Be Still and Know that I am God

This week, Crystal shares a session from a ladies conference at Calvary Baptist Church in Perry, Oklahoma. The theme was "Be Still and Know that I am God" based on Psalm 46:10. 

Crystal digs into Psalm 46 and the link to the attempted Assyrian invasion during the time of Hezekiah (found in II Kings 18-19). She explains the importance of "knowing God" so that you will be able to "be still" and trust Him in the midst of your trouble. Digging deeper into this familiar verse will deepen your understanding and appreciation of the command to "be still and know that I am God."

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Hi there! Welcome to Wisdom for Wednesday, your midweek pause for truth, encouragement, and practical faith. I'm your host, Crystal Ratcliffe, author, speaker, and fellow traveler on this journey of growing in God's Word. Each week we'll dive into scripture together and have the opportunity to be encouraged in the truth that never changes. If you're able, grab your Bible, a cup of coffee, and let's seek God's wisdom together. Hi there, and welcome back to the Wisdom for Wednesday podcast. I am so glad that you're here and I'm excited to finally get to share what I've been studying. I mentioned that I spoke at a ladies' conference last weekend and I was studying Psalm 46. Their theme was Be Still and Know That I Am God. And so I dove into Psalm 46 and I was learning so much and I just couldn't wait to share it with you all. So that's what we're gonna do today. I'm going to play a recording of that session that I did. I do want to mention something. The pastor's wife had done a previous session on the be still part of be still and know that I am God. And she brought out something so neat that I do mention in the lesson. So I wanted to just kind of let you in on that. And she talked about how the words be still have seven letters, and no and no have seven letters. And so, of course, seven in the Bible is completion or perfection, but seven plus seven equals fourteen. And the number 14 in the Bible is associated with deliverance, which is just so cool for what I learned about Psalm 46. So I wanted to share that with you before I start the lesson, and I hope that you enjoy it. I don't take it lightly when I get asked to speak. I think handling God's word, we need to do that with care anytime we have the opportunity to do it. And I really appreciated Miss Janelle's lesson this morning and her following the leading of the Holy Spirit. And that is what I hope to do here today. Um I am, I was a little nervous because she had said, I'm not going to go into Psalm 46, really. And so when she starts saying the background and she's talking about 2 Kings, and I'm like, okay, is she going there? Because we're going there. But okay, so before we get started, I do want to pray, and then we'll we will be in 2 Kings first, and then we'll get to Psalm 46. So I'll pray with you and then we'll get started. Dear Heavenly Father, Lord, I just thank you so much for the opportunity to be here. I thank you for each of these ladies who have taken time out of their busy schedules to come and to hear from you today. I pray that you would meet them right where they are and give them what they need to hear. I thank you for the ladies who have worked tirelessly for this for this retreat, for this conference, and the work that they put in. I'm thankful for that, Lord. I do pray that you would be with me now, that I would follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, that you'd be with my words, that I would only say what you would want me to say. And I pray, Lord, that you would meet with us and just speak to each of us through your word with what we need to hear right now. I thank you, Lord, in Jesus' name. Amen. Okay, the other thing you need to probably know is that my glasses, my new glasses, broke right before I left the house. So these are old. I I already have big font, so hopefully if I read something that sounds funny, you know what happened. Okay. So anyway, um, I will say the theme, be still and know, be still and know that I am God. So a lot of times we see that phrase, be still and know, and it stops right there. Drives my husband crazy. He's like, What are we supposed to know? And I'm like, Well, people know what it says, you know, and then I'm like, well, now today we're gonna talk about what are we supposed to know? Because be still and know that I am God. Um, so as I was studying, and I found the same thing that Psalm 46, a lot of people believe, is based on that story about Hezekiah. And so I went there and I studied through it, and looking through Psalm 46 with that lens just made it come alive for me. And so that's what I'm hoping to share with you today. I just saw my notes, forgot to say something. All right, if you are a pastor's wife, um, I do like to give you a free book. So if you haven't come by my table and you would like a free book, come by. If you already bought a book, come by and get a different one. Okay, I gotta say that before I'm done. And because I'll forget if I don't say that now. Okay, I think we're ready. So we are going to start there in 2 Kings chapter 18. So in the first eight verses, we're kind of introduced to Hezekiah, gives us that background. He became the king of Judah when he was 25 years old. It tells us he did that which was right in the sight of the Lord. He removed the high places, he broke down the images that the children of Israel had started worshiping. And then let's read verse five. It says, He trusted in the Lord God of Israel, so that after him was none like him among all the kings of Judah, nor any that were before him. And if we keep reading, it tells us he claved to the Lord, he kept his commandments, and he departed not from following after the Lord. And then it tells us in verse 7, the Lord was with him and he prospered whithersoever he went. Um, so then we see in the sixth year of Hezekiah's reign that Assyria came and they carried away Israel. So we need to keep in mind at this time that the children of Israel were divided into two kingdoms. Okay, you have the northern kingdom, which is called Israel, that was consisting of ten tribes, and then you have the southern kingdom was called Judah. Two two tribes, Judah and Benjamin. Ooh, I cannot expand it. Okay, we're all right. So then in verse 12, it tells us that Israel was carried away because they obeyed not the voice of the Lord. And actually, Judah was really on that same trajectory, but because of Hezekiah's leadership, their judgment was delayed. Hezekiah did some good things. Eight years later, so it was the 14th year of Hezekiah's reign, the Assyrians are back and their sights are set on Judah and the city of Jerusalem. Okay, that's kind of where we're at. And in Bible times, a common military tactic was to besiege a city. So that means they were going to surround the city with armed forces and they were going to try and compel surrender, maybe through starvation or cutting off a water supply or eventually breaching the walls. And it could take months or years. Well, the Assyrians they began to taunt Judah and demand that they pay tribute or be destroyed. Um, we can see in verse 29 and 30 that they attempted to stir up fear in the people. It says, Thus saith the king, let not Hezekiah deceive you, for he shall not be able to deliver you out of his hand, neither let Hezekiah make you trust in the Lord, saying, The Lord will surely deliver us, and this city shall not be delivered into the hand of the king of Assyria. So he goes on to remind them of all the other nations that he's conquered, okay? All the other nations that he's taken. Um, and then in chapter 19 is where we see Hezekiah's response. And he just takes it to the Lord, lays it all out before him. Let's pick up reading in verse 14. It says, And Hezekiah received the letter of the hand of the messengers and read it. And Hezekiah went up into the house of the Lord and spread it before the Lord. And Hezekiah prayed before the Lord and said, O Lord God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone of all the kingdoms of the earth, thou hast made heaven and earth. Lord, bow down thine ear and hear, open, Lord, thine eyes and see, and hear the words of Sennacherib, which hath sent him to reproach the living God. Of a truth, Lord, the kings of Assyria have destroyed the nations and their lands, and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were no gods, but the work of men's hands, wood and stone, therefore they have destroyed them. Now therefore, O Lord our God, I beseech thee, save thou us out of his hand, that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only. So notice verse 19, Hezekiah prays that he would that God would save the people so that all the kingdom kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only. So that phrase if in the Bible, that ye may know that I am the Lord, it appears hundreds of times in scripture, over and over. If you've ever read through your Bible, especially in the old Old Testament, you're gonna see it over and over again. And I've always been told that repetition in God's word is his volume control. So there's something he wants us to know about this, and so that word know means to perceive with certainty or to understand clearly. It can also mean to distinguish as to know one from another. So throughout the Old Testament, God did things to show Israel and the surrounding nations that he was the one true God. Um, his people were surrounded by nations who openly worshiped and served false gods. They were inundated with practices like temple prostitution, child sacrifice, astrology, idolatry. So that's the reason that God called them to be separate and warned them against following people from those other nations or allowing people from those other nations to influence the way they worshipped. Okay. So notice that his Hezekiah said, he said, the Assyrians, they were able to overthrow those other nations because they were serving false gods. But we're coming to you, Lord, the one true God, and we're asking you for deliverance. I loved that. I loved that. So good. His word is so good. Um, we can see in verse 20 his response is, I have heard you. And then if we'll read down in verse 34, get the tears out of my eyes so I can see. It says, For I will defend this city to save it for mine own sake and for my servant David's sake. And it came to pass that night that the angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians a hundred fourscore and five thousand. That's a hundred and eighty-five thousand. And when they arose early in the morning, behold, they were all dead corpses. So Sennacherib, king of Assyria, departed and went and returned and dwelt at Nineveh. Now, we could see that Sennacherib actually goes home and is killed by his sons while he's worshiping one of his false gods, if we continue to read there. Now, with that in mind, I want us to look at Psalm 46. Okay, so keeping all of that in mind, let's turn over there. I had my place saved and I moved it for some reason. Okay, and I I know Miss Janelle read it. I'm gonna read it again because I it's good, and and the way that you can just see the progression through it, we're gonna read it and then we'll we'll talk a little bit through it. It says, God is our refuge and strength, a very present help and trouble. Therefore, will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. Selah. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most high. God is in the midst of her. We're talking about a city here, not a woman. Okay. She shall not be moved, God shall help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved, he uttered his voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge, Selah. Come, behold the works of the Lord, what desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth, he breaketh the bow and cutteth the spear in sunder, he burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us, the God of Jacob is our refuge, Selah. Now I do just want to mention that word Selah means rest. Okay, so when we see it in the Psalms, it's their songs, so you have rests and songs, but it can also be referring to the millennial reign because that is considered a period of rest. So when we look at the Psalms, there's the historical background, which, like we said, could be the Hezekiah and the deliverance that they had from the Assyrians. There's also the devotional application or the practical application to our lives, but there's also a prophetic application. So that could be talking about the millennial reign, um, the return of Jesus Christ. So, anyway, let's go back now, verse ones through one through three, we can see that no matter what is going on around us, we don't need to fear. And God is our refuge. I love that word. Refuge is a shelter or protection from danger or distress. This is the part I love. A place inaccessible to the enemy. So when you are struggling, you can go to your refuge. You can go to God. And I just love that. He is our strength, he's our might, our power, our toughness, he's our support, which supplies strength and security. And it says he is a very present help in trouble. And so trouble is an affliction. And I'm gonna say that could be an external affliction, a trial that we're going through, but it could also be internal, like an agitation or a disturbance of the mind, which I think we have those anxiety, fear, all those things. So remember that verse because we're gonna come back to that one. Um, and then in verse four through seven, we see this taking place in Jerusalem. Okay, now Hezekiah had actually tunneled water into the city, but we also know that God supplies living water. And Miss Janelle already gave you the comparison between verse three and verse four, and I love that. In verse three, the waters are raging. In verse four, they're calm, and that's because God wants you to be calm in the midst of your storm, He wants to give you peace in the midst of your storm, whatever it is. And I just love that. Now, verse five, I already kind of mentioned it, it's often taken out of context because it sounds really good to say God is in the midst of her, she will not fail, which is usually the translation translation they use. And um it's not what the verse is talking about. I'm not saying God is not in the midst of us. If you've accepted Christ as your Savior, you have the Holy Spirit dwelling in you, but this is just not that verse, okay? And then we can see it says that the city of God would not be moved. Well, that means to be overthrown, because remember, we're talking about Jerusalem there. And then it says, God shall help her, and that right early. And I told you to remember that word early because when the morning dawned, they had found the angel of the Lord had killed a hundred and eighty-five thousand armed soldiers. That's what they found that morning. So I want you to think about verse eight. Um, come, behold the works of the Lord. So come, see the fallen soldiers, see what God has done. Okay. Um, I just I just love that. And then we get to verse 10 where it says, Be still and know that I am God. Now, remember Hezekiah's prayer? His prayer was that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that thou art the Lord God, even thou only. So we talked about how that word know was to distinguish. Um, and then one of the things there at the end of our verse, verse 10, I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth is part. We don't necessarily read that part often or talk about that part as much, but that's what it is, is they wanted they wanted Hezekiah wanted them to know God. He's the one true God, he gets exalted, he gets magnified, and and that's what God was saying there. So I think about the word no in two different parts. Okay, so you have that one where it's knowledge, acknowledge him with due respect, recognize him, to distinguish him as the one true God. And that's the no we're talking about here in this in this passage. Um, but this is the kind of no that would bring about the fear of the Lord. Okay, and the fear of the Lord is not something like bad or scary, it's we should fear the Lord. This type of fear is really just having a proper respect for God that compels us to abandon our evil ways and it teaches us wisdom and it leads us to confidence in him. And I I found this in my Thomas Nelson Concordance. It said, for if we submit to God, we do not have to fear any other power. So when we put God in his place and understand the power and authority that he has over our lives, why do we need to fear anything else? Because we recognize that he is in control, that he is, you know, he is he's working his plan in our lives. We can see Proverbs 14, 26 says, In the fear of the Lord is strong confidence, and his children shall have a place of refuge. There's that word again. So that proper fear of the Lord is what gives us confidence that God has everything under control and he's working his perfect plan in our lives. I'm not saying we're not gonna have trials, I'm not saying we're not gonna have storms, but we can trust God through them. We can trust him to deliver us through them. I love the definition of deliver that he will carry us through. It may not be we always want an immediate rescue. Lord, I'm I'm done. Where's my exit? But that's not what we're always going to get. Sometimes we have to walk through that trial. And then what's comforting is to know that no matter what it is, we're not gonna go through it alone. He's always with us, he's always there for us, and he wants to be our refuge, just like the children of Israel, surrounded by 185,000 armed soldiers, and they could trust the Lord. I just I love that. When we know that, that's what allows us to be still. When we know when we know who he is, it allows us to be still. So if you think about it, did Hezekiah and the and Judah, what did they have to do in the battle? Nothing. Hands off, like we heard. It was be still, hands off. They didn't have to do anything. And I think that be still kind of has two parts as well, because it can mean hands off, like Hezekiah in the battle, but also to be still can be, hey, I need to be quiet and I need to take time to get to know the Lord. So you can know that God is the one true God, but then there's another definition of know, which is to be familiar with, to recognize by recollection or remembrance or description. So knowing his character, his attributes. And so we need to take time to be still and get to know our God. Um, so not only do we need to know that, okay, he's the one true God, but then we also need to be still and get to know him and become familiar with him. Okay, we're gonna talk a little, we're gonna tie all this up at some point. Don't get too excited. Um, but we we need to know and recognize God's character because that helps us to be still. So it's kind of a process. We're gonna talk about it, but we can do that by getting into God's word. We can do that by prayer, we're gonna become more familiar with Him. Coming to things like this, we're gonna become more familiar with Him. But also you can look back and you can remember the things that God has done for you. You Can recall when he did this for you, when he did this for you. Just like Hezekiah and they said, Behold the works of the Lord. Look back in your life and recall who he is. He's faithful and he is always with you. And you're going to see that when you take the time to be still and considerate. And so we can't truly know that he is the one true God. So here's this no, know that he's the one true God until we know him or become familiar with him. Okay. Um, so let me get where I'm supposed to be. Sorry. When Miss Chanel first asked me to speak, the thing my mind went to first was this question, what do I know about my God? Because that is a book. Um, it's written by Marty Collier. I'm not sure how to say her name, so it could be wrong. And I've recommended that before because basically she kind of walks you through through through the process of finding out who God is as you read and study your study your Bible. And I have like a notebook dedicated to that. And I just keep adding to it. Um, but some of what I found is right here in this psalm where it says, God is our refuge. That's in my notebook. God is my strength, God is my help, he is with me. I am not alone. And there's so much more that we can learn about him to become familiar with him if we will take the time to be still in his word. Now, I do want to look at a New Testament example. This is going to make Miss Chanel very excited. Um, and I just want to demonstrate this a little bit more because I really want you to get this. Because she said this too. You could be sitting here today and you can be saved. You can know that you're on your way to heaven and you cannot intimately know the Lord. And that's where I was several years ago. I was saved, but I had not taken time to be still and get to know the Lord. So you can be sitting here and not know him intimately. And we're gonna see that in Mark chapter four. So if you'll flip over there with me, Mark chapter four, we get to read about some water. I love it. The Lord is good. Okay, so in Mark chapter four, it says, and the same day, oh sorry, did I tell you the verse 35? And the same day when the even was come, he saith unto them, Let us pass over unto the other side. And when they had sent away the multitude, they took him even as he was in the ship. And there were also with him other little ships, and there arose a great storm of wind, and the waves beat into the ship, so that it was now full, and he was in the hinder part of the ship asleep on a pillow, and they awake him and say unto him, Master, carest thou not that we perish? And he arose and rebuked the wind, and said unto the sea, Peace be still. And the wind ceased, and there was a great calm. And he said unto them, Why are ye so fearful? How is it that ye have no faith? And they feared exceedingly, and said one to another, What manner of man is this that even the wind and the sea obey him? Now there's a few things I want to point out about this passage. The first thing is in verse 36, because when I was studying through this recently, and I had never realized this, that second sentence it says, And there were also with him other little ships. And I hadn't really noticed that before, but what that reminded me is that we are all going through storms of life. You're not alone, yours is not different. I think sometimes we think that, well, my situation is different, my situation is somehow worse off than someone else, but truly everybody can be going through a storm of life, and it may be a little different than yours, but you can all feel like this. The raging waters, no matter what it is, your storm might be different than mine, but we're all in the raging waters together, is what I'm trying to tell you, okay? Um, and then I want you to notice that in Jesus' response, he said those words, peace be still, because that's his desire for us in the midst of the storms of life. But notice the things that the disciples said. What one question they said, Carest thou not that we perish? They had walked with Jesus for some time before this, they had witnessed miracles, and yet their words reveal that they didn't know who was in the boat with them. Because if they had, they would have known. 1 Peter 5:7, casting all your care upon him, for he careth for you. Isaiah 41, 10, fear thou not, for I am with thee. Be not dismayed, for I am thy God. I will strengthen thee. Yea, I will help thee, yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand of my righteousness. That was part of his character. He cared for them. They asked that question. They asked this, what manner of man is this? That even the wind and the sea obey him? And that question reveals that they did not recognize who he was as the one true God, that he had power over the creation he had made. So they were in the boat with him. And that's why I say you can be here today and you can be saved, and you're in the boat with him, but you don't know him. I will say this: if they knew him and understood the power that he had as the one true God, they would have known that he had the power over the wind in the sea. And they would have known that he cared for them. So just like the disciples, we can be sitting here and not really know the Lord, not recognize and acknowledge his power in our own lives, not have a personal walk with him that allows us to become familiar with him, his character and his attributes. And you may be sitting here thinking, okay, why is this important? Why what does it matter? I will say this knowing him is the difference in how we come out of our trouble. Remember that word trouble? Whether it's external, the trials that we face, or it's internal, maybe discouragement, fear, anxiety. It's how I'm able to look back after our early years of marriage when we were ready to call it quits, and I can say, look what God has done. It's how I'm able to trust the Lord with my kids so far away. They're in metropolises and I'm in little Kansas. I'm like, but I know that the Lord is with them and they are right where he wants them to be. Knowing him allows me to leave my job and my full-time pay and say, okay, Lord, you told me to do this. I'm gonna trust you. And I'm just I'm along for the ride because I know we're following what he wants us to do. It's how we were able to lose our We were able to lose our grandson at that 19 weeks, and I can come out of it and I can say, look what God has done. Because through that, that just happened in October. Through that, his mercy was evident, his grace was evident, his goodness was evident. And the only way I can do that is because I know him. And I want to remind you that in the midst of your trouble, in the midst of your battle, thank you. Hezekiah and and the people of Jerusalem had a hundred and eighty-five thousand armed soldiers around them, and in the midst of it, God says, be still and know that I am God. I put one of these in your or I asked them to put one of these in your sack. And I'm hoping to explain it a little bit, because I want you to take it with you so that you'll remember. Because this process of knowing the Lord and being still, and being still and knowing him, and being still and knowing him, I see it like a circle, a never-ending process. It's continuous. And so at the top you can see be still and rest. So I want you to remember you're taking time in his word, you're taking time in prayer, you're resting. As you do that, you're gonna know him, you're gonna become familiar with him. Okay, and that is what allows you to go down here where you can be still and take your hands off the situation. You can say it's yours, Lord. Because I know who you are, I can say it's all yours. Okay, and then as you do that, you're able to know him because you can see the work that he's doing on your behalf. You can know he's the one true God. He's gonna show you what he can do, just like he did for the people of Jerusalem. And then as you do that, you can take time to rest, be in his word, be in prayer, get more familiar with him. Because what happens is the more that you do this, it's easier to take those hands off. It's easier to say, okay, this hurts, but I know you. And I know you're gonna work this for our good. And then you're going to get to know him more, and then you're gonna be still, and then you're gonna know him more, and it's gonna keep going and going and going. It doesn't stop. So I have a few questions I want to ask you as we kind of close here. So the first one is how well do you know him? Or do you know him at all? Has there been a time in your life when you've accepted Christ as your Savior? Because if not, that's where it all has to begin. Romans 3 tells us there is none righteous, there's none that seeketh after God. Verse 23 tells us, for all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. And Romans 6.23 says, For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. God commendeth his love toward sinners, that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. He is the only way. Jesus says that I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh to the Father but by me. We all have to come to that place where we recognize our need for salvation first and accept his free gift. There's nothing we can do to earn it. And then it tells us in Romans chapter 10 that if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. And you might say, Well, I've done that. I know I'm saved, I know I'm on my way to heaven. So there's the question still remains how well do you know him? What do you know about him? About his character? Maybe it's time for you to be still before him and to get more into his word, spend time with prayer and truly get to know him. And then do you truly know that he is the Lord? Do you acknowledge that he has complete and authority, complete power and authority over your life? Because if we did, we would live differently. I want to leave you with these verses because I just heard them this week. And I thought, wow, if this was truly our heart, how we could know the Lord. Psalm 63, 1 and 2 says, O God, thou art my God. Early will I seek thee. My soul thirsteth for thee. My flesh longeth for thee in a dry and thirsty land where no water is, to see thy power and thy glory, so as I have seen thee in the sanctuary. I can tell you, ladies, when I truly started studying my Bible, it became personal to me. And it changed my life. And that's my heart for everyone in here, is that you would have this a thirst and a longing for the Lord to know him. Because that's going to help you when you go through those troubles. Truly it is. And so if you would just bow your heads, just take a moment to consider what the Lord has spoken to you about. As Ms. Janelle said this morning, if you need to respond, I believe if the Lord spoke into your heart, you should respond. We should be willing to do that. I'm gonna pray and then allow you some time. Dear Heavenly Father, I just come to you again. I thank you so much for your word. And I thank you that we can know you through it. Lord, I thank you that you are my refuge, you are my strength, and you are my help in times of trouble. I pray for the ladies here. I Lord, you you know their hearts, you know their need, and so I just ask that you'd speak to them and you'd work as only you can. In Jesus' name.

unknown 38:09

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 38:10

Okay, Crystal here, back in real time. I hope this was as much of a blessing to you as it was to me. Sometimes I think that we are familiar with verses, but we don't dig deep enough. We just have a surface-level understanding of what the verse is. And yes, it's comforting, but when you really dig in and study it and you consider it, it can mean so much more. And so, as always, I encourage you to study your Bibles. Study, study, study. All right, so thank you for listening. Make sure you tune in next week again for the next episode of Wisdom for Wednesday.