THE CHRISTIAN RESORT
Psa. 71:3
Morning Meditation 5/1/16
Psalm 71:3 says, “Be thou my strong habitation, whereunto I may continually resort: thou hast given commandment to save me; for thou art my rock and my fortress..”
I’ll never forget a resort to which I went in Japan on my first military tour in Korea. After I had been in Korea (1947-48) for several months, they allowed me a little vacation and the place I went was up in the mountains of Japan. The place, if I remember correctly, was Unzen. I may not even be spelling it right. But the intent was to allow one to rest and enjoy a little scenery as a kind of retreat. The environment was excellent. The hotel was very comfortable. It had hot baths (like Hot Springs Arkansas) that would relax you and relieve all the tension in the body. When I read this verse, the word “resort” brought all of this back to mind.
The word “resort” (bow') means, ‘to go in, to enter. The idea here is brought out in the words “be thou my strong habitation, where I may continually resort.” The word “strong” (tsuwr) means “cliff, or rock” i.e., a cave or a place in the rock that is hidden and impenetrable. Though this Psalm does not name an author, it sounds like David who spent so much time on the run from deadly foes. David was a man of war and was not afraid of the battle. But the greatest man of valor needs a resort to which he can go for rest from the battle and a place that he can be at ease from the dread of surprise attacks.
The word “habitation” ( ma`own) means “a dwelling, a habitation, a lair, refuge (of jackals).” So it is not a tipple A hotel that is being asked for. It is a secret place. It is a dwelling place, a place where one can live protected from the enemies and the elements. The words “whereunto I may continually resort” means that it is not a periodic visit about which he is talking. The word “continually” (tamiyd) means “continuity, perpetuity, always.” He is refering to a secret hiding place where he will be living and working out of.
The words “thou hast given commandment to save me” means that God is the one on whom the Psalmist is depending. Even though the Lord may show him a perfect place in the cleft of the rock where provision is made for his safety and rest, he is acknowledging that God had given commandment with regard to this. The word “commandment” (tsavah) means “to command, to charge, to give orders concerning.” The Psalmist is living by faith in the revealed promise (commandment) God has given with regard to his safety. This is a verb and is in the piel stem in the Hebrew which represents intensive action. It is perfect tense. The Psalmist is refering to a past assurance where God intensively made him a promise. We do not have to remind God of what he has said. But we do need to remind ourselves. We strengthen our own faith by meditating upon God’s past promises to us. The word “save” (yasha`) means “to save or to deliver.” This refers to physical deliverance. God makes promises like this when he has something in mind for the one to whom the promise is made. David ran from Saul for years after God had said he was going to make him king over Israel. Was it possible for Saul to interfere with the plan of God and kill David before God’s purpose in making him king of Israel had transpired? Was it possible for Abraham to be killed or Sarah die before Isaac was born? We know the answer don’t we? God is involved in the affairs of men. He has a purpose in every life. Someone put it like this: “every life is a purpose of God.” We are protected, those of us who have fled for refuge, by God.
The words “for thou art my rock and my fortress” mean that the Psalmist’s trust is in the Lord. He, even God himself, is his “resort”. The place of refuge which is a veritable “fortress” of which God has in nature carved out is the “resort”. The rocks, the secret place, the fortress are God’s angelic walls where one can sleep a restful sleep while the foe wanders outside totally unable to discover the place or the people behind those walls.
What an illustration of the believer’s place in Christ: 2 Cor. 5:17, “Therefore if any man be IN CHRIST (Caps mine), he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.” Col. 3:3 “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” Where are we hidden?
Let’s look briefly at a few applications of this truth for us. First, in this “resort” there is strengthening. We go here to so that our strength can be renewed. Isa. 40:31 “But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” What does Isaiah say that one needs to do to get his strength back? The word “wait” suggest a pulling back from a confrontation with the foe for the purpose of restoration. David said the Great Shepherd “restoreth my soul.”
Next, this “resort” is for gaining wisdom for the battle. When you pull back from the battle for a time to the “resort”, the mistakes in yesterday’s battle need to be discussed. Wisdom needs to be gained from past mistakes. James says in chapter one of his epistle and verse 5 “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.” Why are the words “upbraideth not” mentioned by James? Because when we lack wisdom, serious mistakes are made. Now we can’t undo the mistake made in the past but we can get God’s wisdom not to make those same mistakes again. And when we fail because of a lack of wisdom and someone is hurt because of it, you would think God would rake you over the coals and upbraid you because of it. James says God is not like that. If you need wisdom, Go by faith to God and get it. We need to go to this “secret place” to get this kind of help when we need it.
Next, this “resort” is for rest. This is a “faith rest” according to Hebrews chapter 4. Sometimes in the battle we forget where our victory is coming from and begin to credit too much to our skills. When we do that, we put an unholy interest in being so prepared by our understanding of our weapon (the Word of God) that “our knowledge of the Word” becomes the main issue. There is no rest for that one who thinks that way. “I will fail in the battle, if I do not know all the answers ahead of time” says the preacher. I have found myself weary in the work because of the dread of not having the right answer in counseling situations. So I would begin to grab books off my shelves and to see what others had to say. In my desire to “do it right” I goofed up and gave people human advise instead of going to the “resort” to seek God’s wisdom, and coming out with the one Book that has the answers, and trusting in God who uses us in spite of our mistakes and short comings.
