Rock of Ages

Psalm 18:2 - The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; my God, my strength, in whom I will trust; my buckler, and the horn of my salvation, and my high tower. 

    The Book of Psalms is probably the most quoted book of the Bible; it is loved by many people and is a place where people, of all walks of life, frequently come, for comfort, hope, strength and security. One of the reasons that it is so loved is because it is so personal. Every human emotion and experience is recorded within its pages and it is easy to identify with the struggles of the writers. One of those writers, who seemed to always make his relationship with the Lord so very intimate, personal and vulnerable, is David.

    The Lord is my rock. This is either very presumptuous and arrogant of David to say, or, it is the height of faith. Of course, we know it is the latter; it is the highest expression of faith. Can we say along with David, ‘The Lord is my rock?’ Only those who know the Lord can say it, but saying it is also another way of drawing close to God and knowing Him better. The Lord is my rock. Say it out loud. Say it slowly. Say it daily. Say it in the good times and in the hard times. Say it to yourself and to others. Say it because it is real, and say it to make it even more real. The Lord is my rock.

    The Lord is the one and only God; the Creator of heaven and earth. He is the Almighty One against whom none can overpower. He is the Self-Existent One; uncreated and eternal. He always has been and He always will be. He is the highest Being in the universe, truly, there is none higher, and this is He of whom we are speaking and declaring that He is my rock. This almost defies understanding; that the Almighty God would descend to my level and have a very close association with me. He knows everything about each one of us and yet He chooses to come to us and be to us what we need Him to be. He is my rock.

    The rock, to the ancient Hebrew, was the steady, weighty, unchanging and immovable One. He is our steadiness because, like the rock, he holds us solidly to the earth and keeps our feet planted firmly on the ground. He creates within us stability and constancy, which enables us to build an orderly life. He is my rock. Sometimes when we speak of someone who has a lot of power and influence we might say that they are heavy, or, that they are a heavy hitter. That means that they carry a lot of weight and authority. There is no heavier hitter than our God, and by virtue of our relationship with Him, He communicates a measure of that weight and authority to us. He is my rock. The rock does not change. It persists through the centuries, remaining the same through every season. It endures intense heat and bitter cold and yet remains unchanged. The Lord is my rock and He will always be the same. It matters not what I have done or haven’t done; I change, but His Word never changes, His heart never changes, His will never changes, and because of that, I can rely upon Him fully. He is my rock.

Occasionally we may hear people speak of those who are faithful friends, or loyal spouses and they might say, ‘She is my rock’, or, ‘He is my rock’. However, no matter how faithful and reliable another person is, and, of course, we are thankful for it; they are not in the same rock-like category of God’s eternally unchanging nature. God said elsewhere, ‘I am the Lord and I change not’, and because of that, we can have a measure of predictability in our lives. We know what God wants because we have read what God wrote; His Word is His will. When the winds of adversity begin to blow with great intensity, remember that you are tethered to the heaviest and most secure One in the universe. Do not fear. Do not panic. He has you, he has you covered, and He has you held in His hands. All of God’s children can say with great confidence, ‘He is my rock.’