God is our refuge- Psalm 46

God is our refuge

GOD IS OUR REFUGE

When you have fled to God for refuge and are delivered from the afflictions round about you, if you wish to give thanks to God and to recount his kindness toward you, you have .

God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Selah There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah Come, behold the works of the LORD, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire. “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!” The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah

Overview: The forty-sixth psalm follows the forty-fifth thematically by speaking of the protection of those who are blessed with Christ. Here we see that there is only one struggle that ultimately concerns us, and there is only one refuge in this fight God helps us through his own presence, He is a present help in the time of trouble. He is our refuge and He is strength, He avails in every tribulation. God becomes our refuge when we call upon him. Why, because Christ dwells in our hearts by faith! Every difficulty is easy for Him, for the river of God’s providence extends to all things. The river of His Spirit gives joy to the city of God. God’s Spirit administers according to His heavenly law, according to the gifts of the Spirit, and according to the fruitfulness of His grace. God is present throughout the city, the state and the nation. God is provides sustaining support, sacred serenity, and a soothing solace on all sides.

At the time of darkness, God causes His light to rise and illumines His city by His everlasting light, just as the Lord’s resurrection brought the dawning of Christ Jesus spiritual grace. Any creature or any other god than the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob does not have the power to conquer the kingdom of sin. So, let us draw near to him and behold the marvels of His majesty and power. God is sovereign over the enemies of peace, even using their own weapons against them, the weapons of their wicked hearts. God equips us with new weapons, weapons of grace, weapons of faith and weapons of prayer. The LORD alone is God, and He is known in the quiet of a purified mind, both now and forever. This, then, is God, who has extended His church throughout the earth and will bring to pass the future He promised for his people Israel and all the nations called by His name.

Let us pray…

46:1 God Is Our Refuge

He Provides Protection for every Believer. After the previous psalm 45 prophesied about the church’s being composed from godless nations and becoming a queen, and showed her sons to be made princes of the whole earth, here it gives a glimpse of the disturbances that occurred in the beginning, with the uprisings developing and opposing the true believers. Then this psalm foreshadows in word how the ranks of the persecuted church would be protected by their hope in God and scorns the waves crashing around them. The God of all is presented as their strong rampart, God, His says, that we shall not notice the tribulations of all kinds

God is our One Flight, and our One Refuge.

1God is our refuge and our strength! We should not flee what we need not flee, because we have recourse to Him for all that is necessary. But one thing we must flee is sin; we must be found seeking a refuge from evil, and make flight to God. Do not trust in princes; do not trust in the exalted uncertainty of wealth; do not trust in or be proud of your bodily strength; do not trust or pursue the splendor of human glory. None of these things saves you; all are transient, all are deceptive. There is one flight, one refuge, which is God… God is the true aid for the righteous. Just as a general, whose is equipped with a noble, heavy-armed force, is always ready to give help to an oppressed district, so God is our helper in the time of trouble and an ally to everyone who is waging war against the wiliness of the devil. God sends out ministering spirits for the safety of those who are in need.

God’s Presence is always found in Tribulation.

1bHe is a very present help in trouble! God does not prevent tribulations from coming, but He is at hand when they come, He uses them in making us a people who are tried and tested. He provides great encouragement and assistance for the pain of the tribulations. The assistance He provides us with is much more than the nature of the troubles requires.

The Bible teaches us this, , Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly, than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever, Amen.

Remember Our Refuge In Him Is Strength.

Some refuges that we flee to are anything but strong, so that anyone who flees to them is weakened rather than securely established. But our refuge is quite different; our refuge is “strength.” When we flee to it, we shall be secure and unshakable. “…Though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea. We shall not be moved, , He says in his hear, “I shall not be moved; throughout all generations I shall not meet adversity.” It is vitally important in what and in whom we place our trust in during perilous times like these.

, “Some trust in chariots and some in horses, but we trust in the name of the LORD our God. They collapse and fall, but we rise and stand upright. O LORD, save the king! Make he answer us when we call.” As everything around seems to be collapsing and failing, our trust in is God who never fails!

Remember that In Every Tribulation God is our help.

He is our help! There are many kinds of tribulation, and in all of them we must seek refuge in God, whether the trouble concerns our income, whether the trouble concerns our bodily health, and whether the trouble concerns some danger threatening those we love or something we need to support our life.

Whatever it is, there should be no refuge for a Christian other than our Savior Jesus Christ. He is God, and when we flee to him, we become strong. No Christian will be strong in himself or herself; but God, who has become our refuge, will supply the strength! , “Do you not fear me? Declares the LORD. Do you not tremble before me? I placed the sand as the boundary for the sea, a perpetual barrier that it cannot pass; though the waves toss, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot prevail; though they roar, they cannot pass over it.” This word “roar” in Hebrew is the word, ‘hamah’! Hamah means, to murmur, to growl, to cry aloud, to be in rage, to make noise, to be in tumult, to become clamorous, to be disquieted, to be moved, to be troubled, and to be in an uproar. God promise to us is to fear Him and not to fear the roar, for it cannot pass prevail! Why? Because God is our refuge!

When in your tears and tribulation you pour out your heart in prayer to God, be secure, for God becomes a refuge to you and becomes your strength.

Since God in our refuge we will not fear

46:2, Therefore we will not fear though the earth give way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea.

Why? Because Christ remains in Our Hearts.

Christ dwells in the heart of each one of us through our faith. If we forget our faith, our hearts are like a boat battered and tossed about in this stormy world, because Christ seems to be asleep. But when He awakes and awakes our faith, there is calm again. Christ is able to speak to the stormy sea and declare “peace be still.” Even in times like these when the very earth seems to have given way and been thoroughly shaken! Even in time like these times when the world has loss so much mannerly, materially, and monetarily. Isn’t wonderful that we can have great confidence in the fact of what the author of Hebrews says in 12:26-28, “At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” This phrase, “Yet once more” indicates the removal of things that are shaken- that is, things that have been made- in order that things that cannot be shaken may remain. Therefore, let us be grateful for receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus let us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, for our God is a consuming fire.’

Here at Mount Sinai we see this…yet once more, both earth and the heavens will be judged in order to establish the future reality, which is eternal (the things that cannot be shaken).

And because we are part of that which cannot be shaken our respond should be gratitude and worship, which are due in light of our salvation. Acceptable worship takes into account our (in reverence and awe) God’s holiness and his position as a judge to whom alone worship is due. Pastor what is our “acceptable worship”?

, “I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.” Even in times like these we who belong to Christ have lost nothing because what we have cannot be shaken! Look at your neighbor and say right now, I will not be shaken! Why? Because… Everything Is Easy for God.

Everything He shakes, everything He rocks, and everything He moves when He wishes, is so easy and trouble-free is everything for Him. So great is His power, you see, that He simply nods and all this happens. Look at verse, 3Though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. Even though the sea of capitalism roars and foams of the turbulence of the stock market. Even as the mountains of commence tremble and swell and threaten to burst open and rain down despair upon us. We need not be afraid when we God! Our God is an awesome God he reigns in heaven and on earth our God is an awesome God.

46:4 A River in the City of God

The River of God’s Providence is endless.

4, “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High.” Like a river divided into countless tributaries with waters the surrounding land, so is God’s river of providence that flows everywhere, spreading broadly, advancing in a rush and covering everything that belongs to God. Here we find the very River of His Spirit. As the mountains quiver, as the sea rages, still our God stays faithful to his city by means of this graceful and the impetuous river of His Spirit. What is it, and what is its impact? They are the very tides of His Spirit… God’s Spirit floods our souls, God’s Spirit cover our hearts, and God’s Spirit overwhelms our concerns. When Jesus had been glorified after his resurrection and ascension, the Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost and filled the believers with His Spirit. They spoke in tongues and began to preach the good news to the Gentiles. In this the city of God we were overjoyed, though the sea was heaving with its noisy waves and the mountains were quaking and literally asking themselves what they should do. Asking themselves how they could get rid of this new teaching and how they might uproot the Christian race from the earth.

We are in a time not unlike this, as the Body of Christ; we have been uprooted from our base of operation. But we have not uprooted from the base of our power source! We might not be able to enter our building but we are still able to enter into the presence of God. For the building is not the church we are the church!

, “As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For it stands in Scripture: “ Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

We live in a world that is almost completely secular, a world wholly depended upon itself, and a world lost and languishing for the hope and the help that they have yet to believe upon. What is that hope? Our hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and His righteousness.

Our God Administers According to Heavenly Law.

Some believe that the definition of a city is that of an established community, administered according to the law. That definition of a city is one that has been handed down for the heavenly city, which is in harmony with the celestial city, with the Jerusalem above. For there is a city whose foundation and whose designer and builder is God. For there is a community of the first-born who have been enrolled in heaven, and this is established because of the unchanging manner of life of the saints, and it is administered according to the heavenly law. Therefore, it is not the privilege of human nature to learn the arrangement of that city and all its adornment. Those are the things that Paul teaches us where the “eye has not seen nor ear heard, nor has it entered into the human heart, what things God has prepared for those who love him,”(). But in that city of God there are myriads of angels there, and an assembly of saints and a church of the firstborn that are enrolled in heaven. David said, “Glorious things are said of you, O city of God” (). Through that city God promised Isaiah, “I will make you to be an everlasting glory, a joy unto generation and generation, and there shall not be wasting nor destruction in your borders, and salvation shall possess your walls.” Therefore, having raised the eyes of your soul, seek, in a manner worthy of things above; seek what pertains to the city of God.

There are Gifts of the Spirit in the city of God:

The city of God, or the church, is the reasonable spirit. The flowing of the river is the gifts of the Spirit.

There is Fruitfulness in the city of God. God gave the name “river” here to the preaching of the gospel and “city” to the way of life of God-fearing people, who are then watered by the streams of the river that they might point to its fruitfulness.

46:5 God in the Midst

5a, ‘God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved…’ God was not in one part of the city and cut off from another but He was in the entire city, He “in its midst,” surrounding it all, protecting it all equally from the foes. We can also rely on this truth, God does not adhere to social distancing, and He is a very present help in the time of trouble.

From God we can expect Support on All Sides.

Our God who is so exalted, is also unbounded by place or setting, our God the divine being, deigned to call our city His dwelling and sustains it from every quarter. This, you see, is the meaning of “in her midst,” as elsewhere also he says, “Behold, I am with you.” God supports us on all sides; so not only will the city come to no harm, but also it will not even be shaken. 5b, …God will help her when morning dawns.

The reason is we will not be shaken is that we enjoy the most prompt assistance, for a God who is ever ready and prepared; this, you see, is the meaning of “as day dawns,” not pending or delayed but ever fresh and abounding, and at the appropriate time.

Even in the Time of Darkness.

The Hebrew says God will help the city at early dawn, that is, when the shadows of sinners pass across the flowing’s of the river, God, who is light, gives the beginning of light to its heart, and He helps the spirit that says, Lord, be our strength, our helper, God of Jacob.

We are Illumined by Everlasting Light. Since God is in the midst of the city, He will give it stability, providing assistance for it at the first break of dawn … sending out equal rays of his providence from all sides to very the limits of the world. He will preserved His justice, He apportions the same measure of goodness to all. God’s Sun of justice produces the early morning in our souls by the rising of the spiritual light, making day in him who admits it. “At night” means we are in this time of ignorance. Therefore, having opened wide our mind, let us receive “the brightness of his glory,” and let us be brightly illumined by the everlasting Light, “God will help it in the morning early.” …

Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the morning.

For those on whom the spiritual light will rise, when the darkness that comes from ignorance and wickedness is destroyed, early morning will be at hand.

This dawning is like Christ’s Resurrection. By Jesus’ resurrection at dawn, the Lord confers on us wonderful and heavenly help. Jesus’ resurrection dispels the night and poured on us the light of day. As Scripture says, in “Rise, O sleeper; arise from the dead, and Christ shall enlighten you.” Consider here a mystery. Christ suffered in the evening, and according to the Old Law, the lamb is slain at evening. … In the evening of this world, when the light is failing, He is killed. This entire world would have been shrouded by even greater and more horrid darkness only that Christ came to us from heaven. He, the eternal light, came to us from heaven to restore to the human race the age of innocence. The Lord Jesus suffered, and by his blood forgave us our sins. The light of a pure conscience shone out and a day of spiritual grace dawned with splendor.

46:6 Kingdoms Totter

The Kingdom of Sin is tottering. 6, ‘The nations rage, the kingdom totter; he utters his voice, the earth melts.’ Sin is a heavy kingdom, and it subjects a heavy servitude on the souls of all sinners. “Whoever commits sin is the slave of sin.” The kingdom of sin is the kingdom of death, and for a long time it held sway over all the earth. But when the truth came, for those who accepted it the bondage ceased. When light and life came, in the person of Jesus Christ the kingdom of death vanished. When forgiveness of sin came, and the chains of sin were undone. The cult of idols and the enticement of sin began to diminish with the true preaching and doctrine of the gospel. This is why the psalms says, “…At the very voice of God the earth melts.”

46:7 The God of Jacob

7,’ The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress. Selah.’ Not on any human whatsoever, not on any potentate, not even on any angel, not on any earthly creature or heavenly do we rely. But “the Lord of hosts is with us; our supporter is the God of Jacob.” He sent angels to us, and after the angels came Himself; he came to receive service from the angels and to make us mortals the angels’ equals. This was tremendous grace. If God is for us, who stands against us?…

Let us be secure, then, and in tranquility of heart nourish a good conscience on the bread of the Lord.

God is our protector, he says, is not another God besides him who was handed down by the prophets. But [he is] the God of Jacob, who spoke in an oracle to his servant, “I am the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.”

46:8 See the Works of the Lord

To see the works of the Lord we must First, Draw Near.

8, Come, behold the works of the LORD, how has brought desolations on the earth. Just as … great distances make the perception of visible objects dim, but a nearer approach offers a clear view and knowledge of the objects seen. It is also in the case of objects of contemplation in the mind, for we who have not drawn near to God. And are not able to see His works with the pure eyes of His mind. Therefore, “Come,” first approach, then see the works of the Lord, which are prodigious and admirable.” He who has heard the call and has approached and cleaves to the One commanding will see Him who through the cross made all things peaceful “whether on the earth or in the heavens.”

Since the weak prevailed over the strong, the few over the many, the powerless over the powerful. Then only when we draw near to God will be see the ‘marvels’ of His work. Even in times like these, if our God seems silent, it is only because He wants to draw us closer to hear His voice.

46:9 Wars Cease

God Is Sovereign. 9,‘ He makes wars cease to the end of the earth; he breaks the bow and shatters the spear; he burns the chariots with fire.” Again, our God is sovereign, it is Him who routs all the enemy when he wishes and brings peace and calm to the earth, and they wish only to bring chaos. It is God who does away with the enemy with their own weapons when he wishes.

The Weapons of the Heart.

Their bows and spears are just a weapon of their evil and wicked hearts. But God says that ‘No weapon formed against us shall prosper.” When anyone realizes that we are nothing in ourselves and cannot look to ourselves for any help at all, that person’s weapons have all been broken, and the wars that raged within him or her are quelled. If God takes up our cause, will he abandon us in our unarmed condition?

By no means! God equips us, with weapons of a different order, the evangelical weapons of truth, self-control, salvation, hope, faith and charity. We shall wield these weapons, but they will not come from ourselves. The arms we did have as from ourselves will have been burned, provided that that fire of the Holy Spirit of which the psalm declares, “He burns the chariots with fire”, these chariots represents where we had previously placed our trust. Not God has made us weak in order to make us strong with his strength, so that we might never boast in our own strength.

46:10 God Exalted in the Earth

He Alone Is God.

10, “Be still, and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted among in the earth!”

“See, you are not God, but I am. I created you, and I recreate you; I formed you, and I form you anew; I made you, and I remake you. If you had no power to make yourself, how do you propose to remake yourself?”

We can remake ourselves in The Quiet of a Pure Mind.

It is not possible to know him if one has not become still and purified one’s mind. God promises to be exalted to all the nations as well as all of the earth. This word exalted is the word, “rum” in Hebrew It means to rise up, to be set up on high, to become lofty. Jesus says, “It I be lifted up, I will draw all men unto me.” In our current tribulation, it is not the time to shrink back, but the time to push forward. We cannot entertain the spirit of fear that returns us to the bondage of the slavery of Satan. For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but of Spirit of power and love and self-control. So therefore, we must not become imprisoned by fear, but we must break those chains which seek to binds us asking God to ‘loose them and let us go!’ Let’s us not miss our chance to show the Lord strong in our witness, in our service, in our loyalty, in our devotion, in this time of trouble! Anybody can profess faith in the time of calmness, but true faith shows it’s self-strong in the time of calamity.

“Be still and see that I am God.”

46:11 The Lord a Refuge

This Is God.

11,“The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”

Here we see that is God, everywhere mighty, everywhere exalted; this is the only true and living God who makes His home with us always. So, we should have no fear, so we should not be disturbed, and so we should not shrink in the time of trouble. Why? Because we have an invincible Master, to whom all honor and glory is fitting, together with the peerless Father and His enlivening Spirit, now and forever, and for ages of ages.

We should not fear even in the midst of our current trouble because God had made a promise to us! , For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.”

But in our text here in , as God declares the He will be exalted in all the nations and in all the earth, point to His broader salvation plan. Did God not proclaim this through His chosen vessel Paul? As Paul proclaimed to his own people, “This I must say to you, to save you from conceit about your wisdom, that blindness has fallen on part of Israel, until the full tally of the Gentiles comes in.” Until, that is, the mountains have passed over to us, and the clouds have sent rain here, and the Lord has humbled our kingdoms by his thunder—“until the full tally of the Gentles comes in.” And then what? “So that all Israel may be saved.” This is why the psalm in its last verse preserves the same order: “I will be exalted among the Gentiles,” it says, “and exalted on earth.” In the sea, and then on the land. So, we may all together sing the refrain, “The Lord of hosts is with us; our supporter is the God of Jacob.”