- Joined
- Oct 26, 2007
- Messages
- 12,545
A song for pilgrims ascending to Jerusalem. I look up to the mountains--does my help come from there? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth! Psalm 121:1-2
In the Old Testament, the Hebrews were accustomed to facing Jerusalem—which was built on a mountain—whenever they prayed (see Daniel 6:10). The temple had been built there on Mount Moriah. Judea itself was mountainous. The ark of the covenant once rested on the holy hill of Zion. So, it’s understandable why the Israelites looked to the hills for spiritual help. Other nations believed, in fact, that “the LORD is God of the hills” (1 Kings 20:;28).
But Jeremiah 3:23 declared, “Our worship of idols on the hills and our religious orgies on the mountains are a delusion. Only in the LORD our God will Israel ever find salvation.” Looking to the hills for help was useless.
Modern Christians turn to all sorts of things in search of spiritual help or deliverance: anointed artifacts, crucifixes, a word of knowledge, even statues. Some even elevate pastors, healers, and spiritual gurus. But your power and salvation don’t come from any such activity. It comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Spend some time today taking spiritual inventory. Have you elevated anything or anyone above God? Maybe the better question to ask yourself is, if anything was removed from your life, would you lack spiritual power? If so, you’re depending on that particular object or person too much.
In the Old Testament, the Hebrews were accustomed to facing Jerusalem—which was built on a mountain—whenever they prayed (see Daniel 6:10). The temple had been built there on Mount Moriah. Judea itself was mountainous. The ark of the covenant once rested on the holy hill of Zion. So, it’s understandable why the Israelites looked to the hills for spiritual help. Other nations believed, in fact, that “the LORD is God of the hills” (1 Kings 20:;28).
But Jeremiah 3:23 declared, “Our worship of idols on the hills and our religious orgies on the mountains are a delusion. Only in the LORD our God will Israel ever find salvation.” Looking to the hills for help was useless.
Modern Christians turn to all sorts of things in search of spiritual help or deliverance: anointed artifacts, crucifixes, a word of knowledge, even statues. Some even elevate pastors, healers, and spiritual gurus. But your power and salvation don’t come from any such activity. It comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
Spend some time today taking spiritual inventory. Have you elevated anything or anyone above God? Maybe the better question to ask yourself is, if anything was removed from your life, would you lack spiritual power? If so, you’re depending on that particular object or person too much.
