Oh Lord, My Strength.
I love You, O Lord, my strength. 2 The Lord is my pillar, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge; my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower. 3 I will call on the Lord, who is worthy to be praised, and I will be saved from my enemies. - Psalms 18:1-3 (MEV)
What does it really look like to love The Lord? How do you really love The Lord? In the Shema Yisrael, it says to love God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. This gives us context on just how much goes into loving the Lord. How? By loving Him with everything. Every part of your life should be consumed with love for The Lord. How is this even close to possible? By complete surrender. The Lord helps us by giving us His Spirit. You see, The Lord is “My Strength” is a very personal and intimate statement. He is your strength. How do you love The Lord? By honoring Him with what is already His. Your strength is from God; so love Him with all your strength. That looks like submission and dependance. If he is the source of your strength, then honoring Him with your strength looks like leaning on Him through everything.
Verse 2 moves on to talk about The Lord as our refuge. Our lives should be hid in the presence of The Lord. How do you find any form of certainty? In His presence. Where is there a constant sense of stability? In His presence. Does seeking shelter make someone week? Of course not. Shelter is one of the core needs of the human race. Ask any survival expert, they’ll tell you, finding a shelter is one of the most crucial parts of survival. So then why would we try to run off in our own strength, if our strength is from the Lord anyways? He is our stronghold. Our lives should be a complete sense of total dependance on the Lord. Do you stand on The Rock? Do you hide behind The Shield? Where are you finding refuge?
In verse 3 we see that the Lord is worthy to be praised. How majestic is The Lord? Who alone is completely worthy of praise? The Lord alone. The fear of the Lord is born from an overwhelming sense of awe. This isn’t just head knowledge. This is a complete gripping of our entire reality and being. He isn’t just overwhelming in concept, but in being. His physical reality is greater than we can fathom. The God who splits open the skies just to speak life into His Son, Christ, and send a symbolic embodiment of His presence and His Spirit. He alone is worthy of all praise. Who are we as sinful man to call upon such a good and Holy God? We are so unworthy to even have The Lord acknowledge us, yet we are so deeply loved that He hears our every prayer. Verse 3 is the practical example of verse 2’s deliver attribute.
What does he ultimately deliver us from? Ourselves. Our sin. Who are the enemies verse 3 talks about? Well it is those who go against God’s chosen people. However, our ultimate enemies are, the devil and sin. God is faithful to deliver us from them. We have been saved in Christ, and we will be ultimately saved in Heaven. How are you loving the Lord today?
