#DailyDevotion The LORD Is Our Rock In More Ways Than One
Psalm 31 Be my Rock of Refuge, a strong fortress to save me. 3You are my Rock and my Fortress; for the honor of Your name lead me and guide me. 4Pull me out of the trap secretly laid for me, because You are my Refuge. 5Into Your hands I entrust my spirit —You have redeemed me, O LORD, my faithful God.
David has a bit of a theology of God as Rock. The LORD first puts this forth in Deuteronomy chapter thirty-two. It is throughout David’s psalms. Tzur is the word used mostly in Deuteronomy. But here there is also Maoz, Matsud, Selah and Elitzur (which means “my God is a Rock”) Each of those terms as you might guess is a slightly different meaning of rock. Rock of Refuge is Tzur and Maoz, maoz being refuge. Strong fortress is a ”house Matsud.” David tells the LORD, “You are my Selah and Moaz.”
David hiding from Saul who was trying to kill him hid among the cliffs and rocks of the Judean wilderness. These would be very large. You can think of castles set on a high mountain top. This language should have you thinking of something and somewhere very secure. Having God, the LORD as one’s Rock, Fortress, and Refuge, you have the high ground and cannot lose.
We should make sure that daily, even when we are not in trouble, we make our LORD Jesus Christ our Rock, our Refuge, our Strong Fortress. Abide in Him as your high ground. Rest securely in Him. If we do that, it won’t be quite as frightful when our enemies come against us and do their worst. We will already know God is able to protect us as we have been trusting this all along.
Since David is the LORD’s and the LORD has made His claim on David, David could appeal to the name of the LORD and for His honor to lead and guide him. The name of the LORD has been placed on us in baptism. We too can call upon the LORD to be there for us for His name’s sake, so His name is not dishonored because of our situations. We can call upon the LORD to rescue us from the traps our enemies have placed for us. In our daily lives I can see this as either neighbors who don’t like us, fellow employees who may be jealous of us, or as students, those people who must lift themselves us by tearing us down. When such forces are gathered against you, turn to the LORD your God for help and the Him deal with them while you go about doing what you are supposed to do.
Christ Jesus Himself experienced this in His life with the Pharisees, Scribes and Sadducees. He experienced it up to the point of death on the cross. There Jesus Himself speaks the words of this psalm in verse 5, “Into Your hands I entrust my spirit.” Jesus does this trusting the following words, “You have redeemed me, O LORD, my faithful God.” Daily and in the midst of trials, troubles, and tribulations, let us be joined with Christ in our baptism and speak these words trusting in the One who spoke them and the One He made His appeal to, our heavenly Father. You cannot go wrong commending yourself to the One who made you, redeemed you, and calls you His children.
Heavenly Father, may You, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, be for us the Rock of Refuge, our Mighty Fortress, the One to whom we commend ourselves in good times and in bad, so we may know Your salvation and Your name be honored and glorified. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.