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Psalm 46Anfechtung. The German word for a torture of the soul. In 1516 Luther could no longer balance the work and word of the church with the Work and Word of God. God was going one way and the church was going its own way. The more he read the Scriptures – the more he became convinced of this.Troubled by his own conscience and often spending hours in confession, to which Staupitz once quipped, “in all your confessions I have yet to hear anything remotely interesting.” And yet his sins and failures before God kept Luther from sleeping and eating. He was so afraid of dying – and yet equally afraid of living.Paul’s letter to the church at Rome would shape Luther’s theology – allowing him for the first time to rest his head without fear of the angel of death coming in the middle of the night to torture him. But it was the Psalms that would give Luther the boldness and courage to proclaim God’s love and live under His grace.The Psalms gave Luther a view of God from the heavens. He saw the truth and reality of God – His justice and mercy as well as His love and grace. He also came to see he was not the only one struggling with emotions, panic, fear and depression. Like David playing the harp for King Saul to calm his soul – the Psalms comforted and soothed Luther’s soul while preparing him for the fight against satan.Psalm 46 was a favorite of Luther’s. There were dark and dangerous periods of the Reformation when it seemed as though everything was against him – he would turn to Philip Melanchthon and say, “Come, let us sing the forty-sixth psalm in concert; and then let the devil do his worst.” We know it as, "A mighty fortress is our God.”Luther said, "We sing this psalm to the praise of God, because God is with us and powerfully and miraculously preserves and defends his church and his word against all fanatical spirits, against the gates of hell, against the implacable hatred of the devil, and against all the assaults of the world, the flesh and sin.”In the opening words of A Mighty Fortress, Luther calls God "A Mighty Fortress" and a “bulwark” never failing. In the Hebrew text the emphasis is on God himself, the point being that God alone is our refuge. Nothing in the universe can be a comparable refuge. Luther echoes this in the hymn.For the choir director. A song of the sons of Korah. According to Alamoth.“Choir director” is also referred to in some translations as the “chief musician.” He was the most capable in the King’s Court and was entrusted with the music the Psalmists considered their masterpieces. There were hundreds of musicians in the King’s Court. And because David considered himself a musician (rightly so) – the chief musician would have been very good.The?Korahites were descended from the Sons of Korah. They have a very mixed history. Korah was Moses' nephew and in Numbers 16, Korah led a failed revolt against Moses. He died, along with his co-conspirators, when "the earth opened her mouth and swallow him and all that appertained to them." (Numbers 16:31-33). However, Numbers 26:11 notes, "the children of Korah died not." Psalms 42, 44-49, 84, 85, 87 and 88 are all noted as, “A song of the sons of Korah.”The Korahites were best known as a division of singers, although some were "porters" of the temple (1 Chronicles 9:1719) and one was over "things that were made in the pans" (baker) (Leviticus 2:5). It is also said the prophet?Samuel?was descended from Korah. The Hebrew word Alamoth means “young women or girls.” There are several “alamoth” Psalms – and historians believe this refers either to songs pitched for soprano or treble voices or a “shrill sounding instrument” as noted in 1 Chronicles 15:20. There was a group of young girls who would go out and dance and sing in the streets during especially happy news such as a victory in battle or an heir to the king being born.The last thing of note is the three divisions within the Psalm – separated by the word SELAH. Selah means, “pause, reflect, note.” It tells the reader to stop and meditate before going on. During a song we would call this an “interlude” – a quiet moment that allows for the words to soak in before going on. The Psalmist doesn’t want you rushing through the words without stopping to reflect. When the prophet Ezekiel was told to “eat God’s Word” – it meant to let it flow through the entire body. God’s Word is for more than just our mind. Verse 1.?God is our refuge and strength.?Initial notes: the Hebrew word for “God” here is Elohim – the plural of El. This is the same word that is used in Genesis 1. The meaning is deep – and not always completely containable. To some the plurality of the word refers to “Father, Son and Holy Spirit” (Genesis 1:1, John 1 and Genesis 1:3). To others it is more like when the queen says, “we are not amused” and she’s the only other one in the room – this is called the “plural of majesty.” El is used about 200 times in the Old Testament. Elohim is used over 2,000. And quite a few of them are clearly not referring to the God we worship. With all of this said – there is no doubt the Psalmist was referring to the God who created the heavens and the earth in 6 days and who saved His people through miracle after miracle. He may only be One God (in three person) – but He is greater than all the other gods combined.“our” – we are not alone. While God is our “personal Savior” – to view our salvation only in the 1st person and see it as something that is individualized is to miss the very foundation of the salvation. “God so loved the world…” The establishment of the church as a Community of Faith was intentional. God knows that we cannot make this journey through life alone. To try and own God and limit His ability to interact with others (let alone save them) is the whole theme of the Gospels as Jesus watches the Pharisees decide who is good enough to join the “God club” and who isn’t. God alone is to be “our all in all.” He is the Place we run when the world is out of control – He is the One who gives us the strength to get up each morning when we would rather remain in bed! A very present help in trouble.Faith is often overlooked until trouble, sickness, death or a plague cause us to cry out because everything else (all the refuges and strengths we normally rely on) has failed us. God has become a backup plan for many believers.When trouble happens – many are upset that God allowed it to happen to them in the first place (He’s God after all, and look at everything I’ve done for Him!) Others worry they are being punished for something. Some believe it’s a test of faith. Still others believe it’s the devil sneaking around the “hedge of protection.”We could spend years discussing these theories. But one thing that is not up for discussion is – trouble happens! Believers, unbelievers, skeptics – we all go through periods of our life where our world is upside down. The only thing worse than going through all of it is going through it alone.Verse 2.?Therefore.The psalmist loves the word, “therefore.” The word “therefore” is the equivalent of an “equals’ sign in math. He is drawing a direct connection between faith and God’s work. “If there is trouble – God is there to help.” “If you need a place to shelter – God is there.”We will not we fear. Note the Psalmist does not say, “we don’t need to fear” or “we should not fear” – he makes a declarative statement. This does not mean we do not have faith if we “fear” – it means as we grow in faith and learn to watch for God’s presence and power in our lives, we learn that “we don’t need to fear.”Though the earth give way and the mountains fall into the heart of the seaMuch of what we pray for – while important – is not something that requires God’s specific assistance. During Junior High youth group the most common prayer request is: “Dear God, let me pass my test tomorrow” – and the translation is, “since I didn’t pay attention during class and don’t intend to study tonight – please grant me the miracle of not just a passing grade but an “A.” Prayer has often become a substitute for things we should or could do – but choose not to.When the “earth gives way and the mountains fall into the heart of the sea” – that’s a different story. In 1980 I went through a tropical storm while I was on Maui – don’t want to go through that again. In 1989 Nancy and I were living in San Jose when the Loma Prieta earthquake messed up the World Series – again, not something I want to go through again.There are things in our life that we believe are too big to be affected by anything – like mountains and oceans. When a major natural disaster happens – we realize just how small and insignificant we really are in the universe (Louie Giglio’s “Pale Blue Dot”). The Psalmist states (not suggests) that even when such terrible things take place – we still don’t need to fear. As St Paul says in Romans 8, “if God is for us – who can be against us?” And Luther echoes this in A Mighty Fortress with his words, “take they our life, goods, fame, child and wife – they yet have nothing won – the kingdom ours remaineth.” If the ultimate goal of the believer is heaven – then everything here – while wonderful and important – is going to fade away – and while we may not always be okay with that – we learn the importance of Matthew 6:33-34, “But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” The only truly eternal thing is the soul – but it takes us a lifetime to figure that out.Verse two does not differentiate – but because we interpret the Bible in context (with and alongside other verses) – we know there are two categories of things that cause us fear:1)Things that might come – hurricanes, earthquakes, plagues, persecution and all the other things that often make up our headlines.2)Those things that will come: illnesses, the death of loved ones and friends, our death and the judgment of God.Jesus tells us “tomorrow will worry about itself” – and while it is useless to say, “don’t worry about…” because we are going to worry even when we’re told not to – we can only do what we can do. And everything is and always has been in God’s hands. What matters is that we know that God is with us – and even if everything crumbles and falls into the heart of the sea – the only eternal thing is our soul.Verse 3.?Though the waters roar and foam.When Katie (the same one who fed the mongoose) was about 3 or 4 we made a trip to San Francisco. Nancy, Molly and Micah went bravely out across the Golden Gate Bridge and I was with Katie. The bridge sways, the wind is always at least 20 miles an hour, there are big gaps in the railings (and a net to catch people) and the sidewalk is made of metal grating. Katie bravely held my hand and had no problem walking amongst all these dangers because she was with her dad. I on the other hand was afraid of the cars, the wind, the gaps in the railings and the really long drop to a very cold and stormy bay!Words from those great theologians Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid:Butch: “We'll jump…If the water's deep enough and we don't get squished to death, they'll never follow us.”Sundance: “No”Butch : What's the matter with you?Sundance: I can't swim!Butch: Are you crazy? The fall will probably kill ya.It’s like snow and cold and ice – I really don’t mind those things as long as I’m in the inside of a nice warm cabin with a fire going and hot chocolate. I don’t mind 50 foot waves and crashing seas as long as I’m safely on the shore watching from a distance – in fact I really like watching it all from a distance.The Psalmist puts this image in our head – waters roaring and foaming – because he knows we can translate it to specific moments in our life – events that were so out of control that it’s like those surfers who one minute are standing on top of the waves and the next somersaulting through the air with the board going one way and they another – and we know they are being thrashed around under the water and there only chance is to get to the surface before they drowned.But while we are imagining this – the Psalmist abruptly moves on to:Verse 4.?There is a river - its streams delight the city of God, the holy dwelling place of the Most High.Not a roaring, foaming river – but a quiet river you can sit beside and read and pray and listen to the calming sounds. And as you look upstream and down you notice the river winds here and there – finding the path that is best. This river flows through the city of God – the place where God lives. Without water – we die. Cities that did not have a source of water within them were easily conquered – but cities that had a water source within them could withstand any siege. Another key word, “streams.” This is a pure, beautiful stream – not the muddy, filthy Nile or Jordan River that everyone used to wash and feed their animals.Isaiah would say in his 55th chapter, “Come, everyone who is thirsty, come to the waters…” In John chapter 7, Jesus would say, “If anyone is thirsty, he should come to Me and drink! The one who believes in Me, as the Scripture has said, will have streams of living water flow from deep within him.” And the Book of Revelation would add, “Both the Spirit and the bride say, ‘Come!’ Anyone who hears should say, ‘Come!’ And the one who is thirsty should come. Whoever desires should take the living water as a gift.”A desert people fully understood the need for water – clean, pure water that didn’t dry up during a drought (when you need it most.)Verse 5 ?God is in the midst of her.? It won’t be for almost a thousand years, but St. John in his Revelation would give this promise to God’s people, “Then he showed me the river of living water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the broad street of the city. The tree of life was on both sides of the river, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit every month. The leaves of the tree are for healing the nations, and there will no longer be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and His people will serve Him. They will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. Night will no longer exist, and people will not need lamplight or sunlight, because the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign forever and ever.”The definition of heaven is not a place – it is a condition of being, a state of existence that requires being in the presence of God. The most beautiful, perfect place is not heaven unless God is there. Because God is love – and God is perfect – and God is light - to be in His presence casts out all doubt, fear, pain, disease, hurt and darkness. Dietrich Bonhoeffer said the original sin was choosing the knowledge of good AND evil over the knowledge of God. In heaven the pure and perfect knowledge of God is restored to us and we no longer know anything but love and peace and perfection. When God is in our midst – we do not fear – it doesn’t matter what is happening around us or even within us. The more we know God – the less we worry and the more we trust because He is our “refuge and strength” our “very present help in trouble” – our Mighty Fortress. ................
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