Psalm 91: A Covenant with God in a Dialogue

Trilogy Christian Publishers

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Copyright © 2020 by Udo Otummkpo

All Scripture quotations, unless indicated, are taken from the Spirit-Filled Life Bible, Copyright 1991 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations marked KJV are taken from the Holy Bible: King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Holman Bible Publishers. All rights reserved.

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ISBN 978-1-64773-414-5 (Print Book)

ISBN 978-1-64773-415-2 (ebook)

Dedication

To God Jehovah, our Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit be all the honor and glory forever. Amen.

Leaders’ Endorsements

Thank you, Dr. Otummkpo, for your book on Psalm 91. This is a very good book that captivates one’s heart, mind, and attention. It stirs one’s heart to act and to declare God’s Word for what is rightfully his as a child of God. Thanks for the diligent work of writing this book. It is my great pleasure to highly recommend to everyone to pick up one or two copies of the book, to read, and share with another person. When you do, I seriously encourage you to read it in its entirety first, and then go back and read it again with the intent to meditate on it. Many blessings are on anyone who spends time in this book and meditates on the many inspirational and spiritual nuggets presented in it.

—Mr. Ferdinand Mayila, Prayer Ministry Leader,

Counselor, WCCI Global Mission Coordinator,

World Changers Church, Marietta, (WCCM), Georgia, USA

Dr. Udo Otummkpo, you have done an awesome job in compiling these revelations. Congratulations! I agree with you that your book will change the lives of all those who read it. In this book, Psalm 91, Dr. Udo Otummkpo has tapped into some of the core truths and the revelation on God’s mighty hands of divine protection over His children. Through his dedication of study, diligence, and careful observation, he has identified some hidden keys and missing ingredients to activate God’s covenant with His children as they speak His Word. The potent practical teaching in this Ninety-First Psalm will remove intellectual, psychological, and emotional barriers from your soul (mind, will, and emotions) as your heart undergoes divine spiritual circumcision when you see and receive Jesus by faith. It will also draw you closer in your relationship to God through Jesus Christ regarding His love, divine protection, and provision for us, His children.

—Mr. Michael A Roussell Sr., Operations Leader,

World Changers Church, Marietta, (WCCM), Georgia, USA

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

1. He Who Dwells Abides

2. The Most High God’s Secret Place

3. God Is Your Refuge and Fortress—Say It

4. What Is It About Your Words?

5. Holy Spirit Baptism and Speaking in Tongues

6. Psalm 91 Is Messianic

7. Watch Your Language, Child

8. God is Your Deliverance

9. God’s Wings Cover You

10. God Is with You, Fear Not

11. No Evil Comes Near You

12. The Reward of the Wicked

13. The Reward of the Wicked

14. The Reward of the Wicked

15. God Is Your Habitation; No Evil and No Plague Come on You

16. God’s Angels Keep You Safe

17. Your Enemies Are Under Your Feet

18. God’s Acts of Love in the Covenant

19. God Gives Long Life, Satisfaction, and Salvation

20. Why This Covenant of Psalm 91?

21. Your Response

22. Case in Point: What about Mr. A?

23. My Version of Psalm 91

24. The End

Acknowledgments

My wholehearted thanks, deepest regards, and sincere love to Minister Carol Jones, Mr. Ferdinand Mayila, Mr. Michael Roussell Sr., Mr. Lee Canady, Mr. Korey Harris, and Mr. Eddie Otummkpo for their immense contributions toward the success of this sacred work. Our Lord Jesus Christ, adequately, rewards your work of faith and labor of love. Amen.

Introduction

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most-High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the Lord, He is my refuge and my fortress; my God, in Him I will trust. Surely, He shall deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the perilous pestilence. He shall cover you with His feathers and under His wings you shall take refuge; His truth shall be your shield and buckler. You shall not be afraid of the terror by night, nor of the arrow that flies by day, nor of the pestilence that walks in darkness, nor the destruction that lays waste at noonday. A thousand may fall at your side, and ten thousand at your right hand; but it shall not come near you. Only with your eyes you shall look and see the reward of the wicked. Because you have made the Lord, who is my refuge, even the Most-High your dwelling place, no evil shall befall you, nor shall any plague come near your dwelling. For, He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways. In their hands, they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot against a stone. You shall tread upon the lion and the cobra, the young lion and the serpent you shall trample underfoot. Because he has set his love upon Me, therefore I will deliver him; I will set him on high because he has known My name. He shall call upon Me and I will answer him; I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him and honor him. With long life, I will satisfy him and show him My salvation.

—Psalm 91 NKJV

1

He Who Dwells Abides

Psalm 91 is a covenant between God and man. It is the covenant between God and the Man, Jesus Christ, in His pre-incarnation (Psalm 2:7–8, 11–12; Matthew 12:21; Romans 15:12). Jesus represents the entire human race of all colors before God. It is an everlasting covenant because the leaders of each party in this covenant—God representing the divine, and Jesus Christ representing the humans—are eternal beings. It is a covenant of love and the mother of all the other covenants God ever cut with man. Besides this covenant in Psalm 91, God has established other covenants with man as He reveals Himself to humanity. When God reveals Himself to man by a specific name, this establishes His covenant. For example, His name Jehovah Shalom establishes the covenant of peace with man through the cross of Jesus Christ. He initiated the process of reconciliation with man through Jesus Christ out of His love. His name Jehovah Jireh establishes the covenant of provision with man to provide for and maintain him throughout his lifetime, here and thereafter, in eternity.

Psalm 91 is established and put into effect with words through a dialogue. It begins with the word he which means that it can be anybody alive—man, woman, or child. A Christian or a non-Christian can be this he. However, the individual must make a quality decision to be in the covenant relationship with God. Any man is free to enter this covenant by God’s grace and benefit. The benefits are automatic with immediate effect, without any waiting period, protocol, or discrimination.

I decided to be the he by God’s grace when I became born again in 1973 at the age of seventeen. You too can be the he by being born again and acknowledging the reality of the covenant. When you are saved, you can now begin and continue to consistently dialogue with God with the words of this covenant. This dialogue will build and strengthen your intimacy with the Lord, strengthen your faith, and cause the manifestations of the benefits in the covenant in your life.

Membership in this covenant is open to all living beings with no age limit. All human/person of any age—young and old are qualified—because of Christ. Even the unborn baby can enter this covenant through the parents when it is introduced to the Lord and the Lord to the baby while in the womb. Using the word he is like using the word whoever, which includes everyone. Membership is free to the individuals because Jesus paid the enrollment fee for everyone. This psalm is a conversation or a dialogue between two covenant people in a love relationship. These covenant people are God and man—in general, God and you or God and I, to be specific—because of being in Christ.

Therefore, in this situation, the Psalmist is describing a man talking to God in verses 1–13 and God responding to the man in verses 14–16. Again, God gave Moses this revelation of His love covenant dialogue with the Man Jesus in His pre-incarnation. Yet this covenant applies to all humankind today, totally, and only those who enter it by faith in Jesus through God’s grace receive the benefits.

As usual, we can see here that man talks more than God does. Yet Jesus teaches us in Matthew 6:7–8 not to speak to God with voluminous empty words. Many times, repeating words is not what move, force, or convince God to help or hear us. In many instances, we catch His attention because He is concerned about our faithlessness, which makes us say more than we need to say, hoping to convince Him. Our many words come because of our doubt, unbelief, fear, and faithlessness. This kind of attitude troubles the heart of our loving God and Father. Many times, we pray as a matter of routine and religiously to satisfy ourselves that we did our Christian duty for the day. By doing that, we would not feel guilty that we skipped our prayer time should anything negative happen later in the day. This is a work-based relationship with God. This is religion and, therefore, unacceptable before the Lord.

Many Christians pray routinely or religiously. They ignore the undeniable love of God and begin to question why He lets trouble come to them when they face any kind of challenge. This kind of action and attitude, again, is work-based and self-effort. We try to get God to do something in response to what we have done as in the Old Testament. In this New Covenant of grace and mercy, we should respond to God, instead, in our prayers for the manifestation of His already established provision for us through Christ.

Moreover, as many believers pray, routinely, they ignore God’s participation. Prayer is a dialogue and a conversation with the Lord. But some pray and talk all through the duration of their prayers without stopping to listen to God. They do not pause to hear God’s input on the conversation. They forget that God gave man the ability to speak and that He too can talk and loves to talk to people. He is not the Muslim god, the Hindu god, the Mormon god, or any other man-made gods that cannot speak.

Our Jehovah Most High God is good and loving, and He speaks to His creation. He is speaking ceaselessly to us, but He cannot get through to a great many people. Then, when in trouble, these same people complain that God did not talk to them or warn them ahead of time. They are not aware that God had no chance to get through to them. Again, knowing how loving our God is, I believe He is always speaking to His children and man in general. He dialogued with Cain after he murdered his brother, Abel (Genesis 4:6–16). He spoke to the ravens to bring food to Elijah, and the birds heard and obeyed Him (1 Kings 17:4). What is the matter with Christians today who say they don’t hear or cannot hear from God?

I know that God was speaking to these individuals who have now come to complain before they got into the bad situation, just as He spoke to Elijah. But they could not nor did not hear Him because they were too busy talking so that they could finish praying and leave. Besides, they went all day distracted by many other things. They were buried in their lives’ daily routines and obligations. They left no room for God, though they say they love Him. God is not a deadbeat dad or an absentee father who does not relate to His children or support them. He is a great loving Father who cares for all His children (1 Peter 5:6–7). God will never allow anyone to badmouth Him that He failed to care for His children.

If anyone or Satan tells you that God does not love you or care about you, it is a statement of ignorance and a lie from the kingdom of darkness. God loves you and, seriously, cares for you (Psalm 55:22, 115:12–13, 8:1–9 NASB). Jesus practically demonstrated God’s love for man and confirmed His care for us by telling of how God cares for the birds and the lilies. He concluded that we are more valuable to God than everything that He has created, and He cares for us (Matthew 6:26, 28–30 NLT). Jesus personally died on the cross for man to show and tell God’s love to everyone.

God’s Extent of Care

Notice with me in that 1 Kings 17, referenced above, how God commanded not a raven but ravens, as in many, to cater to Elijah for two years or longer before the brook dried up. Why is this important to note? It may not be a big deal for just one raven to bring food to Elijah one time. But for many ravens to organize this catering service per God’s instructions to them, to me, that is supernatural. Only God can do a thing like this. The ravens did this twice a day, not being late, without fail, or confusion. Therefore, we see here ravens listening to and obeying God to benefit the man of God.

Ravens are meat lovers, but they did not eat Elijah’s meat while bringing it to him. Then we see Elijah hearing, obeying, and benefiting from God in a difficult time. The lesson here is that God is always with us in the Spirit and talking to us. He guides us in our spirit with His Word. He wants us to listen, hear, do as instructed, and benefit. The question is: Are you listening to God? Or are you spending all your time talking about your problems, complaining, and are distracted?

Therefore, lesson 101 in effective verbal communication and attention in any relationship requires that:

Two people should not speak at the same time.

You listen when someone else is talking.

You do not talk with something or food in your mouth to enhance clarity.

You ask questions when necessary, if you do not understand, only at the end of his statement without interrupting the other.

You repeat what you heard said to you to be sure you heard it correctly; yes, even with God.

You should not read meanings that are not there into what you heard; simply understand what you heard said.

If your conversation is with God, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit, do not try to understand it logically in your mind until you have received it in your spirit. Sometimes, it does not make human sense; so simply receive and believe it in your heart and do it.

You do not make any assumptions regarding what you heard.

The Omniscient God Desires a Dialogue

God knows what is in your heart already, but He still wants you to tell Him about it. He loves to tell you what is in His heart. In fact, He already told us His heart in the sixty-six books of the Bible. We may not understand it all now. Besides, He loves to guide us by speaking to us in our current situations. But are you consistent in listening and hearing God’s Word to know what He is saying to you? Do you listen to God and receive His Word through studying and preaching with understanding in your heart? This is essential so that the Holy Spirit can remind you later when you need it? He still delights in speaking to you one-on-one in your current situation.

Therefore, pay attention to Him in your spirit. It pleases Him when you hear and understand not just His written words in the Bible but also His spoken words to you directly in your heart. It is profitable for you to confess the written word and meditate on it consistently. Confession and meditation are both the foundation for and the pathway to hearing from God, receiving revelation, knowledge, wisdom, and having success in this world. God uses both His written and His spoken words to minister to or reach us every time. So, when you talk to Him or read His Word, pause and listen to His voice.

I am not saying that it is wrong to talk to God in many words if you have much to discuss with Him as in worship, praise, thanksgiving, and even petition to Him. I am simply saying do not try to outtalk Him, talk over Him, nor repeat things. Don’t yell when you pray to God. He is not hard of hearing. Satan and his demonic spirits are the ones to yell at, if you need to, out of righteous anger. They can be stubborn sometimes, and we must treat them with force and authority for them to get the point. They may wait for you to repeat your commands to them because they like to try our faith, our seriousness, and question our authority in Christ.

As for the Lord, simply hold a normal conversation and a faith-filled dialogue with Him in reverence. Enjoy His presence and bask in His love. God is only tough on Satan and sin but very gentle and kind to man and amazingly easy to relate to. Also, learn to communicate with God nonverbally by meditating on His Word and exercising your positive imagination. Remember and understand that a consistent dialogue with God coupled with godly meditation, which includes positive imagination and expectation is, again, the sure pathway to divine revelations and a successful Christian living.

Remember also that God, in His love, has already decided to relate to us. He has brought us into His family by His works of grace through Jesus Christ. He gives us His brand-new mercies every morning. In this covenant relationship with God, man can simply say to God, My Lord, my God, Father, I love You. I believe You and I trust You with my life and my family today and always. Thank You for being my Father and my God. Thank You for Your protection and provisions for me today in Your covenant.

Then you can add to that whatever else you want to discuss with Him, and that will take care of everything. Then you listen for His voice and follow His directions. Expect Him to talk to you and give Him the chance, not only when you pray but any time.

However, you may not have much to talk to God about at one time if you obey the instructions in 1 Thessalonians 5:17. It says, Pray without ceasing. This simply means that you should talk to God constantly. Do not miss or ignore holding a conversation with Him for too long. Praying without ceasing does not mean you kneeling at home at your bedside with your eyes closed and praying for hours or all day. No one on earth has time to pray that way, not even the ministers in full-time ministry. It does include you finding time when you are at home to spend with your heavenly Father in prayers. This is what Jesus did. He spent time with the Father one time and then went out and ministered to the people. Yet, praying without ceasing is more about you recognizing God in His Spirit, the Holy Spirit, as your unseen companion wherever you are or go and talking to Him. You must engage Him in a conversation all day while enjoying His presence. I am telling you that it is exciting, beneficial, rewarding, fulfilling, and satisfying to live this way. Rehearsing Psalm 91 is one of the ways to communicate with God.

Satan’s Interruption

Meanwhile, notice also that Satan is in the middle of this God and man relationship as early as verse three. He goes about planting snares to catch the Christian, and he is bringing perilous pestilences to kill him. Satan is there, trying hard to cause confusion, particularly on the man side of this covenant because he sees man as the weak link (1 Corinthians 14:33). He already had a sour taste of his defeat when he rebelled against God in eternity. His membership in God’s family was forfeited, and his permanent residency in the kingdom of heaven was revoked.

It is proper to admit because of obvious reasons that man is weak and helpless, especially the man without God through Jesus Christ. The unborn-again man is not a match to Satan. He doesn’t stand a chance against the devil on his own. After Adam’s fall, every man is born into this world infected with the devil’s spirit of selfishness. From that point on, man becomes self-centered, except the man Jesus. Jesus is the Word of God in human flesh. And since the Scriptures call God’s Word the incorruptible seed, there is nothing of the devil in Him (1 Peter 1:23).

The natural man is an easy target for the devil because of the selfishness in his heart that he inherited from him—Satan through Adam. Knowing Satan’s possessive, aggressive, and persuasive nature, he always wants to use what belongs to him to the fullest and even steal what is not his (John 10:10a). In other words, he aggressively persuades man, including the Christian, sad to say, to express the spirit of selfishness every time against fellow men in every situation.

Nevertheless, only the believer has the authority from God to stop Satan’s aggressiveness, refuse, and reject his persuasion. We are strong only in the Lord Jesus and in the power of His might (Ephesians 6:10). Therefore, I tell you that Satan always fails in all his efforts when we stand firm in Christ. God Himself, through Christ, already guaranteed this covenant of love to work for us with the blood of His Son, Jesus, even before we came into the covenant relationship with Him. He is faithful and committed to keep His covenant forever. Therefore, if you are not saved, the most important thing to do is allow God to save you by believing in Jesus Christ, and then you are in the covenant with Him. If God has saved you already, stop straddling the fence. Be a fulltime, faithful, Christian believer. Give Satan no chance nor room to toy with and intimidate you.

Satan

Satan’s original and real name is Lucifer. His name became Satan, which means adversary, later when iniquity was found in him. He is a spirit being. He has no physical body and he has never had a physical body. He will never have a physical body except that which he possesses whether it is of man or of any other created being. He is an eternal being, just like man and just like God. He will never and cannot die as in ceasing to exist. Yet he is already dead because he is separated from God who is life and light. He is a walking dead. His followers, human or spirit, are in the same condition of death, though they are still alive, physically, or spiritually, until the end of all things as determined by God.

Therefore, at the end of this age and after the Great White Throne Judgement, Satan will be cast into the lake of fire. His evil angels and people who rejected Jesus Christ and did not believe God in their lifetime will accompany him in the lake of fire. There, they will all spend eternity in torment, separated from God. To Satan and his angels, this is good; but to the humans there with him, it will be incredibly sad and horrible because this is not God’s will for man.

Satan’s Modes of Operation

Satan works against man through indifference, ignorance, fear, intimidation, harassment, religion, persuasion, deception, and confusion. He operates in darkness because he is the leader of the dark world. This means that he succeeds, and he is most effective where there is ignorance/lack of knowledge, lack of illumination, lack of understanding, confusion, and fear. Frankly speaking, he, on purpose, manipulates situations to cause confusion so he can work his wickedness. Confusion is not of God but of the devil (1 Corinthians 14:33). He blinds people’s minds to the light and the truth of God’s grace—the Gospel of Christ (2 Corinthians 4:4). Darkness here does not mean the absence of sunlight but the absence of the Son’s light from God and the presence of Satan. God is the ultimate light that illuminates the human soul and spirit. Jesus said, I am the Light of the word.

Names of Satan

There are about twenty-one names, commonly used to describe Satan: Lucifer, Satan, Thief, Murderer, Destroyer, Liar, Accuser, Tempter, Wicked one, Fowler, Tormentor, Adversary/Foe, Subtle/sneaky, Prince of Persia, Devil/Evil one, As a roaring lion, god of this world, Prince of this world, As an angel of light, Author of confusion, Dragon/Serpent/Leviathan.

These names represent and describe Satan and his works. There is always a stench of evil when Satan is present. This is the reason man must be spiritually alert by remaining in this covenant of love with God. The believer has an advantage over Satan because of his relationship and constant communication with the Holy Spirit.

God’s Provisions in the Covenant

Psalm 91 contains and covers everything any individual on earth needs, and it is all in the covenant. It embodies all the benefits that come with this covenant in conjunction with other words and promises God has ever spoken to and made with man. These benefits exceedingly outweigh the challenges brought about by the evil one. It is important to understand here that God made this covenant with man—the Man Jesus—in eternity before time began. Then He introduced the same covenant to Abraham and kept it with his descendants in the natural.

This was a continuation of this same covenant made in the spirit with Jesus in heaven. God had to have a natural man, like Abraham, born in sin but with the God-given legal authority to operate on the earth to receive and understand the covenant. His intentions were to bring Jesus into the world eventually as a man through Abraham’s lineage to redeem man. Then He brought us the Gentiles into the covenant through Jesus who is Abraham’s descendant according to biblical genealogy.

This covenant covers man’s entire life regarding his life span in the earth and thereafter. God makes His abundant, undeniable, and unlimited provision available to man in this physical world and in the spirit. These include but are not limited to peace, protection, safety, security, health, healing, guidance, compensation, deliverance, the presence of God, and salvation. All physical, natural, and spiritual provisions are in this covenant for man and the entire creation. The creation waits in eager expectation for the manifestation of the sons of God so that they too would be free (Romans 8:19). This is an everlasting covenant, and God has sworn by Himself an oath to keep it forever. God demonstrated His faithfulness to keep this covenant by raising Jesus from the dead as He promised.

This covenant is totally dependent on God to work when man responds to Him positively. However, only the person who dwells in the secret place of the Most High God can abide under the shadow of the Almighty. This is a profoundly serious and important statement. Please, get this into your heart. The first verse of the psalm sums up the entire psalm and the covenant it establishes. It is the thesis statement of Psalm 91 on which the entire psalm depends and expands. In this relationship between God and man, the man sets up his permanent residence in the secret place of God who is higher than everything and everybody else in every way. He remains or continues there permanently, regardless of what challenges confront him, and refuses to move out. And everything else that happens is as a result of that quality decision and decisive action.

This man’s quality decision to live and settle down in the secret place of the Most High makes it possible for him to take up his residence under the shadow of the Almighty God—El Shaddai. It is that one decision that automatically puts him in that secured position in Christ. Here, God covers him in all areas of his life with the vast provision from His unlimited resources. It may sound oversimplified, but it’s true that God is all we need in this life to succeed. He is the only place we can find and have everything we need in life, genuinely.

God’s provision for this man or any man is so vast, so abundant, and so inexhaustible. If every man in the world came into the same relationship with God, dwelt in His secret place, and drew from this same source for eternity, it would not deplete His storehouse nor bankrupt Him and His love. Child of God, this is what is available to you in this covenant relationship with God when you decide to pay attention and stay in the relationship. This does not in any way advocate materialism but encourages everyone to be bold enough to believe God for the manifestation of the good things He has already provided and made available in Christ.

I personally consider it an act of disobedience and an insult to God for any man to refuse or ignore to believe Him for what He has given to us, freely. Of course, ignorance plays a serious role in man not benefiting from these provisions. They simply do not know that they are there and are for them. Many Christians even think that it is against God’s will for any believer to prosper financially and materially. That is a lie from Satan to stop the church from believing and receiving all the resources that it needs to support and advance the kingdom of God on earth.

If you are seeking shelter under a tree shade in a hot summer day, won’t it be comforting when you find a big one? It makes sense for the object that provides the shelter to be bigger than you are for you to benefit and enjoy your rest in the shade. This psalm tells us that our God in whose secret place we dwell and take shelter under is the Most High and the Almighty. It is comforting and satisfying to know that we have a big God. The shelter of the Almighty God, which comes from His shadow, provides rest, comfort, peace, satisfaction, fulfilment, and rejuvenation. Here, we are not talking about the physical size of God but of His love, might, power, greatness, wisdom, glory, grace, mercy, provision, and everything that the Scriptures say He is.

In the natural, after a satisfactory comfortable rest in the shade of a big tree from working in a hot summer day, you are refreshed and strengthened. You then become more productive than continuing to work when you are weary. Spiritually speaking, you are more productive and can accomplish much more when you rest from your self-effort in the shadow of the Almighty God—Jesus—and His finished works on the cross. Friend, rest and give God the chance to refill and refresh you in His love by His grace.

When we decide to dwell in Jehovah’s secret place, we automatically abide and benefit, period. It also looks to me that there is a prerequisite in the covenant for everyone. And here it is that if anyone desires to abide or remain in the relationship and enjoy all the benefits of the covenant, he must dwell in God’s secret place. That means that though God guarantees this covenant to work by His love for everyone, as earlier mentioned, we must also respond back to Him in love and obedience. It is a one-lane road with God and man coming from opposite directions to meet at the middle—Christ Jesus. It is not a one-way street. This is the only way for the covenant to benefit us as intended by God. If we go our way and ignore His love, this covenant will not work as planned.

In the same way, if we forget or neglect to correspond positively or reciprocate our love to God by faith through Christ, it will not work either. If you miss this one verse, you miss the entire psalm and all the benefits in the relationship. Love is the main ingredient that makes this divine connection to work, just as flour is the main ingredient in a cake. Yet grace will linger in the individual’s life in the days of ignorance and error. Grace will wait until spiritual illumination, knowledge, growth, and development, which engender maturity and a proper loving response are attained in Christ. Grace is best received not deserved.

In other words, if you are not yet connecting and enjoying the benefits of the covenant, don’t worry. Stay in the relationship; and grace, truth, and righteousness (Jesus) will teach you, help you, and wean you off your ignorance and error, and you will benefit.

The Big Difference

This interaction in the covenant is not like under the law. In that old covenant, our works determined God’s response. In this new covenant, God already loved us and provided for us in Christ. Our part is to respond to God’s love with love and in faith, and the provisions will manifest in our lives, when we ask. It is not at all about us doing something to get God to do something for us. When we take this further, we will understand that our love for and faith in God are not big enough to get us anything in the covenant. However, because we are in Christ whose love for and faith in God are perfect, we benefit fully from Christ’s perfection. Praise God.

I believe that this is the revelation and the understanding that Moses, who wrote this psalm, had about God regarding the love covenant relationship. I, truly, believe that he personally experienced God’s love and grace. He received God’s mercy though he was a murderer. He knew, saw, and received God’s love firsthand, and he showed his love to God in return. His love for God motivated him and influenced his decision to accept God’s call and agree to start his ministry to the Hebrews, though he was eighty years old. He, working with God, freed his people from the Egyptian bondage.

We should remember that he tried to begin the process of this freedom forty years prior when he killed an Egyptian for his fellow Hebrew man (Exodus 1:11–15). This was from his self-effort and was untimely when we consider God’s timing. It caused him to flee the country for his life, and this kept him out for forty years. While in hiding, he underwent divine training in love and grace. God used this opportunity to teach him that love, grace, and mercy are more powerful than self-effort, physical prowess, and man-made weapons. He also learned a thing or two about divine intervention, direction, and timing.

Why are we talking about all these? Because man today still fails, including Christians, as they go this same route of works as Moses did earlier. Somebody is always trying to do something to get God to move instead of asking God to show him which way to go. People try to accomplish tasks on their own, even when God has commissioned them. Does this sound like some believers that you know? Or is this you? You received a revelation and instructions from God for a project and you moved prematurely to do it or did it independently without His guidance, only to fail.

Moses showed God his love by ministering to God’s people—his people—the Hebrews. This is the reason he is highly commended in Hebrews 3:2, 5 by the Holy Spirit through Paul as being faithful to God in the house of his fellow Israelites. The same goes for us today. To show and tell that we love God, we must express our love to fellow man and more so to other believers in the Church by the decisions we make and the help we render as we relate to one another. Moses spends the next twelve verses in this psalm reciting, describing, and declaring some of the benefits of this covenant. As earlier mentioned, God Himself summarized the entire provision of the covenant in three verses, 14–16.

A Comparison

Psalm 1:3 describes the person who dwells in the secret place of God. It compares him to a tree planted by the rivers of water. This person is always productive and does not participate in drought-full conditions arising from negative circumstances. He continuously receives nutrients from the rivers. These rivers, I believe, signify the Holy Spirit who indwells a born-again man. He—the Holy Spirit—is there to guide man with wisdom in the path of righteousness. He—the Spirit—enables him to receive the manifestations of God’s available provisions. All of God’s provisions for man are in Him—God and their availability is in Christ.

It is true to say that God is literally in man by His Spirit to meet all his needs in life. The Holy Spirit constrains man from evil while He restrains the devil from touching or overcoming the believer. In other words, the Holy Spirit multitasks between bringing the manifestation of God’s available provisions to us, keeping us away from and out of trouble, and containing Satan from reaching and hurting us. Amen.

The most important thing that man should learn from the tree as he relates to God is that, naturally, it never moves from one spot to another until or unless man transplants it. The tree stands in one place throughout its lifetime. In other words, it abides wherever it germinated and grew. It establishes its root system far and deep to support its growth above the soil and to bring in the nutrients from the soil to support its life. The root system is the life of the plant, and it always grows toward and in search of water. In science, this is called hydrotropism.

In the same way, since man originated from God and, now, he is in this covenant with Him, he should remain in that relationship with the Lord. He should establish his love root system far and deep into the Spirit and into God’s Word to support his Christian growth and maturity. This will help him to receive all the benefits that come with the covenant (Ephesians 3:17–19). Your love root system as a believer is in your heart or born-again spirit, and it always leans toward and seeks after God and His Word, which represents water for the tree.

As the tree depends on the soil for support and nutrients, we believers must believe in and depend on our pure spirit, which now totally links up to the Holy Spirit in our hearts for our support and provision. I am not advocating self-effort; I am promoting total dependence on God who works in our hearts through our spirit by His grace to establish us in His love. We must not allow circumstances and situations (positive or negative) to transplant us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus. I include the positive situation here because sometimes some people have promotion on the job, and that is positive. In the same way, some receive the manifestation of God’s blessings that changes their status in life positively, and they get too busy. Now they have no time to attend church, pray, or give to the Lord as they used to do. They have moved out of the secret place of God, sad to say. Therefore, not only negative circumstances can cause people to backslide.

In Paul’s epistle to the Romans, he asks these questions:

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35)

Then he answers them in verses 38–39:

For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Paul is true to the point here, and I agree with him. He mentions life and angels in those verses, which are positive things. Even good things can separate the believer from the love of God if attention is not given to the Holy Spirit and God’s Word. Again, guidance on how to relate to or use the things that we have from God comes from the Holy Spirit and the Word. I believe that to benefit from this covenant with our God, we must have the same mindset as Paul and stay in God’s love, grace, and in His Word.

Moses

Before leaving this section, it is important to mention here that Moses is the author of Psalm 91 as earlier stated. He led nearly three million Israelites out of the Egyptian bondage and stayed with them for forty years in the wilderness. He dwelt in God’s love and made his abode under the Almighty God who is all he needed and depended on. He had this undeniable covering, protection, safety, security, and provision from God. This is the reason he could stand before the most powerful heathen king in the then known world with just a shepherd’s staff to demand the release of all the Israelites without being killed. The Scriptures tell us that the Hebrews left Egypt with much material goods and in perfect health (Psalm 105:37).

He had a revelation of Jesus Christ and wrote about Him in this psalm. He saw Jesus, the Messiah, as the only man commissioned by God to lead people out of the bondage of sin, evil, and the dominion of Satan as he led his people out of the Egyptian bondage (Deuteronomy 18:15). He is the only mortal man, other than Adam, Eve, and Jesus in His humanity, who saw and enjoyed God’s physical presence. He was meek and had a great wealth of wisdom and revelation from God. He wrote the first five books of the Old Testament, which are fully accurate. Jesus quoted him many times in His teachings and sermons. Much of what he wrote about happened before he was born, but God revealed them to him.

Moses had his share of troubles from the devil through his people. Yet he overcame them all because he loved God and his people. He had a working knowledge of the ministry of angels that he wrote about it in this psalm. Satan even quoted him years later when he tempted Jesus. With this temptation, Satan planned to move Jesus out of God’s love, and therefore, out of God’s will (Matthew 4:5–7). Moses knew and experienced firsthand everything he was talking about in this psalm. In his life and in his death, he enjoyed the ministry of these angels.

Archangel Michael fought against and defeated Satan over Moses’ dead body on the mountain where he died (Jude 1:9). This Moses was a great leader and truly a