Timeless Biblical Truth.
God, the Most High, provides the believer strength and security for a long life of serving Him.
- Petition: When believers feel overwhelmed and alienated, they may cry out to the “rock” that is higher (1-2).
- Reasons: Believers may have assurance that the Lord will respond to their prayers (3-8).
- Reason #1: Because God has given them protection in the past, believers may pray for safety by being in His presence (3-4).
- Reason #2: Because God has provided them a heritage, believers pray that the Lord fulfills His promises (5-7).
- Reason #3: Because they anticipate answer to their prayers, believers vow to praise God every day (8).
William O. Cushing (1823-1902)
O safe to the Rock that is higher than I;
My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly;
So sinful, so weary—Thine, Thine would I be:
Thou blest “Rock of Ages,” I’m hiding in Thee.
In the calm of the noontide, in sorrow’s lone hour,
In times when temptation casts o’er me its power,
In the tempests of life, on its wide, heaving sea,
Thou blest “Rock of Ages,” I’m hiding in Thee.
How oft in the conflict, when pressed by the foe,
I have fled to my Refuge and breathed out my woe;
How often, when trials like sea billows roll,
Have I hidden in Thee, O Thou Rock of my soul.
Questions for Second Milers
- Describe how David feels about his relationship to God. What words does he use to express his sense of distance from God?
- What does David request? For what reasons? What metaphors does he use?
- Have you ever felt distant from God? What do you do when you felt that way?
- What has God given David as king in the past? Imagine his feelings in the present as he rules day after day.
- When have you felt the need for security and strength recently? How have you expressed your need to God? How has He responded?
- Do you know a song of praise that you could sing to God now?
- Give your own short title to this psalm.
“If you remember what an author says, you have learned something from reading him. If what he says is true, you have even learned something about the world. But whether it is a fact about the book or a fact about the world that you have learned, you have gained nothing but information if you have exercised only your memory. You have not been enlightened. Enlighten-ment is achieved only when, in addition to know what an author says, you know what he means and why he says it.”
Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren, in How to Read a Book, p. 11.
Lanny Tanton is the Pastor at The Bible Church of the Lakes in Horseshoe Bay, Texas – just outside of Marble Falls. Pastor Tanton welcomes you to our website and hopes that you’ll enjoy reading these insightful blog posts. Please contact us if you have further questions!!
