The Lord Who Holds My Soul

[Psalm 54]

In Henry Nouwen's book “The Wounded Healer,” there is a chapter titled “The Person Who Reminds Us of Jesus’ Holding.” In this chapter, Nouwen discusses “supporting, being supported, and the one who supports.” The key verses here are from the Gospel of John, chapters 16:7 and 13: “… but I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I go, I will send Him to you… When the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all the truth…” The key point in these verses is that through Jesus’ departure, His disciples were able to experience a deeper and more intimate fellowship (through the Holy Spirit). In other words, because of Jesus’ absence, the disciples were able to have a more intimate connection (fellowship) with Him. And it was this intimate fellowship that sustained them during trials and stirred their hope to meet Jesus again. How was this possible? It was possible through the act of remembering (Nouwen). That is, by bringing the past into the present, the disciples were able to endure and overcome suffering because they hoped in Jesus. After Jesus’ departure, the coming of the Holy Spirit made them remember the words of Jesus and His love, and thus, the Spirit sustained the disciples in the midst of persecution, adversity, and suffering.

What memories of Jesus do you have? What memories of Him are holding you (sustaining you) as you face the difficulties and challenges in your life today? Memory not only connects us to the past but also gives us the strength to continue living in the present (Nouwen). The memories of past salvation give us strength in the present adversity and enable us to move forward.

In Psalm 54:4, David confesses: “God is my helper; the Lord is the one who sustains my life.” The phrase “the one who sustains my life” means that the Lord is the one who supports my soul or the one who holds my soul. Today, with this verse as the foundation, I want to meditate on three lessons regarding what it means to have a soul that is held by the Lord.

First, the soul that is held by the Lord prays to God.

Look at Psalm 54:2: "O God, hear my prayer; listen to the words of my mouth." The context of today's passage is set during the time when David was fleeing from Saul’s persecution, and the people of Ziph betrayed him to Saul by revealing his hiding place (for more details, see 1 Samuel 23:19 and 26). The background of this Psalm 54 is quite similar to that of Psalm 52. We had already reflected on Psalm 52, which also describes how David, while being persecuted by King Saul, was betrayed by Doeg the Edomite, who reported to Saul that David had visited the house of the priest Ahimelech. Both this Psalm (54) and Psalm 52 were written by David during his flight from King Saul, after he was betrayed and found himself in a dangerous and vulnerable situation.

In the midst of such a perilous situation, the first thing David did was look to God and cry out to Him (v. 2). One of the key prayers David made is found in verse 1: "Save me, O God, by Your name, and judge me by Your strength." Even when facing danger, David did not dwell on the danger itself but first turned his eyes to God, asking for His salvation. What we must not forget here is that David, in a dangerous situation, cried out for God's salvation and relied on "His name." The name of the Lord is "a good name" (v. 6). To rely on that good name and cry out for God's salvation means that David, despite the dangerous situation, trusted that God would bring about good, and so he prayed with that faith.

Henry Nouwen said this about prayer: "Prayer is a way of being before God with an empty heart, helpless, declaring that everything is grace and that nothing has been obtained solely through our hard efforts." Therefore, like David in this passage, we are to depend on "the strength of the Lord" and make our requests to God. We, too, should pray to God, relying on His good name and His strength, just as David did. In the midst of dangerous circumstances and adversity, we must long for God's salvation and cry out to the God who saves. Such prayer will continue to sustain us. God holds onto those who pray.

Secondly, the soul that is held by the Lord places God before it.

Look at Psalm 54:3: "For strangers have risen against me; violent men have sought my life; they have not set God before them (Selah)." Here we can understand why David earnestly cried out to God. The reason is none other than the fact that "strangers," meaning the ungodly and wicked men, were rising up against David, seeking his life to kill him. To be more specific, the "strangers" here refer to the men of Ziph who betrayed David and informed King Saul about his whereabouts. The phrase "violent men have sought my life" refers to King Saul's actions, as he tried to capture and harm David. In conclusion, these wicked men do not fear God but commit evil, as David points out. The men of Ziph, who betrayed David to King Saul, did not look to the Lord, the King of Kings, and fear Him. Instead, they feared Saul, a man visible to their eyes, which led them to help Saul by pointing out where David was hiding.

A believer who is held by God lives a Coram Deo life. "Coram Deo" is a Latin term formed from "coram" (before) and "Deo" (God), meaning "in the presence of God." This means being aware that God's face is always before us. This awareness of God's presence, or God-consciousness, will give us true courage and holiness (Internet). A biblical example of someone who lived a Coram Deo life is Joseph. In his life, Joseph was always conscious of the fact that God was present before him in every moment. See Genesis 39:9: "There is no one greater in this house than I, and my master has withheld nothing from me except you, because you are his wife. How then could I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" "How then could I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" There was no one else there. No one knew. No one saw. But Joseph saw God before him. God was watching. God was listening. God knew. And how could he do this great evil and sin against God? This was Joseph's Coram Deo faith (Internet). We too must live a Coram Deo life. Living in a world full of temptations, we must, like Joseph, not be shaken by the constant temptations. To live victoriously, we must have the faith awareness that "I am living before God."

Finally, the third characteristic of a soul held by the Lord is that it is assured of God's help.

Look at Psalm 54:4 in the Bible: "God is my helper; the Lord is the one who sustains my life." How could David be so sure of God's help and support? In verse 7, we find the answer: "For the Lord has delivered me from all my troubles, and my eyes have seen the defeat of my enemies." David was certain of God's help because he remembered past experiences where God had delivered him from trouble. He also recalled the moments when he saw God punish his enemies, and with that same certainty, David trusted that God would judge and repay those who were persecuting him, whether they were Saul or the men of Ziph. Look at verse 5: "God will repay my enemies for their evil; in Your faithfulness, destroy them." The just God is the one who will faithfully repay David's enemies. What was David's reaction to this assurance? He gave thanks to God: "I will sacrifice a freewill offering to You; I will praise Your name, O Lord, for it is good" (verse 6). David, who had experienced God's help in the past and was confident he would experience it in the present, freely gave a thanksgiving offering to God.

Henry Nouwen said this about memory: "To remember is not simply to look back at events of the past. More importantly, it is to bring past events into the present and to commemorate them here and now." When we bring the events of past salvation into our present crisis and commemorate them, we can be certain of God's help—His judgment of the wicked and His salvation of the righteous. Therefore, even in a crisis, we can voluntarily offer worship with thanksgiving to God.

We commemorate Jesus, who died on the cross at Calvary about 2000 years ago, through the Lord's Supper. As we partake of the bread, which symbolizes His body broken on the cross, and the wine, which symbolizes His blood shed on the cross, we remember Jesus. Additionally, the Holy Spirit, who dwells in us, helps us remember the words and love of Jesus, enabling us to overcome any adversity, pain, or suffering in our current lives. The Holy Spirit works in us, helping us rely on the good name of the Lord and His power, and leads us to pray to God the Father. Through this work, we become confident that the Lord will work everything together for good. Therefore, we must offer worship to God with thanksgiving for His grace of salvation.

With a heart of gratitude for the grace of the Lord who sustains my soul,

Pastor James Kim
(Praying that the Lord will hold the souls of my dear brothers and sisters)