Strength in trouble

And the LORD shall help them and deliver them; He shall deliver them from the wicked, And save them, Because they trust in Him. - Psalm 37v40

One of the many amazing things about the word of God is how it often has immediate, practical, tangible, and personal application for the time and place where it was written while at the same same time containing a spiritual and eternal truth for us today.

Today's passage is one of those times. For the psalmist he was speaking of very real and very current physical danger. He was trusting the Lord for physical deliverance from his current opposition. He trusted that God would deliver him from the enemy that he was facing at the moment because he trusted God to do so.

Today we have learned that it is not always God's will to deliver us from current physical circumstances. We have seen that Christians have died because of persecution. Sometimes, we now know, the bad guys win and God's people die or suffer life-long persecutions.

So is this verse still true? Does it apply to us today?

Of course it is true. God's word doesn't change.

And it still applies to us. We can take comfort that one day we will be delivered from this mess. He will deliver us from the wicked – what a day that will be. We will be saved out of all this.

What I really like is the little hint at our salvation by faith alone. Why does God save His people? Is it because we deserve it? Is it because of what we do?

Nope. He will save us because we trust in Him. Full stop. That's it. He will save us because we trust Him.

Those of us who trust Him can be assured that our deliverance is coming. Hold on. It will be here!