This sermon explores Psalm 91, encouraging believers to dwell in God’s shelter, trust in His personal deliverance, and believe His promises. It ultimately reveals the Psalm as a Messianic prophecy fulfilled in Christ, offering ultimate hope in His future kingdom.
Transcript
abide and still. His kingdom is forever. Good morning. I’ve always blessed to hear the singing of God’s people here. I’m always grateful to always see a church that open up the hymn to sing those songs that have the truth in those hymns that sing and encourage God’s people all throughout generations and centuries. So that was really encouraging. I was also really encouraged just being here, just hearing how much of the Psalms, the book of Psalms is seasoned in the worship here. And I think that’s something that’s really beautiful just to hear from the scripture being read from the Psalms and even during the time of praying for the offering, even mentioning Jesus Christ is our cornerstone, which I think that is the cornerstone of that is actually Psalms 118 with that prophecy.
I want to begin by saying, I’m grateful to be here. If you guys could forgive me, this week was a really rough week for us with the amount of teaching with Heart Cry and also we were in the middle of moving. Our family was in the middle of moving. We moved yesterday. So you probably seen me grab a pew Bible. Please don’t count that against me. I normally don’t do that and I normally don’t also have a laptop when I preach. I have a personal conviction I don’t want to bring something like this. So please forgive me with this. We usually have things printed out and then we were trying to figure that out at Riverdale. Trying to print that out, but then our secretary wasn’t there and I guess it was a lesson of how much we at Riverdale as an elder there, the group of elders, how much we depend on our support staff and everything.
But I want to look this morning at Psalms 91 as a means of encouraging all of us with the truth of God. With Psalms 91 as we go through different trials and tribulations in life. We could trust in him and trust in God as our refuge. Psalms 91 will be our passage for this morning in looking at God’s word. Let me open this up in a word of prayer in dependence upon the Lord for all things, including the word of God being preached and the word of God being applied for our lives. I really do need the help of God here. Okay? So, let us pray.
Father, we thank you, Lord, for this time that we could have this service. I thank you, Lord for Mayflower. Father, I thank you, Lord for the brothers and sisters here that congregate. Oh, Lord God, with the beauty of the worship here, with singing your truth. Let this church, Mayflower, be a light in this part, in this community, and even in Roanoke Valley. Father, we pray that you use the word that I preach, that it will be faithful to the text, that it will be faithful not only to the text and the context, but even the trajectory of all the scriptures. And may every application I draw be faithfully, rightful implication from your text. Oh, Lord God, prepare all our hearts to hear your truth. And Father, build up this church, edify this church, and Lord, use this church. Again, I pray in light of the need of so many that do not know you, even here, I pray, Lord, I pray that you would build this church numerically as well. Not for numbers sake, but that you would be glorified, that you would be lifted up. And Lord, because we do love sinners being saved. Speak to us, to encourage us with the battles and the trials we are going through this week. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
An Overview of God’s Protection in Psalm 91
Psalms 91, I’ll read the word of God first. I’ll be reading from the NASB. Psalms 91.
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, my refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust. For it is he who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions and under his wings, you may seek refuge. His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. You will not be afraid of the terror by night or by the arrow that flies by day, of the pestilence that stalks in darkness or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousands at your right hand, but it shall not approach you. You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. For you have made the Lord my refuge. Even the Most High, your dwelling place. No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent. For he will give his angels charge concerning you to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone. You will tread upon the lion and cobra. The young lion and the serpent you will trample down. Because he has loved me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him securely on high because he has made known my name. He will call upon me and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will rescue him and honor him. With a long life, I will satisfy him and let him behold my salvation.
Psalms 91, no doubt if you’ve been in the word of God for years, no doubt if you walk with God, no doubt if you’ve been at church, you would have seen and read Psalms 91, which is a precious scripture, precious Psalm with many truths that have encouraged God’s people. And I want to look at this today just to encourage us to continuously trust in God, to continuously find God as our refuge and our shelter. That whatever battles we’re going through, I want us to look towards him and to continuously trust in him, to go before him with our prayers, with our petitions, with our intercession, asking God to help us.
And I look at this and I see today there are three lessons, three lessons from this passage of 16 verses. Three lessons, if you’re taking notes, these are the three lessons that I see in this passage. The first is dwell in the shelter of God. Dwell in the shelter of God. I see this being based upon verses one to two. Dwell in the shelter of God is our first lesson.
Secondly, and this one is a little bit longer. Secondly, know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver. Know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver. I see this in verses three to 13. Again, second lesson is know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver in verses three to 13. Know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver, verses three to 13 as a second lesson.
And the third lesson, the third lesson, believe God’s promises to save and satisfy. Believe God’s promises to save and satisfy in verses 14 to 16. Verses 14 to 16. Again, believe God’s promises to save and satisfy in verses 14 to 16. And a lot of these points do overlap. They do overlap, but I’ll explain a little bit why I divide the text in this way, but I’m just going to repeat one more time the three lessons that Psalms 91 teaches us. And pray even now that God’s word would encourage us towards that with our faith believing and trusting that he would deliver and save.
Number one, let me repeat again. Dwell in the shelter of God, verses one to two. Secondly, know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver, verses three to 13. And third, believe God’s promises to save and satisfy, verses 14 to 16.
Looking at this Psalm, the reason why I divided this way is one of the things that I was noticing looking at Psalms 91 is just the switch of the person of how people are being addressed. What I mean with this is if you look at verses one, it describes a man of God in the third person. It just says, about the blessing of one who dwells in the shelter of the Most High. Then you see there’s a shift in verses two, you see now it’s talking about with the word I, where it’s a first person singular. Where it’s a shift of someone that is speaking here and speaking and mentioning even about himself, which I think very likely is the man who trusts in God describing himself in his own words in verses one about how he trusts in God. But for the bulk of this Psalm, verses three to 13, you see that the language also shifts in terms of the pronouns, where you see there’s a second person singular individual, okay? In verses three to 13. And then it goes back in verses 14 to 16, a third person singular.
I bring this up to say that this is the way I divide this is there is a lot of focus on second person singular, but even in verses 3 to 13 where it is a lot of that kind of language in the pronoun. In the middle of it in verses 9, it goes back to the first person singular again. So that’s where I kind of roughly try to divide this with this in light of this, especially later when we go over verses 3 to 13, our second point. I see that there is an intensification and you could see two sub points with this. But my main point today this morning is not to talk a grammar lesson kind of thing, but it’s just to see the flow of the scripture.
Dwell in the Shelter of the Most High
But let’s look at the first truth. Dwell in the shelter of the Most High. I’m going to repeat again. Psalm 91 verses 1 to 2. It says,
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord my refuge and my fortress, my God in whom I trust.
And when we break down this passage, we see there’s four descriptions of someone of what it’s like of someone finding their protection in God. Now, in this congregation, I see there’s those that are young. There’s those that are adults. There’s even children, right? And all this passage, I think no matter what trials of life, listen, my main point is looking at this, what lesson we draw is that we always are to dwell in the shelter of God, to find our protection in God. And this is described to encourage us towards that goal. There’s four descriptions in these two verses.
First, the description of someone who finds protection in God is the following, the first line. In the first line, it says, one who dwells in the shelter of the Most High. And I believe what I’ve even heard from Jared and even from other co-workers at Heart Cry is this is a church that has gone through the Psalms, selected Psalms in the past. And even what I’ve heard is even some people have visited, fellow co-worker and even the insights of Jared here and no doubt, I imagine the Father’s the same way, faithful to the word of God. You guys are small but faithful to the teaching of the word of God. And with the Psalms, you’ll see that there’s often poetic. You’ll see there’s different lines. And if you look at verses one, you see there’s two lines here, with the first line telling us this truth, just describing someone who finds protection of God as dwelling in the shelter of the Most High. And then if you look at the second line, the second description is very similar. It’s synonymous. It’s similar. It’s to drive the point home again and again. And when we look at the first line, it says, one who dwells. And if you also look at the second line, it also describes one who lodges. So these are two verbs that describe living. And I actually think it’s trying to describe a lifestyle. That listen, this is someone who has a lifestyle, who trusts in God’s protection, who’s constantly trusting in God’s protection. That if someone were to ask you, where do you live? You don’t say, oh, I live in Roanoke, I live in Roanoke County, but you say, no, I dwell in the shelter of God himself. You’re indwelling, you’re living in seeking God for protection. The word here for shelter in the first line is often used, its shade of its meaning in its root does have an idea of things that are hidden. You’ll see it used elsewhere in the Hebrew Old Testament that describes hidden or even the idea of protection because when we’re living in somewhere that’s hidden, we’re kind of hidden from the enemy. So that’s where you see where it says the word shelter. Again, the idea of somewhere that you’ll be safe, hidden from the attacks of the enemy.
And then it describes and I like how if you look at the first two lines, the different names of God are mentioned to invoke or different titles of God. It’s to invoke for us to trust in God with our trials and our tribulation. Here when it describes the shelter, it’s described as the shelter as belonging and being owned by the Most High. Being owned by the Most High, which I think with the Hebrew title there of God, I think it stresses that he’s sovereign, that he’s in control, that he’s above everything else, that he’s ruling and he’s majestic and he’s sovereign. And he’s sovereign over the world. Listen, we could find comfort to trust in God if he’s in control of all things. Listen, when we pray to God, we’re actually assuming that he’s in control of all things. That’s why we could go before him. And it does make sense that we ask him for various prayers and petitions.
The second description about one who finds the protection of God is in the second line of verses one. It says, describing him, it says, and will lodge in the shadow of the Almighty. Will lodge. Again, the same word, similar kind of term to describe lifestyle of living where one now is lodging. But now in the shadow of the Almighty. And the scripture in the Psalms is so beautiful. No doubt, you who know the Psalms, you whose service is saturated so much of the Psalms, you probably when you think of shadows in the Old Testament, another passage you could think of is Psalm 23, yes, where even though I go to travel through the valley of the shadow of death, there you shall be with me. And isn’t it so beautiful? The Psalms teaches that even in our darkest of days, in our longest and darkest of days, in the shadow of death, God will be there. And here also it says that we also dwell in the shadow of the Almighty, in the protection of the Almighty.
And the third description is found in verses two, the first line of verses two, where it says, I will say to the Lord my refuge and my fortress. Now you see that this person who trusts in God, he speaks. And we see what would he say? What would he say about himself? And more importantly, what would he say about God? And what he says about God is again, an affirmation that he believes that he trusts God will protect him. Where it says, my refuge and my fortress. My refuge and my fortress. Now, this Psalm, Psalm 91, doesn’t reveal like some of the Psalms will give a subscript, like right above our English verse one, there’s a little phrase that often say a Psalm by David or give some background. It doesn’t say this in giving its details. Sometimes it’s good to look at Psalms around it. You actually look at the Psalm before is in Psalms 90. And if you look at the subscript of verse 90, again, what I mean by subscript is above our English verse one. It actually says it’s written by Moses. It’s written by Moses. So the sense you could get is right after reading Psalms 90, you’re like, oh, wow, this is an old Psalm. Then very old among all the writers, right? In this Old Testament. Here we see then right after this. And when we see this word refuge and fortress, I’m bringing it up to say that when we read these words, we must read this according as much as possible to the original context.
As we’re driving out here, I realized, wow, this is a really beautiful, this is really beautiful out here, where our church is at Riverdale, but as soon as a little bit, just a few minutes, it’s like, wow, it becomes, I don’t know, it’s not no longer the city. And we’re looking at, wow, the farmland, it’s just amazingly glorious driving out here. But even as I was looking at this, I realized how farming was done in Israel was a little bit different than today. And one of the ways is that often we could think of the scene of a farmer where maybe at least for me as a city boy, you think of a nice house, a lot of fields, acres upon acres of fields and a red barn somewhere. Maybe that’s my city boy impression, okay? But in biblical times, people, the farmers would often live within the city walls for protection. And then early in the morning when the city gates were open, they will go to their respective property to do farm work. You see that kind of description, a hint of that in the book of Ruth and elsewhere, where people would often live together in a community, in the city state, so to speak, because of protection in light of invasion and enemies, etc. And that’s why if you ever read, for example, the scripture where it talks about the land being sold and given back, it doesn’t say talking about your own living quarters within the city, but in terms of the land that is outside the city where you own.
Now, I bring that up to say, why do people live that way back then? With Israel’s because there was a lot of invasion, a lot of times you want when there’s enemies that come over quickly, if you could destroy your land, but you want to live and survive where there’s safety in numbers and protection with the city wall. With that as background, notice here, the Psalmist is saying that God is his fortress. God is his fortress. With that background, we appreciate further of what is he trying to say with God that it’s not just he seeks protection from other people, the community, though there is a place where in the community, in the church, where brothers and sisters, there are protection with accountability, with encouragement, and fellowship. But rather, he sees ultimately God is the source of not just his city wall, but the whole entire fortress. It is God that he looks to in terms of his protection. And by the way, notice how he makes it personal. He doesn’t just say God is refuge, God is fortress. He says what? My refuge and my fortress. And we see the fourth description found in the second line. Where it says, my God in whom I trust.
So this application, I do want to encourage you, for those who are younger, maybe have not trusted and believed in Christ. Listen, in this world, there will be many trials and tribulations, but I want to encourage and exhort to say for those that are younger that have not trusted in Christ, please have your eyes and heart and will to trust in God to save you from your sins. But for the seasoned saints among us, those who are believers, continue to trust in him. And not just only with the area of salvation, but with all the trials and tribulations that we go through in life. And no doubt here in this church, as I see seasoned saints, I just love being here because I know, I don’t know personally, but I can imagine there are many trials and tribulations and battles God has put in your way, in your path and walking with him. And I want to encourage you to look continuously to God as your source of fortress, as your refuge, as the one that you trust in.
God’s Personal Provision of Refuge and Deliverance
Let’s go to the second point. The second lesson we see is in verses 3 to 13. The second lesson that we see, which is really the bulk of the Psalm here, is our second lesson is know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver. Know that God will personally provide refuge and deliver. I see this taught in verses 3 through 13. Now you might say, Jimmy, this sounds like our second point is very similar to the first point, and it is. But I think in the psalmist, in writing this, he puts a little different focus in verses 3 to 13. He makes it even more personal, where there’s now an address, and you look at the pronouns in verses 3 to 13, the dominating pronoun is addressing directly to the readers or directing towards somebody’s speech where you see the pronoun, you, second person singular, used heavily dominating this passage in verses 3 to 13. In fact, the place you don’t see you being mentioned is found in verses 9, where there is a reference of my refuge that is mentioned. Again, there is a second person singular, but there is then a shift. And I think this section could be divided into two further sub-points. Broken up in verses 3 to 8, and verses 9 to 13. Now, its message in both is similar, that we could personally trust in God and find refuge in him and deliverance. But I think why there is that verses on 9, there’s suddenly the word of verses 9, where it talks about my refuge, is to say that beginning in verses 9 to 13, there’s an intensifying, same message as the earlier paragraph, but there’s now an intensifying saying, even more so, please do not miss the point that we can find refuge and deliverance in God. Okay?
So, looking at verses 9 to 13, verses 3 to 8 first. When we look at this, look at verses 3 to 4, you see again, trusting in God, finding refuge in God, but now vividly described in verses 3, in verses 3 to 4. Okay? Looking at verses 3, it says,
For it is he who delivers you from the snare of the trapper and from the deadly pestilence. He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings, you may seek refuge. His faithfulness is a shield and bulwark.
Notice how the psalmist now is using illustrations from everyday world and these illustrations, these analogies are to draw our attention to look at this more, to dwell and think about further, to meditate of how he will deliver and he will protect. He begins first with the imagery as if there’s an animal almost being trapped, but yet God is the one who delivers us from traps and snares. Listen, as we battle our world and our world that we live in, life is hard for many reasons, because of the sinfulness within us, even if we’re a believer, because of the fact that outside of us, there is who? There is the devil and the demons who in a spiritual level that we can’t see is our enemy, who’s out to cause harm against us, who’s at war with us. But then at the other level, there’s also the world. The world that we look, the world that we hear, the world that we see, it’s run as a non-believing system against everything and the value you stand for. And with all these things, notice with the temptation, the traps of Satan himself, what comfort we find in verses 3, that we could find God who delivers us, delivers us from traps and snares of the devil.
And then it goes on in verses 4, now the imagery continues in the animal world. But now it’s described in this Psalm, a lot of images of God as if we’re birds, as if God is the mother bird protecting us. If you see in verses 4, he will cover you with his pinions, that is his what? His outer wings, as if it’s a bird. God is providing shelter as if we’re the younger bird here, the baby birds. And here God is the one who covers us, and it’s under God’s wing that we seek refuge. Again, these images would have been language that the psalmist, and speaking to his audience, would have been familiar in the agricultural world and in the world where nature is around all of us. And then if you look also in the end of verse 4, you see the last line, he also uses a military analogy. He uses a military analogy. Again, all of this is to show a vivid illustration of how we could find our refuge in God. And the last line says, his faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. Is a shield protecting from the arrows of the enemy’s attack.
We also see in verses 5 to 7, God delivers, and it describes it in very vivid terms. Verses 5 to 7, and as I read this, pay attention to this passage here in verses 5 to 7, how it uses extremes. Okay? How it uses extremes to describe vividly God’s deliverance. Verses 5 to 7, I’ll read this again.
You will not be afraid of the terrors by night or of the arrows that fly by day, of the pestilence that stalks in darkness or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousands at your right hand, but it shall not approach you.
When I look at verses 5 to 7, I notice that there were extremes of saying, when you look at timing of when God protects, if in verses 5, God will protect from the terrors what? At night, when it is dark. But is God only protecting when it is night time? No, look at verses 5, the end, it also says that even when the arrows attack by daytime. Night and day is being brought out as a contrast, as opposites to show, listen, to describe vividly for us to say we can trust in God even in all times. Look with me in verses 6. It continues in this way, but now describes with darkness and light. Where in verses 6, it says, I’m talking about pestilence, about disease that stalks in the darkness. Could God protect during those times when things are dark? Yes. And I like the contrast of the second line in verses 6, of even destruction that comes during noon, the brightest time during the day, and yet we see God is able to protect and he’s sovereign even with both extremes, with both opposites. And then in verses 7, again, it uses this military language that was first hinted at in the end of verse 7. What a vivid description. I imagine there might be people here that might have this even as their life verse in verses 7. A thousand may fall at your side, and 10,000 at your right hand, but it shall not approach you. What a vivid description. In Israel, which have probably known wars and rumors of war, what a vivid description to say that if there’s thousands that fall on your side, nevertheless, God is able to protect you if you find refuge in him. If you find refuge in him.
Now with all these vivid descriptions, in verses 8, it also talks about how God will judge the wicked, the source of all the troubles. Verse 8 says,
You will only look on with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked.
These are pretty dramatic languages to help encourage us, to foster in our hearts to trust in him. But this is going to be more intensified in verses 9 to 13. In fact, themes that we’ve already seen in these first eight verses will be found again. But again, the language will be more intensified. Look for me in an example in verses 9. Verse 9 says,
For you’ve made the Lord my refuge, even the Most High your dwelling place.
This looks a lot like verses 1. Look with me again in verses 1.
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty.
But if you look at verses 9, it’s actually flipped around, where now you see refuge is first and then dwelling place. That’s the opposite of what is in verses 1. Why is he saying this? Why is he doing it in this order? Is again repeating to us, to drive it to us, because sometimes we hear the words and we repeat it again and again as a chant, almost without thinking. But now the reversal is to make us think again, this truth is true, but saying another way to drive the point and to emphasize, we can find refuge in God. And if we find our refuge in God, this truth is also for you a promise in verses 10.
No evil will befall you, nor will any plague come near your tent.
And then in verses 11 to 12 is also the same theme we saw earlier in verses 5 to 7 about God’s protection, but now
even supernaturally. Verses 11 talked about how even angels in a supernatural realm where we cannot see. It describes this individual that would trust in God, find refuge in God, that the angels will guard him. That the angels will bear him up, that even his foot in verses 12 will not even strike a stone, that even with other wild animals attacking him in verses 13, God is able to protect supernaturally as well. And he says all of this again is describing, the psalmist describing for us to trust in God.
Now, as a younger man, I know this is Memorial Day weekend, when I was a younger man, I’m 42 now. I was in the Marine Corps and when I was in the Marine Corps, when we were in Iraq, the infantry battalion I was in, when we were in Iraq in 2003, our chaplain would encourage us to pray Psalm 91. And he was really praying and he was hoping when we go to Iraq, I really wanted to pray that there’ll be none of us that would ever be killed in this infantry battalion. I think God was gracious and merciful. Now, we did have guys that were injured, the guys that were wounded and shot, but none of the guys in our battalion. And I would often look at Psalm 91, read this and think about those young days when I was a younger Christian, 19, 20, and God’s promise. And I want to say this as a means of encouraging all of us that we look to this Psalm when we’re going through our trials and tribulations, whatever battles we go through and even as I get older, I realize there’s a lot more battles even worse than Iraq that we face that might not be as romanticized in culture. But listen, with all the battles that we go through, for those who are young and old, look to God as our refuge, as our shield, and as the one that we could trust. Look to him that when we are weak, even if we think we’re so weak as a needy baby bird, God will be the one whose wings will cover us. So trust in God, whether we’re young or old, do not give up and continuously trust in God with all the trials you go through.
God’s Promises to Save and Satisfy Through the Messiah
Which now I want to go to our last point. Our last lesson is in verses 14 to 16. Our last lesson is to know that God will save and satisfy. Know that God will save and satisfy. This is taught in verses 14 to 16. Know that God will save and satisfy. I’ll read this passage again.
Because he has loved me, therefore I will deliver him. I will set him securely on high because he has made known my name. He will call upon me and I will answer him. I will be with him in trouble. I will rescue him and honor him. With a long life, I will satisfy him and let him behold my salvation.
Here there are seven different verbs that God uses in this part where God is now speaking. And God is telling the person that’s trusting him, seven things he’s going to do. Seven things he’s going to do. And he’s giving these words. This is again God speaking now to the one who would trust in him.
First and foremost, if you look at verses 14, I will save him. Where God says, save, that is salvation. Secondly, if you look at verses 14, the second verb of action in the middle of verse 14, or the second line is, I will set him on high. And by the way, it says securely on high. Thirdly, if you look at verses 15, it says answer. God will answer the one who calls upon him. That’s what God says he will do. There’s also a fourth action. We also see that God will be with him. And it goes on with rescue him and honor him. Verse 16, beautifully enough, you could even say satisfy. Will satisfy him, that our true satisfaction will be in God. And we also see God will show, show what specifically, what object, what content is his salvation. His salvation. These are things that God will do, that he promised and he would say.
I don’t know if you guys when we were going through this, if perhaps in the back of your mind think, maybe this is true of a promise for others, but maybe it’s not true for me. I don’t know if perhaps as I’m preaching through this, and I apologize, I probably preach a little too fast. I get when I get excited, my wife always tries to say slow down, okay? Maybe as you go through this, you think, could this possibly be true? Could these promises from God possibly true for all of us at all times? Because Jimmy, aren’t there times we look that we do get hurt, that the enemy, Satan and the devil does attack and attacks successfully? Doesn’t God at times allow for this? Doesn’t at times we see that evil and the wicked even win? Doesn’t Jimmy, when we look at verse 13, isn’t it true at times people do get hurt by wild animals? So what is going on here? What is it that is here that God is promising? That God will do all these things. What makes sense of this with the reality that we go through and we live through?
And I actually think this Psalm ultimately, I think it always has application for all of us. Has application for how we pray. Has application to drive us to go before him and say, say to God like, I look at the reality of what I’m going through and I see your words and I have a hard time comprehending, but I’m going to pray this. I pray God, would you allow this to be true? I think there’s always that application and every time we go before him in prayer in that way, that is a great thing because we’re trusting and find refuge in him. But I also want to encourage us this morning by pointing out that this scripture, when I think about how Christ relates to this scripture, I find my greatest hope and confidence in trusting in Christ. I do think this Psalm here is Messianic prophecy. Let me say this again. I do believe this Psalm here is Messianic prophecy. And what I mean by that is this Psalm, there is application for us. We could cry out to God, we could read this and internalize it in our heart. But I think ultimately, this passage is actually pointing us towards Christ. And before I get to this, I want to just look at some Psalm that perhaps is easier to establish with this. Again, I’m looking at these other Psalms to make my point that this is a Psalm that is about Christ, that Christ is fulfillment about who he is, is about being fulfilled here in this passage.
Let’s turn real quick to Psalm 23. Again, I’m looking at this is to make an argument of how the nature of the Psalms operate with some of the Psalms. Psalms 23, no doubt will be another Psalm that people look to for comfort, just like with Psalm 91. Psalm 23, we’re probably familiar with this, yes, where
the Lord is my shepherd and I shall not want.
And when we read this, all throughout history, God’s people, whether Jews or Gentile, throughout the history of God’s people, have found comfort. Where they look to God, Yahweh and say, you, oh God, the living God, you’re my shepherd. You, oh God, when I go through the shadow valley of death, I will trust. But I do believe Psalms 23 is also Messianic. If you look at Psalms 22, the beginning of Psalms 22, you perhaps might realize these words are in the lips of Jesus, where Psalms 22 says,
my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
And if you look at the details of Psalms 22, I think that’s Messianic prophecy. In the sense that this is predicting about Jesus Christ who would die for our sins. In fact, if you read this, I think this cannot be fulfilled by anyone else. If you read the rabbinic literature, some of the rabbis would say this was fulfilled by, I mean, it gets really crazy how they think this was fulfilled by David or Esther even, okay? All these things. But I think it is not none of those individuals because this individual, when you look at verses 16, has his hands pierced and his feet pierced. I think with all pun intended, nailing that argument shut, it’s none other than Jesus Christ, the Messiah. Okay? If you look at it, it’s just beautiful the description, but yet it’s also a vividly sad imagery because you see the suffering Messiah. So I think Psalms 22 shows the Messiah, Jesus is our suffering servant. By the way, Psalms 22 subscript of verse one, above verse one, says it’s a Psalm by David. Which means this was a thousand years before Jesus was born, a prediction about Jesus our Messiah. But if you look at Psalms 23, I think this is actually a fulfillment, also another Messianic prophecy to show Jesus, if he’s the Messiah, he has to be shepherd. If you read Psalm 23, I don’t have time to go over this, but if you compare this with Mark 6, you see a lot of parallels with this, where the Lord is my shepherd, where Jesus is the one who provides, feeds the people when he saw a multitude of thousands and he saw they were sheep without a shepherd, he ended up teaching them. And then when they’re hungry, he fed them. Where we see it fulfilled in Mark chapter 6. In fact, even the language when he had them sitting down by the green grass in the Gospel of Mark is the same one in the Greek translation of Psalms 23 mentioned in verses two. And by the way, when it says in verses two, it says,
lead me beside quiet water.
If you ever read Mark 6, and I encourage you to go home and read Mark 6, you see Jesus right after feeding the thousands, what did he do? He wasn’t with Jesus with the disciples on a boat, and there was a big storm, and Jesus calmed the storm. He leads, listen, his people with still waters. And then on we go, we could think about when was Jesus, if he’s the Messiah, when was he ever in a table before the presence of his enemies? You could think about the last
before he would die. Having the last supper with his disciples. No doubt one will betray him. And of course, he will go to die on the cross in the valley of the shadow of death. And I bring this up to say that this Psalm is interesting. Psalms 23, the application, you can see that Jesus is the shepherd. And at times it’s also Jesus is the one that this fulfills. He’s fulfilling this. He’s going through this as a sheep with all the trials, always trusting in God. And I bring that up to say this double application, so to speak. I think there’s something similar that’s going on in Psalms 91.
Turn back with me to Psalms 91. In the context of Psalms 91, in Psalms 89, you see the end of the book four. If you look at Psalms 90, right above Psalms 90, it says book four. So that means the end of Psalm book three was Psalms 89. You’ll see Psalms 89 is clearly talking about the David’s covenant, God’s covenant with David. But if you know Israel’s history, there’s God’s promise that Israel always have a king that will rule forever from the line of David. But as some of the people look around and say, where is this king? God has punished Israel, removed them to Babylonian exile, and there was no king after that from David’s line ever again that would be on the throne. And that’s why I think Psalms 90 answers with saying, look at the Psalm by Moses. From the very beginning, God is always a covenant keeping God. God is always faithful. God always keeps his promises. And Psalms 91, I think is answering this question, where is God’s promise that there’ll be a king through this Messiah? And Psalms 91, I do think is Messianic. Why do I say this? Because if you look with me in verses 11 and 12, I’ll read this again in verses 11 and 12.
For he will give his angels charge concerning you to guard you in all your ways. They will bear you up in their hands, lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You read this, if you know your New Testament, you would say these words are familiar. Why? Because it’s during the temptation of Jesus Christ. In fact, if you guys could turn with me real quick, you guys could put your pinky or thumb or bookmark or something here, or pen and pencil. Turn with me real quick to Luke chapter 4. Luke chapter 4 verses 10 to 11. And this is in the context, Jesus has been tempted by Satan for 40 days in the wilderness. In the last temptation that’s recorded in the Gospel of Luke’s version, Satan, what he does is he quotes scripture out of context to try to have Jesus jump from a high point in Jerusalem in the temple, the highest point in the temple, basically for him to jump and commit suicide. And notice how he does this, Satan’s strategy, he’s going to misquote the scriptures. Verses 10, 11,
for it is written, he will give his angels charge concerning you to guard you. And on their hands, they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone.
You know what is going on here? Satan believed this passage is talking about the Messiah, is about Jesus. And he says, hey, why don’t you, if this is true, that means you will never die. God will always watch out for you. And then in verses 12, Jesus responds, then to quote from Deuteronomy about never testing God.
Now, why am I saying all this is to say that Satan himself believes this is a prophecy about him. I also want to look at one more verse where I think this shows that Psalms 91 is about a prophecy about Christ. Turn with me real quick, back again to Psalms 91, verses 13. Psalms 91, verses 13.
You will tread upon the lion and cobra. The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.
I don’t think this is a verse to say, let’s be Appalachian Pentecostal snake handlers. I don’t think that’s the application here. But I actually think this is talking about the fulfillment of what the Messiah will do. Turn with me real quick to Mark chapter 1. Remember this part about the wild animals. If you turn with me to Mark chapter 1, verses 13. In regards to the account in the four Gospels, I question in three of the Gospels, Matthew, Mark, and Luke, with Jesus’ temptation in the wilderness by Satan, Mark has the most briefest account. But Mark says something that none of the other Gospels mentioned when Jesus was being tempted. A phrase that is almost so strange and so short that we could easily bypass it and not miss its tremendous theological implication. Verses 13, talked about,
and he was in the wilderness 40 days being tempted by Satan, and he was with the wild beasts, and the angels were ministering to him.
It mentioned that when Jesus was being tempted in the wilderness, what account we don’t see in Matthew, nor in Luke, is that there were wild beasts. And I don’t think this is an image of the Garden of Eden, where the animals were rightly in order submitting to Adam, because everything in Jesus’ temptation was a very opposite of Adam’s temptation, Adam and Eve’s temptation in the wilderness. Because first and foremost, they’re no longer in paradise, no longer in the Eden, in the garden, but now in the wilderness. Now, they’re no longer in the world, there was no sin, but Jesus is now in a world of sin. Whereas the temptation with Adam and Eve is don’t eat of one fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil. Jesus when he was tempted by Satan was far worse, where Satan says, look all around you, where if you ever Google image, the wilderness of Jordan River, there’s a lot of rocks, where Satan says, look and make any rock into a loaf of bread. Where Jesus’ temptation, everything was far worse, was the antitype of what happened in the Garden of Eden. So here with this wild animal, with the emphasis of wild, I think this is the fulfillment where Jesus was there and yet he was not killed by scorpions, by all these things. And I think verse 13 is telling us of the prophecy. And by the way, that also should bring us reminder when it says, I know the King James, some of you guys might use this. Verse 13 talks about, a dragon. But I think the word there, the last word is serpent, which should make us think of what? Genesis 3:15. The prophecy that God delivered from the very first prophecy of the Messiah was found there where the Messiah will come and crush the head of the serpent.
Why am I saying all of this is to say, how do we make sense of this passage when it says, God will deliver and all these things, no harm will befall you? And then we think about our own experience. People do die. People do suffer. People if they pick up snakes and try to do something strange, they will be bitten or likely be bitten. I think what it’s trying to say this, when we look at the Messiah and how this is about him and yet he still suffered. I think this is to bring us ultimately to say that our ultimate refuge does not, we cannot read this Psalm to say, we’ll never go through trials or tribulation. Because Jesus Christ himself has gone through trials and tribulation and he also died. But God will always be with us all the way through. And ultimately, even in death, he will deliver us from all these pestilence, from all these trials and tribulation, that there will be a future that’s greater than the Garden of Eden, as the scripture in Revelation says, it will now be a city, the holy city of Jerusalem, a new heaven and new earth, a new Jerusalem that we would have. In other words, what I’m trying to say is this, to have all of this fulfilled, and I do believe he will keep all his promise. It will happen and when the Messiah first needs to suffer. And then therefore all of us will one day live in a world where there will not be, there will be harmony with the animals. There will not be wild animals or harmless. There will now be where no longer the enemies of God will all be judged, and then where we will be in a place of refuge where no harm will happen. In other words, this is something that is pointing to the Messiah and a future Messianic kingdom to come as our ultimate hope.
I don’t know about you, when I look at this passage and see that it is first about Christ, that he goes through this. And when I see that way, it makes me love Jesus more and trust in him more. I know Jared, even in preparing for this, I asked what if I could preach Psalms 91. He mentioned it will be dear to his heart. And I think he might have taught Psalms 91 here at the church, maybe Sunday school before. Am I correct? And even I know Jared was sharing about his own grandmother towards the end of her life was reading and memorizing this. And when he shared that, it just made me forgotten my whole experience of this Psalm of even, you know, until recently just bringing up of my own experience with the Marines of how this Psalm has ministered. But when we think about our own experience, your own experience of Psalms 91, make sure we also think about Christ and Psalms 91. That it’s about him first. And let our gaze look to Christ and may we trust in Jesus. Let’s go in a word of prayer.
Our dear God, thank you for being our shield. Our wing and our fortress. Thank you for being our mighty God. And thank you, Jesus, for being our savior. Father, I pray in light of all the weakness and all light of all the things that did not go well and according to plan. Father, may your word be honored. May this encourage us with our trials and tribulation. We’re going further. Use this to renew our trust in Jesus as savior. Father, if anyone here does not know you, save them. Save them through your word being preached and this Messianic prophecy. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.
If you would please stand as we close our time together with the doxology. It’s number six in your hymnals.
Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him all creatures here below. Praise him above ye heavenly host. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
As a benediction, I want to read this passage from the end of the book of Jude.
Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to make you stand in the presence of his glory, blameless with great joy. To the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority before all time and now and forever. Amen.