God Delivers and Protects
Psalms 91:1-6, 9-16
SS Lesson for 11/21/2010
Devotional Scripture: 2 Peter 2:4-9
The major outline of the lesson came from the Bible Expositor and Illuminator. This week's lesson teaches about the Deliverance and Protection of God. The study's aim is to underscore that we need to look to God alone for deliverance and refuge. The study's application is to commit to trusting God because in His Almighty care we have nothing to fear.
My Security Blanket
I have a granddaughter who is going through her second security blanket, and it is about gone. In fact, it is gross! There is hardly anything left but tattered threads. It is dirty, for she refuses to let anyone touch it. She resists having it washed. If it were washed, it would probably disintegrate. In her little world, this security blanket represents her asylum from the stress of parents, siblings, etc. Unfortunately, this has gone on for several years now, and I am beginning to worry that the fading blanket is there to stay! While I am concerned about a granddaughter’s clinging to a piece of cloth for security, I wonder about my own “security blanket.” What do I cling to when times get tough? At my age of 67, I can worry if there is enough money put away in investments and Social Security benefits to pay for expenses of a home, food, medicine, taxes, gas, and inflation. Perhaps keeping a good job and income at this age is a security blanket. I also lean on my spouse for security. We tend to seek security in a variety of sources. These include pension plans, a job, a spouse, or even our children. Any of these can end up being a security blanket in a negative sense. But there is only one place where real security can be found: God! We need to discover that God’s ability to sustain us is greater than the evils that beset us. Psalm 91 will help us discover that God is our protector.
Lesson Background
Last week’s lesson from Psalm 90 starkly pointed out the difference between the eternal God and frail humanity as God’s wrath overrides all human sin. Today’s lesson from Psalm 91 moves us forward in emphasizing the fact that God’s protection and grace are sufficient in times of distress if we take refuge in him. Psalm 91 is a song of trust. Its aim is to encourage the individual to put trust in a God who cares and protects those committed to him. The structure of Psalm 91 is based on a certain Hebrew conjunction that can be translated in various ways. Depending on context, some possibilities for translating this word are “for,” “that,” “if,” and “when.” It also can be an emphatic “indeed,” “truly,” or “surely.” In today’s lesson, we see it used in verse 3 as “surely,” in verse 9 as “if,” and in verse 14 as “because.” Thus, the structure of the psalm is divided into identifiable parts: verses 1 and 2 form an introduction to the psalm as a whole; verses 3–13 give assurances of God’s protection, as subdivided into the two repetitious sections of verses 3–8 and verses 9–13; verses 14–16 function as a concluding oracle of God in affirming his promise of protection to those who love him.
If we were asked to describe life in one word, one possibility would have to be "uncertain." There are both joys and sorrows in life, and we have no way of knowing ahead of time which is coming next. Our lives include concerns about health, accidents, financial disasters, unexpected breakdowns of appliances and vehicles, crimes, marriage problems of family and friends, loss of friendships, and unexpected deaths, to name a few. It is good that we cannot predict the future, for we would surely become depressed. In spite of such uncertainties, the child of God who lives in a close relationship with the Lord can still have a sense of security. That comes from knowing that our God is sovereignly in control at all times; nothing is going to happen to us that He does not allow. That, in turn, allows us to enjoy life and experience a great deal of happiness, peace, joy, and contentment. The intimacy of that relationship is closely tied to the believer's commitment to being obedient to God and maintaining a daily walk with Him. Psalm 91 reminds us of God's protection and care of His children in the face of all the dangers included in this life. Last week we saw that God protects us because He is eternal and gives us His wisdom. In this week's lesson we focus on how God delivers us in times of trouble and through those acts of deliverance protects His children. God is our Deliverer, our Rescuer. What do we need rescuing from? Any kind of trouble we may happen to be in. As this lesson is being written, the world is experiencing an economic crisis. This has put many people on edge because of the uncertainty about their jobs and the possibility of losing their savings. This psalm is very relevant to such difficult times of crisis. With every crisis, we learn that we must not put our trust in material things but in God, who does not change. We also learn that only He can be our Rescuer, our Protector whom we can fully rely on.
(Scriptural Text from the New King James Version; cross-references from the NIV)
1 He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.
2 I will say of the Lord, "He is my refuge and my fortress; My God, in Him I will trust."
3 Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler And from the perilous pestilence.
4 He shall cover you with His feathers, And under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
27 And I will put my Spirit in you and move you to follow my decrees and be careful to keep my laws.
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come.
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
9 The Lord is a refuge for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble.
2 The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge. He is my shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.
8 Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.
46 God is our refuge and strength, an ever-present help in trouble.
29 The way of the Lord is a refuge for the righteous, but it is the ruin of those who do evil.
5 "Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him.
7 The Lord is good, a refuge in times of trouble. He cares for those who trust in him,
5 You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, Nor of the arrow that flies by day,
6 Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, Nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
28 Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
12 "I, even I, am he who comforts you. Who are you that you fear mortal men, the sons of men, who are but grass,
14 But even if you should suffer for what is right, you are blessed. "Do not fear what they fear; do not be frightened."
10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
6 For hardship does not spring from the soil, nor does trouble sprout from the ground. 7 Yet man is born to trouble as surely as sparks fly upward.
18 Why did I ever come out of the womb to see trouble and sorrow and to end my days in shame?
34 Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
22 So I saw that there is nothing better for a man than to enjoy his work, because that is his lot. For who can bring him to see what will happen after him?
13 Now listen, you who say, "Today or tomorrow we will go to this or that city, spend a year there, carry on business and make money." 14 Why, you do not even know what will happen tomorrow. What is your life? You are a mist that appears for a little while and then vanishes.
14 "Man born of woman is of few days and full of trouble.
35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written: "For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered." 37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, 39 neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.
9 Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, Even the Most High, your dwelling place,
10 No evil shall befall you, Nor shall any plague come near your dwelling;
11 For He shall give His angels charge over you, To keep you in all your ways.
12 In their hands they shall bear you up, Lest you dash your foot against a stone.
13 You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, The young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
14 "Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high, because he has known My name.
15 He shall call upon 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."
4 Remain in me, and I will remain in you. No branch can bear fruit by itself; it must remain in the vine. Neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in me. 5 "I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not remain in me, he is like a branch that is thrown away and withers; such branches are picked up, thrown into the fire and burned.
28 And now, dear children, continue in him, so that when he appears we may be confident and unashamed before him at his coming.
6 No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.
15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God.
12 No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.
22 My God sent his angel, and he shut the mouths of the lions. They have not hurt me, because I was found innocent in his sight. Nor have I ever done any wrong before you, O king."
6 The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. "Quick, get up!" he said, and the chains fell off Peter's wrists. 8 Then the angel said to him, "Put on your clothes and sandals." And Peter did so. "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me," the angel told him. 9 Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision. 10 They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him. 11 Then Peter came to himself and said, "Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me from Herod's clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating."
31 And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
7 The angel of the Lord encamps around those who fear him, and he delivers them.
5 But if anyone obeys his word, God's love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him:
15 If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in him and he in God. 16 And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in him. 17 In this way, love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day of judgment, because in this world we are like him. 18 There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love.
6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
4 But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5 made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions — it is by grace you have been saved.
16 "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
26 In that day you will ask in my name. I am not saying that I will ask the Father on your behalf. 27 No, the Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.
16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
34 Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died — more than that, who was raised to life — is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us.
41 "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the body is weak."
15 And the prayer offered in faith will make the sick person well; the Lord will raise him up. If he has sinned, he will be forgiven. 16 Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man is powerful and effective.
39 then hear from heaven, your dwelling place. Forgive and act; deal with each man according to all he does, since you know his heart (for you alone know the hearts of all men),
4 Cornelius stared at him in fear. "What is it, Lord?" he asked. The angel answered, "Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God.
The presence of evil in this world is a fact of life for all, but especially for God’s people who seek to live righteously. Sometimes the danger includes premeditated entrapment by evil people or epidemic diseases of a fallen world (Psalm 91:3, 6). Some attacks come in the dead of night, others at midday (vv. 5, 6). Harm and disaster is never far away (v. 10). There is no time or place on this earth when we are not endangered by evil. Yet for all these threats God is still our protector. His promises are certain. He will rescue and protect those who know his name (v. 14). When we cry out for help, he will answer by being with us, delivering us, and even honoring us in the end (v. 15). How can we not trust God to be our refuge and fortress (vv. 2, 9)?
This psalm is messianic. It applies to Jesus. In fact, Psalm 91:11-12 was quoted by Satan when Jesus was tempted (Matt. 4:6; Luke 4:10-11). The text gives us a reminder that God the Father was in control of all that happened to Jesus while He was on this earth. God says He "will set him on high." This has to do with protection. Yet, it is interesting that God the Father did not protect Him from death. In fact, Jesus died a horrible death in the crucifixion. We need to remember a few things about that. First, there were several times when some wanted to kill Jesus. John 8:59 records one such example. But the time of Jesus' death was God's appointment. Isaiah prophesied that "it pleased the Lord to bruise him" (Isa. 53:10). That may sound wicked and pernicious to us, but God the Father had to put Jesus to death for us. The verse goes on to tell us that God made "his soul an offering for sin." God loved us that much, and the Son loved us enough to be a willing sacrifice. Yes, even when faced with the crucifixion, which was perhaps the most horrible form of death in all of human history, Jesus said, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt" (Matt. 26:39). Jesus died for all, but His death was not efficacious for all. Ps 91:14-15 says, "I will set him on high, because he hath known my name." God is obligated only to those who know His name, that is, those who acknowledge Him and put their truth in Him. He owes nothing to the unsaved. Those who call upon the Lord also have the confidence that He will answer. Hebrews 4:16 says, "Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need." That is truly something to rejoice in, for we all can be grateful that not only can we come but that God has told us to come boldly! Finally, the text reminds us that God will be with us in trouble, that He will deliver us, and that He will honor us. To know that there is no problem we will ever face that is too difficult for God is a great comfort. You may have heard the saying "Did it ever occur to you that nothing ever occurred to God?" The point, of course, is that God is intimately aware of all that goes on. That is because He is sovereign and He determines all things. Whenever we face trouble, we should remember this. That God will "deliver" us points to some very important truths. The Hebrew word here is striking. It is a military term. It is used of soldiers who are armed for war. God arms us to battle troubles. That God will honor us is intriguing. We are to honor Him, but He also honors us. Is there anything else God could do to amaze us more?
1. Putting our faith in the Lord is putting ourselves in a place of perfect safety (Ps. 91:1-2)
2. Unexpected trials reveal to us God's compassionate concern for His children (vs. 3-4)
3. God is in control and limits our suffering; so we need never fear (vs. 5-6,9-10)
4. God Himself will see that nothing prevents His faithful ones from honoring Him (vs. 11-13)
5. Trials will come, but we are assured of God's presence and help (vs. 14-15)
6. What is important is not how many days God gives us but how many days we give Him (vs. 16)
Although Americans do not live under open persecution, there are many physical and ideological threats around us. We are daily reminded of our weakness and the strength of those elements that would destroy us. We see others falling to disease, accidents, and crimes. All manner of seen and unseen potential catastrophes could befall us at any moment. You may well wonder how you will avoid trouble or, having fallen into it, how you will escape. Will you be able to live confidently and victoriously?
These verses speak of dwelling, which is more than just existing. Living under the care of the Lord is to be carried out by faith. Remind yourself constantly that you belong to Him. You are His child by faith in Christ and His finished work on the cross. God is your Creator. He has specific plans for you by which He will be glorified and you will be blessed. That is the truth, regardless of what happens all around you. Fear and faith are mutually exclusive. Always be rehearsing in your inner man who He is and what He is constantly doing with your life, and you will not be ruled by fear.
There are evil things happening and evil, threatening people in this world. Diseases are commonplace. Schemes of all kinds are being fabricated to trap the unwary. While many are falling prey to these, you need not, because you can dwell in the secret place of the Lord. You find that secret place when you are praying and God is listening. No one else can see this secret place, but it is real, for you are dwelling in Him. He has promised to meet you when you pray to Him. If you are born again, the indwelling Holy Spirit is interceding for you. God is dwelling within you, and you are dwelling in Him. No matter what happens around you, it will ultimately result in good for you and praise for Him. Anything bad happening around you lacks substance by comparison. You may observe sin and its consequences, but it cannot do you ultimate harm.
These verses do not assure us of general or national protection by the Lord, but of His personal, detailed care. He has authorized and empowered His angels to intervene on your behalf in every circumstance of life. Your walk through life is protected and kept from spiritual harm by His direct command.
God says here, over and over again, "I will." What God wills to perform, He does. Nothing can stop Him or dissuade Him. We can hardly fathom God's reasons for protecting and delivering us, but He stated here that He was responding because "he hath set his love upon me,... he hath known my name." God's reward is tremendously greater than anything we could ever earn. We should love God and think of Him and His name and all it implies. Here He shows again that when you sow to the Spirit, you will reap a deeper, richer spiritual life. The principle of sowing and reaping is that you will reap what you sow. Know all you can about God and His name, character, and Word. Worship and love Him deeply. Your reward will be great here and now, and there and then!