LIVING UNDER THE SHADOW
Ps. 91:1-16
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. I remember hearing the humorous story of a group of soldiers at boot camp at the end of a long day.
2. The sergeant had just turned out the lights and the poor soldiers knew it wouldn't be very long until reveille was sounded, driving them from their beds.
3. One soldier began to pray, "Now I lay me down to sleep, (etc., until)… And if I die before I wake, THANK YOU LORD!”
4. In the darkness, ten soldiers said a loud, "Amen!"
B. TEXT
Whoever dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 Surely he will save you from the fowler’s snare and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his feathers, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness will be your shield and rampart. 5 You will not fear the terror of night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in the darkness, nor the plague that destroys at midday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. 8 You will only observe with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked. 9 If you say, “The Lord is my refuge,” and you make the Most High your dwelling, 10 no harm will overtake you, no disaster will come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways; 12 they will lift you up in their hands, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the cobra; you will trample the great lion and the serpent. 14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 15 He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
C. THESIS
1. This is one of the most powerful and comforting passages in the Bible. Let's take a few minutes and try to absorb what it means to our lives.
2. The title of this message is, "Living Under the Shadow."
I. BECOMING ONE WHO TRUSTS GOD
A. DWELL IN THE SECRET PLACE
1. WHAT IS THE “SECRET PLACE” OF THE MOST HIGH?
a. Sometimes that term is used of a secret hiding-place, as of places David resorted to when he was a fugitive.
b. Other times, it’s used of the central tent of the Commander of an Army, as in Psalm 27:5, "He shall hide me in His pavilion…." The enemy would have to break through rank after rank of soldiers to get to it.
c. But most likely, it referred to the Most Holy Place in the Tabernacle/Temple. That sacred chamber was the abode of the Shekinah glory of God's presence.
d. So it refers to the place of God's presence/dwelling.
2. WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO “DWELL” THERE?
a. No man literally ever dwelt there. So the words have a spiritual meaning.
b. "Home is where the heart is."
1). He who has his thoughts always on God is said to "dwell with Him."
2). “Since, then, you have been raised with Christ, set your hearts on things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things. For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.” Col. 3:1-3.
3). CHARACTERISTICS OF SUCH A PERSON
a). Loves to be alone with God.
b). Worships within the veil.
c). Converses with God in solitude.
3. WHAT DOES "SHADOW" REFER TO?
a. Protection from the Sun.
b. Dominion, under the power of. "Don't harm that person, for he has come under the "shadow of my roof."
B. CONFESSION OF HIS FAITH
1. "I will say of the Lord…." The psalmist confesses by faith God's protection and witnesses of his faith to others.
2. Vss 1 & 2, he mentions five names of God; five ways He is revealed; Most High, Almighty, Lord/God, Refuge, Fortress.
II. GOD’S PROTECTION OF BELIEVERS
A. TYPES OF PROTECTION
1. “DELIVER THEE” Vs. 3
a. It can mean "to keep from," but also, "to free from, rescue." Even if we’re in the clutches of the enemy, He will set you free.
b. From:
1). Snare of the Fowler – concealed peril, adapted to our nature, attractively baited, uses decoys.
2). Deadly pestilence (NIV).
2. “SHIELD” Vs.4
a. Feathers, wings – Ps. 17:8; Mt. 23:37.
1). Shelter from observation or danger.
2). A farmer friend of mine watched as a sudden rainstorm came. The little baby chicks all ran under their momma’s wings.
b. Shield and Rampart.
3. He will BANISH FEAR from us – day or night (5,6). I remember being on the wrong side of the Law. I was afraid whenever I saw a police car. Now, I'm never afraid to see one, but glad to. Before we were saved, God seemed like a threatening fear; but once you know Him, He's a complete assurance.
4. IMMUNITY, exempt from danger.
5. ILLUS.: Prayer Controls Fire.
a. The restraining hand of the Lord was seen in Pohang, Korea, during a terrible fire were 20 houses were burned to the ground.
b. 2 believers who lived in that district ran to the front of their houses and began to intercede to God to spare their houses.
c. In both instances, the fire stopped just short of their house. Not only was this a testimony to the saved, but the unsaved also observed that it had been a divine power that had intervened!
B. SUPERNATURAL MEANS
1. Reward for Trust (9,10). Power of confession. “If you say, ‘The Lord is my Refuge…’, then no harm will overtake you!”
2. Cause of Victory? (11,12) ANGELS!
3. Ultimate victory (13). Tread on Lion, Cobra. Lion – the strongest of beasts; the cobra – the most cunning. Why? “Be as wise as a serpent and as harmless as a dove.”
C. THIS DOESN’T MEAN WE WON’T HAVE TROUBLES
1. Verse 3 - "deliver."
2. Verse 15B, "I will be with him in trouble."
3. Spanish of Psalm 91:1, "Shall be kept under the Overcoat of God Almighty."
4. In years past, when the weather was bad, I would put my children inside my coat to protect them from the elements. That's what God does for us.
III. GOD’S SIGNATURE Vss. 14-16
A. PROMISED REWARDS FOR TRUSTING
"14 “Because he loves me,” says the Lord, “I will rescue him; I will protect him, for he acknowledges my name. 15 He will call on me, and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”
B. ILLUS.: “MORE GOOD THAN SERMONS”
1. A widow and her six children were stricken with a contagious illness. One morning at breakfast the minister's wife announced that she was going to take care of the stricken family.
2. Her own family protested, but she only quoted a part of Psalm 91: "Nor for the pestilence that walks in darkness; nor for the structure and that wastes at noon day." And, "Player shall be no evil befall you, neither shall any plague come near your dwelling."
3. She said, "I believe that Psalm means just what it says. It is a clear call for me to go. God will take care of you."
4. She went and was in that home for five weeks. When they were practically well again, she went back home.
5. Neither she nor her family contracted the disease. Her kind act did more to raise the spiritual level of that community than all the sermons her husband preached.
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. An Englishman traveling through Ceylon told a remarkable story of quiet trust.
2. He was eating in the home of Timcomolec (a local leader) and was startled to hear the hostess ask her servant to place a bowl of milk on the deerskin near her chair.
3. He knew immediately that meant there was a cobra in the room, for they prefer milk to anything else.
4. The guests also knew that a hasty movement might mean death, so they all sat still as statues.
5. “Soon, to our amazement, a cobra uncoiled itself from the hostess’ ankle and swiftly glided toward the milk, where it was quickly killed."
6. What a triumph of self-control over panic. If only we Christians could exercise the same quiet trust in Christ as this woman did toward the bowl of milk when a cobra was wrapped around her ankle.
7. If we could attain a level of faith like that -- despite the presence of evil – we’d experience many more triumphs than we do now!
B. THE CALL
1. How many of you struggle to trust God during the difficult times?
2. How many of you would like God to give you peace in the confident assurance that everything will be okay?
3. Let's go to God in prayer and turn our troubles over to the Lord. Prayer.
