COULD, SHOULD, WOULD (Psalm 124)

We have such limited knowledge. While we live in a world with a great deal of information and education, that is not the same as having wisdom and knowledge.

Sometimes, our perspective is so limited just because we are human beings. We cannot see things beyond our own context or outside our own period of time.

I have often thought that when we get to Heaven and meet the Lord at the Judgment Seat of Christ, as we have a more perfect understanding, we will realize that there were so many things God kept us from and kept from us. These will be things we never even knew about that would have been terribly destructive. God did not just save you from going to Hell someday; He delivers you in some way EVERY day.

I think that is what David was talking about when he wrote Psalm 124:1-5...

“If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, now may Israel say; If it had not been the Lord who was on our side, when men rose up against us: Then they had swallowed us up quick, when their wrath was kindled against us: Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul: Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.”

David knew something about enemies and conflict. We do not know exactly which ones he was referring to here. He could have been thinking of Saul, the Philistines, Absalom, or something else.

It really does not matter. There are battles in every part of life and difficulties all of us have to deal with. Sometimes, the Lord makes the greatest breakthrough in a place where we had no idea how bad it could have been. Let’s consider a few thoughts from Psalm 124.

What Could Have Happened

These verses describe a scenario in which men could have risen up and annihilated David and others. The same could happen to us, which is why I Peter 5:8 tells us, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” The word “devour” in that verse literally means to make one disappear, much like “swallowed up quick” in Psalm 124.

Verses 4-5: “Then the waters had overwhelmed us, the stream had gone over our soul: Then the proud waters had gone over our soul.” That suggests a calamity that leads to drowning and no chance of recovery. Gone.

If not for the grace and mercy of our God, all of us could either be dead already or living with such brokenness and emptiness that we can hardly imagine. We should all be thankful to God for what He has done in our lives.

No matter how difficult it may be today, remind yourself that it could be much worse. We are sinners, living in a sin-cursed world and surrounded by other sinners.

What We Should Do

Verse 6: “Blessed be the Lord, who hath not given us as a prey to their teeth.” This is nothing more than a straightforward statement or praise. When was the last time you stopped in the middle of a battle and just praised God for His goodness and mercy?

I am afraid that sometimes there is so much bad news in the world in which we live that we have forgotten how good our God is. Maybe we have also fallen into the trap of talking about how difficult things are instead of talking about how wonderful our Lord is.

Read Romans 8:34-39.

“Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

Satan and all of the hounds of Hell can turn their biggest guns on you, but God is greater than all of that. It is no accident that David expressed praise to the Lord in the middle of this psalm. Perhaps we all should just stop what we are doing and say, “Blessed be the Lord.”

You are not prey for the enemy. You are a child of God, a servant of the Most High. Yes, there are bad things that could happen and others that were prevented from happening. But you should just praise God for His goodness in your life.

What He Would Have Us Remember

Verses 7-8: “Our soul is escaped as a bird out of the snare of the fowlers: the snare is broken, and we are escaped. Our help is in the name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.”

God wants you always to remember that you are not in bondage to your circumstances or to the enemy. He makes this very clear by using the example of the fowler, a bird hunter laying his traps and snares for those winged creatures to fly into. If they work properly, the bird is trapped with no way to escape. But as these verses tell us, God broke the snare.

You may think you are in bondage today. You might feel certain that you cannot get out of whatever situation you might be in. Just look up; the snare has already been broken. You are free.

The Bible says in Galatians 5:1, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”

I think that is why verse 8 refers to God as having “made heaven and earth.” We can look up today and remember that the God of Heaven is greater than anything we may face on Earth.

Stop looking around you. Stop feeling like you are trapped. You may be dealing with some very difficult things, but it could be much worse than it is. In reality, it should be because we are all just sinners who deserve nothing better than Hell; everything else is mercy. What you and I should do is recognize the goodness of God in our lives and begin to praise and worship Him again.

Do you ever wonder where you would be today if it were not for the Lord? In the words of Psalm 127:1, “Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.” If not for Him, we are all in trouble both in this life and in eternity.

If you are not a believer today, I want to encourage you to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved. Repent of your sin and by faith receive Jesus as your Savior. Put your trust in Christ alone for your soul’s salvation. You need Him.

If you are already a Christian, let me remind you that your Father is with you, and the snare is broken. If you are in bondage today, you are there willingly. You are sitting in a broken snare.

Look up, get up, and move forward. By the grace of God, He has much more for all of us.