I was a pretty hyper kid growing up. My twin brother and I both were, really. You could probably put us in the category of, “…O, the Anderson twins are coming over… [long reflective pause by the parent]…GREAT!” Now, to be sure, we were not mean or destructive (at least not always destructive), but we were busy and active, nevertheless. In fact, to keep us occupied, my grandmother would give me a spoon and tell me to go outside and dig in the dirt–it’s crazy, because, now that I think about it, I kept doing that until I was in my 30s…just kidding. Seriously though, that was her answer to deal with us while we were toddlers. She knew something that I didn’t. She knew that I needed to be quieted–to be stilled.
Much hasn’t changed for me, and as I was running out at the greenbelt today, I remembered a saying that all my teachers would use to try their best to contain us crazy kids. They would ask us to repeat the following phrase: “…quiet water, still water, 1…2…3”, and then proceed to let us sit there in silence. I still remember saying that back to the teachers, and just sitting there…trying to be silent. Again, they were bringing order out of chaos–they were quieting our busy bodies and stilling our stirring souls–by drawing us to unity and focus.
Do we still need quietness and/or stillness of the soul…or of the mind…or of the body today? I think so, so the question is…
How Does This Apply To Us Today?
“Be still, and know that I am God.
I will be exalted among the nations;
I will be exalted in the earth.”
Psalm 46:10
God is strong enough…
- The Psalmist begins this Psalm with, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” And then ends it with, “The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our stronghold.” It’s as if he wants to put a parenthesis around this Psalm, and say, “…what I’m getting at from beginning to end is of great significance.” In other words, what the Psalmist wants the reader to know is that God is all-powerful, and His hold upon His people will never fail.
Therefore, rest in Him…
- To be still is hard for many of us, but that’s not really a good excuse. The Psalmist proves it here by using a command…be still or cease striving. In other words, patience truly is a virtue. But it’s not just patience, we need something more compelling to cause us to be still, for our drive to be busy is just too strong.
Because of Christ…
- If all we were told to do was to be still, then we would find ourselves still, but restless. It’s the way of the world. However, the Psalmist doesn’t let us stay there. He gives us the answer as to “why” we can be still when he says, “I [God] will be exalted among the nations; I [God] will be exalted on the earth.”
- How was God exalted? In the fullness of time, God sent forth His son. The Lord Jesus lived this life and was exalted both among the nations and upon the earth when He was crucified, buried, and raised from the dead. Death is the great equalizer of all humanity. And, the only reason we have death is because of sin, and sin separates us from God. And so in order to bring man back into fellowship with God, Jesus had to die in order to conquer sin.
- Glory, because of Christ, our souls can rest. Because of Christ, our minds can be quieted. He has won the battle…and He died so that you and I might live…quiet and still.
“…He [Jesus] humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Philippians 2:8b-11
— February 1, 2019