Psalms 62:1
Psalms 62:1 says, “To the chief Musician, to Jeduthun, A Psalms of David. Truly
my soul waiteth upon God: from Him cometh my salvation.”
The
Bible talks a lot about salvation. And the book of Psalms is no exception.
Where does salvation come from? Does it come from your own works? NO. It comes
from God. Galatians 4:4-5 says, “But when the fullness
of times was come, God sent forth His Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of
sons.”
Out
of eternity Jesus came casting off His garments of eternal glory and humbling
Himself, being made in the likeness of sinful flesh. He walked the earth for 33
years fulfilling the law and living a life without sin. Then He suffered and died
a cruel, violent death on the cross of
Where
does my salvation come from? It comes from Jesus Christ the only begotten Son
of God.
Here
in verse 1 of Psalms chapter 62 waiting is mentioned in connection with
salvation, “my soul waiteth upon God.”
When a person
is saved from their sins they are saved immediately. It happens
instantaneously. One way we know this is through the teachings of Jesus. Luke
5:22-25, “But when Jesus perceived their thoughts, He
answering said unto them, What reason ye in your hearts? Whether is easier, to
say, Thy sins be forgiven thee; or to say, Rise up and walk? But that ye may
know that the Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins, (he said unto
the sick of the palsy,) I say unto thee, Arise, and take up thy couch, and go
into thine house. And immediately he rose up before them, and took up that
whereon he lay, and departed to his own house, glorifying God.”
So
we know that Jesus said, “that ye may know that the
Son of man hath power upon earth to forgive sins” He healed the sick of
the palsy. And so we know that Jesus healing someone physically is symbolic of
the spiritual cleansing from sin that occurs at salvation. Notice then that when
the man was healed, he immediately rose up.
Salvation
is instantaneous, immediate. However the things that God promises to do for
those that are saved are not all immediate things. For example, one day we will
receive a glorified body untainted by sin, an incorruptible body which shines
as bright as the stars of heaven. When we are saved we do not receive this body
immediately. It is something that we are waiting on the Lord for. “Truly my soul waiteth upon God: from Him cometh my salvation.”
Waiting
on God is a big part of the Christian life. Waiting takes patience. Patience
takes experience. One thing is true: human beings are not very patient. You
will find out how impatient people are, especially in today’s age where every
thing is fast and to and fro upon the earth, just by standing in line at the
grocery story. Go to the grocery store and find a long line that takes a 30
minute wait and find out how impatient you and other people really are.
Humans are
not good at waiting. The reason is because they are self willed. When a person
wants something they want it and they want it now. If you are going to follow
Jesus you are going to have to learn how to wait. You may be in a hurry but God
is not in a hurry. Second Peter 3:8,
“But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that
one day is with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.”
“My soul waiteth upon God.” Waiting on God does not mean
that you shouldn’t actively serve Him today or that you shouldn’t do the
practical things of life such as go to work or brush your teeth. Waiting does
not mean procrastination. Don’t put off tomorrow what you can do today. But you
certainly need to learn to wait on the LORD if you are going to endure the persecutions
and trials that come your way and keep a steadfast hope in God’s promises,
looking forward to the day that Jesus returns.
The
Bible goes on to say in Psalms 62:2, “He only is my
rock and my salvation; He is my defense; I shall not be greatly moved.”
In
this verse we are taught several more important details about salvation. Jesus
is called: my rock, my salvation, and my defense. Many times in the Bible the
word rock is used in reference to Jesus Christ, especially in the book of
Psalms. Here in Psalms 62 rock is used three times. A rock is something that is
hard, strong, solid, and enduring.
The
fact that Jesus is a rock speaks to many truths: it speaks to the fact that we
cannot lose our salvation, it speaks to the fact that God keeps His promises,
and it speaks to the fact that Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and
forever. The fact that Jesus is a rock is also an illustration to us of eternal
security. Psalms 95:1 says, “O come, let us sing unto
the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.”
Jesus
is called, “my salvation.” There are many, many
verses in the Bible which teach that salvation is not of works but that it is
the gift of God through Jesus Christ. These verses can be found both in the Old
Testament and the New Testament. Psalms 62:2 is one of them. This verse does
not say: I am my salvation, or my works are my salvation. This verse clearly
says, “He is my salvation.”
It
is very important to understand that salvation comes from God. Ephesians 2:8-9
says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and
that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man
should boast.” Romans 3:23-24 says, “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ
Jesus.” Titus 3:4-7 says, “But after the
kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of
righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, by
the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on
us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by His
grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”
By
grace are ye saved through faith, being justified freely by His grace, not by
works of righteousness which we have done. God is my salvation. And there are
many, many more verses in the Bible which help us to understand that salvation
is not by works but by grace alone.
The
third phrase given in Psalms 62 says, “He is my defense.”
This phrase also teaches us something important about salvation. First
Peter 5:8 says, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your
adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may
devour.” Life is a spiritual warfare and there are many dangers and
temptations, many arrows of false teaching that will be shot at you to lead you
astray into sin. And sin destroys and brings suffering and death.
But
a person who has repented of their sins and turned to Jesus for salvation has
become a child of God, a joint heir with Christ. Therefore God has given him or
her His undivided attention. Because God is a jealous God and loves you very
much, you can be certain that He will defend you against the attacks of the
devil. One of the most important ways that God will defend you is by guiding
and keeping you in the truth. John
When
the Bible says, “He is my defense,” it is also
speaking of eternal security. First John 2:1-2, “My
little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man
sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And He is
the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of
the whole world.” Jesus is my defense. Therefore on the day of judgment
when I stand before God to be judged, Jesus will be there to defend me with His
blood and to declare me righteous because of His death on the cross for my
sins. Romans 8:1, “There is therefore now no
condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh
but after the Spirit.” He is my defense.
Psalms
62:3-4 says, “How long will ye imagine mischief
against a man? Ye shall be slain all of you: a bowing wall shall ye be, and as
a tottering fence. They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they
delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly. Selah.”
The
Bible is very clear about how to be saved from our sins. There are many, many
verses both in the Old Testament and the New Testament that explain salvation.
What is it then that goes on in the mind and the heart of a person who does not
believe in the truth of the gospel? Psalms 62:3-4 gives us 3 detailed phrases
to help us understand this: “imagine mischief against
a man,” “consult to cast him down from his excellency,” “delight in lies.”
It
may be true that some hearts are more hardened against the truth than others
but there certainly is a process, a path which they all follow down. Romans
Even
though man is born with a sin nature, a little child when it is born is not
born an atheist or an evolutionist or a Buddhist. Little children are meek and
humble and easily influenced by what they hear. Despite this fact and despite
the fact that most children in the world are bombarded with the lies of
evolution or false religion they still are responsible to make their own choice
with the free will God has given them. Perhaps the key phrase to explain what
happens to them is in Psalms 62:4 which says, they “delight
in lies.” They willingly and knowingly choose the evil rather than the
good. They enjoy, they find pleasure in lies rather than truth. Because of some
sinful lust that they desire to follow after in life they choose to believe
lies rather than truth. And so when they hear those lies, their minds latch
onto them and they believe them.
This
certainly explains why some people just refuse to believe the truth, no matter
how obvious the truth is, no matter how much truth they are given. They prefer
lies to truth. They delight in lies. A person like this probably cannot be
reasoned with, or debated with in a rational way. Their best hope is to be
brought to a point in life where they have nowhere to turn for hope except to
Jesus Christ. And even then because of the hardness of their hearts they might
still refuse to repent of their sins.
Psalms
62:3 says, “How long will ye imagine mischief against
a man? Ye shall be slain all of you.”
These
verses make it very clear that God judges sin. Everyone dies. But sometimes a
person dies much sooner than they would have because God, who is the judge of
the whole earth, cuts them off from the land of the living. This can happen
both to believers and non believers. Life is a gift from God, an opportunity.
If you are not going to use that opportunity to serve God but instead to do
evil, God may very well kill you. He has the right to do so. He is all
powerful. He created life. He gives and takes life.
Psalms
62:5-6 says, “My soul, wait thou only upon God; for my
expectation is from Him. He only is my rock and my salvation: He is my defense;
I shall not be moved.”
These
verses are repeating what was said in verses 1 and 2 to reemphasize these
truths. With so many lies in the world and false teachings and with so many
that delight in lies rather than in the truth of the gospel of Jesus Christ it
would be wise to keep fresh in the mind and in the heart the true teachings of
salvation by grace through faith in Christ.
One
you have begun following Jesus Christ the important thing is to keep following
Him to, “not be moved.” If you understand the
love of God and how it works and thus understand your own salvation and that
eternal life is indeed eternal and that you cannot give up or lose your own
salvation, then you will have a strong foundation.
Without
such a confidence you will be easily led astray either by your own failures, or
by the lies of the world. Ephesians 4:14 says, That we
henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every
wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they
lie in wait to deceive.”
Remember
there are many humans out there who delight in lies. They want to deceive you.
They want to see you go the wrong way in life. They lie in wait to deceive.
They are very cunning in their explanations and in their doctrines and in their
questions that they ask. The things they say may even sound good, and certainly
appeal to the flesh. But their goal is to deceive you, to lead you astray into
sin. Their goal is to destroy your confidence in the promises of God and in the
eternal love of God which is found through the blood of Jesus Christ. Do not
let yourself be deceived or led astray. Just remember that Jesus is your rock
and your salvation and your defense.
Romans
5:1-2 says, “Therefore being justified by faith, we
have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access
by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of
God.”
If
you have never turned from your sins to Jesus you can do so today. You can stop
delighting in lies and delight instead in the truth.
___________________________________________________
Copyright; 2017 by Bruce
Creech
All Rights Reserved