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(Psalm 31)
THE LORD BLESSES THOSE WHO TAKE REFUGE IN HIM.
When I trust . . . I take refuge.
When I take refuge . . . I trust.
Every time we say:
- Rock (solid foundation) - Rock (solid cave in which to flee) - Cleft of the rock (crack in which to hide from the storm) - fortress - hiding place - shelter - protection from the storm - shield
We are talking about the refuge.
Psalms has 44 of the 90 times the word refuge is used in Scripture (these are all in OT Scripture).
There are two mains ways in which this word is used:
- The Lord is a refuge - His people seek and find refuge in Him.
In order for us to get to the real refuge, we need to be aware of the false places of refuge.
There are three comparing statements we need to consider; we will look at two today. They will help us find God as our refuge.
#1 - Those who take refuge in the Lord are known by godliness and contentment; the false place of refuge is money and my love for it (I Timothy 6:3-10).
Godliness with contentment is great gain - a refuge given by the Lord to those who seek Him.
#2 - Those who take refuge in the Lord put their hope in God and pray night and day; the false place of refuge is hope in the pleasures of this world (I Timothy 5:3-8).
Put you hope in God and pray day and night - a refuge given by the Lord to those who seek Him.
#3 - Those who take refuge in the Lord trust Him and His Word; the false place of refuge is trust in the multiplied religions of this world.
Read Psalm 31:1-5
Do you see with me the seriousness of what we are talking about?
Half-hearted Christianity is not what is in view here.
Did you do anything half-hearted in this worship service today?
Singing - these are the Psalms
Praying - the Psalms are prayers
Giving - time, effort, even money (notice vs. 23)
No room for half-hearted taking refuge. In fact that is the point; the half-hearted have not taken refuge.
The light hearted take refuge ("I will be glad and rejoice in your love, for you saw my affliction" - vs. 7).
The broken-hearted take refuge (vs. 6-8).
The whole-hearted take refuge ("Into your hands I commit my spirit" - vs. 5).
Those with no heart for the things of God, obviously do not take refuge in Him.
Those who are half-hearted, also are not finding their full refuge in God.
Those who have a heart for the things of God, have enormous troubles and trials, but they are not lost or consumed.
Why? Because their refuge is in God.
Is that making some sense today?
Those who take refuge in the Lord trust Him and His Word; the false place of refuge is trust in the multiplied religions of this world.
May we never make the Word of God of no effect by our tradition.
Do you remember the story about the little girl who was given two dollars as she left for church? One dollar was for her and one dollar was for the Lord. She had one dollar in each hand when a big wind came up and blew one of the dollars out and down the storm sewer. She looked at that for a second and then said, "Well, Lord, there goes your dollar."
When we take refuge in the Lord, we become whole-hearted.
JAS 1:2 Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, 3 because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. 4 Perseverance must finish its work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. 5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. 6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord; 8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
It is not easy to take your refuge in the Lord.
It takes your whole heart.
It takes faithful desire to walk with God.
Getting saved from my sins and becoming a Christian is a receiving of a costly gift - already paid for. Greatest gift ever; the depth of what it cost to pay for my sin only becomes more marvelous as the years go on. This is a gift for all who will receive. This is my helmet of salvation (Ephesians 6). This is the starting point of finding my refuge in God. It is powerful and great, but totally a gift received.
The rest of this story has quite a different setting; after becoming God’s child by faith, the refuge I find in the Lord is directly connected with where my heart is and who or what I am putting my trust in.
Psalm 31 gives two primary reasons.
I. The unending trials of this life.
II. The illusive goodness of God (Psalm 31:19-24).
The goodness of God is illusive to me because I am a man.
The goodness of God is part of who God says He is; and He is not changing -
"For I am the Lord, I change not" (Malachi 3:6).
"Jesus Christ is the same, yesterday, today, and forever" (Hebrews 13:8).
This is the challenge.
This is the crux.
Will I take whatever is served up to me by this life - what ever the source:
THE LORD BLESSES THOSE WHO TAKE REFUGE IN HIM.
When I trust . . . I take refuge.
When I take refuge . . . I trust.
David was not chosen because he was big on the outside.
David was chosen because from his youth he was strong on the inside.
1SA 16:7 But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart."
No heart.
Half-heart.
Seeking with the whole heart.
Where am I at today?
C.S. Lewis gives this illustration in The Problem of Pain:
"Some regard God as an airman a parachute; it is there for emergencies but he hopes he’ll never have to use it" (p. 96).
God is my parachute?
Or
God is my refuge!
May the Lord give us wisdom from this great book of Psalms.
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