God Our Shield

"But let all those rejoice who put their trust in You; let them ever shout for joy, because You defend them; let those also who love Your name be joyful in You. ¹² For You, O LORD, will bless the righteous; with favour You will surround him as with a shield."

Psalm 5:11-12

All who put their trust in the LORD have great cause to rejoice forever.  I like how David's focus is not on the elimination of enemies and potential threats, but he urged believers to shout for joy because God was like a shield that surrounded and protected His people from all harm.

It makes sense in a battle for a warrior to hold fast to sword and shield, but once the battle is over the sword could safely be placed in a scabbard and the shield set down.  David's delight in God as a shield is important because he viewed Him as necessary for life and every blessing.  God is greater than all our enemies in the physical and spiritual realms put together!  All attacks of enemies were as nothing as long as God protected him, and it is good to realise God also protects us.  No fiery dart can shatter the shield of faith we wield by the power of the Holy Spirit when we rely on Jesus Christ.

There were many shouts on the field of battle:  shrieks of terror, communication between officers and troops, and shouts of triumph.  We can shout for joy forever without fear, dread or worry because God's grace surrounds us like a shield.  There is not one aspect of our hearts, minds or lives that is beyond His grace to protect.  What confidence we can have in God regardless of enemies which come against us, whether it be a giant of great stature like Goliath, Rabshakeh who hurled threats and sought to erode confidence in God, Midianites who gathered like locusts too numerous to count, or Satan with subtle temptations.  Joy is a result of being born again by faith in Jesus, as it is a fruit of the Spirit.  To those God has imputed righteousness through the Gospel, we love Him because He first loved us.

Surrounded by God and His love and grace, what appears to be our doom from a worldly vantage point is only the means of drawing us closer to God.  Our rejoicing ought to be in the LORD--more than the vanquishing of our enemies or the protection afforded us by God.  We ought to acknowledge how the living God has richly blessed and protected us all our lives, and let us rejoice in Him.  He is worthy of all trust and praise forever, for He is the LORD of all who has surrounded us with grace as with a shield.

The One Who Lifts Up

"Many are they who say of me, "There is no help for him in God." Selah ³ But You, O LORD, are a shield for me, my glory and the One who lifts up my head."

Psalm 3:2-3

How good it is to know we as followers of Jesus have help and enduring hope in God, the LORD who is a shield for us, our glory and the One who lifts up our heads.  David was not assured this hope because he was made king over Israel, for the same God was with him as a young shepherd and when he faced Goliath.  It was not his skill with sling and stone but God who granted him and all Israel the victory.  It is amazing people can think we are beyond help or hope (and sadly even we can be deceived to think such of others at times), yet when God lifts our head to behold Jesus, the One who was lifted up for our redemption now seated in glory, we are strengthened in the LORD to joyfully endure.

The phrase "lifted up the head" and variations of it are found many times throughout scripture.  At a glance the most common uses are to be exalted and promoted or to be lifted up in opposition.  Pharaoh lifted up the head of the cupbearer and restored him to his previous position of honour, whilst the head of the butler was lifted up when he was executed by hanging.  After God wrought a great victory over the Midianites at the hand of Gideon, Judges 8:28 says for 40 years the people of Midian were subdued and "lifted up their heads no more."  Evil-merodach king of Babylon "lifted up the head" of king Jehoiachin of Judah when he brought him out of prison, spoke kindly to him, changed his clothes, bestowed upon him honour and gave him food to eat continually all the days of his life (2 Kings 25:27-30).

David said it was the LORD God who was his shield, glory and lifter of his head.  God did the helping, exalting and strengthening.  Many have lifted their heads against God whom He will judge in due time, for all who walk in pride He is able to abase.  How blessed we are to have God's love and grace revealed to us to an infinitely greater degree than Pharaoh did for his cupbearer, David did for Mephibosheth or Evil-merodach did for Jehoiachin.  Lifting up our heads is more than coaxing us out of a depressed state, but He has spoken words of love and grace, promises we ought to take to heart and believe.  Jesus has released us from the bondage of sin and the curse of death which imprisoned us and led us into His marvelous light.  He has clothed us in righteousness by grace through faith in Him, and caused us to lie down in green pastures beside still waters with restored souls.  He has given us the Living Bread of Jesus Christ to sustain us day by day forever.  By the power of the everlasting Gospel we have been granted abundant life with God who will be our guide, shield, comfort and help for eternity.

Since God has lifted up our heads, should we justify being downcast over the trials God allows?  Should we give ear to enemies who surround us and say, "There is no help for him in God?"  Consider what Paul wrote in light of our glorious God in Romans 8:31-34:  "What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? ³³ Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. ³⁴ Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us."  Faith in God lifts our heads to behold Him, to fix our eyes upon Christ in praise and worship.  How we feel could be compared to a silky flag that indicates the direction of the wind, not a rudder to guide us or an anchor to hold us fast.  Having Christ as an anchor for our souls, guided by the truth of God's word and empowered by the Holy Spirit, let us respond with joyful gratitude to the LORD who lifts up our heads.

With All Readiness

"These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so."

Acts 17:11

Luke wrote concerning the Jews in the synagogues of Berea who responded to the teaching of Paul and Silas by investigating the validity of their doctrine by searching the Scriptures.  Their response was much more noble, open-minded and receptive to the truth than those in Thessalonica.  When Christians exhort one another to "be a Berean," it is typically the daily reading and study of God's word that is emphasised.  I would like to draw attention to what prompted their search of the scriptures, that "they received the word with all readiness."

The first thing this suggests to me is they were open and hungry to hear the truth about God.  They were willing to consider things they had never heard or considered before without being suspicious or judgmental.  When men unknown to the synagogue visited and shared the Gospel, they did not immediately react and throw them out without first carefully listening, considering and investigating the claims in God's word.  They received the word like those hungry thousands who at Christ's command sat on the hillside and received bread and fish distributed by the disciples and ate to the full.

Another point is it shows the people were discerning.  Having a solid foundation laid by the Torah, the Law, Psalms and Prophets, the Jews "received the word" with all readiness.  No doubt they had been exposed to many strange doctrines, controversies and opinions of men.  Among Judiasm there are many various beliefs, persuasions and practices.  The Pharisees, Sadducees, Essenes, Herodians and Zealots are examples of the many diverse Jewish groups which existed at that time, not to mention the vast differences between rabbis and priests!  As Paul and Silas spoke the truth of God's word, the mystery of the Gospel now revealed through Jesus Christ, the people received the word, confirmed it to be true and believed.

The Jews in Berea are described as receiving the word "with all readiness."  The KJV renders this, "with all readiness of mind."  To be ready is to be prepared with eagerness to engage, to progress, explore, experience.  The picture that comes to mind of readiness is of children joyfully anticipating a trip for the park:  they are already wearing their hats, have their drink bottles, have gone to the toilet and are in the car with seatbelts on shouting together with smiles, "Let's go!"  The Bereans did not harden their minds against the visitors with suspicion, procrastinate because their priorities were elsewhere, would rather argue or counter the claims of the Gospel, or cross their arms and dig in their heels because they proudly refused to admit ignorance.  Like well-tilled soil, their minds and hearts received the good seed which proved most fruitful with miraculous speed.

Brothers and sisters, are you fair minded to receive the word of God with all readiness?  Are you prepared, not only to see if the Gospel is true but to walk in faith according to it?  The lasting fruit of their study is shown in Acts 17:12: "Therefore many of them believed, and also not a few of the Greeks, prominent women as well as men."  Praise the LORD He prepares us to receive His truth, even as He prepares the earth to yield produce with refreshing showers of rain from heaven.  He gives us discernment to sort the chaff of opinions from the wheat of God's truth.  How sweet is the Living Water to our taste, for we have seen through the Scriptures and experience the LORD is good.  May there be revealed in us such humility, spiritual hunger, discernment to receive the word and eagerness to discover with all readiness as we search the scriptures daily as God affirms His truth to our hearts by faith.  Now is the time for us to show all readiness to heed, receive, search and believe God's word. 

Learning to Rejoice in the LORD

The word of God is living and powerful to instruct people concerning God and His ways.  The Bible is able to pierce us to reveal our motives, exposes our thoughts, rebukes sinful attitudes and teaches us what is acceptable to God.  In reading and studying the Bible a single word can speaks volumes to our hearts, and a verse understood in context and rightly applied is of more value than gold.  It is by faith in God we are given understanding, not the other way around.  If we try to understand the divine truths of the Bible without first submitting to God by trust in Him, we will remain ignorant of many things.

This remains true of Christians who have followed Jesus as disciples for some time and have knowledge of doctrine and familiarity with scripture.  Knowledge does not mean we are walking by faith in God and in the light of His love, grace and goodness.  A good fruit tree can be beset by beetles, have branches broken by a storm, be stricken with fungus and have dead wood that must be cut off.  A lot of emphasis in Christian circles is to determine if a person is "saved" or not when the reality of salvation is evidenced by the transformation of being born again and bearing the fruit of the Holy Spirit.  In time over many growing seasons an unknown tree will be known by its fruit, and the words we say and things believers do provide a testimony God is in us and we are His by grace through faith.  Even Judas was able to put on a good show that convinced the apostles, but God looks upon the heart.

One of the awesome things about following Jesus as LORD and King is everything He asks us to do He enables and empowers us to do.  In our flesh where there is no good thing that arises able to do God's will, He proves Himself sufficient by grace.  There are some things I have never been able to learn, like advanced maths and physics.  It is one thing to know facts but it is another to become a new creation in Christ who learns to love, forgive, submit and be content--to become the person God wants you to be.  After Paul rejoiced in the LORD in prison, having learned to be content in all situations of life, he wrote in Philippians 4:12-13:  "I know how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere and in all things I have learned both to be full and to be hungry, both to abound and to suffer need. ¹³ I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."

Paul learned to rejoice in the LORD whether he was abased or suffered need, regardless if he was full or hungry.  He didn't look at a scrumptious meal and say,  "God is good today!" as if God was not as good when his stomach groaned in pain when he was starving.  Paul rejoiced in the LORD when people messaged him and sent gifts and rejoiced in the LORD when he felt lonely and disgraced.  Friends, have you learned this?  You might think, "How can anyone learn that?"  This is the context of Paul's oft-quoted statement:  "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me."  God can teach us what we cannot learn ourselves.  Followers of Jesus can learn to rejoice in the LORD always and to be content everywhere an in all things.  Such a God-honouring perspective is not one natural to our flesh but is the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit within those brought forth to new life by the Gospel.

"Everywhere" and "in all things" provides us an opportunity to exercise faith in Jesus that works for the glory of God as we learn to rejoice in the LORD.