ON THE VANGUARD

PSALM 68
“Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee from his presence.”
Psalm 68:1

As we end our month of focusing on just a few of the Psalms, I want to end our time with a look at Psalm 68. Growing up I remember singing the church tune with all the hand motions of, “Let God arise, let God arise. And let His enemies be scattered. And let the righteous be glad. Yes let them rejoice with gladness. God has triumphed mightily.” Although we sang it so many times from my preteen years till the time I left for college, the truth of the song has never been lessened. I feel it engrained in my head and on my spirit. That simple truth is this, when God is lifted up He draws all men unto Him, which pushes us closer to God. As we draw closer, the enemy flees.
Consider with me two places specifically in the Bible where we see this idea. First, I bring us to John 3. The most common verse in John 3 is verse 16. Yet right before this familiar verse we read an additional piece of the conversation between Nicodemus and Yeshua (Jesus). Starting in verse 14, Yeshua states that “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up.” To understand this parallel we must recall the details of Numbers 21. As Israel traveled from Mount Hor to Edom, they grew impatient and angry concerning the lack of food and water once again. So the LORD sent venomous snakes among them which bit the people and caused many to die. The people approached Moses and confessed their sin, requesting also that the snakes be removed. The LORD then said to Moses that he should erect a bronze snake on a pole, lifted up for all the camp to see. If a person was bit going forward, they were to look on the pole and would live.
While this can sound like idol worship, I assure you it was not. The point the LORD was making in having Moses erect the pole was to have the people focus on Him. When He was viewed over the circumstance, the bite of the snake no longer had power. Therefore, when Yeshua spoke with Nicodemus and reiterated to him that if He be lifted up, it was because He wanted to draw the people’s attention unto Him. In getting the people to look on Adonai in Numbers 21 and on Yeshua in John 3, the enemy began to lose his power. As God was rising, the enemy was losing.
But this brings me to the next passage I want to point us to, found in James 4. In James 4:7 we are reminded to resist the devil and he will flee. Isn’t this the same basis that our other two passages just spoke of? In focusing on God we resist the ability to let anything come in our way. This single-mindedness on the LORD is hated by devil and renders him powerless. When he cannot do his evil will, he is resisted and flees as he sees he has no power. Still, James 4:8 goes one step further to remind us that as we draw closer to God, He draws closer to us. This closeness continues to shrink any distance remaining that the enemy can still work to sneak in between. And this closeness is the arising of God in our lives.
So it is with great joy, and expectancy in both your life and mine, that I remind us of Psalm 68:1. “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered; let those who hate him flee from his presence.” How do we resist the enemy and get him to flee? It is by lifting up Adonai and letting Him arise. The enemy has no power in the life of one who is devoted to God. The enemy thinks he does, and he will try to work for that access. But when the door is closed and the resistance is taking place, our lives begin to be transformed into the image of God. Because of this, the enemy will flee from His presence.