Strong Tower Refuge

Psalm 37:39-40 The salvation of the righteous is from the Lord; He is their strength in time of trouble.  The Lord helps them and delivers them; He delivers them from the wicked and saves them, Because they take refuge in Him.

When our small group Bible Study decided to tackle the subject of “Living as victorious Christians during trials and tribulations in life”, it seemed that this issue was avoided like the plague, but now five sessions in we are seeing how “in the pain there is gain” and that the focus is not on the delivery of big trouble, but on our “Big Deliverer”, Lord God. Now, as a Divine coincidence, lately, we are hearing Pastors on the local Christian radio stations preach and teach on the same subject.

Proverbs 18:10 “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; The righteous runs into it and is safe.”

Just today, I heard one lesson on Daniel 3, where is verse 16-18 it says: Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to give you an answer concerning this matter. If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.” In the modern vernacular: Nuts to your false gods and beliefs; we trust and follow the One True Living God, who really in control here, to the end. Where do we stand and why?

Psalm 20:1&5 “May the Lord answer you when you are in distress;  may the name of the God of Jacob protect you. May we shout for joy over your victory and lift up our banners in the name of our God. May the Lord grant all your requests.

The word “banner” in the above verse is translated from the Hebrew word “דגל”, “dagal”. It means “to raise a flag or a standard”; God’s standard. A banner was carried at the head of a military body and served as a “rallying point” for the army. Let’s rally around the name of God and God’s Holy Word, our standard for life! I really like that. After the Israelites’ victory over the Amalekites in Exodus 17, Moses built an alter, which he called “Jehovah-Nissi” or “The Lord is my Banner”. The same is true for us today: When we run to God, as “the Lord our banner”, in His strong tower will find refuge and victory in our difficulties.

2 Samuel 22:2-4 “The Lord is my rock, my fortress and my deliverer; my God is my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield and the horn of my salvation. He is my stronghold, my refuge and my savior— from violent people you save me. I called to the Lord, who is worthy of praise.”

In Christ, Brian