God knew there would be times when we would hear so many negative reports, see so many needs and encounter so much danger around us we would feel overwhelmed. That is why He warned us ahead of time that thousands would be falling all around us. He did not want us to be caught off guard. But at that point, we have a choice to make. The Ball is in our court! We can either choose to run to His shelter in faith and it will not approach us or we can passively live our lives the way the world does, not realizing there is something we can do about it...
Many people read Psalm 91 and simply see it with their eyes, but very few behold it in their lives...
Is there any way for a Christian to escape all the evils that are coming on this world?
*Read, believe, have faith in the words of God in Psalm 91...
Nothing in this world can be relied upon as confidently as God's promises when we believe them, refuse to waver, and decide to make His Word our final authority for every area of life...
Psalm 91 is the only place in the Word where all of the protection promises are brought together in one collection, forming a *Covenant written through the Holy Spirit...
*Psalm 91 ~is a covenant ~a spiritual contract... Luke 24:44 ~Now He said to them, "These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the laws of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled."
Psalm 91:1
He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High, Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty...
~Dwelling in the shelter of the Most High is the Old Testament's way of teaching "Faith." Man has no built-in shelter. Alone, he stands shelterless against the elements and must run to the "Shelter Himself." In verse 1, God is offering us more than protection, it is as if he rolls out the hospitality mat and personally invites us in...
~In order to abide in the shadow of the Almighty, we must choose to dwell in the security and shelter of the the Most High...
How do we dwell in the security and shelter of the Most High?
(It is more than an intellectual experience)
*That place of refuge...is a love walk... That secret place is, in reality, the intimacy and familiarity of the presence of God Himself...
Psalm 91:2
I will say of the Lord, "HE is my refuge and my fortress, My God in Him I will trust."
~There is power in saying His Word back to Him! We are not told to simply think the word. We are told to say the word...
Power is released when we speak the word of God out loud. When we say it and mean it, we are placing ourselves in His shelter. By voicing His Lordship and His protection, we walk through the door to the secret place...
We must learn to verbalize our trust out loud...basically, we answer back to God what He says to us...
Psalm 91:3
Surely He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence.
~The enemy sets traps for us specifically for each one of us. But like an animal caught in a trap, it is a slow, painful process. You don't die instantly. You are ensnared until the trapper comes to destroy you... The enemy knows exactly what will hook us, and he knows exactly which thought to put into our minds to lure us into the trap...
God not only delivers us from the snare laid by the trapper (Satan), but He also delivers us from the deadly pestilence (any and all lethal/fatal diseases) (an epidemic that hits the masses of people...) ~Even Swine Flu :-)
If God wants us to walk in health, why did He create germs???
*God made everything good...
*Germs are nothing more than microscopic plants and animals that the enemy perverted and uses to spread disease...
Psalm 91:4
He shall cover you with his feathers, and under His wings you shall take refuge, His truth shall be your shield and buckler.
~It is interesting that Jesus uses the example of maternal love to demonstrate His attachment to us. There is fierceness to motherly love that we cannot overlook. God is deeply committed to us, yet at the same time, we can reject His outstretched arms if we so choose. It is available, but not automatic... God does not run here and there, trying to cover us. God has made protection possible if we run to Him. And then when we do run to Him in faith, the enemy will have to go through God to get to us... It is God's faithfulness to His promises that is our shield and buckler. He is using 2 military symbols of fortification and protection. He is our tower, our wall of protection in a collective sense, and our shield, a very personal piece of protective gear...
Psalm 91:5
You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day.
Terror by Night: examples are, kidnapping, robbery, rape, murder, terrorism, and wars...
Why do you think the Lord continually reminds us not to be afraid?
~Because it is through faith in God's word that we are protected... Fear is the opposite of faith, and will keep us from operating in the faith that is necessary to receive...
We do not have to be afraid of the terror of what man can do to harm us... Praise God for His higher law! His laws triumph over man's laws...
Fear comes when we think we are responsible for bringing about this protection ourselves... Protection has already been provided, whether we receive it or not. Faith is simply the choice to receive what Jesus has already done...
The Bible gives classic examples of how to deal with terror...
*The answer is: In the blood of Jesus.
Exodus 12:23 tells us when Israel put blood on the door facings, the destroyer could not come in. The blood acted as a type of shadow...
*We now have the blood protection of Jesus Christ (Hebrews 8:6)
When we confess out loud, "I am protected by the blood of Jesus," and believe it, the devil literally cannot come in...
*We operate our spiritual weapons with our mouths...
~If we find ourselves being afraid, thats our barometer letting us know we are not dwelling and abiding up close to the Lord in the shelter of the Most High and believing His promises...
Fear comes in when we are confessing things other than what God has said. When our eyes are not on God, fear will come, but let that fear be a reminder to repent...
~We have to choose to believe His Word more than we believe what we see and more than we believe the terror attack. Not that we deny the existence of the attack, for the attack may be very real. But God wants our faith in His Word to become more of a reality to us than what we see in the natural...
~Arrows are sent to hit our weak spots. That's why we need to have the shield of faith so they will not hit us...
Arrow that flies by day: It pierces or wounds spiritually, physically, mentally or emotionally. They target our weak areas to bring defeat...
Psalm 91:6
Nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor of the destruction that lays waste at noonday.
Pestilence: All fatal diseases (Read Deut. 28, we are redeemed from this curse)
Destruction: (Evils which mankind has no control) Tornadoes, floods, hail, hurricanes, and fire (these are not from God)
~Every extreme evil known to man will fall into one of the four categories -terror -arrows -pestilence -destruction *The amazing thing is that God has offered us deliverance from them all!
God has said in His Word, we will not be afraid of terror, arrows, pestilence, or destruction -it will not approach us -if we are obedient to verses 1 & 2 of Psalm 91 -to dwell in His shelter and abide in His shadow.
*We can receive anything God has already provided, The secret is knowing that everything for which God has made provision is clearly spelled out and defined in the Word of God. IF you can find where God has offered it, you can have it! God will never hold it back. His provision is already there, waiting to be received...
Psalm 91:7
A thousand may fall at your side and ten thousand at your right hand, but it shall not come near you.
~Not everyone will receive the benefits of this promise. Only those who believe God and hold fast to His promises will profit, nonetheless, it is available. To the measure we trust Him, we will in the same measure reap the benefits of that trust...
Psalm 91:8
Only with your eyes shall you look, and see the reward of the wicked.
~We will only look and see it happening... Only seeing and not experiencing the evil... And that evil we see, does not get inside of us... We are set apart in that we do not allow our enemy's hate to change us... (We will see the judgement -the payment of the wicked...)
Psalm 91:9
Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most High, your dwelling place.
Psalm 91:10
No evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling. (Household)
~God adds a new dimension to this promise: The opportunity to exercise faith not only for ourselves, but also for the protection of our entire household... If these promises were only available to us as individuals, it would not be completely comforting. Because God has created within us both and instinct to be protected and a need to protect those who belong to us. He has assured us in this verse that these promises are for you and your household...
Psalm 91:11
For He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways...
~God has given to us His angels, personal, heavenly bodyguards, to protect us...
*There are more fighting for us than against us...
He has given His angels charge over us... When you take charge of something, you put yourself in a place of leadership. You begin telling everyone what to do and how to do it. If angels are taking charge of things that concern us, God has given the angels, not the circumstances, the authority to act on our behalf...
Psalm 91:12
In their hand they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone...
When we look to God as the source of our protection and provision, the angels are constantly rendering us aid and taking charge of our affairs. They are alert and ready to protect us at all times... Faith is what releases this promise to work on our behalf...
Psalm 91:13
You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot.
Lion Problems : These are bold, loud, and forthright and come out in the open to hit us head on.
Young Lions : Can grow into full-grown problems if we don't handle them. They harass and destroy us gradually. We need to take them captive and destroy them... (Also distractions and irritations)
Cobra Problems: They seem to sneak upon us like a snake in the grass throughout our day, while we're minding our own business. They are undercover attacks that bring sudden death -a deceptive scheme keeping us blinded until it devours us...
Dragons : (says this in other translations) Vain imaginations, phantom fears, they can be as deadly as reality fears if we believe them... They keep us living in the past and future rather than the present...
Psalm 91:14
"Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him, I will set him on high, because he has known *My Name.
*Love always requires presence and nearness...
Special memories are birthed out of relationship... Only an encounter with the Lord and time spent with Him will cause us to lay hold of His promises... These promises are made only to those who have genuinely set their love on Him... (John 14:15 "If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."
*Our obedience is an extremely reliable telltale sign that shows us we really love Him...
* "It is My Name," God says, "that has been on his lips when he faces troubles, and he has run to Me. He has called out to Me in faith, therefore, I will set him on high..."
~Joel 2:32 "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be delivered..."
~It is God's promise to deliver us...and set us on High...
Psalm 91:15
He shall call upon Me, and I will answer him, I will be with him in trouble, I will deliver him and honor him.
~God is so merciful to answer us when we sincerely call to Him for help... He will give us the power to be Victorious...
Psalm 91:16
With long life I will satisfy him, and show him My Salvation..."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
GOD'S PROMISES
Deliverance: Call on the name of the Lord...
We are delivered internally and externally, and from the lion problems, young lion, cobra,dragon, terror by night, arrows that fly by day, pestilence and destruction... Other words, every evil known to mankind...
Set Securely on high: It is our promise if, we love the Lord and know Him by name... and experience Him intimately...
Answer those who truly love Him and call on His name: 1 john 5:14 & 15 ~This is the confidence which we have before Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have requests which we have asked from Him...
Rescue from trouble: We have to ask in faith and not confine Him to our limited resources ~we have to trust Him to do it His way. (Isaiah 43:2) God will give us the power to be victorious...
Honor: Fulfilling our part of the covenant allows God to honor us... He honors us by calling us His sons and daughters...by answering us when we take His Word seriously and call out to Him in faith...by recognizing us individually and by preparing a place for us to be with Him eternally...
Satisfy with long life: God is making the offer ~If we will come to Him, let Him fill that empty place on the inside and allow Him to fulfill the call on our lives, then He will give us a long life and satisfy us as we live it out... We have been promised a satisfying, and long life and will make it through the present circumstances...
His salvation: We need to see, take hold and make it our own... We will see salvation face to face during and after our long, satisfied life... Salvation is -health, healing, rescue, deliverance, safety, protection, and provision...
God so faithfully keeps His promises, but have we been faithful to keep the promises we've made to Him?
Do we really know Him by name and trust in His promises?
These are the many words that stood out to me and I will treasure from this book...
A true must read... So full of many testimonies from amazing people with great faith...which will in return help increase your faith in God and His promises...
