THE SAFE REFUGE And man shall
be as a hiding-place from the wind, And a covert from the tempest,
As rivers of water in a dry place, As the shadow of a great rock
in a weary land. Isaiah 32 verse 2 A man. This first word forms
the key to the precious verse. It is the man, Christ Jesus. And when and where is he thus
revealed to his people as their hiding-place and shelter? It
is, as with Elijah of old, in the whirlwind and the storm.
Amid the world's bright sunshine, in the tranquil skies, Uninterrupted
prosperity, they seek him not. But, when the clouds begin to
gather, And the sun is swept from the firmament, When they
have learned the insecurity Of all earthly refugees, then the
prayer ascends, My heart is overwhelmed, lead me to the rock That is higher
than I. the earthquake, the tempest,
the fire, and then the still small voice. Sorrowing Believer,
you have indeed a sure refuge, a strong tower which cannot be
shaken. The world has its refuges, too,
but they cannot stand the day of trial. The wind passes over
them, and they are gone, but the louder the hurricane, the
more will it endear to you the abiding shelter. The deeper in
the cliffs of this rock, the safer you are. O man, delight
often to dwell on the humanity of Jesus. You have a brother
on the throne, a living kinsman, one who knows your frame, and
who, by the exquisite sympathies of his exalted human nature,
can gauge, as none other can, the depths of your sorrow. An
earthly friend comes to you in trial. He has never known bereavement,
and therefore cannot enter into your woe. Another comes, he has
been again and again in the furnace. His heart has been touched tenderly
as your own. He can feelingly sympathize with
you. It is so with Jesus. As man, he has passed through
every experience of suffering. He has himself known the storm
from which he offers you shelter. He is the Rock, yet a man, mighty
to save, yet mighty to compassionate. Immanuel, God with us, he is
like the rainbow in the material heavens, which, while its summit
is in the clouds, each base of its arc rests on earth. Or like the oak, which, while
it can wrestle with the tempest, yet invites the most feeble bird
to fold its wing on its branches. Mourner, go sit under your beloved's
shadow with great delight. Hide in his wounded side. The
hand, which was pierced for you, is ordering your trials. He who
roused the storm is the hiding-place from it. And, as you journey
on, gloomy clouds mustering around you, let this bright rainbow
of comfort ever arrest your drooping eye. For this reason he had to
be made like his brothers, in every way. Since he himself has
gone through suffering and temptation, he is able to help us when we
are being tempted.