Psalm 46

Psalm 46, Matthew 28:20

Watch on YouTube

Today, I’m going to share some of the comforting things that God has in store for us in Psalm 46. The Psalm says he is our refuge and our strength. A fortress is how Luther translated it. He’s never absent. Jesus promised, surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age or the end of the world. [Matthew 28:20]

Well, anyway, I love this psalm because I grew up out in Washington state. I was 12 years old on May 18th, 1980, and I know that probably that day, date, probably doesn’t mean a lot to many of you, but for kids from Washington back then, it was an unforgettable day. On Sunday, May 18th, 1980, at 8:32 a.m., Mount Saint Helens erupted. 1300ft, more than that, were blown off of the top and off of the side of the mountain. When the ash finally finished falling and all the dust settled, there’s this gaping crater that this hole in her north side. But still, in spite of that, she’s still there. Saint Helens, she’s over 8000ft to tall.

So with Psalm 46 in mind, think for yourself. What would it take? What kind of eruption? What kind of earthquake? Tsunami? Or God forbid, what kind of horror of nuclear war would it take for all the mountains to be leveled, to be thrown into the midst of the sea? And speaking of disasters, think of the chaos that would ensue in an eruption, in an earthquake. We see when Florida is trying to evacuate in front of a hurricane. The roads are clogged. Hospitals are overrun. Stores are empty. Their shelves are empty. Well, Psalm 46 assures us that if a mountain is gone the next day, if the entire Cascade Range or the Rockies or the Alps, we would wake up and find them gone, that we won’t wake up and find the Lord gone.

God is our refuge and our strength. He is ever present. There’s never a time when he will not be with us. Because didn’t God the Son come here, become incarnate for us? And wasn’t he rejected by those he loved by his own people? Wasn’t he hated by them? Didn’t he breathe his last and give himself into death?

Take your thumb and tuck the last two fingers of your hand behind the thumb. Three right. Three digits. Sort of tucked away, sort of hidden. And then what are you left with? You’re left with two. Two standing there together. Two fingers.

When Christian pastors, priests, ministers proclaim God’s blessing on God’s people, they often put their hand in this configuration, the three the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, the Holy Trinity are tucked away, somewhat veiled, but those two that stand so prominent for everybody to see. Those two represent the two natures of Christ, true God and true man together, one Christ. And that is how God’s people are often blessed.

So the Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge because God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, God sent the Son of God here to this world to give himself into death, to rise again for our salvation.

So whether it’s the latest disaster that you’re seeing on the news and all the chaos that ensues, whether it’s rumors of war or real wars, whether it’s false friends or whether it’s your health that’s failing. I pray that the promises God has for you in Psalm 46 and along with Christ himself, will be your strength and your comfort. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge. Amen.