Psalm 124: Consecration
to be Separated from the World
When we first follow the Lord, then the world comes in to despise
us. But when we are for His testimony, the world rises up against
us. The world attacks us in three ways: as a beast to devour us, as
a flood to overwhelm us, and as a trap to ensnare us. After our first
consecration to the Lord Himself, we need the further consecration
of being separated from the world so that we can be His testimony.
The Lord is on Our Side for the Sake of His Testimony
Psalm 124 is actually a continuation of Psalm 123, but there is a
key difference between them. The psalm begins, "If it had not been
Jehovah who was on our side, Oh, let Israel say& " (v. 1). The most
important word in this verse is the word "Israel." This marks a spiritual
advancing, an ascent in our Christian experience. We advance from
"I" to "Israel." In Psalm 123, the psalmist said, "To You do I lift
up my eyes." The psalmist had an individual stand for the Lord, and
this led to his experience of being despised in the world. On one
hand, when we are despised because of our stand for the Lord, then
the Lord is "on our side." However, the Lord is not actually on the
side of one person. As we see in Psalm 124, the Lord is on the side
of Israel. "Israel" represents God's chosen people who bear His testimony.
As those who are bearing God's testimony today we can boldly declare,
"The Lord is on our side." We have advanced from an individual stand
for the Lord to a corporate stand for the Lord's testimony.
The
World Rises Up against Us in Three Ways
The psalmist continues, "If it had not been Jehovah who was on our
side when men rose up against us" (v. 2). This thought is a continuation
from the previous psalm. In Psalm 123 the world had nothing but contempt
for us. In Psalm 124 the whole world rises up again us. The rest of
Psalm 124 shows us the different ways that the world rises up. "Then
they [the ones rising up] would have swallowed us up alive when their
anger burned against us; then the waters would have washed us away;
the stream would have passed over our soul; then the proud waters
would have passed over our soul. Blessed be Jehovah, who has not given
us as prey to their teeth. Our soul has escaped like a bird, out of
the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped"
(v. 3-7). First, the world comes like a beast to swallow us up quickly
(v. 3). Next, the world tries to overwhelm us as a flood of waters
(v. 4-5). Third, the world desires to ensnare us as a bird (v. 7).
For the psalmist to characterize the world in such a way shows us
that he was filled with experience. The description of the world in
Psalm 124 is even stronger than in the previous psalm. Here we see
three categories of the world's opposition after we give ourselves
to Christ. The world is like a beast to swallow us up, a flood to
carry us away, and a trap to ensnare us. We should never think that
the world is lovely. The world is our enemy, and is always trying
to defeat us in one of these three ways.
| Satan
comes as a beast ready to swallow us up and devour us. |
The World Comes
as a Beast to Devour Us
The world first comes like a beast to swallow us up alive. This means
that the world comes by force to scare us and threaten us. To be swallowed
up means to disappear. Once we take the beast's word, we will be gone.
Once we follow the world we will disappear. There have been many dear
brothers and sisters who loved the Lord but could not overcome the world's
voice. We must be aware. The world is always coming to us like a beast.
"Give your life to me! I promise you everything!" This is the same as
Satan's promise to the Lord. Satan showed the Lord all the kingdoms
of the world and said, "All these will I give You if You will fall down
and worship me" (Matt. 4:8-9). The principle is the same for us today.
Satan comes as a beast ready to swallow us up and devour us. He comes
by tempting us through the world.
The World Comes as a Flood to Overwhelm Us
Sometimes we can overcome the world when it comes to us as a beast.
We can say, "I don't care about the world! I am here for the church
life! I am here for the Lord's testimony!" But then the world comes
in a different form, as a flood to overwhelm us. A beast is easier to
handle because it is so obvious. A flood is more subtle than a beast
and therefore much harder to resist. The first stages of a flood may
even be quite pleasant. At first there may be just a pleasant sound
of water flowing, but eventually it builds into an overwhelming flood.
The psalmist says, "Then the waters would have washed us away; the stream
would have passed over our soul" (v. 4). The word "stream" can also
be translated "torrent." A flood may start out very small. It may begin
as just a stream, but gradually it turns into a torrent. The world may
come to us with something small, but gradually it overwhelms us until
we feel we have no choice but to give in.
How could this happen? Because the world came as a flood. At first the
world came to you as a beast, but you recognized it. But then the world
changed its form. It came as a flood without warning. It began with
some very small and subtle changes in your life which built up over
time. Then it eventually came so fast that it was impossible to escape.
For this reason the Bible warns us not to love the world nor the things
in the world (1 John 2:15). The whole world is a flood that moves strongly
and quickly. When we love the world or give into it only a little, we
are in danger of being suddenly overwhelmed. Before we even know it
the world will carry us away. This is why we must be careful.
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The
world can also come as a snare.
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The World Comes
as a Snare to Trap Us
The world can also come as a snare. "Our soul has escaped like a bird,
out of the snare of the fowlers; the snare is broken, and we have escaped"
(v. 7). A snare is a trap which is filled with bait. When a bird goes
after some bait and flies into a trap, it has no idea what it has gotten
into. The bird doesn't realize what danger it is in. We may go after
some bait in the world, yet we don't realize the seriousness of it.
The bait of the world is quite attractive, but before we know it we
can be trapped in a snare. We should never think, "I have been following
the Lord for a long time now. I know how to handle the world." No, we
don't know how to handle it. The world is still a snare that can trap
us. There are so many things in the world that act as bait to us. We
may have the purest motives, but we can still be ensnared. Once we touch
it we don't know what will happen next.
The Lord
Can Break the Snare of the World
But praise the Lord, He always has a way with us. Even when we become
ensnared in the world, the Lord still has a way. The psalm tells us,
"Blessed be Jehovah, who has not given us as prey to their teeth. Our
soul has escaped like a bird, out of the snare of the fowlers; the snare
is broken, and we have escaped" (v. 6-7). There are times when we are
in danger of being caught by the world, yet we are somehow able to fly
away. We seem to be captured, yet somehow we escape. No matter how the
world attracts us and ensnares us, the Lord always has a way to break
the snare.
Our Help to Overcome the World is in the Name of the Lord
How can we escape the world? The psalmist declares, "Our help is in
the name of Jehovah, who made heaven and earth" (v. 8). This is the
conclusion not only of this psalm but the previous one. Psalm 123 had
no conclusion. It ended with our being despised by the world. Psalm
124 is the continuation of Psalm 123, and it ends with this wonderful
verse. When the world despises us, threatens us or compels us, where
does our help come from? The One who made heaven and earth. Praise the
Lord, He helps us. Our help is in the name of the Lord. Because of His
help we can escape and overcome the world. This is our second consecration.
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Other
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The
Stage of Consecration To
follow the Lord we must have a three-fold vision: a vision of the
world, a vision of the Lord, and a vision of the church. We have
seen these three visions in the first three Psalms of Ascent. Once
our heart is clear about the world, the Lord, and the church life,
we will be brought on to the next stage, the stage of consecration.
Consecration
to the Lord Himself In
the Bible there are at least four different ways to experience the
Lord's hand. He
not only supplies us with life, but also with the proper church
life, the best companions, and the best environment. All of these
items are out of His hand. When
a person has the reality of consecration it means that they are
fully attentive to the actions of the Lord Himself.
Consecration
to the Lord's Trustworthiness The
psalmist says that those who trust in the Lord are "like Mount Zion,"
which is the Lord's testimony. Those who trust in the Lord are like
Mount Zion. They are His testimony which cannot be moved. This shows
us that the Lord doesn't care for our own individual spirituality.
He doesn't care so much for our being solid or strong in ourselves.
The Lord's care for us is a matter of His testimony.
Picture
of Our Christian Growth
In the Old Testament there are fifteen psalms which together
make up one of the most precious and beautiful portions of the Bible.
These psalms portray our spiritual "ascent" as we grow in the Christian
life.
Vision
of the World
Psalms 120 gives us a vision
of the true nature of the world. The world is first a world of lies,
deceit, and vanity but eventually it wars against those who want
what God wants.
Vision
of the Lord
In Psalm 121 we come to the very God who is the Maker
of heaven and earth. Leaving the world behind, we begin our spiritual
ascent up Mount Zion.
Vision
of the Church as God's Testimony
Psalm 122 shows us a vision of the church, the Body
of Christ. We need to see this vision as we continue our ascent.
We must realize that the vision of the church can only come after
the vision of the world and the vision of the Lord.
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