Where does your help come from?

Who do you rely on for help?

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Is our idea of help doing everything on our own with our own strength? Can we create another human being out of nothing or create the universe?

The world says we should rely on our own selves, our inner strength. Sometimes we look to our family and friends. Our culture and society say look to other religions, books, technology, education, science, reason, the government, the internet, but very few choose to look to God/Yahweh!

Sadly we do not stop to praise God for sending us the Helper (, ; ): the Holy Spirit, to guide and protect us.

What is the psalmist saying?

We cannot do life on our own. We try and we do not succeed. Our own sinful selves get in the way. We lift our eyes up toward the heavens to worship Yahweh (Ross 2016, 614). The psalmist saying “I lift up my eyes to the hills (vs. 1)” refers to him/her contemplating life’s journey (Ross 2016, 614). Who helps Yahweh’s followers on life’s journey? Yahweh himself (vs. 2). The psalmist is making a clear statement that our help can only come from God, Yahweh, the maker of heaven and earth (vs. 2).

The psalmist is making a clear statement that our help can only come from God, Yahweh, the maker of heaven and earth (vs. 2). We

is not written by anyone in particular and it part of a fifteen series of psalms entitled “A Song of Ascents” (Dahood 2008, n.p.). This is a hymn of praise that may have been song either on the journey up to Jerusalem or up the 15 steps leading to the Israelite court in the temple (Dahood 2008, n.p.). The psalmist is not just praising God for being his helper, but for being his guardian.

The psalmist is saying we need to let God/Yahweh have control, because he is our true guardian and protector from evil (vs. 3-8). We may not always want to give up control and we fight it, but once we do there is freedom. Why? Because the same God who created the universe is the same God who through his One and Only Son delivered us from the bondage of sin and death.

ascents

What do we lear

God’s characteristics

Through giving God control, by being our helper, the psalmist helps us learn some of God’s characteristics.

God the Holy Spirit is our helper (, ; ).

God, who is our helper, is also the Creator (vs. 2).

God does not need to sleep or does, instead he “is watchful, continuous, [and has] unceasing vitality” (Schüpphaus, “יָשֵׁן,” n.p.).

Schüpphaus, J. “יָשֵׁן.” Edited by G. Johannes Botterweck and Helmer Ringgren. Translated by David E. Green. Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1990.

God is our guardian (vs. 3-8). Meaning God/Yahweh does not just that he watches over us children (i.e. those faithful to him), guiding us, our keeper, protector, defender, but ultimately keeps his covenantal promises (Garcia-López, “שָׁמַר,” n.p.).

Garcia-López, “שָׁמַר,” n.p.).

Where does this leave us?

The psalmist is trying to get us as Yahweh’s faithful to understanding that it is natural for God to be our guardian while being our helper. Yahweh makes sure we do not loose our footing on life’s journey as well as, helping us reach our destinations here on earth safely (Longman 2014, n.p.; Goldingay 2013, n.p.). Why? Because Yahweh protects us all the time no matter what we are doing (Ross 2016, 618). Yahweh also protects us from evil: “any kind of calamity or misfortune in life, anything that brings pain and distress to a person, including sin” (Ross 2016, 619). How often is God going to be be our helper and guardian forevermore (vs. 8). We can trust Yahweh to help, guide, protect, and be our guardian through every step of our spiritual journey (Ross 2016, 620). There is good sense of a personal relationship with Yahweh because he is our helper and guardian. How is your relationship with Yahweh? Are you faithful to him? Are you spending time with him? How Yahweh will help us and be our guardian is not totally known, but we can be sure and confident that he will!

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The psalmist beautifully sets the psalm up as a hymn of praise. So are you praising Yahweh for being your helper and guardian? Are you relying on Yahweh to be your constant source of help, even when life seems to be messed up and falling apart? This psalm is a praise psalm to Yahweh.

As we are moving toward celebrating Thanksgiving and harvest missions this week and next Sunday, are we willing to let God be the center of our lives? Praising Yahweh is not just a Sunday Sabbath thing to do, it is something we are called to do all the time. Yahweh deserves our praise. I would rather rely on God to be my helper and guardian than the world.

This psalm points out that we need to be looking to Yahweh for our help, guidance, direction, and protection. The psalmist helps us enter into praising Yahweh for being true to his covenant promises. As we walked into the building this morning were you praising Yahweh for who he is, as the psalmist is?

Yahweh deserves our praise. I would rather rely on God to be my helper and guardian than the world.