Confidence in the Face of Uncertainty

Psalm 27: 1-3 The L ord is my light and my salvation--so why should I be afraid? The L ord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should I tremble? When evil people come to devour me, when my enemies and foes attack me, they will stumble and fall. Though a mighty army surrounds me, my heart will not be afraid. Even if I am attacked, I will remain confident. (NLT)

Let not your heart be troubled. That was what Jesus once told His disciples. The sad truth is we often can allow our hearts to be troubled despite the assurances given to us directly by God Himself. The Christian walk is never promised to be an easy one but so many of us miss out on some of the greatest benefits, whether it be from a lack of faith or the world seeming larger in our lives than it ought to be. That is what Jesus was trying to convey to us when He assured His disciples about the problems they would face:

"I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world." John 16:33

Sometimes we overlook the "in me" portion of this Scripture. We have not overcome the world beloved Jesus did. We have not overcome our problems Jesus did. It is only in Jesus and through Jesus that we share in the overcoming nature of Christ. But we can lose our peace so easily in this world. Forces gather against us or things do not go our way, the way we have pre-determined they should, and our peace goes right out the window. We do not take advantage of the glorious promises God has made us. We reflect to our circumstances instead of to Jesus the Author and Finisher of our faith. We reflect to our feelings, our disappointments, or our insecurities instead of to our Savior! Even worse, we reflect to the lies the enemy whispers into our ears instead of to the promises of Almighty God. We look in ourselves and find no peace.

Psalm 27 starts with some of the greatest theology we need to wrap our minds around. Verse one starts with some reminders about who God needs to be in our lives. First, God is our light. One of the definitions listed in the dictionary for light says, "An illuminating agent or source as in the sun, a lamp, or a beacon." Jesus is the illuminating agent of our lives beloved. And what does light do? It penetrates the darkness. Without Christ, we are walking blindly through the darkness of the world.

While I am in the world, I am the light of the world." John 9: 5

Light shows us the way to go. It provides direction. That is the "beacon" portion of the definition. A boat lost at sea will look to a lighthouse to provide the direction to safe harbors. That is what Jesus does in our lives. When we are facing the storms that come against us. When the waves are crashing over us, seemingly to drown us, it is the light of Christ that provides us with the direction we need to make it to safer harbors.

Your word is a lamp to guide my feet and a light for my path. Psalm 119:105 (NLT)

The light of the world is ours. It provides us with the next steps we need to take in order to continue walking in the perfect will of God. Unfortunately, sometimes we think we want to see beyond the next steps. We want to see the entire journey. The devil will whisper in our ears about things beyond the next steps God has for us. But true faith needs only to see the next step. Christ is the light in our lives, directing our paths. When we truly realize that then there is nothing to cause us fear! That is the promise the Psalmist is reminding us of. No matter what situation we find ourselves in and no matter how dire it may seem, God is still your light. He still provides you the way out of the darkness. He still provides the direction you need.

He is also our salvation. The dictionary defines salvation as, " a source, cause, or means of being saved or protected from harm, risk, loss, destruction, etc." We have been saved already beloved! Before we came to the glorious salvation of Jesus Christ we were heading for certain destruction. There is more to life than the 80 or so years we get on this planet. Deep down, everyone knows this. But whatever harm, risk or loss we had been facing, has now been wiped out through the salvation provided by Jesus on Calvary's cross.

For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Colossians 1: 13-14

Hallelujah! We were created for fellowship with our creator. But through sin we choose a separate life a life apart from the presence of God. But because of the salvation provided by Christ, we are reunited with God. The Psalmist is reminding us of what truly matters when we face the trials of this life. They mean nothing compared to eternity and our place alongside our Lord and Savior! No matter how grim the report is that we are facing nothing can separate us from the love God has lavished upon us through His only son:

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God's love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow--not even the powers of hell can separate us from God's love. No power in the sky above or in the earth below--indeed, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Romans 8: 38-39 (NLT)

That is what we have in Christ and how we overcome the world through Him! That is why the Psalmist declares we have nothing to fear. The key verses continue to assure us with a similar promise the Lord is our fortress, protecting us from danger. The dictionary defines fortress as "a place of exceptional security." So, not only is God our light directing our steps and our salvation assuring us everlasting life, but He is also our place of exceptional security!

Let's be real though. When the forces in this world gather against us we can feel very unsafe. Our flesh rises up and we start to look at our problems instead of our problem solver. Our circumstances can become bigger than our beliefs; bigger than our God if we are not careful. Note that verse two tells us "when evil people come to devour me." It doesn't say IF evil people come to devour me but WHEN. One of the greatest misconceptions about being saved is that it means the end of trials and tribulations. Nonsense if anything it places you on the radar of the enemy. Never lose sight of the fact that we are fighting a spiritual battle:

For we are not fighting against flesh-and-blood enemies, but against evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against mighty powers in this dark world, and against evil spirits in the heavenly places. Ephesians 6: 12 (NLT)

The enemy seeks to make you ineffectual for the kingdom of God. The more ineffectual he can make us, the less people come to the same saving grace we enjoy. The less people come to the cross. The key verses do not say IF my enemies and foes attack me but rather WHEN they attack. But the promise that follows is that they will all stumble and fall. How can we have such assurance? Because our enemies do not walk in the same light that we do. They do not have the assurances of salvation. They do not have God as their fortress. It is simply not a fair fight:

What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us? Romans 8: 31 (NLT)

No one can be against us! None can stand against God! That is who is on our side. But we must live in those assurances. When the storms of life rise up against us. When all seems bleak and hopeless. When we are hurt, wounded or betrayed. Too often we can look at the situation and feel hopeless. God understands that we will have feelings beloved. Christianity is not an exercise in denial. But when those feelings do not align with the promises God has made us, which do we lend power to? To which do we place our faith? Do we walk in the power God has given us or do we walk in the defeat the enemy whispers into our ears?

King Jehoshaphat was facing a difficult trial during his reign as King of Israel. Reports reached him that a vast army, comprised of several countries was marching towards him to make war. Not the best of days for the king. He no doubt felt surrounded and beset on all sides. In his flesh he must have been scared. The Bible tells us he was terrified. He must have wanted to panic. Maybe thoughts of fleeing his situation crossed his mind as well. All the thoughts we battle with when we are attacked in our lives and in our walks. We can feel as the King surrounded and beset. We must react as the King did however to seek the face and the will of God with an understanding of who He is in relation to our problems:

Jehoshaphat stood before the community of Judah and Jerusalem in front of the new courtyard at the Temple of the L ord . He prayed, "O L ord , God of our ancestors, you alone are the God who is in heaven. You are ruler of all the kingdoms of the earth. You are powerful and mighty; no one can stand against you! O our God, did you not drive out those who lived in this land when your people Israel arrived? And did you not give this land forever to the descendants of your friend Abraham? Your people settled here and built this Temple to honor your name. They said, 'Whenever we are faced with any calamity such as war, plague, or famine, we can come to stand in your presence before this Temple where your name is honored. We can cry out to you to save us, and you will hear us and rescue us.' "And now see what the armies of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir are doing. You would not let our ancestors invade those nations when Israel left Egypt, so they went around them and did not destroy them. Now see how they reward us! For they have come to throw us out of your land, which you gave us as an inheritance. O our God, won't you stop them? We are powerless against this mighty army that is about to attack us. We do not know what to do, but we are looking to you for help." 2Chronicles 20: 5-12 (NLT)

It is not enough just to seek God. We must seek Him in relation to His awesomeness. We must seek Him realizing that He is larger than our problems. We overcome the world in Him by remaining in Him. We do not allow our problems to ever become bigger in our own mind than the God who has already delivered us from eternal death. Read this prayer again from King Jehoshaphat. It is bathed in the understanding of how powerful God is. Jehoshaphat was terrified but because God was his light, salvation and fortress He remained bigger than whatever terror he may have felt. That is what the Psalmist means in our key verses when he says that even though armies surround him and how many of us have felt that way before his heart will not be afraid.

Let not your heart be troubled Jesus has commanded us. Let your heart be not afraid. In the darkness He is your light. When we are lost or feeling overwhelmed by the storms of life He is the beacon guiding us to safer harbors. When death itself feels like it is at our doorway He has already provided eternal life through the salvation He bought for us on Calvary. He is our fortress beloved a place of undeniable security! The enemy will come against our fortress. The evil people will come against us. Our foes will attack us. But it will not matter to us if we are rooted in the promises God has made and the provision He continues to make for us.

Wherever these words find you today remember the last words from the key verses. When the attacks come we must remain confident. Why? Because a lack of confidence leads to a lack of faith. Without faith it is impossible to please God. The Word of God is alive and powerful in our lives but only if we believe it is so. We have confidence because we know God is working all things out for our good. We have confidence because He has already bought our salvation at a terrible price. We have confidence because He is the light of our lives providing the direction and guidance we need to find our way out of any impending darkness. There is absolutely nothing for you to fear today if you have made the everlasting God the fortress of your life. Remain confident that He who started a good work in you will be faithful to complete it.

Reverend Anthony Wade September 21, 2010