April, 2007
“Who’s Watching Out for Me?”
Psalm 121
INTRODUCTION: Today’s Psalm is one of 15 Psalms called the Pilgrim Psalms or songs of Ascent. They were sung by those who journeyed toward Jerusalem or ascended to the temple for the annual feasts. Each psalm is a step along the way.
Psalm 120 begins the journey in a distant land in hostile surroundings. Psalm 122 pictures the pilgrims arriving in Jerusalem and the rest of these Psalms move toward the temple mentioning various characteristics of God. This particular Psalm 121 contains much assurance and hope. These Psalms of Ascent are appropriate for our Lenten journey as we seek to draw closer to the Lord.
The Psalm begins, “I lift up my eyes to the hills--... You have probably heard this Psalm quoted more often from the King James Version which says, “I will lift up mine eyes unto the hills from whence cometh my help.” The Hebrew Word for whence is always a question. Most of the more recent translations say, “I look to the hills, where does my help come from?” The reason for saying this is that as the pilgrims traveled toward Jerusalem they could see the majestic hills in the distance and Jerusalem--the spiritual center where God dwells. Their eyes look not to the hills for their help but to God. My help comes from the Lord who is the maker of the hills.
In spite of the fact that the hills are majestic and beautiful, this psalm also implies a situation of uncertainty. When they started out they may have been excited about the journey to Jerusalem but they may have at the same time had some apprehension and what ifs...along with the anticipation of arriving in Jerusalem. The trip could be filled with much danger on the way. The Psalmist may be looking with apprehensive for sudden attacks in lonely ravines or mountain passes. Either way, the Psalm points out that the God who created the mountains is where the help comes from. Any danger and uncertainty is offset by unquestioning trust in the Lord.
How does this Psalm speak to us today? I believe it speaks personally to us in our 21st century lifestyle as much as it did to these people.
1. God is Our Source: Most of us want to hang on to something very tangible. We are more accustomed to living by sight and feelings rather than living by faith. We have always lived in a society where we place our hope in many of the instruments that God has created rather than in the Source of creation itself--God. We look to our hills and mountains as security and see them as strength to us. Maybe it is because these are tangible things we can see with our eyes--we look to the security of our jobs, our 401K’s, Social Security, the medical teams and health care systems, insurance, education, our family roots and our friendships. We look to our good health and the ability to make in on our own so much of the time. This is evident when people stay away from the house of God for weeks at a time only showing up when it is convenient to do so. It shows our true feeling, “I can make it on my own. I really have things covered by myself.” But we often find that our hills and mountains are often filled with insecurity, dangers, and sudden attacks against us. Often things don’t work out as we had planned. We hit some snags along the way.
Jeremiah 3:23 says, “truly in vain is salvation hoped for from the hills and from the multitude of mountains: truly in the Lord our God is the salvation of Israel.” Ultimately our help does not come from the things we count on so much--from all of the things that God has created but from the CREATOR Himself. Even though we KNOW all this, it is a lesson that is not learned easily or quickly. The places we look for help are like the mountains, beckoning us with much that is genuinely good yet also threatening and insecure.
Some people say, “Well then I won’t trust the instruments of God at all.” One woman says, “I refuse to go to a doctor when I’m sick. Or I refuse to have health insurance or I refuse to have a savings account or a pension plan. I refuse to... “No, that would be silly--God has given us these things that He has made. Yet these mountains and hills can disappoint us. Look at those who trusted in their Enron 401K’s. Look at those who have trusted their jobs right up almost until retirement and they were laid off and everything was gone. Look at those whose health has declined and the doctors said, “I’m sorry, there is nothing more I can do.”
What does this teach us? It shows that we’ve got to learn to COUNT On God as the Source. We should never put all of our trust in a lesser power than God HIMSELF.
Are you depending too much on things other than God Himself? I think that is a good question for the Lenten Season? Am I allowing God to just be at the fringe of my life? Or He at the CENTER?
2. What Kind of Help Do We Need?: The Psalm goes on to state the ways that God’s help comes to us.
Verse 3 says, “He will not let your foot slip. A slip is easily made a hilly country like Canaan and it is often attended with danger so that forms the images of sudden falls both temporal and spiritual. From such falls the pilgrim believer trusts to be kept. Israel’s keeper neither slumbers or sleeps.
What things trip you up in your Christian journey? What are sins and temptations that get you off track? It could come in many forms. What dangers lie on the road on your inward journey that trip you up--your thoughts and motives that end up bringing you down to defeat.
Some scriptures that bring encouragement are:
Proverbs 3:26 “For the Lord shall be your confidence firm and strong and shall keep your foot from being caught in a trap or some hidden danger. Then you will walk in your way securely and in confident trust and you shall not dash your foot or stumble.”
Can you believe this? Can you expect it to happen for you?
Psalm 66:9 says, “He has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping.”
You might say, “well, other people fall into sin. Other people’s kids get messed up on drugs. Other people’s marriages end up in divorce. Other people lose their jobs...”
Well, I think we ought to claim the help of the Lord in our own lives no matter what we see in other situations. EXPECT the Lord to help you. EXPECT Him to keep your feet from slipping. Maybe other people are not EXPECTING His help.
Psalm 73:23 says, “But as for me my feet had almost slipped. I had nearly lost my foothold.” BUT the Psalmist says, “I DIDN’T.” Praise the Lord for that. We may get so near to slipping and falling. God helps us in that He keeps us from being so overwhelmed when we slip or stumble and are ready to fall. He gives us the sense of STABILITY we need. Sometimes people say, “I have to learn things the hard way. I know I’m going to slip into sin and get off the right track.” Do you EXPECT help to come from the Lord? Do you EXPECT Him to keep your feet from slipping into sin?
You say, “How can I know this for SURE?”
That’s where your faith comes in. You ask Him to keep you from slipping and falling and then EXPECT Him to be able to do it. That’s the help from the Lord. He has the power to keep us. There is no reason for Christians to have to keep learning the “Hard Way” over and over again. The Lord doesn’t want us to slip and fall into trouble or sin or a lot of other things where we have to experience a lot of undesirable consequences.
How do we know this?
Psalm 37:23 says, “If the Lord delights in a man’s way, he makes his steps firm and though he stumbles, he will not fall, for the Lord upholds him with his hand.”
Verse 3 also says, “He who watches over you will not slumber or sleep.
STORY: On the Andy Griffith show the store owner was finding that things were disappearing from his store and Barney went over in the middle of the night to check on the store and found the door unlocked. He goes in and tries to quietly creep around to see if anyone was in the store. He knocks over things and makes a big racket. The store owner had also stopped by the store and heard that someone was there. The night watchman was there all the time but he had dozed off and was snoring unaware that any of this was going on.
This Psalm gives us the assurance that the Lord is not like the night watchman. He doesn’t sleep and he doesn’t even doze off. He is paying attention to what goes on in your life. Do you believe it? Do you ask Him to watch out for you and then EXPECT him to do it?
Verse 5 goes on to tell us some specific ways that the Lord watches out for us.
He is the shade at your right hand; (the right hand is the working hand), the sun will not harm you by day or the moon by night.”
You might wonder how does this apply to me? As a part of our life we have things that happen in the every-day normal aspects of the journey that can wear us out and bring us down. Sometimes we say, “I’m just BURNT OUT on this job.” Is the sun getting to you? The stress of all these “normal” things of life are like the sun beating down on us and exhausting us. Are you getting sunburned? Can the Lord be SHADE to us when we need it the most? I think He can provide the shade in just the way we need it the most.
Another view of harm by the sun by day or the moon by night is the open assaults of the enemies which are as visible as the scorching sun or by secret treacherous assaults which are like the cold by night. You might have people who work against you and you are not even aware that it is happening until the damage is done. God keeps us safe from the OPEN ATTACKS on the journey of our life as well as the SUBTLE ATTACKS.
Psalm 91:5 says, “You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day; nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday.”
3. Repeated Assurances: Because of our doubt and unbelief, we need assurances more than one time. The Psalm closes by repeating the assurance three specific times and in three different ways.
1. The Lord shall PRESERVE (keep you, protect, guard) you from all EVIL. He will keep us from the evil of sin and the evil of trouble.
2. The Lord shall PRESERVE thy SOUL--our spiritual life. Some people are so afraid of backsliding. The Lord is able to keep us on track.
3. The Lord shall PRESERVE thy going out and coming in from this time forth and forevermore. At the beginning of a project and at the ending of the project. At the beginning of our life and at the ending of our life. Now and Forevermore.
STORY: Sam was a man of few words. His wife complained that he never told her he loved her. She kept nagging him about it. “You never tell me you love me.”
Finally he spoke up. “I told you once that I loved you. If things change, I will tell you.”
Scripture is full of the assurances of God’s care for us.
CONCLUSION: At this Lenten Season let us have a special eye to the presence of God in our lives. Who’s watching out for us? Is it God or something else that we are depending on? We must become more aware of Him as our SOURCE and supply. He has provided other things to ASSIST us in our journey, but He is the Source. I expect it from Him in His own way and time. He helps us in ways that other things can’t help us. We must believe that He wants to help us and EXPECT IT TO HAPPEN.
He constantly reassures us when our difficulties are the greatest. He assures us more than one time and in a variety of ways. He has extended His help to each of us if we will believe it.
LET US PRAY:
