Well, good morning, church. Our sermon text this morning is Psalm 46. Let me encourage you to grab
a Bible and go there with me. This is a psalm that Old and New Testament believers have turned
to in times of trouble again and again. In fact, the first hymn that we sang this morning,
A Mighty Fortress Is Our God, was based on this very psalm. So let's turn to Psalm 46 together,
and as we do that, let me pray, and then I'll read it for us.
Oh, Father, we've just sung an old hymn of the church, praise God from whom all blessings flow.
Lord, we do praise you this morning, and we ask that you would send your Spirit
to use your word in our hearts. Lord, help us above all to see you more clearly
as a result of coming to your word. Open up our eyes to see your greatness, God,
and your goodness, your faithfulness, your power, your mercy. Lord, in our own hearts,
in our own eyes, we can't do this. We need you. But God, you are faithful, and you promise to do so.
So we pray with confidence, and we come to your word with expectation that you will do a work this
morning. We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen. Psalm 46. God is our refuge and strength,
a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear, though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved.
God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter. He utters his voice,
the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress.
Come behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth.
He makes wars cease to the ends of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear.
He burns the chariots with fire. Be still and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us.
The God of Jacob is our fortress.
So, here we are. We're sitting in our living rooms, watching on our laptops or our phones.
Someone just texted me, showing me how they're watching on their TV screen.
Well done in New London. Glad you guys are with us.
Maybe you're by yourself. Maybe you're gathered with your immediate family or a few friends.
I'm standing here preaching basically to an empty sanctuary.
What a week it has been, right?
Schools have been canceled. Events have been indefinitely postponed.
And the news reports keep coming in about the spread of the virus.
The last I checked the statistics, there had been over 132,000 confirmed cases and almost 5,000 deaths worldwide.
And I'm sure those numbers are already out of date.
What does God's word have to say to us at a moment like this?
How are we as a church to respond?
What does being a follower of Jesus mean in these tumultuous times?
Well, Psalm 46 was written for a context just like ours.
When the world seems to be turning upside down, when there's uncertainty and confusion,
when we're not sure what the future holds,
this psalm points us to God and speaks directly to our hearts.
You see, the message of Psalm 46 is this.
Because God is our refuge, we need not fear.
The first stanza, the first part of the psalm, tells us that because God is our refuge,
we need not fear even when nature comes apart.
Look again at verses 2 and 3.
Listen to the natural chaos that's described there.
Therefore we will not fear, though the earth gives way,
though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea,
though its waters roar and foam,
though the mountains tremble at its swelling,
waters foaming, mountains trembling.
It's a picture of natural upheaval, of chaos.
A picture where no place is safe.
As we follow the news reports, as we watch the maps showing us where the virus spreads day by day,
perhaps we can share some of that unsettled feeling spoken of here in Psalm 46.
That the earth seems to be giving way.
That is, that there are fewer and fewer places that are safe, that are secure.
We can start to feel vulnerable on the outside and weak on the inside.
And fear starts to creep in.
What if I get sick?
What if my children get sick?
What if my parents or my grandparents get sick?
Now, maybe you're not experiencing this sort of fear at this moment.
That's a good thing.
However, this is still a message we need to hear.
I read a quote recently that said,
We do theology in the light so that we can stand on it in the dark.
We do theology in the light so we can stand on it in the dark.
If you're not afraid at just this moment,
well then this is the right time to consider the real reasons why you shouldn't be terrified.
Because sooner or later, hard times will come.
The earth may at one point feel like it's giving away.
The mountain of all that's certain in our lives may feel like it's being thrown into the sea.
We do theology in the light so we can stand on it in the dark.
So why shouldn't the church be afraid?
Why should we be able to face these tumultuous times with wisdom, courage, and love?
Not because of anything in us.
You know, it's easy not to be afraid when I'm feeling secure and strong.
But what about when I'm feeling vulnerable and weak?
Can I be unafraid even then?
And this is what Psalm 46 tells us.
When we are vulnerable, we still have a shelter against every storm.
When we are weak, we still have a power that cannot fail.
Because God is our refuge and strength.
And note the second half of verse 2.
What does the psalmist say there?
God is not just a present help in times of trouble, but a very present help.
Ever present is how some translations put it.
When trouble comes, God is very present.
Ready to be found.
Sufficient for the need.
Very present.
The phrase can even mean well-proved.
One who has shown himself faithful, reliable, again and again.
Brothers and sisters, have you found God to be very present?
To be well-proved in times of trouble.
For many of us, the pandemic that we're facing today is unprecedented in our lifetime.
But you know, this isn't the first time that the church has faced such a crisis.
In the second century, the church lived through a 15-year epidemic
that claimed anywhere from a third to a quarter of the Roman Empire.
In the middle of the third century, another epidemic struck,
hitting the rural areas as hard as the cities.
In the 14th and the 16th centuries, plagues ravaged Europe.
And in the early 20th century, the Spanish flu took millions of lives.
The church has lived through tumultuous times before.
And in those tumultuous times, God has shown himself very present in times of trouble.
God, as Psalm 46 tells us, and as church history shows us,
is with us in our sorrows, in our fears, in our suffering.
But the ultimate display of God being with us in our trouble
is seen above all in our Lord Jesus Christ,
who is called Emmanuel, God with us.
At the center of the Bible is the message that God became a human being.
He entered into our fallen world that we might never be alone,
that we might never be forsaken, that we might never be truly afraid.
Even if the earth gives way and the mountains fall into the sea,
God in Christ is with us.
He gave up heaven's glory.
He took up our infirmities and our sickness and our sin
to bring us back to the Father to ensure us that he would never leave us or forsake us.
And so because God is with us, the psalmist says,
we need not be afraid.
How much more can we say that today as New Testament believers,
knowing what we know of God and Jesus Christ?
And so rather than being afraid,
we have a call to love.
If God is very present to us in our time of trouble,
how can we be very present to one another in Christ's name?
Even when it's not wise to be physically near to one another,
we can still be relationally near.
A phone call, a text, an email,
letting someone know that you're thinking of them,
praying with them, just talking with them.
We don't have to go through all of this alone.
We can be with one another.
Now, of course, we should all be following the healthy guidelines
for mitigating the spread of the virus.
Even Martin Luther, who encouraged Christians not to flee the plague,
recommended that people still fumigate their homes.
To refuse to take such healthy measures, Luther said,
isn't trusting God, it's tempting God.
And so we should love our neighbors
by following the safe guidelines that are being recommended.
But we should also be actively seeking out
how to use all the lawful means we have
to connect with one another,
to encourage one another,
to serve and be generous with one another.
They'll know we are Christians by our love, Jesus said.
This is the time when the church must not be afraid,
but heed the call of proactive love.
Let's go on and look at the second stanza of this psalm.
Verses 4 through 7 tell us that because God is our refuge,
we need not fear,
even when society is in upheaval.
If the first stanza is about nature going crazy,
the second stanza is about
how we cannot be afraid when the nations are in upheaval.
Verse 6 says,
The nation's rage,
the kingdom's totter.
The picture is one of political and economic turmoil.
And you know,
if we're honest,
many of us aren't primarily afraid of the virus itself.
We're afraid of the impact it will have
on other areas of our life.
Our jobs will suffer.
Our workplaces will shut down.
Our savings will dwindle.
What will happen if we can't go to work for a week
or two or three or four?
What will happen if the stock market continues to fall?
The nation's rage.
The kingdom's totter.
But listen to verses 4 and 5.
Verse 4,
For there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God,
the holy habitation of the Most High.
In the Old Testament,
the city of God was Jerusalem,
the earthly capital of the kingdom of Israel.
But the city of God was also a metaphor for the people of God,
God's church in the Old Testament and in the New.
Now, there was no actual river in the ancient city of Jerusalem.
So the reference here to a river must be symbolic.
In contrast to the raging waters of verse 3,
here we're told there is a river with streams
that will sustain the people of God.
What is this river?
Look at verse 5.
God is in the midst of her.
She shall not be moved.
God will help her when morning dawns.
God.
God is the river whose streams make glad the city of God.
Even when the kingdom's totter.
Even when the nations rage.
You see what the psalmist is saying here
is that God isn't just with his people.
God resides within his people.
In our very midst.
God is the river whose streams make the city of Jerusalem.
And on the day of Pentecost,
when the ascended Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to live in the midst of his church,
this promise was fulfilled in a way the psalmist could have never dreamed.
God, not just with us, but within us by his Holy Spirit,
giving us joy, gladness, refreshment,
like an aqueduct bringing fresh water to a besieged city.
Jesus said that one day living waters would well up from within us.
Talking about the Holy Spirit.
And this means even in times of trial,
even in times of loss,
we cannot lose the most important thing.
Even if the water runs dry,
we have a river whose streams make us glad.
Even in times of sorrow,
we have a joy that cannot be taken away.
That is our communion with God as the people of God.
The Holy Spirit assuring us of the forgiveness of sins,
of our adoption as sons and daughters of God,
of our hope of eternal life,
that we are heirs of the new creation.
Assuring us that even sorrow and loss will be used for our good
to make us more like the image of Jesus our Lord.
The application then to us is this.
Rather than being afraid,
we are being called here to saving faith.
God is in the midst of his city.
God is in his church.
Are you?
Are you a part of this city,
this people of God,
where the river of God's presence doesn't run dry?
And how do we enter into this people?
How do we get into this city?
The Bible is very clear.
The only way into the people of God
is through Jesus,
the son of God.
Because only in Jesus is the holiness of God
and the mercy of God
fully satisfied.
God is the Lord of hosts,
verse 7 says.
That is,
he is the God of countless hosts,
of armies,
of all that is seen and unseen,
sun, moon, and stars,
angels, and archangels.
God is the holy,
sovereign creator,
and ruler of all.
He is the Lord of hosts.
But God is also the God of Jacob,
verse 7 says.
Jacob,
the patriarch,
whose twelve sons
became the twelve tribes of Israel.
Jacob, the trickster,
who wrestled with God.
In calling God,
the God of Jacob,
the psalmist is reminding us
that God is a God who is merciful.
A God who chooses imperfect people.
A God who makes his covenant,
his binding promise
with the undeserving and the lowly.
And so,
verse 7 tells us that God is both
holy and sovereign,
but also merciful and kind.
But can God be both at the same time?
Holy and merciful?
This is one of the great questions
that runs throughout the whole Old Testament.
How will God be both holy
and merciful
toward his fallen,
sinful creation?
And that question finds its resolution
in one place.
The cross of Jesus Christ.
At the cross,
the holiness of God against sin
and the mercy of God for sinners
are both expressed in perfect measure.
Jesus,
fully God
and fully human,
takes the penalty
our sins deserve.
You see,
in God's utter holiness at the cross,
the penalty for sin is paid.
But in God's utter mercy at the cross,
the penalty for sin is paid
by God in our place.
Through the cross,
our sins can be forgiven
and we can enter
the city of God
as the children of God.
God's utter holiness.
And so,
are you a part of this city,
this people?
Have you placed your trust
in Christ alone
as your Savior?
What's offered to us in Christ
is a river whose streams
never run dry,
a river of grace,
a river of mercy,
a river of God's own spirit.
A pastor in Italy
recently wrote an article
called
Eight Things the Coronavirus
Should Teach Us.
The first thing he mentioned
was that it should teach us
our frailty.
As human beings,
we are weak and frail
and the days that we have
on this earth are limited.
And so much of our time
is spent in pursuits
that don't last.
So here we are
at a moment
where we are being
prompted to consider
what really matters.
Where do we stand spiritually?
Rather than living in fear,
Psalm 46 calls us
to saving faith,
to enter the city of God
through the Son of God
that we might enjoy
the eternal river
of the Spirit of God.
And if you haven't yet,
now is the time
to enter in.
But there's one last stanza
of Psalm 46.
We've seen that God
is our refuge
and that means
that we don't need
to live in fear
of natural calamities
and we don't need
to live in fear
of societal upheaval.
Now verses 8 through 11
show us that we don't need
to live in fear
of future uncertainty.
Verse 8 invites us
to behold the works
of the Lord.
Desolations they're called.
But what are
these desolations?
And then in verse 9
we are shown
a battlefield.
But the battle
is over.
The bow
is broken.
The spear
is shattered.
The chariots
are burned.
God
has won
the great victory
and the call
goes out
be still
and know
that I
am God.
God
exalted
among the nations.
God
exalted
in the earth.
What the psalmist
is showing us here
with this gripping
imagery
is that we know
how the story
ultimately
ends.
God
will defeat
the foes
of sin
and death
and evil
that have corrupted
his good world.
The warfare
of this fallen
world
will one day
cease
and God
will be all
in all.
And that
means no matter
what the
uncertainty
the future
may hold
because we
know how
the story
will end
we need
not be
afraid.
As Paul
says in
Romans 8
creation
will one
day be
set free
from its
bondage
to corruption.
God's
glory will
cover the
earth like
the waters
cover the
sea.
God
will judge
his world
he will
judge
sin and
death
and make
all things
new and
that day
will be so
good that
Paul can
say I
consider
that the
sufferings
of this
present
time
are not
worth
comparing
with the
glory
that is
to be
revealed
to us.
And if
we know
as Christians
that we
can stand
confident
before God
in the
judgment
if we
know that
we can
stand
confident
before God
when he
comes
because of
the finished
work of
Christ
if that
is our
confidence
then we
will be
able to
stand
confidently
no matter
what
the near
future
might hold.
We need
not fear
sickness
pain
poverty
even death
because none
of these
things can
separate us
from the
love of
God
in Christ
Jesus
our Lord.
And
throughout
history
this is
what has
always made
the church
stand apart
in times
of crisis.
our hope
in Christ
that sickness
and death
is not
the last
word
that what
God has
in store
for his
children
is resurrection
life.
This is
always given
the church
wisdom
and courage
in the face
of fear
whether in
the second
century
or in
the 16th
century
or today
in the
21st
century.
And that
means we
are called
not just
to love
not just
to faith
but finally
to testify
to our
hope.
to tell
others
that we
have a
hope
that reaches
beyond the
grave
beyond death
and ends
in newness
of life.
What gives
us that
hope?
Nothing
about
ourselves
everything
about
Jesus
who said
I am
the resurrection
and the life
and then
who died
and rose
again to
prove that
his words
were true.
in the
days and
weeks to
come
brothers and
sisters
may God
give us
the wisdom
and the
courage
to bear
witness to
this great
hope that
we have
in Jesus
to our
family
to our
neighbors
to our
co-workers
may we
pray for
opportunities
to speak
about this
hope with
confidence
and with
love
and may
our
neighbors
see in
us a
living
example
of what
Psalm 46
is all
about
that because
God is
our refuge
we need
not fear
because God
is our
refuge we
can live
with love
and faith
and hope
even in
the midst
of tumultuous
times
and through
it all
may God
be exalted
as verse 10
says
may God
be exalted
through his
church among
all nations
exalted in
all the
earth
may God's
name be
known as
good and
great
let's pray
together
oh God
we pray
that you
would continue
to grant
your church
not just
here in
New Haven
not just
here in
the United
States
but all
across this
world
that you
have made
would you
continue to
grant your
church
a deep
sense
of confidence
and faith
in the
midst
of tumultuous
times
Lord help
us to be
a people
of faith
and hope
and love
father
father we
ask all
this
in the
strong
name
of
Jesus
and in
the
power
of your
Holy
Spirit
amen
and
love
and
love
for
and
how
they
can
for
so