Word of Encouragement (04/11/2023)
Of Benjamin he said, "The beloved of the LORD dwells in safety. The High God surrounds him all day long, and dwells between his shoulders." (Deut. 33:12)
Last time, we reflected on the source of Benjamin’s safety—the love of the LORD. Today, we will reflect on the way the LORD provides safety to His beloved.
The first Moses mentions is that the LORD surrounds Benjamin: he is safely wrapped up in God. Sailors can dive deep into the ocean without drowning in the water or getting crushed by the pressure if they go down in a submarine. Safe in the submarine, they are not affected by the surrounding water or the water pressure. If the metal and the mechanism of the submarine can provide such safety, how much safer we should be if God should surround us? If we abide in the Lord, we are protected by His almighty power. Can anything penetrate the almighty shield of God? The strongest force in the universe will not make even a tiny scratch. “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you” (Isa. 43:3). Even though Nebuchadnezzar threw Daniel’s three friends into the fiery furnace for not worshipping his statue, “the fire had not had any power over the bodies of those men. The hair of their heads was not singed, their cloaks were not harmed, and no smell of fire had come upon them” (Dan. 3:27).
This almighty protection of God is reinforced by His infinite love. Why should the omnipotent God surround Benjamin (and us) with His almighty power? He may do so for many reasons. We can see Him protecting even His enemies for His mysterious purpose. But that kind of protection doesn’t last. In fact, such temporary protection will make the pain of the eventual downfall even greater when it is removed. But if God should protect His people out of His love, there is no fear of losing His protection. For His love is everlasting and unbreakable. Because His protection is motivated by His love, it is not impersonal like the metals of a submarine, which protect whoever is in the submarine. Those whom He protects out of love, He protects as the very apple of His eye. He is attentive to their every danger and trouble because His heart is knit to them by His love. He does not set up fortification and leaves them to take care of His more important business; He is always mindful of them and their safety because their well-being is His business. How blessed we are that He should surround us with His almighty power and love!
Moses also tells us that God surrounds Benjamin all day long. God does not love us and protect us in spurts; He protects us in His continuing, unceasing, and uninterrupted care. From the rising of the sun to its setting, God protects those who are His beloved. He who keeps them neither sleeps nor slumbers (Ps. 121:4). He does not allow the sun to smite them by day, nor the moon by night (Ps. 121:6). If God surrounds us all day long, He surrounds us wherever we may be as we do His bidding. He surrounds us when we are at work/school or home; He surrounds us when we are in familiar surroundings or at a new, strange place; He surrounds us when we are in a high position or in a low station in life. He will never leave or abandon His people. Hallelujah!
Of course, this promise is ultimately for our spiritual well-being/safety. “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul” (Mark 8:36). But even if we lose the whole world, if our souls are safe in God’s keeping, we can weather through all adversities. Let us remember that we follow a crucified Savior. We are not in this for (physical) health and (material) wealth. God is training us so that we may find our safety in Christ even amid troubles, not in the comfort of our situation—not just at the end of the tunnel of our trouble but also in the tunnel itself because Christ is with us.