Psalm 121:1-3 (ESV)
I lift my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
Where do you look to for help? Google? Siri? Your favorite podcast? A trusted friend? All of these things can be helpful, of course, but none of them have the power to help you in the deepest valleys or with the most challenging situations in your life. This is the second psalm in the Psalm of Ascents and it most likely was sung as God’s people began to make their way to the Holy City for one of the sacred festivals. Did their help come from the high hills on which sat the Temple? No—it came from the one who made the hills themselves.
The psalmist reminds himself of two great truths in the opening verses: The first is that God is the mighty creator of all things and is over all of the problems of life; the other is that the God “who keeps you” never sleeps nor slumbers. God is a tireless worker who never wearies. He never slows down. He is always “on the job.” And…God is working for you. What an amazing thought. We tend to think of ourselves as working for God but the Bible wants us first to be amazed that God is a worker in our lives:
“From of old no one has heard or perceived by the ear, no eye has seen a God besides you, who works for those who wait for him” (Is. 64:4).
Pastor John Piper has observed, “God is working for us around the clock. He does not take days off and he does not sleep. In fact he is so eager to work for us that he goes around looking for more work to do for people who will trust him: ‘The eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to give strong support to those whose heart is blameless toward him’ (2 Chronicles 16:9). God loves to show his tireless power and wisdom and goodness by working for people who trust him. The sending of his Son, Jesus, was the main way the Father showed this: ‘The Son of Man came not to be served but to serve” (Mark 10:45). Jesus works for his followers. He serves them. The gospel is not a ‘help wanted’ sign. It is a ‘help available’ sign.” Yes, we should all be working for the Lord and His Kingdom but let us not easily forget that the Lord is working for us, as well.
One final aspect worth noting in today’s psalm is that the God who works for us also establishes our feet—He makes it possible for us to STAND. We stand in grace (Rom. 5:2). We stand in the gospel (1 Cor. 15:1). We stand in courage and strength (1 Cor. 16:13). We stand in faith (2 Cor. 1:24). We stand in Christian liberty (Gal. 5:1). We stand in Christian unity (Phil. 1:27). We stand in the Lord (Phil. 4:1). All of this combines so that we may “stand perfect and complete in all the will of God” (Co. 4:12).
Far too often the world tells us that there is still something that we lack. Just one more thing that if we had it—our lives would be complete. God has already provided everything that we need in order to stand in this world. The world system can offer us nothing that the Lord has not already graciously provided. What person or power on earth can accomplish what the Lord’s work can accomplish? Who can establish your feet on a firmer foundation than the Maker of Heaven and Earth? No man. No woman. No company, government, or power. No product or service. Only God.
