A Word of Encouragement: Psalm 62
Pastor: Rollan Fisher
War. Inflation. Political Turmoil. Persecution. Anxiety. Greed. Fear.
How would God have us respond in such an environment?
Focus: God has your peace in mind in the midst of a chaotic world as we become people of prayer.
The Present
The Future
Waiting on Jesus
The Present
We find our present peace by waiting on Jesus.
Psalm 62:1-4
For God alone my soul waits in silence; from him comes my salvation. He alone is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken. How long will all of you attack a man to batter him, like a leaning wall, a tottering fence? They only plan to thrust him down from his high position. They take pleasure in falsehood. They bless with their mouths, but inwardly they curse. Selah
Peace, a fruit of the Holy Spirit, is what we need in troubling times.
We find it by waiting on God.
David begins his Psalm by declaring that when we look to God, we will not be greatly shaken, while intimating that in the beginning most trials are somewhat unexpected and startle us.
In our busy worlds, you will not find true peace until you slow down enough to get quiet.
“The most difficult problem is not finding time but convincing myself that this is important enough to set aside the time.”
― Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth
Waiting on God means that sometimes you have nothing to say, but rather know that you need to hear from God - from his Word and from the Holy Spirit, our comforter.
This should be our prioritized posture.
God is called David’s fortress in the middle of the verbal attacks of his enemies.
Both Christians and non-Christians alike are in the midst of a spiritual war, whether they realize it or not.
Jesus came to give life, while there is a real devil who works with demons to steal, kill and destroy people’s lives (John 10:10).
This is the canvas on which the gospel is played out and why Christ’s redemption is an imperative for this fallen world.
In the spiritual warfare in which we find ourselves on a daily basis, going up to the place of worship must be our response against the lies, accusations and discouragements of the enemy.
There we find God as our fortress.
In OT times, worship was centered in Jerusalem, a city set on a hill.
This meant that it was highly defensible and gave greater visibility to the attacks of the enemy.
In this state, we are reminded daily that God is our fortress and can vanquish all of our enemies.
“You cannot know what prayer is for, until you know that life is war.”
-John Piper
“Life is war. That's not all it is. But it is always that. Our weakness in prayer is owing largely to our neglect of this truth. Prayer is primarily a wartime walkie-talkie for the mission of the church as it advances against the powers of darkness and unbelief.”
-John Piper
*The problem is that we run to substitutes, rather than God, in the midst of life’s chaos to find our peace.
What are the things in our lives that we substitute as a fortress instead of God?
It can be entertainment, alcohol, drugs, your wealth, your career, your looks, a new environment, a romantic relationship or hopes for your children - anything that you think will protect you from the harsh realities of this life.
When we pursue these things without a Christ-centered devotion that defines our interactions, they ultimately enslave us and steal our peace.
When we stop to wait on God, all things are put in their proper perspective - our past failures, our present struggles and our future hopes, all in light of the cross and resurrection of Christ.
The Future
We have future security because God rules over that which is out of our control.
Psalm 62:5-8
For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence, for my hope is from him. He only is my rock and my salvation, my fortress; I shall not be shaken. On God rests my salvation and my glory; my mighty rock, my refuge is God. Trust in him at all times, O people; pour out your heart before him; God is a refuge for us. Selah
For God alone we must learn to wait in silence, for from him comes our hope for the future.
Though people may encourage you, you must learn to look to God alone as your rock.
This will bless your marriages, your relationships with your children and friends because you will not put an inordinate pressure on them that truly only belongs to God.
God alone is your true source of salvation, rescue and deliverance.
God alone can help you in ALL THINGS, and is to whom we must cry out in prayer.
When we put our hope in earthly resources, we are shaken; when Christ and his Word are our rock, we will not be.
Isaiah 26:3-4
You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you. Trust in the Lord forever, for the Lord God is an everlasting rock.
When we do this, it allows us to live as Jesus identified us - the salt of the earth, the light of the world.
God is a refuge for us, which means that we run to him for safety in the midst of an uncertain future.
God wants you to pour out your heart to him, that he might strengthen it.
Philippians 4:4-7
Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice. Let your reasonableness be known to everyone. The Lord is at hand; do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.
One of the men at the conference spoke about his father who wrote a song after surviving a several mile long tornado….
“Freedom from anxiety is characterized by three inner attitudes. If what we have we receive as a gift, and if what we have is to be cared for by God, and if what we have is available to others, then we will possess freedom from anxiety. This is the inward reality of simplicity. However, if what we have we believe we have gotten, and if what we have we believe we must hold onto, and if what we have is not available to others, then we will live in anxiety. Such persons will never know simplicity regardless of the outward contortions they may put themselves through in order to live “the simple life.”
― Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth
Waiting on Jesus
Look to Jesus who will ultimately redeem and restore all things at the resurrection for those who are waiting for him.
Psalm 62:9-12
Those of low estate are but a breath; those of high estate are a delusion; in the balances they go up; they are together lighter than a breath. Put no trust in extortion; set no vain hopes on robbery; if riches increase, set not your heart on them. Once God has spoken; twice have I heard this: that power belongs to God, and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love. For you will render to a man according to his work.
To be kept in perfect peace, we must align ourselves with Jesus, the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).
This means that we must value what God values and see the world as he sees it, for he designed it as such.
We will be kept in perfect peace when we have a realistic, eternal perspective towards that for which people strive.
“Because we lack a divine Center our need for security has led us into an insane attachment to things. We really must understand that the lust for affluence in contemporary society is psychotic. It is psychotic because it has completely lost touch with reality. We crave things we neither need nor enjoy. 'We buy things we do not want to impress people we do not like'. Where planned obsolescence leaves off, psychological obsolescence takes over. We are made to feel ashamed to wear clothes or drive cars until they are worn out. The mass media have convinced us that to be out of step with fashion is to be out of step with reality. It is time we awaken to the fact that conformity to a sick society is to be sick. Until we see how unbalanced our culture has become at this point, we will not be able to deal with the mammon spirit within ourselves nor will we desire Christian simplicity.”
― Richard J. Foster, Celebration of Discipline: The Path to Spiritual Growth
What ultimately steals our peace, inwardly and with God, is the misalignment of life’s priorities, otherwise known as sin.
As we meditate on God’s Word, prayer enables us to realign our thinking to have the mind of Christ.
If we’ve lived according to the ways of this fallen world, this Psalm is a call to come to repentance, entering into the peace of Christ through the forgiveness of your sins.
“The demand that God should forgive such a man [one bent on evil] while he remains what he is, is based on a confusion between condoning and forgiving. To condone an evil is simply to ignore it, to treat it as if it were good. But forgiveness needs to be accepted as well as offered if it is to be complete: and a man who admits no guilt can accept no forgiveness.”
-C.S. Lewis, The Problem of Pain
Acknowledgement of sin and renunciation of sin are the prerequisites for forgiveness from God, lest there be no repentance - the required turning away from sin.
The power of the Lord breaks us free from that sin, the lesser things that never satisfy.
The steadfast love of the Lord keeps us in his peace and turns our hearts to live for him in thankfulness for his great sacrifice for us at the cross.
Your greatest joy will be found when you are on mission with Christ, forged in the fire of life’s circumstances to bring his Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven.
Our rest is found in relationship with Christ and our great satisfaction is found in participating in that which Jesus is doing - going into all the world to make disciples of the nations who will also know his peace.
1 Peter 1:3-9
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.
We are called to forever grow in peace as we orient our lives around the reward of Christ - that which can not be stolen, taken, or shaken because God himself preserves our eternal reward.
Second City Church - Pastor Rollan Fisher