The God of All Comfort: The Psalms for May 9 - 15, 2021 The Psalms if Trust: Set 1

There is a rather large group of psalms in the whose major theme is “trusting in God.” Although expressions of faith, confidence and trust are throughout the Psalter, and present in most of the psalms, these 14 psalms focus solely on trusting God in various circumstances. We will be reading these Psalms of Trust over the next two weeks. The psalms for May 9 – 15 number seven, five of which were written by . “Trust in the Lord” is one of David’s frequent refrains in his psalms. As a type of Christ—one who foreshadowed Jesus—throughout his life, King David had to learn and to model what it was to be a man of faith. Jesus walked by faith throughout His life, and no doubt the psalms of His ancestral father, David, aided Him in doing so. To be a person of faith is never solely doctrinal nor purely transactional. In other words, believing properly about God and receiving Christ as your Savior do not make you a person of faith. True trust in God is forged, over time, in this crucible of life, in many trying circumstances. When Paul wrote, “We walk by faith and not by sight” (2 Cor. 5:7), he was speaking from experience.

The psalms for this week are written by David and given to us by the Holy Spirit to aid us in “walking by faith” from day to day.

• Sunday – Psalm 4: A Psalm for Sleepless Nights

• Monday – : When the Foundations Are Destroyed

• Tuesday – : The Shepherd in Times of Fear

• Wednesday – : A Prayer for a Steadfast Heart

• Thursday – : The Prayer of an Old Saint

• Friday – : The Shadow of the Almighty

• Saturday – : The Protecting Presence of God

Human beings tend to want to believe in God, but not trust Him; to have God in their lives, but at a distance; and be friends with God, but not intimately. But God has better in store for us. As He presses into our lives, our souls, our private places, the initial discomfort of the Holy God so intrusively close gives way to a warmth and peace of trusting a dearest Friend. I know of no other way to become a person of faith than to live with God and pray the Psalms of Trust—day by day. And neither does David, God’s man. Read these psalms and “trust in the Lord.”

“But to me it is good to be near God; I have made the Lord God my refuge, that I may tell of all Your works.” :28

The God of All Comfort: Psalms Psalm 91 Resources | May 9, 2021 “The Shadow of the Almighty”

Psalm 91

1 He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. 2 I will say to the LORD, “My refuge and my fortress, my God, in whom I trust.” 3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler. 5 You will not fear the terror of the night, nor the arrow that flies by day, 6 nor the pestilence that stalks in darkness, nor the destruction that wastes at noonday. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you. 8 You will only look with your eyes and see the recompense of the wicked. 9 Because you have made the LORD your dwelling place— the Most High, who is my refuge— 10 no evil shall be allowed to befall you, no plague come near your tent. 11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways. 12 On their hands they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone. 13 You will tread on the lion and the adder; the young lion and the serpent you will trample underfoot. 14 “Because he holds fast to me in love, I will deliver him; I will protect him, because he knows my name. 15 When he calls to me, I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will rescue him and honor him. 16 With long life I will satisfy him and show him my salvation.”

Sermon Questions:

1. Pastor Ross mentioned that Pss. 90, 91 and 92 form a “trio” of psalms. How are they related in theme and messages? What three truths do they focus upon?

2. In what three ways is our culture antithetical to these three psalms?

3. Psalm 91 sets forth the Providence of God in four “motifs”; four pictures. Discuss each of the four and how they relate to you/us? • Shadow • Shelter • Security • Salvation

4. “God the Warrior” is the most used picture for God in all of Scriptures. Why do you think this is so? How do you see the reality of God’s warfare in our world today?

5. Pastor Ross mentioned that the “worst thing that could ever happen to you” has already taken place. To what was he referring and how has this fact affected you?

6. Do you believe in “guardian angels?” Why or why not? If you do, how does that belief affect your daily lives?

7. At the end of Ps. 91 there is a “golden chain of promises.” Pastor Ross mentioned that these blessings come to a person under three conditions. What are they? Have you met those conditions for salvation?

8. What did Paul mean in Ephesians 2:12 when he stated that prior to salvation a person is “without God in the world”?

9. Pastor Ross claimed that an unbeliever can be discerned in four ways. Discuss these four indications of unbelief and how they can even affect believers.

10. Tell your community group how your life has visibly changed since you came “under the Shadow of the Almighty.”