If It Had Not Been for the Lord
Psalm 124 opens with a phrase worth pondering: “If it had not been the Lord who was on our side.” This short psalm recounts the things that would have happened to God’s chosen ones had God not intervened when their enemies rose up against them.
As we consider this verse together, we probably should ask if God takes sides. Your response is probably quick and firm: of course God takes sides. He is for good and not for evil. Psalm 5:4 is one of several verses you might use to defend your answer: “For you are not a God who delights in wickedness; evil may not dwell with you.”
But does God have preferences when it comes to other things? Does he prefer the Bulldogs or the Yellow Jackets? The Tigers or the Tide? And I know many of us have a clear answer to that question, and some aren’t joking when they answer! What about Republicans and Democrats or Independents? What about people from Australia or Turkey or any particular country or people group? Is God on one side or the other? I don’t want to get into a political argument but rather challenge us to think about this idea of God being on your or my side.
According to Genesis, God did create everyone in his image. And many passages in scripture indicate that we have all sinned and fallen short and that God doesn’t want anyone to perish. Peter said it this way: “The Lord is not slow to fulfill his promise as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing that any should perish, but that all should reach repentance.”
Don’t get lost in some rabbit hole with this question. What I truly hope is that you take a minute and declare as the psalmist did of the many ways that God has shown you his favor, his protection, and his provision. In fact, I want to challenge you to take a few minutes and finish this sentence:
If it had not been for the Lord…
I bet if you allow yourself some time and space to think about what the Lord has done for you, it might be a long list. One of the first things that popped into my mind was a phone call I received on June 6, 1973. I won’t get into all the details but will share that my parents were separated and neither of them were going to live in the house that I grew up in that summer. In fact, one parent would be in a different city and the other in and out of town but living elsewhere. I was on my own with a car and playing in a band. What more could a 16-year-old want but that kind of freedom!
I was a few days into my newfound freedom when the phone rang. Landline, of course , since cell phones weren’t yet invented! On the other end of the line was a pastor from Cocoa Beach, Florida, who I had met in the summer of 1972 at an elementary age church camp. In 1972, I volunteered to play the guitar and lead the music at the camp where this pastor, Dick McDole, was also volunteering as the campfire speaker. I hadn’t talked with Mr. McDole in a year, but seemingly out of the blue he called me.
We talked for a minute when he asked me if I would be willing to come to his small church in Cocoa Beach for the summer and be the summer youth director. He said he thought he could get a few families to each contribute 10 dollars a week as my salary and he would give me a room in his house to live and would take care of my food and gas expenses. He didn’t press me but said he could use my help and for me to pray about it and call him back if I was interested.
After 3-4 days of living as a carefree unsupervised 16-year-old I made my decision. I prayed about it but not much to be honest. And I didn’t particularly want to give up my freedom, but in my gut I knew I should take the job. I returned the call and within a few days I was living 2 minutes from the Atlantic Ocean and doing my best to figure out how to be a youth director!
So when I think about that sentence—If it had not been for the Lord—I can think of many ways my life would have been different had I not chosen to accept that job. Was the Lord on my side or did I choose to side with the Lord? I think the answer is yes to both. I could go on and on with things in my life that would be very different and very bad if it had not been for the Lord.
All through the Bible we find various writers outlining the many things God did to save, help, protect, deliver, and provide for them. I suspect those verses are there not just for us to think about how God helped the ancients of our faith. Maybe those verses are there to challenge us to consider all the ways God has and continues to be on our side. Take a few minutes to list out some ways God has been there in your life and then offer him a big offering of praise and gratitude for all he has done!
Father, thank you for being on our side! Thank you for the gift of forgiveness that comes through Jesus. Thank you for your mercy and grace. Father, today we come to you overwhelmed with gratitude for who you and are and for what you have done for us! In Jesus’ name, amen.
Your Time with God’s Word
Psalm 5:4, 124:1-8; 2 Peter 3:9 ESV
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