Let's take our Bibles and turn
with me to the book of Psalms 46. Psalms 46. I'd like to look at
the first three verses of this psalm in Lord willing next Sunday. Look at the rest of this chapter,
but I want to look at the first three verses. Psalm 46. God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear. Will
the earth be removed? Will the mountains be carried
into the midst of the sea? Will the waters thereof roar
and be troubled? Will the mountains shake with
the swelling thereof. Selah. When the Lord, in his loving
kindness, is pleased to correct one of his own, and we are ever
in need of correction, he allows us to experience the effect He allows us to experience
the pain of our foolish actions. He allows us to feel what we
actually are. As Paul said, O wretched man
that I am, who shall deliver me from the body of this death? We really don't know that we're
in need until we're brought through the fire, brought through the
storm, adversity, trials, and these problems are made to cause
us to feel the pain. Oh, but they're so needful. We
need correcting. David said, Psalm 119.71, it
is good for me that I've been afflicted, that I might learn
thy statutes. I got to thinking about that
this morning. I said, now the statutes, that
I might learn thy statutes. Actually, it means your law.
that I might learn your word, that I might, let me give you
a good example. I'll tell you, it's a good example
for me. Turn to Proverbs 3, 5. Now here's, it's good that I've
been afflicted. That's what he said. It's good
for me that I've been afflicted that I might learn thy statutes. Now listen to this statute right
here. Here's a statute, Mitch. Here's a good one right here.
Proverbs 3, 5. Trust in the Lord. with all thine
heart, and lean not into thine own understanding. Verse six,
in all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy path. Now that's a statute. Trust in
the Lord. You know when we're gonna do
that? When we have to. That's when we're gonna do it.
When Almighty God It moves upon us and causes us to feel the
pain of affliction. David said, it's good. It's good for me that I've been
afflicted. Now, the Spirit of God starts
in Psalm 46 verse 1 and He says this, God is our refuge. Again, I don't need a refuge
until I need a refuge. And when I need a refuge, God
is our refuge. You know, one of the Israelites didn't
need a city of refuge until he had committed a crime accidentally. Didn't mean to do it. Maybe an
axe head fell off. He was out there working with
his buddy. Axe head fell off that axe and hit his buddy in
the head and killed him. And do you know until that axe
head came off and his buddy died, you know he didn't need the city
of refuge. But when he needed it, the city of refuge was there. And he was safe until the judges
heard the case. And it was tried and it was,
you know. God is our Refuge. He is our asylum. Because of
the presence of sin, we are prone to wander. Songwriter says, Lord,
I feel it. Prone to wander. Lord, I do feel
it. And therefore, I need a place
of stability. I need a place of rest. I need
some comfort. And the Lord has promised. Here's a promise. Here's a statute.
I will never leave thee. I will never forsake thee. Do
you know when that right there is going to become precious?
When I feel my need of Him. And He allows me, He allows all
His people to feel that it's good. He's not going to leave
his own to wander about in their insecurity. He is our refuge. And he is the great shepherd
who knows our need. The shepherd knows the need of
the sheep. The sheep don't know. The sheep are oblivious to what's
going on. All they know is that there's
the shepherd. Here's the grass. We're going to eat right where
we are. And our need, according to the shepherd, is himself.
We need to be sheltered from the problems without, but problems
within, the wandering doubts of our old man that constantly
war against the new man, the new heart. We need protection. The fiery darts of Satan that
the Lord has promised are coming. They come. I need a shelter. I need a refuge. I need a place
of security. We need to be kept from being
overcome by the hatred and animosity of this world. I need to be protected
from the lies. I need protection from a lying
gospel. Paul said if we are an angel
from heaven, preach any other gospel except that which we've
preached, let him be accursed. Now what's going to keep me?
What's going to keep me from believing a false gospel? My
refuge. God is our refuge. We need a
hiding place. We need a refuge. One that we
can trust. I need a good one. I need one
that is impregnable. I need one that's safety. God is our refuge and strength. I need one that's strong. A refuge that can't be trusted
is not a refuge. If there's a hurricane coming,
And I'm over here in a cardboard box. And I cover myself up with
a piece of cardboard. I don't have anything. That's
not a refuge. In Adam's transgression, we were
made to see how strong man really is. First time man ever faced the
adversary. He lost. He fell. And we're all made to see the
results of that. We're born in trespasses and
sins. In sin did our mother conceive
us, came forth, speaking lies. And so therefore I know, I know
how strong we are. We're not. Weak, weak. We're rebels, born rebels against
God, held captive. before the Lord is pleased to
come in and bind the strong man and take us, release us. We're bound by our old nature
and deserving the wrath of God. Thanks be unto God. God's people
have never been under the wrath of God. Never. Isn't that a good
thought? Never, never, never have God's
people ever been under the wrath of God. He saved us and called us in
time. That's what we just looked at.
That's Wednesday. Almighty God eternally saw us
in Christ in the refuge. He eternally saw us in Him and
the Lamb Himself slain from the foundation of the world and trusted
Him. Therefore, justified us freely. No guilt. No guilt. Oh,
I realize the time we realize it. It calls us out of darkness,
but Almighty God has eternally beheld us in the Lord Jesus Christ,
loved us. We need a strong refuge. That's why, therefore, by the
deeds of the law, no man is going to be justified. And how strong
is our refuge? Hold your place right there and
turn to John. Chapter 10. How strong is He? I'll tell you
this, He's stronger than you and I realize. We're going to
read a passage of scripture right now that we've read so many times,
and we, at this point, right now in our lives, we don't realize,
Brad, how true this is. It's the truth. By the grace
of God, we will know one day, but this is truth right here.
How strong is He? John 10, 27. My sheep hear My
voice, and I know them. They follow Me, and I give unto
them eternal life. They shall never perish, neither
shall any man pluck them out of My hand. My Father which gave
them Me is greater than all, and no man is able to pluck them
out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one. Now
let me ask you this. How secure are God's sheep? The Lord said, you're in my hand.
You're in my father's hand. And nobody can pluck you out
of my hand. I give you eternal life and you
shall never perish. Now that's substantial. I pray God teach me that. I want
to know that. is our refuge. I tell you this,
the gates of hell are not going to prevail against the rock upon
which the church is built. I can tell you that. The gates
of hell are not going to shut him out from having his sheep.
The gates of hell are not going to stop the Lord from calling
out his people through the hearing of the gospel. How strong is
it? Scripture says God is our refuge
and strength, strength, the saving strength of His people. And I need a refuge that never
fails. I need Him to be my refuge, my
refuge. God is a very present help in
trouble. Now again, I just ask, at what
point are we not in trouble? At what point are we not doubting? At what point are we not fearful? I need a very present help in
the time of trouble. Now let me tell you when that
time of trouble is. Job 5-7. Yet man is born under
trouble as the sparks fly upward. Listen to Job again, 14.1. Man that is born of woman is
a few days and full of trouble. God's people know the trouble. Without, yeah, oh, but within. Oh, Lord, I believe, but help
mine unbelief. We've been born out of one who
was beguiled, one that rebelled, one that's feeble, few of days,
full of trouble. And remember when those troubles
come, which is always that He Himself is strong and He's a
very present help to all God's people. This is an amazing thing. He is omnipresent. The God that I need is a very
present help to me when you call upon the Lord. He said, when
you pray, the Lord told His disciples, when you pray, say, Our Father,
God who hears in secret, here's you too, when you pray. Personal, very present help. And despite all that we can do,
all of our watchfulness and care and skill and trying faithful,
trying to be wanting, desiring to walk with faithfulness, listen
to the confession of a man. that I know for a fact was loved
of God. I know this man was loved of
God. This man's name was Jacob. The Lord said, Jacob have I loved,
Esau have I hated. So I know God loved this man.
But listen to the confession of this man, Genesis 47, 9. This
man was asked by the king, by Pharaoh, he said, how old are
you? How old are you? Here's what Jacob told him. Jacob
said, the days of the years of my pilgrimage, the days of the
years, that's how fast, that's how fast they go. The days of
the years of my pilgrimage, I'm just a sojourner here, just here
for a little bit, are 130 years. He said, few and evil. Have the days of the years of
my life been? How old are you? I'm 130 years old. And the days
of the years, that's the way it's always been. It's always
been fast. The days of the years have been
few and evil. We need a refuge. We need a refuge. Therefore, verse 2, will not
we fear. Though the earth be removed,
though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, though
the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains
shake with the swelling thereof. We have a refuge. He's strong. He's a very present help. Therefore, now I want you to
notice two things. Look at verse 2 and then look
at verse 3. Verse 2 talks about some things
that were removed, carried away. Verse 3 talks about some things
that are troubled, shake. You know, though the earth be
removed. The word, I looked it up, it
does mean the earth, the dirt, the dirt, the nature as we know
it, though the land seems to be altered. Though the environment
that we live in, it seems to be changing, and though it seems
that things are not like they used to be, you know, and they
are. I know that there's cycles and
this, I understand that. Well, I tell you what, you know,
with all this stuff going on, you know, and El Nino and global
warming and this, that and the other. Well, let me tell you
what God says about it. Genesis 8.22, while the earth
remaineth, seed time and harvest and cold, heat, summer, winter,
day, night shall not cease. Oh, it's just, everything's not
like it is. Yeah, it is. Yeah, it is. It just, it may
appear. Well, we're having a whole lot
more tornadoes than we used to have. We've never had. And hurricanes,
and these brush fires, and little... Though the earth be removed,
though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea. The
word mountain there, it could be literally mountain. or it
could be figurative. Though that which is literal
or figurative, if the mountains themselves, if... I can't think of the name of
that volcano out in Washington that blew up back in 1980, 80
or 83. whatever it was, I know y'all
know, but anyway, blew up. That whole, that just, three
quarters of that mountain gone. Just dust. And, and, you know,
though the mountains may be, or if it's figurative, those
things which appear to us to be fixed and promised and depended
on. What if, what if, Husbands, what
if God takes your wife? Wives, what if God took your
husband? What if he's gone? What if the
Lord is pleased to remove him? This country that we love and
appreciate and it's founded on principles that were right, stable,
has a constitution. What about this ministry? That's
what you just prayed, God, keep this ministry. What if God removes
this ministry? Been here now for 63 years? And what if the Lord removes
it? What if He takes your pastor?
Just gone. Just gone. Did y'all hear about
Marvin? No. He had a heart attack and
died. What? Yep, died today. What if God,
though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, and
God removed, if these mountains be removed, God is our refuge. God is our strength. God is our
very present help. But what if these things are
not removed? What if they're troubled? Verse 3, Though the waters thereof
roar and be troubled, the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. These things that at one time
seemed to be quiet, they're still here. They're still here. I know you feel good, I'm sorry to tell you, you have
cancer. We're starting to feel the weakness
of our bodies. And I've done everything I was
supposed to do. I've got my 401k and everything.
But you know, the market's taken a tremendous hit. How much you
lose on paper? How much? What about that? Retirement's in jeopardy now.
I'm going to have to go back to work. I'm going to have to,
you know, and the kids, how are the kids doing? Well, they're
not doing too well. They've got some problems and
it just seems like every day some new saga is going to be. These, the waters, they roar
in trouble, the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. God
is our refuge. It always goes back to verse
1. refuge and strength and a very present help in trouble. Therefore,
we will not fear. We won't fear. Let me ask you
this. Can we hear that enough? Can
I be told enough? Marvin, settle down. Settle down. It's going to be
okay. The Spirit of God moved upon
David to write that word we read so many times, Selah. You know
what that means? Pause. Just stop. Stop and meditate and rest upon
what God has just promised. What the Lord has said. Take
by faith a breath and rejoice in the surety of God's Word. If the earth be removed, it's
the Lord's earth. The earth is the Lord's and the
fullness thereof. If the mountains, if they shake
Things that we thought that were so stable be cast into the midst
of the sea. He worketh all things after the
counsel of His own will. Let the waters roar and be troubled
and the mountains removed. Our God is in the heavens and
He hath done whatsoever He pleased. God is our refuge, and strength, and a very present
help in trouble. I pray the Lord, whatever you're
going through right now, and I know, I know a whole lot about
what a lot of you are going through right now, but I'm gonna tell
you something. Our God, is our refuge. And our hearts can be settled
as the Spirit of God brings that truth to our hearts and teaches
us afresh. And we need to be taught afresh.
May the Lord bless this word to our hearts for Christ's sake.
Amen.