Pastor’s Corner: “There’s a Whole Lot of Shakin Going On”
Psalm 62:5-8 (AMP) – 5 For God alone my soul waits in silence and quietly submits to Him, For my hope is from Him. 6 He only is my rock and my salvation; My fortress and my defense, I will not be shaken or discouraged. 7 On God my salvation and my glory rest; He is my rock of [unyielding] strength, my refuge is in God. 8 Trust [confidently] in Him at all times, O people; Pour out your heart before Him. God is a refuge for us. Selah.
Just when we think things cannot get worse, we are again woken up to the capacity of evil and hatred in this world. We are reminded of how far from God this world has moved. We are reminded that this is not our home and the need for God’s salvation is unquestionable, vast and significant! In my estimation through God’s Word, the atrocity in Uvalde Texas yesterday is not the last of the “Shaking” of our world we will experience. And I pray that the world is not numb to this and is shaken so that they will turn to the Lord! But as Christians, how do we face the “Shaking”?
God is shaking our world today. Facing situations like this, the psalmist discovered how to respond and not be shaken. This starts with a change in our attitude. We are not to become obsessed with worries, personal problems, or world conditions, but to focus on God. Spend time in worship seeking Him and drawing closer to Him. Pray. Develop a personal relationship with Him. Unshakable does not mean that we are calloused and indifferent to the events and suffering surrounding us, rather being unshakable means that we are so connected and anchored in God that we cannot be overwhelmed in the shaking.
At times it feels the earth is shaking, and nothing is stable. Everything seems adrift without an anchor. Challenged by a world of uncertainty, we can feel anxious and insecure, even unhinged. Understand that God sends shakings to break our faith in the temporary world system and cause us to set our eyes more fully on Him. When things get so bad that only He can fix them, when we are forced to be dependent, it is in these moments that we really come to know Him as He truly is and not just as a figment of our imagination.
The Israelites knew of God but depended on Egypt, so God shook it and them in it in order to break their faith in the gods of it and separate them from it. That which was worshiped there failed, yet God prevailed! Then God steps out again in the wilderness and when He spoke on the mountain the earth was shaken! First He shook Egypt to separate them from it. Then He shook them to call them to Him. The first was to show the powerlessness of Egypt (the other lover that they had served and trusted in), the second was to show His omnipotence and limitless majesty in their presence. Why should they not serve and trust in Him instead of this limited enemy?
At Jesus’s crucifixion it happened again. There was a physical shaking on the earth at the moment of His departing and an emotional and spiritual one for those who loved Him. Their faith was shaken so that only that which could not be shaken would remain. Then God moves to prove His faithfulness in impossible ways! God will do this over and over in ever increasing intensity in the life of a Christian and in the scope of history as well. Because He is preparing us for a great work in His Kingdom, the real one, the one that is to come. Hebrews 12:28 (AMP) – 28 Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, and offer to God pleasing service and acceptable worship with reverence and awe;
Luke 6:47-49 (NLT) – 47 I will show you what it’s like when someone comes to me, listens to my teaching, and then follows it. 48 It is like a person building a house who digs deep and lays the foundation on solid rock. When the floodwaters rise and break against that house, it stands firm because it is well built. 49 But anyone who hears and doesn’t obey is like a person who builds a house right on the ground, without a foundation. When the floods sweep down against that house, it will collapse into a heap of ruins.”
Notice there’s no difference to the tests to which each house went through. Each of them was subjected to the storm. Don’t imagine that being a believer will give you a storm-free passage through life. If anything, rather the opposite. There’s a kind of presentation of truth today which is only half truth, which is if you come to the Lord and get saved, everything will go well, you’ll never have any problems Most of us know by experience, if not by Scripture, that that is not true. I read of a preacher that was once asked, “What is the evidence of the baptism in the Holy Spirit?” He replied, “Trouble.”
There was only one difference between the houses. It was not in what the houses went through, it was that one was built on a solid foundation, a rock; the other was not. And Jesus said building on the rock is very simple, it’s hearing what He says and doing it. I believe that is the only foundation that will give us a building that cannot be shaken. Anything that is not built on the hearing and doing of the teaching of Jesus will be shaken.
As the day of the Lord approaches we are promised that the shakings will intensify in both fierceness and frequency. Not only the earth but that the very heavens themselves will be shaken also (Hebrews 12:25-29). Everything that you ever put your faith in other then God Himself will be taken and tested and proven useless against the Day of Judgment.
God is shaking our world today to move people out of bondage and into freedom. Everything that can be shaken will be shaken so that only that which cannot be shaken will remain. Make sure that you are standing on a rock of sure faith in Jesus Christ on that day, because all will pass away. The only thing that will not shake, when God shakes things, is His presence within us. And for that reason, we can focus more quickly and more precisely upon it.
Remember His Love, Grace Mercy and the power in His Word. Don’t depend on the ever-changing things in the world, but constantly meditate on His promises. By thinking His thoughts, our lives will receive new levels of stability and certainty. As we love Him, focus on Him and trust Him, we must constantly remember that He is with us and has a plan for our lives. He loves us. He has prepared a home for us and that we will spend eternity with Him. As we rest in Him, our hearts can be “steadfast” and secure. Don’t let fear rule your heart. You don’t have to be afraid about problems you face or shaken by world conditions. Commit your way to Him. Spend time in prayer. Fill your mind and heart with His Word. Trust Him. Worship Him!
In His Grace,
Pastor Hamilton