Barriers - Psalms 107

Four very specific barriers separate man from God. Each of these barriers is part of our fallen nature, and each requires supernatural grace to overcome. In Psalms 107 we find four pictures that vividly depict these four aspects of our fallenness.

"They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way; they found no city to dwell in. Hungry and thirsty, their soul fainted in them. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them out of their distresses. And He led them forth by the right way, that they might go to a city for a dwelling place. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He satisfies the longing soul, and fills the hungry soul with goodness."

Like these men, all of us are lost...and we don't even realize it. We have no true food, no drink, no shelter for our souls. We may wander in this lostness for years, until somehow we discover there is a God to whom we can cry out. He responds to our cries by leading us to a safe city, where He feeds our souls with His own goodness. In this way, the first barrier, ignorance, is overcome.

"Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death, bound in affliction and irons--because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High, therefore He brought down their heart with labor; they fell down, and there was none to help. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death, and broke their chains in pieces. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! For He has broken the gates of bronze, and cut the bars of iron in two."

Even after we taste of the goodness of God, our nature soon rebels against His word and His counsel. God then "brings down our hearts" with affliction, irons, and the shadow of death. Once again we must reach that place of desperation where we cry out to God. Once again, He mercifully breaks our chains and destroys our prisons, thereby overcoming the barrier of rebellion.

"Fools, because of their transgression, and because of their iniquities, were afflicted. Their soul abhorred all manner of food, and they drew near to the gates of death. Then they cried out to the Lord in their trouble, and He saved them out of their distresses. He sent His word and healed them, and delivered them from their destructions. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving, and declare His works with rejoicing."

In addition to the problem of our resistance to God's word, we also are separated from Him by our foolish indulgences and iniquities. God responds by sending afflictions that torment our bodies and again bring us near death. The means of our salvation is yet the same: we must confess our transgressions and cry out to God to rescue and heal us. Only then can the third barrier, sin, be torn down.

"Those who go down to the sea in ships, who do business on great waters, they see the works of the Lord, and His wonders in the deep. For He commands and raises the stormy wind, which lifts up the waves of the sea. They mount up to the heavens, they go down again to the depths; their soul melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits' end. Then they cry out to the Lord in their trouble, and He brings them out of their distresses. He calms the storm, so that its waves are still. Then they are glad because they are quiet; so He guides them to their desired haven. Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, and praise Him in the company of the elders."

This final picture is interesting. These men are not lost, they are not rebelling, nor are they sinning. They are simply going about their business, and in fact are very aware of the works and wonders of the Lord. Yet once again God sends a deadly storm that brings them to the point of terror and desperation. Only when they cry out does He calm the storm and still the waves.

What is this fourth barrier? I think it is hidden in the little phrase, "at their wits’ end." These men were separated from God by their own self-sufficiency. They were competent sailors who understood the sea. They appreciated what God had made. But they needed to know Him more fully, and we can only know God fully when we come to the end of ourselves.

As we look over these four stories, we see a clear pattern. The barriers that separate us from God rise out of our own nature. Yet only He can tear them down. He will not destroy them, however, until we become profoundly aware of our helplessness, and are humbled enough to cry out to Him.

Once these authentically desperate cries reach His ears, God responds quickly and dramatically. He feeds our hungry souls. He tears down our prisons. He heals our broken bodies. And He guides us to our "desired haven."

As the psalmist says so well, "Oh that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!"