International
18 October 07
Psalm 107 – Security (II)
Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;
5hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
6Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
7He led them by a straight way
till they reached a city to dwell in.
8Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
9For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.
Last time that we looked at these verses from Psalm 107 – we saw that
the metaphor of a city is all about security. In verses 4-5 God’s people
are depicted as exposed – searching for the security of dwelling behind
the strong city walls of Zion, but totally lost.
The point that the psalmist is making is as verse 9 tells us that
security is one of the great ‘longings’ of the soul. Everyone – no
matter who they are – longs for security. We know this with children;
babies cry when they miss their parents, because of a reflex of
insecurity and as they grow-up need the secure environment of a stable
home and sound relationships with family and friends to flourish. But
where is security, real security to be found? We all want it but where
do we get it?
Many people look to sport to satisfy their longing for security, but as
we saw last week, when the difference between winning and losing is
often settled on the bounce of a ball – such hopes are doomed to fail.
Even, if some do have flourishing careers and are blessed with success
as Martina Navratilova said ‘the moment of winning is far too short to
live for that and nothing else’ (and she should know). No, the message
of this psalm is that if we look to things in this world for security
then we’ll be left hungry and thirsty.
However, more than just this looking to anything other than God for
security is actually an offence to him. God satisfies the longing soul,
and fills the hungry soul with good things (vs 9) and sin (certainly as
these verses see it) is not so much about doing wrong things but seeking
security in wrong things. That is why the psalm is written to the
‘redeemed’ or rescued of the Lord (vs 2) because seeking security in
things of the world is not just a neutral lifestyle choice but a way of
living that we need to be rescued from. That’s also why the idea from
this psalm of being outside the city is echoed in the New Testament as
it describes Jesus being ‘led out’ (both in Matthew and John’s gospel) –
beyond the walls of the city – outside to the place called the skull, to
be crucified. On the cross Jesus is shut-out of God’s perfect secure
presence, to rescue us and call us back to himself.
Since Jesus was taken outside of the city, we can now come in, both into
an unbreakable relationship with God now, and perfectly fulfilled when
we are welcomed into the heavenly city – the new Jerusalem. More than
just this we can be perfectly confident that we will get there because
God promises to lead all who cry out to him, by a ‘straight way’ (verse
7) to this perfect place. So when things come along that knock your
confidence – like injuries, playing badly, or what others may say about
you – remember what his death has secured for you and the heavenly city
that awaits you and ‘give thanks to the Lord for his steadfast love, for
his wondrous works to the children of men.’
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