Fear No Fear

(All scripture from the NET, netbible.org, all rights reserved)

For you have taken refuge in the Lord, my shelter, the Most High. No harm will overtake you; no illness will come near your home.
Psalm 91:9-10 (emphasis added)

The major issue of this psalm is whether or not it is literal. Many argue that it is NOT. That it is SPIRITUAL. Images to convey what is happening in another realm, or perhaps after we have passed into the Kingdom of Heaven. Some believe it was penned by Moses after the tabernacle was built. Some believe it was David looking forward to the temple era. Some think it was a psalm to be sung while entering the temple, while others say the temple language is metaphorical. No matter who the author or whether it is meant to be literal, it is clearly a psalm with a single theme: Adonai is to be our KEEPER.

The psalm starts out declaring Adonai as our protector. He protects us (vs 1-4). He is greater than the powers of death (vs 5-6) – or from the powers of deadly spirits and demons. He is the one who must give the wicked what they in the end deserve (vs 7-8). It is restated very clearly that Adonai protects (vs 9-10). He protects the faithful (vs 11-13). Finally, Adonai confirms the truth of the psalmist’s words (vs. 14-16). It shines as a personal plea against fear and despair, as well as a worshipper’s expression of praise and gratitude Adonai as the sole source of hope and salvation. Matthew Henry’s commentary lists five promises Adonai makes in this psalm: they will be under the peculiar care of Heaven (vs 1-4), delivered from the malice of the powers of darkness through distinguished preservation (vs 3 & 5-8), they will be in the charge of angels (vs 10-12), they will triumph over enemies (vs 13), and they will be special favourites of Adonai (vs 14-16).

So is this literal or figurative? Not important. That is NOT the point of the psalm AT ALL. The point of this psalm is your heart attitude toward Adonai. Are you making Him your keeper? Are you making Him your keeper regardless of your circumstances? Are you making Him your keeper no matter how you FEEL? Adonai is the Righteous Almighty One. It does not matter WHAT is happening here on this earth. That TRUTH does not change. Our responsibility is to look to Him as our keeper because that is His rightful place. Period. Think of a field. The farmer who owns and works that field sees it as a field. It is a field before it is cleared. It is a field as they are clearing it. It is a field while is it being planted. It is a field while the crops are growing. It is a field during the harvest. It is a field in the seasons between crops. It is ALWAYS a field. In the same way, regardless of what is happening here on Earth and regardless of our personal circumstances, He is the Righteous One.

We are to make Him our keeper. He is to be our fortress against trouble. It doesn’t matter what form the trouble takes. He is to be our refuge from danger. He is our safe space where we can be totally and completely ourselves. Where we can breathe deeply and look out at creation – whether we think we can engage it or not. He is our corrector. He is our guide. He is our comforter. He is our instructor. He is the One who gives wisdom. He is the One Who Loves. He is our commentary on the Word. He IS the Word. He is the Blood that anoints us. He is the Light of our lives. We need to worship Him for being all those things. We need to praise Him for being the Good Father and Shepherd of our souls. It does not matter WHERE we are, WHAT we are feeling, WHO is around us. He IS our Father. He IS Adonai. He IS worthy of praise. His position, His nature, and His attributes are all constants. They never change. So our heart attitude toward Him should ALSO never change. That is the deep lesson of this psalm.

If we were to daily look at the meaning of each phrase of this psalm and use them to give our recognition of the position that Adonai resides in, it would go a LONG way to making Him lord over ALL our life. This psalm includes every category of problem, persecution, or happening that a human can encounter. Relationships, disasters, physical danger, mental issues, emotional issues, supernatural happenstance, and you name it. They are all in there. And in EACH and EVERY one we are to proclaim: Adonai has this!

When we are teaching a child to function as a living being, we help teach it, or we coach it through situation that they find themselves in. Sometimes we cheer them on because of previous work we have done with them that shows us they can do it. Adonai is the same way. Except we are never to think ‘I have this’. We are always to look to Him for a nudge. Maybe He will have instructions for how to do it. Maybe He will give us leave to wing it because He knows we know how He likes things done. In both cases, however, the first step is ALWAYS going to Him to check in. It only takes a moment. A moment to ask. A moment to listen. A moment to obey anything He says. It’s so simple when you really think about it.

When we give Him His place, we are giving Him permission to do what He wants in our lives through our obedience. Do we love Him enough to listen? Do we trust Him enough to obey? The instructions might make perfect sense. They might make NO sense. There might not be ANY instructions. Maybe you check in before a shower and you get a silence. But maybe you hear a ‘I know it’s not a hair day, but wash your hair anyway’. Perhaps there will be an unscheduled meeting at work and you’ll be glad to look your best. Maybe we check in and He asks for something seemingly pointless. A different route to work. Buying different socks. Leaving a few minutes early or late. Smiling at a particular stranger. Maybe we will NEVER KNOW why He has asked for something. It doesn’t matter. If He is your KEEPER, then you trust Him to know the best for you. Every time. Big or small. Important or frivolous. Obedience. Without waiting. Just because He is our keeper. Why do we obey? Because He is our Keeper. Why is He our Keeper? Because we obey.

If you look at the Word you will see our Father loves us and wants the best for us. Whole health. Spirit, soul, and body. Emotionally, mentally, financially, physically, relationally, and spiritually. Nothing missing and nothing broken. In ANY aspect of our lives. We have access to this protection and safety NOT because He is our loving Father. We have access to this protection and safety because we OBEY our loving Father. “The Lord says, “Because he is devoted to me, I will deliver him; I will protect him because he is loyal to me. When he calls out to me, I will answer him. I will be with him when he is in trouble; I will rescue him and bring him honor. I will satisfy him with long life and will let him see my salvation.”” (Psalm 91:14-16). Because WE are devoted. Because WE are loyal. Because WE call on Him. Nothing else is asked for. Consistent obedience. Humble submission. Consistent prayer and praise. That’s it. We aren’t asked to do any works. We are asked to be available and open to Him doing works through in, through, and around us.

If we want to enjoy His healing wings (Micah 4:1), then we need to stay underneath them. If we want the benefits of being a Child of God, we need to act like one. Not on the surface, but through and through. From the heart on up (Matthew 15:17-19). Making sure our spiritual health, our relationship with Him, is our priority before ANY earthly issues, desires, or pleasures (3 John 1:2). If we submit to Him, then He will direct us to all GOOD pleasures, pastimes, activities, employments, hobbies, places, and foods (James 1:17 & Isaiah 55:1-2). Total and whole health is waiting for us from our Keeper, our Good Father. Safety and protection are waiting for us from our Keeper, our Good Father. Praise Him for all that He does for you. Obey Him in all things and all His things are available (Ephesians 1:3-6).

Daily Affirmation Jesus IS Messiah: Psalm 102:16

“when the Lord rebuilds Zion and reveals his splendor,” The Messiah is the Son of David. He has been and was prophesied to come in Glory. “They will fall by the edge of the sword and be led away as captives among all nations. Jerusalem will be trampled down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled” (Luke 21:24). “So the woman gave birth to a son, a male child, who is going to rule over all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was suddenly caught up to God and to his throne, and she fled into the wilderness where a place had been prepared for her by God, so she could be taken care of for 1,260 days. Then war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. But the dragon was not strong enough to prevail, so there was no longer any place left in heaven for him and his angels. So that huge dragon—the ancient serpent, the one called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world—was thrown down to the earth, and his angels along with him. Then I heard a loud voice in heaven saying, “The salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the ruling authority of his Christ, have now come, because the accuser of our brothers and sisters, the one who accuses them day and night before our God, has been thrown down” (Revelation 12:5-10). These have largely not been fulfilled. But Jesus was shown to be the Son of David in Glory: “Six days later Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John the brother of James, and led them privately up a high mountain. And he was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his clothes became white as light” (Matthew 17:1-2). Jesus is Glorious and when He returns, He will return in that Glory that up to now has only been glimpsed. Jesus IS the Messiah!

Your Daily Confession of Jesus/Yeshua’s Identity:

Yeshua is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Matthew 16:16b