able to get to him and keep him from falling down. Needless to say, we didn’t tell our parents that story for quite a few years!

Isn’t that how life is a lot of times? We’re doing something we enjoy. We’re having fun. All is fine… until we make one wrong step. Until something unexpected happens. Until tragedy strikes. Then suddenly we find ourselves in a situation where we need help and we need help fast!

Have you ever stood looking out into the future only to see no safe and sure way forward? Graduation with no job in sight. Or at the other end of things, you get laid off. A child who is a rebel and wants nothing to do with the Lord? The consuming depression. Broken relationship. A terrible decision to be made. A move away from all you’ve known and loved. Retirement to what? The terrible diagnosis. The list goes on, we all know what it feels like to be in need. We also know what it feels like to be in need with no answer in sight. Trouble is real and it threatens to take away our joy. Our world tries to get us to look at a million different things to provide us with strength and hope. Relationships. Possessions. Degrees. Houses. Cars. Jobs. But these things change. Cars break down. Jobs come and go. People let us down. Money doesn’t go as far as it used to. We wonder, where can I find the help that I need?

Psalm 46:1 gives us the answer! God is present with His people in times of peril. God provides and saves His people. This is one of the key themes throughout the Old Testament. God’s people are stubborn. Have you realized that in the Old Testament? Think about Exodus. God sends the plagues. God delivers them from Egypt. God guides them with a cloud of smoke and a pillar of fire. God feeds them with manna from the sky. God parts the Red Sea. God destroys the Egyptian army. God makes water come out from a rock. And what do the people of Israel do as soon as Moses takes too long on Mt. Sinai? They create a golden chick-fil-a cow and worship it! Not even Hollywood can make that up! God’s people make mistakes and they’re in trouble so many times in the Old Testament… but God provides. He does the same in the New Testament too. He provides His people with food, with safety, with healing. But these aren’t the main ways that God provides. See, whenever Jesus fed the 5,000 (more like 10-15,000!), their bellies were full for the day, but they got hungry again. Whenever Jesus raised Lazarus from the dead, that’s awesome, but Lazarus died again. So many put all their eggs in the basket of physical healing that they miss the miracle of something far greater and eternally significant: Our salvation!

Afflictions do not become less real, nor are they unimportant or less painful, but they also do not define us and are ultimately limited in their reach and capabilities by the knowledge that they, too, are finite and will draw to an end.

Wesley Huff

God Saves His People! This is how He is always found in times of trouble. He is our Savior. He is our Sustainer. He is our Sovereign King. We may not physically always be able to see Him in our lives like we could a castle or a bunker. But unlike those physical locations, it is to our benefit that the Lord is our helper and fortress, because He is always with us. Piper once shared that God is always doing 10,000 things in your life and you might be aware of 3 of them! Friends, He is our helper. He is with us. He is for us. We can find strength in Him because He truly saves us.

Psalm 62:7–8 CSB

7 My salvation and glory depend on God, my strong rock. My refuge is in God. 8 Trust in him at all times, you people; pour out your hearts before him. God is our refuge. Selah

Is this your story today? Have you come to realize that your salvation and glory depend on God? That you have no hope apart from Jesus? That the only way that you have salvation is because of Jesus? Our strength doesn’t come from stuff or riches, it comes from the Lord. He gives us strength in the hard days. He gives us rest in the easy days. When it looks like we’re surrounded and that suffering is going to win, Psalm 46 reminds us that God is our fortress. God is undefeated. God is with us and that He is for us. He saves His people from defeat! 2nd, we see that

God Secures His People (2-7)

We have many who have been faithful and advanced Bible students for a lot of years in this room, and we have those who have maybe just recently picked up a Bible. One fundamental rule to correctly understanding what you’re reading in your Bible whenever you see the word therefore, is to go back and see what it is “there for.” Why would verse 2 say that we will not be afraid in scary times? Because of verse 1 that reminds us that God is our refuge and strength who is always with us in times of trouble! We know that God is with us. We know that He is our strength. We know that He is our refuge. Whenever push comes to shove, though, there is a temptation for us to stop thinking with our head and to start thinking with our heart - have you ever been in this situation? Instead of choosing faith, you choose fear - because you’re walking with your heart and not your head.

We’ve all been this person! Especially when life gets scary. Look at this scene. Destruction. Devastation. Earthquake. Mountains topple into the sea. What could this be? This is a picture of God’s judgment. So verse 1 reminds us that we don’t need to be afraid because God is our helper and refuge… yet, verse 2 gives us good reason to be afraid because we see tragedy and destruction. How does this make any sense? Because you can’t have one without the other! You can’t experience salvation without recognizing the situation you were in before.

See, this Psalm is a Psalm of celebration that we see take place in both 2 Kings 19 and Isaiah 37 whenever the city of Jerusalem was surrounded by the Assyrian army. Can you imagine being in Nixa, Ozark, Strafford, Republic, Willard, and your entire town was completely surrounded by an enemy army? My brain can’t even go there because of all the freedoms that we’re blessed to experience in the United States. Imagine the fear of waking up and there being thousands of people preventing you from leaving your town. People who want to see your town destroyed. People who have already destroyed other nearby towns and you discover that they’re coming your way next. You’d be afraid! This is the context of Psalm 46. The Assyrians are the major world power of the day. They didn’t exactly play well with others! Do you remember from our Jonah series some of the things that these people did? They chopped off the hands of enemy soldiers. They flayed prisoners like they were fish. They were cruel and powerful. Jonah ends up going to Nineveh and calls the people to repent, and we read that God relented from His judgment against them. About 30 years later, the Assyrians come back and capture the nation of Israel. 20 years later, we find the city of Jerusalem surrounded. They want this city and its people to be destroyed. 50 years earlier, the king of Nineveh and the Assyrians repented. 50 years later, here they are back to their old ways. That’s a massive change in 50 years!

Application - what happens whenever we don’t tell our children about God? DA Carson, “One generation believes something. The next generation assumes it. The third generation forgets it and denies it.” Within 50 years, we see that Assyria is back to its old ways of terrorizing the people of Israel. Think of the last 50 years in church-life. Here are some general shifts:

50 years ago many denominations were unwaveringly complementarian and believed that God had unique roles for men and women and that gender is a gift. Sadly, many have changed in the last 50 years to the point that women are ordained as pastors and elders today in many churches and gender is treated as a curse.

50 years ago, marriage was seen in virtually every denomination as something God ordained to be a covenant between one man, and one woman, for life. Sadly, we see a redefinition of marriage. We also see that people don’t treat marriage like a lifelong covenant, but more like a conditional contract that can be terminated at any point - even in seemingly solid churches.

50 years ago, many denominations believed that the Bible is the literal Word of God and that it was and is truth. Today, many disagree and believe that there are errors within the Bible. That the Bible is not authoritative. That it is not truly God’s Word.

What one generation believes, the next one will simply assume. When they get older and have children, that generation will forget. What must we do? Teach Scriptural truths to ourselves regularly because we’re prone to wander and tempted to forget and we must realize that we never drift closer to God’s Word… we will always drift further away from it!

Here are the grandchildren of Jonah’s generation, surrounded, seemingly hopeless. But Psalm 46 says to not be afraid even though all of these things happen! What would we do if we were in this situation? In 2025 terms, we’d probably FaceTime another king or country and ask for help. We’d pay a bunch of money to try and get powerful weapons to help us out. Maybe, we’d just surrender and hope that everything would be ok. Look at Isaiah 37 and see what the king, Hezekiah did

Isaiah 37:15–20 CSB

15 Then Hezekiah prayed to the Lord: 16 Lord of Armies, God of Israel, enthroned between the cherubim, you are God—you alone—of all the kingdoms of the earth. You made the heavens and the earth. 17 Listen closely, Lord, and hear; open your eyes, Lord, and see. Hear all the words that Sennacherib has sent to mock the living God. 18 Lord, it is true that the kings of Assyria have devastated all these countries and their lands. 19 They have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but made from wood and stone by human hands. So they have destroyed them. 20 Now, Lord our God, save us from his power so that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that you, Lord, are God—you alone.

This is his prayer - there is fear and danger all around… yet, he prays for God to save His people, not because they deserve it but so that all the people’s of the earth would know that the God of the Bible is real and has all-power. This is our hope, church, God not only saves His people - He keeps His people secure. Do you see the trouble happening on the earth in this passage? Danger. Destruction. Disaster. Now, look at verses 4-5. There is a gentle river in the City of God. God’s city won’t be toppled. Nations rage, but God simply speaks. Why is the City of God not impacted? Because God is there. Because God secures His people. This doesn’t mean that God’s people don’t go through hard times and difficulties, Psalm 46 shows us this! But it does mean that those things don’t win.

We talk about Anxiety a lot in our world. It’s estimated that around 20% of American adults currently live with some sort of anxiety disorder and about 1/3 of American adults will have an anxiety disorder at some point in their life. This is a big deal. There are some things in this life that we cannot control. I’ve shared before that I had a season years ago where I couldn’t sleep. Want to talk about anxiety? Even depression? Walked that road. Why? Because I couldn’t control my own body. My health. Out of my control. But then God providentially used multiple faithful pastors to remind me of a painfully obvious fact: nothing is out of God’s control. He is omnipotent. He is sovereign. He rules and reigns as King. There is nothing that catches Him by surprise. There’s nothing that is stronger than Him! Not sleeplessness. Not depression. Not anxiety. Not worry. Not a disease! Jesus is greater. This doesn’t mean that the problem will immediately go away, but lean in here: One day it will.

Anxiety will be abolished.

Brokenness will be banished.

Depression will be destroyed.

Worry will be wiped away.

Whenever I struggle with anxiety - whether it be something internal or something external, I have to pause. Breathe. Remember that how I feel isn’t always true. So I remember what I know. God is good. God is in control. God is with me. God is my refuge. God is my strength. However big this problem is in my life, my Provider is bigger! Think about all of the things that have changed over the last 5 years. Schools shut down. Faces were covered up. Trust was destroyed. In an instant, our world changed! Billions today feel hopeless and helpless, we wonder where can we find security? Not in sin. Not in self. Not in society. But in a snake-crushing, soul-satisfying Savior! We don’t have to be afraid today. We don’t have to fear His coming judgment. The reason that there is security is because this river provides this city with what it needs. See, Jerusalem was unique in the ancient world because it didn’t have a river running through it. How did it get water? God provided Jerusalem with water primarily through a natural nearby spring. God’s very presence provides His people with life giving water - regardless of what happens outside the walls. Today, we experience living water that changes us and that sustains us in seasons of droughts and disasters!

2 Corinthians 5:17 CSB

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!

We are a new person because God sent His Son into this world to seek and to save the lost. To secure straying, stubborn sheep. See, this is our hope

Romans 8:1 CSB

1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus,

The Lord of Armies is with us. The God of Jacob is our stronghold. He will not fail. He is our firm foundation. Once we turn from our sin, repent, and trust in Christ, we see a promise from God that even though we’ve dropped the ball a million times and have given God a billion reasons to drop us, not a single one has or will change His mind. We truly are secure and safe in Jesus.

God Strikes His Opponents (8-11)

So, we see that God saves and secures His people. He is our refuge. He is our strength. He provides. The Psalmist in verse 8 invites us to “come and see the works of the Lord.” Whenever you think of the works of the Lord, what comes to mind?

Creation

Exodus story

David and Goliath

Birth of Jesus

Miracles of Jesus

Cross

Typically we think of the positive things! But we also know that the God of the Bible, while He is good, He is also holy. He is also just. The God of the Bible wins the battle for His people and this is a battle that we don’t deserve to win in the first place. He wins this battle for us. And if you have a winner, what do you also have? You have a loser. Take the cross - who wins? Satan appears to, but ultimately we know that Jesus wins, and Satan loses because Jesus defeats death by dying! Jesus wins, Satan loses. The people of God win, the opponents of God lose. In the context of this Psalm, we know the Assyrians are opposing the people of Jerusalem. The city is surrounded. What will God do?

2 Kings 19:32–35 CSB

32 Therefore, this is what the Lord says about the king of Assyria: He will not enter this city, shoot an arrow here, come before it with a shield, or build up a siege ramp against it. 33 He will go back the way he came, and he will not enter this city. This is the Lord’s declaration. 34 I will defend this city and rescue it for my sake and for the sake of my servant David.” 35 That night the angel of the Lord went out and struck down one hundred eighty-five thousand in the camp of the Assyrians. When the people got up the next morning—there were all the dead bodies!

Hezekiah prayed for God to deliver them… and we read that this is exactly what happens. The population of Springfield as of 2023 was 170,188. You’re talking about an army bigger than the city of Springfield surrounding the city. This is the strongest nation on the earth. The best army. You have no hope of survival, and what does God do? He strikes your opponent. He slays your enemy. The angel of the Lord went out and struck down 185,000 Assyrians and they didn’t even get a single arrow fired off. What was left, Psalm 46, were chariots on fire.

God wins the victory for His people. God defeats His foes. So often our back is turned to God because we’re too busy focusing on our problem rather than our Provider that we miss the fact that God throws mountains into the sea. He raises up nations, and then He brings them crashing back down to the earth. We stops wars. The command to the reader of Psalm 46 is simple: Be still. Cease striving. Stop fighting. Does anyone else struggle with these things? Most of us have PhDs in worrying. We are experts in saying, “But God what about…” Look at this incredible verse - “Stop fighting and know that I am God.”

Notice what this Psalm doesn’t say - “Be still and feel that I am God.” “Be still and have good vibes that I am God.” Be still and know! There’s tension between knowing and feeling. We look around our world and our world LIVES for feeling. Follow your heart. Be true to you. You do you. It’s all feelings based. Sadly, even in churches this is the same. It’s all about feelings. Do what YOU want. Bible studies where we go around in a circle and ask what does this Bible passage mean to YOU? How does this make you FEEL? Brothers and sisters, these are the wrong questions to ask. Alistair Begg was once asked about this and he simply said this, “Stop asking me how I feel and start asking me what I know!” There are days we don’t “feel” it. There are Sunday’s when one of our boys got sick the night before, Lindsey and I didn’t sleep, my head hurts, my blood sugar is low, and I don’t have the warm and fuzzy feeling… but you know what I do have? A Bible that tells me that I’m supposed to worship Jesus in the mountains and the valleys. There are seasons and moments when we won’t feel it. Friends, the Bible literally tells us not to rely on your own understanding and to realize that our heart is deceitful… but what do so many churchgoers do? We follow that fallen heart! We let our feelings be our guide. This is WRONG, and God has something better

I may feel distant from God… but I know that God didn’t move

I may feel all alone… but I know that God is always with me

I may feel like not worshipping because of a problem… but I know that God always deserves my praise

Don’t ask “How does this make you feel about God?” Ask, “What does this tell me about God?” Paul Washer put it like this, “We need to start preaching the Word of God to our hearts instead of letting your heart preach to you.”

When hard times come, feelings will fade. When suffering strikes, emotions will elevate. When sin tempts, our heart will be prone to wander. Don’t give an inch! In a world consumed with striving, strive for stillness. Strive to be filled with God’s Word to the point that you know what God wants you to do. You know what is expected of you as His child. You know that He is with you. You know that He is for you. You know that He is your refuge and strength. Because whenever you KNOW these things, your feelings change.

Be Still and Trust in God

Y’all, we live in a busy and noisy world. A fallen and broken world. In such a world, silence and stillness are crucial to discern what God wants us to do. One of the reasons why we’re drowning in stress, anxious about tomorrow, and worried about the world, is because we aren’t still today. We are trying to fight battles that are too big for us to fight. We’re busy. We’re in a noisy world. In such a world, we need to breathe. We need to listen to God’s Word. We need to reflect on all that He has done.

Martyn Lloyd-Jones once said this, “The Christian is a man who can be certain about the ultimate even when he is most uncertain about the immediate.” There are things in this life that we won’t know. Accidents happen. People let us down. Things break down. The immediate in your life today might look uncertain. You don’t know how something is going to work out… but what do you know? You know that your God is good. You know that He is your strength. You know that He has already won the victory. You know that He is your refuge.

You know that He has saved you. Secured you. And will sustain you.

Friends, our God is in the details bringing about something good. It’s easy to look at Psalm 46 and say, “Look! God defeated the Assyrians and saved the Israelites!” But Daniel 2 reminds us that it was actually God who gave power to the Assyrians in the first place because power only comes from God for a reason. God allowed them to become a massive threat. God allowed Jerusalem to be surrounded. Why? We don’t always know the why… but we do know the Who. We know that God’s Word promises that all things work together for the good of those who love God. Psalm 46 encourages us to say that even if I don’t get all the answers I’d like, even if things don’t look like they’re going to go my way, I have a firm foundation that is built on God’s unchanging Word that He is faithful. He will not change. I can always trust in Him and I will be still. Stop fighting. Cease striving. And know that God is God and that He is good

Maybe today you don’t know how a relationship will work out - you feel confused, betrayed, weary, uncertain. Christian, know that God is good. He is your strength. He is your refuge. He has saved you. He has secured you. He will sustain you!

Maybe today you’re at the end of your rope. You’re stressed. You don’t know what the future looks like. Friend, I’ve been there! Stress sucks the life out of your body and it tries to steal your joy too! If that’s you today, close your eyes and breathe. Trust in these promises. God is good. God is my strength. God is my refuge. God has saved me. He has secured me. He has a plan for me. In the highs and lows, He will sustain me.

We Can Trust in God Because

He is Faithful - Be Still

He is completely reliable! In a world that is searching for stability, friends, we have a God who is faithful and a Bible that is completely reliable. Times change, but God’s Word remains the same. We can trust in God and be still, because He is perfectly faithful.

He is Able - Have Faith

There is nothing or no one more powerful than Him! We can fully trust in Him and place our faith in Him, not because everything will got the way that we want… but we can trust that it won’t stop God’s plan. He has all power. He is able. We have faith in His character, not our circumstances.

He Welcomes Us to His Table - Enter In

Today, regardless of your situation, He invites sinners like you and I to come and be changed, and sit at His table. To experience strength and hope and peace unlike anything this world has to offer!

This Psalm sparked what become known as the Hymn of the Protestant Reformation as Martin Luther penned “A Mighty Fortress is our God.” This is a song of security. God is with us. He is our fortress. Stronger than a fortress. Safer than a castle. He will provide and protect. He will save and sustain. Whatever you’re going through today, Jesus is bigger and Jesus is better! Look to Him. Trust in Him. Be saved by Him today, let’s pray!