Psalms 46:4-5 - God's presence

Psalms 46:4-5 -A river brings joy to the city of our God the sacred home of the Most High. God dwells in that city; it cannot be destroyed. From the very break of day, God will protect it.

In verses 1 David looks at one's life from God's perspective.  In verse 2-3 he looks at it from his viewpoint. In verses 4-5, the scene shifts back to God again but "I" is absent in this declaration. The focus is on God, His holy presence.

Commentaries suggest an elegant antithesis between the little brook Shiloah on the one hand, and the Nile and Euphrates on the other; Jerusalem as the city of our God and the river as the grace of God. But I want to look at it from the perspective in Revelation. You see the river, the city, God's presence all resonate in the prophetic words of the Apostle John.

•     Rev 21:1-3 - Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. 2 I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. 3 And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. 
•       Rev 21:22 -  I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.

David is so overwhelmed by God's presence. The Holy God dwells in the city of God. Paul tells us in 1 Cor 3:16 - Don't you know that you yourselves are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in your midst?  We are the temple of God. God dwell in us. And there is only one emotion that excuses from there. JOY. Remember "in His presence is fulness of joy".  And when I connect this with verses 1-3, I realize that in spite of all the destructions around us, a river brings joy within. I am at peace. I am not destroyed

But notice in Rev 21:22, it's the reverse. God is the temple and we dwell in Him. Now the words of Jesus, "I in you and you in me" makes all the more sense. We are totally capsuled in God's presence and that is all we need. And its sheer joy and nothing can destroy is. This really bring us to another dimension in our relationship with God. 

The question is do we have this relationship with God? Next time the world is pulled under your feet, see how you respond. That will tell how intense and  how close our  relationship is with God.

During this time of lockdown, let's come into His presence as often as we can. When we are overpowered by His presence, nothing can overwhelm us. 
  • Psalms 42:1-2 - As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When can I go and meet with God?
If we we are in Him, and He is in us, which devil can put his finger on us? None, unless the Lord allows it.

To God be the glory

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