May we be comforted and strengthened by it. May we be able to declare that our God truly has met with us and dealt with us not as we deserve, but according to thy loving kindness. So hear us, we pray, for the sake of thine own dear Son, even Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. Would you turn with me in your Bibles to Psalm 46. A reading of God's word is Psalm 46 verses 1 through 11. This is God's word. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling. There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy habitation of the most high. God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns. The nations rage, the kingdoms totter. He utters his voice, the earth melts. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. Come behold the works of the Lord, how he has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots with fire. Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. pray with me. Our dear father in heaven, we gather this night around your word at your call to hear you speak to us from your word, our God, how we thank you father for giving us your only begotten son, the Lord Jesus Christ, the living word. And so by the power of your spirit, Bless your people gathered in various places in their homes. We pray attentive to your word. We ask in Christ's name. Amen. Psalm 46 is one of those Psalms that has blessed many Christians in times of trouble, dangers, and uncertainty. What do we do in uncertain times? How do we find peace in the midst of a chaotic and uncertain world? Martin Luther spent his life in almost constant danger because of the gospel. And what he would do in those most uncertain times, he would turn to this psalm when he was especially disheartened. His colleague Philip Melanchthon recalled Luther saying, let's sing the 46th psalm. Luther's famous hymn version of it begins, a mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing. He commented, we sing this psalm to the praise of God because God is with us and powerfully and miraculously preserves and defends his church. and his word against all fanatical spirits, against the gates of hell, against the implacable hatred of the devil, and against all of the assaults of the world, the flesh, and sin. And Calvin says of this psalm, it seems to be an expression of thanksgiving for the constant aid by which God has always protected and preserved his church. God protects, God preserves, and God defends His church against all of the assaults of the world, the flesh, and sin. And so, as we look at Psalm 46 this evening, in a time when, truly, many are in panic mode, when many are without hope, when you, dear saints, might even, at times, find yourselves afraid. Whether now, in these strange times, or any time of trial, and trouble. And this is a psalm to go to. In this psalm, the psalmist expresses complete confidence in the God of Jacob, the church's strength, our great stronghold. And although the heaven and earth be turned upside down in the tumult of desolation and war, panic and pestilence, God is the psalmist's refuge and strength, you see in this psalm. He is your refuge and strength. In the city of God, we find our rest from every present trouble. In the fortress of God, no enemy of His will prevail against its walls, though the attack is early in the morning because the God of the heavenly hosts is in the midst of the holy city. He says He will help her. She will not be moved. When He speaks, the enemies are moved. They totter, and you see there, they melt away. There is power in His very Word. Your defender is the very same who spoke, and then there was light. And so also when He speaks, your enemies will be moved. In fact, they have already been defeated in the Word of God Himself, even Jesus, God who became man to dwell with us. And that is why the psalmist is able to express a confidence in the God of Jacob, because the God of Jacob is with us. He is in our midst. The psalmist expresses this, however, only as he is in the midst of God's city. Jerusalem, you see it there. Their God, in his holy place. No bow or chariot will prevail against us, who live in this mighty fortress, who is our God. And so the psalmist concludes, Be still and know that I am God. Know that the Lord of hosts has come in the midst of you who commune as God's new city this day by the Spirit of Jesus Christ, the one born, Emmanuel, who is with us and defends us even to the ends of the ages. You see, Psalm 46 first assures us that God is the strength of his people. You see that in verse 1. Verse 1 begins, God is our refuge and our strength of very present help in trouble. The following verses speak of great cataclysmic things that threaten destruction. The earth gives way, the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, you see it there. The waters roar and foam and the mountains quake and surge, verses 2 and 3. Nonetheless, with God as our fortress, the psalmist says, and hear him, we will not fear. This description acknowledges that we are weak, we are vulnerable in the face of any and many numbers of dangers. The psalmist speaks here of upheavals in nature as a way of speaking to the chaos of the world since the fall. They depict great and unexpected calamities as types of the unknown crises that may strike us as individuals, as a church, or as a nation, or in these days, as a world. This psalm describes the world in which we live, and if we think we can manage it in our own strength, then we have not paid attention to the record of history. Despite all of these uncertainties of life, there is one great fact that makes all of the difference for us. God is our refuge. God protects and shields His people. In ancient days, a fortress, of course, I trust you know, a fortress was a powerful protection. Behind its ramparts, enemies were not able to get through to harm you. In the same way, God protects his people. Just to live near a fortress gave peace of mind. When trouble approached, you could run for shelter in the same way, simply reading these lines. As the spirit moves, it gives a sense of peace. It gives a sense of calm. These words tell us that God is near as our refuge and as our strength. God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Of course, this does not mean that God will magically protect us from anything bad. We saw a bit of that this morning. Verses 2 and 3 should prevent any sort of thinking that way as well. Therefore, we will not fear though the earth gives way. Though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling." There are four circumstances here. The earth giving way, mountains being moved into the sea, the waters roaring and foaming, and the mountains trembling at the rising of the seas. Do you see a picture that the psalmist is painting here for you with his words? This is a picture of devastatingly bad things happening. And even when devastatingly bad things happen to us, We will not be afraid. Think of the waters raging on the Sea of Galilee in Mark 4. Think of the disciples of Jesus, terrified as they are described there by the waves and the wind upon this sea that they are so familiar with. Think of the disciples there, though the waters roar and foam. The waters always had an ominous, even dreadful character in Israel's history. Whether the waters of the flood or the waters of the sea or the waters of the nations that threatened to flood Israel and remove them from their land, the raging waters were a reminder of the untamed power of the sea. But the disciples knew Psalm 46, didn't they? They had sung that in synagogue and temple all of their lives. And yet when put to the test on the Sea of Galilee, they feared. But Jesus says to the sea, be still, peace, be still. Be still, and know that I am God." Echoes throughout the words of Jesus there. And he tends to his disciples' lack of faith. Why are you so afraid? Have you still no faith? Directing them to himself as God. The only one who can speak to the roaring waters. And by the word of his power, peace, be still. And the waters obey the voice of Jesus. And then the passage says the disciples were filled with even greater fear. Leroying sees nothing compared to this Jesus. He speaks to you. Will you hear him? Jesus says, be still and know that I am God. What this psalm says, and what Jesus says, is if you believe in God, then not even the greatest power imaginable should fight in you. Because by faith you have access to the one who rules the mountains and the seas. Think even about the words from the end of Romans chapter 8. What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own son but gave him up for us all. Will he not also with him graciously give us all things? Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus. is the one who died, more than that, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us, who shall separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? No, in all of these things we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life nor angels, nor rulers, nor things in present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." In other words, Luther's hymn that he based on Psalm 46 gets it exactly right. And though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us, he will not fear. For God hath willed his truth to triumph through us." Do you believe those words when you sing them? And when life seems to fall apart, are these providences of God keeping us from being together? Do you believe it? The psalm or the words that Paul wrote to Rome, Now, if the waters of verses 2 and 3 remind us of the outpouring of God's wrath in the flood or in the sea or the raging of the nations that threatened to overwhelm the church, in verse 4 there is another water, another kind of water altogether. An opposite kind of water, we might say. There is a river, verse 4, there is a river whose streams make glad the city of God. What is the city of God here? It is Jerusalem. Or is it? I'm sure you've looked at a map of Israel in the back of your Bibles from time to time, and you've seen the city of Jerusalem there. There is no river that runs through this city. And so it is highly unlikely that the psalmist is referring to Jerusalem, at least literally. When this psalm refers to the city of God, it says in the next verse, the holy habitation of the Most High. God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved. God will help her when morning dawns. The holy habitation of the Most High is not the literal city of Jerusalem, which in time is destroyed along with the temple. The city of God in verses 4 through 7 is set against the nations and the kingdoms. As in Isaiah, the city of God is not merely or simply, we should say, Jerusalem, but rather the place where God dwells with His people. And that's what verse 7 clearly says for us, doesn't it there? Look at that. The Lord of hosts is with us. The Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. And Matthew Henry speaks to this when he writes, God himself is to his church a place of broad rivers and streams. The streams that make glad the city of God are not rapid, but gentle like those of Siloam. Note the spiritual comforts which are conveyed to the saints by soft and silent whispers and which come not with observation. are sufficient to counterbalance the most loud and noisy threatenings of any angry and malicious world. So what river is this that makes glad the city of God? Other Psalms speak of God giving His people drink from the river of your delights in Psalm 36, or of the river of God being full of water and the source of the blessing for His people like as in Psalm 65. But in Revelation 22, we are given the wonderfully full picture of this river. To preface it a bit, in Revelation 21.1, we read that the first heaven and the first earth have passed away. The sea was no more. That raging, that roaring sea symbolizing judgment and death shall be no more. But then, then in Revelation 22.1, we read that there is a river. Described this way, there is a river of the water of life. A river that makes glad the city of our God, this holy city, new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. God is in the midst of her. She shall not be moved. God will help her when the morning dawns. But you know what is good for us to understand when we read these verses? What is so very good for us to understand is that this river is not simply a far-off future river. Jesus speaks of this river in John 7 when he says, if anyone thirsts, let him come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as the scriptures has said, out of his heart will flow rivers of living water. And then in verse 39 of that same chapter, John 7, he tells us that Jesus said this about the coming of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is that thirst quenching river of the water of life that flows from the very heart of Jesus. Though the nations rage, the kingdoms totter, yet the Lord of hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our fortress. Now the folks at Westminster listening in here watching know how much I love that Emmanuel theme that runs throughout God's word. And I highlight it wherever it comes up in God's words as I am able. And that is what we see once again in this wonderful psalm. In Jesus, the very one who is given the name Emmanuel, God with us. In this Jesus, in this God with us, we now have one who has endured the worst that the city of man could give. And so we know that in Him, we, the city of God, shall not be moved. So in the midst of all of this craziness going on right now, Maybe you're wondering how do I find peace in the midst of it all. Now if you're asking a question like that I would point you to passages like Psalm 23 or to the end of Romans Chapter 8 which we read earlier or earlier in Romans Chapter 5 verse 1 and remind you that God is with you. that you have peace in Christ, because there in Romans 5 1 Paul says, therefore, since we have been justified by God, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. It is here, dear saints, hidden with Christ in God that we have true, lasting peace. because of the great power and might of our God that works on behalf of his people. I was reminded of this earlier this week when reading a URCNA's missionary update. He was serving in northern Italy. And as you know, Italy has been hit hard with this virus. He was writing by way of update as we respond to the outbreak with wisdom and love for our neighbors. We as Christians live in the confidence that Christ has delivered us from a far worse condition, namely the curse of sin and the just wrath of God. In that confidence and strengthened by his sufficient grace, we can rise to this occasion. I could also point you, though, to the last part of Psalm 46, to remind you of the wonderful works of God. Come, behold the works of the Lord, how He has brought desolations on the earth. He makes wars cease to the end of the earth. He breaks the bow and shatters the spear. He burns the chariots with fire. If you want to have peace, then you draw near unto God and he will draw near unto you. Jesus draws the disciples in their fear there in Mark 4. He draws them to himself and you, you are meant to rest in the one who makes war cease, who breaks the bow and shatters the spear, who burns the chariots with fire. You are meant to behold the works of the Lord and the work of Jesus in his death. resurrection, where final everlasting victory is found. Be still, God says, and know that I am God. Be still and know that I am God. This is our challenge, isn't it? It's all about Him. when he says, be still and know that I am God. It's all about him. Notice he says, I will be exalted. I will be exalted among the nations. I will be exalted in the earth. And that's our challenge to be still and know that he is God. that this Jesus who is God with us, that he is our fortress. Jesus really is your fortress, he is. Be still and know that I am God, the Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our fortress. You see here, Psalm 46 shows us our great need for God to be with us, our fortress and strength, a very present help in trouble. This is a reality for us, for us to remember not only in times of danger, but also when the trial has passed, when the disease is gone, and when life seems safe and normal again. We need God as our fortress and strength, and we need to live before Him in a quiet, trusting, submissiveness, so that He will be exalted in all of the earth. You know, Martin Luther realized his need for God's protection, and he also realized that if God is with us, we truly have nothing to fear. He wrote again, And though this world with devils filled should threaten to undo us, we will not fear for God hath willed his truth to triumph through us. His kingdom is forever. Can we say that? Can you say that you know you will triumph through the worst that this world can give you? even death itself. And though the earth gives way and though the mountains fall into the heart of the sea, you will not be overcome. For God is your fortress now and forevermore. And your saints know that the Lord is in the midst of you. Know that you commune as God's new city this day by the spirit of Jesus Christ, that one born Emmanuel. God is with you. He is the one who is with us and defends us even to the end of the age. Be still and know that I am God, he says. Jesus is the fortress. Be still. You dwell in him. He is with you. And nothing will separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Let's pray together. Our dear father in heaven. as we gather this night, as we come and worship in adoration and praise, as we come seeking your face in prayer and to sit at your feet as we hear your word read and proclaimed. Our God, would you be merciful to us in our hearing of that word that you would minister to us by your grace that your spirit would be at work among your people, that we would not be frightened, that we would live as those who have a God who is a fortress that cannot be removed, that we, O Lord, are within that fortress and we would not be moved in him, in you. Bless us, our God, as you would tend to our hearts. and how, our Lord, you would be kind and generous with your grace and the outpouring of your Spirit, even like a river gloriously flowing in us. Fill us up, our God, that in Christ we might stand strong, that we might rest well and find peace in the midst of all that has been upset in our lives While we have breath, grant us peace. In Christ, our glorious, ever-present, and ever-faithful Savior, we pray. Amen.