Some Considerations from Psalm 121

Dear FRPC Family,

I had the opportunity to be with a dear friend of mine who is planting a church in south Charlotte this past Sunday. I found his sermon to be particularly helpful to me in the course of thinking through not only the current pandemic, but also the turbulence of life in general. I will share the sermon link below, but I wanted to offer a few takeaways I had from the sermon and the text itself. I hope, in the wake of our being separate, this passage and some of these thoughts might edify you in our current time.

Psalm 121

 A Song of Ascents

1    I lift up my eyes to the hills.
From where does my help come?

2    My help comes from the Lord,
who made heaven and earth.

3    He will not let your foot be moved;
he who keeps you will not slumber.

4    Behold, he who keeps Israel
will neither slumber nor sleep.

5    The Lord is your keeper;
the Lord is your shade on your right hand.

6    The sun shall not strike you by day,
nor the moon by night.

7    The Lord will keep you from all evil;
he will keep your life.

8    The Lord will keep
your going out and your coming in
from this time forth and forevermore.

Psalm 121 is likely very familiar to some, but others may be more like me: somewhat familiar, but you may not have spent much time with the Psalmist here. While much could be said about the structure and form of the Psalm—and you certainly know that I love to nerd out about these details!—I think the overall point of the Psalm is more worthy of our immediate attention.  

There is some problem the Psalmist is expecting: I lift up my eyes to the hills. The hills would house some marauding band, undoubtedly an enemy seeking to injure or harm the people of God. We may wonder, why would the Psalmist expect trouble? I think: because there’s always trouble! The people of God from Adam to now have always known that suffering is one thing we can count on in this life.

But it’s not the only thing we can count on. No sooner than the Psalmist’s expectation has been uttered, a question to remind him comes to mind: Where does my help come from? And the answer just as quickly: My help comes from Yahweh, the maker of heaven and earth. Something is more certain, more powerful, so much greater than the fear of the hills—or of a microscopic virus. That something is the Lord Almighty, the one who spoke all things into existence. Trouble may surely come, but we can rest even in the midst of that trouble because our God is the maker of the heavens and earth. There is nothing outside his control, there is no “rogue molecule,” as my friend said in his sermon.

And this God has promised something specific; not just that he exists, nor that he “just” is God. We can be further assured that this God shall not let your foot be moved and that he who keeps you shall not slumber. Consider this for more than a moment, our keeper and guardian is not only the great and glorious creator, who is almighty and more powerful than we can imagine, but he also does not need to rest! His guardianship is everlasting and does not stop.

Compare this to viruses and plagues. Compare this to conflict and strife. Compare this to dictators and despots. All of these have an end, but not our God. And this is the promise he has for you, that he will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life; Yahweh will keep your going out and your coming in; from this time forth and forevermore.

This we can know and be assured of only because of our savior, Jesus Christ. He is the beginning and the end, the Alpha and the Omega. He is the everlasting God, the prince of peace. Indeed, God’s Word reveals him to be the creator. Where does our help come from? Jesus Christ, the maker of heaven and earth. The one who endured the shame and pain of being forsaken that we would know the promise of eternal hope and assurance of God’s help.

So, as we lift our eyes to the TV and watch the news, change travel plans, and undoubtedly worry about our family during this turbulent time, remember this promise. Don’t lose heart. Don’t let fear overwhelm us or drive us away from the Lord. Let’s place our trust in Yahweh, in Jesus Christ, the maker of heaven and earth. Don’t take our eyes from him, even for a moment, to focus on the waves. Instead, confidently walk out to him on the water, eyes firmly fixed upon the author and perfecter of our faith. 

Consider praying this prayer with your family and know that I have prayed it for each of you today.

Almighty Creator,

We recognize that you have not changed, though our circumstances have. We confess that your rule is not endangered, nor are you standing by wringing your hands. We know that you are our help, our guardian, our savior, and our friend. We bless the name of Yahweh; the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

We pray that you, Great Father, would protect your creation. We ask that your righteous rule will punish evildoers, your right hand crush the effects of sin, and your holy will be fulfilled. We do not ask to understand why these things occur, but for you to manifest your glory. Use us to pour out your love on the earth.

We pray that you, Blessed Son, would protect your people. We ask that your great love and sympathy for your people would overflow in our lives, enabling us to love one another, to love our neighbors, and to love you despite any cost to our own selves. We would see you exalted, proclaimed, and on display in our thoughts, words, and deeds. Use us to pour out your grace on the earth.

And we pray that you, Glorious Spirit, would protect your work. We ask that your presence would soothe our fears and put within us a willing spirit to soothe the fears of others. We ask that your great power would give us the words to say, the wisdom when to remain silent, and the blessed assurance of the promises of your word. Use us to pour out your peace upon the earth.

Triune God, glorify yourself this day by moving deeply in your people to be a people defined not by fear, but by being born again to a living hope: Jesus Christ. Do these things for his sake, we would pray.

Amen.

Consider singing the hymn My Hope is Built on Nothing Less, or reading through it together. You can find plenty of good renditions on Spotify or YouTube to sing along with!