Lead Me To The Rock
Psalm 61
1 Hear my cry, O God,
listen to my prayer;
2from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I,
3for you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me dwell in your tent forever!
Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah 5 For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 Prolong the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!
7 May he be enthroned forever before God;
appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
8 So will I ever sing praises to your name,
as I perform my vows day after day. 1
John Mayer has many good songs, but there’s one that came to mind as I read this psalm. It’s titled “Stop This Train” and the lyrics speak of challenge of … well … living. Life goes on. Seemingly out of control. Decisions are made by other people that impact many. Good is nice, but bad seems to be bigger. And memories of days gone by become treasures, but seemingly treasures that can get lost in the shuffle of busyness.
The innocence of childhood is erased.
He sings of watching his parents age and knowing they will die some day and he will be left as an adult…doing what adults must do. That’s daunting.
Here are just a few of the lyrics:
Stop this train
I want to get off and go home again
I can’t take the speed it’s moving in
I know I can’t
But honestly, won’s someone stop this train?
Don’t know how else to say it
Don’t want to see my parents go
I’m one generation’s length away
From fighting life out on my own.
Oh, come on, stop this train
I want to get off and go home again
I can’t take the speed it’s moving in
I know I can’t
But honestly, won’t someone stop this train?
Sometimes life feels like it is a speeding train and we’re just along for the ride. And in these moments that others say are “adventures” and “your best life” you feel overwhelmed. Situations occur seemingly out of the blue (even if you think you’re ready for anything) and while you may not say it like John Mayer said it, you sometimes may wish this train would just stop so you could get off. Please.
Can you relate? Do you ever just want to throw up your hands and say “I’m done!”?
It’s tiring being tired. It wearies me to be weary and you likely get this. The spiritual battle is real. We speak of this. We know this. We often come to church just wanting a respite, a place of rest, a time to be with friends, a moment of quiet reflection. I get it. It is needed. It is part of worship actually.
The world is smaller and with the advent of instant news and hot takes on every single thing, our phone and computers connect us with stories that often just add to the feelings of despair. Whether it is the continued unraveling of morality among many that make it seem like Sodom and
Gomorrah have sequels, the undermining of biblical Christianity among many under the banner of “deconstruction,” whether through media, entertainment, family-focused theme parks, movies, the justice system, unveiled sins from formerly revered leaders, or any number of other things – sometimes we just want to say “Stop this train! I want off!”
Right?
I think David felt this way at times. His life is chronicled in the Old Testament and it is a roller coaster of events, feelings, righteousness, and sin (by others toward him, by him toward others, and by all toward God.)
We see the shepherd boy chosen by God through the prophet Samuel. We read of him slaying the giant Goliath and being thrust into celebrity status immediately (Saul has slain his thousands, and David his tens of thousands.) There’s the drama between him and King Saul. There’s his moment finally being crowned. Good days. Hard days. Philistines out to kill him. His own family and own children wishing him dead. His sexually improper acts with Bathsheba. The death of a child. His orchestrated murder of a faithful soldier. The highs are very high – the reclaiming of God’s ark of the covenant. The lows are very low.
And all that drama in one man’s life that leads us to think “How did get he get through? How did he get forgiven for his heinous sins? How could be known as a man after God’s own heart?” And yet, he is.
But he is human and days of desperation were real – serious – difficult – and led to despair.
Many of the psalms collected in the center of our Bibles, as the hymnbook of the Hebrews, were penned by David. And in his lyrics, he bares his soul. He was not writing songs in order to get notoriety and move up the Billboard charts but opened his heart and soul to the Lord with pen in hand, lyric sheet available, and worshiped through his despair and in his victories…pointing himself and others to the one who is greater than all.
There are numerous psalms that echo this thought of “I’m done. I’m out of here. Stop. No more. No mas.”
And David knew his feelings of desperation were not solely his. The people of God were experiencing this.
This psalm is one of many by David that expresses the hope found in the midst of despair. The emotions are clear. There is no sugar- coating here. It is authentic and real and yet David reveals that his eternal, personal relationship with God holds him in these moments. Words like “forever” in verse 4 and “all generations” in verse 6 and “day after day” in verse 8 proclaim loudly that the one who loves is the one who offers hope. He is the one who has not abandoned his people. He is steadfast today…in the midst of all the sinful mess we endure and he will remain faithful forever.
Sometimes we just need that reminder.
Sometimes we just need to sing about that.
Sometimes we need to sing to God in worship that truth.
For life is hard and sin is real and pain is constant and hopelessness is rampant, but we have an answer. We have a hope. We have truth. And it covers all the other news and all the other recommendations of self-help and temporal comfort.
This is our song. This is our prayer:
HEAR ME
1 Hear my cry, O God,
listen to my prayer;
2from the end of the earth I call to you
when my heart is faint.
Lead me to the rock
that is higher than I,
3for you have been my refuge,
a strong tower against the enemy.
4 Let me dwell in your tent forever!
Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings! Selah
David “cries” and this is not just a slow tear running down the face of a man feeling blue. This word reflects a wailing, a desperate shout, an emphatic plea for God to hear and respond. He feels far from God. He feels alone.
He is crying “from the end of the earth.” What does that even mean? Where is the end of the earth? It is hyperbole that refers to an emotional, if not physical state, where solitude is felt, not just experienced. It is a frantic feeling of being left alone. And…just in case you think it only means hanging out in a desert cave near the Dead Sea, you can feel this way in a crowd, with people all around. Ever felt lonely in a crowd? It is real and David knows and he is inspired by the Holy Spirit here to say this.
He is not the kid who has been dropped off at summer camp and is homesick to the point he is crying every night eventually forcing the counselor to contact mom or dad to bring him home. This is not homesickness. This is despair. It is a threatening feeling where protection is sought!
God – protect me. Wrap me up. Bring me home. Keep me safe. Why? Because I feel so alone, so abandoned, so desperate…and I am scared!
Stop this train right now! I want to get off.
That’s the message.
That is the cry.
The “rock that is higher than I” is that solid, secure rock of protection superior to anything I can muster up in my own will. It is more than anything I can bring to the table. This defeats the entire “man up” message that culture offers and men have heard for generations that says, look within yourself, don’t cry, be tough, suck it up, rub some dirt in it, and be strong. Is all that bad advice? When it is centered on telling some boy or man (or woman for that matter) that your strength is in your thoughts to “do better” rather than “being strong and courageous” as Joshua was instructed, because God is with you!
God is our rock. He is the one stronger, more secure, safer, and higher than I. He is the victor! To quote Obi-Wan Kenobi “He has the high ground!” So this rock David speaks of is a metaphor of God’s sovereign protection – which is superior to any and all human resources.
David is seeking God’s security in this dire time when giving up seems like a real option…but he knows it’s not. So God…he cries loudly, hear me! Lead me. Protect me. You are my refuge. You are like a strong tower – not a tent.
Tents are temporary. Rock is not. That is the prayer. That is the request.
“Let me take refuge under the shelter of your wings” – God doesn’t really have wings, but this image is one of a mother bird protecting her chicks.
Now hear this reality. God’s protection is available. God has provided the way to this strong tower, to this secure rock, to these protective wings. That way is Jesus Christ. Centuries before Jesus was born, the Spirit gives these words to David. He writes them. He sings them. And they are fulfilled in Christ.
John 1:14
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.2
The eternal Word – the LOGOS – the Son of God became flesh and DWELT among us. Dwelt – took up residence. He tabernacled – an old term that reveals his closeness with us.
Paul stated that this one who tabernacled – who dwelt with us – was and is the rock that David was seeking.
When Israel was escaping from Egypt they …
1 Corinthians 10:4
4 and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ. 53
Jesus – in every single book, on every single page of the Bible. Jesus is not only a powerful place of protection, but a permanent one.
Protection from what? From sin. From death and the grave. From eternity separated from the Father. From loneliness. From forsakenness.
The wise man, you know this right? The wise man builds his house upon what? The Rock! For that truth who is Jesus Christ is solid.
Yes – David goes there. God is our protector, our life-giver, our salvation.
In Christ we know God, for Jesus Christ is God.
HOLD ME
5 For you, O God, have heard my vows; you have given me the heritage of those who fear your name.
6 Prolong the life of the king;
may his years endure to all generations!
7 May he be enthroned forever before God;
appoint steadfast love and faithfulness to watch over him!
8 So will I ever sing praises to your name,
as I perform my vows day after day.
God heard the prayers and pleas of David. He held him tightly. Protected him. Preserved him. Provided for him. Not because David deserved any of it, but because of who God is.
The promise is understood – in the midst of despair, even if tomorrow is not easy, God has me. He is my rock. He is my salvation. And as David referenced in verses 6 and 8, there is a future, for all generations, day after day. God is faithful.
INVITATION
Do you have this hope? Are you just wanting the train to stop so you can get off? Do you say “Come Lord Jesus” but not so that his eternal reign will occur, but just so you can get out of here, go to heaven, and not have to deal with the challenges of a sinfully sick, satanic, self-serving society any longer?
Or…do you know the one who tabernacled with us, dwelt among humanity, for the glory of the Father and for the good of you, of me, and all who would surrender?
I know many of you are saved, but I know some of you are not. Your desperation and doubts are ruling you. Today is the day of hope, of healing, of life, of birth.
Maybe it’s not so much “stop this train” but God is saying “You’re on the wrong train and you’re headed the wrong direction.” So if that’s you, let’s get on the right train today.
Footnotes
1 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Ps 61:1–8). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
2 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (Jn 1:14). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
3 The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2016). (1 Co 10:4–5). Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles.
