A Promise of Protection

Introduction

Psalms are a little different… this is not like a story that we would break down and see the reactions

this is a song… something that they would have sang in worship of the Lord

this particular Psalm doesn’t have an author credited to it…

some say that it was David, others say that you are to go to the last psalm that had an author listed, which I believe would make this a psalm of Moses.

I am not sure that it makes a lot of difference… it does not change its meaning or truth

this psalm, like a lot of songs, has a pattern to it

this particular psalm can be broken down in three parts

a person singing to an audience of what will happen if they dwell with the Lord v 1-8

the audience singing back to the person the promise they have because they dwell in the Lord v9-13

God’s message back to them all… v14-16

I am not breaking this psalm down this way, yet pulling truths out of it, because we see repeats in it

before we read it, we must talk about how we interpret scripture

We at FFC believe that all scripture is true and of God

We also have to understand that we interpret scripture based on other scripture

Psalm 91:1-16

The one who lives under the protection of the Most High

dwells in the shadow of the Almighty.

2 I will say concerning the Lord, who is my refuge and my fortress,

my God in whom I trust:

3 He himself will rescue you from the bird trap,

from the destructive plague.

4 He will cover you with his feathers;

you will take refuge under his wings.

His faithfulness will be a protective shield.

5 You will not fear the terror of the night,

the arrow that flies by day,

6 the plague that stalks in darkness,

or the pestilence that ravages at noon.

7 Though a thousand fall at your side

and ten thousand at your right hand,

the pestilence will not reach you.

8 You will only see it with your eyes

and witness the punishment of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the Lord—my refuge,

the Most High—your dwelling place,

10 no harm will come to you;

no plague will come near your tent.

11 For he will give his angels orders concerning you,

to protect you in all your ways.

12 They will support you with their hands

so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.

13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra;

you will trample the young lion and the serpent.

14 Because he has his heart set on me,

I will deliver him;

I will protect him because he knows my name.

15 When he calls out to me, I will answer him;

I will be with him in trouble.

I will rescue him and give him honor.

16 I will satisfy him with a long life

and show him my salvation.

PRAY!

Protection of God

There is a lot going on today that can cause us to feel uneasy

people are running around in masks… some places will force you to wear them inside their establishments if you want to go in

every time you turn on the news, get on social media it is hard to not see riots and chaos every where

I believe that I saw where we have now had like 58 days in a row of riots in Portland.

these are just the things in the news, doesn’t even include the stuff going on in your life

it is very easy in times where things are changing so fast to have fear pop up… confusion… doubt…

We are to believe and live in the knowledge that our God can and will protect us

We serve the almighty… that is where verse 1 tells us that we live.... in the shadow of the almighty

too often we assign human type failures to God, almost in expectation… I know that he has taken care of me in the past, but will he really take care of me today, what about tomorrow

almighty - is a name describing duel roles as nurturer and protector

nurturer - care for and encourage the growth or development of

we see this throughout scripture…

do not be anxious about anything… even the gentiles worry about what they will eat, where they will live, what they will wear

Isn’t that really what we are afraid of

We run around in times of trials crying out like the disciples on the boat in the middle of the storm…

Lord don’t you even care!

“Help with my unbelief”

tell the story behind that saying… man asking Jesus if you can do anything…

doubt is natural

if we are honest about our faith we have all struggled with doubt

doubt about what God can and will do, doubt about what he has called us to do, doubt that he can see us

it is not about a doubtless faith, but faith in him

when doubt arises in your heart, do you cry out, “Help with my unbelief!”

or do you play God… Here is how I am going to fix this

There is protection for those who live in the lord

verse 1 and verse 9 those who dwell… your dwelling place

Not for guests, but for those who dwell in the Lord

far too many people want to be visitors of God

are you at home in the presence of the Lord… better yet, are you uncomfortable when you are not int he presence of the Lord

when you pray do you feel like you have to introduce yourself to God

“ Dear God, Its me… you know Doug, in Hanston KS… I know its been a while.”

We should feel so at home with the Lord that we just continue in the conversation…

“anyways...” in our house means we are going back to the previous conversation

this is where we should be with God… anyways, back to what we were talking about

those who dwell in the protection of the Lord are covered…

when we walk out of his protection, we cannot blame him when we get hit

like those who like to go get the big hail stones in the middle of the hail storm… you may or may not get hit, but it is your own fault when you do

Testing of God

I love these protections that the psalmist writes about… I have heard a lot of people quoting them lately

I even heard a news commentator reference them a few weeks back… to be honest, that is when I knew I would be preaching on this Psalm

in times like we are living in, who would not want to hold on to these truths...

God is our protective shield

like a hen… who covers her chicks for protection

Matthew 23:27 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her. How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!

the traps laid for us will not ensnare us

the plague will not touch us

I have heard people using this psalm, and saying things because of the mask… I do not need a mask, God will protect me.

this is not a political stance or a medical stance on if or when you should wear a mask

my job is not to tell you such things, but to tell you about God and the traps of Satan

Satan used this psalm to tempt Jesus in Matthew 4

tell the story of Jesus being led to the desert by the Holy Spirit to be tempted by Satan

Jesus hasn’t eaten it says for 40 days… turn the stones into bread

Matthew 4:4 Man must not live on bread alone, but on every word of the mouth of God

the second temptation, Satan takes Jesus up to the top of the temple and tells him to throw himself down… why, because if you are really who you say you are, God will protect you

he then quotes v 11-12

Jesus quotes Deuteronomy 6:16 in response, Do not test the Lord our God.

We must be careful not to interpret scripture just like Satan!

Satan wants you here…

Satan wants you running around all over saying that you will not be hurt by the virus, not taking precautions

there is a difference between resting in the Lord and testing the Lord

testing is proclaiming that nothing will happen to you and taking no precautions

resting is living wisely, and relying on God

why does Satan want us here… when bad things happen we blame God

God your word says that you are going to protect me… that the virus will not touch me, thousands are going to fall, but now I am sick, or my loved one is sick

it is at this point that we blame God

or trust God less,

God needs to prove nothing to us… he sacrificed his son so that we could spend eternity with him

give the gospel!

Salvation of God

Those who know his name…

this psalm ends with a promise from the Lord

Psalm 91:14 Because he has his heart set on me, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he knows my name.

he knows my name…

who is protected, those who know God

this fits into what we know of the rest of scripture…

Matthew 7:21-23 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, didn’t we prophesy in your name, drive out demons in your name, and do many miracles in your name?’ 23 Then I will announce to them, ‘I never knew you. Depart from me, you lawbreakers!

This does not mean that bad things will not happen to us…

Gen 50:20 what you meant for evil, God intended for good…

Romans 8:28 All things work together for the good of those who love God.

bad things happen and come, but they are used in our lives to glorify God and further his kingdom

pain will come, Luke 21:16-18 they will kill some of you because of my name… but not a hair on your head will be lost

we must look at things in view of eternity, not of this world

Our souls are protected for all of eternity....

there is nothing that can remove us from the love of Christ

the rich man and Lazarus… there is a chasm that cannot be crossed…

Luke 16 26 Besides all this, a great chasm has been fixed between us and you, so that those who want to pass over from here to you cannot; neither can those from there cross over to us.’

the Lord will protect the soul of those who KNOW God, and dwell in the Lord for all eternity!

that is the confidence that we walk around in…

we do not fear those that can hurt the body, but fear him who can throw your body and soul into hell!

may we live with as Paul… to live is Christ and to die is gain!