- Salvation and Strength
Psalm 37:39
But the salvation of the righteous is of the Lord:
He is their strength in the time of trouble.
It is the salvation of the sinner that makes him righteous. This salvation is of the Lord, that is, it is the Lord’s doing and not ours at all; salvation belongs to the Lord and He does it all. The Lord promises those whom He has saved and made righteous that He will save them again from the enemy when salvation is needed next time.
The first time He saved us it was a time of trouble, the last time He saved us it was a time of trouble, and the next time He saves us it will be in a time of trouble. He is our strength, or stronghold, in the time of trouble. When we were baptized He saved us from the time of trouble, which was original sin, which brings us much trouble and grief. “The time of trouble” is any time that the enemies (sin, death, devil) taunt and frighten, tempt to sin and attempt to destroy because of sin, or bring pain and sorrow. The “trouble” is this: the pain and misery of sin can escalate and get so terrible that we are tempted to ignore God and forget Him, or we even come into so much despair that we are ready to give up on God and on life and let ourselves go to death and the devil. This severe “time of trouble” may begin with some very innocent seeming sin like lust or anger or a lie; any sin, no matter how small, can be a time of trouble. The Lord promises to be our strength and salvation in the “time of trouble.” He will bring us into his presence inside the strong fort where we are safe and secure from the Evil One.
With God’s Salvation promise a time of present trouble turns into a time of joy and peace and blessing. This salvation turnaround can happen quickly or it may take a little time, but we can be sure it happens to the saved. We are so privileged we can ask for Salvation and Strength on a dime and receive it in any trouble. What a friend we have in Jesus!