Sermon for Suites by the Lake – September 26, 2008 – “Perfect Love Drives Out Fear”
Psalm 27:1 Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid?2 When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall.3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident.4 One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock.
When I was growing up music was everywhere. My dad Lewis played blues piano. My sister played as well. There was always music…mostly jazz…playing. A house full of music.
For many of us it’s the same. It may be a certain style of music that we just love no matter what the song. It might be a certain singer that seems to sings song the way we would sing them if we could only sing. Music is the language of the heart. A language of the emotions. It helps us clear our minds. It buoys us when we’re down. It helps us be sad, sometimes, when we need to be sad…somehow it expresses what we’re feeling and lets us get lost in it.
Music has been part of the human experience since before anyone can remember. Did you know that the Bible has at its very core and pretty much right smack in the middle of it, a song book. The book of Psalms is a book of songs. Or, more accurately, song lyrics.
The original melodies are perhaps long lost. We even find sometimes in the book of Psalm, at the start of the psalm: “To the tune of…”, in the same way that we might sing a song to the tune of “O Danny Boy”. So we know that the psalms were all about music.
There’s a certain honesty about music that I’ve always responded to. Somehow it’s permissible to sing about things…loves lost, dream and hopes aspired to…that don’t usually make there way into casual conversation. Music becomes a way for us to experience together in the listening strong universal feelings and experiences that are just plain hard to find words for.
And the book of Psalms is no different. The particular Psalm that we’ve going to look at already today speaks to an area that affects each of us and all of humanity one way or another.
Psalm 27:1 "Of David. The LORD is my light and my salvation-- whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid?2 When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. 3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident".
Fear can be a paralyzing thing. There are a lot of things to be afraid of. One of the things that binds together all fears is uncertainty. We fear when we do not know something. We’re cautious of new people because we do not know them.
We’re worried about finances because we don’t know or can’t know how our finances are really doing or how the economy will go. We fear for our health because we’re uncertain how our bodies will behave down the road. We fear death because we are uncertain what lies beyond the grave.
It’s interesting that this Psalm begins its reflection on fear and uncertainty with an affirmation of the exact opposite: a certainty. The Psalmist proclaims rather boldly that the Lord is his light and salvation.
I don’t know about you, but when I get worried about something, it has the capacity to take over my mind. It’s all I can focus on. It’s tough to separate myself from that thing I worry about. It’s easy to get lost in worry. To lie awake at night with worry.
But this song…this Psalm, starts with a real jolt. Somebody out there is saying: “The Lord is my light and salvation—whom shall I fear?”
Now to this…we might react with a “Hunh? Say what? What kind of reaction is that? What does God have to do with fear? What does God have to say to me about my fear?”
But then the song continues: “The LORD is the stronghold of my life-- of whom shall I be afraid?
Maybe this begins to break it down a bit. You see fear, or the things we fear can be like strongholds to us in the bad sense. We can be captivated, but also made captive by our fears. We can become skittish, hesitant to move. Our fears have the capacity to paralyze us. We can be captives caught in the web of our own fears. And yet the songwriter, or the psalmist says that for him God is his stronghold, the stronghold of his life. He turns the word “stronghold” on its head and asks, I think rhetorically, “Of whom shall I be afraid”.
It would seem the psalmist has an insight into the divine, into the identity of God that might be helpful. It makes me think of a small boy like my two-year old godson Joshua walking through a tough part of town. By himself he would and should be afraid.
There is no safety walking alone. But if he were walking there with my sixteen-year-old son Jared, who he admires and looks up to and loves, he would feel, and he would be…safe.
The psalmist has a vision of God that is not small. Sometimes that is our problem. Our understanding of God is too limited. Preconceptions that we’ve carried with us for years box God in, or more accurately, box us in from really grasping God’s strength. His power. His grace. His majesty. Thomas Merton said this: “I will not fear, for You are ever with me, and You will never leave me to face my perils alone”.
2 "When evil men advance against me to devour my flesh, when my enemies and my foes attack me, they will stumble and fall".
Next, the writer pinpoints his particular fear. He’s worried about people who have bad intentions toward him.
He’s worried about being a victim of attack. Sometimes our fears can be nameless shadows. Sometimes we can live in fear and not really know why. It’s actually a good exercise to give serious thought to just what exactly it is that’s bugging us.
What is it that’s making me fearful? Sometimes naming our fears can help us when it comes to applying faith in God against those fears, to standing against those troubles with confidence in a God who has the power to keep us from harm.
The writer names his fears here in Psalm 27, but he does more than that. He applies his faith. “When (they) attack me, they will stumble and fall”. The writer has a sense that God will help him in part by affecting the source of his fears. God will enter into his day, God will work on the writer’s behalf.
God will frustrate the plans of his enemies. Watchman Nee, a Chinese pastor in the early part of the last century who endured terrible difficulties and troubles, said this: “The sight of any trouble strikes terror into the heart of those who do not have faith, but those who trust Him say, "Here comes my food!" He had a good sense of humour.
Then the psalmist ups the ante: “3 Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then will I be confident”.
I get the sense here that the writer has found the courage to apply his faith a little, and then as he exercises faith, his faith…grows. It’s not just people who are after him who will stumble. No! “Hey…I figured out that even if a whole platoon surrounds me, I have no need to worry. If the world is against me…you know, that’s ok. Even then, I’ll be confident”.
We’re faced with the very real dilemma. We have a decision to make. Either this guy, this psalmist…is nuts-in-the-head, or…there is something here for us. Could it be that faith in God is a source of real strength?
Might trusting God be an access point to the courage that we want but can’t find within ourselves…because we’ve been around long enough and figured out that as far as us and the world goes, we’re all like little Joshua walking around a scary neighbourhood, in need of a really, really big hand to hold onto that belongs to Someone who’s big and strong and who knows what’s going on? I wonder.
Let’s continue.
Psalm 27:4 One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. 5 For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock
So after the psalmist’s rather jarring profession of faith in God, we get more insight into his motives. His reason for wanting to come to God is not primarily to be able to overcome his fears.
The reason for his desire for proximity to Divine Love is not so that he can travel through life unscathed. His reason is simply this: love. He wants to be close to God to gaze upon His beauty.
I have a confession to make…and this is one of many things that my father Lewis and I share in common…we are crazy in love with our spouses.
We adore them and cleave to them and honour them and, frankly, sometimes can’t believe that we’ve been so lucky as to have even met them let alone get to live our lives with them. I see that in my father’s eyes whenever he looks at mom.
I feel that whenever I get to gaze at my wife Barbara, who is, to me the most beautiful and amazing creature on God’s green earth. A highpoint of my day is when I get to just stare at her in wonder. Maybe I’m just a hopeless romantic.
Our writer, this psalmist, really seems to have experienced something of God’s beauty. Perhaps he has known and felt much of God’s love.
He states that he wants to spend time in the house of the Lord. He wants to hang out where God lives. He says he longs for those moments where he can behold the beauty of God and pursue Him…to seek Him in his temple.
5 "For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his tabernacle and set me high upon a rock".
There’s something utterly mighty about love. There is something about love that is always triumphant. There is something about love that helps us deal with our fear.
I think it’s best summarized in this passage from 1 John 4:18 “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear”. Fear cannot find a foothold in us when the love of God is at home in us. God’s love is, of course, the only perfect love.
That’s because, as John also says in his letter, “God is love”. He is the very embodiment and definition of love.
After speaking of his love for God and his desire to be in His presence, the psalmist brings it all home when he reflects: “When trouble comes (and we know that, unfortunately, trouble will always come in some form or other)…when trouble comes, we will be kept safe in his dwelling.
As people of faith we can have a profound confidence that no matter what storm befalls us, we need never be far from the complete safety and comfort of God’s embrace. We’re told he hides us in the shelter of this tabernacle. We are protected and cared for.
That’s for when the storm comes. We are set high upon a rock. That’s for when the waters simply get too high for us. I’m pretty sure we all get the picture.
So what are we to do? How do we respond to such a picture painted by a songwriter some thirty-five hundred years ago? I think it’s kind of simple, actually. We can each ask ourselves, “Does any of this resonate?”
Do I have fears? Do I get overwhelmed by them at times? Do I want to be able to place my trust in Someone who is big enough to walk with me through the scary places in life?
And, can we stop and give thanks? Can we let our hearts be filled with gratitude for our lives? That’s one of my most frequent prayers. Simply: “Thank you God, for my life”. Can we each say that now to ourselves? “Thank you God, for my life”.
And can we dare to pause and bow down before this person we know or we’re coming to know as God, who IS love. Who gives us nothing but love and grace? Who welcomes us in the here and now and gives us confidence to live with courage and grace.
And who waits for us to enter His everlasting joy. The new beginning, the life of unending love that awaits ever soul that places their faith in God and their life in His hands?
Let’s pray. God…you are bigger than we can imagine and we are safer in Your care than we will ever, perhaps, know here on earth. You are love. And in love you call out to us. You woo us in the daytime and in the night.
You wait for us…so patiently you await a response from us. And so we give you our worship, such as it is, and we give you our faith, such as it is. And we ask you to come to us. Be the stronghold of our lives. Hide us in the shelter of your wings and set us high upon a rock when the storms threaten to overwhelm. And let us gaze upon you. Stir in each one here such a love for you that it will drive out all fear and doubt. This we ask in the name of Your Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, who gave His life for us that we might live forever.
