Not to be shaken

“God is in the midst of her, she will not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns” (Psalm 46: 5 NASB).

“Will not be moved”— what an inspiring declaration! Is it possible for us who are so easily moved by earthly things to come to a point where nothing can upset us or disturb our peace? The answer is yes, and the apostle Paul knew it. When he was on his way to Jerusalem, the Holy Spirit warned him that “prison and hardships” (Acts 20: 23) awaited him. Yet he could triumphantly say, “But none of these things move me” (Acts 20: 24 KJV).

Everything in Paul’s life and experience that could be disturbed had already been shaken, and he no longer considered his life or any of his possessions as having any earthly value. And if we will only let God have His way with us, we can come to the same point. Then, like Paul, neither the stress and strain of little things nor the great and heavy trials of life will have enough power to move us from “the peace of God, which transcends all understanding” (Phil. 4: 7). God declares this peace to be the inheritance of those who have learned to rest only on Him.

“Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it” (Rev. 3: 12). Becoming as immovable as a pillar in the house of God is such a worthy objective that we would gladly endure all the necessary trials that take us there! 

When God is the center of a kingdom or a city, He makes it strong “like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken” (Ps. 125: 1). And when God is the center of a soul, although disasters may crowd in on all sides and roar like the waves of the sea, there is a constant calm within. The world can neither give nor take away this kind of peace. What is it that causes people to shake like leaves today at the first hint of danger? It is simply the lack of God living in their soul, and having the world in their hearts instead.

“Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be shaken but endures forever” (Ps. 125: 1). There is an old Scottish version of this psalm that strengthens our blood like iron:

Who clings to God in constant trust

As Zion’s mount he stands full just,

And who moves not, nor yet does reel,

But stands forever strong as steel!

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