Psalms 95

Praise the Lord

Rock of Our Salvation

Jesus is the rock of our salvation. This means that it is solid and immovable. Nothing can thwart the salvation of God.

John 6:39 NASB95

“This is the will of Him who sent Me, that of all that He has given Me I lose nothing, but raise it up on the last day.

John 18:9 NASB95

to fulfill the word which He spoke, “Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.”

When we give our lives to Jesus Christ we build our lives on His foundation. We will find stability in our lives when God is the Rock of our salvation.

Matthew 7:24–27 NASB95

“Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. “And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. “Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. “The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell—and great was its fall.”

We can trust that when we build our lives on the rock we will stand. We should be full of joy and thanksgiving and express it in our worship.

King of Kings and Lord of Lords

David expresses the fact that their is no higher authority than God. There is no king or god greater than the Lord. He is the One who who created all things. He created the height of the mountain, the depths of the earth, expanse of the seas, and formed the dry land. In essence there is no place that God does not have authority or dominion. Because He created it, He has authority over it.

Every other king exists in what God created. There are none that have more authority than Him. Without His creation they would not be. Even their own lives were given to them by the Lord.

God Our Maker

God is the One who gave us life. We are to worship and bow down to Him. This should not only be our physical posture but our spiritual posture as well. We are called to worship the Lord. Worship is an outward expression of an inward reality. We worship the the Lord when we enjoy the Lord.

Don’t Harden Your Heart

Exodus 17:1–7 NASB95

Then all the congregation of the sons of Israel journeyed by stages from the wilderness of Sin, according to the command of the Lord, and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. Therefore the people quarreled with Moses and said, “Give us water that we may drink.” And Moses said to them, “Why do you quarrel with me? Why do you test the Lord?” But the people thirsted there for water; and they grumbled against Moses and said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?” So Moses cried out to the Lord, saying, “What shall I do to this people? A little more and they will stone me.” Then the Lord said to Moses, “Pass before the people and take with you some of the elders of Israel; and take in your hand your staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. “Behold, I will stand before you there on the rock at Horeb; and you shall strike the rock, and water will come out of it, that the people may drink.” And Moses did so in the sight of the elders of Israel. He named the place Massah and Meribah because of the quarrel of the sons of Israel, and because they tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?”

The Israelites hardened their hearts toward God. It is indicated by their lack of trust in God’s provision, protection, and presence.

God’s Provision

The People of Israel did not trust in God to provide them water to live. They grumbled against Moses and God saying, “ Give us water to drink!” They were demanding God to do something rather than asking God for something. The difference is the attitude of the heart.

This was simply a test of God to see how they would respond. You recall when the Lord led them to Marah when they were delivered from the Egyptians and the water was so bitter they could not drink it. God made the water sweet so they could drink it. The Israelites should have known that the Lord could have provided water if they would only asked.

Instead they questioned God’s love and ability to provide for their needs.

We ourselves can find ourselves in the same situation. When things get tight for us, we may question Gods ability or desire to provide for us. We may hold our tithe until we feel that we have enough to take care of everything else and then give God what is left over if there is anything left over.

We should always trust in God’s provision and depend on Him for all our needs.

God’s Protection

The Israelites questioned God’s ability to sustain their lives. They thought the Lord led them to an impending death. God always leads us to life! The Israelites said, “Why, now, have you brought us up from Egypt, to kill us and our children and our livestock with thirst?”

They believed the intent of God was to harm them. They did not trust or recognize the love of God for them. They actually thought that God was leading them into the desert to kill them. This doesn’t make sense when you understand that He just delivered them. Why would they question God? Because their heart was hardened.

We too may find ourselves questioning God’s protection. When we or a loved one are very sick and don’t know what the outcome will be or maybe our health continues to decline we may question God. God desires life for us. He has given us His Son Jesus to prove it. Even if we lose our physical life we will gain our eternal life. We must trust in God’s life!

God’s Presence

Moses named the place Meribah because the people question the presence of God saying, “Is the Lord among us, or not?” The people were in a tough spot and questioned God’s presence with them. They believed that they were all alone and going to have to figure out how to survive.

There will be times in our life that we may question the presence of God. This often happens in the darkest times of our life. The shadow of the tragedy seems to overtake the light of God. It is in our darkest times that God is nearest to us.

Psalm 34:18 NASB95

The Lord is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.

We must trust in the presence of the Lord!