Please turn with me to Psalm 46. It's our scripture reading for tonight, Psalm 46. Psalm 46, reading from verse 1, let us hear God's own word. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage. The kingdoms totter. He utters his voice. The earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. Come, behold the works of God, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots with fire. Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. So far the reading of God's word.
This Psalm is really a wonderful and inspiring psalm, and therefore always slightly intimidating to the preacher. One fears one will not do it justice in preaching It It is so wonderful. It is inspiring, and we see that inspiring quality in the fact that it inspired Martin Luther to write his most famous hymn: "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God." "A Mighty Fortress" really is a loose paraphrase of this Psalm 46, and that would be a good spiritual exercise to sit once with Psalm 46 and "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God" and see how the psalm inspired the hymn and the ways in which Luther sought to bring that psalm to life for the church.
It's a psalm that's intended to be wonderfully encouraging to us. It's a psalm to tell us that whatever the troubles are of this life, God is with us. Whatever the troubles of this life, God knows what he's doing and is in charge, is sovereign. This is a psalm that calls us to know God and to know His works and to praise Him in them. And that's what we want to try to see tonight. This is a psalm that's more about telling us who God is and what He's done than calling us to do anything. I always like psalms that don't ask me to do much. that are full of promise and full of assurance and full of encouragement.
There are only two imperatives in this psalm, two commands in this psalm. In verse 8 and verse 10: "Come, behold the works of God." That's what this psalm wants us to do. He wants us to think about what God is doing. And then in verse 10: "Be still and know that I am God." Be still and know that I am God.
This call to stillness is interesting. It could be misinterpreted as meaning if we just are all very peaceful, we'll know God. Maybe Quakers, who believed we should just gather and be completely quiet through the whole service, might have appealed to this verse, but it would be a false appeal. This is not an appeal for gentleness. This is not an appeal to be mystical. This is actually quite a strong command from the Lord. The Lord is saying to a noisy world, "Quiet!" Or as a Hebrew professor of mine once put it, what the Lord is saying to the world is, "Shut up and listen."
I looked around to see if there are very many boys and girls here, because I'm sure you've been told not to say "shut up." But when people are not listening to God, when they're so concerned with themselves, when they're making so much noise on their own, it may be appropriate for God to say, "Shut up and know that I'm God! Listen to me!"
This is a psalm that appeals to us to know God, to understand what he's doing, and to be comforted by it. Some months ago, I preached from Psalm 92 and observed that in Psalm 92, the word Lord the covenant name of God, Yahweh, is used some seven times. And there's a kind of covenantal perfection to Psalm 92. I'm intrigued that in this psalm, Psalm 46, the word "God" is used seven times. And I think this psalm too is seeking to show us a completion of that God who is sovereign. God in this psalm is also called the Most High. There's nothing above Him. There's nothing beyond Him. Everything is under His control. And we are to be comforted by that and reassured by that.
The very way in which this psalm begins is intriguing in that regard. In Hebrew, literally, this psalm begins, "God to us." God to us is refuge and strength. God is in relation to us. That's what's in view through this whole psalm. And the psalmist's point is to encourage us and reassure us with the sovereign care of God, because this psalm knows that we need a refuge, that we need a fortress in this troubled world. And the fact that we are Christians does not mean that there will be no trouble.
And this psalm throughout highlights two kinds of trouble in particular. Great trouble. I think the point of the psalm is: if God can help us through great trouble, he can help us through lesser troubles as well. And the great troubles that are highlighted in this psalm are natural calamities. things that happen in nature, things that happen in this physical world. And "We see that in these opening verses. We will not fear, though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling." Here's pictures of earthquakes and maybe volcanoes and tornadoes and storms of the most extreme sort. And we, by and large, know those things only through the television. We've maybe, some of us, experienced some earthquakes. But the trouble pictured here in nature would be horrible to actually live through. We think of those who, for example, in Japan experienced that great tsunami that swept people away. What a terrible thing to live through. And what this psalmist is saying is if those tragedies of nature speak to us of God's work, but also speak to us of God's care, we can be assured that he who can preserve us in these dire physical, natural circumstances will also preserve us in all other circumstances.
I was told growing up that my great-grandfather fought the fire in San Francisco in 1906 after the earthquake. That was a horrible calamity. And we all hope we won't live through those things, but the Word of God assures us that even if we have much lesser troubles, God is with us.
The second kind of trouble that is highlighted in this psalm is the trouble that humans bring on themselves, in this case, war. And again, probably most of us have not had to live through war. Some of us have. But what a horrible calamity that is, what terrible trouble that is. And again, most of us have experienced it more on television than otherwise, where we see buildings destroyed and people under collapsed buildings, people bleeding, people without food or water. And this psalm is saying God is with his people in the very worst of calamities, and therefore, you can have assurance that he's also with you in lesser calamities.
Because this life is a life of trouble. This life is a life of difficulty. And this psalm wants us to pause and to think and to reflect. That verse 10 is intriguing: "Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations." The nations may be at war with one another, but "I will be exalted," says the Lord. "And I will be exalted in the earth." The earth may be shaking, but "I will be exalted," says the Lord.
It seems to me that too often the world exalts the trouble that it's going through rather than exalting the Lord in the trouble. I was struck by, I think I've said this before, but I'm old, I can say it again. I was so struck during the COVID time, how little appeal there was to prayer. How little appeal there was to a turning to God. How little reflection there was on this event as a judgment from God's hand. When we face trouble, do we allow it to overwhelm us, or do we turn to God? Do we seek God in it? Do we seek to know Him more? Do we ask what He is at work doing? And that's what this psalm is all about.
And so, as we look at this psalm, we want to see three points. You'll be encouraged to know this is long introduction, short points. This psalm really has three points for us. First of all, that God wants us to know He is over all these troubles. And then He wants us to know that He is in all these troubles. And then He wants us to know that He is working through all these troubles. And in that, we'll be encouraged. We'll be strengthened.
He's above all these troubles in the sense that he has the power to control them all. He is controlling them all. He's controlling them positively, this psalmist tells us. He helps, we're told twice in this psalm. "The Lord is our refuge and strength, verse 1, a very present help in trouble." Our God is not distant, even though he is over all things. He is not far from us, even though he is the Most High. He's very present with us in trouble. "Verse 5, God will help her when morning dawns." God will come to his people. God will come to his holy city. He will save and he will preserve. That's the promise. That's why our worship services begin with those words: "Our help is in the name of the Lord, the maker of heaven and earth." There's hardly anything more encouraging we can think about than that verse from Psalm 124.
Our help, God comes to help, to deliver, to strengthen, to encourage, to preserve. And he comes to bring peace, Verse 9, he makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. If there's peace. it's because the Lord has brought peace. president Trump was meeting with the president of the Ukraine today to talk about peace. Better they should both have been in church praying for peace, turning to the Prince of Peace, because it is God who brings peace that will last.
But this psalm remarkably says that God is over all things. Also, when negative things happen, he brings those as well. "Verse 6, the nations rage, the kingdoms totter, he, God, utters his voice, the earth melts." When all things are falling apart, God is in that too. God is in that too. Or look at "verse 8, come behold the works of God, how he has brought desolations on the earth." How He has brought a judgment of destruction on the earth. These are things that the Lord does. These are the things that He brings about.
This psalm, I think, partly wants to answer the questions that are posed toward the end of Psalm 44. Psalm 44, verses 24 and 25 ask: the people of God ask, "Why do you hide your face? Why do you forget our affliction and oppression? For our soul is bowed down to the dust, our belly clings to the ground." The people of God are defeated in Psalm 44, and they ask, "Why? Where are you, God?" And Psalm 46 is saying, "I am there even in the judgment. I am there even in the calamity. I have my purpose there. I am accomplishing something of importance."
Sometimes the Lord brings positive things through negative actions. And I think this psalm points to that as well. One of our besetting sins is that we read the Scripture too carefully and without enough reflection. I was guilty of that. I just saw this last night or today. I did work on this sermon before that. But looking at it, I was struck in a way I never had been before. "Verse 9. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth." That's a good thing, isn't it? That's a wonderful thing. The Lord is the one who brings peace. How does he do that? He does it by breaking the bow and shattering the spear and burning the chariots. The implements of war have to be destroyed for there to be peace. And so peace, in a profound sense, comes through destruction, this psalm is saying. The Lord is accomplishing, even in destruction, in the breaking and the shattering and the burning, he is accomplishing good things for us and to his glory. He's going to bring blessings to us on the earth, even through these calamities. And what he wants is that in the calamities, we turn to him and we trust him and we have confidence in him.
And this psalm wants to say this powerful God is promising to us that he will protect his people. And that's gloriously stated in verses 4 and 5. "There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God."
I've always wondered how verse 4 follows on verse 3. In verse 3, we read about water, but it's water that's roaring and foaming and causing mountains to tremble in the storm. This is water that's dangerous. This is water that's destructive. And then there's this change as we move to verse 4. There is a river, not a raging river. not a flooding river a gentle river. There is a river from which streams flow out gently. He makes us to walk, doesn't he, by still waters. That's what's being described here. "There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God." No city can be glad without water. The people of God need to be, I suppose we can say, irrigated. The people of God have to have water, living water, welling up to eternal life. And this is an image that God can send waters of judgment, but God can send waters of healing, waters of life. That's what's promised here.
"God is in the midst of her, of his people. She shall not be moved." It's a beautiful picture, isn't it? The opening verses of Psalm 46 are full of motion and tumult. Mountains moving, oceans moving, winds moving. But here we come to the people of God and we're told the city in which the people of God dwells secure will not be moved. God is in the midst of her. And God will help her when morning comes. That's interesting, isn't it? He doesn't always help immediately. If we have trouble in the middle of the night, we'd like help in the middle of the night. But the morning is the image of God's good time, of dawn, of light coming, just when we need it. And that's what's being promised here.
And we, in the New Covenant, have a holy city. We, in the New Covenant, have a city that will not be moved. We have a city where God is in the midst. And Hebrews 12 tells us powerfully, doesn't it? That's the heavenly Jerusalem. That heavenly Jerusalem where Christ is enthroned and exalted at the right hand of the Father right now, and where all who've gone before in faith are gathered around the throne. And we are already citizens of that city. And one day, that city will come from heaven to earth and give us a new heaven and a new earth. That would make the topic of a good sermon. Oh, we heard that this morning. But it's exactly what's going on here in Psalm 46. Our minds are already being drawn to this picture of that glorious heavenly city of which the earthly Jerusalem was only a type, and that heavenly Jerusalem one day to come and make in the power of Christ all things new in this world. That's our hope. That's the blessing that will be ours. And God will do this because he's promised. And God can do this because he's strong.
It's interesting that twice in this little psalm, God is described as the Lord of hosts. He's the covenant God with an army to fight for his people. He's the covenant God with an army to fight for his people. Even people like Jacob. Sinners in need of salvation. That's our covenant God.
It's interesting what Luther did with that. Do you remember? I have it here somewhere. Trust me. It's here somewhere. But not right here. Oh, here it is. All right. What did Luther do in verse 2 of "A Mighty Fortress Is Our God"? He said, "We would lose the battle were not the right man on our side. Dost ask who that may be? Christ Jesus, it is he. Lord Sabaoth, Lord of Armies, is his name." When Luther saw the words "Lord of hosts," he thought to himself, "That's Jesus." Now, people sometimes say, "Where is Jesus in the Psalms?" And the right answer, of course, is everywhere. Everywhere where God is mentioned, Jesus is in the Psalms. Jesus is the God of armies, come to fight for us, come to preserve us, come to encourage us and strengthen us and to assure us that he will be with us. What a blessed truth that is for us!
You see, God is in the midst of his people, we're told here. Now, when Old Covenant saints heard that, they thought of Jerusalem. They thought of the temple. They thought of the Holy of Holies. They thought of the Ark of the Covenant. But all those things were pointing to Jesus, who is our temple, who is our Holy of Holies, who is the Ark of the Covenant for us. And so in this psalm already, we see what we can call the Emmanuel principle. "The God with us principle. the Lord of hosts is with us. the God of Jacob is our fortress. That's the promise. That's the promise And how does that promise work out for us? What does the reality that God is in charge of all things, is working all things together for good, that God will take care of us in all circumstances, even the most terrible. What does that produce in us? Well, there in verse 2, we're told, "Therefore, we will not fear." Therefore, we will not fear. Do you remember from this morning's sermon? We won't have a test. But in this morning's sermon, we heard about the list of sins that will keep people out of the New Jerusalem. And so very strikingly, as Pastor Gordon pointed out to us, the first sin, the greatest sin, the worst sin is cowardice. Leaving the fight, giving up. Cowards are run by fear. And this psalm says we, as the people of God, will not fear. We are called to overcome. We are called to conquer because Christ is the overcomer, Christ is the conqueror. Christ, at the end of John 16, as he faced the cross, said, "I have conquered the world," and we in him can be fearless no matter how bad the trouble. What a promise. What an encouragement. What a strengthening!
And because we can be fearless, we can gather with the people of God, as this psalm talks, and be a glad people. "There's a river whose streams make glad the city of God." We should be a joyful people. We should be a happy people, not a mindless people. Not a Hallmark card people. Oh, we already did that this morning. Never mind. Not a mindless kind of joy, but a profound confidence in the God who is with us and will take care of us and will preserve us and will protect us. And therefore, we will be a praising people.
"Verse 10, be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth." How is God exalted? By his acts to be true, by his presence to be true, but also and importantly by our praise. Our praise exalts the Lord. Our praise exalts the Lord in our hearts. Our praise exalts the Lord to encourage one another. Our praise exalts and confronts a world that too often ignores God.
So this little psalm is full of wonders and encouragement. Profound truths, sometimes difficult truths. But what it says to us is our God is sovereign in all things. And he is working all things together for our good and so that he will be glorified in the world and in us. "The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge." Amen.
Let us pray. Oh, Lord, thank you for a word which is so bold and so encouraging and so profound. A word that challenges us to recognize that you are behind all troubles as well as all blessings. But those troubles cannot impede your work because you are using them to accomplish your purpose. And so fill us with joy in believing. Fill us with fearlessness in the fight. And help us to be a people ever praising you to the glory of your name, so that you will be exalted in the earth. Hear us, for we pray in Jesus' name. Amen.