Part 2 - The Assurance of Divine Help

Introduction

We looked at the first part of this, this morning and preached on “The Anticipation of Divine Help”

We mainly looked at verse 1, at how the Psalmist had the right decision here, he said, “I will” - He determined to do the right thing here. And we saw how he had the right direction. We can look in many direction, but the Psalmist says, “I will lift up” - He looked to Jesus for his help…Which is the same thing you and I have to do today if we want some help.

So let’s finish up this passage tonight and look at...

The Assurance of Divine Help (verse 3-8)

The Lord will help him - He’s our Strength.

Psalm 121:2 KJV 1900

My help cometh from the Lord, Which made heaven and earth.

I know we looked this verse this morning, but I wasn’t done...

He knows his help comes from the Lord, which made heaven and earth...

which made heaven and earth - That just means He is able. If you think your problem is too complex for God remember His rhetorical question "Is anything too difficult for the LORD?"

Genesis 18:14 KJV 1900

Is any thing too hard for the Lord? At the time appointed I will return unto thee, according to the time of life, and Sarah shall have a son.

Jeremiah 32:27 KJV 1900

Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh: is there any thing too hard for me?

Matthew 19:26 KJV 1900

But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.

Isaiah 59:1 KJV 1900

Behold, the Lord’s hand is not shortened, that it cannot save; Neither his ear heavy, that it cannot hear:

The Creator of all can help and protect all!

Even as He had all the power needed to protect the psalmist, so too He is ready and able to protect all His children.

This assurance is repeated in:

Psalm 124:8 KJV 1900

Our help is in the name of the Lord, Who made heaven and earth.

Only the Creator can be the Helper of His creation. If he has accomplished the greater (Creation of everything), He will surely accomplish the lesser (Be our Helper in time of need).

His attributes such as His Omnipresence , Omniscience and Omnipotence assure us that He has the ability to follow through on His promise to help us.

He Who spoke the heavens is to be "my" personal Helper! Is this not an awesome, humbling thought? The next time you are in a tight spot, recall this verse to your mind - "Preach it to your soul!" like the Psalmist did.

Psalm 42:5 KJV 1900

Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why art thou disquieted in me? Hope thou in God: for I shall yet praise him For the help of his countenance.

The Lord will keep him - He’s our Security.

Verse 3 says:

“He will not suffer they foot to be moved:”

One of the big reasons we may have difficulty walking with God or standing for Christ is because our life is like an ice-skating rink. We have times where we are skating along pretty good. We also have those times where we slip and fall flat on our bottom.

The Christian is always on dangerous ground!

We may fall into sin — even when we cannot fall into hell.

We may break our bones — when we cannot break our neck.

We are liable to fall by error.

We are liable to fall by Satan.

We are liable to fall by our weakness.

We are liable to fall by sinful pleasures.

We are liable to fall by erroneous people.

What do we do about all this?

Well, we need keeping! constant keeping, divine keeping! We need to make the right decision and look in the right direction!

Our path is often slippery — and we are apt to be careless. But it is unspeakable mercy, that God has promised to keep us. He’s our security!

Verse 4 says:

“Behold, he…shall neither slumber nor sleep.”

Not only does the Lord know that it is easy for us to slip, He also knows that it is easy for us to sleep. There are times when we grow weary and want to rest. There are times when we let down our guard and get caught napping. But, not so with the Lord! He is ever awake and ever active on our behalf. He doesn’t grow weary, He doesn’t tire and He doesn’t fall asleep at the switch. What a blessing to know that we can depend upon Him.

The Lord will shade him - He’s our Shelter.

Verse 5 reads:

“The LORD is thy shade upon thy right hand.”

In ancient times, warriors carries two items into battle. One was the sword and the other was the shield. Normally, the shield was carried by the left hand and the sword in the right. This meant that the right side was vulnerable to attack since there was no shield of protection upon it. The Psalmist is telling us that God takes up a deliberate, defensive position to protect us where we are most vulnerable.

We never know from where our attacks will come. Sometimes, we find ourselves attacked in areas where we are weak. Our enemy knows all about our weaknesses. Other times, we may find that we are attacked in areas where we are the strongest. Elijah is renowned for his courage, yet he fled from the woman Jezebel. Moses’ great strength was his meekness, yet in anger he smote the rock and was forbidden to enter the promised land. Abraham’s greatest strength was his faith in the Lord, yet he went into Egypt in pure unbelief. The whole point in this, we will be attacked, and we never know where the attack will come from, but it never catches God off guard! He is always ready to shield us and to protect us from our enemies!

Verse 6 reads:

“The sun shall not smite thee by day, Nor the moon by night.”

The Psalmist speaks of two possible sources of harm that were common to the ancient soldier. One was sunstroke, a dangerous condition where the body became overheated and shut down. This condition could be fatal. The other was moonstroke, believed by the ancients to be just as dangerous. Moonstroke, unlike sunstroke, did not affect the body, but the mind. In ancient times, mental illness was thought to be caused by the moon. This is where we get the word “lunatic” to refer to someone who has a mental disturbance.

The whole idea is this, while we are subject to attack in our lives. We are also subject to attacks in our bodies and in our minds. However, just as God will guard us against the attack of the enemy from the outside, He will guard us from the attack on the inside as well.

The Lord will preserve him - He’s our Security.

In verse 7, we read:

“The Lord shall preserve thee from all evil:” -

These bodies are much like volcanos. At any moment, the sin that is pent up in us can burst forth and commit any sin imaginable! This flesh which we carry around is utterly depraved!

Romans 7:18 KJV 1900

For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not.

How can we ever hope to live for God? The answer lies in the Holy Spirit. When we are saved, He moves in! When He comes, He comes with all the resources necessary to overcome temptation and to say no to sin...

1 Corinthians 10:13 KJV 1900

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

The Lord will help us overcome ALL evil in this life if we have that desire in our hearts.

Look on in verse 7:

“He shall preserve thy soul.”

Soul keeping is the soul of keeping…If the soul be kept, all is kept!

God is the sole keeper of the soul. Our soul is kept from the dominion of sin, the infection of error, the crush of despondency, the puffing up of pride; kept from the world, the flesh, and the devil; kept for holier and greater things; kept in the love of God; kept unto the eternal kingdom and glory.

What can harm a soul that is kept of the Lord?

Lastly tonight, look at verse 8...

“The LORD shall preserve they going out and thy coming in from this time forth, and even for evermore.”

Between these two things - the exits and entrances of the day is where the whole problem and struggle of existence lives...

D.S. Mackay wrote in his book, “The Religion of the Threshold”:

I. Get into the habit each morning and evening of meeting God for a moment on the threshold as you go out and come in, and though you may not see it, others will begin to see a new element of strength and tenderness in your character. The man and the woman who keep trust with God at the threshold for just a moment each day as they go out and come in are ready for every contingency.

And finally, the verse says, “…from this time forth, and even for evermore.” You know what that is?

IT’S A LIFETIME GUARANTEE!

Jesus, who has all authority…in heaven and on earth, said, “lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world...”

Conclusion

I am grateful this evening that I have these promises for my journey. What about you? I am glad that I do not have to look to this ever changing world for my help and for my security. There is a great God in heaven who is interested in everything that happens in my life. My burdens are His burdens, my problems are His problems, my worries are His worries. My duty is to trust Him, and His duty is to take care of me. He is always performing His duty! Am I performing mine? Do you need help from the Lord tonight? If so, then come to Him and let Him meet the need you have.