A Word about Finding Relief

Today I want to share a word about relief, as I comment on Psalm 4. This passage reads:

Hear me when I call, O God of my righteousness: thou hast enlarged me when I was in distress; have mercy upon me, and hear my prayer. O ye sons of men, how long will ye turn my glory into shame? how long will ye love vanity, and seek after leasing? Selah. But know that the Lord hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the Lord will hear when I call unto him. Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah. Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the Lord. There be many that say, Who will shew us any good? Lord, lift thou up the light of thy countenance upon us. Thou hast put gladness in my heart, more than in the time that their corn and their wine increased. I will both lay me down in peace, and sleep: for thou, Lord, only makest me dwell in safety.

Sometimes we all need a little relief.  Jerry Clower was a country-boy comedian whose signature story told about going racoon hunting as a child. The humorous tale ended with a fellow called Mr. John being caught in a tall tree with a wildcat.  A fearsome fight ensued between the wildcat and Mr. John, which resulted in him calling out, “Shoot up here amongst us, 'cause one of us got to have some relief.”  

We all need some relief from time to time, and for Christians, that relief comes through the protection we find in God, as a part of God’s family. 

The Psalmist wrote of this protection in Psalm 4.

FROM WHOM DOES GOD PROTECT US?

First, He protects us from ourselves because often we are our own worst enemies. It is instructive to note that fratricide, or “friendly fire” caused more casualties to allied troops in Operation Desert Storm than did the Iraqi armed forces. As the ironic saying among soldiers goes, “Friendly fire isn’t!”

Likewise, we often cause our own spiritual defeats and so we turn God's glory into shame, a word that implies rejection of God and turning away from Him. Like fratricide on the battlefield, these defeats are particularly bruising, like the way both Judas and Peter betrayed Jesus.

God not only protects us from ourselves, but He also protects us from others. They may scoff at us because of our faith in God. They may rely on their own prosperity and power, but God will put a gladness in the hearts of His people that all their “corn and wine” cannot match. 

As Jesus told us, we have an abundant life in Christ, one that those who taunt us will be envious of in their hearts, if not in their words.

HOW DO WE RECEIVE THIS PROTECTION?

The Psalmist provided some very clear guidance about how we can receive this protection. First, we must pray! We need to call upon God when we are in distress, but we also need to have a relationship with Him in the good times as well! We don’t need to be like the neighbor who never calls on us unless he needs help.

We also must guard our passions. Anger is a normal human emotion but is a potentially destructive one. If anger is allowed to build, it will destroy our lives from the inside out. As the old saying goes, “You can only fall on your sword once.”

In addition, the Psalmist told us that we must know God's promises. He has made hundreds! They were made for us! They are present in the Bible! But they are of no use if not claimed!

Finally, we see that we must act like God's children. How do you expect a mule to act?  Like a mule! We must act like who we are and be righteous and fruitful. In Acts 1:8, Jesus told us we would be His witnesses to the uttermost parts of the world, but what kinds of witnesses will we be? Good or bad?

WHAT PROTECTION DOES GOD PROVIDE? 

The good news for His people is that God has set Himself apart for us. He is our God, and He hears us when we pray to Him! This is a factor in the process of finding relief which we must not, cannot, discount!

One of my most frustrating experiences in recent years was when I was locked out of my account with the firm that hosts a web page for me. The only way to contact this giant social media company was through email or a chat feature on the contact page on their website. No phone number was published, no customer service representative was available for me to call. I was unable to resolve my problem for months until finally, one random day my account was restored, with no explanation. I had resigned myself to having to start over with a different hosting company, and even today, I am suspicious that this problem will return. This is not the way it is between God and His people! We can always call upon Him, and He is always available, 24/7/365!

Because we can call on Him, God relieves our stress. When in distress we need relief, and He has mercy upon us, and He helps us. He provides for us exactly what we need when we are in trouble. As He does this, He brings safety to us and the peace that follows. This allows us to rest and sleep in a way that we could not if God was not watching over us!

CONCLUSION 

I think the words of Psalm 27:1-5 are a great way to conclude this devotional thought about finding relief:

The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?When the wicked, even mine enemies and my foes, came upon me to eat up my flesh, they stumbled and fell.Though an host should encamp against me, my heart shall not fear: though war should rise against me, in this will I be confident.One thing have I desired of the Lord, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the Lord, and to enquire in his temple.For in the time of trouble he shall hide me in his pavilion: in the secret of his tabernacle shall he hide me; he shall set me up upon a rock.

Every blessing!  

Dr. Otis Corbitt

A Word about our True Identity

Today I want to share a word about our true identity, as I comment on Psalm 8.This passage reads:

O Lord, our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou ordained strength because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger. When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour. Thou madest him to have dominion over the works of thy hands; thou hast put all things under his feet: all sheep and oxen, yea, and the beasts of the field; the fowl of the air, and the fish of the sea, and whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas. O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name in all the earth!

One of my favorite, but also most embarrassing, memories of returning from Iraq to the United States was when I went to a big box store for the first time after my return stateside. This was during the Christmas Season of that year, and as I was approaching the store, I saw someone standing outside the door in a uniform. I automatically reached into my wallet to pull out my identity card to show him who I was, just as we had to do before going into the post exchange or the dining facility at Camp Victory. To my chagrin, but later amusement, the person standing outside the store was a Salvation Army bell ringer! He would have been glad for me to put money in his kettle, but he wasn't interested in me showing him my ID card.

It is interesting to note that the United States and the United Kingdom are among the few countries in the world that don't require their citizens to always carry a national identity card on their person. This element of personal freedom is an important one for people who prize their liberty, but it brings to us other questions about our personal identity.

Why are we here? Why do we exist? How can my life have meaning? These are enduring questions which have intrigued mankind for centuries. It would be the height of arrogance to claim to have the complete answer to this conundrum, but Christians believe that a satisfactory answer can be found.

Some people have tried to answer these existential questions with many different answers. Some pursue power to give their lives meaning, while others seek out comfort and pleasure. Often, people become altruistic and self-sacrificing to justify their existence to themselves and others. Excessive consumption and prosperity are used by many to dull the ache of not understanding how they relate to the universe. None of these things satisfactorily explain why we are here, so we must look beyond our own intellect to discover our reason for being. We must look to God.

A good place to start is the 8th Psalm, which succinctly describes mankind's place in creation.

People are Created Beings:

Verses three through five of Psalm 8 clearly indicate that God created humans. Along with all of the rest of creation, God spoke, and Adam came into existence. Because God created people, He invested Himself in mankind in a special way, thus giving a special meaning to man's existence. 

First, only God can create. The word translated "create" is a Hebrew word which means to create out of nothing. In other words, God willed humanity to come into existence, and we did. Our existence as people and as individual persons is solely because of a specific and intentional act of Almighty God!

The special impact of being a creation of God is that He also imparted a part of Himself to us. The Book of Genesis tells us that God breathed into Adam's nostrils and brought Him to life. This means that we are similar to God in many aspects. To be like God is to be significant by definition!

People are Glorious Beings:

Because mankind is made in God's image there is a dignity in human existence which is not found in any of God's other creations. This is attested to in Psalm 8:5 as it states that man is "a little lower than the angels" and is crowned with "glory and honor."

An important fact to realize is that the word "angels" is really the Hebrew word "Elohim,” which is usually translated "God." The Psalmist is actually asserting that mankind is just a little bit lower than the Almighty God who created the universe! What an awesome and uplifting thought! And what a challenge as well!

As the works of God, we are His handiwork, and "God don't make no junk!" That's poor grammar, but good theology. It is important to note that Genesis records that God proclaimed His creation "very good" after He'd created Adam, but only stated that the rest of His work was "good."

The best cure for a low self-esteem (which is the root of many human problems) is to know you are the best of God's wonderful creation! No, people are not simply another animal, far from it. We are a special and unique work of God and play a vital role in His creation and His plans. Because He created us, we have meaning, and we must always be aware of our role in the universe. 

People are Steward Beings:

Psalm 8:6-8 sheds a little light on one purpose God had for creating mankind: we are to be His stewards. But what is a steward? This was a common term in Biblical times but has generally fallen into disuse.  James Freeman, in Manners and Customs of the Bible states that the position of steward in a rich man's household was an honorable one. Only old and faithful servants were made stewards, for the steward was ruler of the household and had charge over the rich man's heir.

God has made mankind to be His stewards over creation. As the Psalmist put it, we have dominion, or rule, over all the works of God's hands. We have charge of all the birds, fish, and beasts of the field. This is a great honor and a very large task.

As God's stewards, we are to manage creation for God, and to preserve it for His glory. Unfortunately, we are not doing so well at this vital task, yet it shows just how important mankind is to God. He placed us over some of His most prized possessions, something most of us wouldn't do!

This might be a good place for each of us to pause and ponder what skill or talent God has blessed us with. How can we use that ability to be good stewards and thus bless God? Considering that God took the time and effort to create us, to place us in this wonderful world, and to entrust us with the stewardship of His glorious works, it is the least we can do.

Conclusion:

Humanity stands apart from the rest of the creatures in this universe because of our relationship with God. People are created and glorious beings which have been made a steward over the rest of creation by God. The only, and tragic, blemish on mankind's existence is our sin, a condition which has resulted in both physical and spiritual death and which only God can resolve in our lives.

Mankind's fate and meaning is bound up in our relationship with God. It is powerful to note that the writer of Psalm 8 begins his song and ends it by praising the Lord. Unless our lives are surrounded by God's power and enclosed in His love, they have no meaning. Our meaning can only be found in our God!

Every blessing, 

Dr. Otis Corbitt