The Solution to Despair

The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms: and he shall thrust out the enemy from before thee; and shall say, Destroy them.

Deuteronomy 33:27 (KJV)

Introduction

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despondency, discouragement, hopelessness refer to a state of mind caused by circumstances that seem too much to cope with.

the feeling that there is no hope and that you can do nothing to improve a difficult or worrying situation:

How are you going to deal with what you can’t deal with

How are you going to cope with whats seems to hard to cope with.

Moses had given the Law, he had led the children of Israel, he had arrived in sight of Canaan.

As he prepared to up Mount Nebo to see the land . —Moses could say, "The eternal God is [my] refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27).

In that statement he affirmed his confidence in God.

Millions of people since Moses have likewise found these words to be a source of comfort and consolation. Observe that:

I. The Everlasting Arms Belong to the God of Eternity

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27).

Two thoughts need to be emphasized in this regard:

A) The Eternal God is the Answer to Life

"The eternal God is your refuge,

Whatever life throws at you

B) The Eternal God is the Answer to being lost.

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27). As wondered in the wilderness.

II. The Everlasting Arms Belong to the God of Security

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27).

The word "refuge" simply means "dwelling place." The children of Israel needed to be reminded that though they were homeless and their national future was uncertain and hidden, yet they were in the presence and security of the eternal God.

That is why the everlasting arms of God gives such security.

A) God Gives Security in the Place of Emptiness

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27). Without God as our dwelling place and refuge, life is empty.

The true Refuge is God Himself. He is the dwelling place, the refuge of ineffable rest and peace.

B) God Gives Security in the Place of Loneliness

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27). Next to emptiness is the sense of loneliness which comes in life

Just as the divine "dwelling place" answers to emptiness, so it does to loneliness.

Even in a crowded city, a busy office, or among members of family, can experience indescribable loneliness.

But God is a refuge to such. The Bible says, "In Your presence is fullness of joy; At Your right hand are pleasures forevermore" (Psalm 16:11). No fellowship or friendship can equal communion with God.

C) God Gives Security in the Place of Homelessness

"The eternal God is your refuge…" (Deut. 33:27).

For forty years the children of Israel wandered in the wilderness without any permanent dwelling; yet, in the midst of it all, God proved to be their dwelling place and refuge.

The home speaks of security from outside pressures. It is the place of understanding and love, the place of shelter, food, and rest. All this and more God is to those who trust Him.

3. Illustrate

…Charles Schultz, Charlie Brown and the crew creator of one of his characters, Linus, tenaciously clinging to his security blanket. Wherever he goes or whatever he does, Linus must have his blanket; he feels insecure without it. This may be humorous, but actually all of us have to have our security blankets of one kind or another. "The eternal God is your refuge, And underneath are the everlasting arms" (Deut. 33:27).

III. The Everlasting Arms Belong to the God of Ability

"…underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27).

The basic thought behind this idea of the everlasting arms is that of strength, support, or ability.

Whenever the hands or arms of God are referred to in Scripture they symbolize—His ability in action.

God is the Refuge or Dwelling-place of his people, their Protection amid the storms of life, and the unfailing Source of comfort and blessing to them in their pilgrimage state.

Over them is his sheltering protection, and underneath them the support of his everlasting arms.

Think of:

A) The Extent of Those Everlasting Arms

"…underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27). only to discover that everything holds together and rests

There is the "d" of defeat.

but even at the deepest level of defeat "…underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27).

There is also the "d" of distress.

No one can know defeat without experiencing distress. Sorrow can weigh us down until we feel we can never rise again. Such distress may lead eventually to depression. Spurgeon once said,

I bless God that at my worst, underneath me I found the everlasting arms" (The Great Texts of the Bible, Scribner's & Sons, p. 75).

Illness and weakness can bring on depression-

In such an hour the Spirit of God can whisper, "Underneath are the everlasting arms." The extent of those arms meets us at the level of our greatest need.

B) The Embrace of Those Everlasting Arms

"…underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27). Those arms were outstretched on Calvary's Cross to demonstrate that God was saying to men and women that whosoever will may come (see Rev. 22:17).

in the embrace of those arms is the fullness of the father—

In the embrace of those arms there was, first of all, the forgiveness of the father—

In the embrace of those arms was also the fellowship of the father—"

Because the Lord is my shepherd I have everything I need He lets me rest in the meadow's grass He leads me beside the quiet streams He restored my failing health And He helps me to do what honors Him the most That's why I'm safe That's why I'm safe That's why I'm safe Safe in His arms

When the storms of life are raging And the billows roll So glad he shall hide me safe in his arms

So glad he shall hide me

Safe in his arms

Conclusion

How true are the words, "…underneath are the everlasting arms…" (Deut. 33:27). Fanny J. Crosby, who became blind at six weeks of age, proved the reality of this truth when she wrote:Safe in the arms of Jesus,Safe from corroding care,Safe from the world's temptations,Sin cannot harm me there.Free from the blight of sorrow,Free from my doubts and fears;Only a few more trials,Only a few more tears.Jesus, my heart's dear Refuge,Jesus has died for me;Firm on the Rock of AgesEver my trust shall be.Here let me wait with patience,Wait till the night is o'erWait till I see the morningBreak on the golden shore.(From the keswick hymnbook. Used by kind permission of Marshall-Pickering)