January 23
“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 came against me to eat up my flesh, my enemies and foes, they stumbled and fell. Though an army may encamp against me, my heart shall not fear; though war may rise against me, in this I will be confident. One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: 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 inquire in His temple. For in the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of his tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock,” Psalm 27:1-5.
In this particular psalm, the child of God expresses his firm faith in the promises of God’s protection. “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?” Immediately, we think of the Lord Jesus Christ, of whom John the Baptist witnessed, as it is reported by the apostle John in his Gospel: “There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all through him might believe. He was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that Light. That was the true Light which gives light to every man coming into the world,” John 1:6-9.
John the Baptist bore witness of the coming Light of the world, and later on several occasions Jesus said, “I am the Light of the world,” John 8:12, 9:5. Jesus came into the world to bring us out of spiritual darkness through the light of the glorious Gospel of Jesus Christ. On another occasion, Jesus said, “I have come as a Light into the world, that whoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness,” John 12:46.
As we go through life trusting in the Lord as our Light and Strength, of whom or of what should we be afraid? The psalmist elaborates on this. If wicked people come against us like fierce, wild animals and seek to destroy us, God promises that they shall stumble and fall! Yes, if they come against us like a huge army determined to carry out a war to destroy us, we can confidently say, “My heart shall not fear!”
In the midst of all of the threatening dangers that confront us and surround us, we give our attention to things of greater importance. “One thing I have desired of the Lord, that will I seek: 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 inquire in His temple.” As Christians, we want to be in close contact with our gracious, protecting, and loving God all the days of our life.
We keep in close touch with God through faith in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and through faith in God’s promises recorded in the Bible for body and soul. We dwell in the house of the Lord, the holy Christian Church, by faith in God’s Son, who lived the perfect life in our place and who suffered and died on the cross to redeem all people. Through faith in Jesus as our Savior, we are beholding the beauty of the Lord, His grace and mercy in Christ Jesus, the assurance of the forgiveness of sins, and life everlasting in the beauty and glories of heaven. Our gracious God gives to each of His children the assurance, “In the time of trouble He shall hide me in His pavilion; in the secret place of his tabernacle He shall hide me; He shall set me high upon a rock.” Our faith rests on the Rock of our salvation.
My hope is built on nothing less, Than Jesus’ blood and righteousness;
I dare not trust the sweetest frame, But wholly lean on Jesus’ name.
On Christ, the solid Rock, I stand; All other ground is sinking sand. Amen.