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Songs of Ascent: Our Help Is in the Lord
August 18, 2026 · 17 min
Psalm 120–128: pilgrims' hymns, God's protection, and the assurance that our help comes from the Creator.
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Deliverance from Deceit and God's Protection 0:10 Good morning. Welcome to the Oasis of Praise where our journey through the book of Psalms is going to accelerate this morning as we look at chapters 1 20 through 1 28, verse 8 of chapter0:21 1 24. Our help is in the name of the lord who made heaven and earth. Now in the next 15 short Psalms, they're written by various authors, but they're all called the songs of0:33 ascent or, songs of decrees, which formed a hymn book that was used by pilgrims as they were making their way to Jerusalem for the annual festivals. When they would go to Passover, when they would0:45 go to Pentecost or the Feast of Tabernacles, they would sing them on the way to Jerusalem to prepare their hearts to encounter God. Alright. Before we jump in, let me just say this. I've been so0:57 encouraged to, to receive so many videos of, from various sojourners on this, journey with us of how the word of God has impacted your1:09 life. And I'm gonna share another 1 of those, this morning. In fact, I'm gonna continue to share those throughout the week. But I I want to, also let you know that I got a special announcement today regarding Israel, so1:19 stick with us. Verse 1, chapter 1 20. In my distress, I cried to the lord and he heard me. Deliver my soul, oh lord, from lying lips and from a deceitful tongue. What shall be given to1:31 you or what shall be done to you, you false tongue? Sharp arrows of the warrior with coals of the broom tree. Woe is me that I dwell in Meshech Meshech that I1:43 dwell among the tents of Kedar. My soul has dwelt too long with 1 who hates peace. I am for peace, but when I speak, they are for war. Now some1:55 scholars suggest that David wrote this after his encounter with, Doeg who made the accusations, the false accusations against him and the priest to Saul. We saw this back in,2:06 in Psalm 52. However, the application and the appeal here are are much broader speaking of the Jewish people as a whole because there's no record that actually that David lived in2:19 Meshech or in Kedar. These were heathen lands, that were hostile to the Jewish people. Now they could be could be used symbolically.2:32 But the passage, quite frankly, could not be more relevant today given what we've seen happen just in the last few years in the Middle East in in particular there in2:43 Israel. Verse 1, chapter 1 21, I lift up my eyes to the hills from whence comes my help? That's a question. Now several different interpretations of this 1st verse.2:55 Were the hills a source of refuge, a a place of hiding? Was the the psalmist here looking for reinforcements coming from the hills, or were the threats3:07 coming from the hills? Another suggestion was that as pilgrims were making their way toward Jerusalem, they encountered the high places where idols or demon worship took place. The3:19 author was clear that the hills were not a place of comfort or threat when you look to the lord, the creator of heaven and earth. My help comes from the lord3:31 who made heaven and earth. We're not gonna get threats. If the threats are there in the hills, our help comes from the lord. We're not looking to the hills for support because our support and help comes from the lord. We3:43 must realize that our strength and our victory lie not in the power structures of this earth, but in god himself. Because look at verse verse 3, he will not allow your foot to be moved. He who keeps you will not slumber.3:55 Behold, he who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep. The Lord is your keeper. The Lord is your shade at your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day nor the moon by night. The lord shall preserve4:06 you from all evil. He shall preserve your soul. The lord shall preserve your going out and your coming in from this time forth and evermore. Now just to to summarize this,4:18 God prepares us so that our foot will not be moved in the day of testing, alright, which will come. He is our protector. He is our provider. He is4:30 our preserver. He preserves us. He is at our right hand protecting us and providing what we need. He will preserve us from all evil, not only in this life, but4:42 here's the promise we have. We have he will preserve our souls. Ephesians 1 13 talks about this. This does not mean that we as believers will not face difficulty or4:54 challenging or even bad things. But we do have this confidence as Romans 8 28 says, god's purposes will not be thwarted in our lives5:06 if our lives are yielded to him. Let me just read it. Romans 8 28, and we know that all things work together for good to those who love god and to those who are the5:18 called according to his purposes. Now that's the difference. We have to be focused on bringing glory to God and his purposes being accomplished. Alright. Chapter 15:29 22, I was glad when they said to me, let us go into the house of the Lord. David rejoiced at the opportunity to gather for corporate worship in Jerusalem.5:42 Now we we should worship the Lord privately in our homes. I mean, every day. I mean, we we should listen. We should pray. We should read his word. We should meditate upon it. We should sing it. We should listen to praise5:54 music. But that cannot replace the need that we have to come together to worship God corporately. In fact, Hebrews instructs us not to forsake the assembling of ourselves together as the6:06 manner of some is, but exhort 1 another and so much more as you see the day approaching. I tell you, based on what's happening in the world around us, now is not the time to abandon the call for6:17 collective worship of God because it strengthens and encourages us. Chapter, verse 2 of chapter 1 22. Our feet have been standing within your gates,6:29 oh, Jerusalem. Jerusalem is built as a city that is compact together where the tribes go up. The tribes of the Lord, to the testimony of Israel, to give thanks to the name of the Lord, for thrones6:41 are set there there for judgment, the thrones of the house of David. They came to Jerusalem to receive instruction from the Lord, the testimony of Israel. They wanted to hear what God was saying to them. They wanted to6:52 give thanks to the name of the Lord. They had reason to thank the Lord and so do we. They were not like other nations that were groping in the dark trying to figure things out. God had given them, and7:04 we read this in the, in the Old Testament as we were making our way towards Psalms, that God had given them the way. He he put out these perfect statutes and guides for the nation. He gave them the7:16 rules and the path to success. And god has given us his word as well. It is the road map of nations if we will just follow it. It is it is the7:28 pathway to the abundant life if we will yield to it and obey it and accept it by faith what God has given to us. An7:40 often quoted, verse of scripture comes next, verse 6, pray for the peace of Jerusalem. May they prosper who love you. Peace be within your walls, prosperity within your palaces. For the sake of my7:52 brethren and companions, I will now say peace be within you because of the house of the lord our god, I will seek your good. Now this is a clear admonition to pray for Jerusalem as,8:04 and and this is an instruction that remains valid today. It is also, I believe, a call to pray for that which Jerusalem represents, which the psalmist just described. Jerusalem represents8:16 the word and the worship of God, civil order and justice for man. It is, it was seen as the place of God's presence. David sets the example as he closes his chapel chapter.8:28 He commits to pray not only for, pray not only not only pray and proclaim the peace in the well-being of Jerusalem, but he also says he will seek8:40 it. He said he will not only pray but he will also work. Likewise, our prayers must be combined with action. A commitment to step out as God8:52 opens doors of opportunity as a result of our prayers. We pray, God opens the door, we walk through it. Verse 1 of chapter 1 23, unto you I lift up my eyes, oh youJoy in Worship and Pray for Jerusalem's Peace 9:04 who dwell in the heavens. You know, we do not look to the creation of our own hands for help. Alright. We look to the hands of the 1 who sits in the heavens for direction, provision, protection,9:16 correction, and reward. Chapter 21 24, if I had not been if it had not been the Lord who was on our side, let Israel now say. If it had9:28 not been the Lord who was on our side when men rose up against us. Now you can fill in the blank from history, but the future of the Jewish people in the nation rest on this last9:40 verse, verse 8. Our help is in the name of the Lord who made heaven and earth. No matter what the challenge is, our hope and our help is in the9:51 name of the Lord who made the heaven and the earth. Chapter 1 25, those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved but abides forever. GodTrust, Restoration, and Divine Blessing 10:03 says well, actually, let me just summarize. 1 25 says that god responds to the trust and obedience of his people by protecting them. Psalm 1 26. I'm moving fast because10:15 I gotta cover a lot of territory here. Psalm 1 26 was written after the Babylonian captivity. When the Lord brought back the captivity of Zion, we were like those who dream, that our mouth was10:27 filled with laughter and our tongue was singing. Then they said among the nations, the Lord has done great things for them. The Lord has done great things for us, and we are glad. Psalm 110:38 27, the efforts of man only succeed by divine blessing. We do our very best, but without the blessing of God, it matters not. Unless the Lord builds a house, they labor in vain who build it. Unless the10:50 Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. Now this verse was, quoted by Benjamin Franklin in his speech, and he wrote down all of his speeches. We have11:02 this. This was, his speech in June 28th 17 87 at the Constitutional Convention. He said, I have lived, sir, a long time, and and and the the convention had been very divided.11:14 And and he had been, quiet, but he rose and he spoke this. I have lived, sir, a long time, and the longer I live, the more convincing proofs I see this truth that god governs in the affairs11:26 of men. And if a sparrow cannot fall to the ground without his notice, is it probable that an empire can rise without his aid? We have been assured, sir, in the sacred writings that except the lord lay build11:39 except the lord build, they labor in vain that build it. I firmly believe this, and I also believe that without his concurring aid, we shall succeed in this political building no better than the builders of Babel.11:51 We shall be divided by our little partial local interest. Our projects will be confounded, and we ourselves shall be become a reproach and a byword down to future age.12:03 And what is worse, mankind may hereafter from this unfortunate instant despair of established governments by human wisdom and leave it to chance, war and conquest.12:15 I therefore beg leave to move that henceforth prayers employing the ins the assistance of heaven and its blessings on our deliberations be held in this assembly every morning before we proceed to business,12:27 and that 1 or more of the clergy of the city be requested to officiate in that service. And and in fact, from that, that is why our congress is12:39 opened with prayer every day. And I would say this, you know, if we wanna see this nation continue at this 250 year anniversary juncture, we need to return to12:51 this understanding that only God can bless the efforts that we undertake. Verse 3, behold, children are the heritage of the Lord. The fruit of the womb is a reward like13:03 arrows in the hand of a quiver quiver in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one's youth. Happy is the man who has his quiver full of them. They shall not be ashamed,13:15 but shall speak with their enemies in the gate. And by by the way, a quiver held about 5 arrows. Now this this just totally destroys the modern idea that children are a burden,13:27 that children somehow are bad because they consume our limited resources. The word of God makes it very clear that they are a blessing. Children are a blessing. I'm thankful for my 5 children13:39 and my grandchildren, and, they they are a blessing from the lord. Now the last chapter speaks to the blessings that naturallyFamily Blessings and Life-Changing Word 14:01 happy, and it shall be well with you. Your wife shall be like a fruitful vine in the very heart of your house, your children like olive plants all around your table.14:13 Behold, thus shall the man be blessed who fears the Lord. The Lord bless you out of Zion, and may you see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.14:25 Yes. May you see your children's children. Peace be upon Israel. And that's a perfect introduction for Bob's testimony this morning.14:36 God's word has changed my life because I'm on my 3rd tour through Tony's 2 year through the Bible. And after about 6 months, my wife says to me,14:48 you know I love you. And I said, oh, honey. Of course. I know that. She says, yes. But now I even like you. So in a nutshell, god's word has15:00 developed 2 things for me. The fruits of the spirit have become prevalent that those around me recognize, and number 2, I have a hunger and a thirst to be closer to Jesus15:12 every day. So thank you, Tony.15:15 Again, I'm so encouraged by the testimony of Bob and so many others that have sent in their videos. Let's pray. Father, thank you for the power of your word that changes our15:26 lives. It brings us, Lord, into to to unity. And and, Lord, just gives guidance and direction to our step. It sanctifies us. Us. And that's exactly what Jesus prayed in John15:38 17. Keep us from the evil 1. Sanctify us by your truth. Your word is truth. Thank you for that. In Jesus' name, amen. Alright. By the way, as15:50 I mentioned at the beginning, the stand on the word Israel tour is now finalized. We finally got all the details worked out. The dates will be March 24th through April theIsrael Tour and Bible Reading Plan 16:02 2nd. It is a 1 of a kind trip that goes where most tours do not go. The biblical heartland. We spend a lot of time in Judea and Samaria taking you to places like Shiloh where the16:14 tabernacle stood for 369 years. We'll go to Mount Blessing. You're gonna see things that you would not see on any other tour. To find out more, text the word Israel to 6 716:25 7 4 2. That's Israel to 6 7 7 4 2. Alright. Until next time. Keep standing on the word.16:36 Today's study comes from the stand on the word bible reading plan available for free at f r c dot o r g slash bible. By following along in just a few minutes a day, you16:48 can read through the entire Bible in just 2 years. Learn more and request the free reading guide at frc dot org slash bible.In this video 0:00 Deliverance from Deceit and God's Protection9:00 Joy in Worship and Pray for Jerusalem's Peace10:00 Trust, Restoration, and Divine Blessing14:00 Family Blessings and Life-Changing Word16:00 Israel Tour and Bible Reading Plan54:03
Ron Johnson, Andrew Clyde, Blaise Misztal, Michele Bachmann, Gary Hamrick Tony Perkins
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